Deterministic-random separation in nonstationary regime

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abboud, D.; Antoni, J.; Sieg-Zieba, S.; Eltabach, M.

2016-02-01

In rotating machinery vibration analysis, the synchronous average is perhaps the most widely used technique for extracting periodic components. Periodic components are typically related to gear vibrations, misalignments, unbalances, blade rotations, reciprocating forces, etc. Their separation from other random components is essential in vibration-based diagnosis in order to discriminate useful information from masking noise. However, synchronous averaging theoretically requires the machine to operate under stationary regime (i.e. the related vibration signals are cyclostationary) and is otherwise jeopardized by the presence of amplitude and phase modulations. A first object of this paper is to investigate the nature of the nonstationarity induced by the response of a linear time-invariant system subjected to speed varying excitation. For this purpose, the concept of a cyclo-non-stationary signal is introduced, which extends the class of cyclostationary signals to speed-varying regimes. Next, a "generalized synchronous average'' is designed to extract the deterministic part of a cyclo-non-stationary vibration signal-i.e. the analog of the periodic part of a cyclostationary signal. Two estimators of the GSA have been proposed. The first one returns the synchronous average of the signal at predefined discrete operating speeds. A brief statistical study of it is performed, aiming to provide the user with confidence intervals that reflect the "quality" of the estimator according to the SNR and the estimated speed. The second estimator returns a smoothed version of the former by enforcing continuity over the speed axis. It helps to reconstruct the deterministic component by tracking a specific trajectory dictated by the speed profile (assumed to be known a priori).The proposed method is validated first on synthetic signals and then on actual industrial signals. The usefulness of the approach is demonstrated on envelope-based diagnosis of bearings in variable-speed operation.

Experimental evaluation of municipal speed enforcement programs

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1995-08-01

Three California communities were selected to participate in the study on the basis of comparability and isolation from each other. Two of the communities' police departments implemented special speed enforcement programs focused on six zones within ...

Evaluation of 1982 selective speed enforcement projects in Virginia.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1985-01-01

This report describes and evaluates Virginia's FY 1982 selective speed enforcement projects. The state allocates federal monies among competing state and local police agencies to fund their efforts to reduce identified crash problems. As a condition ...

Pilot tests of automated speed enforcement devices and procedures

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1984-02-01

This report concerns the identification of technologies applicable to speed enforcement and an assessment of their potential utility in the United States. The study emphasizes technologies in common use in Europe and elsewhere, but relatively unknown...

The effect of law enforcement deployment patterns on motorists' speeds : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2003-12-01

The combination of increased demands on Oregons transportation system and limited law enforcement resources has led the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) to investigate whether a relationship exists between motorists speeds and law enf...

Variable speed limits system for Elk Mountain corridor.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-10-01

"Determining an appropriate speed for the current conditions can be difficult for the driver. Equally difficult is for law : enforcement agencies to enforce and cite someone going too fast for conditions. In many cases, drivers are cited for going : ...

Variable speed limit system for Elk Mountain corridor.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-10-01

Determining an appropriate speed for the current conditions can be difficult for the driver. Equally difficult is for law : enforcement agencies to enforce and cite someone going too fast for conditions. In many cases, drivers are cited for going : t...

Effects of automated speed enforcement in Montgomery County, Maryland, on vehicle speeds, public opinion, and crashes.

PubMed

Hu, Wen; McCartt, Anne T

2016-09-01

In May 2007, Montgomery County, Maryland, implemented an automated speed enforcement program, with cameras allowed on residential streets with speed limits of 35 mph or lower and in school zones. In 2009, the state speed camera law increased the enforcement threshold from 11 to 12 mph over the speed limit and restricted school zone enforcement hours. In 2012, the county began using a corridor approach, in which cameras were periodically moved along the length of a roadway segment. The long-term effects of the speed camera program on travel speeds, public attitudes, and crashes were evaluated. Changes in travel speeds at camera sites from 6 months before the program began to 7½ years after were compared with changes in speeds at control sites in the nearby Virginia counties of Fairfax and Arlington. A telephone survey of Montgomery County drivers was conducted in Fall 2014 to examine attitudes and experiences related to automated speed enforcement. Using data on crashes during 2004-2013, logistic regression models examined the program's effects on the likelihood that a crash involved an incapacitating or fatal injury on camera-eligible roads and on potential spillover roads in Montgomery County, using crashes in Fairfax County on similar roads as controls. About 7½ years after the program began, speed cameras were associated with a 10% reduction in mean speeds and a 62% reduction in the likelihood that a vehicle was traveling more than 10 mph above the speed limit at camera sites. When interviewed in Fall 2014, 95% of drivers were aware of the camera program, 62% favored it, and most had received a camera ticket or knew someone else who had. The overall effect of the camera program in its modified form, including both the law change and the corridor approach, was a 39% reduction in the likelihood that a crash resulted in an incapacitating or fatal injury. Speed cameras alone were associated with a 19% reduction in the likelihood that a crash resulted in an incapacitating or fatal injury, the law change was associated with a nonsignificant 8% increase, and the corridor approach provided an additional 30% reduction over and above the cameras. This study adds to the evidence that speed cameras can reduce speeding, which can lead to reductions in speeding-related crashes and crashes involving serious injuries or fatalities.

Feedback interventions and driving speed: A parametric and comparative analysis

PubMed Central

Houten, Ron Van; Nau, Paul A.

1983-01-01

Five experiments were conducted to assess the effects of several variables on the efficacy of feedback in reducing driving speed. Experiment 1 systematically varied the criterion used to define speeding, and results showed that the use of a lenient criterion (20 km/hr over the speed limit), which allowed for the posting of high percentages of drivers not speeding, was more effective in reducing speeding than the use of a stringent criterion (10 km/hr over the speed limit). In Experiment 2 an analysis revealed that posting feedback reduced speeding on a limited access highway and the effects persisted to some degree up to 6 km. Experiments 3 and 4 compared the effectiveness of an unmanned parked police vehicle (Experiment 3) and a police air patrol speeding program (Experiment 4) with the feedback sign and determined whether the presence of either of these enforcement variables could potentiate the efficacy of the sign. The results of both experiments demonstrated that although the two enforcement programs initially produced larger effects than the feedback sign, the magnitude of their effect attenuated over time. Experiment 5 compared the effectiveness of a traditional enforcement program with a warning program which included handing out a flier providing feedback on the number and types of accidents occuring on the road during the past year. This experiment demonstrated that the warning program produced a marked reduction in speeding and the traditional enforcement program did not. Furthermore, the warning program and a feedback sign together produced an even greater reduction in speeding than either alone. PMID:16795666

Stated response to increased enforcement density and penalty size for speeding and driving unbelted.

PubMed

Hössinger, Reinhard; Berger, Wolfgang J

2012-11-01

To what extent can traffic offences be reduced through stronger enforcement, higher penalties, and the provision of information to road users? This question was addressed with respect to the offences of "speeding" and "driving unbelted." Data were collected by a telephone survey of admitted speeders, followed by 438 face-to-face stated response interviews. Based on the data collected, separate statistical models were developed for the two offences. The models predict the behavioral effect of increasing enforcement density and/or penalty size as well as the additional effect of providing information to car drivers. All three factors are predicted to be effective in reducing speeding. According to the model, one additional enforcement event per year will cause a driver to reduce his current frequency of speeding by 5%. A penalty increase of 10 Euros is predicted to have the same effect. An announcement of stronger enforcement or higher fines is predicted to have an additional effect on behavior, independent of the actual magnitudes of increase in enforcement or fines. With respect to the use of a seat belt, however, neither an increase in enforcement density nor its announcement is predicted to have a significant effect on driver behavior. An increase in the penalty size is predicted to raise the stated wearing rate, which is already 90% in Austria. It seems that both the fear of punishment and the motivation for driving unbelted are limited, so that there is only a weak tradeoff between the two. This may apply to most traffic offences, with the exception of speeding, which accounts for over 80% of tickets alone, whereas all other offences account for less than 3% each. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Traffic enforcement : funding of automatic red-light and speed enforcement technologies

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2003-02-21

The U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) reviewed photo enforcement by 73 jurisdictions that had been identified by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety as having photo enforcement programs. The GAO developed the data on these programs through ...

An evaluation of Winnipeg's photo enforcement safety program: results of time series analyses and an intersection camera experiment.

PubMed

Vanlaar, Ward; Robertson, Robyn; Marcoux, Kyla

2014-01-01

The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of Winnipeg's photo enforcement safety program on speeding, i.e., "speed on green", and red-light running behavior at intersections as well as on crashes resulting from these behaviors. ARIMA time series analyses regarding crashes related to red-light running (right-angle crashes and rear-end crashes) and crashes related to speeding (injury crashes and property damage only crashes) occurring at intersections were conducted using monthly crash counts from 1994 to 2008. A quasi-experimental intersection camera experiment was also conducted using roadside data on speeding and red-light running behavior at intersections. These data were analyzed using logistic regression analysis. The time series analyses showed that for crashes related to red-light running, there had been a 46% decrease in right-angle crashes at camera intersections, but that there had also been an initial 42% increase in rear-end crashes. For crashes related to speeding, analyses revealed that the installation of cameras was not associated with increases or decreases in crashes. Results of the intersection camera experiment show that there were significantly fewer red light running violations at intersections after installation of cameras and that photo enforcement had a protective effect on speeding behavior at intersections. However, the data also suggest photo enforcement may be less effective in preventing serious speeding violations at intersections. Overall, Winnipeg's photo enforcement safety program had a positive net effect on traffic safety. Results from both the ARIMA time series and the quasi-experimental design corroborate one another. However, the protective effect of photo enforcement is not equally pronounced across different conditions so further monitoring is required to improve the delivery of this measure. Results from this study as well as limitations are discussed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Overt vs. covert speed cameras in combination with delayed vs. immediate feedback to the offender.

PubMed

Marciano, Hadas; Setter, Pe'erly; Norman, Joel

2015-06-01

Speeding is a major problem in road safety because it increases both the probability of accidents and the severity of injuries if an accident occurs. Speed cameras are one of the most common speed enforcement tools. Most of the speed cameras around the world are overt, but there is evidence that this can cause a "kangaroo effect" in driving patterns. One suggested alternative to prevent this kangaroo effect is the use of covert cameras. Another issue relevant to the effect of enforcement countermeasures on speeding is the timing of the fine. There is general agreement on the importance of the immediacy of the punishment, however, in the context of speed limit enforcement, implementing such immediate punishment is difficult. An immediate feedback that mediates the delay between the speed violation and getting a ticket is one possible solution. This study examines combinations of concealment and the timing of the fine in operating speed cameras in order to evaluate the most effective one in terms of enforcing speed limits. Using a driving simulator, the driving performance of the following four experimental groups was tested: (1) overt cameras with delayed feedback, (2) overt cameras with immediate feedback, (3) covert cameras with delayed feedback, and (4) covert cameras with immediate feedback. Each of the 58 participants drove in the same scenario on three different days. The results showed that both median speed and speed variance were higher with overt than with covert cameras. Moreover, implementing a covert camera system along with immediate feedback was more conducive to drivers maintaining steady speeds at the permitted levels from the very beginning. Finally, both 'overt cameras' groups exhibit a kangaroo effect throughout the entire experiment. It can be concluded that an implementation strategy consisting of covert speed cameras combined with immediate feedback to the offender is potentially an optimal way to motivate drivers to maintain speeds at the speed limit. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Calibration of Speed Enforcement Down-The-Road Radars

PubMed Central

Jendzurski, John; Paulter, Nicholas G.

2009-01-01

We examine the measurement uncertainty associated with different methods of calibrating the ubiquitous down-the-road (DTR) radar used in speed enforcement. These calibration methods include the use of audio frequency sources, tuning forks, a fifth wheel attached to the rear of the vehicle with the radar unit, and the speedometer of the vehicle. We also provide an analysis showing the effect of calibration uncertainty on DTR-radar speed measurement uncertainty. PMID:27504217

75 FR 26343 - Request for Expedited Certification and Type Approval of Amtrak Advanced Civil Speed Enforcement...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-05-11

... and Type Approval of Amtrak Advanced Civil Speed Enforcement System (ACSES) In accordance with Part... Administration (FRA) received a request for expedited certification and type approval of the Amtrak ACSES. ACSES... request is described below, including the party seeking certification and type approval of ACSES, the...

Overview of automated enforcement in transportation

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1998-06-01

Automated enforcement is seen by some public agencies as a means to combat aggressive driving behaviors such as speeding or running red lights. Based upon a review of automated enforcement programs worldwide, several elements were found to be importa...

Overall Impact of Speed-Related Initiatives and Factors on Crash Outcomes

PubMed Central

D’Elia, A.; Newstead, S.; Cameron, M.

2007-01-01

From December 2000 until July 2002 a package of speed-related initiatives and factors took place in Victoria, Australia. The broad aim of this study was to evaluate the overall impact of the package on crash outcomes. Monthly crash counts and injury severity proportions were assessed using Poisson and logistic regression models respectively. The model measured the overall effect of the package after adjusting as far as possible for non-speed road safety initiatives and socio-economic factors. The speed-related package was associated with statistically significant estimated reductions in casualty crashes and suggested reductions in injury severity with trends towards increased reductions over time. From December 2000 until July 2002, three new speed enforcement initiatives were implemented in Victoria, Australia. These initiatives were introduced in stages and involved the following key components: More covert operations of mobile speed cameras, including flash-less operations; 50% increase in speed camera operating hours; and lowering of cameras’ speed detection threshold. In addition, during the period 2001 to 2002, the 50 km/h General Urban Speed Limit (GUSL) was introduced (January 2001), there was an increase in speed-related advertising including the “Wipe Off 5” campaign, media announcements were made related to the above enforcement initiatives and there was a speeding penalty restructure. The above elements combine to make up a package of speed-related initiatives and factors. The package represents a broad, long term program by Victorian government agencies to reduce speed based on three linked strategies: more intensive Police enforcement of speed limits to deter potential offenders, i.e. the three new speed enforcement initiatives just described - supported by higher penalties; a reduction in the speed limit on local streets throughout Victoria from 60 km/h to 50 km/h; and provision of information using the mass media (television, radio and billboard) to reinforce the benefits of reducing low level speeding - the central message of “Wipe Off 5”. These strategies were implemented across the entire state of Victoria with the intention of covering as many road users as possible. PMID:18184508

Automated enforcement : a compendium of worldwide evaluations of results

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-03-01

Excessive speeding, red-light-running, and other high-risk behaviors are often associated with crash fatalities and injuries in the United States. Traditional law enforcement alone is not enough to deter high-risk driving behaviors. Automated enforce...

Prevalence, knowledge, attitude and practice of speeding in two districts in Kenya: Thika and Naivasha.

PubMed

Bachani, Abdulgafoor M; Hung, Yuen Wai; Mogere, Stephen; Akungah, Daniel; Nyamari, Jackim; Stevens, Kent A; Hyder, Adnan A

2013-12-01

In Kenya, RTIs had the second highest increase in disability-adjusted life years between 1990 and 2010, compared to other conditions. This study aims to determine the prevalence, knowledge, attitudes and practices for speeding in Thika and Naivasha districts in Kenya. Direct observations of vehicle speed were conducted at various times during the day and different days of the week on six roads selected based on a multi-stage sampling method in two districts to determine the prevalence of speeding. Roadside KAP interviews were administered to drivers, at motorcycle bays, petrol stations, and rest areas. Eight rounds of speed observations and four rounds of KAP interviews were conducted between July 2010 and November 2012. Results from the speeding observational studies show an overall high proportion of vehicles speeding above posted limits in both districts, with an average of 46.8% in Thika and 40.2% in Naivasha. Trend analysis revealed a greater decline in this prevalence in Thika (OR: 0.804, 95% CI: 0.793-0.814) than in Naivasha (OR: 0.932, 95% CI: 0.919-0.945) over the study period. On average, 58.8% of speeding vehicles in Thika and 57.2% of speeding vehicles in Naivasha travelled at 10 km/h or higher above speed limit. While the majority of respondents agreed that speeding is a cause of road traffic crashes in both Thika (70.3%) and Naivasha (68.7%), knowledge of speed limits at the location of the interview was limited. Enforcement levels also remained low, but subsequent rounds of data collection showed improvement, especially in Thika. This study demonstrates an improvement in the prevalence of speeding in two districts of Kenya over 2010-2012. It also highlights the need for further action to be taken to address the problem, and represents new data on speeding in Kenya and Africa. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Speeding in highway work zone: An Evaluation of methods of speed control.

PubMed

Ravani, Bahram; Wang, Chao

2018-04-01

Highway workers frequently work in close proximity of live traffic in highway work zones, traffic accidents therefore have devastating effects on worker safety. In order to reduce the potential for such accidents, methods involving use of advisory signs and police presence have been used to mitigate accident risks and improve safety for highway workers. This research evaluates the magnitude of the speeding problem in highway work zones and the effects of four levels of police presence on improving work zone safety. Speed data were collected in six different work zone locations in northern and southern California and used to determine the magnitude and nature of speeding problem in highway work zones. In addition data were collected over 11 test-days in four work zones with four levels of police presence: radar speed display with police decal and lighting, passive use of a police vehicle with radar speed display, passive use of a police vehicle without radar speed display, and active police speed enforcement near work zones. This paper analyzes this data using statistical methods to evaluate the effectiveness of these different methods of speed control on the safety of the work zone. Four Measures of Effectiveness (MOE) were used in this evaluation consisting of average speed reduction, speed variance, 85th percentile speed, and proportion of high speed vehicles. The results indicate that all levels of police presence provided statistically significant improvements in one or more of the MOEs. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Speed enforcement program guidelines

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-03-01

It is well-established that speeding represents a risk to public safety. Excessive speed increases the likelihood of crashing and the risk of severe injury in a crash. In 2005, more than 13,000 lives were lost in speeding-related crashes. Reducing sp...

Speed enforcement camera systems operational guidelines

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-03-01

The ASE guidelines are intended to serve program managers, administrators, law enforcement, traffic engineers, program evaluators, and other individuals responsible for the strategic vision and daily op-erations of the program. The guidelines are wri...

32 CFR 634.27 - Speed-measuring devices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Speed-measuring devices. 634.27 Section 634.27... CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS MOTOR VEHICLE TRAFFIC SUPERVISION Traffic Supervision § 634.27 Speed-measuring devices. Speed-measuring devices will be used in traffic control studies and enforcement programs. Signs...

Overall impact of speed-related initiatives and factors on crash outcomes.

PubMed

D'Elia, A; Newstead, S; Cameron, M

2007-01-01

From December 2000 until July 2002 a package of speed-related initiatives and factors took place in Victoria, Australia. The broad aim of this study was to evaluate the overall impact of the package on crash outcomes. Monthly crash counts and injury severity proportions were assessed using Poisson and logistic regression models respectively. The model measured the overall effect of the package after adjusting as far as possible for non-speed road safety initiatives and socio-economic factors. The speed-related package was associated with statistically significant estimated reductions in casualty crashes and suggested reductions in injury severity with trends towards increased reductions over time. From December 2000 until July 2002, three new speed enforcement initiatives were implemented in Victoria, Australia. These initiatives were introduced in stages and involved the following key components: More covert operations of mobile speed cameras, including flash-less operations; 50% increase in speed camera operating hours; and lowering of cameras' speed detection threshold. In addition, during the period 2001 to 2002, the 50 km/h General Urban Speed Limit (GUSL) was introduced (January 2001), there was an increase in speed-related advertising including the "Wipe Off 5" campaign, media announcements were made related to the above enforcement initiatives and there was a speeding penalty restructure. The above elements combine to make up a package of speed-related initiatives and factors. The package represents a broad, long term program by Victorian government agencies to reduce speed based on three linked strategies: more intensive Police enforcement of speed limits to deter potential offenders, i.e. the three new speed enforcement initiatives just described - supported by higher penalties; a reduction in the speed limit on local streets throughout Victoria from 60 km/h to 50 km/h; and provision of information using the mass media (television, radio and billboard) to reinforce the benefits of reducing low level speeding - the central message of "Wipe Off 5". These strategies were implemented across the entire state of Victoria with the intention of covering as many road users as possible. This study aimed to evaluate the overall effectiveness of the speed-related package. The study objectives were: to document the increased speed camera activity in each speed limit zone and in Melbourne compared with the rest of Victoria; to evaluate the overall effect on crash outcomes of the package; to account as far as possible for the effect on crash outcomes of non-speed road safety initiatives and socio-economic factors, which would otherwise influence the speed-related package evaluation; and to examine speed trends in Melbourne and on Victorian rural highways, especially the proportions of vehicles travelling at excessive speeds. This paper presents the results of the evaluation of the overall impact on crash outcomes associated with the speed-related package, after adjusting as far as possible for the effect of non-speed road safety initiatives and socio-economic factors. D'Elia, Newstead and Cameron (2007) document the study results in full.

Toward Greater Understanding of the Relationship between Public Perceptions of Speed, Speed Laws, and Safety

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2018-02-01

Speed continues to be a leading factor contributing to traffic fatalities in the U.S., implicated in over 9,500 deaths in 2015. Despite this, in recent years, some states have moved toward more lenient speed enforcement regimes. A public choice probl...

Evaluation of the city of Scottsdale loop 101 photo enforcement demonstration program.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-11-01

Speeding is recognized as one of the most important factors causing traffic crashes. In 2005, 30% of all fatal : crashes were speeding-related (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 2005). According to NHTSA, : the cost of speed-related cras...

7 CFR 1400.502 - Compliance and enforcement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... AND SUBSEQUENT CROP, PROGRAM, OR FISCAL YEARS Average Adjusted Gross Income Limitation § 1400.502 Compliance and enforcement. (a) To comply with the average adjusted gross income limitation, a person or... CCC from a certified public accountant or attorney that the average adjusted gross income of the...

Field test of the impact of setting and enforcing rational speed limits : final report for Gulfport, Mississippi--demonstration community

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-10-01

To address concerns regarding the need to restore credibility to speed limits, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) jointly undertook tests of rational speed limits, which have...

More cops more stops: evaluation of a combined HVE program in Oklahoma and Tennessee.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-10-01

The More Cops More Stops (MCMS) high-visibility enforcement program was designed to address multiple traffic safety : issues with one message and program effort. Impaired driving, seat belt, and speeding enforcement were conducted and : advertised us...

Analysis of VASCAR

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1991-05-01

This study is part of an effort by the National Highway Traffic Safety : Administration (NHTSA) to determine the accuracy of the VASCAR-plus speed measurement device. VASCAR-plus is used extensively for speed law enforcement by state and local police...

Demonstration and Evaluation of the Heed the Speed Pedestrian Safety Program

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-07-01

This study built upon the work of Blomberg and Cleven (2006) in Arizona, where they developed and pilot-tested the concept of Heed the Speed, a neighborhood-based combination of enforcement, education, and modest engineering designed to reduce vehicl...

32 CFR 634.27 - Speed-measuring devices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... devices. Speed-measuring devices will be used in traffic control studies and enforcement programs. Signs.... (v) Demonstrate basic skills in checking calibration and operating the specific radar instrument(s). (vi) Demonstrate basic skills in preparing and presenting records and courtroom testimony relating to...

Summary Report: Visitor Safety and Security at Corps of Engineers Projects.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-10-01

23 Incident Reporting System. ..... .............. 23 Contract Law Enforcement ...... .............. 25 Project Management...average length of stay being 3.3 days. Contract Law Enforcement Conclusions , The Corps’ contract law enforcement program is extremely fragile in terms...to prohibit the public display alcoholic beverages and consumption of alcoholic beverages. Use contract law initiate law enforcement contracts

Who cares about a camera if you are not speeding?

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1999-06-19

Speeding is a hazard on both busy highways and city streets, but regular police enforcement does not work very well since dense and fast moving traffic makes it both difficult and dangerous for officers to make traditional traffic stops. The paper di...

75 FR 61096 - Regulated Navigation Area; Reserved Channel, Boston Harbor, Boston, MA

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-04

... transiting the RNA must do so at such a speed as to maintain bare steerage or not cause a wake. Vessels... the RNA to provide notice of the RNA as well as to control vessel speed, vessel access to the Reserved... will be enforced: (1) Vessels must transit through the RNA at such a speed as to not cause a wake or...

Examining the impact of ASE (automated speed enforcement) in work zones on driver attention : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-01-01

Each year, there are over 500 fatal crashes in work zones in the U.S., with over 100 road construction workers : killed on work sites (NSC, 2011; FARS, 2011). Speed and distraction are among the top contributing factors to : work zone crashes (Garber...

Not slowing down | Center for Cancer Research

Cancer.gov

Nine and-a-half-year-old Travis Carpenter gets a lot of speeding tickets. (He stresses that “and-a-half” part, too). These speeding tickets don’t come from a law enforcement officer but Jesse, one of his nurses at the NIH Clinical Center. Travis uses a power chair that he’s adorned with racing stickers, and his speeding tickets come from him zooming down the Clinical Center’s

Post-crackdown effectiveness of field-based forest law enforcement in the Brazilian Amazon.

PubMed

Börner, Jan; Kis-Katos, Krisztina; Hargrave, Jorge; König, Konstantin

2015-01-01

Regulatory enforcement of forest conservation laws is often dismissed as an ineffective approach to reducing tropical forest loss. Yet, effective enforcement is often a precondition for alternative conservation measures, such as payments for environmental services, to achieve desired outcomes. Fair and efficient policies to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) will thus crucially depend on understanding the determinants and requirements of enforcement effectiveness. Among potential REDD candidate countries, Brazil is considered to possess the most advanced deforestation monitoring and enforcement infrastructure. This study explores a unique dataset of over 15 thousand point coordinates of enforcement missions in the Brazilian Amazon during 2009 and 2010, after major reductions of deforestation in the region. We study whether local deforestation patterns have been affected by field-based enforcement and to what extent these effects vary across administrative boundaries. Spatial matching and regression techniques are applied at different spatial resolutions. We find that field-based enforcement operations have not been universally effective in deterring deforestation during our observation period. Inspections have been most effective in reducing large-scale deforestation in the states of Mato Grosso and Pará, where average conservation effects were 4.0 and 9.9 hectares per inspection, respectively. Despite regional and actor-specific heterogeneity in inspection effectiveness, field-based law enforcement is highly cost-effective on average and might be enhanced by closer collaboration between national and state-level authorities.

Post-Crackdown Effectiveness of Field-Based Forest Law Enforcement in the Brazilian Amazon

PubMed Central

Börner, Jan; Kis-Katos, Krisztina; Hargrave, Jorge; König, Konstantin

2015-01-01

Regulatory enforcement of forest conservation laws is often dismissed as an ineffective approach to reducing tropical forest loss. Yet, effective enforcement is often a precondition for alternative conservation measures, such as payments for environmental services, to achieve desired outcomes. Fair and efficient policies to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) will thus crucially depend on understanding the determinants and requirements of enforcement effectiveness. Among potential REDD candidate countries, Brazil is considered to possess the most advanced deforestation monitoring and enforcement infrastructure. This study explores a unique dataset of over 15 thousand point coordinates of enforcement missions in the Brazilian Amazon during 2009 and 2010, after major reductions of deforestation in the region. We study whether local deforestation patterns have been affected by field-based enforcement and to what extent these effects vary across administrative boundaries. Spatial matching and regression techniques are applied at different spatial resolutions. We find that field-based enforcement operations have not been universally effective in deterring deforestation during our observation period. Inspections have been most effective in reducing large-scale deforestation in the states of Mato Grosso and Pará, where average conservation effects were 4.0 and 9.9 hectares per inspection, respectively. Despite regional and actor-specific heterogeneity in inspection effectiveness, field-based law enforcement is highly cost-effective on average and might be enhanced by closer collaboration between national and state-level authorities. PMID:25875656

40 CFR 63.11567 - Who implements and enforces this subpart?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... enforces this subpart? (a) This subpart can be implemented and enforced by us, the U.S. Environmental... * * * And maintain a * * * 1. A thermal oxidizer Combustion zone temperature The 3-hour average combustion zone temperature at or above the operating value established as specified in § 63.11562(a)(2) and (b)(2...

40 CFR 63.11567 - Who implements and enforces this subpart?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... enforces this subpart? (a) This subpart can be implemented and enforced by us, the U.S. Environmental... * * * And maintain a * * * 1. A thermal oxidizer Combustion zone temperature The 3-hour average combustion zone temperature at or above the operating value established as specified in § 63.11562(a)(2) and (b)(2...

40 CFR 63.11567 - Who implements and enforces this subpart?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... enforces this subpart? (a) This subpart can be implemented and enforced by us, the U.S. Environmental... * * * And maintain a * * * 1. A thermal oxidizer Combustion zone temperature The 3-hour average combustion zone temperature at or above the operating value established as specified in § 63.11562(a)(2) and (b)(2...

Key Problems of Fire Safety Enforcement in Traffic and Communication Centers (TCC)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Medyanik, M.; Zosimova, O.

2017-10-01

A Traffic and Communication Center (TCC) means facilities designed and used to distribute and redirect flows of humans and motor vehicles while they get serviced and operate. This paper sets forth the basic problems of fire safety enforcement on the TCC, and the causes that slow down human and vehicle traffic speeds. It proposes ways to solve the problems of fire safety enforcement on the TCC, in the Russian Federation and elsewhere. Engineering solutions are proposed for TCC design, with key outlooks of TCC future development as an alternative way to organize access in transportation.

Comparison of three methods for wind turbine capacity factor estimation.

PubMed

Ditkovich, Y; Kuperman, A

2014-01-01

Three approaches to calculating capacity factor of fixed speed wind turbines are reviewed and compared using a case study. The first "quasiexact" approach utilizes discrete wind raw data (in the histogram form) and manufacturer-provided turbine power curve (also in discrete form) to numerically calculate the capacity factor. On the other hand, the second "analytic" approach employs a continuous probability distribution function, fitted to the wind data as well as continuous turbine power curve, resulting from double polynomial fitting of manufacturer-provided power curve data. The latter approach, while being an approximation, can be solved analytically thus providing a valuable insight into aspects, affecting the capacity factor. Moreover, several other merits of wind turbine performance may be derived based on the analytical approach. The third "approximate" approach, valid in case of Rayleigh winds only, employs a nonlinear approximation of the capacity factor versus average wind speed curve, only requiring rated power and rotor diameter of the turbine. It is shown that the results obtained by employing the three approaches are very close, enforcing the validity of the analytically derived approximations, which may be used for wind turbine performance evaluation.

77 FR 67391 - Notice of Proposed Supplementary Rules on Public Land in Water Canyon, Humboldt County, NV

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-11-09

... speed limit is proposed because there have been numerous accidents along the main access/canyon road in Zone 1. These accidents have primarily been a result of excess speed due to no posted or enforceable..., or irritant gas device. Motor vehicle includes, but is not limited to, automobiles, motorcycles, all...

Do Speed Cameras Produce Net Benefits? Evidence from British Columbia, Canada

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Greg; Warburton, Rebecca N.

2006-01-01

Traffic collisions kill about 43,000 Americans a year. Worldwide, road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death by injury and the ninth leading cause of all deaths. Photo Radar speed enforcement has been implemented in the United States and many other industrialized countries, yet its cost-effectiveness from a societal viewpoint, taking all…

Informing road traffic intervention choices in South Africa: the role of economic evaluations

PubMed Central

Wesson, Hadley K.H.; Boikhutso, Nkuli; Hyder, Adnan A.; Bertram, Melanie; Hofman, Karen J.

2016-01-01

Introduction Given the burden of road traffic injuries (RTIs) in South Africa, economic evaluations of prevention interventions are necessary for informing and prioritising public health planning and policy with regard to road safety. Methods In view of the dearth of RTI cost analysis, and in order to understand the extent to which RTI-related costs in South Africa compare with those in other low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), we reviewed published economic evaluations of RTI-related prevention in LMICs. Results Thirteen articles were identified, including cost-of-illness and cost-effectiveness studies. Although RTI-related risk factors in South Africa are well described, costing studies are limited. There is minimal information, most of which is not recent, with nothing at all on societal costs. Cost-effective interventions for RTIs in LMICs include bicycle and motorcycle helmet enforcement, traffic enforcement, and the construction of speed bumps. Discussion Policy recommendations from studies conducted in LMICs suggest a number of cost-effective interventions for consideration in South Africa. They include speed bumps for pedestrian safety, strategically positioned speed cameras, traffic enforcement such as the monitoring of seatbelt use, and breathalyzer interventions. However, interventions introduced in South Africa will need to be based either on South African cost-effectiveness data or on findings adapted from similar middle-income country settings. PMID:27396485

49 CFR 1.88 - The Federal Railroad Administration.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

...) Promoting and strengthening the national rail system, including freight rail and high speed and higher... rail projects through the enforcement of Buy America provisions; and (h) Strengthening local...

49 CFR 1.88 - The Federal Railroad Administration.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

...) Promoting and strengthening the national rail system, including freight rail and high speed and higher... rail projects through the enforcement of Buy America provisions; and (h) Strengthening local...

49 CFR 1.88 - The Federal Railroad Administration.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

...) Promoting and strengthening the national rail system, including freight rail and high speed and higher... rail projects through the enforcement of Buy America provisions; and (h) Strengthening local...

Comparison of crashes during public holidays and regular weekends.

PubMed

Anowar, Sabreena; Yasmin, Shamsunnahar; Tay, Richard

2013-03-01

Traffic collisions and fatalities during the holiday festive periods are apparently on the rise in Alberta, Canada, despite the enhanced enforcement and publicity campaigns conducted during these periods. Using data from 2004 to 2008, this research identifies the factors that delineate between crashes that occur during public holidays and those occurring during normal weekends. We find that fatal and injury crashes are over-represented during holidays. Amongst the three risky behaviors targeted in the holiday blitzes (driver intoxication, unsafe speeding and restraint use), non-use of restraint is more prevalent whereas driver intoxication and unsafe speeding are less prevalent during holidays. The mixed results obtained suggest that it may be time to consider a more balanced approach to the enhanced enforcement and publicity campaigns. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mind your step: metabolic energy cost while walking an enforced gait pattern.

PubMed

Wezenberg, D; de Haan, A; van Bennekom, C A M; Houdijk, H

2011-04-01

The energy cost of walking could be attributed to energy related to the walking movement and energy related to balance control. In order to differentiate between both components we investigated the energy cost of walking an enforced step pattern, thereby perturbing balance while the walking movement is preserved. Nine healthy subjects walked three times at comfortable walking speed on an instrumented treadmill. The first trial consisted of unconstrained walking. In the next two trials, subject walked while following a step pattern projected on the treadmill. The steps projected were either composed of the averaged step characteristics (periodic trial), or were an exact copy including the variability of the steps taken while walking unconstrained (variable trial). Metabolic energy cost was assessed and center of pressure profiles were analyzed to determine task performance, and to gain insight into the balance control strategies applied. Results showed that the metabolic energy cost was significantly higher in both the periodic and variable trial (8% and 13%, respectively) compared to unconstrained walking. The variation in center of pressure trajectories during single limb support was higher when a gait pattern was enforced, indicating a more active ankle strategy. The increased metabolic energy cost could originate from increased preparatory muscle activation to ensure proper foot placement and a more active ankle strategy to control for lateral balance. These results entail that metabolic energy cost of walking can be influenced significantly by control strategies that do not necessary alter global gait characteristics. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

49 CFR 390.5 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... history of a driver generated from the driver record, provided to users, such as, drivers or employers... beams or any other future speed measurement technology employed by enforcement personnel to measure the...

Crash involvement of motor vehicles in relationship to the number and severity of traffic offenses. An exploratory analysis of Dutch traffic offenses and crash data.

PubMed

Goldenbeld, Charles; Reurings, Martine; Van Norden, Yvette; Stipdonk, Henk

2013-01-01

To establish the statistical relationship between offenses and crashes when the unit of analysis is the vehicle instead of the driver, to show the influence of the severity (e.g., minor speed offenses) on this relationship, and to research whether the form of this relationship is similar in different enforcement contexts. An exploratory analysis was conducted using Dutch traffic offense and crash data. Crash data included all police-registered crashes involving motorized and registered vehicles in 2009; offense data included all non-criminal traffic offenses registered during 2005-2009 (mostly camera detected). Together these comprise an estimated 97 percent of all traffic offenses registered in this period. The analysis was done on a level of identified vehicles rather than persons. Vehicles involved in crashes were matched to vehicles involved in traffic offenses. The offense frequency distributions of registered crash involved vehicles and a random selection of vehicles was analyzed. Two comparisons were made: (1) privately owned vehicles versus company-owned vehicles and (2) vehicles for which only minor speed offenses were registered versus vehicles for which at least one major speed offense was registered. An increase in traffic offense frequency coincides with a stronger increase in relative crash involvement. This relationship was adequately described by a power function. The slightly more than linear increase in the crash risk for vehicles with only minor speed offenses suggests that minor speed offenses (<10 km/h over the limit) contributed slightly to crashes. This relationship was unlikely to be caused by increased distance traveled only. For vehicles with at least one or more major speed violation an approximately quadratic increase of crash risk with increasing speed offense frequency was found. A comparison of Dutch and Canadian data showed a much more progressive offense-crash relationship in the Dutch data. The crash involvement of vehicles increased more than linearly with the number of minor traffic violations. Thus, automatic detection of minor offenses bears relevance to safety. The substantial increase in crash rates with speed offense frequency for vehicles with at least one major speed violation suggests that these vehicles represent a specific group with a significantly increased crash risk, especially in the case of many minor offenses. The more progressive relationship between offenses and crashes in The Netherlands when compared to Canada was hypothesized to result from the higher intensity camera enforcement levels and less severe consequences in the Dutch enforcement and adjudication system.

49 CFR 535.9 - Enforcement approach.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... balance is based upon the engines or vehicles performance above or below the applicable regulatory... consumption data for vehicles or engines covered under this rule, noncompliance will be assumed until... NHTSA Enforcement determines that a manufacturer's averaging set of vehicles or engines fails to comply...

Comparison of Three Methods for Wind Turbine Capacity Factor Estimation

PubMed Central

Ditkovich, Y.; Kuperman, A.

2014-01-01

Three approaches to calculating capacity factor of fixed speed wind turbines are reviewed and compared using a case study. The first “quasiexact” approach utilizes discrete wind raw data (in the histogram form) and manufacturer-provided turbine power curve (also in discrete form) to numerically calculate the capacity factor. On the other hand, the second “analytic” approach employs a continuous probability distribution function, fitted to the wind data as well as continuous turbine power curve, resulting from double polynomial fitting of manufacturer-provided power curve data. The latter approach, while being an approximation, can be solved analytically thus providing a valuable insight into aspects, affecting the capacity factor. Moreover, several other merits of wind turbine performance may be derived based on the analytical approach. The third “approximate” approach, valid in case of Rayleigh winds only, employs a nonlinear approximation of the capacity factor versus average wind speed curve, only requiring rated power and rotor diameter of the turbine. It is shown that the results obtained by employing the three approaches are very close, enforcing the validity of the analytically derived approximations, which may be used for wind turbine performance evaluation. PMID:24587755

Patrol car and agent tracking/suspect tagging and tracking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilkins, Steven C.

1997-01-01

Emerging technologies in the field of law enforcement are providing today's law enforcement personnel with the advantage of an innovative and faster means of providing safety and service to the public. The use of open such technology, the Automatic Vehicle Locator (AVL) tracking device, is fast becoming a commonplace and cost-effective solution for agencies to efficiently command and control their 'officer' assets. Through the use of AVL's global positioning satellite-based system, the response time of law enforcement is greatly enhanced by permitting a dispatcher to visually identify and assign the officer closest to the location of an accident or incident. The system is effective in reducing delays due to highway blockages, improving the level of protection to the motoring public, and promoting the flow of traffic on busy freeways. Likewise, an officer or agent in distress can be assured that a dispatcher will be constantly aware of his or her location in the field. In the 1990's the demands on law enforcement agencies have grown tremendously. this is due primarily to population increases, limited funding or resources, and increases in drug, property and violent crimes. Frequently, the automobile is used for escape after the commission of these crimes. This often results in high speed pursuits involving law enforcement agencies. In California, by statute, the California Highway Patrol is the central repository for data regarding all pursuits involving state and local law enforcement agencies. Statistics show that more than 10 percent of pursuits result in injuries to the violator and/or innocent bystanders. Most pursuits last less than 10 minutes, and the AVL system provides a tremendous advantage to law enforcement's ability to immediately deploy and direct units into pursuits for rapid closure of the incident. AVL systems not only reduce the risk of personal injury by minimizing public exposure to the unsafe incident, but also enhance officer safety during the high speed chase by pinpointing officer deployment. Officer safety is a primary concern for all law enforcement agencies, nationwide. In addition to the aforementioned benefits of AVL, this system ensures that dispatchers are continually aware of an officer's location. This is a critical feature for an officer who is unable to verbally provide his/her location over the radio due to adversarial or injury circumstances. AVL technology is neither rate nor risky, and it is fast becoming an accepted and cost-effective solution in law enforcement agencies, large and small. The challenge to industry is not merely the development of new AVL technology, but also the ease in which it will integrate with existing law enforcement systems.

Impact of distraction on the driving performance of adolescents with and without attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

PubMed

Narad, Megan; Garner, Annie A; Brassell, Anne A; Saxby, Dyani; Antonini, Tanya N; O'Brien, Kathleen M; Tamm, Leanne; Matthews, Gerald; Epstein, Jeffery N

2013-10-01

This study extends the literature regarding attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)-related driving impairments to a newly licensed, adolescent population. To investigate the combined risks of adolescence, ADHD, and distracted driving (cell phone conversation and text messaging) on driving performance. Adolescents aged 16 to 17 years with (n = 28) and without (n = 33) ADHD engaged in a simulated drive under 3 conditions (no distraction, cell phone conversation, and texting). During each condition, one unexpected event (eg, another car suddenly merging into driver's lane) was introduced. Cell phone conversation, texting, and no distraction while driving. Self-report of driving history, average speed, standard deviation of speed, standard deviation of lateral position, and braking reaction time during driving simulation. Adolescents with ADHD reported fewer months of driving experience and a higher proportion of driving violations than control subjects. After controlling for months of driving history, adolescents with ADHD demonstrated more variability in speed and lane position than control subjects. There were no group differences for braking reaction time. Furthermore, texting negatively impacted the driving performance of all participants as evidenced by increased variability in speed and lane position. To our knowledge, this study is one of the first to investigate distracted driving in adolescents with ADHD and adds to a growing body of literature documenting that individuals with ADHD are at increased risk for negative driving outcomes. Furthermore, texting significantly impairs the driving performance of all adolescents and increases existing driving-related impairment in adolescents with ADHD, highlighting the need for education and enforcement of regulations against texting for this age group.

Practical automatic Arabic license plate recognition system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohammad, Khader; Agaian, Sos; Saleh, Hani

2011-02-01

Since 1970's, the need of an automatic license plate recognition system, sometimes referred as Automatic License Plate Recognition system, has been increasing. A license plate recognition system is an automatic system that is able to recognize a license plate number, extracted from image sensors. In specific, Automatic License Plate Recognition systems are being used in conjunction with various transportation systems in application areas such as law enforcement (e.g. speed limit enforcement) and commercial usages such as parking enforcement and automatic toll payment private and public entrances, border control, theft and vandalism control. Vehicle license plate recognition has been intensively studied in many countries. Due to the different types of license plates being used, the requirement of an automatic license plate recognition system is different for each country. [License plate detection using cluster run length smoothing algorithm ].Generally, an automatic license plate localization and recognition system is made up of three modules; license plate localization, character segmentation and optical character recognition modules. This paper presents an Arabic license plate recognition system that is insensitive to character size, font, shape and orientation with extremely high accuracy rate. The proposed system is based on a combination of enhancement, license plate localization, morphological processing, and feature vector extraction using the Haar transform. The performance of the system is fast due to classification of alphabet and numerals based on the license plate organization. Experimental results for license plates of two different Arab countries show an average of 99 % successful license plate localization and recognition in a total of more than 20 different images captured from a complex outdoor environment. The results run times takes less time compared to conventional and many states of art methods.

The effect of age on the racing speed of Thoroughbred racehorses

PubMed Central

TAKAHASHI, Toshiyuki

2015-01-01

ABSTRACT The running performance of Thoroughbred racehorses has been reported to peak when they are between 4 and 5 years old. However, changes in their racing speed by month or season have not been reported. The purposes of this study were to reveal the average racing speed of Thoroughbreds, and observe changes in their average speed with age. The surveyed races were flat races on turf and dirt tracks with firm or standard track conditions held by the Japan Racing Association from January 1st, 2002 to December 31st, 2010. The racing speed of each horse was calculated by dividing the race distance (m) by the horse’s final time (sec). Average speeds per month for each age and distance condition were calculated for each gender group when there were 30 or more starters per month for each age and distance condition for each gender group. The common characteristic change for all conditions was an average speed increase up until the first half of the age of 4 years old. The effect of increased carry weight on average speed was small, and average speed increased with the growth of the horse. After the latter half of the age of 4 years old, the horses’ average speed remained almost constant, with little variation. It is speculated that decreases in the weight carried; and the retirement of less well performing horses; are responsible for the maintenance of average speed. PMID:26170760

Finding the average speed of a light-emitting toy car with a smartphone light sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kapucu, Serkan

2017-07-01

This study aims to demonstrate how the average speed of a light-emitting toy car may be determined using a smartphone’s light sensor. The freely available Android smartphone application, ‘AndroSensor’, was used for the experiment. The classroom experiment combines complementary physics knowledge of optics and kinematics to find the average speed of a moving object. The speed of the toy car is found by determining the distance between the light-emitting toy car and the smartphone, and the time taken to travel these distances. To ensure that the average speed of the toy car calculated with the help of the AndroSensor was correct, the average speed was also calculated by analyzing video-recordings of the toy car. The resulting speeds found with these different methods were in good agreement with each other. Hence, it can be concluded that reliable measurements of the average speed of light-emitting objects can be determined with the help of the light sensor of an Android smartphone.

U27 : real-time commercial vehicle safety & security monitoring final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-12-01

Accurate real-time vehicle tracking has a wide range of applications including fleet management, drug/speed/law enforcement, transportation planning, traffic safety, air quality, electronic tolling, and national security. While many alternative track...

Speedboat Propeller Injuries

PubMed Central

Sleight, M. W.

1974-01-01

Six patients are reported who were severely injured by high-speed boat propellers. With reasonable precautions such accidents need never occur, and people should be more aware of these and ensure that safety measures are enforced. ImagesFIG. 1FIG. 2 PMID:4835301

Not slowing down | Center for Cancer Research

Cancer.gov

Nine and-a-half-year-old Travis Carpenter gets a lot of speeding tickets. (He stresses that “and-a-half” part, too). These speeding tickets don’t come from a law enforcement officer but Jesse, one of his nurses at the NIH Clinical Center. Travis uses a power chair that he’s adorned with racing stickers, and his speeding tickets come from him zooming down the Clinical Center’s hallways, dodging the steady traffic of doctors, nurses, patients and families. He loves all things racing, NASCAR and pit crews. Neurofibromatosis type 1 isn’t slowing him down. Read more...

78 FR 6348 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comments Requested: Application...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-30

...; DEA Forms 510 and 510a ACTION: 30-Day notice. The Department of Justice (DOJ), Drug Enforcement... collection: Form number: DEA Forms 510 and 510a. Component: Office of Diversion Control, Drug Enforcement... average respondent to respond: Total hour Respondents Burden (minutes) burden @ $50.14/hour = DEA-510...

40 CFR 62.15205 - What minimum amount of monitoring data must I collect with my continuous emission monitoring...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... must I collect with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is this requirement enforceable? 62... with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is this requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous emission monitoring systems are required, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages. Make sure the...

40 CFR 62.15205 - What minimum amount of monitoring data must I collect with my continuous emission monitoring...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... must I collect with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is this requirement enforceable? 62... with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is this requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous emission monitoring systems are required, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages. Make sure the...

40 CFR 62.15280 - What minimum amount of monitoring data must I collect with my continuous parameter monitoring...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... must I collect with my continuous parameter monitoring systems and is this requirement enforceable? 62... with my continuous parameter monitoring systems and is this requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous parameter monitoring systems are used, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages for three parameters: (1...

40 CFR 62.15280 - What minimum amount of monitoring data must I collect with my continuous parameter monitoring...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... must I collect with my continuous parameter monitoring systems and is this requirement enforceable? 62... with my continuous parameter monitoring systems and is this requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous parameter monitoring systems are used, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages for three parameters: (1...

A speed limit compliance model for dynamic speed display sign.

PubMed

Ardeshiri, Anam; Jeihani, Mansoureh

2014-12-01

Violating speed limits is a major cause of motor vehicle crashes. Various techniques have been adopted to ensure that posted speed limits are obeyed by drivers. This study investigates the effect of dynamic speed display signs (DSDSs) on drivers' compliance with posted speed limit. An extensive speed data collection upstream of, adjacent to, and downstream of DSDS locations on multiple road classes with different speed limits (25, 35, and 45 mph) was performed short-term and long-term after DSDS installation. Conventional statistical analysis, regression models, and a Bayesian network were developed to assess the DSDS's effectiveness. General compliance with speed limit (upstream of the DSDS location), time of day, day of week, duration of DSDS operation, and distance from the DSDS location were significantly correlated with speed limit compliance adjacent to the DSDS. While compliance with the speed limit due to the DSDS increased by 5%, speed reduction occurred in 40% of the cases. Since drivers were likely to increase their speed after passing the DSDS, it should be installed on critical points supplemented with enforcement. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of Surface Passivation on Gliding Motility Assays

PubMed Central

Maloney, Andy; Herskowitz, Lawrence J.; Koch, Steven J.

2011-01-01

In this study, we report differences in the observed gliding speed of microtubules dependent on the choice of bovine casein used as a surface passivator. We observed differences in both speed and support of microtubules in each of the assays. Whole casein, comprised of αs1, αs2, β, and κ casein, supported motility and averaged speeds of 966±7 nm/s. Alpha casein can be purchased as a combination of αs1 and αs2 and supported gliding motility and average speeds of 949±4 nm/s. Beta casein did not support motility very well and averaged speeds of 870±30 nm/s. Kappa casein supported motility very poorly and we were unable to obtain an average speed. Finally, we observed that mixing alpha, beta, and kappa casein with the proportions found in bovine whole casein supported motility and averaged speeds of 966±6 nm/s. PMID:21674032

Officials nationwide give a green light to automated traffic enforcement

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2000-03-11

There has been resistance to using cameras to automatically identify vehicles driven by motorists who run red lights and drive faster than the posted speed limits. Fairness, privacy, and "big brother" have been cited as reasons. The article examines ...

The Impact of Distraction on the Driving Performance of Adolescents with and without Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

PubMed Central

Narad, Megan; Garner, Annie A.; Brassell, Anne A.; Saxby, Dyani; Antonini, Tanya N.; O'Brien, Kathleen M.; Tamm, Leanne; Matthews, Gerald; Epstein, Jeffery N.

2013-01-01

Importance This study extends the literature regarding Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) related driving impairments to a newly-licensed, adolescent population. Objective To investigate the combined risks of adolescence, ADHD, and distracted driving (cell phone conversation and text messaging) on driving performance. Design Adolescents with and without ADHD engaged in a simulated drive under three conditions (no distraction, cell phone conversation, texting). During each condition, one unexpected event (e.g., car suddenly merging into driver's lane) was introduced. Setting Driving simulator. Participants Adolescents aged 16–17 with ADHD (n=28) and controls (n=33). Interventions/Main Exposures Cell phone conversation, texting, and no distraction while driving. Outcome Measures Self-report of driving history; Average speed, standard deviation of speed, standard deviation of lateral position, braking reaction time during driving simulation. Results Adolescents with ADHD reported fewer months of driving experience and a higher proportion of driving violations than controls. After controlling for months of driving history, adolescents with ADHD demonstrated more variability in speed and lane position than controls. There were no group differences for braking reaction time. Further, texting negatively impacted the driving performance of all participants as evidenced by increased variability in speed and lane position. Conclusions This study, one of the first to investigate distracted driving in adolescents with ADHD, adds to a growing body of literature documenting that individuals with ADHD are at increased risk for negative driving outcomes. Furthermore, texting significantly impairs the driving performance of all adolescents and increases existing driving-related impairment in adolescents with ADHD, highlighting the need for education and enforcement of regulations against texting for this age group. PMID:23939758

PTC test bed upgrades to provide ACSES testing support capabilities at transportation technology center.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2015-06-01

FRA Task Order 314 upgraded the Positive Train Control (PTC) Test Bed at the Transportation Technology Center to support : testing of PTC systems, components, and related equipment associated with the Advanced Civil Speed Enforcement System : (ACSES)...

Timescale Halo: Average-Speed Targets Elicit More Positive and Less Negative Attributions than Slow or Fast Targets

PubMed Central

Hernandez, Ivan; Preston, Jesse Lee; Hepler, Justin

2014-01-01

Research on the timescale bias has found that observers perceive more capacity for mind in targets moving at an average speed, relative to slow or fast moving targets. The present research revisited the timescale bias as a type of halo effect, where normal-speed people elicit positive evaluations and abnormal-speed (slow and fast) people elicit negative evaluations. In two studies, participants viewed videos of people walking at a slow, average, or fast speed. We find evidence for a timescale halo effect: people walking at an average-speed were attributed more positive mental traits, but fewer negative mental traits, relative to slow or fast moving people. These effects held across both cognitive and emotional dimensions of mind and were mediated by overall positive/negative ratings of the person. These results suggest that, rather than eliciting greater perceptions of general mind, the timescale bias may reflect a generalized positivity toward average speed people relative to slow or fast moving people. PMID:24421882

Forensic imaging tools for law enforcement

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

SMITHPETER,COLIN L.; SANDISON,DAVID R.; VARGO,TIMOTHY D.

2000-01-01

Conventional methods of gathering forensic evidence at crime scenes are encumbered by difficulties that limit local law enforcement efforts to apprehend offenders and bring them to justice. Working with a local law-enforcement agency, Sandia National Laboratories has developed a prototype multispectral imaging system that can speed up the investigative search task and provide additional and more accurate evidence. The system, called the Criminalistics Light-imaging Unit (CLU), has demonstrated the capabilities of locating fluorescing evidence at crime scenes under normal lighting conditions and of imaging other types of evidence, such as untreated fingerprints, by direct white-light reflectance. CLU employs state ofmore » the art technology that provides for viewing and recording of the entire search process on videotape. This report describes the work performed by Sandia to design, build, evaluate, and commercialize CLU.« less

Aggressive driving video and non-contact enforcement (ADVANCE): drivers' reaction to violation notices : summary of survey results

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2001-01-01

ADVANCE is an integration of state of the practice, off-the-shelf technologies which include video, speed measurement, distance measurement, and digital imaging that detects UDAs in the traffic stream and subsequently notifies violators by ma...

Speeds of coronal mass ejections: SMM observations from 1980 and 1984-1989

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hundhausen, A. J.; Burkepile, J. T.; St. Cyr, O. C.

1994-01-01

The speeds of 936 features in 673 coronal mass ejections have been determined from trajectories observed with the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM) coronagraph in 1980 and 1984 to 1989. The distribution of observed speeds has a range (from 5th to 95th percentile) of 35 to 911 km/s; the average and median speeds are 349 and 285 km/s. The speed distributions of some selected classes of mass ejections are significantly different. For example, the speeds of 331 'outer loops' range from 80 to 1042 km/s; the average and median speeds for this class of ejections are 445 and 372 km/s. The speed distributions from each year of SMM observations show significant changes, with the annual average speeds varying from 157 (1984) to 458 km/s (1985). These variations are not simply related to the solar activity cycle; the annual averages from years near the sunspot maxima and minimum are not significantly different. The widths, latitudes, and speeds of mass ejections determined from the SMM observations are only weakly correlated. In particular, mass ejection speeds vary only slightly with the heliographic latitudes of the ejection. High-latitude ejections, which occur well poleward of the active latitudes, have speeds similar to active latitude ejections.

Enforcing the Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy condition in explicitly conservative local time stepping schemes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gnedin, Nickolay Y.; Semenov, Vadim A.; Kravtsov, Andrey V.

2018-04-01

An optimally efficient explicit numerical scheme for solving fluid dynamics equations, or any other parabolic or hyperbolic system of partial differential equations, should allow local regions to advance in time with their own, locally constrained time steps. However, such a scheme can result in violation of the Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy (CFL) condition, which is manifestly non-local. Although the violations can be considered to be "weak" in a certain sense and the corresponding numerical solution may be stable, such calculation does not guarantee the correct propagation speed for arbitrary waves. We use an experimental fluid dynamics code that allows cubic "patches" of grid cells to step with independent, locally constrained time steps to demonstrate how the CFL condition can be enforced by imposing a constraint on the time steps of neighboring patches. We perform several numerical tests that illustrate errors introduced in the numerical solutions by weak CFL condition violations and show how strict enforcement of the CFL condition eliminates these errors. In all our tests the strict enforcement of the CFL condition does not impose a significant performance penalty.

Hacking the Silos: Eliminating Information Barriers Between Public Health and Law Enforcement

DTIC Science & Technology

2018-03-01

ELIMINATING INFORMATION BARRIERS BETWEEN PUBLIC HEALTH AND LAW ENFORCEMENT by Cody L. Minks March 2018 Thesis Advisor: Anke Richter...burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instruction, searching...existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information . Send comments regarding this

Rapid assessment of road safety policy change: relaxation of the national speed enforcement law in Russia leads to large increases in the prevalence of speeding.

PubMed

Bhalla, Kavi; Paichadze, Nino; Gupta, Shivam; Kliavin, Vladimir; Gritsenko, Elena; Bishai, David; Hyder, Adnan A

2015-02-01

Reducing vehicle speed is among the most effective road safety strategies. We assess how a new policy in Russia that eliminates fines for driving up to 20 km/h above the speed limit has affected the prevalence of speeding. We measured speeds periodically in 13 districts of two Russian regions during 2011-2013 and analysed the effect of the policy using difference-in-differences to control for seasonality. We find that the prevalence of speeding was declining steadily but half of the gains since mid-2011 were lost immediately after the new policy. Overall speeding increased significantly by 13 percentage points (pp, 95% CI 4 to 19). Speeding more than 10 km/h above the limit increased significantly by 10 pp (95% CI 2 to 12), and extreme speeding increased but not significantly (1.7 pp, 95% CI -1.1 to 4.5). Road traffic injuries will likely increase in Russia unless speeding fines are reinstated. 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.

Applying Workspace Limitations in a Velocity-Controlled Robotic Mechanism

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abdallah, Muhammad E. (Inventor); Hargrave, Brian (Inventor); Platt, Robert J., Jr. (Inventor)

2014-01-01

A robotic system includes a robotic mechanism responsive to velocity control signals, and a permissible workspace defined by a convex-polygon boundary. A host machine determines a position of a reference point on the mechanism with respect to the boundary, and includes an algorithm for enforcing the boundary by automatically shaping the velocity control signals as a function of the position, thereby providing smooth and unperturbed operation of the mechanism along the edges and corners of the boundary. The algorithm is suited for application with higher speeds and/or external forces. A host machine includes an algorithm for enforcing the boundary by shaping the velocity control signals as a function of the reference point position, and a hardware module for executing the algorithm. A method for enforcing the convex-polygon boundary is also provided that shapes a velocity control signal via a host machine as a function of the reference point position.

Photo radar speed enforcement in a state highway work zone : demonstration project Yeon Avenue.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-04-01

The 2007 Oregon legislative assembly passed House Bill 2466, allowing the Oregon Department of Transportation to use photo radar in ODOT work zones on non-interstate state highways and required ODOT to report back to them on the safety impacts of thi...

Drivers' biased perceptions of speed and safety campaign messages.

PubMed

Walton, D; McKeown, P C

2001-09-01

One hundred and thirteen drivers were surveyed for their perceptions of driving speed to compare self-reported average speed, perceived average-other speed and the actual average speed, in two conditions (50 and 100 kph zones). These contrasts were used to evaluate whether public safety messages concerning speeding effectively reach their target audience. Evidence is presented supporting the hypothesis that drivers who have a biased perception of their own speed relative to others are more likely to ignore advertising campaigns encouraging people not to speed. A method of self-other-actual comparisons detects biased perceptions when the standard method of self-other comparison does not. In particular, drivers exaggerate the perceived speed of others and this fact is masked using traditional methods. The method of manipulation is proposed as a way to evaluate the effect of future advertising campaigns, and a strategy for such campaigns is proposed based on the results of the self-other comparisons.

5 CFR 842.405 - Air traffic controllers, firefighters, law enforcement officers, and nuclear materials couriers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

...— (a) One and seven-tenths percent of average pay multiplied by 20 years; plus (b) One percent of average pay multiplied by the years of service exceeding 20 years. [52 FR 4475, Feb. 11, 1987, as amended...

5 CFR 842.405 - Air traffic controllers, firefighters, law enforcement officers, and nuclear materials couriers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

...— (a) One and seven-tenths percent of average pay multiplied by 20 years; plus (b) One percent of average pay multiplied by the years of service exceeding 20 years. [52 FR 4475, Feb. 11, 1987, as amended...

Analytical expressions for maximum wind turbine average power in a Rayleigh wind regime

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

Carlin, P.W.

Average or expectation values for annual power of a wind turbine in a Rayleigh wind regime are calculated and plotted as a function of cut-out wind speed. This wind speed is expressed in multiples of the annual average wind speed at the turbine installation site. To provide a common basis for comparison of all real and imagined turbines, the Rayleigh-Betz wind machine is postulated. This machine is an ideal wind machine operating with the ideal Betz power coefficient of 0.593 in a Rayleigh probability wind regime. All other average annual powers are expressed in fractions of that power. Cases consideredmore » include: (1) an ideal machine with finite power and finite cutout speed, (2) real machines operating in variable speed mode at their maximum power coefficient, and (3) real machines operating at constant speed.« less

Influence of Vehicle Speed on the Characteristics of Driver's Eye Movement at a Highway Tunnel Entrance during Day and Night Conditions: A Pilot Study.

PubMed

Qin, Li; Dong, Li-Li; Xu, Wen-Hai; Zhang, Li-Dong; Leon, Arturo S

2018-04-02

The aim of this study was to investigate how vehicle speed influences the characteristics of driver's eye movement at highway tunnel entrances during day and night. In this study, six drivers' eye movement data (from 200 m before tunnel entrance to 200 m inside tunnel entrance) under five predetermined vehicle speeds (40, 50, 60, 70 and 80 km/h) in the daytime and three predetermined vehicle speeds (40, 60 and 80 km/h) in the nighttime were recorded using the non-intrusive Dikablis Professional eye-tracking system. Pupil size, the average fixation duration time and the average number of fixation were analyzed and then the influence of the vehicle speed on these parameters was evaluated by means of IBM SPSS Statistics 20.0. The results for pupil size in daytime increased when approaching the tunnel entrance, while as for nighttime, pupil size decreased when approaching the tunnel entrance and then increased after entering the tunnel. The pupil size in daytime has a significant negative correlation with vehicle speed, while the pupil size in nighttime did not show a significant association with vehicle speed. Furthermore, the average fixation duration in daytime increased when entering the tunnel, and had a significant negative correlation with vehicle speed. Also, the average number of fixations in daytime decreased when entering the tunnel and has a significant negative correlation with vehicle speed. However, the average fixation duration and the average number of fixations in nighttime did not show any significant association with vehicle speed. Moreover, limitations and future directions of the study are discussed for the further investigation.

Influence of Vehicle Speed on the Characteristics of Driver’s Eye Movement at a Highway Tunnel Entrance during Day and Night Conditions: A Pilot Study

PubMed Central

Dong, Li-Li; Xu, Wen-Hai; Zhang, Li-Dong; Leon, Arturo S.

2018-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate how vehicle speed influences the characteristics of driver’s eye movement at highway tunnel entrances during day and night. In this study, six drivers’ eye movement data (from 200 m before tunnel entrance to 200 m inside tunnel entrance) under five predetermined vehicle speeds (40, 50, 60, 70 and 80 km/h) in the daytime and three predetermined vehicle speeds (40, 60 and 80 km/h) in the nighttime were recorded using the non-intrusive Dikablis Professional eye-tracking system. Pupil size, the average fixation duration time and the average number of fixation were analyzed and then the influence of the vehicle speed on these parameters was evaluated by means of IBM SPSS Statistics 20.0. The results for pupil size in daytime increased when approaching the tunnel entrance, while as for nighttime, pupil size decreased when approaching the tunnel entrance and then increased after entering the tunnel. The pupil size in daytime has a significant negative correlation with vehicle speed, while the pupil size in nighttime did not show a significant association with vehicle speed. Furthermore, the average fixation duration in daytime increased when entering the tunnel, and had a significant negative correlation with vehicle speed. Also, the average number of fixations in daytime decreased when entering the tunnel and has a significant negative correlation with vehicle speed. However, the average fixation duration and the average number of fixations in nighttime did not show any significant association with vehicle speed. Moreover, limitations and future directions of the study are discussed for the further investigation. PMID:29614793

The Use of Satellite Imagery for Domestic Law Enforcement

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-12-01

AND SUBTITLE THE USE OF SATELLITE IMAGERY FOR DOMESTIC LAW ENFORCEMENT 5. FUNDING NUMBERS 6. AUTHOR( S ) Raymond M. Schillinger...Postgraduate School is a true honor. The opportunity to attend the Center for Homeland Security and Defense is one of those pinnacles that will be hard to...information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instruction, searching existing data sources, gathering and

A Vehicular Mobile Standard Instrument for Field Verification of Traffic Speed Meters Based on Dual-Antenna Doppler Radar Sensor

PubMed Central

Du, Lei; Sun, Qiao; Cai, Changqing; Bai, Jie; Fan, Zhe; Zhang, Yue

2018-01-01

Traffic speed meters are important legal measuring instruments specially used for traffic speed enforcement and must be tested and verified in the field every year using a vehicular mobile standard speed-measuring instrument to ensure speed-measuring performances. The non-contact optical speed sensor and the GPS speed sensor are the two most common types of standard speed-measuring instruments. The non-contact optical speed sensor requires extremely high installation accuracy, and its speed-measuring error is nonlinear and uncorrectable. The speed-measuring accuracy of the GPS speed sensor is rapidly reduced if the amount of received satellites is insufficient enough, which often occurs in urban high-rise regions, tunnels, and mountainous regions. In this paper, a new standard speed-measuring instrument using a dual-antenna Doppler radar sensor is proposed based on a tradeoff between the installation accuracy requirement and the usage region limitation, which has no specified requirements for its mounting distance and no limitation on usage regions and can automatically compensate for the effect of an inclined installation angle on its speed-measuring accuracy. Theoretical model analysis, simulated speed measurement results, and field experimental results compared with a GPS speed sensor with high accuracy showed that the dual-antenna Doppler radar sensor is effective and reliable as a new standard speed-measuring instrument. PMID:29621142

A Vehicular Mobile Standard Instrument for Field Verification of Traffic Speed Meters Based on Dual-Antenna Doppler Radar Sensor.

PubMed

Du, Lei; Sun, Qiao; Cai, Changqing; Bai, Jie; Fan, Zhe; Zhang, Yue

2018-04-05

Traffic speed meters are important legal measuring instruments specially used for traffic speed enforcement and must be tested and verified in the field every year using a vehicular mobile standard speed-measuring instrument to ensure speed-measuring performances. The non-contact optical speed sensor and the GPS speed sensor are the two most common types of standard speed-measuring instruments. The non-contact optical speed sensor requires extremely high installation accuracy, and its speed-measuring error is nonlinear and uncorrectable. The speed-measuring accuracy of the GPS speed sensor is rapidly reduced if the amount of received satellites is insufficient enough, which often occurs in urban high-rise regions, tunnels, and mountainous regions. In this paper, a new standard speed-measuring instrument using a dual-antenna Doppler radar sensor is proposed based on a tradeoff between the installation accuracy requirement and the usage region limitation, which has no specified requirements for its mounting distance and no limitation on usage regions and can automatically compensate for the effect of an inclined installation angle on its speed-measuring accuracy. Theoretical model analysis, simulated speed measurement results, and field experimental results compared with a GPS speed sensor with high accuracy showed that the dual-antenna Doppler radar sensor is effective and reliable as a new standard speed-measuring instrument.

Movement measurements at home for multiple sclerosis: walking speed measured by a novel ambient measurement system.

PubMed

Smith, Victoria Mj; Varsanik, Jonathan S; Walker, Rachel A; Russo, Andrew W; Patel, Kevin R; Gabel, Wendy; Phillips, Glenn A; Kimmel, Zebadiah M; Klawiter, Eric C

2018-01-01

Gait disturbance is a major contributor to clinical disability in multiple sclerosis (MS). A sensor was developed to assess walking speed at home for people with MS using infrared technology in real-time without the use of wearables. To develop continuous in-home outcome measures to assess gait in adults with MS. Movement measurements were collected continuously for 8 months from six people with MS. Average walking speed and peak walking speed were calculated from movement data, then analyzed for variability over time, by room (location), and over the course of the day. In-home continuous gait outcomes and variability were correlated with standard in-clinic gait outcomes. Measured in-home average walking speed of participants ranged from 0.33 m/s to 0.96 m/s and peak walking speed ranged from 0.89 m/s to 1.51 m/s. Mean total within-participant coefficient of variation for daily average walking speed and peak walking speed were 10.75% and 10.93%, respectively. Average walking speed demonstrated a moderately strong correlation with baseline Timed 25-Foot Walk (r s  = 0.714, P  = 0.111). New non-wearable technology provides reliable and continuous in-home assessment of walking speed.

Intelligent Hybrid Vehicle Power Control - Part 1: Machine Learning of Optimal Vehicle Power

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-06-30

time window ),[ tWt DT : vave, vmax, vmin, ac, vst and vend, where the first four parameters are, respectively, the average speed, maximum speed...minimum speed and average acceleration, during the time period ),[ tWt DT , vst is the vehicle speed at )( DTWt  , and vend is the vehicle

50 CFR 600.504 - Facilitation of enforcement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

..., 2182 kHz (SSB) radiotelephone, message block from an aircraft, flashing light or flag signals from the... “You should proceed at slow speed, a boat is coming to you”. (iii) “SQ3”, meaning “You should stop or... aircraft, flashing light signal, flaghoist, or loudhailer constitutes a violation of this subpart. (3) The...

78 FR 59231 - Regulated Navigation Area-Tappan Zee Bridge Construction Project, Hudson River; South Nyack and...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-26

... 1625-AA11 Regulated Navigation Area--Tappan Zee Bridge Construction Project, Hudson River; South Nyack... Hudson River surrounding the Tappan Zee Bridge. This temporary interim rule allows the Coast Guard to enforce speed and wake restrictions and prohibit all vessel traffic through the RNA during bridge...

78 FR 53668 - Regulated Navigation Area; Maine Kennebec Bridge Construction Zone, Kennebec River, Richmond, ME

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-30

...-AA11 Regulated Navigation Area; Maine Kennebec Bridge Construction Zone, Kennebec River, Richmond, ME... surrounding the Maine Kennebec Bridge between Richmond, ME, and Dresden, ME. This RNA allows the Coast Guard to enforce speed and wake restrictions and prohibit all vessel traffic through the RNA during bridge...

Traffic-law enforcement and risk of death from motor-vehicle crashes: case-crossover study.

PubMed

Redelmeier, Donald A; Tibshirani, Robert J; Evans, Leonard

2003-06-28

Driving offences and traffic deaths are common in countries with high rates of motor-vehicle use. We tested whether traffic convictions, because of their direct effect on the recipient, might be associated with a reduced risk of fatal motor-vehicle crashes. We identified licensed drivers in Ontario, Canada, who had been involved in fatal crashes in the past 11 years. We used the case-crossover design to analyse the protective effect of recent convictions on individual drivers. 8975 licensed drivers had fatal crashes during the study period. 21501 driving convictions were recorded for all drivers from the date of obtaining a full licence to the date of fatal crash, equivalent to about one conviction per driver every 5 years. The risk of a fatal crash in the month after a conviction was about 35% lower than in a comparable month with no conviction for the same driver (95% CI 20-45, p=0.0002). The benefit lessened substantially by 2 months and was not significant by 3-4 months. The benefit was not altered by age, previous convictions, and other personal characteristics; was greater for speeding violations with penalty points than speeding violations without points; was no different for crashes of differing severity; and was not seen in drivers whose licences were suspended. Traffic-law enforcement effectively reduces the frequency of fatal motor-vehicle crashes in countries with high rates of motor-vehicle use. Inconsistent enforcement, therefore, may contribute to thousands of deaths each year worldwide.

Comparative analyses of bicyclists and motorcyclists in vehicle collisions focusing on head impact responses.

PubMed

Wang, Xinghua; Peng, Yong; Yi, Shengen

2017-11-01

To investigate the differences of the head impact responses between bicyclists and motorcyclists in vehicle collisions. A series of vehicle-bicycle and vehicle-motorcycle lateral impact simulations on four vehicle types at seven vehicle speeds (30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55 and 60 km/h) and three two-wheeler moving speeds (5, 7.5 and 10 km/h for bicycle, 10, 12.5 and 15 km/h for motorcycle) were established based on PC-Crash software. To further comprehensively explore the differences, additional impact scenes with other initial conditions, such as impact angle (0, π/3, 2π/3 and π) and impact position (left, middle and right part of vehicle front-end), also were supplemented. And then, extensive comparisons were accomplished with regard to average head peak linear acceleration, average head impact speed, average head peak angular acceleration, average head peak angular speed and head injury severity. The results showed there were prominent differences of kinematics and body postures for bicyclists and motorcyclists even under same impact conditions. The variations of bicyclist head impact responses with the changing of impact conditions were a far cry from that of motorcyclists. The average head peak linear acceleration, average head impact speed and average head peak angular acceleration values were higher for motorcyclists than for bicyclists in most cases, while the bicyclists received greater average head peak angular speed values. And the head injuries of motorcyclists worsened faster with increased vehicle speed. The results may provide even deeper understanding of two-wheeler safety and contribute to improve the public health affected by road traffic accidents.

Popping a Hole in High-Speed Pursuits

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2005-01-01

NASA s Plum Brook Station, a 6,400-acre, remote test installation site for Glenn Research Center, houses unique, world-class test facilities, including the world s largest space environment simulation chamber and the world s only laboratory capable of full-scale rocket engine firings and launch vehicle system level tests at high-altitude conditions. Plum Brook Station performs complex and innovative ground tests for the U.S. Government (civilian and military), the international aerospace community, as well as the private sector. Popping a Hole in High-Speed Pursuits Recently, Plum Brook Station s test facilities and NASA s engineering experience were combined to improve a family of tire deflating devices (TDDs) that helps law enforcement agents safely, simply, and successfully stop fleeing vehicles in high-speed pursuit

Predicting Average Vehicle Speed in Two Lane Highways Considering Weather Condition and Traffic Characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mirbaha, Babak; Saffarzadeh, Mahmoud; AmirHossein Beheshty, Seyed; Aniran, MirMoosa; Yazdani, Mirbahador; Shirini, Bahram

2017-10-01

Analysis of vehicle speed with different weather condition and traffic characteristics is very effective in traffic planning. Since the weather condition and traffic characteristics vary every day, the prediction of average speed can be useful in traffic management plans. In this study, traffic and weather data for a two-lane highway located in Northwest of Iran were selected for analysis. After merging traffic and weather data, the linear regression model was calibrated for speed prediction using STATA12.1 Statistical and Data Analysis software. Variables like vehicle flow, percentage of heavy vehicles, vehicle flow in opposing lane, percentage of heavy vehicles in opposing lane, rainfall (mm), snowfall and maximum daily wind speed more than 13m/s were found to be significant variables in the model. Results showed that variables of vehicle flow and heavy vehicle percent acquired the positive coefficient that shows, by increasing these variables the average vehicle speed in every weather condition will also increase. Vehicle flow in opposing lane, percentage of heavy vehicle in opposing lane, rainfall amount (mm), snowfall and maximum daily wind speed more than 13m/s acquired the negative coefficient that shows by increasing these variables, the average vehicle speed will decrease.

Enforcing the Courant–Friedrichs–Lewy condition in explicitly conservative local time stepping schemes

DOE PAGES

Gnedin, Nickolay Y.; Semenov, Vadim A.; Kravtsov, Andrey V.

2018-01-30

In this study, an optimally efficient explicit numerical scheme for solving fluid dynamics equations, or any other parabolic or hyperbolic system of partial differential equations, should allow local regions to advance in time with their own, locally constrained time steps. However, such a scheme can result in violation of the Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy (CFL) condition, which is manifestly non-local. Although the violations can be considered to be "weak" in a certain sense and the corresponding numerical solution may be stable, such calculation does not guarantee the correct propagation speed for arbitrary waves. We use an experimental fluid dynamics code that allows cubicmore » "patches" of grid cells to step with independent, locally constrained time steps to demonstrate how the CFL condition can be enforced by imposing a condition on the time steps of neighboring patches. We perform several numerical tests that illustrate errors introduced in the numerical solutions by weak CFL condition violations and show how strict enforcement of the CFL condition eliminates these errors. In all our tests the strict enforcement of the CFL condition does not impose a significant performance penalty.« less

78 FR 67026 - Special Local Regulations; Recurring Marine Events in the Seventh Coast Guard District

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-11-08

... special local regulations pertaining to the Key West World Championship in the Atlantic Ocean, off Key...-speed boat races. The special local regulations establish regulated areas on the waters of the Key West Main Ship Channel, Key West Turning Basin, and Key West Harbor Entrance. During the enforcement period...

76 FR 22809 - Safety Zone; Bay Ferry II Maritime Security Exercise; San Francisco Bay, San Francisco, CA

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-04-25

...-AA00 Safety Zone; Bay Ferry II Maritime Security Exercise; San Francisco Bay, San Francisco, CA AGENCY... Security Exercise, a multi-agency exercise that tests the proficiency of teams called upon in real [[Page... exercise, many of whom will be traveling at high speeds while interfacing with law enforcement responders...

Prevention of all-terrain vehicle injuries: A systematic review from The Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma.

PubMed

Rattan, Rishi; Joseph, D'Andrea K; Dente, Christopher J; Klein, Eric N; Kimbrough, Mary K; Nguyen, Jonathan; Simmons, Jon D; O'Keeffe, Terence; Crandall, Marie

2018-06-01

Despite increasing usage since their introduction, there exist no evidence-based guidelines on all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and injury prevention. While the power and speed of these vehicles has increased over time, advancements in ATV safety have been rare. A priori questions about ATV injury pattern and the effect of helmet and safety equipment use and legislation mandating use were developed. A query of MEDLINE, PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Embase for all-terrain vehicle injury was performed. Letters to the editor, case reports, book chapters, and review articles were excluded. Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation methodology was used to perform a systematic review and create recommendations. Twenty-eight studies were included. Helmet use reduced traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, studies examining whether legislation mandating helmet use reduced TBI had mixed results. When ATV safety legislation was enforced, overall injury rates and mortality decreased. However, enforcement varied widely and lack of enforcement led to decreased compliance with legislation and mixed results. There was not enough evidence to determine the effectiveness of non-helmet-protective equipment. Helmet use when riding an ATV reduced the rate of TBI. ATV safety legislation, when enforced, also reduced morbidity and mortality. Compliance with laws is often low, however, possibly due to poor enforcement. We recommend helmet use when riding on an ATV to reduce TBI. We conditionally recommend implementing ATV safety legislation as a means to reduce ATV injuries, noting that enforcement must go hand in hand with enactment to ensure compliance.

Effects of red light camera enforcement on fatal crashes in large U.S. cities.

PubMed

Hu, Wen; McCartt, Anne T; Teoh, Eric R

2011-08-01

To estimate the effects of red light camera enforcement on per capita fatal crash rates at intersections with signal lights. From the 99 large U.S. cities with more than 200,000 residents in 2008, 14 cities were identified with red light camera enforcement programs for all of 2004-2008 but not at any time during 1992-1996, and 48 cities were identified without camera programs during either period. Analyses compared the citywide per capita rate of fatal red light running crashes and the citywide per capita rate of all fatal crashes at signalized intersections during the two study periods, and rate changes then were compared for cities with and without cameras programs. Poisson regression was used to model crash rates as a function of red light camera enforcement, land area, and population density. The average annual rate of fatal red light running crashes declined for both study groups, but the decline was larger for cities with red light camera enforcement programs than for cities without camera programs (35% vs. 14%). The average annual rate of all fatal crashes at signalized intersections decreased by 14% for cities with camera programs and increased slightly (2%) for cities without cameras. After controlling for population density and land area, the rate of fatal red light running crashes during 2004-2008 for cities with camera programs was an estimated 24% lower than what would have been expected without cameras. The rate of all fatal crashes at signalized intersections during 2004-2008 for cities with camera programs was an estimated 17% lower than what would have been expected without cameras. Red light camera enforcement programs were associated with a statistically significant reduction in the citywide rate of fatal red light running crashes and a smaller but still significant reduction in the rate of all fatal crashes at signalized intersections. The study adds to the large body of evidence that red light camera enforcement can prevent the most serious crashes. Communities seeking to reduce crashes at intersections should consider this evidence. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Compliance with vessel speed restrictions to protect North Atlantic right whales.

PubMed

Silber, Gregory K; Adams, Jeffrey D; Fonnesbeck, Christopher J

2014-01-01

Environmental regulations can only be effective if they are adhered to, but the motivations for regulatory compliance are not always clear. We assessed vessel operator compliance with a December 2008 regulation aimed at reducing collisions with the endangered North Atlantic right whale that requires vessels 65 feet or greater in length to travel at speeds of 10 knots or less at prescribed times and locations along the U.S. eastern seaboard. Extensive outreach efforts were undertaken to notify affected entities both before and after the regulation went into effect. Vessel speeds of 201,862 trips made between November 2008 and August 2013 by 8,009 individual vessels were quantified remotely, constituting a nearly complete census of transits made by the regulated population. Of these, 437 vessels (or their parent companies), some of whom had been observed exceeding the speed limit, were contacted through one of four non-punitive information programs. A fraction (n = 26 vessels/companies) received citations and fines. Despite the efforts to inform mariners, initial compliance was low (<5% of the trips were completely <10 knots) but improved in the latter part of the study. Each notification/enforcement program improved compliance to some degree and some may have influenced compliance across the entire regulated community. Citations/fines appeared to have the greatest influence on improving compliance in notified vessels/companies, followed in order of effectiveness by enforcement-office information letters, monthly summaries of vessel operations, and direct at-sea radio contact. Trips by cargo vessels exhibited the greatest change in behavior followed by tanker and passenger vessels. These results have application to other regulatory systems, especially where remote monitoring is feasible, and any setting where regulatory compliance is sought.

Compliance with vessel speed restrictions to protect North Atlantic right whales

PubMed Central

Adams, Jeffrey D.; Fonnesbeck, Christopher J.

2014-01-01

Environmental regulations can only be effective if they are adhered to, but the motivations for regulatory compliance are not always clear. We assessed vessel operator compliance with a December 2008 regulation aimed at reducing collisions with the endangered North Atlantic right whale that requires vessels 65 feet or greater in length to travel at speeds of 10 knots or less at prescribed times and locations along the U.S. eastern seaboard. Extensive outreach efforts were undertaken to notify affected entities both before and after the regulation went into effect. Vessel speeds of 201,862 trips made between November 2008 and August 2013 by 8,009 individual vessels were quantified remotely, constituting a nearly complete census of transits made by the regulated population. Of these, 437 vessels (or their parent companies), some of whom had been observed exceeding the speed limit, were contacted through one of four non-punitive information programs. A fraction (n = 26 vessels/companies) received citations and fines. Despite the efforts to inform mariners, initial compliance was low (<5% of the trips were completely <10 knots) but improved in the latter part of the study. Each notification/enforcement program improved compliance to some degree and some may have influenced compliance across the entire regulated community. Citations/fines appeared to have the greatest influence on improving compliance in notified vessels/companies, followed in order of effectiveness by enforcement-office information letters, monthly summaries of vessel operations, and direct at-sea radio contact. Trips by cargo vessels exhibited the greatest change in behavior followed by tanker and passenger vessels. These results have application to other regulatory systems, especially where remote monitoring is feasible, and any setting where regulatory compliance is sought. PMID:24949229

Speed ratio but cabin temperature positively correlated with increased heart rates among professional drivers during car races.

PubMed

Yanagida, Ryo; Takahashi, Kiichi; Miura, Masaru; Nomura, Masahiro; Ogawa, Yojiro; Aoki, Ken; Iwasaki, Ken-Ichi

2016-11-01

The present study measures heart rate (HR) on a number of professional race-car drivers during actual car races through annual seasons to test hypotheses that faster relative speed and higher cabin temperature would induce higher HR. Heart rates in fifteen male drivers (31.2 ± 5.5 years old) were obtained by chest-strap sensors during official-professional 13 races. Average HR was calculated while the driver was racing from the start to the end of each race. The average HR during races was 164.5 ± 15.1 beats min -1 and the average amount of time each driver spent driving per race was 54.2 ± 13.7 min. Average HR significantly and positively correlated with mean speed ratio (P < 0.001), but not with the average cabin temperatures (P = 0.533, range 25.6-41.8 °C) by the multiple linear regression analysis. Both average HR and mean speed ratio were significantly lower under wet, than dry conditions (151.9 ± 16.5 vs. 168.3 ± 12.5 beats min -1 , 86.9 ± 4.4 vs. 93.4 ± 1.5 %). The cardiovascular system of drivers is considerably stressed at extremely high HR. This high average HR positively correlated with mean speed ratio, suggesting that faster driving speed would induce greater cardiovascular stress to professional drivers during actual races. However, contrary to our hypothesis, cabin temperature was not significantly correlated with average HR. It is speculated that direct body cooling systems used in this professional race category work well against increases in HR by thermal stress under the temperature range found herein.

Sampling optimization for high-speed weigh-in-motion measurements using in-pavement strain-based sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Zhiming; Huang, Ying; Bridgelall, Raj; Palek, Leonard; Strommen, Robert

2015-06-01

Weigh-in-motion (WIM) measurement has been widely used for weight enforcement, pavement design, freight management, and intelligent transportation systems to monitor traffic in real-time. However, to use such sensors effectively, vehicles must exit the traffic stream and slow down to match their current capabilities. Hence, agencies need devices with higher vehicle passing speed capabilities to enable continuous weight measurements at mainline speeds. The current practices for data acquisition at such high speeds are fragmented. Deployment configurations and settings depend mainly on the experiences of operation engineers. To assure adequate data, most practitioners use very high frequency measurements that result in redundant samples, thereby diminishing the potential for real-time processing. The larger data memory requirements from higher sample rates also increase storage and processing costs. The field lacks a sampling design or standard to guide appropriate data acquisition of high-speed WIM measurements. This study develops the appropriate sample rate requirements as a function of the vehicle speed. Simulations and field experiments validate the methods developed. The results will serve as guidelines for future high-speed WIM measurements using in-pavement strain-based sensors.

40 CFR 60.1260 - What is the minimum amount of monitoring data I must collect with my continuous emission...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... monitoring data I must collect with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is the data collection... monitoring systems and is the data collection requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous emission monitoring systems are required, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages. Make sure the averages for sulfur dioxide...

40 CFR 60.1260 - What is the minimum amount of monitoring data I must collect with my continuous emission...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... monitoring data I must collect with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is the data collection... monitoring systems and is the data collection requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous emission monitoring systems are required, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages. Make sure the averages for sulfur dioxide...

Energy accommodation of 5-50 eV ions within an enclosure. [for subsequent detection by satellite-borne mass spectrometers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Humphris, R. R.; Boring, J. W.; Nelson, C. V.

1981-01-01

Beams of 5-50 eV He(+), Ar(+), Ne(+), O(+), and N2(+) ions were directed into an aluminum sphere, and the equilibrium number density of the atom or molecules was measured inside the sphere using a quadrupole mass spectrometer and signal averaging techniques. The equilibrium number density is inversely proportional to the average speed of the atoms; thus, the results are expressed in terms of the speed ratio, R = V(i)/V(s), where V(i) is the average speed within the enclosure, and V(s) is the average speed of atoms fully accommodated to the temperature of the wall. The speed ratios vary between 1.0 and 1.8. For N2, several values of R were less than 1; this was largely due to desorbed N2. There was no detectable number density for O, which is explained by the reaction of O with the surface.

33 CFR 165.773 - Security Zone; Escorted Vessels in Captain of the Port Zone Jacksonville, Florida.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... enforcement agency assets clearly identifiable by lights, vessel markings, or with agency insignia as follows...) When escorted vessels are moored, dayboards or other visual indications such as lights or buoys may be... proceeding at minimum safe speed if it is: (1) On a plane; (2) In the process of coming up onto or coming off...

33 CFR 165.773 - Security Zone; Escorted Vessels in Captain of the Port Zone Jacksonville, Florida.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... enforcement agency assets clearly identifiable by lights, vessel markings, or with agency insignia as follows...) When escorted vessels are moored, dayboards or other visual indications such as lights or buoys may be... proceeding at minimum safe speed if it is: (1) On a plane; (2) In the process of coming up onto or coming off...

33 CFR 165.T01-0824 - Regulated Navigation Area; Housatonic River Bridge Replacement Operations; Stratford, CT.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... area (RNA): All navigable waters of the Housatonic River between Stratford and Milford, CT, from bank... within the RNA, during periods of enforcement, is prohibited unless authorized by the Captain of the Port..., entry and movement within the RNA is subject to a “Slow-No Wake” speed limit. Vessels may not produce...

33 CFR 165.T01-0824 - Regulated Navigation Area; Housatonic River Bridge Replacement Operations; Stratford, CT.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... area (RNA): All navigable waters of the Housatonic River between Stratford and Milford, CT, from bank... within the RNA, during periods of enforcement, is prohibited unless authorized by the Captain of the Port..., entry and movement within the RNA is subject to a “Slow-No Wake” speed limit. Vessels may not produce...

Relationships between coordination, active drag and propelling efficiency in crawl.

PubMed

Seifert, Ludovic; Schnitzler, Christophe; Bideault, Gautier; Alberty, Morgan; Chollet, Didier; Toussaint, Huub Martin

2015-02-01

This study examines the relationships between the index of coordination (IdC) and active drag (D) assuming that at constant average speed, average drag equals average propulsion. The relationship between IdC and propulsive efficiency (ep) was also investigated at maximal speed. Twenty national swimmers completed two incremental speed tests swimming front crawl with arms only in free condition and using a measurement of active drag system. Each test was composed of eight 25-m bouts from 60% to 100% of maximal intensity whereby each lap was swum at constant speed. Different regression models were tested to analyse IdC-D relationship. Correlation between IdC and ep was calculated. IdC was linked to D by linear regression (IdC=0.246·D-27.06; R(2)=0.88, P<.05); swimmers switched from catch-up to superposition coordination mode at a speed of ∼1.55ms(-1) where average D is ∼110N. No correlation between IdC and ep at maximal speed was found. The intra-individual analysis revealed that coordination plays an important role in scaling propulsive forces with higher speed levels such that these are adapted to aquatic resistance. Inter-individual analysis showed that high IdC did not relate to a high ep suggesting an individual optimization of force and power generation is at play to reach high speeds. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Driver speed selection on high-speed two-lane highways: Comparing speed profiles between uniform and differential speed limits.

PubMed

Russo, Brendan J; Savolainen, Peter T; Gates, Timothy J; Kay, Jonathan J; Frazier, Sterling

2017-07-04

Although a considerable amount of prior research has investigated the impacts of speed limits on traffic safety and operations, much of this research, and nearly all of the research related to differential speed limits, has been specific to limited access freeways. The unique safety and operational issues on highways without access control create difficulty relating the conclusions from prior freeway-related speed limit research to 2-lane highways, particularly research on differential limits due to passing limitations and subsequent queuing. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess differences in driver speed selection with respect to the posted speed limit on rural 2-lane highways, with a particular emphasis on the differences between uniform and differential speed limits. Data were collected from nearly 59,000 vehicles across 320 sites in Montana and 4 neighboring states. Differences in mean speeds, 85th percentile speeds, and the standard deviation in speeds for free-flowing vehicles were examined across these sites using ordinary least squares regression models. Ultimately, the results of the analysis show that the mean speed, 85th percentile speed, and variability in travel speeds for free-flowing vehicles on 2-lane highways are generally lower at locations with uniform 65 mph speed limits, compared to locations with differential limits of 70 mph for cars and 60 mph for trucks. In addition to posted speed limits, several site characteristics were shown to influence speed selection including shoulder widths, frequency of horizontal curves, percentage of the segment that included no passing zones, and hourly volumes. Differences in vehicle speed characteristics were also observed between states, indicating that speed selection may also be influenced by local factors, such as driver population or enforcement.

Statistical Short-Range Guidance for Peak Wind Speed Forecasts on Kennedy Space Center/Cape Canaveral Air Force Station: Phase I Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lambert, Winifred C.; Merceret, Francis J. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

This report describes the results of the ANU's (Applied Meteorology Unit) Short-Range Statistical Forecasting task for peak winds. The peak wind speeds are an important forecast element for the Space Shuttle and Expendable Launch Vehicle programs. The Keith Weather Squadron and the Spaceflight Meteorology Group indicate that peak winds are challenging to forecast. The Applied Meteorology Unit was tasked to develop tools that aid in short-range forecasts of peak winds at tower sites of operational interest. A 7 year record of wind tower data was used in the analysis. Hourly and directional climatologies by tower and month were developed to determine the seasonal behavior of the average and peak winds. In all climatologies, the average and peak wind speeds were highly variable in time. This indicated that the development of a peak wind forecasting tool would be difficult. Probability density functions (PDF) of peak wind speed were calculated to determine the distribution of peak speed with average speed. These provide forecasters with a means of determining the probability of meeting or exceeding a certain peak wind given an observed or forecast average speed. The climatologies and PDFs provide tools with which to make peak wind forecasts that are critical to safe operations.

Indirect Validation of Probe Speed Data on Arterial Corridors

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

Eshragh, Sepideh; Young, Stanley E.; Sharifi, Elham

This study aimed to estimate the accuracy of probe speed data on arterial corridors on the basis of roadway geometric attributes and functional classification. It was assumed that functional class (medium and low) along with other road characteristics (such as weighted average of the annual average daily traffic, average signal density, average access point density, and average speed) were available as correlation factors to estimate the accuracy of probe traffic data. This study tested these factors as predictors of the fidelity of probe traffic data by using the results of an extensive validation exercise. This study showed strong correlations betweenmore » these geometric attributes and the accuracy of probe data when they were assessed by using average absolute speed error. Linear models were regressed to existing data to estimate appropriate models for medium- and low-type arterial corridors. The proposed models for medium- and low-type arterials were validated further on the basis of the results of a slowdown analysis. These models can be used to predict the accuracy of probe data indirectly in medium and low types of arterial corridors.« less

On the Relationship Between Solar Wind Speed, Geomagnetic Activity, and the Solar Cycle Using Annual Values

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, Robert M.; Hathaway, David H.

2008-01-01

The aa index can be decomposed into two separate components: the leading sporadic component due to solar activity as measured by sunspot number and the residual or recurrent component due to interplanetary disturbances, such as coronal holes. For the interval 1964-2006, a highly statistically important correlation (r = 0.749) is found between annual averages of the aa index and the solar wind speed (especially between the residual component of aa and the solar wind speed, r = 0.865). Because cyclic averages of aa (and the residual component) have trended upward during cycles 11-23, cyclic averages of solar wind speed are inferred to have also trended upward.

Can enforced behaviour change attitudes: exploring the influence of Intelligent Speed Adaptation.

PubMed

Chorlton, Kathryn; Conner, Mark

2012-09-01

The Theory of Planned Behaviour model (Ajzen, 1985) was used to determine whether long-term experience with Intelligent Speed Adaption (ISA) prompts a change in speed related cognitions. The study examines data collected as part of a project examining driver behaviour with an intervening but overridable ISA system. Data was collected in four six-month field trials. The trials followed an A-B-A design (28 days driving with no ISA, 112 days driving with ISA, 28 days driving without ISA) to monitor changes in speeding behaviour as a result of the ISA system and any carry-over effect of the system. Findings suggested that following experience with the system, drivers' intention to speed significantly weakened, beyond the removal of ISA support. Drivers were also less likely to believe that exceeding the speed would 'get them to their destination more quickly' and less likely to believe that 'being in a hurry' would facilitate speeding. However, the positive change in intentions and beliefs failed to translate into behaviour. Experience with the ISA system significantly reduced the percentage of distance travelled whilst exceeding the speed limit but this effect was not evident when the ISA support was removed. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Safety and economic impacts of photo radar program.

PubMed

Chen, Greg

2005-12-01

Unsafe speed is one of the major traffic safety challenges facing motorized nations. In 2003, unsafe speed contributed to 31 percent of all fatal collisions, causing a loss of 13,380 lives in the United States alone. The economic impact of speeding is tremendous. According to NHTSA, the cost of unsafe speed related collisions to the American society exceeds 40 billion US dollars per year. In response, automated photo radar speed enforcement programs have been implemented in many countries. This study assesses the economic impacts of a large-scale photo radar program in British Columbia. The knowledge generated from this study could inform policy makers and project managers in making informed decisions with regard to this highly effective and efficient, yet very controversial program. This study establishes speed and safety effects of photo radar programs by summarizing two physical impact investigations in British Columbia. It then conducts a cost-benefit analysis to assess the program's economic impacts. The cost-benefit analysis takes into account both societal and funding agency's perspectives. It includes a comprehensive account of major impacts. It uses willingness to pay principle to value human lives saved and injuries avoided. It incorporates an extended sensitivity analysis to quantify the robustness of base case conclusions. The study reveals an annual net benefit of approximately 114 million in year 2001 Canadian dollars to British Columbians. The study also finds a net annual saving of over 38 million Canadian dollars for the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) that funded the program. These results are robust under almost all alternative scenarios tested. The only circumstance under which the net benefit of the program turns negative is when the real safety effects were one standard deviation below the estimated values, which is possible but highly unlikely. Automated photo radar traffic safety enforcement can be an effective and efficient means to manage traffic speed, reduce collisions and injuries, and combat the huge resulting economic burden to society. The cost-effectiveness of the program takes on special meaning and urgency when considering the present and future government funding constraints. The application of the program, however, should be planned and implemented with caution. Every effort should be made to focus on and to promote the program on safety improvement grounds. The program can be easily terminated because of political considerations, if the public perceives it as a cash cow to enhance government revenue.

Peak Wind Tool for General Forecasting

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barrett, Joe H., III; Short, David

2008-01-01

This report describes work done by the Applied Meteorology Unit (AMU) in predicting peak winds at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS). The 45th Weather Squadron requested the AMU develop a tool to help them forecast the speed and timing of the daily peak and average wind, from the surface to 300 ft on KSC/CCAFS during the cool season. Based on observations from the KSC/CCAFS wind tower network , Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) surface observations, and CCAFS sounding s from the cool season months of October 2002 to February 2007, the AMU created mul tiple linear regression equations to predict the timing and speed of the daily peak wind speed, as well as the background average wind speed. Several possible predictors were evaluated, including persistence , the temperature inversion depth and strength, wind speed at the top of the inversion, wind gust factor (ratio of peak wind speed to average wind speed), synoptic weather pattern, occurrence of precipitation at the SLF, and strongest wind in the lowest 3000 ft, 4000 ft, or 5000 ft.

Effects of enforcement intensity on alcohol impaired driving crashes.

PubMed

Fell, James C; Waehrer, Geetha; Voas, Robert B; Auld-Owens, Amy; Carr, Katie; Pell, Karen

2014-12-01

Research measuring levels of enforcement has investigated whether increases in police activities (e.g., checkpoints, driving-while-intoxicated [DWI] special patrols) above some baseline level are associated with reduced crashes and fatalities. Little research, however, has attempted to quantitatively measure enforcement efforts and relate different enforcement levels to specific levels of the prevalence of alcohol-impaired driving. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of law-enforcement intensity in a sample of communities on the rate of crashes involving a drinking driver. We analyzed the influence of different enforcement strategies and measures: (1) specific deterrence - annual number of driving-under-the-influence (DUI) arrests per capita; (2) general deterrence - frequency of sobriety checkpoint operations; (3) highly visible traffic enforcement - annual number of traffic stops per capita; (4) enforcement presence - number of sworn officers per capita; and (5) overall traffic enforcement - the number of other traffic enforcement citations per capita (i.e., seat belt citations, speeding tickets, and other moving violations and warnings) in each community. We took advantage of nationwide data on the local prevalence of impaired driving from the 2007 National Roadside Survey (NRS), measures of DUI enforcement activity provided by the police departments that participated in the 2007 NRS, and crashes from the General Estimates System (GES) in the same locations as the 2007 NRS. We analyzed the relationship between the intensity of enforcement and the prevalence of impaired driving crashes in 22-26 communities with complete data. Log-linear regressions were used throughout the study. A higher number of DUI arrests per 10,000 driving-aged population was associated with a lower ratio of drinking-driver crashes to non-drinking-driver crashes (p=0.035) when controlling for the percentage of legally intoxicated drivers on the roads surveyed in the community from the 2007 NRS. Results indicate that a 10% increase in the DUI arrest rate is associated with a 1% reduction in the drinking driver crash rate. Similar results were obtained for an increase in the number of sworn officers per 10,000 driving-age population. While a higher DUI arrest rate was associated with a lower drinking-driver crash rate, sobriety checkpoints did not have a significant relationship to drinking-driver crashes. This appeared to be due to the fact that only 3% of the on-the-road drivers were exposed to frequent sobriety checkpoints (only 1 of 36 police agencies where we received enforcement data conducted checkpoints weekly). This low-use strategy is symptomatic of the general decline in checkpoint use in the U.S. since the 1980s and 1990s when the greatest declines in alcohol-impaired-driving fatal crashes occurred. The overall findings in this study may help law enforcement agencies around the country adjust their traffic enforcement intensity in order to reduce impaired driving in their community. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Panel flutter optimization by gradient projection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pierson, B. L.

1975-01-01

A gradient projection optimal control algorithm incorporating conjugate gradient directions of search is described and applied to several minimum weight panel design problems subject to a flutter speed constraint. New numerical solutions are obtained for both simply-supported and clamped homogeneous panels of infinite span for various levels of inplane loading and minimum thickness. The minimum thickness inequality constraint is enforced by a simple transformation of variables.

The effects of the variations in sea surface temperature and atmospheric stability in the estimation of average wind speed by SEASAT-SASS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liu, W. T.

1984-01-01

The average wind speeds from the scatterometer (SASS) on the ocean observing satellite SEASAT are found to be generally higher than the average wind speeds from ship reports. In this study, two factors, sea surface temperature and atmospheric stability, are identified which affect microwave scatter and, therefore, wave development. The problem of relating satellite observations to a fictitious quantity, such as the neutral wind, that has to be derived from in situ observations with models is examined. The study also demonstrates the dependence of SASS winds on sea surface temperature at low wind speeds, possibly due to temperature-dependent factors, such as water viscosity, which affect wave development.

Are Current Law Enforcement Strategies Associated with a Lower Risk of Repeat Speeding Citations and Crash Involvement? A Longitudinal Study of Speeding Maryland Drivers

PubMed Central

Amr, Sania; Braver, Elisa R.; Langenberg, Patricia; Zhan, Min; Smith, Gordon S.; Dischinger, Patricia C.

2013-01-01

PURPOSE To determine whether traffic court appearances and different court verdicts were associated with risk of subsequent speeding citations and crashes. METHODS A cohort of 29,754 Maryland drivers ticketed for speeding who either went to court or paid fines by mail in May/June 2003 was followed for 3 years. Drivers appearing in court were categorized by verdicts: 1) not guilty, 2) suspension of prosecution/no prosecution (STET/NP), 3) case dismissed, 4) probation before judgment and fines (PBJ), or 5) fines and demerit points. Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios (AHR). RESULTS Court appearances were associated with lower risk of subsequent speeding citations (AHR = 0.92; 95% CI: 0.88-0.96), but higher risk of crashes (AHR=1.25; 95% CI: 1.16-1.35). PBJ was associated with significantly lower repeat speeding tickets (AHR = 0.83; 95% CI = 0.75-0.91) and a non-significant decrease in crashes (AHR = 0.87; 95% CI 0.75-1.02). Both repeat speeding tickets and subsequent crashes were significantly lower in the STET/NP group. CONCLUSIONS PBJ and STET/NP may reduce speeding and crashes, but neither verdict eliminated excess crash risk among drivers who choose court appearances. Randomized controlled evaluations of speeding countermeasures are needed to inform traffic safety policies. PMID:21684176

A comparison of contributing factors between alcohol related single vehicle motorcycle and car crashes.

PubMed

Maistros, Alexander; Schneider, William H; Savolainen, Peter T

2014-06-01

Alcohol related crashes have accounted for approximately 35% of fatal crashes per year since 1994 nationwide, with approximately 30% involving impairment over the legal blood alcohol content limit of 0.08%. Educational campaigns and law enforcement efforts are two components of multi-faceted programs aimed toward reducing impaired driving. It is crucial that further research be conducted to guide the implementation of enforcement and educational programs. This research attempts to provide such guidance by examining differences in alcohol-involved crashes involving motorcycles and passenger cars. Prior safety research has shown that motorcyclists follow a significantly different culture than the average passenger car operator. These cultural differences may be reflected by differences in the contributing factors affecting crashes and the severity of the resulting injuries sustained by the driver or motorcyclist. This research is focused on single-vehicle crashes only, in order to isolate modal effects from the contribution of additional vehicles. The crash data provided for this study are from the Ohio Department of Public Safety from 2009 through 2012. The injury severity data are analysed through the development of two mixed logit models, one for motorcyclists and one for passenger car drivers. The models quantify the effects of various factors, including horizontal curves, speeds, seatbelt use, and helmet use, which indicate that the required motor skills and balance needed for proper motorcycle operation compounded with a lack of mechanical protection make motorcyclists more prone to severe injuries, particularly on curves and in collisions with roadside objects. The findings of this study have been incorporated into combined motorcycle and sober driving educational safety campaigns. The results have shown to be favorable in supporting national campaign messages with local justification and backing. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Road safety measures and their effects on traffic injuries: a systematic review].

PubMed

Aguilera, Sandra Lúcia Vieira Ulinski; Moysés, Simone Tetú; Moysés, Samuel Jorge

2014-10-01

To identify and summarize the findings of studies describing interventions aimed at reducing road traffic injuries. An integrative systematic review without meta-analysis was performed. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) were used to synthesize the findings of the articles reviewed. The keywords "traffic accidents", "review" and "public policy" were used in isolation or combined with boolean operator "And" to search PubMed, Web of Science, SciELO, and LILACS for the period between 2006 and 2011 RESULTS: Twenty-two studies were included in the systematic review. Of these, two described engineering strategies, two described other road safety policies, three described education strategies, and 15 described law enforcement policies. Law enforcement had the most effective immediate results. Engineering strategies proved important to promote a safe environment. Finally, education strategies had an informative role and served to support other strategies, but did not seem sufficient to promote cultural changes regarding road safety. Law enforcement seems to be the most effective strategy to change the behavior of drivers, especially regarding speed limits and drinking and driving.

Simulation of load traffic and steeped speed control of conveyor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reutov, A. A.

2017-10-01

The article examines the possibilities of the step control simulation of conveyor speed within Mathcad, Simulink, Stateflow software. To check the efficiency of the control algorithms and to more accurately determine the characteristics of the control system, it is necessary to simulate the process of speed control with real values of traffic for a work shift or for a day. For evaluating the belt workload and absence of spillage it is necessary to use empirical values of load flow in a shorter period of time. The analytical formulas for optimal speed step values were received using empirical values of load. The simulation checks acceptability of an algorithm, determines optimal parameters of regulation corresponding to load flow characteristics. The average speed and the number of speed switching during simulation are admitted as criteria of regulation efficiency. The simulation example within Mathcad software is implemented. The average conveyor speed decreases essentially by two-step and three-step control. A further increase in the number of regulatory steps decreases average speed insignificantly but considerably increases the intensity of the speed switching. Incremental algorithm of speed regulation uses different number of stages for growing and reducing load traffic. This algorithm allows smooth control of the conveyor speed changes with monotonic variation of the load flow. The load flow oscillation leads to an unjustified increase or decrease of speed. Work results can be applied at the design of belt conveyors with adjustable drives.

Influence of wind speed averaging on estimates of dimethylsulfide emission fluxes

DOE PAGES

Chapman, E. G.; Shaw, W. J.; Easter, R. C.; ...

2002-12-03

The effect of various wind-speed-averaging periods on calculated DMS emission fluxes is quantitatively assessed. Here, a global climate model and an emission flux module were run in stand-alone mode for a full year. Twenty-minute instantaneous surface wind speeds and related variables generated by the climate model were archived, and corresponding 1-hour-, 6-hour-, daily-, and monthly-averaged quantities calculated. These various time-averaged, model-derived quantities were used as inputs in the emission flux module, and DMS emissions were calculated using two expressions for the mass transfer velocity commonly used in atmospheric models. Results indicate that the time period selected for averaging wind speedsmore » can affect the magnitude of calculated DMS emission fluxes. A number of individual marine cells within the global grid show DMS emissions fluxes that are 10-60% higher when emissions are calculated using 20-minute instantaneous model time step winds rather than monthly-averaged wind speeds, and at some locations the differences exceed 200%. Many of these cells are located in the southern hemisphere where anthropogenic sulfur emissions are low and changes in oceanic DMS emissions may significantly affect calculated aerosol concentrations and aerosol radiative forcing.« less

Kinematic measurements of the vocal-fold displacement waveform in typical children and adult populations: quantification of high-speed endoscopic videos.

PubMed

Patel, Rita; Donohue, Kevin D; Unnikrishnan, Harikrishnan; Kryscio, Richard J

2015-04-01

This article presents a quantitative method for assessing instantaneous and average lateral vocal-fold motion from high-speed digital imaging, with a focus on developmental changes in vocal-fold kinematics during childhood. Vocal-fold vibrations were analyzed for 28 children (aged 5-11 years) and 28 adults (aged 21-45 years) without voice disorders. The following kinematic features were analyzed from the vocal-fold displacement waveforms: relative velocity-based features (normalized average and peak opening and closing velocities), relative acceleration-based features (normalized peak opening and closing accelerations), speed quotient, and normalized peak displacement. Children exhibited significantly larger normalized peak displacements, normalized average and peak opening velocities, normalized average and peak closing velocities, peak opening and closing accelerations, and speed quotient compared to adult women. Values of normalized average closing velocity and speed quotient were higher in children compared to adult men. When compared to adult men, developing children typically have higher estimates of kinematic features related to normalized displacement and its derivatives. In most cases, the kinematic features of children are closer to those of adult men than adult women. Even though boys experience greater changes in glottal length and pitch as they mature, results indicate that girls experience greater changes in kinematic features compared to boys.

Stable plume rise in a shear layer.

PubMed

Overcamp, Thomas J

2007-03-01

Solutions are given for plume rise assuming a power-law wind speed profile in a stably stratified layer for point and finite sources with initial vertical momentum and buoyancy. For a constant wind speed, these solutions simplify to the conventional plume rise equations in a stable atmosphere. In a shear layer, the point of maximum rise occurs further downwind and is slightly lower compared with the plume rise with a constant wind speed equal to the wind speed at the top of the stack. If the predictions with shear are compared with predictions for an equivalent average wind speed over the depth of the plume, the plume rise with shear is higher than plume rise with an equivalent average wind speed.

Reduced Solar Wind Speeds at New Horizons Beyond 30 AU

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elliott, H. A.; McComas, D. J.; Zirnstein, E.; Delamere, P. A.; Bagenal, F.; Stern, A.; Weaver, H. A., Jr.; Young, L. A.; Ennico Smith, K.; Olkin, C.

2017-12-01

Prior comparisons between Voyager 2 and IMP 8 observations found the solar wind had clearly decrease by 8% at a distance of 25 AU. Since mid-2016 solar rotation averaged speeds at New Horizons have been elevated relative to speeds observed in 2014 and 2015. However, we find a clear decrease in the New Horizons speeds beyond 30 AU when compared to those of ACE near Earth. At distances between 30-38.5 AU the relative speed reduction is in the 8-11% range. We will further this work by also comparing with available STEREO observations. By including STEREO, we can assess how sensitive the speed comparisons are to longitude separations and determine the appropriate time scale to average over.

Hypothesis on the nature of time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coumbe, D. N.

2015-06-01

We present numerical evidence that fictitious diffusing particles in the causal dynamical triangulation (CDT) approach to quantum gravity exceed the speed of light on small distance scales. We argue this superluminal behavior is responsible for the appearance of dimensional reduction in the spectral dimension. By axiomatically enforcing a scale invariant speed of light we show that time must dilate as a function of relative scale, just as it does as a function of relative velocity. By calculating the Hausdorff dimension of CDT diffusion paths we present a seemingly equivalent dual description in terms of a scale dependent Wick rotation of the metric. Such a modification to the nature of time may also have relevance for other approaches to quantum gravity.

The alcohol policy environment, enforcement and consumption in the United States.

PubMed

Erickson, Darin J; Lenk, Kathleen M; Toomey, Traci L; Nelson, Toben F; Jones-Webb, Rhonda

2016-01-01

Many studies of alcohol policies examine the presence or absence of a single policy without considering policy strength or enforcement. We developed measures for the strength of 18 policies (from Alcohol Policy Information System) and levels of enforcement of those policies for the 50 US states, and examined their associations with alcohol consumption. We grouped policies into four domains (underage alcohol use, provision of alcohol to underage, alcohol serving, general availability) and used latent class analysis to assign states to one of four classes based on the configuration of policies-weak except serving policies (6 states), average (29 states), strong for underage use (11 states) and strong policies overall (4 states). We surveyed 1082 local enforcement agencies regarding alcohol enforcement across five domains. We used multilevel latent class analysis to assign states to classes in each domain and assigned each state to an overall low (15 states), moderate (19 states) or high (16 states) enforcement group. Consumption outcomes (past month, binge and heavy) came from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Regression models show inverse associations between alcohol consumption and policy class, with past month alcohol consumption at 54% in the weakest policy class and 34% in the strongest. In adjusted models, the strong underage use policy class was consistently associated with lower consumption. Enforcement group did not affect the policy class and consumption associations. Results suggest strong alcohol policies, particularly underage use policies, may help to reduce alcohol consumption and related consequences. [Erickson DJ, Lenk KM, Toomey TL, Nelson TF, Jones-Webb R. The alcohol policy environment, enforcement, and consumption in the United States. Drug Alcohol Rev 2015;●●:●●-●●]. © 2015 Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.

Speed estimation for air quality analysis.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2005-05-01

Average speed is an essential input to the air quality analysis model MOBILE6 for emission factor calculation. Traditionally, speed is obtained from travel demand models. However, such models are not usually calibrated to speeds. Furthermore, for rur...

A case study of energy expenditure based on walking speed reduction during walking upstairs situation at a staircase in FKAAS, UTHM, Johor building

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abustan, M. S.; Ali, M. F. M.; Talib, S. H. A.

2018-04-01

Walking velocity is a vector quantity that can be determined by calculating the time taken and displacement of a moving objects. In Malaysia, there are very few researches that were done to determine the walking velocity of citizens to be compared with other countries such as the study about walking upstairs during evacuation process is important when emergency case happen, if there are people in underground garages, they have to walk upstairs for exits and look for shelter and the walking velocity of pedestrian in such cases are necessary to be analysed. Therefore, the objective of this study is to determine the walking speed of pedestrian during walking upstairs situation, finding the relationship between pedestrian walking speed and the characteristics of the pedestrian as well as analysing the energy reduction by comparing the walking speed of pedestrian at the beginning and at the end of staircase. In this case study, an experiment was done to determine the average walking speed of pedestrian. The pedestrian has been selected from different gender, physical character, and age. Based on the data collected, the average normal walking speed of male pedestrian was 1.03 m/s while female was 1.08 m/s. During walking upstairs, the walking speed of pedestrian decreased as the number of floor increased. The average speed for the first stairwell was 0.90 m/s and the number decreased to 0.73 m/s for the second stairwell. From the reduction of speed, the energy used has been calculated and the average kinetic energy used was 1.69 J. Hence, the data collected can be used for further research of staircase design and plan of evacuation process.

Assessing the Impact of Different Measurement Time Intervals on Observed Long-Term Wind Speed Trends

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Azorin-Molina, C.; Vicente-Serrano, S. M.; McVicar, T.; Jerez, S.; Revuelto, J.; López Moreno, J. I.

2014-12-01

During the last two decades climate studies have reported a tendency toward a decline in measured near-surface wind speed in some regions of Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. This weakening in observed wind speed has been recently termed "global stilling", showing a worldwide average trend of -0.140 m s-1 dec-1 during last 50-years. The precise cause of the "global stilling" remains largely uncertain and has been hypothetically attributed to several factors, mainly related to: (i) an increasing surface roughness (i.e. forest growth, land use changes, and urbanization); (ii) a slowdown in large-scale atmospheric circulation; (iii) instrumental drifts and technological improvements, maintenance, and shifts in measurements sites and calibration issues; (iv) sunlight dimming due to air pollution; and (v) astronomical changes. This study proposed a novel investigation aimed at analyzing how different measurement time intervals used to calculate a wind speed series can affect the sign and magnitude of long-term wind speed trends. For instance, National Weather Services across the globe estimate daily average wind speed using different time intervals and formulae that may affect the trend results. Firstly, we carried out a comprehensive review of wind studies reporting the sign and magnitude of wind speed trend and the sampling intervals used. Secondly, we analyzed near-surface wind speed trends recorded at 59 land-based stations across Spain comparing monthly mean wind speed series obtained from: (a) daily mean wind speed data averaged from standard 10-min mean observations at 0000, 0700, 1300 and 1800 UTC; and (b) average wind speed of 24 hourly measurements (i.e., wind run measurements) from 0000 to 2400 UTC. Thirdly and finally, we quantified the impact of anemometer drift (i.e. bearing malfunction) by presenting preliminary results (1-year of paired measurements) from a comparison of one new anemometer sensor against one malfunctioned anenometer sensor due to old bearings.

Guidelines for Integrating Helicopter Assets into Emergency Planning

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-07-01

maximum. 35 TABLE 2 HELIPORT INFORMATION SOURCES Professional-and/or industry associations Airborne Law Enforcement Association ( ALEA ) 8060 Balboa Boulevard...Department of Transportation/ Federal Aviation Adminisration ATTN: Hugh Lyon (ASW-611C) Fort Worth, TX 76193-0611 81-624-5600 FAA Northwest Mountain ...indication of wind speed and direction. in areas with swirling or varying winds, such as near buildings or in mountainous areas, two or more wind

Development of a modal emissions model using data from the Cooperative Industry/Government Exhaust Emission test program

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2003-06-22

The Environmental Protection Agencys (EPAs) recommended model, MOBILE5a, has been : used extensively to predict emission factors based on average speeds for each fleet type. : Because average speeds are not appropriate in modeling intersections...

Extended Statistical Short-Range Guidance for Peak Wind Speed Analyses at the Shuttle Landing Facility: Phase II Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lambert, Winifred C.

2003-01-01

This report describes the results from Phase II of the AMU's Short-Range Statistical Forecasting task for peak winds at the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF). The peak wind speeds are an important forecast element for the Space Shuttle and Expendable Launch Vehicle programs. The 45th Weather Squadron and the Spaceflight Meteorology Group indicate that peak winds are challenging to forecast. The Applied Meteorology Unit was tasked to develop tools that aid in short-range forecasts of peak winds at tower sites of operational interest. A seven year record of wind tower data was used in the analysis. Hourly and directional climatologies by tower and month were developed to determine the seasonal behavior of the average and peak winds. Probability density functions (PDF) of peak wind speed were calculated to determine the distribution of peak speed with average speed. These provide forecasters with a means of determining the probability of meeting or exceeding a certain peak wind given an observed or forecast average speed. A PC-based Graphical User Interface (GUI) tool was created to display the data quickly.

Flow speed of the ablation vapors generated during laser drilling of CFRP with a continuous-wave laser beam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Faas, S.; Freitag, C.; Boley, S.; Berger, P.; Weber, R.; Graf, T.

2017-03-01

The hot plume of ablation products generated during the laser drilling process of carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) with a continuous-wave laser beam was analyzed by means of high-speed imaging. The formation of compression shocks was observed within the flow of the evaporated material, which is an indication of flow speeds well above the local speed of sound. The flow speed of the hot ablation products can be estimated by analyzing the position of these compression shocks. We investigated the temporal evolution of the flow speed during the drilling process and the influence of the average laser power on the flow speed. The flow speed increases with increasing average laser powers. The moment of drilling through the material changes the conditions for the drilling process and was confirmed to influence the flow speed of the ablated material. Compression shocks can also be observed during laser cutting of CFRP with a moving laser beam.

IMA RESERVISTS: MISSION ENHANCEMENTS OR ADMINISTRATIVE BURDENS

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-11-01

experience and brings corporate ideas into the military environment. Statistically , the average age of a Reserve officer is 41, and the average enlisted...the RIO. However, in the event these items become delinquent , both the Active Duty unit and Reserve Detachment are responsible for enforcing... delinquent . It is well understood that keeping an Active Duty unit roster deployment ready is a time-intensive task. In July 2014, the Air Force

Kinematic Measurements of the Vocal-Fold Displacement Waveform in Typical Children and Adult Populations: Quantification of High-Speed Endoscopic Videos

PubMed Central

Donohue, Kevin D.; Unnikrishnan, Harikrishnan; Kryscio, Richard J.

2015-01-01

Purpose This article presents a quantitative method for assessing instantaneous and average lateral vocal-fold motion from high-speed digital imaging, with a focus on developmental changes in vocal-fold kinematics during childhood. Method Vocal-fold vibrations were analyzed for 28 children (aged 5–11 years) and 28 adults (aged 21–45 years) without voice disorders. The following kinematic features were analyzed from the vocal-fold displacement waveforms: relative velocity-based features (normalized average and peak opening and closing velocities), relative acceleration-based features (normalized peak opening and closing accelerations), speed quotient, and normalized peak displacement. Results Children exhibited significantly larger normalized peak displacements, normalized average and peak opening velocities, normalized average and peak closing velocities, peak opening and closing accelerations, and speed quotient compared to adult women. Values of normalized average closing velocity and speed quotient were higher in children compared to adult men. Conclusions When compared to adult men, developing children typically have higher estimates of kinematic features related to normalized displacement and its derivatives. In most cases, the kinematic features of children are closer to those of adult men than adult women. Even though boys experience greater changes in glottal length and pitch as they mature, results indicate that girls experience greater changes in kinematic features compared to boys. PMID:25652615

Estimating Variances of Horizontal Wind Fluctuations in Stable Conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luhar, Ashok K.

2010-05-01

Information concerning the average wind speed and the variances of lateral and longitudinal wind velocity fluctuations is required by dispersion models to characterise turbulence in the atmospheric boundary layer. When the winds are weak, the scalar average wind speed and the vector average wind speed need to be clearly distinguished and both lateral and longitudinal wind velocity fluctuations assume equal importance in dispersion calculations. We examine commonly-used methods of estimating these variances from wind-speed and wind-direction statistics measured separately, for example, by a cup anemometer and a wind vane, and evaluate the implied relationship between the scalar and vector wind speeds, using measurements taken under low-wind stable conditions. We highlight several inconsistencies inherent in the existing formulations and show that the widely-used assumption that the lateral velocity variance is equal to the longitudinal velocity variance is not necessarily true. We derive improved relations for the two variances, and although data under stable stratification are considered for comparison, our analysis is applicable more generally.

An improved car-following model with two preceding cars' average speed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Shao-Wei; Shi, Zhong-Ke

2015-01-01

To better describe cooperative car-following behaviors under intelligent transportation circumstances and increase roadway traffic mobility, the data of three successive following cars at a signalized intersection of Jinan in China were obtained and employed to explore the linkage between two preceding cars' average speed and car-following behaviors. The results indicate that two preceding cars' average velocity has significant effects on the following car's motion. Then an improved car-following model considering two preceding cars' average velocity was proposed and calibrated based on full velocity difference model and some numerical simulations were carried out to study how two preceding cars' average speed affected the starting process and the traffic flow evolution process with an initial small disturbance, the results indicate that the improved car-following model can qualitatively describe the impacts of two preceding cars' average velocity on traffic flow and that taking two preceding cars' average velocity into account in designing the control strategy for the cooperative adaptive cruise control system can improve the stability of traffic flow, suppress the appearance of traffic jams and increase the capacity of signalized intersections.

Are Various Forms of Locomotion-Speed Diverse or Unique Performance Quality?

PubMed Central

Cavar, Mile; Corluka, Marin; Cerkez, Ivana; Culjak, Zoran; Sekulic, Damir

2013-01-01

The forward-sprint is considered to be, and is regularly performed as, a unique measure of “on-ground” linear-speed performance. Thus far, no investigation has simultaneously studied different forms of linear-speed or investigated whether different forms of linear-speed should be observed as unique performance quality. The purpose of this study was to determine (I) the achievements (i.e. execution time), and (II) the reliability and inter-relationships between various linear-speed performances. The participants were 42 male physical education students with substantial sport-specific backgrounds. We applied a total of six tests: three quadrupedal (supine backward, supine forward, and pronate backward locomotion) and three bipedal-performances (forward sprinting, backward sprinting, lateral shuffling). All of the tests showed appropriate reliability parameters (Cronbach Alpha ranged from 0.91 to 0.97; Inter-Item-R 0.78–0.92; Coefficient-of-Variation 1.3–9.1). The tests used in this study shared between 9% and 50% of the common variance. Our results suggest that different activities require activity-specific tests of linear-speed. This is particularly significant in those sports and activities in which quadrupedal locomotion patterns are highly important (wrestling, physically trained military services, law enforcement, fire and rescue, protective services). PMID:24235984

Electrically Tunable Mid-Infrared Single-Mode High-Speed Semiconductor Laser

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-11-01

effective and the net tunnel rate may decrease in spite of progressing carrier density buildup in the accumulation well. Enforcing the bias current at...In te ns ity , a .u . E, eV Regular ICL Figure 4 The dependence of the electroluminescence (EL) quantum energy on the bias voltage for a...spectral maximum energy increases linearly with the bias voltage. Since the dependence is measured in the sub-threshold pumping region, the linear

The Association between Regional Environmental Factors and Road Trauma Rates: A Geospatial Analysis of 10 Years of Road Traffic Crashes in British Columbia, Canada

PubMed Central

Brubacher, Jeffrey R.; Chan, Herbert; Erdelyi, Shannon; Schuurman, Nadine; Amram, Ofer

2016-01-01

Background British Columbia, Canada is a geographically large jurisdiction with varied environmental and socio-cultural contexts. This cross-sectional study examined variation in motor vehicle crash rates across 100 police patrols to investigate the association of crashes with key explanatory factors. Methods Eleven crash outcomes (total crashes, injury crashes, fatal crashes, speed related fatal crashes, total fatalities, single-vehicle night-time crashes, rear-end collisions, and collisions involving heavy vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists, or motorcyclists) were identified from police collision reports and insurance claims and mapped to police patrols. Six potential explanatory factors (intensity of traffic law enforcement, speed limits, climate, remoteness, socio-economic factors, and alcohol consumption) were also mapped to police patrols. We then studied the association between crashes and explanatory factors using negative binomial models with crash count per patrol as the response variable and explanatory factors as covariates. Results Between 2003 and 2012 there were 1,434,239 insurance claim collisions, 386,326 police reported crashes, and 3,404 fatal crashes. Across police patrols, there was marked variation in per capita crash rate and in potential explanatory factors. Several factors were associated with crash rates. Percent roads with speed limits ≤ 60 km/hr was positively associated with total crashes, injury crashes, rear end collisions, and collisions involving pedestrians, cyclists, and heavy vehicles; and negatively associated with single vehicle night-time crashes, fatal crashes, fatal speeding crashes, and total fatalities. Higher winter temperature was associated with lower rates of overall collisions, single vehicle night-time collisions, collisions involving heavy vehicles, and total fatalities. Lower socio-economic status was associated with higher rates of injury collisions, pedestrian collisions, fatal speeding collisions, and fatal collisions. Regions with dedicated traffic officers had fewer fatal crashes and fewer fatal speed related crashes but more rear end crashes and more crashes involving cyclists or pedestrians. The number of traffic citations per 1000 drivers was positively associated with total crashes, fatal crashes, total fatalities, fatal speeding crashes, injury crashes, single vehicle night-time crashes, and heavy vehicle crashes. Possible explanations for these associations are discussed. Conclusions There is wide variation in per capita rates of motor vehicle crashes across BC police patrols. Some variation is explained by factors such as climate, road type, remoteness, socioeconomic variables, and enforcement intensity. The ability of explanatory factors to predict crash rates would be improved if considered with local traffic volume by all travel modes. PMID:27099930

Seasonality, interannual variability, and linear tendency of wind speeds in the northeast Brazil from 1986 to 2011.

PubMed

Torres Silva dos Santos, Alexandre; Moisés Santos e Silva, Cláudio

2013-01-01

Wind speed analyses are currently being employed in several fields, especially in wind power generation. In this study, we used wind speed data from records of Universal Fuess anemographs at an altitude of 10 m from 47 weather stations of the National Institute of Meteorology (Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia-INMET) from January 1986 to December 2011. The objective of the study was to investigate climatological aspects and wind speed trends. To this end, the following methods were used: filling of missing data, descriptive statistical calculations, boxplots, cluster analysis, and trend analysis using the Mann-Kendall statistical method. The seasonal variability of the average wind speeds of each group presented higher values for winter and spring and lower values in the summer and fall. The groups G1, G2, and G5 showed higher annual averages in the interannual variability of wind speeds. These observed peaks were attributed to the El Niño and La Niña events, which change the behavior of global wind circulation and influence wind speeds over the region. Trend analysis showed more significant negative values for the G3, G4, and G5 groups for all seasons of the year and in the annual average for the period under study.

Seasonality, Interannual Variability, and Linear Tendency of Wind Speeds in the Northeast Brazil from 1986 to 2011

PubMed Central

Santos e Silva, Cláudio Moisés

2013-01-01

Wind speed analyses are currently being employed in several fields, especially in wind power generation. In this study, we used wind speed data from records of Universal Fuess anemographs at an altitude of 10 m from 47 weather stations of the National Institute of Meteorology (Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia-INMET) from January 1986 to December 2011. The objective of the study was to investigate climatological aspects and wind speed trends. To this end, the following methods were used: filling of missing data, descriptive statistical calculations, boxplots, cluster analysis, and trend analysis using the Mann-Kendall statistical method. The seasonal variability of the average wind speeds of each group presented higher values for winter and spring and lower values in the summer and fall. The groups G1, G2, and G5 showed higher annual averages in the interannual variability of wind speeds. These observed peaks were attributed to the El Niño and La Niña events, which change the behavior of global wind circulation and influence wind speeds over the region. Trend analysis showed more significant negative values for the G3, G4, and G5 groups for all seasons of the year and in the annual average for the period under study. PMID:24250267

The effect of swinging the arms on muscle activation and production of leg force during ski skating at different skiing speeds.

PubMed

Göpfert, Caroline; Lindinger, Stefan J; Ohtonen, Olli; Rapp, Walter; Müller, Erich; Linnamo, Vesa

2016-06-01

The study investigated the effects of arm swing during leg push-off in V2-alternate/G4 skating on neuromuscular activation and force production by the leg muscles. Nine skilled cross-country skiers performed V2-alternate skating without poles at moderate, high, and maximal speeds, both with free (SWING) and restricted arm swing (NOSWING). Maximal speed was 5% greater in SWING (P<0.01), while neuromuscular activation and produced forces did not differ between techniques. At both moderate and high speed the maximal (2% and 5%, respectively) and average (both 5%) vertical force and associated impulse (10% and 14%) were greater with SWING (all P<0.05). At high speed range of motion and angular velocity of knee flexion were 24% greater with SWING (both P<0.05), while average EMG of m. biceps femoris was 31% lower (all P<0.05) in SWING. In a similar manner, the average EMG of m. vastus medialis and m. biceps femoris were lower (17% and 32%, P<0.05) during the following knee extension. Thus, swinging the arms while performing V2-alternate can enhance both maximal speed and skiing economy at moderate and, in particularly, high speeds. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Frequency domain averaging based experimental evaluation of gear fault without tachometer for fluctuating speed conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharma, Vikas; Parey, Anand

2017-02-01

In the purview of fluctuating speeds, gear fault diagnosis is challenging due to dynamic behavior of forces. Various industrial applications employing gearbox which operate under fluctuating speed conditions. For diagnostics of a gearbox, various vibrations based signal processing techniques viz FFT, time synchronous averaging and time-frequency based wavelet transform, etc. are majorly employed. Most of the time, theories about data or computational complexity limits the use of these methods. In order to perform fault diagnosis of a gearbox for fluctuating speeds, frequency domain averaging (FDA) of intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) after their dynamic time warping (DTW) has been done in this paper. This will not only attenuate the effect of fluctuating speeds but will also extract the weak fault feature those masked in vibration signal. Experimentally signals were acquired from Drivetrain Diagnostic Simulator for different gear health conditions i.e., healthy pinion, pinion with tooth crack, chipped tooth and missing tooth and were analyzed for the different fluctuating profiles of speed. Kurtosis was calculated for warped IMFs before DTW and after DTW of the acquired vibration signals. Later on, the application of FDA highlights the fault frequencies present in the FFT of faulty gears. The result suggests that proposed approach is more effective towards the fault diagnosing with fluctuating speed.

The effect of tip speed ratio on a vertical axis wind turbine at high Reynolds numbers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parker, Colin M.; Leftwich, Megan C.

2016-05-01

This work visualizes the flow surrounding a scaled model vertical axis wind turbine at realistic operating conditions. The model closely matches geometric and dynamic properties—tip speed ratio and Reynolds number—of a full-size turbine. The flow is visualized using particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) in the midplane upstream, around, and after (up to 4 turbine diameters downstream) the turbine, as well as a vertical plane behind the turbine. Time-averaged results show an asymmetric wake behind the turbine, regardless of tip speed ratio, with a larger velocity deficit for a higher tip speed ratio. For the higher tip speed ratio, an area of averaged flow reversal is present with a maximum reverse flow of -0.04U_∞. Phase-averaged vorticity fields—achieved by syncing the PIV system with the rotation of the turbine—show distinct structures form from each turbine blade. There were distinct differences in results by tip speed ratios of 0.9, 1.3, and 2.2 of when in the cycle structures are shed into the wake—switching from two pairs to a single pair of vortices being shed—and how they convect into the wake—the middle tip speed ratio vortices convect downstream inside the wake, while the high tip speed ratio pair is shed into the shear layer of the wake. Finally, results show that the wake structure is much more sensitive to changes in tip speed ratio than to changes in Reynolds number.

Extortion can outperform generosity in the iterated prisoner's dilemma

PubMed Central

Wang, Zhijian; Zhou, Yanran; Lien, Jaimie W.; Zheng, Jie; Xu, Bin

2016-01-01

Zero-determinant (ZD) strategies, as discovered by Press and Dyson, can enforce a linear relationship between a pair of players' scores in the iterated prisoner's dilemma. Particularly, the extortionate ZD strategies can enforce and exploit cooperation, providing a player with a score advantage, and consequently higher scores than those from either mutual cooperation or generous ZD strategies. In laboratory experiments in which human subjects were paired with computer co-players, we demonstrate that both the generous and the extortionate ZD strategies indeed enforce a unilateral control of the reward. When the experimental setting is sufficiently long and the computerized nature of the opponent is known to human subjects, the extortionate strategy outperforms the generous strategy. Human subjects' cooperation rates when playing against extortionate and generous ZD strategies are similar after learning has occurred. More than half of extortionate strategists finally obtain an average score higher than that from mutual cooperation. PMID:27067513

Limitations on human rights: are they justifiable to reduce the burden of TB in the era of MDR- and XDR-TB?

PubMed

Boggio, Andrea; Zignol, Matteo; Jaramillo, Ernesto; Nunn, Paul; Pinet, Geneviève; Raviglione, Mario

2008-01-01

Tuberculosis, in all its forms, poses a serious, demonstrable threat to the health of countless individuals as well as to health as a public good. MDR-TB and, in particular, the emergence of XDR-TB, have re-opened the debate on the importance, and nature, of treatment supervision for basic TB control and the management of drug-resistant TB. Enforcing compulsory measures regarding TB patients raises questions of respect for human rights. Yet, international law provides for rights-limiting principles, which would justify enforcing compulsory measures against TB patients who refuse to have diagnostic procedures or who refuse to be monitored and treated once disease is confirmed. This article analyzes under what circumstances compulsory measures for TB patients may be enforced under international law. Compulsory measures for TB patients may, in fact, be justified on legal grounds provided that these measures are foreseen in the law, that they are used as a last resort, and that safeguards are in place to protect affected individuals. The deadly nature of the disease, its epidemiology, the high case fatality rate, and the speed at which the disease leads to death when associated with HIV are proven.

The impacts of speed cameras on road accidents: an application of propensity score matching methods.

PubMed

Li, Haojie; Graham, Daniel J; Majumdar, Arnab

2013-11-01

This paper aims to evaluate the impacts of speed limit enforcement cameras on reducing road accidents in the UK by accounting for both confounding factors and the selection of proper reference groups. The propensity score matching (PSM) method is employed to do this. A naïve before and after approach and the empirical Bayes (EB) method are compared with the PSM method. A total of 771 sites and 4787 sites for the treatment and the potential reference groups respectively are observed for a period of 9 years in England. Both the PSM and the EB methods show similar results that there are significant reductions in the number of accidents of all severities at speed camera sites. It is suggested that the propensity score can be used as the criteria for selecting the reference group in before-after control studies. Speed cameras were found to be most effective in reducing accidents up to 200 meters from camera sites and no evidence of accident migration was found. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Motor vehicle injuries in Qatar: time trends in a rapidly developing Middle Eastern nation.

PubMed

Mamtani, Ravinder; Al-Thani, Mohammed H; Al-Thani, Al-Anoud Mohammed; Sheikh, Javaid I; Lowenfels, Albert B

2012-04-01

Despite their wealth and modern road systems, traffic injury rates in Middle Eastern countries are generally higher than those in Western countries. The authors examined traffic injuries in Qatar during 2000-2010, a period of rapid population growth, focusing on the impact of speed control cameras installed in 2007 on overall injury rates and mortality. During the period 2000-2006, prior to camera installation, the mean (SD) vehicular injury death rate per 100,000 was 19.9±4.1. From 2007 to 2010, the mean (SD) vehicular death rates were significantly lower: 14.7±1.5 (p=0.028). Non-fatal severe injury rates also declined, but mild injury rates increased, perhaps because of increased traffic congestion and improved notification. It is possible that speed cameras decreased speeding enough to affect the death rate, without affecting overall injury rates. These data suggest that in a rapidly growing Middle Eastern country, photo enforcement (speed) cameras can be an important component of traffic control, but other measures will be required for maximum impact.

Motor vehicle injuries in Qatar: time trends in a rapidly developing Middle Eastern nation

PubMed Central

Al-Thani, Mohammed H; Al-Thani, Al-Anoud Mohammed; Sheikh, Javaid I; Lowenfels, Albert B

2011-01-01

Despite their wealth and modern road systems, traffic injury rates in Middle Eastern countries are generally higher than those in Western countries. The authors examined traffic injuries in Qatar during 2000–2010, a period of rapid population growth, focusing on the impact of speed control cameras installed in 2007 on overall injury rates and mortality. During the period 2000–2006, prior to camera installation, the mean (SD) vehicular injury death rate per 100 000 was 19.9±4.1. From 2007 to 2010, the mean (SD) vehicular death rates were significantly lower: 14.7±1.5 (p=0.028). Non-fatal severe injury rates also declined, but mild injury rates increased, perhaps because of increased traffic congestion and improved notification. It is possible that speed cameras decreased speeding enough to affect the death rate, without affecting overall injury rates. These data suggest that in a rapidly growing Middle Eastern country, photo enforcement (speed) cameras can be an important component of traffic control, but other measures will be required for maximum impact. PMID:21994881

The temporal relationship between drug supply indicators: an audit of international government surveillance systems.

PubMed

Werb, Dan; Kerr, Thomas; Nosyk, Bohdan; Strathdee, Steffanie; Montaner, Julio; Wood, Evan

2013-09-30

Illegal drug use continues to be a major threat to community health and safety. We used international drug surveillance databases to assess the relationship between multiple long-term estimates of illegal drug price and purity. We systematically searched for longitudinal measures of illegal drug supply indicators to assess the long-term impact of enforcement-based supply reduction interventions. Data from identified illegal drug surveillance systems were analysed using an a priori defined protocol in which we sought to present annual estimates beginning in 1990. Data were then subjected to trend analyses. Data were obtained from government surveillance systems assessing price, purity and/or seizure quantities of illegal drugs; systems with at least 10 years of longitudinal data assessing price, purity/potency or seizures were included. We identified seven regional/international metasurveillance systems with longitudinal measures of price or purity/potency that met eligibility criteria. In the USA, the average inflation-adjusted and purity-adjusted prices of heroin, cocaine and cannabis decreased by 81%, 80% and 86%, respectively, between 1990 and 2007, whereas average purity increased by 60%, 11% and 161%, respectively. Similar trends were observed in Europe, where during the same period the average inflation-adjusted price of opiates and cocaine decreased by 74% and 51%, respectively. In Australia, the average inflation-adjusted price of cocaine decreased 14%, while the inflation-adjusted price of heroin and cannabis both decreased 49% between 2000 and 2010. During this time, seizures of these drugs in major production regions and major domestic markets generally increased. With few exceptions and despite increasing investments in enforcement-based supply reduction efforts aimed at disrupting global drug supply, illegal drug prices have generally decreased while drug purity has generally increased since 1990. These findings suggest that expanding efforts at controlling the global illegal drug market through law enforcement are failing.

Performance of some numerical Laplace inversion methods on American put option formula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Octaviano, I.; Yuniar, A. R.; Anisa, L.; Surjanto, S. D.; Putri, E. R. M.

2018-03-01

Numerical inversion approaches of Laplace transform is used to obtain a semianalytic solution. Some of the mathematical inversion methods such as Durbin-Crump, Widder, and Papoulis can be used to calculate American put options through the optimal exercise price in the Laplace space. The comparison of methods on some simple functions is aimed to know the accuracy and parameters which used in the calculation of American put options. The result obtained is the performance of each method regarding accuracy and computational speed. The Durbin-Crump method has an average error relative of 2.006e-004 with computational speed of 0.04871 seconds, the Widder method has an average error relative of 0.0048 with computational speed of 3.100181 seconds, and the Papoulis method has an average error relative of 9.8558e-004 with computational speed of 0.020793 seconds.

Eye-Movement Parameters and Reading Speed.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sovik, Nils; Arntzen, Oddvar; Samuelstuen, Marit

2000-01-01

Addresses the relationship between four eye movement parameters and reading speed of 20 twelve-year-old children during silent and oral reading. Predicts reading speed by the following variables: recognition span, average fixation duration, and number of regressive saccades. Indicates that in terms of reading speed, significant interrelationships…

Is law enforcement of drug-impaired driving cost-efficient? An explorative study of a methodology for cost-benefit analysis.

PubMed

Veisten, Knut; Houwing, Sjoerd; Mathijssen, M P M René; Akhtar, Juned

2013-03-01

Road users driving under the influence of psychoactive substances may be at much higher relative risk (RR) in road traffic than the average driver. Legislation banning blood alcohol concentrations above certain threshold levels combined with roadside breath-testing of alcohol have been in lieu for decades in many countries, but new legislation and testing of drivers for drug use have recently been implemented in some countries. In this article we present a methodology for cost-benefit analysis (CBA) of increased law enforcement of roadside drug screening. This is an analysis of the profitability for society, where costs of control are weighed against the reduction in injuries expected from fewer drugged drivers on the roads. We specify assumptions regarding costs and the effect of the specificity of the drug screening device, and quantify a deterrence effect related to sensitivity of the device yielding the benefit estimates. Three European countries with different current enforcement levels were studied, yielding benefit-cost ratios in the approximate range of 0.5-5 for a tripling of current levels of enforcement, with costs of about 4000 EUR per convicted and in the range of 1.5 and 13 million EUR per prevented fatality. The applied methodology for CBA has involved a simplistic behavioural response to enforcement increase and control efficiency. Although this methodology should be developed further, it is clearly indicated that the cost-efficiency of increased law enforcement of drug driving offences is dependent on the baseline situation of drug-use in traffic and on the current level of enforcement, as well as the RR and prevalence of drugs in road traffic. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Assessment of softball bat safety performance using mid-compression polyurethane softballs.

PubMed

McDowell, Mark

2004-07-01

There is currently much debate about the safety of the sport of softball. Batted-ball speed and average pitcher reaction time are factors often used to determine safe performance. Batted-ball speed is shown to be the most important factor to consider when determining safe play. Average pitcher reaction time is explained and directly correlated to batted-ball speed. Eleven aluminum multi-wall, three aluminum single-wall and two composite softball bats were tested with mid-compression polyurethane softballs averaging 1721+/-62 N/6.4 mm to represent the relative bat-ball performance for the sport of slowpitch softball. Nine men and six women were chosen for this study out of a test group of over three hundred slowpitch softball players. On average, aluminum bat performance results were within the recommended safety limits established by the national softball associations. However, when composite bats were used, their performance results exceeded the recommended safety limits which can pose a significant safety risk. Using aluminum softball bats, batted-ball speeds ranged from 80 to 145km x h(-1) Using composite softball bats, batted-ball speeds ranged from 146 to 161 km x h(-1). The scientific relevance of this study is to provide performance information that can lead to injury prevention in the sport of softball.

Unconscious Local Motion Alters Global Image Speed

PubMed Central

Khuu, Sieu K.; Chung, Charles Y. L.; Lord, Stephanie; Pearson, Joel

2014-01-01

Accurate motion perception of self and object speed is crucial for successful interaction in the world. The context in which we make such speed judgments has a profound effect on their accuracy. Misperceptions of motion speed caused by the context can have drastic consequences in real world situations, but they also reveal much about the underlying mechanisms of motion perception. Here we show that motion signals suppressed from awareness can warp simultaneous conscious speed perception. In Experiment 1, we measured global speed discrimination thresholds using an annulus of 8 local Gabor elements. We show that physically removing local elements from the array attenuated global speed discrimination. However, removing awareness of the local elements only had a small effect on speed discrimination. That is, unconscious local motion elements contributed to global conscious speed perception. In Experiment 2 we measured the global speed of the moving Gabor patterns, when half the elements moved at different speeds. We show that global speed averaging occurred regardless of whether local elements were removed from awareness, such that the speed of invisible elements continued to be averaged together with the visible elements to determine the global speed. These data suggest that contextual motion signals outside of awareness can both boost and affect our experience of motion speed, and suggest that such pooling of motion signals occurs before the conscious extraction of the surround motion speed. PMID:25503603

49 CFR 535.9 - Enforcement approach.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Transportation Other Regulations Relating to Transportation (Continued) NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY... testing throughout a given model year in order to validate data received from manufacturers and will... model year. The average set balance is based upon the engines or vehicles performance above or below the...

Vehicle speed affects both pre-skid braking kinematics and average tire/roadway friction.

PubMed

Heinrichs, Bradley E; Allin, Boyd D; Bowler, James J; Siegmund, Gunter P

2004-09-01

Vehicles decelerate between brake application and skid onset. To better estimate a vehicle's speed and position at brake application, we investigated how vehicle deceleration varied with initial speed during both the pre-skid and skidding intervals on dry asphalt. Skid-to-stop tests were performed from four initial speeds (20, 40, 60, and 80 km/h) using three different grades of tire (economy, touring, and performance) on a single vehicle and a single road surface. Average skidding friction was found to vary with initial speed and tire type. The post-brake/pre-skid speed loss, elapsed time, distance travelled, and effective friction were found to vary with initial speed. Based on these data, a method using skid mark length to predict vehicle speed and position at brake application rather than skid onset was shown to improve estimates of initial vehicle speed by up to 10 km/h and estimates of vehicle position at brake application by up to 8 m compared to conventional methods that ignore the post-brake/pre-skid interval. Copyright 2003 Elsevier Ltd.

A Case Study on the Walking Speed of Pedestrian at the Bus Terminal Area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Firdaus Mohamad Ali, Mohd; Salleh Abustan, Muhamad; Hidayah Abu Talib, Siti; Abustan, Ismail; Rahman, Noorhazlinda Abd; Gotoh, Hitoshi

2018-03-01

Walking speed is one of the factors in understanding the pedestrian walking behaviours. Every pedestrian has different level of walking speed that are regulated by some factors such as gender and age. This study was conducted at a bus terminal area with two objectives in which the first one was to determine the average walking speed of pedestrian by considering the factors of age, gender, people with and without carrying baggage; and the second one was to make a comparison of the average walking speed that considered age as the factor of comparison between pedestrian at the bus terminal area and crosswalk. Demographic factor of pedestrian walking speed in this study are gender and age consist of male, female, and 7 groups of age categories that are children, adult men and women, senior adult men and women, over 70 and disabled person. Data of experiment was obtained by making a video recording of the movement of people that were walking and roaming around at the main lobby for 45 minutes by using a camcorder. Hence, data analysis was done by using software named Human Behaviour Simulator (HBS) for analysing the data extracted from the video. The result of this study was male pedestrian walked faster than female with the average of walking speed 1.13m/s and 1.07m/s respectively. Averagely, pedestrian that walked without carrying baggage had higher walking speed compared to pedestrian that were carrying baggage with the speed of 1.02m/s and 0.70m/s respectively. Male pedestrian walks faster than female because they have higher level of stamina and they are mostly taller than female pedestrian. Furthermore, pedestrian with baggage walks slower because baggage will cause distractions such as pedestrian will have more weight to carry and people tend to walk slower.

Averaged Propulsive Body Acceleration (APBA) Can Be Calculated from Biologging Tags That Incorporate Gyroscopes and Accelerometers to Estimate Swimming Speed, Hydrodynamic Drag and Energy Expenditure for Steller Sea Lions

PubMed Central

Trites, Andrew W.; Rosen, David A. S.; Potvin, Jean

2016-01-01

Forces due to propulsion should approximate forces due to hydrodynamic drag for animals horizontally swimming at a constant speed with negligible buoyancy forces. Propulsive forces should also correlate with energy expenditures associated with locomotion—an important cost of foraging. As such, biologging tags containing accelerometers are being used to generate proxies for animal energy expenditures despite being unable to distinguish rotational movements from linear movements. However, recent miniaturizations of gyroscopes offer the possibility of resolving this shortcoming and obtaining better estimates of body accelerations of swimming animals. We derived accelerations using gyroscope data for swimming Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus), and determined how well the measured accelerations correlated with actual swimming speeds and with theoretical drag. We also compared dive averaged dynamic body acceleration estimates that incorporate gyroscope data, with the widely used Overall Dynamic Body Acceleration (ODBA) metric, which does not use gyroscope data. Four Steller sea lions equipped with biologging tags were trained to swim alongside a boat cruising at steady speeds in the range of 4 to 10 kph. At each speed, and for each dive, we computed a measure called Gyro-Informed Dynamic Acceleration (GIDA) using a method incorporating gyroscope data with accelerometer data. We derived a new metric—Averaged Propulsive Body Acceleration (APBA), which is the average gain in speed per flipper stroke divided by mean stroke cycle duration. Our results show that the gyro-based measure (APBA) is a better predictor of speed than ODBA. We also found that APBA can estimate average thrust production during a single stroke-glide cycle, and can be used to estimate energy expended during swimming. The gyroscope-derived methods we describe should be generally applicable in swimming animals where propulsive accelerations can be clearly identified in the signal—and they should also prove useful for dead-reckoning and improving estimates of energy expenditures from locomotion. PMID:27285467

How Do Changes in Speed Affect the Perception of Duration?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Matthews, William J.

2011-01-01

Six experiments investigated how changes in stimulus speed influence subjective duration. Participants saw rotating or translating shapes in three conditions: constant speed, accelerating motion, and decelerating motion. The distance moved and average speed were the same in all three conditions. In temporal judgment tasks, the constant-speed…

Computer vision in roadway transportation systems: a survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Loce, Robert P.; Bernal, Edgar A.; Wu, Wencheng; Bala, Raja

2013-10-01

There is a worldwide effort to apply 21st century intelligence to evolving our transportation networks. The goals of smart transportation networks are quite noble and manifold, including safety, efficiency, law enforcement, energy conservation, and emission reduction. Computer vision is playing a key role in this transportation evolution. Video imaging scientists are providing intelligent sensing and processing technologies for a wide variety of applications and services. There are many interesting technical challenges including imaging under a variety of environmental and illumination conditions, data overload, recognition and tracking of objects at high speed, distributed network sensing and processing, energy sources, as well as legal concerns. This paper presents a survey of computer vision techniques related to three key problems in the transportation domain: safety, efficiency, and security and law enforcement. A broad review of the literature is complemented by detailed treatment of a few selected algorithms and systems that the authors believe represent the state-of-the-art.

High-speed rupture during the initiation of the 2015 Bonin Islands deep earthquake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhan, Z.; Ye, L.; Shearer, P. M.; Lay, T.; Kanamori, H.

2015-12-01

Among the long-standing questions on how deep earthquakes rupture, the nucleation phase of large deep events is one of the most puzzling parts. Resolving the rupture properties of the initiation phase is difficult to achieve with far-field data because of the need for accurate corrections for structural effects on the waveforms (e.g., attenuation, scattering, and site effects) and alignment errors. Here, taking the 2015 Mw 7.9 Bonin Islands earthquake (depth = 678 km) as an example, we jointly invert its far-field P waves at multiple stations for the average rupture speed during the first second of the event. We use waveforms from a closely located aftershock as empirical Green's functions, and correct for possible differences in focal mechanisms and waveform misalignments with an iterative approach. We find that the average initial rupture speed is over 5 km/s, significantly higher than the average rupture speed of 3 km/s later in the event. This contrast suggests that rupture speeds of deep earthquakes can be highly variable during individual events and may define different stages of rupture, potentially with different mechanisms.

46 CFR 163.002-21 - Approval tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... raised and lowered under power operation until a total distance of at least 150 meters (500 feet) has... least 5 meters (16 feet). The average speed of raising the ladder or lift platform and the average lowering speed during this test must both be between 15 and 21 meters per minute (50 and 70 feet per minute...

Finding the Average Speed of a Light-Emitting Toy Car with a Smartphone Light Sensor

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kapucu, Serkan

2017-01-01

This study aims to demonstrate how the average speed of a light-emitting toy car may be determined using a smartphone's light sensor. The freely available Android smartphone application, "AndroSensor," was used for the experiment. The classroom experiment combines complementary physics knowledge of optics and kinematics to find the…

A novel application of artificial neural network for wind speed estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fang, Da; Wang, Jianzhou

2017-05-01

Providing accurate multi-steps wind speed estimation models has increasing significance, because of the important technical and economic impacts of wind speed on power grid security and environment benefits. In this study, the combined strategies for wind speed forecasting are proposed based on an intelligent data processing system using artificial neural network (ANN). Generalized regression neural network and Elman neural network are employed to form two hybrid models. The approach employs one of ANN to model the samples achieving data denoising and assimilation and apply the other to predict wind speed using the pre-processed samples. The proposed method is demonstrated in terms of the predicting improvements of the hybrid models compared with single ANN and the typical forecasting method. To give sufficient cases for the study, four observation sites with monthly average wind speed of four given years in Western China were used to test the models. Multiple evaluation methods demonstrated that the proposed method provides a promising alternative technique in monthly average wind speed estimation.

23 CFR 1313.4 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... ALCOHOL-IMPAIRED DRIVING PREVENTION PROGRAMS § 1313.4 General requirements. (a) Qualification requirements... enforcement of alcohol-impaired driving prevention programs in § 1313.6 and other associated costs permitted... prevention programs at or above the average level of such expenditures in fiscal years 2004 and 2005 (either...

Vehicle energy conservation indicating device and process for use

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

Crump, J.M.

A vehicle energy conservation indicating device comprises an integrated instrument cluster functioning basically as a nomographic computing mechanism. The odometer distance traveled indicator computing mechanism is linked with the fuel indicating gauge mechanism such that a three variable equation computing mechanism is obtained. The three variables are distance traveled, quantity of fuel consumed and distance traveled per unit of fuel consumed. Energy conservation is achieved by operating the vehicle under such performance conditions as to produce the highest possible value for distance traveled per unit of fuel consumed. The instrument panel cluster brings the operator's attention to focus upon andmore » continuously stimulated to conserving energy. Furthermore, the vehicle energy conservation indicating device can be adapted for recording these performance variables on tape type print out. The speedometer advises the vehicle operator when he is obeying or breaking the speed laws which are enforced and monitored by the police with specific punishment prescribed for violations of the law. At this time there is no comparable procedure for enforcing vehicle energy conservation. Thus, this direct read out of distance traveled per unit of energy will moderate the operation in an analogous manner similar to subliminal advertising. This device becomes the focal point of the instrument panel along with the speedometer, thereby providing constant motivation to obey both the speed and energy conservation laws.« less

Failure to pay for social health insurance premiums: Acts of protest or desperation?

PubMed

von Wyl, Viktor; Beck, Konstantin

2015-01-01

In Switzerland, basic health insurance is mandatory for all inhabitants, but a rising number of insured have arrears in premium payments, potentially leading to coverage suspension. We aimed at characterizing insured with debt enforcement proceedings with respect to socio-demographic and health utilization aspects. Cross-sectional analysis of 508.000 insured with basic health insurance contracts in 2013, of whom 14,000 (2.8%) with debt enforcement proceedings, from 11 Swiss cantons. Groups were characterized using logistic regression and latent class analysis. Insured with debt enforcement proceedings were more likely to be young, male and without dependents (partner, kids). Having no supplementary insurance and receiving partial premium subsidies was associated with an increased debt enforcement proceedings risk. Within the debt enforcement proceedings group, three subgroups were identified: 60% were young and seemingly healthy, with a below-average fraction of premium subsidy recipients (18%) and low out-of-pocket payments in prior year (median Swiss Francs 0). Two groups consisted of relatively ill elderly persons (22%, 99% of whom with chronic illnesses) or families (18%), many of whom (29% and 51%) were recipients of premium subsidies. Median out-of-pocket payments in the prior year were high (Swiss Francs 625 and 688, respectively). Sixty percent of premium arrears derive from young insured without apparent financial problems; 40% are owed by elderly and families, which are potentially hurt by coverage loss.

Reliability and Validity of Ten Consumer Activity Trackers Depend on Walking Speed.

PubMed

Fokkema, Tryntsje; Kooiman, Thea J M; Krijnen, Wim P; VAN DER Schans, Cees P; DE Groot, Martijn

2017-04-01

To examine the test-retest reliability and validity of ten activity trackers for step counting at three different walking speeds. Thirty-one healthy participants walked twice on a treadmill for 30 min while wearing 10 activity trackers (Polar Loop, Garmin Vivosmart, Fitbit Charge HR, Apple Watch Sport, Pebble Smartwatch, Samsung Gear S, Misfit Flash, Jawbone Up Move, Flyfit, and Moves). Participants walked three walking speeds for 10 min each; slow (3.2 km·h), average (4.8 km·h), and vigorous (6.4 km·h). To measure test-retest reliability, intraclass correlations (ICC) were determined between the first and second treadmill test. Validity was determined by comparing the trackers with the gold standard (hand counting), using mean differences, mean absolute percentage errors, and ICC. Statistical differences were calculated by paired-sample t tests, Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, and by constructing Bland-Altman plots. Test-retest reliability varied with ICC ranging from -0.02 to 0.97. Validity varied between trackers and different walking speeds with mean differences between the gold standard and activity trackers ranging from 0.0 to 26.4%. Most trackers showed relatively low ICC and broad limits of agreement of the Bland-Altman plots at the different speeds. For the slow walking speed, the Garmin Vivosmart and Fitbit Charge HR showed the most accurate results. The Garmin Vivosmart and Apple Watch Sport demonstrated the best accuracy at an average walking speed. For vigorous walking, the Apple Watch Sport, Pebble Smartwatch, and Samsung Gear S exhibited the most accurate results. Test-retest reliability and validity of activity trackers depends on walking speed. In general, consumer activity trackers perform better at an average and vigorous walking speed than at a slower walking speed.

Law enforcement and the long gun: do we need a new face in the fight?

PubMed

Cannon, Mark

2013-11-01

The threat of rifles in the hands of criminals is now well recognized within law enforcement. Current emergency response systems are not equipped to operate in this combat-like environment. Growing statistics indicate that of the peace officers that were killed in the line of duty in the United States nearly half died by gunfire evidence. As Emergency Medical Services ("EMS") training and standards evolve, the lessons learned from the Tactical Combat Casualty Care doctrine should be incorporated to improve the safety and outcomes of injured law enforcement officers. Statistics show that deaths by gunfire have the highest average percentage of all officer deaths. Although new weapons, armor, and tactics are continually evolving to meet the challenge of officer safety, in the past decade, little has changed in how our EMS system responds to a critically wounded officer. Combat data from the US military leads us to believe that to save a wounded officer, emergency care must start immediately, regardless of the ongoing gun battle. It is time for the emergency medical system to evolve to meet the critical needs of today's law enforcement environment. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

MiniSODAR(TradeMark) Evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Short, David A.; Wheeler, Mark M.

2003-01-01

This report describes results of the AMU's Instrumentation and Measurement task for evaluation of the Doppler miniSODAR(TradeMark) System (DmSS). The DmSS is an acoustic wind profiler providing high resolution data to a height of approx. 410 ft. The Boeing Company installed a DmSS near Space Launch Complex 37 in mid-2002 as a substitute for a tall wind tower and plans to use DmSS data for the analysis and forecasting of winds during ground and launch operations. Peak wind speed data are of particular importance to Launch Weather Officers of the 45th Weather Squadron for evaluating user Launch Commit Criteria. The AMU performed a comparative analysis of wind data between the DmSS and nearby wind towers from August 2002 to July 2003. The DmSS vertical profile of average wind speed showed good agreement with the wind towers. However, the DMSS peak wind speeds were higher, on average, than the wind tower peak wind speeds by about 25%. A statistical model of an idealized Doppler profiler was developed and it predicted that average wind speeds would be well determined but peak wind speeds would be over-estimated due to an under-specification of vertical velocity variations in the atmosphere over the Profiler.

High-Speed Sealift Technology. Volume 1

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-09-01

performance of high - speed commercial and military sealift ships , in advance of detailed design studies, in order to help define realistic future mission...Therefore, the viability of new High - Speed Sealift (HSS) ships (oceangoing cargo vessels capable of at least 40 kt that are able to onload and offload... propulsion power for dynamically supported concepts) VK = average ship speed for a voyage (i.e., sustained or service speed )

Evaluation of variable advisory speed limits in work zones.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2013-08-01

Variable advisory speed limit (VASL) systems could be effective at both urban and rural work zones, at both uncongested and congested sites. At uncongested urban work zones, the average speeds with VASL were lower than without VASL. But the standard ...

Egalitarian Fiction and Collective Fraud.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gottfredson, Linda S.

1994-01-01

Social science today condones and perpetuates the egalitarian fiction that racial and ethnic groups never differ in average developed intelligence (general mental ability). Enforcement of this lie and avoidance of real research into these issues is aiding bigots more than the truth would and is degrading intellectual integrity. (SLD)

28 CFR 33.102 - Preferences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE BUREAU OF JUSTICE ASSISTANCE GRANT PROGRAMS Bulletproof Vest... armor vests based on the percentage of law enforcement officers who do not have access to an armor vest... wear armor vests whenever feasible; and (c) Has a violent crime rate at or above the national average...

28 CFR 33.102 - Preferences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE BUREAU OF JUSTICE ASSISTANCE GRANT PROGRAMS Bulletproof Vest... armor vests based on the percentage of law enforcement officers who do not have access to an armor vest... wear armor vests whenever feasible; and (c) Has a violent crime rate at or above the national average...

28 CFR 33.102 - Preferences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE BUREAU OF JUSTICE ASSISTANCE GRANT PROGRAMS Bulletproof Vest... armor vests based on the percentage of law enforcement officers who do not have access to an armor vest... wear armor vests whenever feasible; and (c) Has a violent crime rate at or above the national average...

28 CFR 33.102 - Preferences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE BUREAU OF JUSTICE ASSISTANCE GRANT PROGRAMS Bulletproof Vest... armor vests based on the percentage of law enforcement officers who do not have access to an armor vest... wear armor vests whenever feasible; and (c) Has a violent crime rate at or above the national average...

28 CFR 33.102 - Preferences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE BUREAU OF JUSTICE ASSISTANCE GRANT PROGRAMS Bulletproof Vest... armor vests based on the percentage of law enforcement officers who do not have access to an armor vest... wear armor vests whenever feasible; and (c) Has a violent crime rate at or above the national average...

On the Relationship between Solar Wind Speed, Earthward-Directed Coronal Mass Ejections, Geomagnetic Activity, and the Sunspot Cycle Using 12-Month Moving Averages

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, Robert M.; Hathaway, David H.

2008-01-01

For 1996 .2006 (cycle 23), 12-month moving averages of the aa geomagnetic index strongly correlate (r = 0.92) with 12-month moving averages of solar wind speed, and 12-month moving averages of the number of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) (halo and partial halo events) strongly correlate (r = 0.87) with 12-month moving averages of sunspot number. In particular, the minimum (15.8, September/October 1997) and maximum (38.0, August 2003) values of the aa geomagnetic index occur simultaneously with the minimum (376 km/s) and maximum (547 km/s) solar wind speeds, both being strongly correlated with the following recurrent component (due to high-speed streams). The large peak of aa geomagnetic activity in cycle 23, the largest on record, spans the interval late 2002 to mid 2004 and is associated with a decreased number of halo and partial halo CMEs, whereas the smaller secondary peak of early 2005 seems to be associated with a slight rebound in the number of halo and partial halo CMEs. Based on the observed aaM during the declining portion of cycle 23, RM for cycle 24 is predicted to be larger than average, being about 168+/-60 (the 90% prediction interval), whereas based on the expected aam for cycle 24 (greater than or equal to 14.6), RM for cycle 24 should measure greater than or equal to 118+/-30, yielding an overlap of about 128+/-20.

Toward an Effective Long-Term Strategy for Preventing Motor Vehicle Crashes and Injuries

PubMed Central

Mawson, Anthony R.; Walley, E. Kenneth

2014-01-01

Casualties due to motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) include some 40,000 deaths each year in the United States and one million deaths worldwide. One strategy that has been recommended for improving automobile safety is to lower speed limits and enforce them with speed cameras. However, motor vehicles can be hazardous even at low speeds whereas properly protected human beings can survive high-speed crashes without injury. Emphasis on changing driver behavior as the focus for road safety improvements has been largely unsuccessful; moreover, drivers today are increasingly distracted by secondary tasks such as cell phone use and texting. Indeed, the true limiting factor in vehicular safety is the capacity of human beings to sense and process information and to make rapid decisions. Given that dramatic reductions in injuries and deaths from MVCs have occurred over the past century due to improvements in safety technology, despite increases in the number of vehicles on the road and miles driven per vehicle, we propose that an effective long-term strategy for reducing MVC-related injury would be continued technological innovation in vehicle design, aimed at progressively removing the driver from routine operational decision-making. Once this is achieved, high rates of speed could be achieved on open highways, with minimal risk of crashes and injury to occupants and pedestrians. PMID:25116634

Toward an effective long-term strategy for preventing motor vehicle crashes and injuries.

PubMed

Mawson, Anthony R; Walley, E Kenneth

2014-08-11

Casualties due to motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) include some 40,000 deaths each year in the United States and one million deaths worldwide. One strategy that has been recommended for improving automobile safety is to lower speed limits and enforce them with speed cameras. However, motor vehicles can be hazardous even at low speeds whereas properly protected human beings can survive high-speed crashes without injury. Emphasis on changing driver behavior as the focus for road safety improvements has been largely unsuccessful; moreover, drivers today are increasingly distracted by secondary tasks such as cell phone use and texting. Indeed, the true limiting factor in vehicular safety is the capacity of human beings to sense and process information and to make rapid decisions. Given that dramatic reductions in injuries and deaths from MVCs have occurred over the past century due to improvements in safety technology, despite increases in the number of vehicles on the road and miles driven per vehicle, we propose that an effective long-term strategy for reducing MVC-related injury would be continued technological innovation in vehicle design, aimed at progressively removing the driver from routine operational decision-making. Once this is achieved, high rates of speed could be achieved on open highways, with minimal risk of crashes and injury to occupants and pedestrians.

The Influence of Aircraft Speed Variations on Sensible Heat-Flux Measurements by Different Airborne Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martin, Sabrina; Bange, Jens

2014-01-01

Crawford et al. (Boundary-Layer Meteorol 66:237-245, 1993) showed that the time average is inappropriate for airborne eddy-covariance flux calculations. The aircraft's ground speed through a turbulent field is not constant. One reason can be a correlation with vertical air motion, so that some types of structures are sampled more densely than others. To avoid this, the time-sampled data are adjusted for the varying ground speed so that the modified estimates are equivalent to spatially-sampled data. A comparison of sensible heat-flux calculations using temporal and spatial averaging methods is presented and discussed. Data of the airborne measurement systems , Helipod and Dornier 128-6 are used for the analysis. These systems vary in size, weight and aerodynamic characteristics, since the is a small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the Helipod a helicopter-borne turbulence probe and the Dornier 128-6 a manned research aircraft. The systematic bias anticipated in covariance computations due to speed variations was neither found when averaging over Dornier, Helipod nor UAV flight legs. However, the random differences between spatial and temporal averaging fluxes were found to be up to 30 % on the individual flight legs.

Improving Fishing Pattern Detection from Satellite AIS Using Data Mining and Machine Learning.

PubMed

de Souza, Erico N; Boerder, Kristina; Matwin, Stan; Worm, Boris

2016-01-01

A key challenge in contemporary ecology and conservation is the accurate tracking of the spatial distribution of various human impacts, such as fishing. While coastal fisheries in national waters are closely monitored in some countries, existing maps of fishing effort elsewhere are fraught with uncertainty, especially in remote areas and the High Seas. Better understanding of the behavior of the global fishing fleets is required in order to prioritize and enforce fisheries management and conservation measures worldwide. Satellite-based Automatic Information Systems (S-AIS) are now commonly installed on most ocean-going vessels and have been proposed as a novel tool to explore the movements of fishing fleets in near real time. Here we present approaches to identify fishing activity from S-AIS data for three dominant fishing gear types: trawl, longline and purse seine. Using a large dataset containing worldwide fishing vessel tracks from 2011-2015, we developed three methods to detect and map fishing activities: for trawlers we produced a Hidden Markov Model (HMM) using vessel speed as observation variable. For longliners we have designed a Data Mining (DM) approach using an algorithm inspired from studies on animal movement. For purse seiners a multi-layered filtering strategy based on vessel speed and operation time was implemented. Validation against expert-labeled datasets showed average detection accuracies of 83% for trawler and longliner, and 97% for purse seiner. Our study represents the first comprehensive approach to detect and identify potential fishing behavior for three major gear types operating on a global scale. We hope that this work will enable new efforts to assess the spatial and temporal distribution of global fishing effort and make global fisheries activities transparent to ocean scientists, managers and the public.

Improving Fishing Pattern Detection from Satellite AIS Using Data Mining and Machine Learning

PubMed Central

Matwin, Stan; Worm, Boris

2016-01-01

A key challenge in contemporary ecology and conservation is the accurate tracking of the spatial distribution of various human impacts, such as fishing. While coastal fisheries in national waters are closely monitored in some countries, existing maps of fishing effort elsewhere are fraught with uncertainty, especially in remote areas and the High Seas. Better understanding of the behavior of the global fishing fleets is required in order to prioritize and enforce fisheries management and conservation measures worldwide. Satellite-based Automatic Information Systems (S-AIS) are now commonly installed on most ocean-going vessels and have been proposed as a novel tool to explore the movements of fishing fleets in near real time. Here we present approaches to identify fishing activity from S-AIS data for three dominant fishing gear types: trawl, longline and purse seine. Using a large dataset containing worldwide fishing vessel tracks from 2011–2015, we developed three methods to detect and map fishing activities: for trawlers we produced a Hidden Markov Model (HMM) using vessel speed as observation variable. For longliners we have designed a Data Mining (DM) approach using an algorithm inspired from studies on animal movement. For purse seiners a multi-layered filtering strategy based on vessel speed and operation time was implemented. Validation against expert-labeled datasets showed average detection accuracies of 83% for trawler and longliner, and 97% for purse seiner. Our study represents the first comprehensive approach to detect and identify potential fishing behavior for three major gear types operating on a global scale. We hope that this work will enable new efforts to assess the spatial and temporal distribution of global fishing effort and make global fisheries activities transparent to ocean scientists, managers and the public. PMID:27367425

Law Enforcement Head-Borne Personal Protective Equipment Hearing Attenuation

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-04-01

thus allowing for a binaural recording to be captured. The BOB was placed on a manual turntable to allow the BOB to be rotated along the azimuth...listed in the Appendix. Each movement should be conducted 8 times at a rate of 50 beats per minute (BPM) and 80 BPM; this will be defined as slow...APPENDIX FABRIC NOISE TEST MOVEMENTS AND SPEEDS The below movements must be performed at a rate of 50 beats per minute (BPM) and 80 BPM: Movement

Changes in apparent duration follow shifts in perceptual timing

PubMed Central

Bruno, Aurelio; Ayhan, Inci; Johnston, Alan

2015-01-01

It is well established that the apparent duration of moving visual objects is greater at higher as compared to slower speeds. Here we report the effects of acceleration and deceleration on the perceived duration of a drifting grating with average speed kept constant (10°/s).For acceleration, increasing the speed range progressively reduced perceived duration. The magnitude of apparent duration compression was determined by speed rather than temporal frequency and was proportional to speed range (independent of standard duration) rather than acceleration. The perceived duration reduction was also proportional to the standard length. The effects of increases and decreases in speed were highly asymmetric. Reducing speed through the interval induced a moderate increase in perceived duration. These results could not be explained by changes in apparent onset or offset or differences in perceived average speed between intervals containing increasing speed and intervals containing decreasing speed. Paradoxically, for intervals combining increasing speed and decreasing speed, compression only occurred when increasing speed occurred in the second half of the interval. We show that this pattern of results in the duration domain was concomitant with changes in the reported direction of apparent motion of Gaussian blobs, embedded in intervals of increasing or decreasing speed, that could be predicted from adaptive changes in the temporal impulse response function. We detected similar changes after flicker adaptation, suggesting that the two effects might be linked through changes in the temporal tuning of visual filters. PMID:26024450

Paramecia Swim with a constant propulsion in Solutions of Varying Viscosity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valles, James M., Jr.; Jung, Ilyong; Mickalide, Harry; Park, Hojin; Powers, Thomas

2012-02-01

Paramecia swim through the coordinated beating of the 1000's of cilia covering their body. We have measured the swimming speed of populations of Paramecium Caudatam in solutions of different viscosity, η, to see how their propulsion changes with increased drag. We have found the average instantaneous speed, V to decrease monotonically with increasing η. The product ηv is roughly constant over a factor of 7 change in viscosity suggesting that paramecia swim at constant propulsion force. The distribution of swimming speeds is Gaussian. The width appears proportional to the average speed implying that both fast and slow swimmers exert a constant propulsion. We discuss the possibility that this behavior implies that the body cilia beat at constant force with varying viscosity.

Associations of Openness and Conscientiousness With Walking Speed Decline: Findings From the Health, Aging, and Body Composition Study

PubMed Central

Costa, Paul T.; Terracciano, Antonio; Ferrucci, Luigi; Faulkner, Kimberly; Coday, Mathilda (Mace) C.; Ayonayon, Hilsa N.; Simonsick, Eleanor M.

2012-01-01

Objectives. The objective of this study was to explore the associations between openness to experience and conscientiousness, two dimensions of the five-factor model of personality, and usual gait speed and gait speed decline. Method. Baseline analyses were conducted on 907 men and women aged 71–82 years participating in the Cognitive Vitality substudy of the Health, Aging, and Body Composition study. The longitudinal analytic sample consisted of 740 participants who had walking speed assessed 3 years later. Results. At baseline, gait speed averaged 1.2 m/s, and an average decline of 5% over the 3-year follow-up period was observed. Higher conscientiousness was associated with faster initial walking speed and less decline in walking speed over the study period, independent of sociodemographic characteristics. Lifestyle factors and disease status appear to play a role in the baseline but not the longitudinal association between conscientiousness and gait speed. Openness was not associated with either initial or decline in gait speed. Discussion. These findings extend the body of evidence suggesting a protective association between conscientiousness and physical function to performance-based assessment of gait speed. Future studies are needed to confirm these associations and to explore mechanisms that underlie the conscientiousness mobility connection in aging adults. PMID:22451484

7 CFR 1400.502 - Compliance and enforcement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... CCC from a certified public accountant or attorney that the average adjusted gross income of the... supporting financial data as requested by CCC. Supporting financial data may include State income tax returns... the person's or legal entity's income; or (4) Authorization for CCC to obtain tax data from the...

Case Study of above Average Elementary School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mendez-Morse, Sylvia; Klinker, JoAnn Franklin

2005-01-01

This case study explores the duty of midmanagement administrators to enforce district policies with which they do not necessarily agree. The case addresses the issues of moral leadership, distribution of power, emotional responses that impact decision making, class differences, and equity. It also examines the role conflict that many married…

Institutions in Modern Society: Caretakers and Subjects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romano-V, Octavio I.

1974-01-01

Examines some of the problems associated with the training, retraining, and rehabilitation of people in urban, industrial California. Indicates that on an average day in 1969, over seven million people in California were under institutional care or in some institutional program related to law enforcement, social welfare, hospitals, and schools.…

Gender-related differences in maximum gait speed and daily physical activity in elderly hospitalized cardiac inpatients: a preliminary study.

PubMed

Izawa, Kazuhiro P; Watanabe, Satoshi; Hirano, Yasuyuki; Matsushima, Shinya; Suzuki, Tomohiro; Oka, Koichiro; Kida, Keisuke; Suzuki, Kengo; Osada, Naohiko; Omiya, Kazuto; Brubaker, Peter H; Shimizu, Hiroyuki; Akashi, Yoshihiro J

2015-03-01

Maximum gait speed and physical activity (PA) relate to mortality and morbidity, but little is known about gender-related differences in these factors in elderly hospitalized cardiac inpatients. This study aimed to determine differences in maximum gait speed and daily measured PA based on sex and the relationship between these measures in elderly cardiac inpatients.A consecutive 268 elderly Japanese cardiac inpatients (mean age, 73.3 years) were enrolled and divided by sex into female (n = 75, 28%) and male (n = 193, 72%) groups. Patient characteristics and maximum gait speed, average step count, and PA energy expenditure (PAEE) in kilocalorie per day for 2 days assessed by accelerometer were compared between groups.Gait speed correlated positively with in-hospital PA measured by average daily step count (r = 0.46, P < 0.001) and average daily PAEE (r = 0.47, P < 0.001) in all patients. After adjustment for left ventricular ejection fraction, step counts and PAEE were significantly lower in females than males (2651.35 ± 1889.92 vs 4037.33 ± 1866.81 steps, P < 0.001; 52.74 ± 51.98 vs 99.33 ± 51.40 kcal, P < 0.001), respectively.Maximum gait speed was slower and PA lower in elderly female versus male inpatients. Minimum gait speed and step count values in this study might be minimum target values for elderly male and female Japanese cardiac inpatients.

Start Your Energy Conversion Devices

Science.gov Websites

:37 a.m. and 1:33 p.m. MIT's car took only 1 hour, 37 minutes and 8 seconds to travel the 65 miles at an average speed of 40.60 miles per hour. Closely following was Stanford University/University of California-Berkeley's Afterburner II coming in at 1:37:25, with an average speed of 40.48 miles per hour

Post-processing method for wind speed ensemble forecast using wind speed and direction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sofie Eide, Siri; Bjørnar Bremnes, John; Steinsland, Ingelin

2017-04-01

Statistical methods are widely applied to enhance the quality of both deterministic and ensemble NWP forecasts. In many situations, like wind speed forecasting, most of the predictive information is contained in one variable in the NWP models. However, in statistical calibration of deterministic forecasts it is often seen that including more variables can further improve forecast skill. For ensembles this is rarely taken advantage of, mainly due to that it is generally not straightforward how to include multiple variables. In this study, it is demonstrated how multiple variables can be included in Bayesian model averaging (BMA) by using a flexible regression method for estimating the conditional means. The method is applied to wind speed forecasting at 204 Norwegian stations based on wind speed and direction forecasts from the ECMWF ensemble system. At about 85 % of the sites the ensemble forecasts were improved in terms of CRPS by adding wind direction as predictor compared to only using wind speed. On average the improvements were about 5 %, but mainly for moderate to strong wind situations. For weak wind speeds adding wind direction had more or less neutral impact.

Impact of a Pilot Videogame-Based Physical Activity Program on Walking Speed in Adults with Schizophrenia.

PubMed

Leutwyler, H; Hubbard, E; Cooper, B A; Dowling, G

2017-11-10

The purpose of this report is to describe the impact of a videogame-based physical activity program using the Kinect for Xbox 360 game system (Microsoft, Redmond, WA) on walking speed in adults with schizophrenia. In this randomized controlled trial, 28 participants played either an active videogame for 30 min (intervention group) or played a sedentary videogame for 30 min (control group), once a week for 6 weeks. Walking speed was measured objectively with the Short Physical Performance Battery at enrollment and at the end of the 6-week program. The intervention group (n = 13) showed an average improvement in walking speed of 0.08 m/s and the control group (n = 15) showed an average improvement in walking speed of 0.03 m/s. Although the change in walking speed was not statistically significant, the intervention group had between a small and substantial clinically meaningful change. The results suggest a videogame based physical activity program provides clinically meaningful improvement in walking speed, an important indicator of health status.

Battered police: risk factors for violence against law enforcement officers.

PubMed

Covington, Michele W; Huff-Corzine, Lin; Corzine, Jay

2014-01-01

Although we hear more about violence committed by the police, violence against police officers is also a major problem in the United States. Using data collected from the Orlando, Florida Police Department files, this study examines situational variables, offender characteristics, and officer demographics that may correlate with violence directed at law enforcement officers. Logistic regression results indicate that battery against one or more police officers is significantly more likely when multiple officers are involved, when offenders are women, when offenders are larger than average as measured by body mass index (BMI), and when offenders are known to have recently consumed alcohol. We close with a discussion of policy implications and directions for future research.

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

Wood, R.A.; Downing, B.R.; Pearce, T.C.

The consumption of primary energy by diesel, petrol and electric versions of a light van was compared under high-density urban traffic conditions. The vehicles were driven repeatedly round a 10km route in Central London and measurements of fuel consumption, distance travelled and time were made for each route section. Multiple regression analysis established vehicle sensitivities to variations in average speed, payload, road type, regenerated energy (electric vehicle), kinetic energy, weather and driver. The diesel vehicle used primary energy more efficiently than either the petrol or the electric vehicle over the entire speed range observed, the ratio of energy consumption (diesel:petrol:electric)more » being 100:185:198 at the average speed during the experiment (17.58km/h). The petrol vehicle was more efficient than the electric over most of the speed range, but was less efficient at speeds below about 14km/h. It is concluded that the diesel vehicle is the most efficient for urban delivery duties.« less

Conservative-variable average states for equilibrium gas multi-dimensional fluxes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Iannelli, G. S.

1992-01-01

Modern split component evaluations of the flux vector Jacobians are thoroughly analyzed for equilibrium-gas average-state determinations. It is shown that all such derivations satisfy a fundamental eigenvalue consistency theorem. A conservative-variable average state is then developed for arbitrary equilibrium-gas equations of state and curvilinear-coordinate fluxes. Original expressions for eigenvalues, sound speed, Mach number, and eigenvectors are then determined for a general average Jacobian, and it is shown that the average eigenvalues, Mach number, and eigenvectors may not coincide with their classical pointwise counterparts. A general equilibrium-gas equation of state is then discussed for conservative-variable computational fluid dynamics (CFD) Euler formulations. The associated derivations lead to unique compatibility relations that constrain the pressure Jacobian derivatives. Thereafter, alternative forms for the pressure variation and average sound speed are developed in terms of two average pressure Jacobian derivatives. Significantly, no additional degree of freedom exists in the determination of these two average partial derivatives of pressure. Therefore, they are simultaneously computed exactly without any auxiliary relation, hence without any geometric solution projection or arbitrary scale factors. Several alternative formulations are then compared and key differences highlighted with emphasis on the determination of the pressure variation and average sound speed. The relevant underlying assumptions are identified, including some subtle approximations that are inherently employed in published average-state procedures. Finally, a representative test case is discussed for which an intrinsically exact average state is determined. This exact state is then compared with the predictions of recent methods, and their inherent approximations are appropriately quantified.

A nonlinear dynamics approach for incorporating wind-speed patterns into wind-power project evaluation.

PubMed

Huffaker, Ray; Bittelli, Marco

2015-01-01

Wind-energy production may be expanded beyond regions with high-average wind speeds (such as the Midwest U.S.A.) to sites with lower-average speeds (such as the Southeast U.S.A.) by locating favorable regional matches between natural wind-speed and energy-demand patterns. A critical component of wind-power evaluation is to incorporate wind-speed dynamics reflecting documented diurnal and seasonal behavioral patterns. Conventional probabilistic approaches remove patterns from wind-speed data. These patterns must be restored synthetically before they can be matched with energy-demand patterns. How to accurately restore wind-speed patterns is a vexing problem spurring an expanding line of papers. We propose a paradigm shift in wind power evaluation that employs signal-detection and nonlinear-dynamics techniques to empirically diagnose whether synthetic pattern restoration can be avoided altogether. If the complex behavior of observed wind-speed records is due to nonlinear, low-dimensional, and deterministic system dynamics, then nonlinear dynamics techniques can reconstruct wind-speed dynamics from observed wind-speed data without recourse to conventional probabilistic approaches. In the first study of its kind, we test a nonlinear dynamics approach in an application to Sugarland Wind-the first utility-scale wind project proposed in Florida, USA. We find empirical evidence of a low-dimensional and nonlinear wind-speed attractor characterized by strong temporal patterns that match up well with regular daily and seasonal electricity demand patterns.

Failure to pay for social health insurance premiums: Acts of protest or desperation?

PubMed Central

von Wyl, Viktor; Beck, Konstantin

2015-01-01

Background In Switzerland, basic health insurance is mandatory for all inhabitants, but a rising number of insured have arrears in premium payments, potentially leading to coverage suspension. We aimed at characterizing insured with debt enforcement proceedings with respect to socio-demographic and health utilization aspects. Methods Cross-sectional analysis of 508.000 insured with basic health insurance contracts in 2013, of whom 14,000 (2.8%) with debt enforcement proceedings, from 11 Swiss cantons. Groups were characterized using logistic regression and latent class analysis. Results Insured with debt enforcement proceedings were more likely to be young, male and without dependents (partner, kids). Having no supplementary insurance and receiving partial premium subsidies was associated with an increased debt enforcement proceedings risk. Within the debt enforcement proceedings group, three subgroups were identified: 60% were young and seemingly healthy, with a below-average fraction of premium subsidy recipients (18%) and low out-of-pocket payments in prior year (median Swiss Francs 0). Two groups consisted of relatively ill elderly persons (22%, 99% of whom with chronic illnesses) or families (18%), many of whom (29% and 51%) were recipients of premium subsidies. Median out-of-pocket payments in the prior year were high (Swiss Francs 625 and 688, respectively). Conclusions Sixty percent of premium arrears derive from young insured without apparent financial problems; 40% are owed by elderly and families, which are potentially hurt by coverage loss. PMID:26844060

Cost-effectiveness of traffic enforcement: case study from Uganda.

PubMed

Bishai, D; Asiimwe, B; Abbas, S; Hyder, A A; Bazeyo, W

2008-08-01

In October 2004, the Ugandan Police department deployed enhanced traffic safety patrols on the four major roads to the capital Kampala. To assess the costs and potential effectiveness of increasing traffic enforcement in Uganda. Record review and key informant interviews were conducted at 10 police stations along the highways that were patrolled. Monthly data on traffic citations and casualties were reviewed for January 2001 to December 2005; time series (ARIMA) regression was used to assess for a statistically significant change in traffic deaths. Costs were computed from the perspective of the police department in $US 2005. Cost offsets from savings to the health sector were not included. The annual cost of deploying the four squads of traffic patrols (20 officers, four vehicles, equipment, administration) is estimated at $72,000. Since deployment, the number of citations has increased substantially with a value of $327 311 annually. Monthly crash data pre- and post-intervention show a statistically significant 17% drop in road deaths after the intervention. The average cost-effectiveness of better road safety enforcement in Uganda is $603 per death averted or $27 per life year saved discounted at 3% (equivalent to 9% of Uganda's $300 GDP per capita). The costs of traffic safety enforcement are low in comparison to the potential number of lives saved and revenue generated. Increasing enforcement of existing traffic safety norms can prove to be an extremely cost-effective public health intervention in low-income countries, even from a government perspective.

Workplace health and safety regulations: Impact of enforcement and consultation on workers' compensation claims rates in Washington State.

PubMed

Baggs, James; Silverstein, Barbara; Foley, Michael

2003-05-01

There has been considerable debate in the public policy arena about the appropriate mix of regulatory enforcement and consultation in achieving desired health and safety behavior across industries. Recently there has been a shift in federal policy toward voluntary approaches and constraining the scope of enforcement programs, although there is little evidence that this might improve health and safety outcomes. To address this, we examined changes in lost time workers compensation claims rates for Washington State employers who had (1) no OSHA State Plan (WISHA) activity, (2) enforcement, (3) consultation, and (4) both types of visits. Compensable claims rates, hours, and WISHA activity were determined for each employer account with a single business location that had payroll hours reported for every quarter from 1997-2000 and more than 10 employees. We used a generalized estimating equations (GEE) approach to Poisson regression to model the association between WISHA activity and claims rate controlling for other external factors. Controlling for previous claims rate and average size, claims rates for employers with WISHA enforcement activity declined 22.5% in fixed site industry SIC codes compared to 7% among employers with no WISHA activity (P < 0.05), and in non-fixed site SICs (e.g., construction) claims rates declined 12.8% for employers with enforcement activity compared to a 7.4% decline for those with no WISHA activity (P > 0.10). WISHA consultation activity was not associated with a greater decline in compensable claims rates (-2.3% for fixed sites and +3.5% for non-fixed sites). WISHA activity did not adversely affect worksite survivability through the study period. Enforcement inspections are significantly associated with decreasing compensable workers compensation claims rates especially for fixed site employers. We were unable to identify an association between consultation activities and decreasing claims rates. Copyright 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Effects of Vocal Fold Nodules on Glottal Cycle Measurements Derived from High-Speed Videoendoscopy in Children

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

The goal of this study is to quantify the effects of vocal fold nodules on vibratory motion in children using high-speed videoendoscopy. Differences in vibratory motion were evaluated in 20 children with vocal fold nodules (5–11 years) and 20 age and gender matched typically developing children (5–11 years) during sustained phonation at typical pitch and loudness. Normalized kinematic features of vocal fold displacements from the mid-membranous vocal fold point were extracted from the steady-state high-speed video. A total of 12 kinematic features representing spatial and temporal characteristics of vibratory motion were calculated. Average values and standard deviations (cycle-to-cycle variability) of the following kinematic features were computed: normalized peak displacement, normalized average opening velocity, normalized average closing velocity, normalized peak closing velocity, speed quotient, and open quotient. Group differences between children with and without vocal fold nodules were statistically investigated. While a moderate effect size was observed for the spatial feature of speed quotient, and the temporal feature of normalized average closing velocity in children with nodules compared to vocally normal children, none of the features were statistically significant between the groups after Bonferroni correction. The kinematic analysis of the mid-membranous vocal fold displacement revealed that children with nodules primarily differ from typically developing children in closing phase kinematics of the glottal cycle, whereas the opening phase kinematics are similar. Higher speed quotients and similar opening phase velocities suggest greater relative forces are acting on vocal fold in the closing phase. These findings suggest that future large-scale studies should focus on spatial and temporal features related to the closing phase of the glottal cycle for differentiating the kinematics of children with and without vocal fold nodules. PMID:27124157

Surface Wind Field Analyses of Tropical Cyclones in the Western Pacific

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-09-01

Averaged vertical profiles of actual wind speeds (m s-1) from all dropwindsondes in three ITOP storms . (b) Averaged vertical profiles of wind speeds...for the entire set of winds from the three ITOP 2010 typhoons. .............................1  Figure 27.  a) Storm -relative motion flight track for...1  Figure 28.  a) Storm -relative motion flight track for flight 0420 in TY Fanapi

Colloidal transport by active filaments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manna, Raj Kumar; Kumar, P. B. Sunil; Adhikari, R.

2017-01-01

Enhanced colloidal transport beyond the limit imposed by diffusion is usually achieved through external fields. Here, we demonstrate the ballistic transport of a colloidal sphere using internal sources of energy provided by an attached active filament. The latter is modeled as a chain of chemo-mechanically active beads connected by potentials that enforce semi-flexibility and self-avoidance. The fluid flow produced by the active beads and the forces they mediate are explicitly taken into account in the overdamped equations of motion describing the colloid-filament assembly. The speed and efficiency of transport depend on the dynamical conformational states of the filament. We characterize these states using filament writhe as an order parameter and identify ones yielding maxima in speed and efficiency of transport. The transport mechanism reported here has a remarkable resemblance to the flagellar propulsion of microorganisms which suggests its utility in biomimetic systems.

Human Kinematics of Cochlear Implant Surgery: An Investigation of Insertion Micro-Motions and Speed Limitations.

PubMed

Kesler, Kyle; Dillon, Neal P; Fichera, Loris; Labadie, Robert F

2017-09-01

Objectives Document human motions associated with cochlear implant electrode insertion at different speeds and determine the lower limit of continuous insertion speed by a human. Study Design Observational. Setting Academic medical center. Subjects and Methods Cochlear implant forceps were coupled to a frame containing reflective fiducials, which enabled optical tracking of the forceps' tip position in real time. Otolaryngologists (n = 14) performed mock electrode insertions at different speeds based on recommendations from the literature: "fast" (96 mm/min), "stable" (as slow as possible without stopping), and "slow" (15 mm/min). For each insertion, the following metrics were calculated from the tracked position data: percentage of time at prescribed speed, percentage of time the surgeon stopped moving forward, and number of direction reversals (ie, going from forward to backward motion). Results Fast insertion trials resulted in better adherence to the prescribed speed (45.4% of the overall time), no motion interruptions, and no reversals, as compared with slow insertions (18.6% of time at prescribed speed, 15.7% stopped time, and an average of 18.6 reversals per trial). These differences were statistically significant for all metrics ( P < .01). The metrics for the fast and stable insertions were comparable; however, stable insertions were performed 44% slower on average. The mean stable insertion speed was 52 ± 19.3 mm/min. Conclusion Results indicate that continuous insertion of a cochlear implant electrode at 15 mm/min is not feasible for human operators. The lower limit of continuous forward insertion is 52 mm/min on average. Guidelines on manual insertion kinematics should consider this practical limit of human motion.

Effects of parallelogram-shaped pavement markings on vehicle speed and safety of pedestrian crosswalks on urban roads in China.

PubMed

Guo, Yanyong; Liu, Pan; Liang, Qiyu; Wang, Wei

2016-10-01

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of parallelogram-shaped pavement markings on vehicle speed and crashes in the vicinity of urban pedestrian crosswalks. The research team measured speed data at twelve sites, and crash data at eleven sites. Observational cross-sectional studies were conducted to identify if the effects of parallelogram-shaped pavement markings on vehicle speeds and speed violations were statistically significant. The results showed that parallelogram-shaped pavement markings significantly reduced vehicle speeds and speed violations in the vicinity of pedestrian crosswalks. More specifically, the speed reduction effects varied from 1.89km/h to 4.41km/h with an average of 3.79km/h. The reduction in the 85th percentile speed varied from 0.81km/h to 5.34km/h with an average of 4.19km/h. Odds ratios (OR) showed that the parallelogram-shaped pavement markings had effects of a 7.1% reduction in the mean speed and a 6.9% reduction in the 85th percentile speed at the pedestrian crosswalks. The reduction of proportion of drivers exceeding the speed limit varied from 8.64% to 14.15% with an average of 11.03%. The results of the crash data analysis suggested that the use of parallelogram-shaped pavement markings reduced both the frequency and severity of crashes at pedestrian crosswalks. The parallelogram-shaped pavement markings had a significant effect on reducing the vehicle-pedestrian crashes. Two crash prediction models were developed for vehicle-pedestrian crashes and rear-end crashes. According to the crash models, the presence of parallelogram-shaped pavement markings reduced vehicle-pedestrian crashes at pedestrian crosswalks by 24.87% with a 95% confidence interval of [10.06-30.78%]. However, the model results also showed that the presence of parallelogram-shaped pavement markings increased rear-end crashes at pedestrian crosswalks by 5.4% with a 95% confidence interval of [0-11.2%]. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

76 FR 56196 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-12

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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-12-14

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40 CFR 142.60 - Variances from the maximum contaminant level for total trihalomethanes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

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40 CFR 142.60 - Variances from the maximum contaminant level for total trihalomethanes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

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40 CFR 60.2942 - What is the minimum amount of monitoring data I must collect with my continuous emission...

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2011-07-01

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Solar Sources and Geospace Consequences of Interplanetary Magnetic Clouds Observed During Solar Cycle 23

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gopalswamy, N.; Akiyama, S.; Yashiro, S.; Michalek, G.; Lepping, R. P.

2007-01-01

We present results of a statistical investigation of 99 magnetic clouds (MCs) observed during 1995-2005. The MC-associated coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are faster and wider on the average and originate within +/-30deg from the solar disk center. The solar sources of MCs also followed the butterfly diagram. The correlation between the magnetic field strength and speed of MCs was found to be valid over a much wider range of speeds. The number of south-north (SN) MCs was dominant and decreased with solar cycle, while the number of north-south (NS) MCs increased confirming the odd-cycle behavior. Two-thirds of MCs were geoeffective; the Dst index was highly correlated with speed and magnetic field in MCs as well as their product. Many (55%) fully northward (FN) MCs were geoeffective solely due to their sheaths. The non-geoeffective MCs were slower (average speed approx. 382 km/s), had a weaker southward magnetic field (average approx. -5.2nT), and occurred mostly during the rise phase of the solar activity cycle.

Properties of traveling atmospheric disturbances (TADs) inferred from CHAMP accelerometer observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bruinsma, Sean L.; Forbes, Jeffrey M.

2009-02-01

Densities derived from accelerometer measurements on the CHAMP satellite near 400 km are used to statistically establish characteristics of large-scale (>1000 km) traveling atmospheric disturbances (TADs). Only TADs that at least propagate from the auroral zone to the equator are analyzed here, and a total of 21 identifiable events are found over the years 2001 2007. The average speed of all TADs, regardless of local time, is 646 ± 122 ms-1. The average speeds on the dayside and nightside are 595 ± 127 ms-1 and 685 ± 106 ms-1, respectively, i.e., the speed appears to be 10% higher on average on the nightside. On six occasions TADs were only detected on the night side; however, TADs on the dayside often appear more distinctly in the data. Moreover, contrary to some theoretical expectations, dayside TADs do not dissipate more readily than night side TADs, although much less are detected between 8 20 solar local time. No clear dependence of TAD amplitude or phase speed with respect to Kp, or rate of increase of Kp, is found.

Status of the Local Enforcement of Energy Efficiency Standards and Labeling Program in China

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

Zhou, Nan; Zheng, Nina; Fino-Chen, Cecilia

2011-09-26

As part of its commitment to promoting and improving the local enforcement of appliance energy efficiency standards and labeling, the China National Institute of Standardization (CNIS) launched the National and Local Enforcement of Energy Efficiency Standards and Labeling project on August 14, 2009. The project’s short-term goal is to expand the effort to improve enforcement of standards and labeling requirements to the entire country within three years, with a long-term goal of perfecting overall enforcement. For this project, Jiangsu, Shandong, Sichuan and Shanghai were selected as pilot locations. This report provides information on the local enforcement project’s recent background, activitiesmore » and results as well as comparison to previous rounds of check-testing in 2006 and 2007. In addition, the report also offers evaluation on the achievement and weaknesses in the local enforcement scheme and recommendations. The results demonstrate both improvement and some backsliding. Enforcement schemes are in place in all target cities and applicable national standards and regulations were followed as the basis for local check testing. Check testing results show in general high labeling compliance across regions with 100% compliance for five products, including full compliance for all three products tested in Jiangsu province and two out of three products tested in Shandong province. Program results also identified key weaknesses in labeling compliance in Sichuan as well as in the efficiency standards compliance levels for small and medium three-phase asynchronous motors and self-ballasted fluorescent lamps. For example, compliance for the same product ranged from as low as 40% to 100% with mixed results for products that had been tested in previous rounds. For refrigerators, in particular, the efficiency standards compliance rate exhibited a wider range of 50% to 100%, and the average rate across all tested models also dropped from 96% in 2007 to 63%, possibly due to the implementation of newly strengthened efficiency standards in 2009. Areas for improvement include: Greater awareness at the local level to ensure that all manufacturers register their products with the label certification project and to minimize their resistance to inspections; improvement of the product sampling methodology to include representative testing of both large and small manufacturers and greater standardization of testing tools and procedures; and continued improvement in local enforcement efforts.« less

Time-Coordination Strategies and Control Laws for Multi-Agent Unmanned Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Puig-Navarro, Javier; Hovakimyan, Naira; Allen, B. Danette

2017-01-01

Time-critical coordination tools for unmanned systems can be employed to enforce the type of temporal constraints required in terminal control areas, ensure minimum distance requirements among vehicles are satisfied, and successfully perform coordinated missions. In comparison with previous literature, this paper presents an ampler spectrum of coordination and temporal specifications for unmanned systems, and proposes a general control law that can enforce this range of constraints. The constraint classification presented con- siders the nature of the desired arrival window and the permissible coordination errors to define six different types of time-coordination strategies. The resulting decentralized coordination control law allows the vehicles to negotiate their speeds along their paths in response to information exchanged over the communication network. This control law organizes the different members in the fleet hierarchically per their behavior and informational needs as reference agent, leaders, and followers. Examples and simulation results for all the coordination strategies presented demonstrate the applicability and efficacy of the coordination control law for multiple unmanned systems.

Gender-related Differences in Maximum Gait Speed and Daily Physical Activity in Elderly Hospitalized Cardiac Inpatients

PubMed Central

Izawa, Kazuhiro P.; Watanabe, Satoshi; Hirano, Yasuyuki; Matsushima, Shinya; Suzuki, Tomohiro; Oka, Koichiro; Kida, Keisuke; Suzuki, Kengo; Osada, Naohiko; Omiya, Kazuto; Brubaker, Peter H.; Shimizu, Hiroyuki; Akashi, Yoshihiro J.

2015-01-01

Abstract Maximum gait speed and physical activity (PA) relate to mortality and morbidity, but little is known about gender-related differences in these factors in elderly hospitalized cardiac inpatients. This study aimed to determine differences in maximum gait speed and daily measured PA based on sex and the relationship between these measures in elderly cardiac inpatients. A consecutive 268 elderly Japanese cardiac inpatients (mean age, 73.3 years) were enrolled and divided by sex into female (n = 75, 28%) and male (n = 193, 72%) groups. Patient characteristics and maximum gait speed, average step count, and PA energy expenditure (PAEE) in kilocalorie per day for 2 days assessed by accelerometer were compared between groups. Gait speed correlated positively with in-hospital PA measured by average daily step count (r = 0.46, P < 0.001) and average daily PAEE (r = 0.47, P < 0.001) in all patients. After adjustment for left ventricular ejection fraction, step counts and PAEE were significantly lower in females than males (2651.35 ± 1889.92 vs 4037.33 ± 1866.81 steps, P < 0.001; 52.74 ± 51.98 vs 99.33 ± 51.40 kcal, P < 0.001), respectively. Maximum gait speed was slower and PA lower in elderly female versus male inpatients. Minimum gait speed and step count values in this study might be minimum target values for elderly male and female Japanese cardiac inpatients. PMID:25789953

Will surface winds weaken in response to global warming?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Jian; Foltz, Gregory R.; Soden, Brian J.; Huang, Gang; He, Jie; Dong, Changming

2016-12-01

The surface Walker and tropical tropospheric circulations have been inferred to slow down from historical observations and model projections, yet analysis of large-scale surface wind predictions is lacking. Satellite measurements of surface wind speed indicate strengthening trends averaged over the global and tropical oceans that are supported by precipitation and evaporation changes. Here we use corrected anemometer-based observations to show that the surface wind speed has not decreased in the averaged tropical oceans, despite its reduction in the region of the Walker circulation. Historical simulations and future projections for climate change also suggest a near-zero wind speed trend averaged in space, regardless of the Walker cell change. In the tropics, the sea surface temperature pattern effect acts against the large-scale circulation slow-down. For higher latitudes, the surface winds shift poleward along with the eddy-driven mid-latitude westerlies, resulting in a very small contribution to the global change in surface wind speed. Despite its importance for surface wind speed change, the influence of the SST pattern change on global-mean rainfall is insignificant since it cannot substantially alter the global energy balance. As a result, the precipitation response to global warming remains ‘muted’ relative to atmospheric moisture increase. Our results therefore show consistency between projections and observations of surface winds and precipitation.

Forecasting Cool Season Daily Peak Winds at Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barrett, Joe, III; Short, David; Roeder, William

2008-01-01

The expected peak wind speed for the day is an important element in the daily 24-Hour and Weekly Planning Forecasts issued by the 45th Weather Squadron (45 WS) for planning operations at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS). The morning outlook for peak speeds also begins the warning decision process for gusts ^ 35 kt, ^ 50 kt, and ^ 60 kt from the surface to 300 ft. The 45 WS forecasters have indicated that peak wind speeds are a challenging parameter to forecast during the cool season (October-April). The 45 WS requested that the Applied Meteorology Unit (AMU) develop a tool to help them forecast the speed and timing of the daily peak and average wind, from the surface to 300 ft on KSC/CCAFS during the cool season. The tool must only use data available by 1200 UTC to support the issue time of the Planning Forecasts. Based on observations from the KSC/CCAFS wind tower network, surface observations from the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF), and CCAFS upper-air soundings from the cool season months of October 2002 to February 2007, the AMU created multiple linear regression equations to predict the timing and speed of the daily peak wind speed, as well as the background average wind speed. Several possible predictors were evaluated, including persistence, the temperature inversion depth, strength, and wind speed at the top of the inversion, wind gust factor (ratio of peak wind speed to average wind speed), synoptic weather pattern, occurrence of precipitation at the SLF, and strongest wind in the lowest 3000 ft, 4000 ft, or 5000 ft. Six synoptic patterns were identified: 1) surface high near or over FL, 2) surface high north or east of FL, 3) surface high south or west of FL, 4) surface front approaching FL, 5) surface front across central FL, and 6) surface front across south FL. The following six predictors were selected: 1) inversion depth, 2) inversion strength, 3) wind gust factor, 4) synoptic weather pattern, 5) occurrence of precipitation at the SLF, and 6) strongest wind in the lowest 3000 ft. The forecast tool was developed as a graphical user interface with Microsoft Excel to help the forecaster enter the variables, and run the appropriate regression equations. Based on the forecaster's input and regression equations, a forecast of the day's peak and average wind is generated and displayed. The application also outputs the probability that the peak wind speed will be ^ 35 kt, 50 kt, and 60 kt.

Maximum walking speeds obtained using treadmill and overground robot system in persons with post-stroke hemiplegia

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Previous studies demonstrated that stroke survivors have a limited capacity to increase their walking speeds beyond their self-selected maximum walking speed (SMWS). The purpose of this study was to determine the capacity of stroke survivors to reach faster speeds than their SMWS while walking on a treadmill belt or while being pushed by a robotic system (i.e. “push mode”). Methods Eighteen chronic stroke survivors with hemiplegia were involved in the study. We calculated their self-selected comfortable walking speed (SCWS) and SMWS overground using a 5-meter walk test (5-MWT). Then, they were exposed to walking at increased speeds, on a treadmill and while in “push mode” in an overground robotic device, the KineAssist, until they were tested at a speed that they could not sustain without losing balance. We recorded the time and number of steps during each trial and calculated gait speed, average cadence and average step length. Results Maximum walking speed in the “push mode” was 13% higher than the maximum walking speed on the treadmill and both were higher (“push mode”: 61%; treadmill: 40%) than the maximum walking speed overground. Subjects achieved these faster speeds by initially increasing both step length and cadence and, once individuals stopped increasing their step length, by only increasing cadence. Conclusions With post-stroke hemiplegia, individuals are able to walk at faster speeds than their SMWS overground, when provided with a safe environment that provides external forces that requires them to attempt dynamic stability maintenance at higher gait speeds. Therefore, this study suggests the possibility that, given the appropriate conditions, people post-stroke can be trained at higher speeds than previously attempted. PMID:23057500

Analytic Energy Gradients for Variational Two-Electron Reduced-Density-Matrix-Driven Complete Active Space Self-Consistent Field Theory.

PubMed

Maradzike, Elvis; Gidofalvi, Gergely; Turney, Justin M; Schaefer, Henry F; DePrince, A Eugene

2017-09-12

Analytic energy gradients are presented for a variational two-electron reduced-density-matrix (2-RDM)-driven complete active space self-consistent field (CASSCF) method. The active-space 2-RDM is determined using a semidefinite programing (SDP) algorithm built upon an augmented Lagrangian formalism. Expressions for analytic gradients are simplified by the fact that the Lagrangian is stationary with respect to variations in both the primal and the dual solutions to the SDP problem. Orbital response contributions to the gradient are identical to those that arise in conventional CASSCF methods in which the electronic structure of the active space is described by a full configuration interaction (CI) wave function. We explore the relative performance of variational 2-RDM (v2RDM)- and CI-driven CASSCF for the equilibrium geometries of 20 small molecules. When enforcing two-particle N-representability conditions, full-valence v2RDM-CASSCF-optimized bond lengths display a mean unsigned error of 0.0060 Å and a maximum unsigned error of 0.0265 Å, relative to those obtained from full-valence CI-CASSCF. When enforcing partial three-particle N-representability conditions, the mean and maximum unsigned errors are reduced to only 0.0006 and 0.0054 Å, respectively. For these same molecules, full-valence v2RDM-CASSCF bond lengths computed in the cc-pVQZ basis set deviate from experimentally determined ones on average by 0.017 and 0.011 Å when enforcing two- and three-particle conditions, respectively, whereas CI-CASSCF displays an average deviation of 0.010 Å. The v2RDM-CASSCF approach with two-particle conditions is also applied to the equilibrium geometry of pentacene; optimized bond lengths deviate from those derived from experiment, on average, by 0.015 Å when using a cc-pVDZ basis set and a (22e,22o) active space.

A Nonlinear Dynamics Approach for Incorporating Wind-Speed Patterns into Wind-Power Project Evaluation

PubMed Central

Huffaker, Ray; Bittelli, Marco

2015-01-01

Wind-energy production may be expanded beyond regions with high-average wind speeds (such as the Midwest U.S.A.) to sites with lower-average speeds (such as the Southeast U.S.A.) by locating favorable regional matches between natural wind-speed and energy-demand patterns. A critical component of wind-power evaluation is to incorporate wind-speed dynamics reflecting documented diurnal and seasonal behavioral patterns. Conventional probabilistic approaches remove patterns from wind-speed data. These patterns must be restored synthetically before they can be matched with energy-demand patterns. How to accurately restore wind-speed patterns is a vexing problem spurring an expanding line of papers. We propose a paradigm shift in wind power evaluation that employs signal-detection and nonlinear-dynamics techniques to empirically diagnose whether synthetic pattern restoration can be avoided altogether. If the complex behavior of observed wind-speed records is due to nonlinear, low-dimensional, and deterministic system dynamics, then nonlinear dynamics techniques can reconstruct wind-speed dynamics from observed wind-speed data without recourse to conventional probabilistic approaches. In the first study of its kind, we test a nonlinear dynamics approach in an application to Sugarland Wind—the first utility-scale wind project proposed in Florida, USA. We find empirical evidence of a low-dimensional and nonlinear wind-speed attractor characterized by strong temporal patterns that match up well with regular daily and seasonal electricity demand patterns. PMID:25617767

Urban traffic pollution reduction for sedan cars using petrol engines by hydro-oxide gas inclusion.

PubMed

Al-Rousan, Ammar A; Alkheder, Sharaf; Musmar, Sa'ed A

2015-12-01

Petrol cars, in particular nonhybrid cars, contribute significantly to the pollution problem as compared with other types of cars. The originality of this article falls in the direction of using hydro-oxy gas to reduce pollution from petrol car engines. Experiments were performed in city areas at low real speeds, with constant engine speeds in the average of 2500 rpm and at variable velocity ratios (first speed was 10-20 km/hr, second speed was 20-35 km/hr, and third speed was 35-50 km/hr). Results indicated that through using hydro-oxy gas, a noticeable reduction in pollution was recorded. Oxygen (O2) percentage has increased by about 2.5%, and nitric oxide (NO) level has been reduced by about 500 ppm. Carbon monoxide (CO) has decreased by about 2.2%, and also CO2 has decreased by 2.1%. It's worth mentioning that for hybrid system in cars at speeds between 10 and 50 km/hr, the emission percentage change is zero. However, hybrid cars are less abundant than petrol cars. The originality of this paper falls in the direction of using hydro-oxy gas to reduce pollution from petrol car engines. Experiments were performed in city areas at low real speeds, with constant engine speeds in the average of 2500 rpm and at variable velocity ratios (first speed was 10-20 km/hr, second speed was 20-35 km/hr, and third speed was 35-50 km/h).

Road Traffic Injury Prevention Initiatives: A Systematic Review and Metasummary of Effectiveness in Low and Middle Income Countries

PubMed Central

Staton, Catherine; Vissoci, Joao; Gong, Enying; Toomey, Nicole; Wafula, Rebeccah; Abdelgadir, Jihad; Zhou, Yi; Liu, Chen; Pei, Fengdi; Zick, Brittany; Ratliff, Camille D.; Rotich, Claire; Jadue, Nicole; de Andrade, Luciano; von Isenburg, Megan; Hocker, Michael

2016-01-01

Background Road traffic injuries (RTIs) are a growing but neglected global health crisis, requiring effective prevention to promote sustainable safety. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) share a disproportionately high burden with 90% of the world’s road traffic deaths, and where RTIs are escalating due to rapid urbanization and motorization. Although several studies have assessed the effectiveness of a specific intervention, no systematic reviews have been conducted summarizing the effectiveness of RTI prevention initiatives specifically performed in LMIC settings; this study will help fill this gap. Methods In accordance with PRISMA guidelines we searched the electronic databases MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science, TRID, Lilacs, Scielo and Global Health. Articles were eligible if they considered RTI prevention in LMICs by evaluating a prevention-related intervention with outcome measures of crash, RTI, or death. In addition, a reference and citation analysis was conducted as well as a data quality assessment. A qualitative metasummary approach was used for data analysis and effect sizes were calculated to quantify the magnitude of emerging themes. Results Of the 8560 articles from the literature search, 18 articles from 11 LMICs fit the eligibility and inclusion criteria. Of these studies, four were from Sub-Saharan Africa, ten from Latin America and the Caribbean, one from the Middle East, and three from Asia. Half of the studies focused specifically on legislation, while the others focused on speed control measures, educational interventions, enforcement, road improvement, community programs, or a multifaceted intervention. Conclusion Legislation was the most common intervention evaluated with the best outcomes when combined with strong enforcement initiatives or as part of a multifaceted approach. Because speed control is crucial to crash and injury prevention, road improvement interventions in LMIC settings should carefully consider how the impact of improvements will affect speed and traffic flow. Further road traffic injury prevention interventions should be performed in LMICs with patient-centered outcomes in order to guide injury prevention in these complex settings. PMID:26735918

Gas transfer velocities measured at low wind speed over a lake

USGS Publications Warehouse

Crusius, John; Wanninkhof, R.

2003-01-01

The relationship between gas transfer velocity and wind speed was evaluated at low wind speeds by quantifying the rate of evasion of the deliberate tracer, SF6, from a small oligotrophic lake. Several possible relationships between gas transfer velocity and low wind speed were evaluated by using 1-min-averaged wind speeds as a measure of the instantaneous wind speed values. Gas transfer velocities in this data set can be estimated virtually equally well by assuming any of three widely used relationships between k600 and winds referenced to 10-m height, U10: (1) a bilinear dependence with a break in the slope at ???3.7 m s-1, which resulted in the best fit; (2) a power dependence; and (3) a constant transfer velocity for U10 3.7 m s-1 which, coupled with the typical variability in instantaneous wind speeds observed in the field, leads to average transfer velocity estimates that are higher than those predicted for steady wind trends. The transfer velocities predicted by the bilinear steady wind relationship for U10 < ???3.7 m s-1 are virtually identical to the theoretical predictions for transfer across a smooth surface.

Noise-enhanced convolutional neural networks.

PubMed

Audhkhasi, Kartik; Osoba, Osonde; Kosko, Bart

2016-06-01

Injecting carefully chosen noise can speed convergence in the backpropagation training of a convolutional neural network (CNN). The Noisy CNN algorithm speeds training on average because the backpropagation algorithm is a special case of the generalized expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm and because such carefully chosen noise always speeds up the EM algorithm on average. The CNN framework gives a practical way to learn and recognize images because backpropagation scales with training data. It has only linear time complexity in the number of training samples. The Noisy CNN algorithm finds a special separating hyperplane in the network's noise space. The hyperplane arises from the likelihood-based positivity condition that noise-boosts the EM algorithm. The hyperplane cuts through a uniform-noise hypercube or Gaussian ball in the noise space depending on the type of noise used. Noise chosen from above the hyperplane speeds training on average. Noise chosen from below slows it on average. The algorithm can inject noise anywhere in the multilayered network. Adding noise to the output neurons reduced the average per-iteration training-set cross entropy by 39% on a standard MNIST image test set of handwritten digits. It also reduced the average per-iteration training-set classification error by 47%. Adding noise to the hidden layers can also reduce these performance measures. The noise benefit is most pronounced for smaller data sets because the largest EM hill-climbing gains tend to occur in the first few iterations. This noise effect can assist random sampling from large data sets because it allows a smaller random sample to give the same or better performance than a noiseless sample gives. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Flame speed and self-similar propagation of expanding turbulent premixed flames.

PubMed

Chaudhuri, Swetaprovo; Wu, Fujia; Zhu, Delin; Law, Chung K

2012-01-27

In this Letter we present turbulent flame speeds and their scaling from experimental measurements on constant-pressure, unity Lewis number expanding turbulent flames, propagating in nearly homogeneous isotropic turbulence in a dual-chamber, fan-stirred vessel. It is found that the normalized turbulent flame speed as a function of the average radius scales as a turbulent Reynolds number to the one-half power, where the average radius is the length scale and the thermal diffusivity is the transport property, thus showing self-similar propagation. Utilizing this dependence it is found that the turbulent flame speeds from the present expanding flames and those from the Bunsen geometry in the literature can be unified by a turbulent Reynolds number based on flame length scales using recent theoretical results obtained by spectral closure of the transformed G equation.

Flame Speed and Self-Similar Propagation of Expanding Turbulent Premixed Flames

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chaudhuri, Swetaprovo; Wu, Fujia; Zhu, Delin; Law, Chung K.

2012-01-01

In this Letter we present turbulent flame speeds and their scaling from experimental measurements on constant-pressure, unity Lewis number expanding turbulent flames, propagating in nearly homogeneous isotropic turbulence in a dual-chamber, fan-stirred vessel. It is found that the normalized turbulent flame speed as a function of the average radius scales as a turbulent Reynolds number to the one-half power, where the average radius is the length scale and the thermal diffusivity is the transport property, thus showing self-similar propagation. Utilizing this dependence it is found that the turbulent flame speeds from the present expanding flames and those from the Bunsen geometry in the literature can be unified by a turbulent Reynolds number based on flame length scales using recent theoretical results obtained by spectral closure of the transformed G equation.

Rolling element bearing defect diagnosis under variable speed operation through angle synchronous averaging of wavelet de-noised estimate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, C.; Samantaray, A. K.; Chakraborty, G.

2016-05-01

Rolling element bearings are widely used in rotating machines and their faults can lead to excessive vibration levels and/or complete seizure of the machine. Under special operating conditions such as non-uniform or low speed shaft rotation, the available fault diagnosis methods cannot be applied for bearing fault diagnosis with full confidence. Fault symptoms in such operating conditions cannot be easily extracted through usual measurement and signal processing techniques. A typical example is a bearing in heavy rolling mill with variable load and disturbance from other sources. In extremely slow speed operation, variation in speed due to speed controller transients or external disturbances (e.g., varying load) can be relatively high. To account for speed variation, instantaneous angular position instead of time is used as the base variable of signals for signal processing purposes. Even with time synchronous averaging (TSA) and well-established methods like envelope order analysis, rolling element faults in rolling element bearings cannot be easily identified during such operating conditions. In this article we propose to use order tracking on the envelope of the wavelet de-noised estimate of the short-duration angle synchronous averaged signal to diagnose faults in rolling element bearing operating under the stated special conditions. The proposed four-stage sequential signal processing method eliminates uncorrelated content, avoids signal smearing and exposes only the fault frequencies and its harmonics in the spectrum. We use experimental data1

An Investigation into the Aerodynamics Surrounding Vertical-Axis Wind Turbines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parker, Colin M.

The flow surrounding a scaled model vertical-axis wind turbine (VAWT) at realistic operating conditions was studied. The model closely matches geometric and dynamic properties--tip-speed ratio and Reynolds number--of a full-size turbine. The flowfield is measured using particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) in the mid-plane upstream, around, and after (up to 4 turbine diameters downstream) the turbine, as well as a vertical plane behind the turbine. Ensemble-averaged results revealed an asymmetric wake behind the turbine, regardless of tip-speed ratio, with a larger velocity deficit for a higher tip-speed ratio. For the higher tip-speed ratio, an area of averaged flow reversal is present with a maximum reverse flow of -0.04Uinfinity. Phase-averaged vorticity fields--achieved by syncing the PIV system with the rotation of the turbine--show distinct structures form from each turbine blade. There are distinct differences in the structures that are shed into the wake for tip-speed ratios of 0.9, 1.3 and 2.2--switching from two pairs to a single pair of shed vortices--and how they convect into the wake--the middle tip-speed ratio vortices convect downstream inside the wake, while the high tip-speed ratio pair is shed into the shear layer of the wake. The wake structure is found to be much more sensitive to changes in tip-speed ratio than to changes in Reynolds number. The geometry of a turbine can influence tip-speed ratio, but the precise relationship among VAWT geometric parameters and VAWT wake characteristics remains unknown. Next, we characterize the wakes of three VAWTs that are geometrically similar except for the ratio of the turbine diameter (D), to blade chord (c), which was chosen to be D/c = 3, 6, and 9, for a fixed freestream Reynolds number based on the blade chord of Rec =16,000. In addition to two-component PIV and single-component constant temperature anemometer measurements are made at the horizontal mid-plane in the wake of each turbine. Hot-wire measurement locations are selected to coincide with the edge of the shear layer of each turbine wake, as deduced from the PIV data, which allows for an analysis of the frequency content of the wake due to vortex shedding by the turbine. Changing the tip-speed ratio leads to substantial wake variation possibly because changing the tip-speed ratio changes the dynamic solidity. In this work, we achieve a similar change in dynamic solidity by varying the D/c ratio and holding the tip-speed ratio constant. This change leads to very similar characteristic shifts in the wake, such as a greater blockage effect, including averaged flow reversal in the case of high dynamic solidity (D/c = 3). The phase-averaged vortex identification shows that both the blockage effect and the wake structures are similarly affected by a change in dynamic solidity. At lower dynamic solidity, pairs of vortices are shed into the wake directly downstream of the turbine. For all three models, a vortex chain is shed into the shear layer at the edge of the wake where the blade is processing into the freestream.

Geomagnetism during solar cycle 23: Characteristics.

PubMed

Zerbo, Jean-Louis; Amory-Mazaudier, Christine; Ouattara, Frédéric

2013-05-01

On the basis of more than 48 years of morphological analysis of yearly and monthly values of the sunspot number, the aa index, the solar wind speed and interplanetary magnetic field, we point out the particularities of geomagnetic activity during the period 1996-2009. We especially investigate the last cycle 23 and the long minimum which followed it. During this period, the lowest values of the yearly averaged IMF (3 nT) and yearly averaged solar wind speed (364 km/s) are recorded in 1996, and 2009 respectively. The year 2003 shows itself particular by recording the highest value of the averaged solar wind (568 km/s), associated to the highest value of the yearly averaged aa index (37 nT). We also find that observations during the year 2003 seem to be related to several coronal holes which are known to generate high-speed wind stream. From the long time (more than one century) study of solar variability, the present period is similar to the beginning of twentieth century. We especially present the morphological features of solar cycle 23 which is followed by a deep solar minimum.

Tool for Forecasting Cool-Season Peak Winds Across Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barrett, Joe H., III; Roeder, William P.

2010-01-01

Peak wind speed is important element in 24-Hour and Weekly Planning Forecasts issued by 45th Weather Squadron (45 WS). Forecasts issued for planning operations at KSC/CCAFS. 45 WS wind advisories issued for wind gusts greater than or equal to 25 kt. 35 kt and 50 kt from surface to 300 ft. AMU developed cool-season (Oct - Apr) tool to help 45 WS forecast: daily peak wind speed, 5-minute average speed at time of peak wind, and probability peak speed greater than or equal to 25 kt, 35 kt, 50 kt. AMU tool also forecasts daily average wind speed from 30 ft to 60 ft. Phase I and II tools delivered as a Microsoft Excel graphical user interface (GUI). Phase II tool also delivered as Meteorological Interactive Data Display System (MIDDS) GUI. Phase I and II forecast methods were compared to climatology, 45 WS wind advisories and North American Mesoscale model (MesoNAM) forecasts in a verification data set.

Cellular telephone use during free-living walking significantly reduces average walking speed.

PubMed

Barkley, Jacob E; Lepp, Andrew

2016-03-31

Cellular telephone (cell phone) use decreases walking speed in controlled laboratory experiments and there is an inverse relationship between free-living walking speed and heart failure risk. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of cell phone use on walking speed in a free-living environment. Subjects (n = 1142) were randomly observed walking on a 50 m University campus walkway. The time it took each subject to walk 50 m was recorded and subjects were coded into categories: cell phone held to the ear (talking, n = 95), holding and looking at the cell phone (texting, n = 118), not visibly using the cell phone (no use, n = 929). Subjects took significantly (p < 0.001) longer traversing the walkway when talking (39.3 s) and texting (37.9 s) versus no use (35.3 s). As was the case with the previous laboratory experiments, cell phone use significantly reduces average speed during free-living walking.

Wind power in Jamaica

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

Chen, A.A.; Daniel, A.R.; Daniel, S.T.

1990-01-01

Parameters to evaluate the potential for using wind energy to generate electricity in Jamaica were obtained. These include the average wind power scaled to a height of 20 m at existing weather stations and temporary anemometer sites, the variation in annual and monthly wind power, and the frequency distribution of wind speed and wind energy available. Four small commercial turbines were assumed to be operating at some of the sites, and the estimated energy captured by them, the time they operated above their cut-in speed and their capacity factors were also determined. Diurnal variations of wind speed and prevailing windmore » directions are discussed and a map showing wind power at various sites was produced. Two stations with long-term averages, Manley and Morant Point, gave results which warranted further investigation. Results from some temporary stations are also encouraging. Mean wind speeds at two other sites in the Caribbean are given for comparison. A method for estimating the power exponent for scaling the wind speed from climatic data is described in Appendix 2.« less

40 CFR 60.1825 - What is the minimum amount of monitoring data I must collect with my continuous parameter...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... monitoring data I must collect with my continuous parameter monitoring systems and is the data collection... must collect with my continuous parameter monitoring systems and is the data collection requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous parameter monitoring systems are used, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages for...

40 CFR 60.1750 - What is the minimum amount of monitoring data I must collect with my continuous emission...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... monitoring data I must collect with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is the data collection... I must collect with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is the data collection requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous emission monitoring systems are required, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages...

40 CFR 60.1825 - What is the minimum amount of monitoring data I must collect with my continuous parameter...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... monitoring data I must collect with my continuous parameter monitoring systems and is the data collection... must collect with my continuous parameter monitoring systems and is the data collection requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous parameter monitoring systems are used, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages for...

40 CFR 60.1750 - What is the minimum amount of monitoring data I must collect with my continuous emission...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... monitoring data I must collect with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is the data collection... I must collect with my continuous emission monitoring systems and is the data collection requirement enforceable? (a) Where continuous emission monitoring systems are required, obtain 1-hour arithmetic averages...

North Atlantic Basin Tropical Cyclone Activity in Relation to Temperature and Decadal- Length Oscillation Patterns

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, Robert M.

2009-01-01

Yearly frequencies of North Atlantic basin tropical cyclones, their locations of origin, peak wind speeds, average peak wind speeds, lowest pressures, and average lowest pressures for the interval 1950-2008 are examined. The effects of El Nino and La Nina on the tropical cyclone parametric values are investigated. Yearly and 10-year moving average (10-yma) values of tropical cyclone parameters are compared against those of temperature and decadal-length oscillation, employing both linear and bi-variate analysis, and first differences in the 10-yma are determined. Discussion of the 2009 North Atlantic basin hurricane season, updating earlier results, is given.

Dynamic strain distribution of FRP plate under blast loading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saburi, T.; Yoshida, M.; Kubota, S.

2017-02-01

The dynamic strain distribution of a fiber re-enforced plastic (FRP) plate under blast loading was investigated using a Digital Image Correlation (DIC) image analysis method. The testing FRP plates were mounted in parallel to each other on a steel frame. 50 g of composition C4 explosive was used as a blast loading source and set in the center of the FRP plates. The dynamic behavior of the FRP plate under blast loading were observed by two high-speed video cameras. The set of two high-speed video image sequences were used to analyze the FRP three-dimensional strain distribution by means of DIC method. A point strain profile extracted from the analyzed strain distribution data was compared with a directly observed strain profile using a strain gauge and it was shown that the strain profile under the blast loading by DIC method is quantitatively accurate.

Motorists' knowledge, attitudes and practices toward alcohol-impaired driving/riding in Ghana.

PubMed

Damsere-Derry, James; Palk, Gavan; King, Mark

2017-01-02

The main objective of this study was to establish the knowledge, attitudes, and practices toward drink driving/riding as a risk factor for road traffic crashes in 3 regional capitals in Ghana. The study used a face-to-face approach to randomly sample motorists who were accessing various services at fuel/gas stations, garages, and lorry terminals in 3 cities in Ghana. Over the previous 12 months, 24% of all motorists and 55% of motorists who were current alcohol users reported driving or riding a vehicle within an hour of alcohol intake. On average, motorists/riders who were current alcohol users consumed 4 standard drinks per drinking occasion. Generally, 83% of motorists who currently use alcohol walked, rode, or drove home after consuming alcohol away from their homes. Motorists/riders who reported drink driving were 4 times more likely to have had previous traffic violation arrests compared to those who reported no drink driving/riding (P =.001). Respondents were of the opinion that speeding was the major cause of traffic crashes, followed by driver carelessness, poor road conditions, inexperienced driving, and drink driving, in that order. Thirty-six percent of motorists who use alcohol had the perception that consuming between 6 and 15 standard drinks was the volume of alcohol that will take them to the legal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit of 0.08%. Compared to females, male motorists/riders were more likely to report drink driving (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 5.15; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.31 to 11.47). Private motorists also reported a higher likelihood of drink driving compared to commercial drivers (AOR = 3.36; 95% CI, 1.88 to 6.02). Only 4% of motorists knew the legal BAC limit of Ghana and only 2% had ever been tested for drink driving/riding. The volumes of alcohol that motorists typically consume per drinking occasion were very high and their estimates of the number of drinks required to reach the legal BAC limit was also very high. Provision of authoritative information advising motorists about safe, responsible, or low-risk levels of alcohol consumption is imperative. Many traffic violations including drink driving were reported, thus suggesting a need for enhanced policing and enforcement. However, given the low level of knowledge of the legal BAC limit, educating motorists about how many drinks will approximate the legal BAC should be intensified prior to an increase in enforcement; otherwise, the desired outcome of enforcement may not be achieved.

The metabolic power and energetic demands of elite Gaelic football match play.

PubMed

Malone, Shane; Solan, Barry; Collins, Kieran; Doran, Dominic

2017-05-01

Metabolic power has not yet been investigated within elite Gaelic football. The aim of the current investigation was to compare the metabolic power demands between positional groups and examine the temporal profile of elite Gaelic football match play. Global positional satellite system (GPS) data were collected from 50 elite Gaelic football players from 4 inter-county teams during 35 elite competitive matches over a three season period. A total of 351 complete match samples were obtained for final analysis. Players were categorized based on positional groups; full-back, half-back, midfield, half-forward and full-forward. Instantaneous raw velocity data was obtained from the GPS and exported to a customized spreadsheet which provided estimations of both speed based, derived metabolic power and energy expenditure variables (total distance, high speed distance, average metabolic power, high power distance and total energy expenditure). Match mean distance was 9222±1588 m, reflective of an average metabolic power of 9.5-12.5 W·kg-1, with an average energy expenditure of 58-70 Kj·kg-1 depending on position. There were significant differences between positional groups for both speed-based and metabolic power indices. Midfielders covered more total and high-speed distance, as well as greater average and overall energy expenditure compared to other positions (P<0.001). A reduction in total, high-speed, and high-power distance, as well as average metabolic power throughout the match (P<0.001) was observed. Positional differences exist for both metabolic power and traditional running based variables. The middle three positions (midfield, half-back and half-forward) possess greater activity profiles when compared to other positional groups. The reduction in metabolic power and traditional running based variables are comparable across match play. The current study demonstrates that metabolic power may contribute to our understanding of Gaelic football match-play.

Effective solidity in vertical axis wind turbines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parker, Colin M.; Leftwich, Megan C.

2016-11-01

The flow surrounding vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) is investigated using particle imaging velocimetry (PIV). This is done in a low-speed wind tunnel with a scale model that closely matches geometric and dynamic properties tip-speed ratio and Reynolds number of a full size turbine. Previous results have shown a strong dependance on the tip-speed ratio on the wake structure of the spinning turbine. However, it is not clear whether this is a speed or solidity effect. To determine this, we have measured the wakes of three turbines with different chord-to-diameter ratios, and a solid cylinder. The flow is visualized at the horizontal mid-plane as well as the vertical mid-plane behind the turbine. The results are both ensemble averaged and phase averaged by syncing the PIV system with the rotation of the turbine. By keeping the Reynolds number constant with both chord and diameter, we can determine how each effects the wake structure. As these parameters are varied there are distinct changes in the mean flow of the wake. Additionally, by looking at the vorticity in the phase averaged profiles we can see structural changes to the overall wake pattern.

Effects of insertion speed and trocar stiffness on the accuracy of needle position for brachytherapy

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

McGill, Carl S.; Schwartz, Jonathon A.; Moore, Jason Z.

2012-04-15

Purpose: In prostate brachytherapy, accurate positioning of the needle tip to place radioactive seeds at its target site is critical for successful radiation treatment. During the procedure, needle deflection leads to seed misplacement and suboptimal radiation dose to cancerous cells. In practice, radiation oncologists commonly use high-speed hand needle insertion to minimize displacement of the prostate as well as the needle deflection. Effects of speed during needle insertion and stiffness of trocar (a solid rod inside the hollow cannula) on needle deflection are studied. Methods: Needle insertion experiments into phantom were performed using a 2{sup 2} factorial design (2 parametersmore » at 2 levels), with each condition having replicates. Analysis of the deflection data included calculating the average, standard deviation, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) to find significant single and two-way interaction factors. Results: The stiffer tungsten carbide trocar is effective in reducing the average and standard deviation of needle deflection. The fast insertion speed together with the stiffer trocar generated the smallest average and standard deviation for needle deflection for almost all cases. Conclusions: The combination of stiff tungsten carbide trocar and fast needle insertion speed are important to decreasing needle deflection. The knowledge gained from this study can be used to improve the accuracy of needle insertion during brachytherapy procedures.« less

75 FR 33659 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Request for Comments for a New Information Collection

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-14

... tunnel construction completed; traffic data, including posted speed, design speed, current average daily... vertical clearance; minimum cross- sectional width; lane width(s); shoulder width(s); and pavement type. (3...

Sources of Geomagnetic Activity during Nearly Three Solar Cycles (1972-2000)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Richardson, I. G.; Cane, H. V.; Cliver, E. W.; White, Nicholas E. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

We examine the contributions of the principal solar wind components (corotating highspeed streams, slow solar wind, and transient structures, i.e., interplanetary coronal mass ejections (CMEs), shocks, and postshock flows) to averages of the aa geomagnetic index and the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) strength in 1972-2000 during nearly three solar cycles. A prime motivation is to understand the influence of solar cycle variations in solar wind structure on long-term (e.g., approximately annual) averages of these parameters. We show that high-speed streams account for approximately two-thirds of long-term aa averages at solar minimum, while at solar maximum, structures associated with transients make the largest contribution (approx. 50%), though contributions from streams and slow solar wind continue to be present. Similarly, high-speed streams are the principal contributor (approx. 55%) to solar minimum averages of the IMF, while transient-related structures are the leading contributor (approx. 40%) at solar maximum. These differences between solar maximum and minimum reflect the changing structure of the near-ecliptic solar wind during the solar cycle. For minimum periods, the Earth is embedded in high-speed streams approx. 55% of the time versus approx. 35% for slow solar wind and approx. 10% for CME-associated structures, while at solar maximum, typical percentages are as follows: high-speed streams approx. 35%, slow solar wind approx. 30%, and CME-associated approx. 35%. These compositions show little cycle-to-cycle variation, at least for the interval considered in this paper. Despite the change in the occurrences of different types of solar wind over the solar cycle (and less significant changes from cycle to cycle), overall, variations in the averages of the aa index and IMF closely follow those in corotating streams. Considering solar cycle averages, we show that high-speed streams account for approx. 44%, approx. 48%, and approx. 40% of the solar wind composition, aa, and the IMF strength, respectively, with corresponding figures of approx. 22%, approx. 32%, and approx. 25% for CME-related structures, and approx. 33%, approx. 19%, and approx. 33% for slow solar wind.

Conversion and control of an all-terrain vehicle for use as an autonomous mobile robot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jacob, John S.; Gunderson, Robert W.; Fullmer, R. R.

1998-08-01

A systematic approach to ground vehicle automation is presented, combining low-level controls, trajectory generation and closed-loop path correction in an integrated system. Development of cooperative robotics for precision agriculture at Utah State University required the automation of a full-scale motorized vehicle. The Triton Predator 8- wheeled skid-steering all-terrain vehicle was selected for the project based on its ability to maneuver precisely and the simplicity of controlling the hydrostatic drivetrain. Low-level control was achieved by fitting an actuator on the engine throttle, actuators for the left and right drive controls, encoders on the left and right drive shafts to measure wheel speeds, and a signal pick-off on the alternator for measuring engine speed. Closed loop control maintains a desired engine speed and tracks left and right wheel speeds commands. A trajectory generator produces the wheel speed commands needed to steer the vehicle through a predetermined set of map coordinates. A planar trajectory through the points is computed by fitting a 2D cubic spline over each path segment while enforcing initial and final orientation constraints at segment endpoints. Acceleration and velocity profiles are computed for each trajectory segment, with the velocity over each segment dependent on turning radius. Left and right wheel speed setpoints are obtained by combining velocity and path curvature for each low-level timestep. The path correction algorithm uses GPS position and compass orientation information to adjust the wheel speed setpoints according to the 'crosstrack' and 'downtrack' errors and heading error. Nonlinear models of the engine and the skid-steering vehicle/ground interaction were developed for testing the integrated system in simulation. These test lead to several key design improvements which assisted final implementation on the vehicle.

Aviation Proof of Concept: The Transition of Marine Corps Aviation Maintenance Computer Assets and Systems into the Navy Marine Corps Intranet

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-03-01

Blackberry Services Increment 1 SLAPC: 103.8 SERVICE NAME: HELP DESK SLA: 104 Performance Category: Average Speed of Answer - Telephone Calls...Category: Blackberry Services Increment 1 SLAPC: 103.8 SERVICE NAME: HELP DESK SLA: 104 Performance Category: Average Speed of Answer - Telephone...legacy VPNs for existing tunnels , until MCNOSC agrees to shut down of legacy B-1’s. o Shut down of legacy B-1’s will transfer VPN’s tunnels to

The turbulent mean-flow, Reynolds-stress, and heat flux equations in mass-averaged dependent variables

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rubesin, M. W.; Rose, W. C.

1973-01-01

The time-dependent, turbulent mean-flow, Reynolds stress, and heat flux equations in mass-averaged dependent variables are presented. These equations are given in conservative form for both generalized orthogonal and axisymmetric coordinates. For the case of small viscosity and thermal conductivity fluctuations, these equations are considerably simpler than the general Reynolds system of dependent variables for a compressible fluid and permit a more direct extension of low speed turbulence modeling to computer codes describing high speed turbulence fields.

Response of lead-acid batteries to chopper-controlled discharge. [for electric vehicles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cataldo, R. L.

1978-01-01

The results of tests on an electric vehicle battery, using a simulated electric vehicle chopper-speed controller, show energy output losses up to 25 percent compared to constant current discharges at the same average current of 100 A. However, an energy output increase of 22 percent is noticed at the 200 A average level and 44 percent increase at the 300 A level using pulse discharging. Because of these complex results, electric vehicle battery/speed controller interactions must be considered in vehicle design.

PIG's Speed Estimated with Pressure Transducers and Hall Effect Sensor: An Industrial Application of Sensors to Validate a Testing Laboratory.

PubMed

Lima, Gustavo F; Freitas, Victor C G; Araújo, Renan P; Maitelli, André L; Salazar, Andrés O

2017-09-15

The pipeline inspection using a device called Pipeline Inspection Gauge (PIG) is safe and reliable when the PIG is at low speeds during inspection. We built a Testing Laboratory, containing a testing loop and supervisory system to study speed control techniques for PIGs. The objective of this work is to present and validate the Testing Laboratory, which will allow development of a speed controller for PIGs and solve an existing problem in the oil industry. The experimental methodology used throughout the project is also presented. We installed pressure transducers on pipeline outer walls to detect the PIG's movement and, with data from supervisory, calculated an average speed of 0.43 m/s. At the same time, the electronic board inside the PIG received data from odometer and calculated an average speed of 0.45 m/s. We found an error of 4.44%, which is experimentally acceptable. The results showed that it is possible to successfully build a Testing Laboratory to detect the PIG's passage and estimate its speed. The validation of the Testing Laboratory using data from the odometer and its auxiliary electronic was very successful. Lastly, we hope to develop more research in the oil industry area using this Testing Laboratory.

PIG’s Speed Estimated with Pressure Transducers and Hall Effect Sensor: An Industrial Application of Sensors to Validate a Testing Laboratory

PubMed Central

Freitas, Victor C. G.; Araújo, Renan P.; Maitelli, André L.; Salazar, Andrés O.

2017-01-01

The pipeline inspection using a device called Pipeline Inspection Gauge (PIG) is safe and reliable when the PIG is at low speeds during inspection. We built a Testing Laboratory, containing a testing loop and supervisory system to study speed control techniques for PIGs. The objective of this work is to present and validate the Testing Laboratory, which will allow development of a speed controller for PIGs and solve an existing problem in the oil industry. The experimental methodology used throughout the project is also presented. We installed pressure transducers on pipeline outer walls to detect the PIG’s movement and, with data from supervisory, calculated an average speed of 0.43 m/s. At the same time, the electronic board inside the PIG received data from odometer and calculated an average speed of 0.45 m/s. We found an error of 4.44%, which is experimentally acceptable. The results showed that it is possible to successfully build a Testing Laboratory to detect the PIG’s passage and estimate its speed. The validation of the Testing Laboratory using data from the odometer and its auxiliary electronic was very successful. Lastly, we hope to develop more research in the oil industry area using this Testing Laboratory. PMID:28914757

The Enright phenomenon. Stereoscopic distortion of perceived driving speed induced by monocular pupil dilation.

PubMed

Carkeet, Andrew; Wood, Joanne M; McNeill, Kylie M; McNeill, Hamish J; James, Joanna A; Holder, Leigh S

The Enright phenomenon describes the distortion in speed perception experienced by an observer looking sideways from a moving vehicle when viewing with interocular differences in retinal image brightness, usually induced by neutral density filters. We investigated whether the Enright phenomenon could be induced with monocular pupil dilation using tropicamide. We tested 17 visually normal young adults on a closed road driving circuit. Participants were asked to travel at Goal Speeds of 40km/h and 60km/h while looking sideways from the vehicle with: (i) both eyes with undilated pupils; (ii) both eyes with dilated pupils; (iii) with the leading eye only dilated; and (iv) the trailing eye only dilated. For each condition we recorded actual driving speed. With the pupil of the leading eye dilated participants drove significantly faster (by an average of 3.8km/h) than with both eyes dilated (p=0.02); with the trailing eye dilated participants drove significantly slower (by an average of 3.2km/h) than with both eyes dilated (p<0.001). The speed, with the leading eye dilated, was faster by an average of 7km/h than with the trailing eye dilated (p<0.001). There was no significant difference between driving speeds when viewing with both eyes either dilated or undilated (p=0.322). Our results are the first to show a measurable change in driving behaviour following monocular pupil dilation and support predictions based on the Enright phenomenon. Copyright © 2016 Spanish General Council of Optometry. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Prescribed burning weather in Minnesota.

Treesearch

Rodney W. Sando

1969-01-01

Describes the weather patterns in northern Minnesota as related to prescribed burning. The prevailing wind direction, average wind speed, most persistent wind direction, and average Buildup Index are considered in making recommendations.

Involuntary psychiatric examinations for danger to others in Florida after the attacks of September 11, 2001.

PubMed

Catalano, Ralph A; Kessell, Eric; Christy, Annette; Monahan, John

2005-07-01

Theories of perceived risk state that when people feel threatened, they will react more strongly than they would otherwise. This study tested the hypothesis that evaluations for involuntary psychiatric hospitalizations that were initiated by law enforcement personnel in Florida increased in the weeks after the attacks of September 11, 2001. The authors applied interrupted time-series designs to determine whether there was a relationship between the number of involuntary psychiatric examinations initiated by law enforcement officials and the attacks of September 11, 2001. They examined the number of psychiatric evaluations of men and women who were considered to be mentally ill and harmful to others by law enforcement personnel in Florida during seven-day periods ("areal" weeks) that began with Tuesday, July 6, 1999, and ended with Monday, December 31, 2001 (because September 11, 2001, fell on a Tuesday). Over the 130 weeks of the study, law enforcement officials initiated examinations of an average of 25.96 men and 13.47 women per areal week. Law enforcement officials initiated examinations of approximately 14 more women than expected in the areal week that began with September 11, 2001. During the three areal weeks that began with September 18, 2001, a total of 34 more men than expected were presented for evaluation. These findings cannot be attributed to trends, seasonality, other cycles, or the tendency of the examination time series to remain elevated or depressed after high or low values in the series. Perceived general risk in a community may increase the likelihood that law enforcement personnel and the persons who summon them perceive persons with mental illness as imminently harmful. The public health response to any future terror attacks should include efforts to alert psychiatric service providers to the possibility of lower community tolerance for mental illness in the aftermath of an attack.

The Bicyclist's Paradox

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knight, Randy

2008-01-01

It's a situation every avid cyclist knows only too well. If you cycle up a hill and then back down with no net change in elevation, it seems as if your slower uphill speed and faster downhill speed should offset each other. But they don't. Your average speed is less than it would have been had you cycled the same distance on a level road.…

The role of adsorbed water on the friction of a layer of submicron particles

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sammis, Charles G.; Lockner, David A.; Reches, Ze’ev

2011-01-01

Anomalously low values of friction observed in layers of submicron particles deformed in simple shear at high slip velocities are explained as the consequence of a one nanometer thick layer of water adsorbed on the particles. The observed transition from normal friction with an apparent coefficient near μ = 0.6 at low slip speeds to a coefficient near μ = 0.3 at higher slip speeds is attributed to competition between the time required to extrude the water layer from between neighboring particles in a force chain and the average lifetime of the chain. At low slip speeds the time required for extrusion is less than the average lifetime of a chain so the particles make contact and lock. As slip speed increases, the average lifetime of a chain decreases until it is less than the extrusion time and the particles in a force chain never come into direct contact. If the adsorbed water layer enables the otherwise rough particles to rotate, the coefficient of friction will drop to μ = 0.3, appropriate for rotating spheres. At the highest slip speeds particle temperatures rise above 100°C, the water layer vaporizes, the particles contact and lock, and the coefficient of friction rises to μ = 0.6. The observed onset of weakening at slip speeds near 0.001 m/s is consistent with the measured viscosity of a 1 nm thick layer of adsorbed water, with a minimum particle radius of approximately 20 nm, and with reasonable assumptions about the distribution of force chains guided by experimental observation. The reduction of friction and the range of velocities over which it occurs decrease with increasing normal stress, as predicted by the model. Moreover, the analysis predicts that this high-speed weakening mechanism should operate only for particles with radii smaller than approximately 1 μm. For larger particles the slip speed required for weakening is so large that frictional heating will evaporate the adsorbed water and weakening will not occur.

Flux or speed? Examining speckle contrast imaging of vascular flows

PubMed Central

Kazmi, S. M. Shams; Faraji, Ehssan; Davis, Mitchell A.; Huang, Yu-Yen; Zhang, Xiaojing J.; Dunn, Andrew K.

2015-01-01

Speckle contrast imaging enables rapid mapping of relative blood flow distributions using camera detection of back-scattered laser light. However, speckle derived flow measures deviate from direct measurements of erythrocyte speeds by 47 ± 15% (n = 13 mice) in vessels of various calibers. Alternatively, deviations with estimates of volumetric flux are on average 91 ± 43%. We highlight and attempt to alleviate this discrepancy by accounting for the effects of multiple dynamic scattering with speckle imaging of microfluidic channels of varying sizes and then with red blood cell (RBC) tracking correlated speckle imaging of vascular flows in the cerebral cortex. By revisiting the governing dynamic light scattering models, we test the ability to predict the degree of multiple dynamic scattering across vessels in order to correct for the observed discrepancies between relative RBC speeds and multi-exposure speckle imaging estimates of inverse correlation times. The analysis reveals that traditional speckle contrast imagery of vascular flows is neither a measure of volumetric flux nor particle speed, but rather the product of speed and vessel diameter. The corrected speckle estimates of the relative RBC speeds have an average 10 ± 3% deviation in vivo with those obtained from RBC tracking. PMID:26203384

Flux or speed? Examining speckle contrast imaging of vascular flows.

PubMed

Kazmi, S M Shams; Faraji, Ehssan; Davis, Mitchell A; Huang, Yu-Yen; Zhang, Xiaojing J; Dunn, Andrew K

2015-07-01

Speckle contrast imaging enables rapid mapping of relative blood flow distributions using camera detection of back-scattered laser light. However, speckle derived flow measures deviate from direct measurements of erythrocyte speeds by 47 ± 15% (n = 13 mice) in vessels of various calibers. Alternatively, deviations with estimates of volumetric flux are on average 91 ± 43%. We highlight and attempt to alleviate this discrepancy by accounting for the effects of multiple dynamic scattering with speckle imaging of microfluidic channels of varying sizes and then with red blood cell (RBC) tracking correlated speckle imaging of vascular flows in the cerebral cortex. By revisiting the governing dynamic light scattering models, we test the ability to predict the degree of multiple dynamic scattering across vessels in order to correct for the observed discrepancies between relative RBC speeds and multi-exposure speckle imaging estimates of inverse correlation times. The analysis reveals that traditional speckle contrast imagery of vascular flows is neither a measure of volumetric flux nor particle speed, but rather the product of speed and vessel diameter. The corrected speckle estimates of the relative RBC speeds have an average 10 ± 3% deviation in vivo with those obtained from RBC tracking.

Using ultrasound tomography to identify the distributions of density throughout the breast

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sak, Mark; Duric, Neb; Littrup, Peter; Sherman, Mark E.; Gierach, Gretchen L.

2016-04-01

Women with high breast density are at increased risk of developing breast cancer. Breast density has usually been defined using mammography as the ratio of fibroglandular tissue to total breast area. Ultrasound tomography (UST) is an emerging modality that can also be used to measure breast density. UST creates tomographic sound speed images of the patient's breast which is useful as sound speed is directly proportional to tissue density. Furthermore, the volumetric and quantitative information contained in the sound speed images can be used to describe the distribution of breast density. The work presented here measures the UST sound speed density distributions of 165 women with negative screening mammography. Frequency distributions of the sound speed voxel information were examined for each patient. In a preliminary analysis, the UST sound speed distributions were averaged across patients and grouped by various patient and density-related factors (e.g., age, body mass index, menopausal status, average mammographic breast density). It was found that differences in the distribution of density could be easily visualized for different patient groupings. Furthermore, findings suggest that the shape of the distributions may be used to identify participants with varying amounts of dense and non-dense tissue.

WIND SPEED Monitoring in Northern Eurasia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bulygina, O.; Korshunova, N. N.; Razuvaev, V. N.; Groisman, P. Y.

2016-12-01

The wind regime of Russia varies a great deal due to the large size of the country's territory and variety of climate and terrain conditions. Changes in the regime of surface wind are of great practical importance. They can affect heat and water balance. Strong wind is one of the most hazardous meteorological event for various sectors of economy and for infrastructure. The main objective of this research is to monitoring wind speed change in Northern Eurasia At meteorological stations wind speed and wind direction are measured at the height of 10-12 meters over the land surface with the help of wind meters or wind wanes. Calculations were made on the basis of data for the period of 1980-2015. It allowed the massive scale disruption of homogeneity to be eliminated and sufficient period needed to obtain sustainable statistic characteristics to be retained. Data on average and maximum wind speed measured at 1457 stations of Russia were used. The analysis of changes in wind characteristics was made on the basis of point data and series of average characteristics obtained for 18 quasi-homogeneous climatic regions. Statistical characteristics (average and maximum values of wind speed, prevailing wind direction, values of the boundary of the 90%, 95% and 99%-confidence interval in the distribution of maximum wind speed) were obtained for all seasons and for the year as a whole. Values of boundaries of the 95% and 99%-confidence interval in the distribution of maximum wind speed were considered as indicators of extremeness of the wind regime. The trend of changes in average and maximum wind speed was assessed with a linear trend coefficient. A special attention was paid to wind changes in the Arctic where dramatic changes in surface air temperature and sea ice extent and density have been observed during the past decade. The analysis of the results allowed seasonal and regional features of changes in the wind regime on the territory of the northern part of Eurasia to be determined. The outcomes could help to provide specific recommendations to users of hydrometeorological information for making reasonable decisions to minimize losses caused by adverse wind-related weather conditions. The work was supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (grant 14.B25.31.0026).

Changes in FDA enforcement activities following changes in federal administration: the case of regulatory letters released to pharmaceutical companies.

PubMed

Nguyen, Diane; Seoane-Vazquez, Enrique; Rodriguez-Monguio, Rosa; Montagne, Michael

2013-01-22

The United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for the protection of the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness and security of human drugs and biological products through the enforcement of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) and related regulations. These enforcement activities include regulatory letters (i.e. warning letters and notice of violation) to pharmaceutical companies. A regulatory letter represents the FDA's first official notification to a pharmaceutical company that the FDA has discovered a product or activity in violation of the FDCA.This study analyzed trends in the pharmaceutical-related regulatory letters released by the FDA during the period 1997-2011 and assessed differences in the average number and type of regulatory letters released during the last four federal administrations. Data derived from the FDA webpage. Information about the FDA office releasing the letter, date, company, and drug-related violation was collected. Regulatory letters were classified by federal administration. Descriptive statistics were performed for the analysis. Between 1997 and 2011 the FDA released 2,467 regulatory letters related to pharmaceuticals. FDA headquarters offices released 50.6% and district offices 49.4% of the regulatory letters. The Office of Prescription Drug Promotion released the largest number of regulatory letters (850; 34.5% of the total), followed by the Office of Scientific Investigations (131; 5.3%), and the Office of Compliance (105; 4.3%). During the 2nd Clinton Administration (1997-2000) the average number of regulatory letters per year was 242.8 ± 45.6, during the Bush Administration (2001-2008) it was 120.4 ± 33.7, and during the first three years of the Obama administration (2009-2011) it was 177.7.0 ± 17.0. The average number of regulatory letters released by the Office of Prescription Drug Promotion also varied by administration: Clinton (122.3 ± 36.4), Bush (29.5 ± 16.2) and Obama (41.7 ± 11.1). Most regulatory letters released by FDA headquarters were related to marketing and advertising activities of pharmaceutical companies. The number of regulatory letters was highest during the second Clinton administration, diminished during the Bush administrations, and increased again during the Obama administration. A further assessment of the impact of changes in federal administration on the enforcement activities of the FDA is required.

Effects on Vibration and Surface Roughness in High Speed Micro End-Milling of Inconel 718 with Minimum Quantity Lubrication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahman, Mohamed Abd; Yeakub Ali, Mohammad; Saddam Khairuddin, Amir

2017-03-01

This paper presents the study on vibration and surface roughness of Inconel 718 workpiece produced by micro end-milling using Mikrotools Integrated Multi-Process machine tool DT-110 with control parameters; spindle speed (15000 rpm and 30000 rpm), feed rate (2 mm/min and 4 mm/min) and depth of cut (0.10 mm and 0.15mm). The vibration was measured using DYTRAN accelerometer instrument and the average surface roughness Ra was measured using Wyko NT1100. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) by using Design Expert software revealed that feed rate and depth of cut are the most significant factors on vibration meanwhile for average surface roughness, Ra, spindle speed is the most significant factor.

Asymptotic Dynamics of Self-driven Vehicles in a Closed Boundary

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Chi-Lun; Huang, Chia-Ling

2011-08-01

We study the asymptotic dynamics of self-driven vehicles in a loop using a car-following model with the consideration of volume exclusions. In particular, we derive the dynamical steady states for the single-cluster case and obtain the corresponding fundamental diagrams, exhibiting two branches representative of entering and leaving the jam, respectively. By simulations we find that the speed average over all vehicles eventually reaches the same value, regardless of final clustering states. The autocorrelation functions for overall speed average and single-vehicle speed are studied, each revealing a unique time scale. We also discuss the role of noises in vehicular accelerations. Based on our observations we give trial definitions about the degree of chaoticity for general self-driven many-body systems.

Wind resource assessment: San Nicolas Island, California

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

McKenna, E.; Olsen, T.L.

1996-01-01

San Nicolas Island (SNI) is the site of the Navy Range Instrumentation Test Site which relies on an isolated diesel-powered grid for its energy needs. The island is located in the Pacific Ocean 85 miles southwest of Los Angeles, California and 65 miles south of the Naval Air Weapons Station (NAWS), Point Mugu, California. SNI is situated on the continental shelf at latitude N33{degree}14` and longitude W119{degree}27`. It is approximately 9 miles long and 3.6 miles wide and encompasses an area of 13,370 acres of land owned by the Navy in fee title. Winds on San Nicolas are prevailingly northwestmore » and are strong most of the year. The average wind speed is 7.2 m/s (14 knots) and seasonal variation is small. The windiest months, March through July, have wind speeds averaging 8.2 m/s (16 knots). The least windy months, August through February, have wind speeds averaging 6.2 m/s (12 knots).« less

Wind Power Potential at Abandoned Mines in Korea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

jang, M.; Choi, Y.; Park, H.; Go, W.

2013-12-01

This study performed an assessment of wind power potential at abandoned mines in the Kangwon province by analyzing gross energy production, greenhouse gas emission reduction and economic effects estimated from a 600 kW wind turbine. Wind resources maps collected from the renewable energy data center in Korea Institute of Energy Research(KIER) were used to determine the average wind speed, temperature and atmospheric pressure at hub height(50 m) for each abandoned mine. RETScreen software developed by Natural Resources Canada(NRC) was utilized for the energy, emission and financial analyses of wind power systems. Based on the results from 5 representative mining sites, we could know that the average wind speed at hub height is the most critical factor for assessing the wind power potential. Finally, 47 abandoned mines that have the average wind speed faster than 6.5 m/s were analyzed, and top 10 mines were suggested as relatively favorable sites with high wind power potential in the Kangwon province.

A model for closing the inviscid form of the average-passage equation system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adamczyk, J. J.; Mulac, R. A.; Celestina, M. L.

1985-01-01

A mathematical model is proposed for closing or mathematically completing the system of equations which describes the time average flow field through the blade passages of multistage turbomachinery. These equations referred to as the average passage equation system govern a conceptual model which has proven useful in turbomachinery aerodynamic design and analysis. The closure model is developed so as to insure a consistency between these equations and the axisymmetric through flow equations. The closure model was incorporated into a computer code for use in simulating the flow field about a high speed counter rotating propeller and a high speed fan stage. Results from these simulations are presented.

Geomagnetism during solar cycle 23: Characteristics

PubMed Central

Zerbo, Jean-Louis; Amory-Mazaudier, Christine; Ouattara, Frédéric

2012-01-01

On the basis of more than 48 years of morphological analysis of yearly and monthly values of the sunspot number, the aa index, the solar wind speed and interplanetary magnetic field, we point out the particularities of geomagnetic activity during the period 1996–2009. We especially investigate the last cycle 23 and the long minimum which followed it. During this period, the lowest values of the yearly averaged IMF (3 nT) and yearly averaged solar wind speed (364 km/s) are recorded in 1996, and 2009 respectively. The year 2003 shows itself particular by recording the highest value of the averaged solar wind (568 km/s), associated to the highest value of the yearly averaged aa index (37 nT). We also find that observations during the year 2003 seem to be related to several coronal holes which are known to generate high-speed wind stream. From the long time (more than one century) study of solar variability, the present period is similar to the beginning of twentieth century. We especially present the morphological features of solar cycle 23 which is followed by a deep solar minimum. PMID:25685427

Principal curvatures and area ratio of propagating surfaces in isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Tianhang; You, Jiaping; Yang, Yue

2017-10-01

We study the statistics of principal curvatures and the surface area ratio of propagating surfaces with a constant or nonconstant propagating velocity in isotropic turbulence using direct numerical simulation. Propagating surface elements initially constitute a plane to model a planar premixed flame front. When the statistics of evolving propagating surfaces reach the stationary stage, the statistical profiles of principal curvatures scaled by the Kolmogorov length scale versus the constant displacement speed scaled by the Kolmogorov velocity scale collapse at different Reynolds numbers. The magnitude of averaged principal curvatures and the number of surviving surface elements without cusp formation decrease with increasing displacement speed. In addition, the effect of surface stretch on the nonconstant displacement speed inhibits the cusp formation on surface elements at negative Markstein numbers. In order to characterize the wrinkling process of the global propagating surface, we develop a model to demonstrate that the increase of the surface area ratio is primarily due to positive Lagrangian time integrations of the area-weighted averaged tangential strain-rate term and propagation-curvature term. The difference between the negative averaged mean curvature and the positive area-weighted averaged mean curvature characterizes the cellular geometry of the global propagating surface.

High-throughput machining using a high-average power ultrashort pulse laser and high-speed polygon scanner

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schille, Joerg; Schneider, Lutz; Streek, André; Kloetzer, Sascha; Loeschner, Udo

2016-09-01

High-throughput ultrashort pulse laser machining is investigated on various industrial grade metals (aluminum, copper, and stainless steel) and Al2O3 ceramic at unprecedented processing speeds. This is achieved by using a high-average power picosecond laser in conjunction with a unique, in-house developed polygon mirror-based biaxial scanning system. Therefore, different concepts of polygon scanners are engineered and tested to find the best architecture for high-speed and precision laser beam scanning. In order to identify the optimum conditions for efficient processing when using high-average laser powers, the depths of cavities made in the samples by varying the processing parameter settings are analyzed and, from the results obtained, the characteristic removal values are specified. For overlapping pulses of optimum fluence, the removal rate is as high as 27.8 mm3/min for aluminum, 21.4 mm3/min for copper, 15.3 mm3/min for stainless steel, and 129.1 mm3/min for Al2O3, when a laser beam of 187 W average laser powers irradiates. On stainless steel, it is demonstrated that the removal rate increases to 23.3 mm3/min when the laser beam is very fast moving. This is thanks to the low pulse overlap as achieved with 800 m/s beam deflection speed; thus, laser beam shielding can be avoided even when irradiating high-repetitive 20-MHz pulses.

RSA/Legacy Wind Sensor Comparison. Part 2; Eastern Range

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Short, David A.; Wheeler, Mark M.

2006-01-01

This report describes a comparison of data from ultrasonic and propeller-and-vane anemometers on 5 wind towers at Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The ultrasonic sensors are scheduled to replace the Legacy propeller-and-vane sensors under the Range Standardization and Automation (RSA) program. Because previous studies have noted differences between peak wind speeds reported by mechanical and ultrasonic wind sensors, the latter having no moving parts, the 30th and 45th Weather Squadrons wanted to understand possible differences between the two sensor types. The period-of-record was 13-30 May 2005, A total of 357,626 readings of 1-minute average and peak wind speed/direction from each sensor type were used. Statistics of differences in speed and direction were used to identify 15 out of 19 RSA sensors having the most consistent performance, with respect to the Legacy sensors. RSA average wind speed data from these 15 showed a small positive bias of 0.38 kts. A slightly larger positive bias of 0.94 kts was found in the RSA peak wind speed.

Alfven Waves observed in Polar Jets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cirtain, J.

2007-12-01

Data collected on X-ray jets during a polar coronal hole observation campaign has revealed that some events have two distinct velocity components, one near the Alfv\\acute{e}n speed (~ 800 km sec-1) and the other near the sound speed (200 km sec-1). Previous reports indicate the incidence of jet formation to be only a few per day, with average radial speeds of 200 km sec-1. With the X-Ray Telescope (XRT) we detect an average of 10 events per hour. These jets are approximately 2 × 103 - 2 × 104 km wide and than 1 × 105 km long. The jet lifetimes range from 100 - 2500 secs. A large percentage of these jets are associated with small footpoint flares (1). The large number of events, coupled with the high velocities of the apparent outflows, indicate that these jets may contribute significantly to the high-speed solar wind from coronal holes. These observations provide unique and important evidence for the generation of Alfvén waves during reconnection and are possibly the first evidence of Alfv´n wave observations driving the high speed solar wind.

Predicting Energy Consumption for Potential Effective Use in Hybrid Vehicle Powertrain Management Using Driver Prediction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Magnuson, Brian

A proof-of-concept software-in-the-loop study is performed to assess the accuracy of predicted net and charge-gaining energy consumption for potential effective use in optimizing powertrain management of hybrid vehicles. With promising results of improving fuel efficiency of a thermostatic control strategy for a series, plug-ing, hybrid-electric vehicle by 8.24%, the route and speed prediction machine learning algorithms are redesigned and implemented for real- world testing in a stand-alone C++ code-base to ingest map data, learn and predict driver habits, and store driver data for fast startup and shutdown of the controller or computer used to execute the compiled algorithm. Speed prediction is performed using a multi-layer, multi-input, multi- output neural network using feed-forward prediction and gradient descent through back- propagation training. Route prediction utilizes a Hidden Markov Model with a recurrent forward algorithm for prediction and multi-dimensional hash maps to store state and state distribution constraining associations between atomic road segments and end destinations. Predicted energy is calculated using the predicted time-series speed and elevation profile over the predicted route and the road-load equation. Testing of the code-base is performed over a known road network spanning 24x35 blocks on the south hill of Spokane, Washington. A large set of training routes are traversed once to add randomness to the route prediction algorithm, and a subset of the training routes, testing routes, are traversed to assess the accuracy of the net and charge-gaining predicted energy consumption. Each test route is traveled a random number of times with varying speed conditions from traffic and pedestrians to add randomness to speed prediction. Prediction data is stored and analyzed in a post process Matlab script. The aggregated results and analysis of all traversals of all test routes reflect the performance of the Driver Prediction algorithm. The error of average energy gained through charge-gaining events is 31.3% and the error of average net energy consumed is 27.3%. The average delta and average standard deviation of the delta of predicted energy gained through charge-gaining events is 0.639 and 0.601 Wh respectively for individual time-series calculations. Similarly, the average delta and average standard deviation of the delta of the predicted net energy consumed is 0.567 and 0.580 Wh respectively for individual time-series calculations. The average delta and standard deviation of the delta of the predicted speed is 1.60 and 1.15 respectively also for the individual time-series measurements. The percentage of accuracy of route prediction is 91%. Overall, test routes are traversed 151 times for a total test distance of 276.4 km.

Copy Counts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beaumont, Lee R.

1970-01-01

The level of difficulty of straight copy, which is used to measure typewriting speed, is influenced by syllable intensity (the average number of syllables per word), stroke intensity (average number of strokes per word), and high-frequency words. (CH)

Ultrafine particle levels at an international port of entry between the US and Mexico: exposure implications for users, workers, and neighbors.

PubMed

Olvera, Hector A; Lopez, Mario; Guerrero, Veronica; Garcia, Humberto; Li, Wen-Whai

2013-01-01

Exposure to diesel-emitted particles has been linked to increased cancer risk and cardiopulmonary diseases. Because of their size (<100 nm), exposure to ultrafine particles (UFPs) emitted from heavy-duty diesel vehicles (HDDV) might result in greater health risks than those associated with larger particles. Seasonal UFP levels at the International Bridge of the Americas, which connects the US and Mexico and has high HDDV traffic demands, were characterized. Hourly average UFP concentrations ranged between 1.7 × 10(3)/cc and 2.9 × 10(5)/cc with a mean of 3.5 × 10(4)/cc. Wind speeds <2 m s(-1) and temperatures <15 °C were associated with particle number concentrations above normal conditions. The presence of HDDV had the strongest impact on local UFP levels. Varying particle size distributions were associated with south- and northbound HDDV traffic. Peak exposure occurred on weekday afternoons. Although in winter, high exposure episodes were also observed in the morning. Particle number concentrations were estimated to reach background levels at 400 m away from traffic. The populations exposed to UFP above background levels include law enforcement officers, street vendors, private commuters, and commercial vehicle drivers as well as neighbors on both sides of the border, including a church and several schools.

Evaluation of a five-year Bloomberg Global Road Safety Program in Turkey.

PubMed

Gupta, S; Hoe, C; Özkan, T; Lajunen, T J; Vursavas, F; Sener, S; Hyder, A A

2017-03-01

Turkey was included in the Bloomberg Philanthropies funded Global Road Safety Program (2010-14) with Ankara and Afyonkarahisar (Afyon) selected for interventions to manage speed and encourage seat-belt use. The objectives of this study are to present the monitoring and evaluation findings of seat-belt use and speed in Afyon and Ankara over the five years and to assess overall impact of the program on road traffic injury, and death rates in Turkey. Quasi-experimental before after without comparison. In collaboration with the Middle East Technical University, roadside observations and interviews were coupled with secondary data to monitor changes in risk factors and outcomes at the two intervention sites. The percentage of seat-belt use among drivers and front-seat passengers in Afyon and Ankara increased significantly between 2010 and 2014 with increased self-reported use and preceded by an increase in tickets (fines) for not using seat belts. There were uneven improvements in speed reduction. In Afyon, the average speed increased significantly from 46.3 km/h in 2012 to about 52.7 km/h in 2014 on roads where the speed limits were 50 km/h. In Ankara, the average speed remained less than 55 km/h during the program period (range: 50-54 km/h; P < 0.005) for roads where the speed limits were 50 km/h; however, the average speed on roads with speed limits of 70 km/h decreased significantly from 80.6 km/h in 2012 to 68.44 km/h in 2014 (P < 0.005). The program contributed to increase in seat-belt use in Afyon and Ankara and by drawing political attention to the issue can contribute to improvements in road safety. We are optimistic that the visible motivation within Turkey to substantially reduce road traffic injuries will lead to increased program implementation matched with a robust evaluation program, with suitable controls. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

The Effect of Flexible Pavement Mechanics on the Accuracy of Axle Load Sensors in Vehicle Weigh-in-Motion Systems

PubMed Central

Rys, Dawid

2017-01-01

Weigh-in-Motion systems are tools to prevent road pavements from the adverse phenomena of vehicle overloading. However, the effectiveness of these systems can be significantly increased by improving weighing accuracy, which is now insufficient for direct enforcement of overloaded vehicles. Field tests show that the accuracy of Weigh-in-Motion axle load sensors installed in the flexible (asphalt) pavements depends on pavement temperature and vehicle speeds. Although this is a known phenomenon, it has not been explained yet. The aim of our study is to fill this gap in the knowledge. The explanation of this phenomena which is presented in the paper is based on pavement/sensors mechanics and the application of the multilayer elastic half-space theory. We show that differences in the distribution of vertical and horizontal stresses in the pavement structure are the cause of vehicle weight measurement errors. These studies are important in terms of Weigh-in-Motion systems for direct enforcement and will help to improve the weighing results accuracy. PMID:28880215

The Effect of Flexible Pavement Mechanics on the Accuracy of Axle Load Sensors in Vehicle Weigh-in-Motion Systems.

PubMed

Burnos, Piotr; Rys, Dawid

2017-09-07

Weigh-in-Motion systems are tools to prevent road pavements from the adverse phenomena of vehicle overloading. However, the effectiveness of these systems can be significantly increased by improving weighing accuracy, which is now insufficient for direct enforcement of overloaded vehicles. Field tests show that the accuracy of Weigh-in-Motion axle load sensors installed in the flexible (asphalt) pavements depends on pavement temperature and vehicle speeds. Although this is a known phenomenon, it has not been explained yet. The aim of our study is to fill this gap in the knowledge. The explanation of this phenomena which is presented in the paper is based on pavement/sensors mechanics and the application of the multilayer elastic half-space theory. We show that differences in the distribution of vertical and horizontal stresses in the pavement structure are the cause of vehicle weight measurement errors. These studies are important in terms of Weigh-in-Motion systems for direct enforcement and will help to improve the weighing results accuracy.

The response of land-falling tropical cyclone characteristics to projected climate change in northeast Australia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parker, Chelsea L.; Bruyère, Cindy L.; Mooney, Priscilla A.; Lynch, Amanda H.

2018-01-01

Land-falling tropical cyclones along the Queensland coastline can result in serious and widespread damage. However, the effects of climate change on cyclone characteristics such as intensity, trajectory, rainfall, and especially translation speed and size are not well-understood. This study explores the relative change in the characteristics of three case studies by comparing the simulated tropical cyclones under current climate conditions with simulations of the same systems under future climate conditions. Simulations are performed with the Weather Research and Forecasting Model and environmental conditions for the future climate are obtained from the Community Earth System Model using a pseudo global warming technique. Results demonstrate a consistent response of increasing intensity through reduced central pressure (by up to 11 hPa), increased wind speeds (by 5-10% on average), and increased rainfall (by up to 27% for average hourly rainfall rates). The responses of other characteristics were variable and governed by either the location and trajectory of the current climate cyclone or the change in the steering flow. The cyclone that traveled furthest poleward encountered a larger climate perturbation, resulting in a larger proportional increase in size, rainfall rate, and wind speeds. The projected monthly average change in the 500 mb winds with climate change governed the alteration in the both the trajectory and translation speed for each case. The simulated changes have serious implications for damage to coastal settlements, infrastructure, and ecosystems through increased wind speeds, storm surge, rainfall, and potentially increased size of some systems.

Safety modeling of urban arterials in Shanghai, China.

PubMed

Wang, Xuesong; Fan, Tianxiang; Chen, Ming; Deng, Bing; Wu, Bing; Tremont, Paul

2015-10-01

Traffic safety on urban arterials is influenced by several key variables including geometric design features, land use, traffic volume, and travel speeds. This paper is an exploratory study of the relationship of these variables to safety. It uses a comparatively new method of measuring speeds by extracting GPS data from taxis operating on Shanghai's urban network. This GPS derived speed data, hereafter called Floating Car Data (FCD) was used to calculate average speeds during peak and off-peak hours, and was acquired from samples of 15,000+ taxis traveling on 176 segments over 18 major arterials in central Shanghai. Geometric design features of these arterials and surrounding land use characteristics were obtained by field investigation, and crash data was obtained from police reports. Bayesian inference using four different models, Poisson-lognormal (PLN), PLN with Maximum Likelihood priors (PLN-ML), hierarchical PLN (HPLN), and HPLN with Maximum Likelihood priors (HPLN-ML), was used to estimate crash frequencies. Results showed the HPLN-ML models had the best goodness-of-fit and efficiency, and models with ML priors yielded estimates with the lowest standard errors. Crash frequencies increased with increases in traffic volume. Higher average speeds were associated with higher crash frequencies during peak periods, but not during off-peak periods. Several geometric design features including average segment length of arterial, number of lanes, presence of non-motorized lanes, number of access points, and commercial land use, were positively related to crash frequencies. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Individual human scent as a forensic identifier using mantrailing.

PubMed

Woidtke, Leif; Dreßler, Jan; Babian, Carsten

2018-01-01

Specially trained dogs have long been used by law enforcement agencies to help in criminal investigations and in searching for missing persons. Still, it is unclear which components of human scent released into the environment contribute to successful searches of individuals. In this study, saliva and axillary sweat samples were taken from a total of 190 people. Additionally, DNA was extracted from whole blood of seven different people and used as an odour sample as well. Overall 675 tests (trails) were performed during a period of 18 months. The ability to track individuals with the odour samples mentioned above was examined with seven dogs, four of which were specially-trained dogs (mantrailer) from the Saxony Police. Results indicated that specially-trained police dogs can track a person with an average success rate of 82% and correctly identify the absence of an odour track with an average success rate of 97% under various conditions. Private rescue dogs were less successful with an average success rate of 65% and 75% respectively. These data suggest that the potential error rate of a well-trained handler team is low and can be a useful tool for law enforcement personnel. Saliva, as a reference odour source, was found to be particularly suitable for the search. The results of the study suggest that the components contained in axillary sweat, saliva and DNA extracted from whole blood are sufficient, serving as a key stimulus for individualized searches. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sunrayce 93: The hottest new sport on campus. Technical report

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

Not Available

1994-05-01

The solar powered electric vehicle race began in Arlington, Texas on June 20, 1993 and finished 7 days later in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Thirty four teams from Universities across the United States and Puerto Rico completed the race out of thirty six entries. The race demonstrated the viability of sunlight powered vehicles as the better average daily speeds were in excess of 50 miles an hour. Even in the rain, most average speeds were in excess of 15 miles an hour. Analyzed results, photographs, and project details are included. (GHH)

Comparison of cursive models for handwriting instruction.

PubMed

Karlsdottir, R

1997-12-01

The efficiency of four different cursive handwriting styles as model alphabets for handwriting instruction of primary school children was compared in a cross-sectional field experiment from Grade 3 to 6 in terms of the average handwriting speed developed by the children and the average rate of convergence of the children's handwriting to the style of their model. It was concluded that styles with regular entry stroke patterns give the steadiest rate of convergence to the model and styles with short ascenders and descenders and strokes with not too high curvatures give the highest handwriting speed.

Cloud motion in relation to the ambient wind field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fuelberg, H. E.; Scoggins, J. R.

1975-01-01

Trajectories of convective clouds were computed from a mathematical model and compared with trajectories observed by radar. The ambient wind field was determined from the AVE IIP data. The model includes gradient, coriolis, drag, lift, and lateral forces. The results show that rotational effects may account for large differences between the computed and observed trajectories and that convective clouds may move 10 to 20 degrees to the right or left of the average wind vector and at speeds 5 to 10 m/sec faster or slower than the average ambient wind speed.

[Evaluation of regulatory policies: the prevention of traffic accidents in Spain].

PubMed

Villalbí, Joan R; Pérez, Catherine

2006-03-01

Traffic accident injuries may be reduced with public policies. We review regulatory policies extending beyond the health sector by studying the case of traffic accident injuries. They have been the object of other analyses in Spain by both health professionals and professionals from other sectors, but we have not found a previous thorough review including regulatory aspects. We analyze the evolution of fatal victims of traffic accidents as collected by the Dirección General de Tráfico, stratifying for pedestrians, two-wheel vehicle occupants and occupants of other vehicles, and breaking down accidents between those occurring in roads and in urban settings. Despite the increase in exposure factors between 1970 and 2003, we observe a strong impact of regulatory policies in accident mortality. A favorable impact is seen for regulations and enforcement actions on motorcycle helmets, speed limits and the control of alcohol use, and a lower impact for safety belts, perhaps because its actual effective implementation was not equally sharp. The adoption of comprehensive plans or complex legislation packages seems to have had a positive impact, perhaps attributable to its triggering of more effective enforcement of already existing regulations. Although the existence of legal norms is not enough in itself, as its impact is low without active enforcement, compliance improves over time. In any case, the existence of specific initiatives to influence this field is important to obtain the best results of regulatory policies in public health.

Teleseismic P wave tomography of South Island, New Zealand upper mantle: Evidence of subduction of Pacific lithosphere since 45 Ma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zietlow, Daniel W.; Molnar, Peter H.; Sheehan, Anne F.

2016-06-01

A P wave speed tomogram produced from teleseismic travel time measurements made on and offshore the South Island of New Zealand shows a nearly vertical zone with wave speeds that are 4.5% higher than the background average reaching to depths of approximately 450 km under the northwestern region of the island. This structure is consistent with oblique west-southwest subduction of Pacific lithosphere since about 45 Ma, when subduction beneath the region began. The high-speed zone reaches about 200-300 km below the depths of the deepest intermediate-depth earthquakes (subcrustal to ~200 km) and therefore suggests that ~200-300 km of slab below them is required to produce sufficient weight to induce the intermediate-depth seismicity. In the southwestern South Island, high P wave speeds indicate subduction of the Australian plate at the Puysegur Trench to approximately 200 km depth. A band with speeds ~2-3.5% lower than the background average is found along the east coast of the South Island to depths of ~150-200 km and underlies Miocene or younger volcanism; these low speeds are consistent with thinned lithosphere. A core of high speeds under the Southern Alps associated with a convergent margin and mountain building imaged in previous investigations is not well resolved in this study. This could suggest that such high speeds are limited in both width and depth and not resolvable by our data.

The independent effects of speed and propulsive force on joint power generation in walking

PubMed Central

Browne, Michael G.; Franz, Jason R.

2017-01-01

Walking speed is modulated using propulsive forces (FP) during push-off and both preferred speed and FP decrease with aging. However, even prior to walking slower, reduced FP may be accompanied by potentially unfavorable changes in joint power generation. For example, compared to young adults, older adults exhibit a redistribution of mechanical power generation from the propulsive plantarflexor muscles to more proximal muscles acting across the knee and hip. Here, we used visual biofeedback based on real-time FP measurements to decouple and investigate the interaction between joint-level coordination, whole-body FP, and walking speed. 12 healthy young subjects walked on a dual-belt instrumented treadmill at a range of speeds (0.9 – 1.3 m/s). We immediately calculated the average FP from each speed. Subjects then walked at 1.3 m/s while completing a series of biofeedback trials with instructions to match their instantaneous FP to their averaged FP from slower speeds. Walking slower decreased FP and total positive joint work with little effect on relative joint-level contributions. Conversely, subjects walked at a constant speed with reduced FP, not by reducing total positive joint work, but by redistributing the mechanical demands of each step from the plantarflexor muscles during push-off to more proximal leg muscles during single support. Interestingly, these naturally emergent joint- and limb-level biomechanical changes, in the absence of neuromuscular constraints, resemble those due to aging. Our findings provide important reference data to understand the presumably complex interactions between joint power generation, whole-body FP, and walking speed in our aging population. PMID:28262285

Measurements of the Time-Averaged and Instantaneous Induced Velocities in the Wake of a Helicopter Rotor Hovering at High Tip Speeds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heyson, Harry H.

1960-01-01

Measurements of the time-averaged induced velocities were obtained for rotor tip speeds as great as 1,100 feet per second (tip Mach number of 0.98) and measurements of the instantaneous induced velocities were obtained for rotor tip speeds as great as 900 feet per second. The results indicate that the small effects on the wake with increasing Mach number are primarily due to the changes in rotor-load distribution resulting from changes in Mach number rather than to compressibility effects on the wake itself. No effect of tip Mach number on the instantaneous velocities was observed. Under conditions for which the blade tip was operated at negative pitch angles, an erratic circulatory flow was observed.

Contributing factors of crash injury severity at public highway-railroad grade crossings in the U.S.

PubMed

Haleem, Kirolos; Gan, Albert

2015-06-01

The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) includes a separate program that supports safety improvements to reduce the number of fatalities and injuries at public highway-railroad grade crossings (HRGCs). This study identifies the significant factors affecting crash injury severity at public HRGCs in the United States. Crashes from 2009 through 2013 on 5,528 public HRGCs, extracted from the Federal Railroad Administration database, were used in the analysis. A comprehensive list of risk factors was explored. Examples include predictors related to geographic region of crash, geometry (e.g., area type and pavement marking type), railroad (e.g., warning device type and railroad class), traffic (e.g., train speed and vehicles annual average daily traffic "AADT"), highway user (e.g., driver age and gender), and environment (e.g., lighting and weather conditions). The study used the mixed logit model to better capture the complex highway user behavior at HRGCs. Female highway users were at higher risk of involvement in injuries and fatalities compared to males. Higher train speeds, very old drivers, open areas, concrete road surface types, and railroad equipment striking highway users before crash, were all found to increase the injury likelihood. On the other hand, young and middle-age drivers, non-passing of standing vehicles at HRGCs, industrial areas, and presence of warning bells were found to reduce injuries and fatalities. The mixed logit model succeeded in identifying contributing factors of crash severity at public HRGCs and potential countermeasures to reduce both fatalities and injuries are suggested. It is important to install warning bells at public HRGCs, especially at those with high number of injury and fatality crashes. Enforcement of traffic nearby HRGCs is necessary to prevent vehicles from overtaking of standing vehicles. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. and National Safety Council. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of Homeland Security Alert level on calls to a law enforcement peer support hotline.

PubMed

Omer, Saad B; Barnett, Daniel J; Castellano, Cherie; Wierzba, Rachel K; Hiremath, Girish S; Balicer, Ran D; Everly, George S

2007-01-01

The Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS) was established by the Department of Homeland Security to communicate the risk of a terrorist event. In order to explore the potential psychological impacts of HSAS we analyzed the effects of terror alerts on the law enforcement community. We used data from the New Jersey Cop 2 Cop crisis intervention hotline. Incidence Rate Ratios--interpreted as average relative increases in the daily number of calls to the Cop 2 Cop hotline during an increased alert period--were computed from Poisson models. The hotline received a total of 4,145 initial calls during the study period. The mean daily number of calls was higher during alert level elevation compared to prior 7 days (7.68 vs. 8.00). In the Poisson regression analysis, the Incidence Rate Ratios of number of calls received during elevated alert levels compared to the reference period of seven days preceding each change in alert were close to 1, with confidence intervals crossing 1 (i.e. not statistically significant) for all lag periods evaluated. This investigation, in the context of New Jersey law enforcement personnel, does not support the concern that elevating the alert status places undue stress upon alert recipients.

Broadband simulations for Mw 7.8 southern san andreas earthquakes: Ground motion sensitivity to rupture speed

USGS Publications Warehouse

Graves, R.W.; Aagaard, Brad T.; Hudnut, K.W.; Star, L.M.; Stewart, J.P.; Jordan, T.H.

2008-01-01

Using the high-performance computing resources of the Southern California Earthquake Center, we simulate broadband (0-10 Hz) ground motions for three Mw 7.8 rupture scenarios of the southern San Andreas fault. The scenarios incorporate a kinematic rupture description with the average rupture speed along the large slip portions of the fault set at 0.96, 0.89, and 0.84 times the local shear wave velocity. Consistent with previous simulations, a southern hypocenter efficiently channels energy into the Los Angeles region along the string of basins south of the San Gabriel Mountains. However, we find the basin ground motion levels are quite sensitive to the prescribed rupture speed, with peak ground velocities at some sites varying by over a factor of two for variations in average rupture speed of about 15%. These results have important implications for estimating seismic hazards in Southern California and emphasize the need for improved understanding of earthquake rupture processes. Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.

Influence of voice focus on tongue movement in speech.

PubMed

Bressmann, Tim; de Boer, Gillian; Marino, Viviane Cristina de Castro; Fabron, Eliana Maria Gradim; Berti, Larissa Cristina

2017-01-01

The present study evaluated global aspects of lingual movement during sentence production with backward and forward voice focus. Nine female participants read a sentence with a variety of consonants in a normal condition and with backward and forward voice focus. Midsagittal tongue movement was recorded with ultrasound. Tongue height over time at an anterior, a central, and a posterior measurement angle was measured. The outcome measures were speech rate, cumulative distance travelled, and average movement speed of the tongue. There were no differences in speech rate between the different conditions. The cumulative distance travelled by the tongue and the average speed indicated that the posterior tongue travelled a smaller cumulative distance and at a slower speed in the forward focus condition. The central tongue moved a larger cumulative distance and at a higher speed in the backward focus condition. The study offers first insights on how tongue movement is affected by different voice focus settings and illustrates the plasticity of tongue movement in speech.

Passive magnetic bearing systems stabilizer/bearing utilizing time-averaging of a periodic magnetic field

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

Post, Richard F.

A high-stiffness stabilizer/bearings for passive magnetic bearing systems is provide where the key to its operation resides in the fact that when the frequency of variation of the repelling forces of the periodic magnet array is large compared to the reciprocal of the growth time of the unstable motion, the rotating system will feel only the time-averaged value of the force. When the time-averaged value of the force is radially repelling by the choice of the geometry of the periodic magnet array, the Earnshaw-related unstable hit motion that would occur at zero rotational speed is suppressed when the system ismore » rotating at operating speeds.« less

Seatbelt use and speeding on three major roads in Egypt: a brief report.

PubMed

Hoe, Connie; Puvanachandra, Prasanthi; Rahman, M Hafizur; El Sayed, Hesham; Eldawy, Soad; El-Dabaa, Ayman; Albert, Mourid; Hyder, Adnan A

2013-12-01

Road traffic injuries pose a significant threat to the Egyptian population. Recent estimates revealed that Egypt experiences 42 road traffic deaths per 100,000 population (1.8% of all deaths in the country), which is the highest death rate in the region. More than half of the road traffic crashes that resulted in injuries occurred on the country's highways. Despite the significance of this public health problem, very little risk factor information currently exists. The overall goal of this paper is to understand the burden of speeding and the level of seatbelt and child restraint use on a highway (Cairo Ring Road) and two urban roads crossing Alexandria city (Kornish and Gamal Abd-Elnaser roads). Two rounds of seatbelt and child restraint observational studies and one round of speed observational study were carried out between 2011 and 2012. Findings revealed that seatbelt use among drivers and front seat passengers were low for all three sites (range: 11.1% to 19.8% for drivers; 2.9% to 4.0% for front seat passengers). Similarly, child restraint use in cars with children was very low ranging from 1.1% to 3.9% on all three roads. All three roads experienced a high percentage of vehicles driving above the speed limit (39.4% on Kornish Road, 22.6% on Cairo Ring Road, 11.8% on Gamal Abd-Elnaser Road), with the majority of these vehicles driving 1 to 10 kilometer above the speed limit. Future interventions need to focus on enhancing enforcement of speed and seatbelt wearing, closing gaps in legislation, and standardizing existing data systems to help inform good road safety policies. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Spatio-Temporal Migration Patterns of Pacific Salmon Smolts in Rivers and Coastal Marine Waters

PubMed Central

Melnychuk, Michael C.; Welch, David W.; Walters, Carl J.

2010-01-01

Background Migrations allow animals to find food resources, rearing habitats, or mates, but often impose considerable predation risk. Several behavioural strategies may reduce this risk, including faster travel speed and taking routes with shorter total distance. Descriptions of the natural range of variation in migration strategies among individuals and populations is necessary before the ecological consequences of such variation can be established. Methodology/Principal Findings Movements of tagged juvenile coho, steelhead, sockeye, and Chinook salmon were quantified using a large-scale acoustic tracking array in southern British Columbia, Canada. Smolts from 13 watersheds (49 watershed/species/year combinations) were tagged between 2004–2008 and combined into a mixed-effects model analysis of travel speed. During the downstream migration, steelhead were slower on average than other species, possibly related to freshwater residualization. During the migration through the Strait of Georgia, coho were slower than steelhead and sockeye, likely related to some degree of inshore summer residency. Hatchery-reared smolts were slower than wild smolts during the downstream migration, but after ocean entry, average speeds were similar. In small rivers, downstream travel speed increased with body length, but in the larger Fraser River and during the coastal migration, average speed was independent of body length. Smolts leaving rivers located towards the northern end of the Strait of Georgia ecosystem migrated strictly northwards after ocean entry, but those from rivers towards the southern end displayed split-route migration patterns within populations, with some moving southward. Conclusions/Significance Our results reveal a tremendous diversity of behavioural migration strategies used by juvenile salmon, across species, rearing histories, and habitats, as well as within individual populations. During the downstream migration, factors that had strong effects on travel speeds included species, wild or hatchery-rearing history, watershed size and, in smaller rivers, body length. During the coastal migration, travel speeds were only strongly affected by species differences. PMID:20886121

Traffic violations in Guangdong Province of China: speeding and drunk driving.

PubMed

Zhang, Guangnan; Yau, Kelvin K W; Gong, Xiangpu

2014-03-01

The number of speeding- and drunk driving-related injuries in China surged in the years immediately preceding 2004 and then began to decline. However, the percent decrease in the number of speeding and drunk driving incidents (decrease by 22%) is not proportional to the corresponding percent decrease in number of automobile accident-related injuries (decrease by 47%) from the year 2004 to 2010 (Traffic Management Bureau, Ministry of Public Security, Annual Statistical Reports on Road Traffic Accidents). Earlier studies have established traffic violations as one of the major risks threatening road safety. In this study, we examine in greater detail two important types of traffic violation events, speeding and drunk driving, and attempt to identify significant risk factors associated with these types of traffic violations. Risk factors in several different dimensions, including driver, vehicle, road and environmental factors, are considered. We analyze the speeding (N=11,055) and drunk driving (N=10,035) data for the period 2006-2010 in Guangdong Province, China. These data, obtained from the Guangdong Provincial Security Department, are extracted from the Traffic Management Sector-Specific Incident Case Data Report and are the only comprehensive and official source of traffic accident data in China. Significant risk factors associating with speeding and drunk driving are identified. We find that several factors are associated with a significantly higher probability of both speeding and drunk driving, particularly male drivers, private vehicles, the lack of street lighting at night and poor visibility. The impact of other specific and unique risk factors for either speeding or drunk driving, such as hukou, road type/grades, commercial vehicles, compulsory third party insurance and vehicle safety status, also require particular attention. Legislative or regulatory measures targeting different vehicle types and/or driver groups with respect to the various driver, vehicle, road and environmental risk factors can subsequently be devised to reduce the speeding and drunk driving rates. As the country with the highest number of traffic accident fatalities in the world, applying these findings in workable legislation and enforcement to reduce speeding and drunk driving rates will save tens of thousands of lives. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Modeling the effect of control on the wake of a utility-scale turbine via large-eddy simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Xiaolei; Annoni, Jennifer; Seiler, Pete; Sotiropoulos, Fotis

2014-06-01

A model of the University of Minnesota EOLOS research turbine (Clipper Liberty C96) is developed, integrating the C96 torque control law with a high fidelity actuator line large- eddy simulation (LES) model. Good agreement with the blade element momentum theory is obtained for the power coefficient curve under uniform inflow. Three different cases, fixed rotor rotational speed ω, fixed tip-speed ratio (TSR) and generator torque control, have been simulated for turbulent inflow. With approximately the same time-averaged ω, the time- averaged power is in good agreement with measurements for all three cases. Although the time-averaged aerodynamic torque is nearly the same for the three cases, the root-mean-square (rms) of the aerodynamic torque fluctuations is significantly larger for the case with fixed ω. No significant differences have been observed for the time-averaged flow fields behind the turbine for these three cases.

An Estimate of North Atlantic Basin Tropical Cyclone Activity for 2008

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, Robert M.

2008-01-01

The statistics of North Atlantic basin tropical cyclones for the interval 1945-2007 are examined and estimates are given for the frequencies of occurrence of the number of tropical cyclones, number of hurricanes, number of major hurricanes, number of category 4/5 hurricanes, and number of U.S. land-falling hurricanes for the 2008 hurricane season. Also examined are the variations of peak wind speed, average peak wind speed per storm, lowest pressure, average lowest pressure per storm, recurrence rate and duration of extreme events (El Nino and La Nina), the variation of 10-yr moving averages of parametric first differences, and the association of decadal averages of frequencies of occurrence of North Atlantic basin tropical cyclones against decadal averages of Armagh Observatory, Northern Ireland, annual mean temperature (found to be extremely important for number of tropical cyclones and number of hurricanes). Because the 2008 hurricane season seems destined to be one that is non-El Nino-related and is a post-1995 season, estimates of the frequencies of occurrence for the various subsets of storms should be above long-term averages.

Toward developing a standardized Arabic continuous text reading chart.

PubMed

Alabdulkader, Balsam; Leat, Susan Jennifer

Near visual acuity is an essential measurement during an oculo-visual assessment. Short duration continuous text reading charts measure reading acuity and other aspects of reading performance. There is no standardized version of such chart in Arabic. The aim of this study is to create sentences of equal readability to use in the development of a standardized Arabic continuous text reading chart. Initially, 109 Arabic pairs of sentences were created for use in constructing a chart with similar layout to the Colenbrander chart. They were created to have the same grade level of difficulty and physical length. Fifty-three adults and sixteen children were recruited to validate the sentences. Reading speed in correct words per minute (CWPM) and standard length words per minute (SLWPM) was measured and errors were counted. Criteria based on reading speed and errors made in each sentence pair were used to exclude sentence pairs with more outlying characteristics, and to select the final group of sentence pairs. Forty-five sentence pairs were selected according to the elimination criteria. For adults, the average reading speed for the final sentences was 166 CWPM and 187 SLWPM and the average number of errors per sentence pair was 0.21. Childrens' average reading speed for the final group of sentences was 61 CWPM and 72 SLWPM. Their average error rate was 1.71. The reliability analysis showed that the final 45 sentence pairs are highly comparable. They will be used in constructing an Arabic short duration continuous text reading chart. Copyright © 2016 Spanish General Council of Optometry. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Developments in Stochastic Fuel Efficient Cruise Control and Constrained Control with Applications to Aircraft

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McDonough, Kevin K.

The dissertation presents contributions to fuel-efficient control of vehicle speed and constrained control with applications to aircraft. In the first part of this dissertation a stochastic approach to fuel-efficient vehicle speed control is developed. This approach encompasses stochastic modeling of road grade and traffic speed, modeling of fuel consumption through the use of a neural network, and the application of stochastic dynamic programming to generate vehicle speed control policies that are optimized for the trade-off between fuel consumption and travel time. The fuel economy improvements with the proposed policies are quantified through simulations and vehicle experiments. It is shown that the policies lead to the emergence of time-varying vehicle speed patterns that are referred to as time-varying cruise. Through simulations and experiments it is confirmed that these time-varying vehicle speed profiles are more fuel-efficient than driving at a comparable constant speed. Motivated by these results, a simpler implementation strategy that is more appealing for practical implementation is also developed. This strategy relies on a finite state machine and state transition threshold optimization, and its benefits are quantified through model-based simulations and vehicle experiments. Several additional contributions are made to approaches for stochastic modeling of road grade and vehicle speed that include the use of Kullback-Liebler divergence and divergence rate and a stochastic jump-like model for the behavior of the road grade. In the second part of the dissertation, contributions to constrained control with applications to aircraft are described. Recoverable sets and integral safe sets of initial states of constrained closed-loop systems are introduced first and computational procedures of such sets based on linear discrete-time models are given. The use of linear discrete-time models is emphasized as they lead to fast computational procedures. Examples of these sets for aircraft longitudinal and lateral aircraft dynamics are reported, and it is shown that these sets can be larger in size compared to the more commonly used safe sets. An approach to constrained maneuver planning based on chaining recoverable sets or integral safe sets is described and illustrated with a simulation example. To facilitate the application of this maneuver planning approach in aircraft loss of control (LOC) situations when the model is only identified at the current trim condition but when these sets need to be predicted at other flight conditions, the dependence trends of the safe and recoverable sets on aircraft flight conditions are characterized. The scaling procedure to estimate subsets of safe and recoverable sets at one trim condition based on their knowledge at another trim condition is defined. Finally, two control schemes that exploit integral safe sets are proposed. The first scheme, referred to as the controller state governor (CSG), resets the controller state (typically an integrator) to enforce the constraints and enlarge the set of plant states that can be recovered without constraint violation. The second scheme, referred to as the controller state and reference governor (CSRG), combines the controller state governor with the reference governor control architecture and provides the capability of simultaneously modifying the reference command and the controller state to enforce the constraints. Theoretical results that characterize the response properties of both schemes are presented. Examples are reported that illustrate the operation of these schemes on aircraft flight dynamics models and gas turbine engine dynamic models.

One- to two-month oscillations in SSMI surface wind speed in western tropical Pacific Ocean

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Collins, Michael L.; Stanford, John L.; Halpern, David

1994-01-01

The 10-m wind speed over the ocean can be estimated from microwave brightness temperature measurements recorded by the Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSMI) instrument mounted on a polar-orbiting spacecraft. Four-year (1988-1991) time series of average daily 1 deg x 1 deg SSMI wind speeds were analyzed at selected sites in the western tropical Pacific Ocean. One- to two-month period wind speed oscillations with amplitudes statistically significant at the 95% confidence level were observed near Kanton, Eniwetok, Guam, and Truk. This is the first report of such an oscillation in SSMI wind speeds.

Mass balance, meteorology, area altitude distribution, glacier-surface altitude, ice motion, terminus position, and runoff at Gulkana Glacier, Alaska, 1996 balance year

USGS Publications Warehouse

March, Rod S.

2003-01-01

The 1996 measured winter snow, maximum winter snow, net, and annual balances in the Gulkana Glacier Basin were evaluated on the basis of meteorological, hydrological, and glaciological data. Averaged over the glacier, the measured winter snow balance was 0.87 meter on April 18, 1996, 1.1 standard deviation below the long-term average; the maximum winter snow balance, 1.06 meters, was reached on May 28, 1996; and the net balance (from August 30, 1995, to August 24, 1996) was -0.53 meter, 0.53 standard deviation below the long-term average. The annual balance (October 1, 1995, to September 30, 1996) was -0.37 meter. Area-averaged balances were reported using both the 1967 and 1993 area altitude distributions (the numbers previously given in this abstract use the 1993 area altitude distribution). Net balance was about 25 percent less negative using the 1993 area altitude distribution than the 1967 distribution. Annual average air temperature was 0.9 degree Celsius warmer than that recorded with the analog sensor used since 1966. Total precipitation catch for the year was 0.78 meter, 0.8 standard deviations below normal. The annual average wind speed was 3.5 meters per second in the first year of measuring wind speed. Annual runoff averaged 1.50 meters over the basin, 1.0 standard deviation below the long-term average. Glacier-surface altitude and ice-motion changes measured at three index sites document seasonal ice-speed and glacier-thickness changes. Both showed a continuation of a slowing and thinning trend present in the 1990s. The glacier terminus and lower ablation area were defined for 1996 with a handheld Global Positioning System survey of 126 locations spread out over about 4 kilometers on the lower glacier margin. From 1949 to 1996, the terminus retreated about 1,650 meters for an average retreat rate of 35 meters per year.

Variable speed limit strategies analysis with link transmission model on urban expressway

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Shubin; Cao, Danni

2018-02-01

The variable speed limit (VSL) is a kind of active traffic management method. Most of the strategies are used in the expressway traffic flow control in order to ensure traffic safety. However, the urban expressway system is the main artery, carrying most traffic pressure. It has similar traffic characteristics with the expressways between cities. In this paper, the improved link transmission model (LTM) combined with VSL strategies is proposed, based on the urban expressway network. The model can simulate the movement of the vehicles and the shock wave, and well balance the relationship between the amount of calculation and accuracy. Furthermore, the optimal VSL strategy can be proposed based on the simulation method. It can provide management strategies for managers. Finally, a simple example is given to illustrate the model and method. The selected indexes are the average density, the average speed and the average flow on the traffic network in the simulation. The simulation results show that the proposed model and method are feasible. The VSL strategy can effectively alleviate traffic congestion in some cases, and greatly promote the efficiency of the transportation system.

Mechanical energy expenditures and movement efficiency in full body reaching movements.

PubMed

Sha, Daohang; France, Christopher R; Thomas, James S

2010-02-01

The effect of target location, speed, and handedness on the average total mechanical energy and movement efficiency is studied in 15 healthy subjects (7 males and 8 females with age 22.9 +/- 1.79 years old) performing full body reaching movements. The average total mechanical energy is measured as the time average of integration of joint power, potential energy, and kinetic energy respectively. Movement efficiency is calculated as the ratio of total kinetic energy to the total joint power and potential energy. Results show that speed and target location have significant effects on total mechanical energy and movement efficiency, but reaching hand only effects kinetic energy. From our findings we conclude that (1) efficiency in whole body reaching is dependent on whether the height of the body center of mass is raised or lowered during the task; (2) efficiency is increased as movement speed is increased, in part because of greater changes in potential energy; and (3) the CNS does not appear to use movement efficiency as a primary planning variable in full body reaching. It may be dependent on a combination of other factors or constraints.

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

Belu, Radian; Koracin, Darko

The main objective of the study was to investigate spatial and temporal characteristics of the wind speed and direction in complex terrain that are relevant to wind energy assessment and development, as well as to wind energy system operation, management, and grid integration. Wind data from five tall meteorological towers located in Western Nevada, USA, operated from August 2003 to March 2008, used in the analysis. The multiannual average wind speeds did not show significant increased trend with increasing elevation, while the turbulence intensity slowly decreased with an increase were the average wind speed. The wind speed and direction weremore » modeled using the Weibull and the von Mises distribution functions. The correlations show a strong coherence between the wind speed and direction with slowly decreasing amplitude of the multiday periodicity with increasing lag periods. The spectral analysis shows significant annual periodicity with similar characteristics at all locations. The relatively high correlations between the towers and small range of the computed turbulence intensity indicate that wind variability is dominated by the regional synoptic processes. Knowledge and information about daily, seasonal, and annual wind periodicities are very important for wind energy resource assessment, wind power plant operation, management, and grid integration.« less

Biomechanical characteristics and speed adaptation during kick double poling on roller skis in elite cross-country skiers.

PubMed

Göpfert, Caroline; Holmberg, Hans-Christer; Stöggl, Thomas; Müller, Erich; Lindinger, Stefan Josef

2013-06-01

Recent developments in cross-country ski racing should promote the use of kick double poling. This technique, however, has not been the focus in athletes' training and has barely been investigated. The aims of the present study were to develop a function-based phase definition and to analyse speed adaptation mechanisms for kick double poling in elite cross-country skiers. Joint kinematics and pole/plantar forces were recorded in 10 athletes while performing kick double poling at three submaximal roller skiing speeds. A speed increase was associated with increases in cycle length and rate, while absolute poling and leg push-off durations shortened. Despite maintained impulses of force, the peak and average pole/leg forces increased. During double poling and leg push-off, ranges of motion of elbow flexion and extension increased (p < 0.05) and were maintained for hip/knee flexion and extension. Cycle length increase was correlated to increases in average poling force (r = 0.71) and arm swing time (r = 0.88; both p < 0.05). The main speed adaptation was achieved by changes in double poling technique; however, leg push-off showed high variability among elite skiers, thus illustrating important aspects for technique training.

Solar wind speed and He I (1083 nm) absorption line intensity

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

Hakamada, Kazuyuki; Kojima, Masayoshi; Kakinuma, Takakiyo

1991-04-01

Since the pattern of the solar wind was relatively steady during Carrington rotations 1,748 through 1,752 in 1984, an average distribution of the solar windspeed on a so-called source surface can be constructed by superposed epoch analysis of the wind values estimated by the interplanetary scintillation observations. The average distribution of the solar wind speed is then projected onto the photosphere along magnetic field lines computed by a so-called potential model with the line-of-sight components of the photospheric magnetic fields. The solar wind speeds projected onto the photosphere are compared with the intensities of the He I (1,083 nm) absorptionmore » line at the corresponding locations in the chromosphere. The authors found that there is a linear relation between the speeds and the intensities. Since the intensity of the He I (1,083 nm) absorption line is coupled with the temperature of the corona, this relation suggests that some physical mechanism in or above the photosphere accelerates coronal plasmas to the solar wind speed in regions where the temperature is low. Further, it is suggested that the efficiency of the solar wind acceleration decreases as the coronal temperature increases.« less

RSA/Legacy Wind Sensor Comparison. Part 1; Western Range

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Short, David A.; Wheeler, Mark M.

2006-01-01

This report describes a comparison of data from ultrasonic and cup-and-vane anemometers on 5 wind towers at Vandenberg AFB. The ultrasonic sensors are scheduled to replace the Legacy cup-and-vane sensors under the Range Standardization and Automation (RSA) program. Because previous studies have noted differences between peak wind speeds reported by mechanical and ultrasonic wind sensors, the latter having no moving parts, the 30th and 45th Weather Squadrons wanted to understand possible differences between the two sensor types. The period-of-record was 13-30 May 2005. A total of 153,961 readings of I-minute average and peak wind speed/direction from each sensor type were used. Statistics of differences in speed and direction were used to identify 18 out of 34 RSA sensors having the most consistent performance, with respect to the Legacy sensors. Data from these 18 were used to form a composite comparison. A small positive bias in the composite RSA average wind speed increased from +0.5 kts at 15 kts, to +1 kt at 25 kts. A slightly larger positive bias in the RSA peak wind speed increased from +1 kt at 15 kts, to +2 kts at 30 kts.

Evaluating the four-dimensional cone beam computed tomography with varying gantry rotation speed

PubMed Central

Maria Das, K J; Mohamed Ali, Shajahan; Agarwal, Arpita; Mishra, Surendra P; Kumar, Shaleen

2016-01-01

Objective: The purpose of this work was to evaluate the four-dimensional cone beam CT (4DCBCT) imaging with different gantry rotation speed. Methods: All the 4DCBCT image acquisitions were carried out in Elekta XVI Symmetry™ system (Elekta AB, Stockholm, Sweden). A dynamic thorax phantom with tumour mimicking inserts of diameter 1, 2 and 3 cm was programmed to simulate the respiratory motion (4 s) of the target. 4DCBCT images were acquired with different gantry rotation speeds (36°, 50°, 75°, 100°, 150° and 200° min−1). Owing to the technical limitation of 4DCBCT system, average cone beam CT (CBCT) images derived from the 10 phases of 4DCBCT were used for the internal target volume (ITV) contouring. ITVs obtained from average CBCT were compared with the four-dimensional CT (4DCT). In addition, the image quality of 4DCBCT was also evaluated for various gantry rotation speeds using Catphan® 600 (The Phantom Laboratory Inc., Salem, NY). Results: Compared to 4DCT, the average CBCT underestimated the ITV. The ITV deviation increased with increasing gantry speed (−10.8% vs −17.8% for 36° and 200° min−1 in 3-cm target) and decreasing target size (−17.8% vs −26.8% for target diameter 3 and 1 cm in 200° min−1). Similarly, the image quality indicators such as spatial resolution, contrast-to-noise ratio and uniformity also degraded with increasing gantry rotation speed. Conclusion: The impact of gantry rotation speed has to be considered when using 4DCBCT for ITV definition. The phantom study demonstrated that 4DCBCT with slow gantry rotation showed better image quality and less ITV deviation. Advances in knowledge: Usually, the gantry rotation period of Elekta 4DCBCT system is kept constant at 4 min (50° min−1) for acquisition, and any attempt of decreasing/increasing the acquisition duration requires careful investigation. In this study, the 4DCBCT images with different gantry rotation speed were evaluated. PMID:26916281

Mesospheric circulation at the cloud top level of Venus according to Venus Monitoring Camera images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khatuntsev, Igor; Patsaeva, Marina; Ignatiev, Nikolay; Titov, Dmitri; Markiewicz, Wojciech; Turin, Alexander

We present results of wind speed measurements at the cloud top level of Venus derived from manual cloud tracking in the UV (365 nm) and IR (965 nm) channels of the Venus Monitoring Camera Experiment (VMC) [1] on board the Venus Express mission. Cloud details have a maximal contrast in the UV range. More then 90 orbits have been processed. 30000 manual vectors were obtained. The period of the observations covers more than 4 venusian year. Zonal wind speed demonstrates the local solar time dependence. Possible diurnal and semidiurnal components are observed [2]. According to averaged latitude profile of winds at level of the upper clouds: -The zonal speed is slightly increasing by absolute values from 90 on the equator to 105 m/s at latitudes —47 degrees; -The period of zonal rotation has the maximum at the equator (5 earth days). It has the minimum (3 days) at altitudes —50 degrees. After minimum periods are slightly increasing toward the South pole; -The meridional speed has a value 0 on the equator, and then it is linear increasing up to 10 m/s (by absolute value) at 50 degrees latitude. "-" denotes movement from the equator to the pole. -From 50 to 80 degrees the meridional speed is again decreasing by absolute value up to 0. IR (965+10 nm) day side images can be used for wind tracking. The obtained speed of the zonal wind in the low and middle latitudes are systematically less than the wind speed derived from the UV images. The average zonal speed obtained from IR day side images in the low and average latitudes is about 65-70 m/s. The given fact can be interpreted as observation of deeper layers of mesosphere in the IR range in comparison with UV. References [1] Markiewicz W. J. et al. (2007) Planet. Space Set V55(12). P.1701-1711. [2] Moissl R., et al. (2008) J. Geophys. Res. 2008. doi:10.1029/2008JE003117. V.113.

Surface Layer turbulence profiling with the SL-SLODAR and LUSCI at ESO Paranal Observatory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lombardi, G.; Sarazin, M.; Char, F.; González Ávila, C.; Navarrete, J.; Tokovinin, A.; Wilson, R. W.; Butterley, T.

2014-10-01

In the context of the Surface Layer investigation at ESO Paranal Observatory, a Surface Layer Slope Detection And Ranging (SL-SLODAR) instrument prototype has been used at Paranal during 2012, while Lunar Scintillometer (LuSci) measurements campaigns are being carried out since 2008. Simultaneous Surface Layer profiling data from the two instruments are analysed in order to compare the two instruments to enforce their reliability and finely characterize the Paranal Surface Layer profile. BETA is the slope of the turbulence power spectrum delivered by the SL-SLODAR. It is intended purely as a diagnostic tool to indicate whether the Cn2 profile can be trusted. When BETA is significantly less than 3.667 (Kolmogorov law value) this generally indicates that the wind speed is low and the data sets are too short to fully sample the low frequency components of the turbulence. Around the Kolmogorov value, the integrals form the SL-SLODAR and LuSci are pretty much the same. This is valid also in the first 20 m above ground only (SL). Both instruments agree very well when the wind speed on the Paranal platform is higher than 3 m/s. This last result suggests that wind speed higher than 3 m/s allow to have more reliable turbulence profile measurements from both instruments for further analyses of the Surface Layer. Furthermore, the disagreement of the two instruments in connection with wind speed lower than 3 m/s also suggests that the wind speed is a critical parameter to be taken into account before the treatment of the data.

A safe haven for the injured? Urban trauma care at the intersection of healthcare, law enforcement, and race.

PubMed

Jacoby, Sara F; Richmond, Therese S; Holena, Daniel N; Kaufman, Elinore J

2018-02-01

Patients with traumatic injuries often interact with police before and during hospitalization, particularly when their injuries are due to violence. People of color are at highest risk for violent injuries and have the poorest outcomes after injury. The purpose of this study was to describe how injured, Black patients perceived their interactions with police and what these perceptions reveal about police involvement within trauma care systems. We combined data from two qualitative studies to achieve this aim. The first was ethnographic fieldwork that followed Black trauma patients in the hospital through the physical and emotional aftermath of their injuries. The second was a qualitative, descriptive study of how patients experienced trauma resuscitation in the emergency department (ED). Both studies were conducted between 2012 and 2015 at the Trauma Center at Penn, an academic medical center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The present study includes data from 24 adult, Black participants undergoing treatment for injury. We reanalyzed all interview data related to law enforcement encounters from the scene of injury through inpatient hospitalization and coded data using a constant comparative technique from grounded theory. Participants described law enforcement encounters at the scene of injury and during transport to the hospital, in the ED, and over the course of inpatient care. Injured participants valued police officers' involvement when they perceived that officers provided safety at the scene, speed of transport to the hospital, or support and information after injury. Injured participants also found police questioning to be stressful and, at times, disrespectful or conflicting with clinical care. Communities, trauma centers, and professional societies have the opportunity to enact policies that standardize law enforcement access in trauma centers and balance patients' health, privacy, and legal rights with public safety needs. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Shoulder Rotator Muscle Dynamometry Characteristics: Side Asymmetry and Correlations with Ball-Throwing Speed in Adolescent Handball Players

PubMed Central

Pontaga, Inese; Zidens, Janis

2014-01-01

The aim of the investigation was to: 1) compare shoulder external/internal rotator muscles’ peak torques and average power values and their ratios in the dominant and non-dominant arm; 2) determine correlations between shoulder rotator muscles’ peak torques, average power and ball-throwing speed in handball players. Fourteen 14 to 15-year-old male athletes with injury-free shoulders participated in the study (body height: 176 ± 7 cm, body mass 63 ± 9 kg). The tests were carried out by an isokinetic dynamometer system in the shoulder internal and external rotation movements at angular velocities of 60°/s, 90°/s and 240°/s during concentric contractions. The eccentric external– concentric internal rotator muscle contractions were performed at the velocity of 90°/s. The player threw a ball at maximal speed keeping both feet on the floor. The speed was recorded with reflected light rays. Training in handball does not cause significant side asymmetry in shoulder external/internal rotator muscle peak torques or the average power ratio. Positive correlations between isokinetic characteristics of the shoulder internal and external rotator muscles and ball-throwing speed were determined. The power produced by internal rotator muscles during concentric contractions after eccentric contractions of external rotator muscles was significantly greater in the dominant than in the non-dominant arm. Thus, it may be concluded that the shoulder eccentric external/concentric internal rotator muscle power ratio is significantly greater than this ratio in the concentric contractions of these muscles. PMID:25414738

Sensory and Cognitive Determinants of Reading Speed

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jackson, Mark D.; McClelland, James L.

1975-01-01

Fast and average readers were tested on four tasks. Fast readers appear to pick up more information per fixation on structured textual material, and had a greater span of apprehension for unrelated elements. Results disagree with the view that reading speed depends solely on ability to infer missing information. (CHK)

Traveler oriented traffic performance metrics using real time traffic data from the Midtown-in-Motion (MIM) project in Manhattan, NY.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2013-10-01

In a congested urban street network the average traffic speed is an inadequate metric for measuring : speed changes that drivers can perceive from changes in traffic control strategies. : A driver oriented metric is needed. Stop frequency distrib...

2d Granular Gas in Knudsen Regime and in Microgravity Excited by Vibration: Velocity and Position Distributions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hou, M.; Liu, R.; Li, Y.; Lu, K.; Garrabos, Y.; Evesque, P.

2009-06-01

Dynamics of quasi-2d dissipative granular gas is studied in microgravity condition (of the order of 10-4 g) in the limit of Knudsen regime. The gas, made of 4 spheres, is confined in a square cell enforced to follow linear sinusoidal vibration in ten different vibration modes. The trajectory of one of the particles is tracked and reconstructed from the 2-hour video data. From statistical analysis, we find that (i) loss due to wall friction is small, (ii) trajectory looks ergodic in space, and (iii) distribution ρ(v) of speed follows an exponential distribution, i.e. ρ(v)≈exp(-v/vxo,yo), with vxo,yo being a characteristic velocity along a direction parallel (y) or perpendicular (x) to vibration direction. This law deviates strongly from the Boltzmann distribution of speed in molecular gas. Comparisons of this result with previous measurements in earth environment, and what was found in 3d cell [1] performed in 10-2 g environment are given.

Groundspeed filtering for CTAS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Slater, Gary L.

1994-01-01

Ground speed is one of the radar observables which is obtained along with position and heading from NASA Ames Center radar. Within the Center TRACON Automation System (CTAS), groundspeed is converted into airspeed using the wind speeds which CTAS obtains from the NOAA weather grid. This airspeed is then used in the trajectory synthesis logic which computes the trajectory for each individual aircraft. The time history of the typical radar groundspeed data is generally quite noisy, with high frequency variations on the order of five knots, and occasional 'outliers' which can be significantly different from the probable true speed. To try to smooth out these speeds and make the ETA estimate less erratic, filtering of the ground speed is done within CTAS. In its base form, the CTAS filter is a 'moving average' filter which averages the last ten radar values. In addition, there is separate logic to detect and correct for 'outliers', and acceleration logic which limits the groundspeed change in adjacent time samples. As will be shown, these additional modifications do cause significant changes in the actual groundspeed filter output. The conclusion is that the current ground speed filter logic is unable to track accurately the speed variations observed on many aircraft. The Kalman filter logic however, appears to be an improvement to the current algorithm used to smooth ground speed variations, while being simpler and more efficient to implement. Additional logic which can test for true 'outliers' can easily be added by looking at the difference in the a priori and post priori Kalman estimates, and not updating if the difference in these quantities is too large.

The independent effects of speed and propulsive force on joint power generation in walking.

PubMed

Browne, Michael G; Franz, Jason R

2017-04-11

Walking speed is modulated using propulsive forces (F P ) during push-off and both preferred speed and F P decrease with aging. However, even prior to walking slower, reduced F P may be accompanied by potentially unfavorable changes in joint power generation. For example, compared to young adults, older adults exhibit a redistribution of mechanical power generation from the propulsive plantarflexor muscles to more proximal muscles acting across the knee and hip. Here, we used visual biofeedback based on real-time F P measurements to decouple and investigate the interaction between joint-level coordination, whole-body F P , and walking speed. 12 healthy young subjects walked on a dual-belt instrumented treadmill at a range of speeds (0.9-1.3m/s). We immediately calculated the average F P from each speed. Subjects then walked at 1.3m/s while completing a series of biofeedback trials with instructions to match their instantaneous F P to their averaged F P from slower speeds. Walking slower decreased F P and total positive joint work with little effect on relative joint-level contributions. Conversely, subjects walked at a constant speed with reduced F P , not by reducing total positive joint work, but by redistributing the mechanical demands of each step from the plantarflexor muscles during push-off to more proximal leg muscles during single support. Interestingly, these naturally emergent joint- and limb-level biomechanical changes, in the absence of neuromuscular constraints, resemble those due to aging. Our findings provide important reference data to understand the presumably complex interactions between joint power generation, whole-body F P , and walking speed in our aging population. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Are the average gait speeds during the 10meter and 6minute walk tests redundant in Parkinson disease?

PubMed

Duncan, Ryan P; Combs-Miller, Stephanie A; McNeely, Marie E; Leddy, Abigail L; Cavanaugh, James T; Dibble, Leland E; Ellis, Terry D; Ford, Matthew P; Foreman, K Bo; Earhart, Gammon M

2017-02-01

We investigated the relationships between average gait speed collected with the 10Meter Walk Test (Comfortable and Fast) and 6Minute Walk Test (6MWT) in 346 people with Parkinson disease (PD) and how the relationships change with increasing disease severity. Pearson correlation and linear regression analyses determined relationships between 10Meter Walk Test and 6MWT gait speed values for the entire sample and for sub-samples stratified by Hoehn & Yahr (H&Y) stage I (n=53), II (n=141), III (n=135) and IV (n=17). We hypothesized that redundant tests would be highly and significantly correlated (i.e. r>0.70, p<0.05) and would have a linear regression model slope of 1 and intercept of 0. For the entire sample, 6MWT gait speed was significantly (p<0.001) related to the Comfortable 10 Meter Walk Test (r=0.75) and Fast 10Meter Walk Test (r=0.79) gait speed, with 56% and 62% of the variance in 6MWT gait speed explained, respectively. The regression model of 6MWT gait speed predicted by Comfortable 10 Meter Walk gait speed produced slope and intercept values near 1 and 0, respectively, especially for participants in H&Y stages II-IV. In contrast, slope and intercept values were further from 1 and 0, respectively, for the Fast 10Meter Walk Test. Comfortable 10 Meter Walk Test and 6MWT gait speeds appeared to be redundant in people with moderate to severe PD, suggesting the Comfortable 10 Meter Walk Test can be used to estimate 6MWT distance in this population. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Aquatic burst locomotion by hydroplaning and paddling in common eiders (Somateria mollissima).

PubMed

Gough, William T; Farina, Stacy C; Fish, Frank E

2015-06-01

Common eiders (Somateria mollissima) are heavy sea-ducks that spend a large portion of their time swimming at the water surface. Surface swimming generates a bow and hull wave that can constructively interfere and produce wave drag. The speed at which the wavelengths of these waves equal the waterline length of the swimming animal is the hull speed. To increase surface swimming speed beyond the hull speed, an animal must overtake the bow wave. This study found two distinct behaviors that eider ducks used to exceed the hull speed: (1) 'steaming', which involved rapid oaring with the wings to propel the duck along the surface of the water, and (2) 'paddle-assisted flying', during which the ducks lifted their bodies out of the water and used their feet to paddle against the surface while flapping their wings in the air. An average hull speed (0.732±0.046 m s(-1)) was calculated for S. mollissima by measuring maximum waterline length from museum specimens. On average, steaming ducks swam 5.5 times faster and paddle-assisted flying ducks moved 6.8 times faster than the hull speed. During steaming, ducks exceeded the hull speed by increasing their body angle and generating dynamic lift to overcome wave drag and hydroplane along the water surface. During paddle-assisted flying, ducks kept their bodies out of the water, thereby avoiding the limitations of wave drag altogether. Both behaviors provided alternatives to flight for these ducks by allowing them to exceed the hull speed while staying at or near the water surface. © 2015. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Are the Average Gait Speeds During the 10 Meter and 6 Minute Walk Tests Redundant in Parkinson Disease?

PubMed Central

Duncan, Ryan P.; Combs-Miller, Stephanie A.; McNeely, Marie E.; Leddy, Abigail L.; Cavanaugh, James T.; Dibble, Leland E.; Ellis, Terry D.; Ford, Matthew P.; Foreman, K. Bo; Earhart, Gammon M.

2016-01-01

We investigated the relationships between average gait speed collected with the 10 Meter Walk Test (Comfortable and Fast) and 6 Minute Walk Test (6MWT) in 346 people with Parkinson disease (PD) and how the relationships change with increasing disease severity. Pearson correlation and linear regression analyses determined relationships between 10 Meter Walk Test and 6MWT gait speed values for the entire sample and for sub-samples stratified by Hoehn & Yahr (H&Y) stage I (n=53), II (n=141), III (n=135) and IV (n=17). We hypothesized that redundant tests would be highly and significantly correlated (i.e. r > 0.70, p < 0.05) and would have a linear regression model slope of 1 and intercept of 0. For the entire sample, 6MWT gait speed was significantly (p<0.001) related to the Comfortable 10 Meter Walk Test (r=0.75) and Fast 10 Meter Walk Test (r=0.79) gait speed, with 56% and 62% of the variance in 6MWT gait speed explained, respectively. The regression model of 6MWT gait speed predicted by Comfortable 10 Meter Walk gait speed produced slope and intercept values near 1 and 0, respectively, especially for participants in H&Y stages II–IV. In contrast, slope and intercept values were further from 1 and 0, respectively, for the Fast 10 Meter Walk Test. Comfortable 10 Meter Walk Test and 6MWT gait speeds appeared to be redundant in people with moderate to severe PD, suggesting the Comfortable 10 Meter Walk Test can be used to estimate 6MWT distance in this population. PMID:27915221

Hypothesis regarding the transformation of the intended direction of movement during the production of graphic trajectories: a study of drawing movements in 8- to 12-year-old children.

PubMed

Pellizzer, Giuseppe; Zesiger, Pascal

2009-03-01

Children from 8 to 12 years of age drew figure-eights and ellipses at a self-chosen tempo on a digitizing tablet. Global aspects (perimeter and average speed) and local aspects (relation between instantaneous speed and curvature) of performance were analyzed across age groups and types of figures. We tested the predictions of the transformation model, which is based on the hypothesis that changing the intended direction of movement is a time-consuming process that affects the evolution in time of the movement trajectory, and compared how well it fitted the data relative to the power law. We found that the relation between speed and curvature was typically better described by the transformation model than by the power law. However, the power law provided a better description when ellipses were drawn at a fast speed. The analyses of the parameters of the transformation model indicate that processing speed increased linearly with age. In addition, the results suggest that the effects of the spring-like properties of the arm were noticeable when ellipses were drawn at a fast speed. This study indicates that both biomechanical properties and central processes have an effect on the kinematics of continuous movements and particularly on the relation between speed and curvature. However, their relative importance varies with the type of figure and average movement speed. In conclusion, the results support the hypothesis that a time-consuming process of transformation of the intended direction of movement is operating during the production of continuous movements and that this process increases in speed between 8 to 12 years of age.

Time Resolved Digital PIV Measurements of Flow Field Cyclic Variation in an Optical IC Engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jarvis, S.; Justham, T.; Clarke, A.; Garner, C. P.; Hargrave, G. K.; Halliwell, N. A.

2006-07-01

Time resolved digital particle image velocimetry (DPIV) experimental data is presented for the in-cylinder flow field development of a motored four stroke spark ignition (SI) optical internal combustion (IC) engine. A high speed DPIV system was employed to quantify the velocity field development during the intake and compression stroke at an engine speed of 1500 rpm. The results map the spatial and temporal development of the in-cylinder flow field structure allowing comparison between traditional ensemble average and cycle average flow field structures. Conclusions are drawn with respect to engine flow field cyclic variations.

Quadrupedal galloping control for a wide range of speed via vertical impulse scaling.

PubMed

Park, Hae-Won; Kim, Sangbae

2015-03-25

This paper presents a bio-inspired quadruped controller that allows variable-speed galloping. The controller design is inspired by observations from biological runners. Quadrupedal animals increase the vertical impulse that is generated by ground reaction forces at each stride as running speed increases and the duration of each stance phase reduces, whereas the swing phase stays relatively constant. Inspired by this observation, the presented controller estimates the required vertical impulse at each stride by applying the linear momentum conservation principle in the vertical direction and prescribes the ground reaction forces at each stride. The design process begins with deriving a planar model from the MIT Cheetah 2 robot. A baseline periodic limit cycle is obtained by optimizing ground reaction force profiles and the temporal gait pattern (timing and duration of gait phases). To stabilize the optimized limit cycle, the obtained limit cycle is converted to a state feedback controller by representing the obtained ground reaction force profiles as functions of the state variable, which is monotonically increasing throughout the gait, adding impedance control around the height and pitch trajectories of the obtained limit cycle and introducing a finite state machine and a pattern stabilizer to enforce the optimized gait pattern. The controller that achieves a stable 3 m s(-1) gallop successfully adapts the speed change by scaling the vertical ground reaction force to match the momentum lost by gravity and adding a simple speed controller that controls horizontal speed. Without requiring additional gait optimization processes, the controller achieves galloping at speeds ranging from 3 m s(-1) to 14.9 m s(-1) while respecting the torque limit of the motor used in the MIT Cheetah 2 robot. The robustness of the controller is verified by demonstrating stable running during various disturbances, including 1.49 m step down and 0.18 m step up, as well as random ground height and model parameter variations.

Subsistence and the evolution of religion.

PubMed

Peoples, Hervey C; Marlowe, Frank W

2012-09-01

We present a cross-cultural analysis showing that the presence of an active or moral High God in societies varies generally along a continuum from lesser to greater technological complexity and subsistence productivity. Foragers are least likely to have High Gods. Horticulturalists and agriculturalists are more likely. Pastoralists are most likely, though they are less easily positioned along the productivity continuum. We suggest that belief in moral High Gods was fostered by emerging leaders in societies dependent on resources that were difficult to manage and defend without group cooperation. These leaders used the concept of a supernatural moral enforcer to manipulate others into cooperating, which resulted in greater productivity. Reproductive success would accrue most to such leaders, but the average reproductive success of all individuals in the society would also increase with greater productivity. Supernatural enforcement of moral codes maintained social cohesion and allowed for further population growth, giving one society an advantage in competition with others.

Wind speed statistics for Goldstone, California, anemometer sites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Berg, M.; Levy, R.; Mcginness, H.; Strain, D.

1981-01-01

An exploratory wind survey at an antenna complex was summarized statistically for application to future windmill designs. Data were collected at six locations from a total of 10 anemometers. Statistics include means, standard deviations, cubes, pattern factors, correlation coefficients, and exponents for power law profile of wind speed. Curves presented include: mean monthly wind speeds, moving averages, and diurnal variation patterns. It is concluded that three of the locations have sufficiently strong winds to justify consideration for windmill sites.

Performance of an Automated-Mixed-Traffic-Vehicle /AMTV/ System. [urban people mover

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Peng, T. K. C.; Chon, K.

1978-01-01

This study analyzes the operation and evaluates the expected performance of a proposed automatic guideway transit system which uses low-speed Automated Mixed Traffic Vehicles (AMTV's). Vehicle scheduling and headway control policies are evaluated with a transit system simulation model. The effect of mixed-traffic interference on the average vehicle speed is examined with a vehicle-pedestrian interface model. Control parameters regulating vehicle speed are evaluated for safe stopping and passenger comfort.

Real-world emissions and fuel consumption of diesel buses and trucks in Macao: From on-road measurement to policy implications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Xiaomeng; Zhang, Shaojun; Wu, Ye; Li, Zhenhua; Zhou, Yu; Fu, Lixin; Hao, Jiming

2015-11-01

A total of 13 diesel buses and 12 diesel trucks in Macao were tested using portable emission measurement systems (PEMS) including a SEMTECH-DS for gaseous emissions and a SEMTECH-PPMD for PM2.5. The average emission rates of gaseous pollutants and CO2 are developed with the operating mode defined by the instantaneous vehicle specific power (VSP) and vehicle speed. Both distance-based and fuel mass-based emission factors for gaseous pollutants (e.g., CO, THC and NOX) are further estimated under typical driving conditions. The average distance-based NOX emission of heavy-duty buses (HDBs) is higher than 13 g km-1. Considering the unfavorable conditions for selective reductions catalyst (SCR) systems, such as low-speed driving conditions, more effective technology options (e.g., dedicated natural gas buses and electric buses) should be considered by policy makers in Macao. We identified strong effects of the vehicle size, engine displacement and driving conditions on real-world CO2 emission factors and fuel consumption for diesel vehicles. Therefore, detailed profiles regarding vehicle specifications can reduce the uncertainty in their fleet-average on-road fuel consumption. In addition, strong correlations between relative emission factors and driving conditions indicated by the average speed of generated micro-trips are identified based on a micro-trip method. For example, distance-based emission factors of HDBs will increase by 39% for CO, 29% for THC, 43% for NOX and 26% for CO2 when the average speed decreases from 30 km h-1 to 20 km h-1. The mitigation of on-road emissions from diesel buses and trucks by improving traffic conditions through effective traffic and economic management measures is therefore required. This study demonstrates the important role of PEMS in understanding vehicle emissions and mitigation strategies from science to policy perspectives.

Walking, running, and resting under time, distance, and average speed constraints: optimality of walk-run-rest mixtures.

PubMed

Long, Leroy L; Srinivasan, Manoj

2013-04-06

On a treadmill, humans switch from walking to running beyond a characteristic transition speed. Here, we study human choice between walking and running in a more ecological (non-treadmill) setting. We asked subjects to travel a given distance overground in a given allowed time duration. During this task, the subjects carried, and could look at, a stopwatch that counted down to zero. As expected, if the total time available were large, humans walk the whole distance. If the time available were small, humans mostly run. For an intermediate total time, humans often use a mixture of walking at a slow speed and running at a higher speed. With analytical and computational optimization, we show that using a walk-run mixture at intermediate speeds and a walk-rest mixture at the lowest average speeds is predicted by metabolic energy minimization, even with costs for transients-a consequence of non-convex energy curves. Thus, sometimes, steady locomotion may not be energy optimal, and not preferred, even in the absence of fatigue. Assuming similar non-convex energy curves, we conjecture that similar walk-run mixtures may be energetically beneficial to children following a parent and animals on long leashes. Humans and other animals might also benefit energetically from alternating between moving forward and standing still on a slow and sufficiently long treadmill.

Walking, running, and resting under time, distance, and average speed constraints: optimality of walk–run–rest mixtures

PubMed Central

Long, Leroy L.; Srinivasan, Manoj

2013-01-01

On a treadmill, humans switch from walking to running beyond a characteristic transition speed. Here, we study human choice between walking and running in a more ecological (non-treadmill) setting. We asked subjects to travel a given distance overground in a given allowed time duration. During this task, the subjects carried, and could look at, a stopwatch that counted down to zero. As expected, if the total time available were large, humans walk the whole distance. If the time available were small, humans mostly run. For an intermediate total time, humans often use a mixture of walking at a slow speed and running at a higher speed. With analytical and computational optimization, we show that using a walk–run mixture at intermediate speeds and a walk–rest mixture at the lowest average speeds is predicted by metabolic energy minimization, even with costs for transients—a consequence of non-convex energy curves. Thus, sometimes, steady locomotion may not be energy optimal, and not preferred, even in the absence of fatigue. Assuming similar non-convex energy curves, we conjecture that similar walk–run mixtures may be energetically beneficial to children following a parent and animals on long leashes. Humans and other animals might also benefit energetically from alternating between moving forward and standing still on a slow and sufficiently long treadmill. PMID:23365192

Completion of the Edward Air Force Base Statistical Guidance Wind Tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dreher, Joseph G.

2008-01-01

The goal of this task was to develop a GUI using EAFB wind tower data similar to the KSC SLF peak wind tool that is already in operations at SMG. In 2004, MSFC personnel began work to replicate the KSC SLF tool using several wind towers at EAFB. They completed the analysis and QC of the data, but due to higher priority work did not start development of the GUI. MSFC personnel calculated wind climatologies and probabilities of 10-minute peak wind occurrence based on the 2-minute average wind speed for several EAFB wind towers. Once the data were QC'ed and analyzed the climatologies were calculated following the methodology outlined in Lambert (2003). The climatologies were calculated for each tower and month, and then were stratified by hour, direction (10" sectors), and direction (45" sectors)/hour. For all climatologies, MSFC calculated the mean, standard deviation and observation counts of the Zminute average and 10-minute peak wind speeds. MSFC personnel also calculated empirical and modeled probabilities of meeting or exceeding specific 10- minute peak wind speeds using PDFs. The empirical PDFs were asymmetrical and bounded on the left by the 2- minute average wind speed. They calculated the parametric PDFs by fitting the GEV distribution to the empirical distributions. Parametric PDFs were calculated in order to smooth and interpolate over variations in the observed values due to possible under-sampling of certain peak winds and to estimate probabilities associated with average winds outside the observed range. MSFC calculated the individual probabilities of meeting or exceeding specific 10- minute peak wind speeds by integrating the area under each curve. The probabilities assist SMG forecasters in assessing the shuttle FR for various Zminute average wind speeds. The A M ' obtained the processed EAFB data from Dr. Lee Bums of MSFC and reformatted them for input to Excel PivotTables, which allow users to display different values with point-click-drag techniques. The GUI was created from the PivotTables using VBA code. It is run through a macro within Excel and allows forecasters to quickly display and interpret peak wind climatology and probabilities in a fast-paced operational environment. The GUI was designed to look and operate exactly the same as the KSC SLF tool since SMG forecasters were already familiar with that product. SMG feedback was continually incorporated into the GUI ensuring the end product met their needs. The final version of the GUI along with all climatologies, PDFs, and probabilities has been delivered to SMG and will be put into operational use.

Decreased locomotor and investigatory exploration after denervation of catecholamine terminal fields in the forebrain of rats.

PubMed

Dubois, A B; Ogilvy, C S

1978-12-01

1. Pressures on the right and left sides of the tails of swimming bluefish were measured and found to have a range of +5.9 to -5.9 cm H2O. The pressures were resolved into their forward and lateral vectorial components of force to allow calculation of forward and lateral force and power at speeds ranging from 0.26 to 0.87 m/s. 2. The peak to peak changes in force of acceleration of the body, measured with a forward accelerometer averaged 209 g or 2.05 N at 0.48 m/s, and were compared with the maximum to minimum excursions of forward tail force averaging 201 g or 1.97 N at the same speed. The mean difference was 8 g, S.D. of the mean difference +/-29, SE. of mean difference +/-10 g. 3. Mean tail thrust was calculated as the time average of tail force in the forward direction. It averaged 65 g , or 0.64 N, at 0.48 m/s. The mean forward power was 0.34 N m/s at 0.48 m/s. The drag of the gauges and wires accounted for 10% of this figure. 4. The mean lateral power of the tail was 1.28 N m/s at a mean speed of 0.48 m/s. 5. The propulsive efficiency of the tail, calculated as the ratio of forward power to forward plus lateral power, was found to be 0.20 S.D.+/-0.04, S.E.+/-0.01 and was not related to speed. This suggests that 80% of the mechanical power of the tail was wasted. Turbulence in the water may have contributed to this large drag and low tail efficiency.

Effect of the scanning speed on microstructural evolution and wear behaviors of laser cladding NiCrBSi composite coatings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, J. L.; Li, J.; Song, R.; Bai, L. L.; Shao, J. Z.; Qu, C. C.

2015-09-01

Laser cladding composite coatings were fabricated on the surface of the Ti6Al4V substrate by fiber laser cladding the NiCrBSi alloy powder. The influences of scanning speed on the dilution rate and microstructure of the coatings were investigated in detail by X-ray diffraction (XRD), optical microscopy (OM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). Combined with the analyses of microhardness and fracture toughness, the wear behaviors of the coatings obtained at different scanning speeds were revealed. Results indicated that the dilution rates of the coatings were similar (about 64.23%) with variations in scanning speed ranging from 5 mm/s to 15 mm/s. An abrupt decrease in dilution rate (37.06%) was observed at the scanning speed of 20 mm/s. Microstructural observation showed that the blocky TiB2 and the cellular dendrite TiC particles were uniformly dispersed in the TiNi-Ti2Ni dual-phase intermetallic compound matrix at scanning speeds of 5-15 mm/s. When the scanning speed was further increased to 20 mm/s, the stripe-shaped CrB, gray irregular-shaped Cr3C2 and black blocky TiC particles uniformly dispersed in the γ(Ni) matrix were synthesized in situ. The particles became finer with the increase in scanning speed. The average microhardness of the coating (1026.5 HV0.2) at the scanning speed of 20 mm/s was enhanced significantly compared with that of the other three coatings (about 886.4 HV0.2). The lowest average friction coefficient (about 0.371) was obtained at the scanning speed of 20 mm/s and was relatively stable with the change in sliding time. The lowest wear loss of the coating was also obtained at the scanning speed of 20 mm/s. Analyses of the worn surfaces showed that the coating prepared at the scanning speed of 20 mm/s was in good condition because of its excellent combination of resistance to micro-cutting and brittle debonding. Comparatively speaking, the coating produced at the scanning speed of 20 mm/s possessed excellent comprehensive mechanical properties.

40 CFR 63.466 - Monitoring procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... corner and record the average wind speed. (ii) Monitor on a weekly basis the room parameters established... standards in § 63.463 shall monitor the hoist speed as described in paragraphs (c)(1) through (c)(4) of this...) Determine the direction of the wind current by slowly rotating a velometer or similar device until the...

40 CFR 63.466 - Monitoring procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... corner and record the average wind speed. (ii) Monitor on a weekly basis the room parameters established... standards in § 63.463 shall monitor the hoist speed as described in paragraphs (c)(1) through (c)(4) of this...) Determine the direction of the wind current by slowly rotating a velometer or similar device until the...

40 CFR 63.466 - Monitoring procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... corner and record the average wind speed. (ii) Monitor on a weekly basis the room parameters established... standards in § 63.463 shall monitor the hoist speed as described in paragraphs (c)(1) through (c)(4) of this...) Determine the direction of the wind current by slowly rotating a velometer or similar device until the...

40 CFR 63.466 - Monitoring procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... corner and record the average wind speed. (ii) Monitor on a weekly basis the room parameters established... standards in § 63.463 shall monitor the hoist speed as described in paragraphs (c)(1) through (c)(4) of this...) Determine the direction of the wind current by slowly rotating a velometer or similar device until the...

40 CFR 63.466 - Monitoring procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... corner and record the average wind speed. (ii) Monitor on a weekly basis the room parameters established... standards in § 63.463 shall monitor the hoist speed as described in paragraphs (c)(1) through (c)(4) of this...) Determine the direction of the wind current by slowly rotating a velometer or similar device until the...

A statistical analysis of energy and power demand for the tractive purposes of an electric vehicle in urban traffic - an analysis of a short and long observation period

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slaski, G.; Ohde, B.

2016-09-01

The article presents the results of a statistical dispersion analysis of an energy and power demand for tractive purposes of a battery electric vehicle. The authors compare data distribution for different values of an average speed in two approaches, namely a short and long period of observation. The short period of observation (generally around several hundred meters) results from a previously proposed macroscopic energy consumption model based on an average speed per road section. This approach yielded high values of standard deviation and coefficient of variation (the ratio between standard deviation and the mean) around 0.7-1.2. The long period of observation (about several kilometers long) is similar in length to standardized speed cycles used in testing a vehicle energy consumption and available range. The data were analysed to determine the impact of observation length on the energy and power demand variation. The analysis was based on a simulation of electric power and energy consumption performed with speed profiles data recorded in Poznan agglomeration.

Design of a 3 kW wind turbine generator with thin airfoil blades

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

Ameku, Kazumasa; Nagai, Baku M.; Roy, Jitendro Nath

2008-09-15

Three blades of a 3 kW prototype wind turbine generator were designed with thin airfoil and a tip speed ratio of 3. The wind turbine has been controlled via two control methods: the variable pitch angle and by regulation of the field current of the generator and examined under real wind conditions. The characteristics of the thin airfoil, called ''Seven arcs thin airfoil'' named so because the airfoil is composed of seven circular arcs, are analyzed with the airfoil design and analysis program XFOIL. The thin airfoil blade is designed and calculated by blade element and momentum theory. The performancemore » characteristics of the machine such as rotational speed, generator output as well as stability for wind speed changes are described. In the case of average wind speeds of 10 m/s and a maximum of 19 m/s, the automatically controlled wind turbine ran safely through rough wind conditions and showed an average generator output of 1105 W and a power coefficient 0.14. (author)« less

Effects of developer exhaustion on DFL Contrast FV-58 and Kodak Insight dental films.

PubMed

de Carvalho, Fabiano Pachêco; da Silveira, M M F; Frazão, M A G; de Santana, S T; dos Anjos Pontual, M L

2011-09-01

The aim of this study was to compare the properties of the DFL Contrast FV-58 F-speed film (DFL Co., Rio de Janerio, Brazil) with the Kodak Insight E/F speed film (Eastman Kodak, Rochester, NY) in fresh and exhausted processing solutions. The parameters studied were the speed, average gradient and latitude. Five samples of each type of film were exposed under standardized conditions over 5 weeks. The films were developed in fresh and progressively exhausted processing solutions. Characteristic curves were constructed from values of optical density and radiation dose and were used to calculate the parameters. An analysis of variance was performed separately for film type and time. DFL Contrast FV-58 film has a speed and average gradient that is significantly higher than Insight film, whereas the values of latitude are lower. Exhausted processing solutions were not significant in the parameters studied. DFL Contrast FV-58 film has stable properties when exhausted manual processing solutions are used and can be recommended for use in dental practice, contributing to dose reduction.

Effects of developer exhaustion on DFL Contrast FV-58 and Kodak Insight dental films

PubMed Central

de Carvalho, FP; da Silveira, MMF; Frazão, MAG; de Santana, ST; dos Anjos Pontual, ML

2011-01-01

Objectives The aim of this study was to compare the properties of the DFL Contrast FV-58 F-speed film (DFL Co., Rio de Janerio, Brazil) with the Kodak Insight E/F speed film (Eastman Kodak, Rochester, NY) in fresh and exhausted processing solutions. The parameters studied were the speed, average gradient and latitude. Methods Five samples of each type of film were exposed under standardized conditions over 5 weeks. The films were developed in fresh and progressively exhausted processing solutions. Characteristic curves were constructed from values of optical density and radiation dose and were used to calculate the parameters. An analysis of variance was performed separately for film type and time. Results DFL Contrast FV-58 film has a speed and average gradient that is significantly higher than Insight film, whereas the values of latitude are lower. Exhausted processing solutions were not significant in the parameters studied. Conclusion DFL Contrast FV-58 film has stable properties when exhausted manual processing solutions are used and can be recommended for use in dental practice, contributing to dose reduction. PMID:21831975

Correlations between solar wind parameters and auroral kilometric radiation intensity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gallagher, D. L.; Dangelo, N.

1981-01-01

The relationship between solar wind properties and the influx of energy into the nightside auroral region as indicated by the intensity of auroral kilometric radiation is investigated. Smoothed Hawkeye satellite observations of auroral radiation at 178, 100 and 56.2 kHz for days 160 through 365 of 1974 are compared with solar wind data from the composite Solar Wind Plasma Data Set, most of which was supplied by the IMP-8 spacecraft. Correlations are made between smoothed daily averages of solar wind ion density, bulk flow speed, total IMF strength, electric field, solar wind speed in the southward direction, solar wind speed multiplied by total IMF strength, the substorm parameter epsilon and the Kp index. The greatest correlation is found between solar wind bulk flow speed and auroral radiation intensity, with a linear correlation coefficient of 0.78 for the 203 daily averages examined. A possible mechanism for the relationship may be related to the propagation into the nightside magnetosphere of low-frequency long-wavelength electrostatic waves produced in the magnetosheath by the solar wind.

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

Larsen, Peter H.; LaCommare, Kristina H.; Eto, Joseph H.

Here, this study examines the relationship between annual changes in electricity reliability reported by a large cross-section of U.S. electricity distribution utilities over a period of 13 years and a broad set of potential explanatory variables, including weather and utility characteristics. We find statistically significant correlations between the average number of power interruptions experienced annually and above average wind speeds, precipitation, lightning strikes, and a measure of population density: customers per line mile. We also find significant relationships between the average number of minutes of power interruptions experienced and above average wind speeds, precipitation, cooling degree-days, and one strategy usedmore » to mitigate the impacts of severe weather: the amount of underground transmission and distribution line miles. Perhaps most importantly, we find a significant time trend of increasing annual average number of minutes of power interruptions over time—especially when interruptions associated with extreme weather are included. Lastly, the research method described in this analysis can provide a basis for future efforts to project long-term trends in reliability and the associated benefits of strategies to improve grid resiliency to severe weather—both in the U.S. and abroad.« less

The Physiological Profile of Junior Soccer Players at SSBB Surabaya Bhakti

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nashirudin, M.; Kusnanik, N. W.

2018-01-01

Soccer players are required to have good physical fitness in order to achieve optimum accomplishment; physical fitness stands as the foundation of technical and tactical proficiency as well as the mental maturity during the matches. The purpose of this study was to identify the physiological profile of junior soccer players of SSB Surabaya Bhakti age 16-17. The research was conducted at 20 junior soccer players. This research was quantitative with descriptive analysis. Data were collected by testing of physiological (anaerobic power and capacity including explosive leg power, speed, agility; aerobic capacity: cardiovascular endurance). Data was analyzed using percentage. The result showed that the percentage of explosive leg power of junior soccer players were 30% (good category), speed was 85% (average category), right agility was 90% (average category), left agility was 75% (average category). On the other hand, the aerobic power and capacity of the junior soccer players in this study was 50% (average category). The conclusion of this research is that the physiological profile of junior soccer players at SSB Surabaya Bhakti age 16-17 was majority in average category.

Influence of an Enforcement Campaign on Seat-Belt and Helmet Wearing, Karachi-Hala Highway, Pakistan

PubMed Central

Bhatti, Junaid A.; Ejaz, Kiran; Razzak, Junaid A.; Tunio, Israr Ali; Sodhar, Irshad

2011-01-01

This study assessed to what extent an enforcement campaign influenced seat-belt and helmet wearing on a Pakistani highway. The study setting was the Karachi-Hala highway where a traffic enforcement campaign was conducted from Dec 2009 to Feb 2010. Seat-belt and helmet wearing were observed in Nov 2009 and Apr 2010 at Karachi toll plaza. Differences in wearing rates as a function of occupants’ age, sex, and vehicle type were compared between the two periods. On average, 9 119 (Standard deviation=1 896) traffic citations were issued per month from Aug 2009 to Feb 2010; 4.2% of which were for not wearing helmet. A 22.5% increase in citations was observed for Dec 2009 to Feb 2010 periods compared with Aug 2009 to Oct 2009 periods. Nearly six thousand four-wheeled and four hundred two-wheeled motorized vehicle occupants were observed in Nov 2009 and Apr 2010. Overall, two of the five drivers and one of the five front seat occupants wore seat belts. This proportion was significantly higher in drivers and front-seat occupants of cars than those of heavier vehicles. Similarly, one of two motorcyclists used a helmet but this proportion was 5.8% for pillion riders in Nov 2009. The increased enforcement had a limited influence on belt wearing in drivers (+4.0%; 95% Confidence Interval [95%CI]=1.8–6.1) and occupants (+6.2%; 95%CI=4.2–8.2). A higher increase was observed for motorcyclists (+9.8%; 95%CI=2.6–16.8) and pillion riders (+12.8%; 95%CI=5.4, 20.5). These results suggested that serious efforts are required to increase seat-belt and helmet use on Pakistani highways. Improving enforcement resources, increased fines, not allowing such vehicles on roads, and awareness campaigns targeting drivers of heavy vehicles might increase wearing rates in Pakistan. PMID:22105384

Use of force by law enforcement: an evaluation of safetyand injury.

PubMed

Strote, Jared; Verzemnieks, Erik; Walsh, Mimi; Hutson, H Range

2010-11-01

Little is known about the frequency and types of injuries sustained from law enforcement use of force (UOF). The purpose of this study was to examine injury patterns and subject conditions after law enforcement UOF under real-life conditions. A retrospective cohort design was used to examine every UOF by a single police department from January through December, 2006. Data were collected from law enforcement UOF forms as well as medical records and included conditions surrounding the UOF, medical histories, and data from emergency department (ED) evaluations and hospital admissions. Of 888 individuals subjected to force during the study period, 86.9% were men and the average body mass index was 25.8. Ages ranged from 10 to 77 years; juveniles comprised 5.6%. Of the types of force used by police, 73.7% were blows with arms or legs; 15.9% were Taser, 4.6% were capsicum spray, 1.7% were K-9, 0.7% were impact weapons, and 0.2% were firearms. Of the 630 (70.9%) with medical records, 78.7% had a substance abuse or psychiatric history. ED evaluations occurred for 187 (21.1% of) incidents. When laboratory workup occurred, 75.5% had positive urine toxicology and 45.9% had positive ethanol levels. Admission occurred in 15.5% (29) of ED presentations (3.3% of all subjects); of these, 9 (31.0%) were for UOF-related injury. Two subjects in the study died: one as a result of firearm injury and one by suicide after UOF; both were declared dead on scene. Significant injuries related to law enforcement UOF in one city were rare and the only deaths were related to firearm use. A large percentage of those subjected to UOF had diagnoses of substance abuse and/or psychiatric conditions, and most hospital admissions were for problems unrelated to the UOF.

Factors affecting injury severity of vehicle occupants following road traffic collisions.

PubMed

Abu-Zidan, Fikri M; Eid, Hani O

2015-01-01

We aimed to define factors affecting injury severity of vehicle occupants following road traffic collisions (RTC). 422 vehicle occupants (343 males, 81.3%) with RTC-related injuries were prospectively studied over 18 months. General linear model was used to test the effect of age, gender, alcohol and drug use, time of injury, mechanism of injury, size and speed of the vehicle, position in the vehicle, seatbelt usage, and air bag deployment on the Injury Severity Score (ISS) of the vehicle occupants. The mean (range) age of patients was 28.2 (1-78) years and the mean (range) ISS was 7.9 (1-50). Front impact was the most common mechanism of injury (32.9%) followed by rollover (25.6%) and side impact (22.3%). 18.2% used seatbelts. The general linear model was highly significant and showed that mechanism of injury (p<0.0001), speed of the vehicle (p=0.02), and age of the vehicle occupant (p=0.03) significantly affected the Injury Severity Score. The mechanism of the RTC, the vehicle speed, and age of the vehicle occupant are the most important factors affecting the severity of road traffic collision injuries. A detailed history of the mechanism of injury is important for alerting clinicians to severity of injury, the need for admission, and workup of the patients. Furthermore, strict speed limit enforcement is an injury prevention priority in our community. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cost-benefit analysis of the 55-mph speed limit

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

Forester, T.H.; McNown, R.F.; Singell, L.D.

1984-01-01

This article presents the results of an empirical study which estimates the number of reduced fatalities as a result of the imposed 55-mph speed limit. Time series data for the US from 1952 to 1979 is employed in a regression model capturing the relation between fatalities, average speed, variability of speed, and the speed limit. Also discussed are the alternative approaches to valuing human life and the value of time. Provided is a series of benefit-cost ratios based on alternative measures of the benefits and costs from life saving. The paper concludes that the 55-mph speed limit is not costmore » efficient unless additional time on the highway is valued significantly below levels estimated in the best reasearch on the value of time. 12 references, 1 table.« less

Effective dynamics of a random walker on a heterogeneous ring: Exact results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Masharian, S. R.

2018-07-01

In this paper, by considering a biased random walker hopping on a one-dimensional lattice with a ring geometry, we investigate the fluctuations of the speed of the random walker. We assume that the lattice is heterogeneous i.e. the hopping rate of the random walker between the first and the last lattice sites is different from the hopping rate of the random walker between the other links of the lattice. Assuming that the average speed of the random walker in the steady-state is v∗, we have been able to find the unconditional effective dynamics of the random walker where the absolute value of the average speed of the random walker is -v∗. Using a perturbative method in the large system-size limit, we have also been able to show that the effective hopping rates of the random walker near the defective link are highly site-dependent.

Sound Propagation in Shallow Water with an Inhomogeneous GAS-Saturated Bottom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grigor'ev, V. A.; Petnikov, V. G.; Roslyakov, A. G.; Terekhina, Ya. E.

2018-05-01

We present the methods and results of numerical experiments studying the low-frequency sound propagation in one of the areas of the Arctic shelf with a randomly inhomogeneous gas-saturated bottom. The characteristics of the upper layer of bottom sedimentary rocks (sediments) used in calculations were obtained during a 3D seismic survey and trial drilling of the seafloor. We demonstrate the possibilities of substituting in numerical simulation a real bottom with a fluid homogeneous half-space where the effective value of the sound speed is equal to the average sound speed in the bottom, with averaging along the sound propagation path to a sediment depth of 0.6 wavelength in the bottom. An original technique is proposed for estimating the sound speed propagation in an upper inhomogeneous sediment layer. The technique is based on measurements of acoustic wave attenuation in water during waveguide propagation.

Winds over the ocean as measured by the scatterometer on Seasat

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pierson, W. J.

1981-01-01

An analysis is presented of the relative accuracy of Seasat scatterometer measurements of the wind speeds and directions at 19.5 m altitude as compared to ground truth measurements taken by surface ships and instrumented buoys. Attention is given to the JASIN, QE II, and GOASEX surface data. The validity of 2-30 min averages taken from surface stations spread out over a wide area and serving as a basis for defining wind field averages over the 50 km resolution of SASS is examined. Satisfactory wind speeds were found to be available from SASS readings in the wind speed range 6-14 m/sec. The use of 25 SASS readings around a grid point was determined to reduce scatter to 0.25 m/sec when used in numerical weather prediction modeling. Improvements to the SASS techniques by the Seasat successor, NOSS, are discussed, and inclusion of momentum, heat, and water turbulent fluxes by NOSS is noted.

Relationship between gas exchange, wind speed, and radar backscatter in a large wind-wave tank

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wanninkhof, Richard H.; Bliven, L. F.

1991-01-01

The relationships between the gas exchange, wind speed, friction velocity, and radar backscatter from the water surface was investigated using data obtained in a large water tank in the Delft (Netherlands) wind-wave tunnel, filled with water supersaturated with SF6, N2O, and CH4. Results indicate that the gas-transfer velocities of these substances were related to the wind speed with a power law dependence. Microwave backscatter from water surface was found to be related to gas transfer velocities by a relationship in the form k(gas) = a 10 exp (b A0), where k is the gas transfer velocity for the particular gas, the values of a and b are obtained from a least squares fit of the average backscatter cross section and gas transfer at 80 m, and A0 is the directional (azimuthal) averaged return.

Detectable changes in physical performance measures in elderly African Americans.

PubMed

Mangione, Kathleen Kline; Craik, Rebecca L; McCormick, Alyson A; Blevins, Heather L; White, Meaghan B; Sullivan-Marx, Eileen M; Tomlinson, James D

2010-06-01

African American older adults have higher rates of self-reported disability and lower physical performance scores compared with white older adults. Measures of physical performance are used to predict future morbidity and to determine the effect of exercise. Characteristics of performance measures are not known for African American older adults. The purpose of this study was to estimate the standard error of measurement (SEM) and minimal detectable change (MDC) for the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), Timed "Up & Go" Test (TUG) time, free gait speed, fast gait speed, and Six-Minute Walk Test (6MWT) distance in frail African American adults. This observational measurement study used a test-retest design. Individuals were tested 2 times over a 1-week period. Demographic data collected included height, weight, number of medications, assistive device use, and Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE) scores. Participants then completed the 5 physical performance tests. Fifty-two participants (mean age=78 years) completed the study. The average MMSE score was 25 points, and the average body mass index was 29.4 kg/m(2). On average, participants took 7 medications, and the majority used assistive devices. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC [2,1]) were greater than .90, except for the SPPB score (ICC=.81). The SEMs were 1.2 points for the SPPB, 1.7 seconds for the TUG, 0.08 m/s for free gait speed, 0.09 m/s for fast gait speed, and 28 m for 6MWT distance. The MDC values were 2.9 points for the SPPB, 4 seconds for the TUG, 0.19 m/s for free gait speed, 0.21 m/s for fast gait speed, and 65 m for 6MWT distance. The entire sample was from an urban area. The SEMs were similar to previously reported values and can be used when working with African American and white older adults. Estimates of MDC were calculated to assist in clinical interpretation.

Compressed sensing with gradient total variation for low-dose CBCT reconstruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seo, Chang-Woo; Cha, Bo Kyung; Jeon, Seongchae; Huh, Young; Park, Justin C.; Lee, Byeonghun; Baek, Junghee; Kim, Eunyoung

2015-06-01

This paper describes the improvement of convergence speed with gradient total variation (GTV) in compressed sensing (CS) for low-dose cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) reconstruction. We derive a fast algorithm for the constrained total variation (TV)-based a minimum number of noisy projections. To achieve this task we combine the GTV with a TV-norm regularization term to promote an accelerated sparsity in the X-ray attenuation characteristics of the human body. The GTV is derived from a TV and enforces more efficient computationally and faster in convergence until a desired solution is achieved. The numerical algorithm is simple and derives relatively fast convergence. We apply a gradient projection algorithm that seeks a solution iteratively in the direction of the projected gradient while enforcing a non-negatively of the found solution. In comparison with the Feldkamp, Davis, and Kress (FDK) and conventional TV algorithms, the proposed GTV algorithm showed convergence in ≤18 iterations, whereas the original TV algorithm needs at least 34 iterations in reducing 50% of the projections compared with the FDK algorithm in order to reconstruct the chest phantom images. Future investigation includes improving imaging quality, particularly regarding X-ray cone-beam scatter, and motion artifacts of CBCT reconstruction.

Metabolic power and energetic costs of professional Australian Football match-play.

PubMed

Coutts, Aaron J; Kempton, Thomas; Sullivan, Courtney; Bilsborough, Johann; Cordy, Justin; Rampinini, Ermanno

2015-03-01

To compare the metabolic power demands between positional groups, and examine temporal changes in these parameters during Australian Football match-play. Longitudinal observational study. Global positioning system data were collected from 39 Australian Football players from the same club during 19 Australian Football League competition games over two seasons. A total of 342 complete match samples were obtained for analysis. Players were categorised into one of six positional groups: tall backs, mobile backs, midfielders, tall forwards, mobile forwards and rucks. Instantaneous raw velocity data obtained from the global positioning system units was exported to a customised spreadsheet which provided estimations of both speed-based (e.g. total and high-speed running distance) and derived metabolic power and energy expenditure variables (e.g. average metabolic power, high-power distance, total energy expenditure). There were significant differences between positional groups for both speed-based and metabolic power indices, with midfielders covering more total and high-speed distance, as well as greater average and overall energy expenditure compared to other positions (all p<0.001). There were reductions in total, high-speed, and high-power distance, as well as average metabolic power throughout the match (all p<0.001). Positional differences exist for both metabolic power and traditional running based variables. Generally, midfielders, followed by mobile forwards and mobile backs had greater activity profiles compared to other position groups. We observed that the reductions in most metabolic power variables during the course of the match are comparable to traditional running based metrics. This study demonstrates that metabolic power data may contribute to our understanding of the physical demands of Australian Football. Copyright © 2014 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of needle insertion speed on tissue injury, stress, and backflow distribution for convection-enhanced delivery in the rat brain.

PubMed

Casanova, Fernando; Carney, Paul R; Sarntinoranont, Malisa

2014-01-01

Flow back along a needle track (backflow) can be a problem during direct infusion, e.g. convection-enhanced delivery (CED), of drugs into soft tissues such as brain. In this study, the effect of needle insertion speed on local tissue injury and backflow was evaluated in vivo in the rat brain. Needles were introduced at three insertion speeds (0.2, 2, and 10 mm/s) followed by CED of Evans blue albumin (EBA) tracer. Holes left in tissue slices were used to reconstruct penetration damage. These measurements were also input into a hyperelastic model to estimate radial stress at the needle-tissue interface (pre-stress) before infusion. Fast insertion speeds were found to produce more tissue bleeding and disruption; average hole area at 10 mm/s was 1.87-fold the area at 0.2 mm/s. Hole measurements also differed at two fixation time points after needle retraction, 10 and 25 min, indicating that pre-stresses are influenced by time-dependent tissue swelling. Calculated pre-stresses were compressive (0 to 485 Pa) and varied along the length of the needle with smaller average values within white matter (116 Pa) than gray matter (301 Pa) regions. Average pre-stress at 0.2 mm/s (351.7 Pa) was calculated to be 1.46-fold the value at 10 mm/s. For CED backflow experiments (0.5, 1, and 2 µL/min), measured EBA backflow increased as much as 2.46-fold between 10 and 0.2 mm/s insertion speeds. Thus, insertion rate-dependent damage and changes in pre-stress were found to directly contribute to the extent of backflow, with slower insertion resulting in less damage and improved targeting.

Comparison of cavity preparation quality using an electric motor handpiece and an air turbine dental handpiece.

PubMed

Kenyon, Brian J; Van Zyl, Ian; Louie, Kenneth G

2005-08-01

The high-speed high-torque (electric motor) handpiece is becoming more popular in dental offices and laboratories in the United States. It is reported to cut more precisely and to assist in the creation of finer margins that enhance cavity preparations. The authors conducted an in vitro study to compare the quality of cavity preparations fabricated with a high-speed high-torque (electric motor) handpiece and a high-speed low-torque (air turbine) handpiece. Eighty-six dental students each cut two Class I preparations, one with an air turbine handpiece and the other with an electric motor high-speed handpiece. The authors asked the students to cut each preparation accurately to a circular outline and to establish a flat pulpal floor with 1.5 millimeters' depth, 90-degree exit angles, parallel vertical walls and sharp internal line angles, as well as to refine the preparation to achieve flat, smooth walls with a well-defined cavosurface margin. A single faculty member scored the preparations for criteria and refinement using a nine-point scale (range, 1-9). The authors analyzed the data statistically using paired t tests. In preparation criteria, the electric motor high-speed handpiece had a higher average grade than did the air turbine handpiece (5.07 and 4.90, respectively). For refinement, the average grade for the air turbine high-speed handpiece was greater than that for the electric motor high-speed handpiece (5.72 and 5.52, respectively). The differences were not statistically significant. The electric motor high-speed handpiece performed as well as, but not better than, the air turbine handpiece in the fabrication of high-quality cavity preparations.

A proof-of-concept study for measuring gait speed, steadiness, and dynamic balance under various footwear conditions outside of the gait laboratory.

PubMed

Wrobel, James S; Edgar, Sarah; Cozzetto, Dana; Maskill, James; Peterson, Paul; Najafi, Bijan

2010-01-01

This pilot study examined the effect of custom and prefabricated foot orthoses on self-selected walking speed, walking speed variability, and dynamic balance in the mediolateral direction. The gait of four healthy participants was analyzed with a body-worn sensor system across a distance of at least 30 m outside of the gait laboratory. Participants walked at their habitual speed in four conditions: barefoot, regular shoes, prefabricated foot orthoses, and custom foot orthoses. In the custom foot orthoses condition, gait speed was improved on average 13.5% over the barefoot condition and 9.8% over the regular shoe condition. The mediolateral range of motion of center of mass was reduced 55% and 56% compared with the shoes alone and prefabricated foot orthoses conditions, respectively. This may suggest better gait efficiency and lower energy cost with custom foot orthoses. This tendency remained after normalizing center of mass by gait speed, suggesting that irrespective of gait speed, custom foot orthoses improve center of mass motion in the mediolateral direction compared with other footwear conditions. Gait intercycle variability, measured by intercycle coefficient of variation of gait speed, was decreased on average by 25% and 19% compared with the barefoot and shoes-alone conditions, respectively. The decrease in gait unsteadiness after wearing custom foot orthoses may suggest improved proprioception from the increased contact area of custom foot orthoses versus the barefoot condition. These findings may open new avenues for objective assessment of the impact of prescribed footwear on dynamic balance and spatiotemporal parameters of gait and assess gait adaptation after use of custom foot orthoses.

In vivo evaluation of needle force and friction stress during insertion at varying insertion speed into the brain.

PubMed

Casanova, Fernando; Carney, Paul R; Sarntinoranont, Malisa

2014-11-30

Convection enhanced delivery (CED) infuses drugs directly into brain tissue. Needle insertion is required and results in tissue damage which can promote flowback along the needle track and improper targeting. The goal of this study was to evaluate friction stress (calculated from needle insertion force) as a measure of tissue contact and damage during needle insertion for varying insertion speeds. Forces and surface dimpling during needle insertion were measured in rat brain in vivo. Needle retraction forces were used to calculate friction stresses. These measures were compared to track damage from a previous study. Differences between brain tissues and soft hydrogels were evaluated for varying insertion speeds: 0.2, 2, and 10mm/s. In brain tissue, average insertion force and surface dimpling increased with increasing insertion speed. Average friction stress along the needle-tissue interface decreased with insertion speed (from 0.58 ± 0.27 to 0.16 ± 0.08 kPa). Friction stress varied between brain regions: cortex (0.227 ± 0.27 kPa), external capsule (0.222 ± 0.19 kPa), and CPu (0.383 ± 0.30 kPa). Hydrogels exhibited opposite trends for dimpling and friction stress with insertion speed. Previously, increasing needle damage with insertion speed has been measured with histological methods. Friction stress appears to decrease with increasing tissue damage and decreasing tissue contact, providing the potential for in vivo and real time evaluation along the needle track. Force derived friction stress decreased with increasing insertion speed and was smaller within white matter regions. Hydrogels exhibited opposite trends to brain tissue. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Health Security Intelligence: Assessing the Nascent Public Health Capability

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-03-01

and one that although dedicated as an HSI analyst, did not work a full 40- hour workweek . Of the three jurisdictions that answered yes to Question 6...during the standard 40- hour workweek is well established. In her book, Out of Bounds, Innovation and Change in Law Enforcement Intelligence Analysis...collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instruction, searching existing data sources

On blockage effects for a marine hydrokinetic turbine in free surface proximity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Banerjee, A.; Kolekar, N.

2016-12-01

Experimental investigation was carried out with a three-bladed, constant chord marine hydrokinetic turbine to understand the influence of free surface proximity on blockage effects and near wake flow field. The turbine was placed at various depths of immersion as rotational speeds and flow speeds were varied; thrust and torque data was acquired through a submerged thrust torque sensor positioned in-line with the turbine axis. Blockage effects were quantified in terms of changes in power coefficient and were found to be dependent on flow velocity, rotational speed and blade-tip clearence (from free-surface). Flow acceleration near turbine rotation plane was attributed to blockage offered by the rotor, wake, and free surface deformation; the resulting performance improvements were calculated based on the measured thrust values. In addition, stereoscopic particle imaging velocimetry was carried out in the near-wake region using time-averaged and phase-averaged techniques to understand the mechanism responsible for variation of torque (and power coefficient) with rotational speed and free-surface proximity. Flow vizualisation revealed slower wake propagation for higher rotational velocities and increased assymetry in the wake with increasing free surface proximity. Improved performance at high rotational speed was attributed to enhanced wake blockage; performance enhancements with free-surface proximity was attributed to additional blockage effects caused by free surface deformation.

Design and development of nautilus whorl-wind turbine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

R, Pramod; Kumar, G. B. Veeresh; Harsha, P. Sai Sri; Kumar, K. A. Udaya

2017-07-01

Our life is directly related to energy and its consumption, and the issues of energy research are extremely important and highly sensitive. Scientists and researchers attempt to accelerate solutions for wind energy generation, design parameters under the influence of novel policies adopted for energy management and the concerns for global warming and climate change. The objective of this study is to design a small wind turbine that is optimized for the constraints that come with residential use. The study is aimed at designing a wind turbine for tapping the low speed wind in urban locations. The design process includes the selection of the wind turbine type and the determination of the blade airfoil, finding the maximum drag model and manufacturing of the turbine economically. In this study, the Nautilus turbine is modeled, simulated and the characteristic curves are plotted. The cutting in wind speed for the turbine is around 1m/s. The turbine rotates in a range of 20 rpm to 500 rpm at wind speeds 1m/s to 10m/s On a below average day at noon where the wind speed are usually low the turbine recorded an rpm of 120 (average value) at 4m/s wind speeds. This study focuses on a computational fluid dynamics analysis of compressible radially outward flow.

Statistical and Spectral Analysis of Wind Characteristics Relevant to Wind Energy Assessment Using Tower Measurements in Complex Terrain

DOE PAGES

Belu, Radian; Koracin, Darko

2013-01-01

The main objective of the study was to investigate spatial and temporal characteristics of the wind speed and direction in complex terrain that are relevant to wind energy assessment and development, as well as to wind energy system operation, management, and grid integration. Wind data from five tall meteorological towers located in Western Nevada, USA, operated from August 2003 to March 2008, used in the analysis. The multiannual average wind speeds did not show significant increased trend with increasing elevation, while the turbulence intensity slowly decreased with an increase were the average wind speed. The wind speed and direction weremore » modeled using the Weibull and the von Mises distribution functions. The correlations show a strong coherence between the wind speed and direction with slowly decreasing amplitude of the multiday periodicity with increasing lag periods. The spectral analysis shows significant annual periodicity with similar characteristics at all locations. The relatively high correlations between the towers and small range of the computed turbulence intensity indicate that wind variability is dominated by the regional synoptic processes. Knowledge and information about daily, seasonal, and annual wind periodicities are very important for wind energy resource assessment, wind power plant operation, management, and grid integration.« less

Initial Observations of Lingual Movement Characteristics of Children With Cerebral Palsy

PubMed Central

Arias, Carlos R.; Morita, Kristen; Richardson, Hannah

2017-01-01

Purpose This preliminary study compared the speech motor control of the tongue and jaw between children with cerebral palsy (CP) and their typically developing (TD) peers. Method Tongue tip and jaw movements of 4 boys with spastic CP and 4 age- and sex-matched TD peers were recorded using an electromagnetic articulograph during 10 repetitions of “Dad told stories today.” The duration, path distance, average speed, and speech movement stability of the movements were calculated for each repetition. Results The children with CP had longer durations than their TD peers. Children with CP had longer path distances and faster average speed as compared with their TD peers for both articulators. The TD group but not the CP group had longer path distances and faster average speeds for the tongue than the jaw. The CP group had reduced speech movement stability for the tongue as compared with their TD peers, but both groups had similar speech movement stability for the jaw. Conclusions Children with CP had impaired speech motor control of the tongue and jaw as compared with their TD peers, and these speech motor control deficits were more pronounced in the tongue tip than the jaw. PMID:28655047

Unsteady Velocity Measurements in the NASA Research Low Speed Axial Compressor: Smooth Wall Configuration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lepicovsky, Jan

2007-01-01

The report is a collection of experimental unsteady data acquired in the first stage of the NASA Low Speed Axial Compressor in configuration with smooth (solid) wall treatment over the first rotor. The aim of the report is to present a reliable experimental data base that can be used for analysis of the compressor flow behavior, and hopefully help with further improvements of compressor CFD codes. All data analysis is strictly restricted to verification of reliability of the experimental data reported. The report is divided into six main sections. First two sections cover the low speed axial compressor, the basic instrumentation, and the in-house developed methodology of unsteady velocity measurements using a thermo-anemometric split-fiber probe. The next two sections contain experimental data presented as averaged radial distributions for three compressor operation conditions, including the distribution of the total temperature rise over the first rotor, and ensemble averages of unsteady flow data based on a rotor blade passage period. Ensemble averages based on the rotor revolution period, and spectral analysis of unsteady flow parameters are presented in the last two sections. The report is completed with two appendices where performance and dynamic response of thermo-anemometric probes is discussed.

Comparative histopathological analysis of human pulps after class I cavity preparation with a high-speed air-turbine handpiece or Er:YAG laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kina, J. F.; Benitez, P. C.; Lizarelli, R. F. Z.; Bagnato, V. S.; Martinez, T. C.; Oliveira, C. F.; Hebling, J.; Costa, C. A. S.

2008-12-01

The purpose of this study was to comparatively evaluate the response of human pulps after cavity preparation with different devices. Deep class I cavities were prepared in sound mandibular premolars using either a high-speed air-turbine handpiece (Group 1) or an Er:YAG laser (Group 2). Following total acid etching and the application of an adhesive system, all cavities were restored with composite resin. Fifteen days after the clinical procedure, the teeth were extracted and processed for analysis under optical microscopy. In Group 1 in which the average for the remaining dentin thickness (RDT) between the cavity floor and the coronal pulp was 909.5 μm, a discrete inflammatory response occurred in only one specimen with an RDT of 214 μm. However, tissue disorganization occurred in most specimens. In Group 2 (average RDT = 935.2 μm), the discrete inflammatory pulp response was observed in only one specimen (average RDT = 413 μm). It may be concluded that the high-speed air-turbine handpiece caused greater structural alterations in the pulp, although without inducing inflammatory processes.

Wind energy potential assessment of Cameroon's coastal regions for the installation of an onshore wind farm.

PubMed

Arreyndip, Nkongho Ayuketang; Joseph, Ebobenow; David, Afungchui

2016-11-01

For the future installation of a wind farm in Cameroon, the wind energy potentials of three of Cameroon's coastal cities (Kribi, Douala and Limbe) are assessed using NASA average monthly wind data for 31 years (1983-2013) and compared through Weibull statistics. The Weibull parameters are estimated by the method of maximum likelihood, the mean power densities, the maximum energy carrying wind speeds and the most probable wind speeds are also calculated and compared over these three cities. Finally, the cumulative wind speed distributions over the wet and dry seasons are also analyzed. The results show that the shape and scale parameters for Kribi, Douala and Limbe are 2.9 and 2.8, 3.9 and 1.8 and 3.08 and 2.58, respectively. The mean power densities through Weibull analysis for Kribi, Douala and Limbe are 33.7 W/m2, 8.0 W/m2 and 25.42 W/m2, respectively. Kribi's most probable wind speed and maximum energy carrying wind speed was found to be 2.42 m/s and 3.35 m/s, 2.27 m/s and 3.03 m/s for Limbe and 1.67 m/s and 2.0 m/s for Douala, respectively. Analysis of the wind speed and hence power distribution over the wet and dry seasons shows that in the wet season, August is the windiest month for Douala and Limbe while September is the windiest month for Kribi while in the dry season, March is the windiest month for Douala and Limbe while February is the windiest month for Kribi. In terms of mean power density, most probable wind speed and wind speed carrying maximum energy, Kribi shows to be the best site for the installation of a wind farm. Generally, the wind speeds at all three locations seem quite low, average wind speeds of all the three studied locations fall below 4.0m/s which is far below the cut-in wind speed of many modern wind turbines. However we recommend the use of low cut-in speed wind turbines like the Savonius for stand alone low energy needs.

Supercruiser Arrow HS-8

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lord, Paul; Kao, Edward; Abobo, Joey B.; Collins, Todd A.; Ma, Leong; Murad, Adnan; Naran, Hitesh; Nguyen, Thuan P.; Nuon, Timithy I.; Thomas, Dimitri D.

1992-01-01

Technology in aeronautics has advanced dramatically since the last design of a production High Speed Civil Transport (HSCT) aircraft. Newly projected requirements call for a new High Speed Civil Transport aircraft with a range of approximately 550 nm and at least 275 passenger capacity. The aircraft must be affordable and marketable. The new HSCT must be able to sustain long-duration flights and to absorb the abuse of daily operation. The new aircraft must be safe and simple to fly and require a minimum amount of maintenance. This aircraft must meet FAA certification criteria of FAR Part 25 and environmental constraints. Several design configurations were examined and two designs were selected for further investigation. The first design employs the delta planform wings and conventional empennage layout. The other design uses a swing wing layout and conventional empennage. Other engineering challenges, including materials and propulsion are also discussed. At a cruise flight speed between Mach 2.2 and Mach 3.0, no current generation of materials can endure the thermal loading of supersonic flight and satisfy the stringent weight requirements. A new generation of lightweight composite materials must be developed for the HSCT. With the enforcement of stage 3 noise restrictions, these new engines must be able to propel the aircraft and satisfy the noise limit. The engine with the most promise is the variable cycle engine. At low subsonic speeds the engine operates like a turbofan engine, providing the most efficient performance. At higher speeds the variable cycle engine operates as a turbojet power plant. The two large engine manufacturers, General Electric and Pratt & Whitney in the United States, are combining forces to make the variable cycle engine a reality.

Addressing the road trauma burden in China: Exploring attitudes, behaviours, risk perceptions and cultural uniqueness.

PubMed

Fleiter, Judy J; Watson, Barry

2016-10-01

As China continues to motorise rapidly, solutions are needed to reduce the burden of road trauma that is spread inequitably across the community. Little is currently known about how new drivers are trained to deal with on-road challenges, and little is also known about the perceptions, behaviours and attitudes of road users in China. This paper reports on a pilot study conducted in a driver retraining facility in one Chinese city where people who have had their licence suspended for accrual of 12 demerit points in a one year period must attend compulsory retraining in order to regain their licence. A sample of 239 suspended drivers responded to an anonymous questionnaire that sought information about preferred driving speeds and perceptions of safe driving speeds across two speed zones. Responses indicated that speeds higher than the posted limits were commonly reported, and that there was incongruence between preferred and safe speeds, such that a greater proportion of drivers reported preferred speeds that were substantially faster than what were reported as safe speeds. Participants with more driving experience reported significantly fewer crashes than newly licensed drivers (less than 2 years licensed) but no differences were found in offences when compared across groups with different levels of driving experience. Perceptions of risky behaviours were assessed by asking participants to describe what they considered to be the most dangerous on-road behaviours. Speeding and drink driving were the most commonly reported by far, followed by issues such as fatigue, ignoring traffic rules, not obeying traffic rules, phone use while driving, and non-use of seatbelts, which attracted an extremely low response which seems consistent with previously reported low belt wearing rates, unfavourable attitudes towards seatbelt use, and low levels of enforcement. Finally, observations about culturally specific considerations are made from previous research conducted by the authors and others. Specifically, issues of saving face and the importance and pervasiveness of social networks and social influence are discussed with particular regard to how any future countermeasures need to be informed by a thorough understanding of Chinese customs and culture. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Free-piston driver performance characterisation using experimental shock speeds through helium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gildfind, D. E.; James, C. M.; Morgan, R. G.

2015-03-01

Tuned free-piston driver operation involves configuring the driver to produce a relatively steady blast of driver gas over the critical time scales of the experiment. For the purposes of flow condition development and parametric studies, it is useful to establish some average working values of the driver pressure and temperature for a given driver operating condition. However, in practise, these averaged values need to produce sufficiently accurate estimates of performance. In this study, two tuned driver conditions in the X2 expansion tube have been used to generate shock waves through a helium test gas. The measured shock speeds have then been used to calculate the effective driver gas pressure and temperature after diaphragm rupture. Since the driver gas is typically helium, or a mixture of helium and argon, and the test gas is also helium, ideal gas assumptions can be made without significant loss of accuracy. The technique is applicable to tuned free-piston drivers with a simple area change, as well as those using orifice plates. It is shown that this technique can be quickly used to establish average working driver gas properties which produce very good estimates of actual driven shock speed, across a wide range of operating conditions. The use of orifice plates to control piston dynamics at high driver gas sound speeds is also discussed in the paper, and a simple technique for calculating the restriction required to modify an established safe condition for use with lighter gases, such as pure helium, is presented.

Ankle moment generation and maximum-effort curved sprinting performance.

PubMed

Luo, Geng; Stefanyshyn, Darren

2012-11-15

Turning at high speed along acute curves is crucial for athletic performance. One determinant of curved sprinting speed is the ground reaction force that can be created by the supporting limb; the moment generated at the ankle joint may influence such force generation. Body lean associated with curved sprints positions the ankle joints in extreme in-/eversion, and may hinder the ankle moment generation. To examine the influence of ankle moment generation on curved sprinting performance, 17 male subjects performed maximum-effort curved sprints in footwear with and without a wedge. The wedged footwear was constructed with the intention to align the ankle joints closer to their neutral frontal-plane configuration during counter-clockwise curved sprints so greater joint moments might be generated. We found, with the wedged footwear, the average eversion angle of the inside leg ankle was reduced, and the plantarflexion moment generation increased significantly. Meanwhile, the knee extension moment remained unchanged. With the wedged footwear, stance-average centripetal ground reaction force increased significantly while no difference in the vertical ground reaction force was detected. The subjects created a greater centripetal ground reaction impulse in the wedged footwear despite a shortened stance phase when compared to the control. Stance-average curved sprinting speed improved by 4.3% with the wedged footwear. The changes in ankle moment and curved sprinting speed observed in the current study supports the notion that the moment generation at the ankle joint may be a performance constraint for curved sprinting. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Extending Research on Oral Reading Fluency Measures, Reading Speed, and Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schall, Megan; Skinner, Christopher H.; Cazzell, Samantha; Ciancio, Dennis; Ruddy, Jonah; Thompson, Kelly

2016-01-01

Middle-school students completed a comprehension assessment. The following day, they read four, 120-word passages, two standard and two non-standard ransom-note passages with altered font sizes. Altering font sizes increased students' reading time (i.e., reduced reading speed) by an average of 3 s and decreased students' words correct per minute…

Flame speed enhancement of solid nitrocellulose monopropellant coupled with graphite at microscales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jain, S.; Yehia, O.; Qiao, L.

2016-03-01

The flame-speed-enhancement phenomenon of a solid monopropellant (nitrocellulose) using a highly conductive thermal base (graphite sheet) was demonstrated and studied both experimentally and theoretically. A propellant layer ranging from 20 μm to 170 μm was deposited on the top of a 20-μm thick graphite sheet. Self-propagating oscillatory combustion waves were observed, with average flame speed enhancements up to 14 times the bulk value. The ratio of the fuel-to-graphite layer thickness affects not only the average reaction front velocities but also the period and the amplitude of the combustion wave oscillations. To better understand the flame-speed enhancement and the oscillatory nature of the combustion waves, the coupled nitrocellulose-graphite system was modeled using one-dimensional energy conservation equations along with simple one-step chemistry. The period and the amplitude of the oscillatory combustion waves were predicted as a function of the ratio of the fuel-to-graphite thickness (R), the ratio of the graphite-to-fuel thermal diffusivity (α0), and the non-dimensional inverse adiabatic temperature rise (β). The predicted flame speeds and the characteristics of the oscillations agree well with the experimental data. The new concept of using a highly conductive thermal base such as carbon-based nano- and microstructures to enhance flame propagation speed or burning rate of propellants and fuels could lead to improved performance of solid and liquid rocket motors, as well as of the alternative energy conversion microelectromechanical devices.

Wind speed response of marine non-precipitating stratocumulus clouds over a diurnal cycle in cloud-system resolving simulations

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

Kazil, Jan; Feingold, Graham; Yamaguchi, Takanobu

Observed and projected trends in large-scale wind speed over the oceans prompt the question: how do marine stratocumulus clouds and their radiative properties respond to changes in large-scale wind speed? Wind speed drives the surface fluxes of sensible heat, moisture, and momentum and thereby acts on cloud liquid water path (LWP) and cloud radiative properties. We present an investigation of the dynamical response of non-precipitating, overcast marine stratocumulus clouds to different wind speeds over the course of a diurnal cycle, all else equal. In cloud-system resolving simulations, we find that higher wind speed leads to faster boundary layer growth and strongermore » entrainment. The dynamical driver is enhanced buoyant production of turbulence kinetic energy (TKE) from latent heat release in cloud updrafts. LWP is enhanced during the night and in the morning at higher wind speed, and more strongly suppressed later in the day. Wind speed hence accentuates the diurnal LWP cycle by expanding the morning–afternoon contrast. The higher LWP at higher wind speed does not, however, enhance cloud top cooling because in clouds with LWP ≳50 gm –2, longwave emissions are insensitive to LWP. This leads to the general conclusion that in sufficiently thick stratocumulus clouds, additional boundary layer growth and entrainment due to a boundary layer moistening arises by stronger production of TKE from latent heat release in cloud updrafts, rather than from enhanced longwave cooling. Here, we find that large-scale wind modulates boundary layer decoupling. At nighttime and at low wind speed during daytime, it enhances decoupling in part by faster boundary layer growth and stronger entrainment and in part because shear from large-scale wind in the sub-cloud layer hinders vertical moisture transport between the surface and cloud base. With increasing wind speed, however, in decoupled daytime conditions, shear-driven circulation due to large-scale wind takes over from buoyancy-driven circulation in transporting moisture from the surface to cloud base and thereby reduces decoupling and helps maintain LWP. Furthermore, the total (shortwave + longwave) cloud radiative effect (CRE) responds to changes in LWP and cloud fraction, and higher wind speed translates to a stronger diurnally averaged total CRE. However, the sensitivity of the diurnally averaged total CRE to wind speed decreases with increasing wind speed.« less

Wind speed response of marine non-precipitating stratocumulus clouds over a diurnal cycle in cloud-system resolving simulations

DOE PAGES

Kazil, Jan; Feingold, Graham; Yamaguchi, Takanobu

2016-05-12

Observed and projected trends in large-scale wind speed over the oceans prompt the question: how do marine stratocumulus clouds and their radiative properties respond to changes in large-scale wind speed? Wind speed drives the surface fluxes of sensible heat, moisture, and momentum and thereby acts on cloud liquid water path (LWP) and cloud radiative properties. We present an investigation of the dynamical response of non-precipitating, overcast marine stratocumulus clouds to different wind speeds over the course of a diurnal cycle, all else equal. In cloud-system resolving simulations, we find that higher wind speed leads to faster boundary layer growth and strongermore » entrainment. The dynamical driver is enhanced buoyant production of turbulence kinetic energy (TKE) from latent heat release in cloud updrafts. LWP is enhanced during the night and in the morning at higher wind speed, and more strongly suppressed later in the day. Wind speed hence accentuates the diurnal LWP cycle by expanding the morning–afternoon contrast. The higher LWP at higher wind speed does not, however, enhance cloud top cooling because in clouds with LWP ≳50 gm –2, longwave emissions are insensitive to LWP. This leads to the general conclusion that in sufficiently thick stratocumulus clouds, additional boundary layer growth and entrainment due to a boundary layer moistening arises by stronger production of TKE from latent heat release in cloud updrafts, rather than from enhanced longwave cooling. Here, we find that large-scale wind modulates boundary layer decoupling. At nighttime and at low wind speed during daytime, it enhances decoupling in part by faster boundary layer growth and stronger entrainment and in part because shear from large-scale wind in the sub-cloud layer hinders vertical moisture transport between the surface and cloud base. With increasing wind speed, however, in decoupled daytime conditions, shear-driven circulation due to large-scale wind takes over from buoyancy-driven circulation in transporting moisture from the surface to cloud base and thereby reduces decoupling and helps maintain LWP. Furthermore, the total (shortwave + longwave) cloud radiative effect (CRE) responds to changes in LWP and cloud fraction, and higher wind speed translates to a stronger diurnally averaged total CRE. However, the sensitivity of the diurnally averaged total CRE to wind speed decreases with increasing wind speed.« less

Using Computers To Accommodate Learning Disabled Students in Mathematics Classes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rapp, Rhonda H.; Gittinger, Dennis J.

A person with a learning disability usually has average or above average intelligence, but has difficulty taking in, remembering, or expressing information. Learning disabilities can involve visual processing speed, short-term memory processing, fluid reasoning, and long-term memory retrieval. These disorders are intrinsic to the individual and…

Observed drag coefficients in high winds in the near offshore of the South China Sea

DOE PAGES

Bi, Xueyan; Liu, Yangan; Gao, Zhiqiu; ...

2015-07-14

This paper investigates the relationships between friction velocity, 10 m drag coefficient, and 10 m wind speed using data collected at two offshore observation towers (one over the sea and the other on an island) from seven typhoon episodes in the South China Sea from 2008 to 2014. The two towers were placed in areas with different water depths along a shore-normal line. The depth of water at the tower over the sea averages about 15 m, and the depth of water near the island is about 10 m. The observed maximum 10 min average wind speed at a heightmore » of 10 m is about 32 m s⁻¹. Momentum fluxes derived from three methods (eddy covariance, inertial dissipation, and flux profile) are compared. The momentum fluxes derived from the flux profile method are larger (smaller) over the sea (on the island) than those from the other two methods. The relationship between the 10 m drag coefficient and the 10 m wind speed is examined by use of the data obtained by the eddy covariance method. The drag coefficient first decreases with increasing 10 m wind speed when the wind speeds are 5–10 m s⁻¹, then increases and reaches a peak value of 0.002 around a wind speed of 18 m s⁻¹. The drag coefficient decreases with increasing 10 m wind speed when 10 m wind speeds are 18–27 m s⁻¹. A comparison of the measurements from the two towers shows that the 10 m drag coefficient from the tower in 10 m water depth is about 40% larger than that from the tower in 15 m water depth when the 10 m wind speed is less than 10 m s⁻¹. Above this, the difference in the 10 m drag coefficients of the two towers disappears.« less

Observed drag coefficients in high winds in the near offshore of the South China Sea

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

Bi, Xueyan; Liu, Yangan; Gao, Zhiqiu

This paper investigates the relationships between friction velocity, 10 m drag coefficient, and 10 m wind speed using data collected at two offshore observation towers (one over the sea and the other on an island) from seven typhoon episodes in the South China Sea from 2008 to 2014. The two towers were placed in areas with different water depths along a shore-normal line. The depth of water at the tower over the sea averages about 15 m, and the depth of water near the island is about 10 m. The observed maximum 10 min average wind speed at a heightmore » of 10 m is about 32 m s⁻¹. Momentum fluxes derived from three methods (eddy covariance, inertial dissipation, and flux profile) are compared. The momentum fluxes derived from the flux profile method are larger (smaller) over the sea (on the island) than those from the other two methods. The relationship between the 10 m drag coefficient and the 10 m wind speed is examined by use of the data obtained by the eddy covariance method. The drag coefficient first decreases with increasing 10 m wind speed when the wind speeds are 5–10 m s⁻¹, then increases and reaches a peak value of 0.002 around a wind speed of 18 m s⁻¹. The drag coefficient decreases with increasing 10 m wind speed when 10 m wind speeds are 18–27 m s⁻¹. A comparison of the measurements from the two towers shows that the 10 m drag coefficient from the tower in 10 m water depth is about 40% larger than that from the tower in 15 m water depth when the 10 m wind speed is less than 10 m s⁻¹. Above this, the difference in the 10 m drag coefficients of the two towers disappears.« less

Combating Terrorism Technology Support Office 2007 Review

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-01-01

George W. Bush May 23, 2007 It’s a movie cliché: the hero disarms the bomb at the last second, saving the city, averting the crisis, and embracing...Forces warrior who is hunting al Qaeda, and the law-enforcement offi cer or fi rst Preface Combating Terrorism Technology Support Office 2007 Review ...No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing

Investigation of Intermediary Metabolism and Energy Exchange Following Human Trauma.

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-07-01

effects of intravenous diets in the hypocaloric range. The present study indicates that in severely depleted patients, a moderate intake, averaging 65 g...the type of hypocaloric nutrition and of enforced bed rest on the "pattern of injury" which was found. It was formerly thought that the weakness and...regular house diet . Subsequent studies are then reported on patients under- going hip replacement and receiving either 70 g of amino acids/day as their

Validation of a mixture-averaged thermal diffusion model for premixed lean hydrogen flames

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schlup, Jason; Blanquart, Guillaume

2018-03-01

The mixture-averaged thermal diffusion model originally proposed by Chapman and Cowling is validated using multiple flame configurations. Simulations using detailed hydrogen chemistry are done on one-, two-, and three-dimensional flames. The analysis spans flat and stretched, steady and unsteady, and laminar and turbulent flames. Quantitative and qualitative results using the thermal diffusion model compare very well with the more complex multicomponent diffusion model. Comparisons are made using flame speeds, surface areas, species profiles, and chemical source terms. Once validated, this model is applied to three-dimensional laminar and turbulent flames. For these cases, thermal diffusion causes an increase in the propagation speed of the flames as well as increased product chemical source terms in regions of high positive curvature. The results illustrate the necessity for including thermal diffusion, and the accuracy and computational efficiency of the mixture-averaged thermal diffusion model.

The importance of national political context to the impacts of international conservation aid: evidence from the W National Parks of Benin and Niger

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, Daniel C.; Minn, Michael; Sinsin, Brice

2015-11-01

National political context is widely understood to be an important factor shaping the ecological and socio-economic impacts of protected areas (PAs) and other conservation interventions. Despite broad recognition that national political context matters, however, there is little systematic understanding about how and why it matters, particularly in the context of PAs. This article seeks to advance empirical and theoretical understanding of the influence of national political context on the impacts of conservation interventions through study of an international aid project in a large transboundary PA in West Africa. It uses multilevel regression analysis to analyze the variable effects of changes in enforcement—a central mechanism through which the Protected Ecosystems in Sudano-Sahelian Africa project sought to achieve its objectives—in the W National Parks (WNP) of Benin and Niger. We find that differences in national political context relating to governance quality and extent of democratic decentralization moderated the social-ecological effects of enforcement. Increasing enforcement levels in Benin’s WNP were associated with significant increases in mammal species abundance while having little average effect on the incomes of households around the Park. By contrast, greater levels of enforcement in Niger’s WNP were associated with sharply decreasing income levels among Park neighbors but did not have a statistically significant effect on wildlife populations. These results highlight the importance of national political context to the outcomes of aid-funded conservation efforts. They suggest that state-led PA enforcement will have more positive social-ecological impacts in better-governed, more decentralized countries and that conservation policy centered on PAs should therefore devote greater attention to engagement with higher levels of governance.

Who actually receives cell phone use while driving citations and how much are these laws enforced among states? A descriptive, cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Rudisill, Toni M; Zhu, Motao

2016-06-14

While numerous cell phone use while driving laws have been passed among states, little information exists regarding who gets cited for these traffic infractions and how much these laws are enforced at the state-level within the USA. Cross-sectional, descriptive study. 14 states and the District of Columbia. Those receiving cell phone use while driving citations within included states from 2007 to 2013. Demographic characteristics of cited drivers were assessed. Rates of infractions per 100 000 licensed in-state drivers per year for various cell phone use while driving violations were calculated. Drivers were cited for hand-held use violations (n=2.5 million) more than texting (n=14 682) or young driver all cell phone bans (n=342). Among states that provided data for all traffic violations, cell phone use while driving citations comprised 1% of all written citations. Regardless of ban type, males (68.2%) were cited more frequently than females. Drivers 25-64 years of age (90.8%) were more likely to be cited for hand-held phone use. The average yearly rate of infractions per 100 000 licensed in-state drivers from 2010-2013 was 5.8 for texting bans, 2607 for hand-held bans, and 9954 for any traffic violation. Among cited drivers, age and sex differences existed by the type of ban violated. State-level enforcement appeared sparse. Due to the potential serious consequences of cell phone use while driving in the USA, more enforcement and targeted public safety campaigns are likely needed. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Who actually receives cell phone use while driving citations and how much are these laws enforced among states? A descriptive, cross-sectional study

PubMed Central

Rudisill, Toni M; Zhu, Motao

2016-01-01

Objectives While numerous cell phone use while driving laws have been passed among states, little information exists regarding who gets cited for these traffic infractions and how much these laws are enforced at the state-level within the USA. Design Cross-sectional, descriptive study. Setting 14 states and the District of Columbia. Participants Those receiving cell phone use while driving citations within included states from 2007 to 2013. Primary outcome Demographic characteristics of cited drivers were assessed. Rates of infractions per 100 000 licensed in-state drivers per year for various cell phone use while driving violations were calculated. Results Drivers were cited for hand-held use violations (n=2.5 million) more than texting (n=14 682) or young driver all cell phone bans (n=342). Among states that provided data for all traffic violations, cell phone use while driving citations comprised 1% of all written citations. Regardless of ban type, males (68.2%) were cited more frequently than females. Drivers 25–64 years of age (90.8%) were more likely to be cited for hand-held phone use. The average yearly rate of infractions per 100 000 licensed in-state drivers from 2010–2013 was 5.8 for texting bans, 2607 for hand-held bans, and 9954 for any traffic violation. Conclusions Among cited drivers, age and sex differences existed by the type of ban violated. State-level enforcement appeared sparse. Due to the potential serious consequences of cell phone use while driving in the USA, more enforcement and targeted public safety campaigns are likely needed. PMID:27301485

Enforcement of underage sales laws as a predictor of daily smoking among adolescents: a national study.

PubMed

DiFranza, Joseph R; Savageau, Judith A; Fletcher, Kenneth E

2009-04-17

With a goal to reduce youth smoking rates, the U.S. federal government mandated that states enforce laws prohibiting underage tobacco sales. Our objective was to determine if state compliance with tobacco sales laws is associated with a decreased risk of current daily smoking among adolescents. Data on tobacco use were obtained from a nationally representative sample of 16,244 adolescents from the 2003 Monitoring the Future survey. The association between merchant compliance with the law from 1997-2003 and current daily smoking was examined using logistic regression while controlling for cigarette prices, state restaurant smoking policies, anti-tobacco media, and demographic variables. Higher average state merchant compliance from 1997-2003 predicted lower levels of current daily smoking among adolescents when controlled for all other factors. The odds ratio for daily smoking was reduced by 2% for each 1% increase in merchant compliance. After controlling for price changes, media campaigns and smoking restrictions, a 20.8% reduction in the odds of smoking among 10th graders in 2003 was attributed to the observed improvement in merchant compliance between 1997 and 2003. A 47% reduction in the odds of daily smoking could be attributed to price increases over this period. Federally mandated enforcement efforts by states to prevent the sale of tobacco to minors appear to have made an important contribution to the observed decline in smoking among youth in the U.S. Given similar results from long-term enforcement efforts in Australia, other countries should be encouraged to adopt the World Health Organization Framework on Tobacco Control strategies to reduce the sale of tobacco to minors.

European Academy of Paediatrics Statement: Vision zero for child deaths in traffic accidents.

PubMed

Ludvigsson, Jonas F; Stiris, Tom; Del Torso, Stefano; Mercier, Jean-Christophe; Valiulis, Arunas; Hadjipanayis, Adamos

2017-02-01

Road traffic accidents are the leading cause of death and disability in children throughout Europe. They remain the leading cause of death among children 5--19 years old in Europe. Children may be injured as pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists or passengers in cars. The European Academy of Pediatrics (EAP) strives to prevent morbidity and death in children. We urge policy-makers to actively work for a "vision zero", where no child is killed in traffic. EAP suggests simple measures such as, secure transport for children between home and school, speed limits, road bumps, wearing bike helmets and seat belts, using child-restraints for small children and enforcement of legislation on road safety.

Laser machining of southern pine

Treesearch

C. W. McMillin; J. E. Harry

1971-01-01

When cutting with an air-jet-assisted carbon-dioxide laser of 240 watts output power, maximum feed speed at the point of full penetration of the beam decreased with increasing workpiece thickness in both wet and dry samples; the trend was curvilinear. Feed speeds averaged 99.1 and 14.6 inches per minute for samples 0.25 and 1.00 inch thick, respectively. Somewhat...

The Relationship between Multiplication Fact Speed-Recall and Fluency and Higher Level Mathematics Learning with Eighth Grade Middle School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Curry, Steven James

2012-01-01

This quantitative study investigated relationships between higher level mathematics learning and multiplication fact fluency, multiplication fact speed-recall, and reading grade equivalency of eighth grade students in Algebra I and Pre-Algebra. Higher level mathematics learning was indicated by an average score of 80% or higher on first and second…

The Wind Energy Potential of Kurdistan, Iran

PubMed Central

Arefi, Farzad; Moshtagh, Jamal; Moradi, Mohammad

2014-01-01

In the current work by using statistical methods and available software, the wind energy assessment of prone regions for installation of wind turbines in, Qorveh, has been investigated. Information was obtained from weather stations of Baneh, Bijar, Zarina, Saqez, Sanandaj, Qorveh, and Marivan. The monthly average and maximum of wind speed were investigated between the years 2000–2010 and the related curves were drawn. The Golobad curve (direction and percentage of dominant wind and calm wind as monthly rate) between the years 1997–2000 was analyzed and drawn with plot software. The ten-minute speed (at 10, 30, and 60 m height) and direction (at 37.5 and 10 m height) wind data were collected from weather stations of Iranian new energy organization. The wind speed distribution during one year was evaluated by using Weibull probability density function (two-parametrical), and the Weibull curve histograms were drawn by MATLAB software. According to the average wind speed of stations and technical specifications of the types of turbines, the suitable wind turbine for the station was selected. Finally, the Divandareh and Qorveh sites with favorable potential were considered for installation of wind turbines and construction of wind farms. PMID:27355042

Effect of speed matching on fundamental diagram of pedestrian flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, Zhijian; Luo, Lin; Yang, Yue; Zhuang, Yifan; Zhang, Peitong; Yang, Lizhong; Yang, Hongtai; Ma, Jian; Zhu, Kongjin; Li, Yanlai

2016-09-01

Properties of pedestrian may change along their moving path, for example, as a result of fatigue or injury, which has never been properly investigated in the past research. The paper attempts to study the speed matching effect (a pedestrian adjusts his velocity constantly to the average velocity of his neighbors) and its influence on the density-velocity relationship (a pedestrian adjust his velocity to the surrounding density), known as the fundamental diagram of the pedestrian flow. By the means of the cellular automaton, the simulation results fit well with the empirical data, indicating the great advance of the discrete model for pedestrian dynamics. The results suggest that the system velocity and flow rate increase obviously under a big noise, i.e., a diverse composition of pedestrian crowd, especially in the region of middle or high density. Because of the temporary effect, the speed matching has little influence on the fundamental diagram. Along the entire density, the relationship between the step length and the average pedestrian velocity is a piecewise function combined two linear functions. The number of conflicts reaches the maximum with the pedestrian density of 2.5 m-2, while decreases by 5.1% with the speed matching.

Comparison of sound speed measurements on two different ultrasound tomography devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sak, Mark; Duric, Neb; Littrup, Peter; Bey-Knight, Lisa; Sherman, Mark; Gierach, Gretchen; Malyarenko, Antonina

2014-03-01

Ultrasound tomography (UST) employs sound waves to produce three-dimensional images of breast tissue and precisely measures the attenuation of sound speed secondary to breast tissue composition. High breast density is a strong breast cancer risk factor and sound speed is directly proportional to breast density. UST provides a quantitative measure of breast density based on three-dimensional imaging without compression, thereby overcoming the shortcomings of many other imaging modalities. The quantitative nature of the UST breast density measures are tied to an external standard, so sound speed measurement in breast tissue should be independent of specific hardware. The work presented here compares breast sound speed measurement obtained with two different UST devices. The Computerized Ultrasound Risk Evaluation (CURE) system located at the Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit, Michigan was recently replaced with the SoftVue ultrasound tomographic device. Ongoing clinical trials have used images generated from both sets of hardware, so maintaining consistency in sound speed measurements is important. During an overlap period when both systems were in the same exam room, a total of 12 patients had one or both of their breasts imaged on both systems on the same day. There were 22 sound speed scans analyzed from each system and the average breast sound speeds were compared. Images were either reconstructed using saved raw data (for both CURE and SoftVue) or were created during the image acquisition (saved in DICOM format for SoftVue scans only). The sound speed measurements from each system were strongly and positively correlated with each other. The average difference in sound speed between the two sets of data was on the order of 1-2 m/s and this result was not statistically significant. The only sets of images that showed a statistical difference were the DICOM images created during the SoftVue scan compared to the SoftVue images reconstructed from the raw data. However, the discrepancy between the sound speed values could be easily handled by uniformly increasing the DICOM sound speed by approximately 0.5 m/s. These results suggest that there is no fundamental difference in sound speed measurement for the two systems and support combining data generated with these instruments in future studies.

Recent trends in power system reliability and implications for evaluating future investments in resiliency

DOE PAGES

Larsen, Peter H.; LaCommare, Kristina H.; Eto, Joseph H.; ...

2016-10-27

Here, this study examines the relationship between annual changes in electricity reliability reported by a large cross-section of U.S. electricity distribution utilities over a period of 13 years and a broad set of potential explanatory variables, including weather and utility characteristics. We find statistically significant correlations between the average number of power interruptions experienced annually and above average wind speeds, precipitation, lightning strikes, and a measure of population density: customers per line mile. We also find significant relationships between the average number of minutes of power interruptions experienced and above average wind speeds, precipitation, cooling degree-days, and one strategy usedmore » to mitigate the impacts of severe weather: the amount of underground transmission and distribution line miles. Perhaps most importantly, we find a significant time trend of increasing annual average number of minutes of power interruptions over time—especially when interruptions associated with extreme weather are included. Lastly, the research method described in this analysis can provide a basis for future efforts to project long-term trends in reliability and the associated benefits of strategies to improve grid resiliency to severe weather—both in the U.S. and abroad.« less

Jitter compensation circuit

DOEpatents

Sullivan, James S.; Ball, Don G.

1997-01-01

The instantaneous V.sub.co signal on a charging capacitor is sampled and the charge voltage on capacitor C.sub.o is captured just prior to its discharge into the first stage of magnetic modulator. The captured signal is applied to an averaging circuit with a long time constant and to the positive input terminal of a differential amplifier. The averaged V.sub. co signal is split between a gain stage (G=0.975) and a feedback stage that determines the slope of the voltage ramp applied to the high speed comparator. The 97.5% portion of the averaged V.sub.co signal is applied to the negative input of a differential amplifier gain stage (G=10). The differential amplifier produces an error signal by subtracting 97.5% of the averaged V.sub.co signal from the instantaneous value of sampled V.sub.co signal and multiplying the difference by ten. The resulting error signal is applied to the positive input of a high speed comparator. The error signal is then compared to a voltage ramp that is proportional to the averaged V.sub.co values squared divided by the total volt-second product of the magnetic compression circuit.

Jitter compensation circuit

DOEpatents

Sullivan, J.S.; Ball, D.G.

1997-09-09

The instantaneous V{sub co} signal on a charging capacitor is sampled and the charge voltage on capacitor C{sub o} is captured just prior to its discharge into the first stage of magnetic modulator. The captured signal is applied to an averaging circuit with a long time constant and to the positive input terminal of a differential amplifier. The averaged V{sub co} signal is split between a gain stage (G = 0.975) and a feedback stage that determines the slope of the voltage ramp applied to the high speed comparator. The 97.5% portion of the averaged V{sub co} signal is applied to the negative input of a differential amplifier gain stage (G = 10). The differential amplifier produces an error signal by subtracting 97.5% of the averaged V{sub co} signal from the instantaneous value of sampled V{sub co} signal and multiplying the difference by ten. The resulting error signal is applied to the positive input of a high speed comparator. The error signal is then compared to a voltage ramp that is proportional to the averaged V{sub co} values squared divided by the total volt-second product of the magnetic compression circuit. 11 figs.

Comparative analysis of operational forecasts versus actual weather conditions in airline flight planning, volume 3

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keitz, J. F.

1982-01-01

The impact of more timely and accurate weather data on airline flight planning with the emphasis on fuel savings is studied. This volume of the report discusses the results of Task 3 of the four major tasks included in the study. Task 3 compares flight plans developed on the Suitland forecast with actual data observed by the aircraft (and averaged over 10 degree segments). The results show that the average difference between the forecast and observed wind speed is 9 kts. without considering direction, and the average difference in the component of the forecast wind parallel to the direction of the observed wind is 13 kts. - both indicating that the Suitland forecast underestimates the wind speeds. The Root Mean Square (RMS) vector error is 30.1 kts. The average absolute difference in direction between the forecast and observed wind is 26 degrees and the temperature difference is 3 degree Centigrade. These results indicate that the forecast model as well as the verifying analysis used to develop comparison flight plans in Tasks 1 and 2 is a limiting factor and that the average potential fuel savings or penalty are up to 3.6 percent depending on the direction of flight.

Analysis of Low-Speed Stall Aerodynamics of a Business Jets Wing Using STAR-CCM+

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bui, Trong

2016-01-01

Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis was conducted: to study the low-speed stall aerodynamics of a GIII aircrafts swept wing modified with (1) a laminar-flow wing glove, or (2) a seamless flap. The stall aerodynamics of these two different wing configurations were analyzed and compared with the unmodified baseline wing for low-speed flight. The Star-CCM+ polyhedral unstructured CFD code was first validated for wing stall predictions using the wing-body geometry from the First AIAA CFD High-Lift Prediction Workshop.

Measurement of global oceanic winds from Seasat-SMMR and its comparison with Seasat-SASS and ALT derived winds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pandey, Prem C.

1987-01-01

The retrieval of ocean-surface wind speed from different channel combinations of Seasat SMMR measurements is demonstrated. Wind speeds derived using the best two channel subsets (10.6 H and 18.0 V) were compared with in situ data collected during the Joint Air-Sea Interaction (JASIN) experiment and an rms difference of 1.5 m/s was found. Global maps of wind speed generated with the present algorithm show that the averaged winds are arranged in well-ordered belts.

Visualization of impact damage of composite plates by means of the Moire technique

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knauss, W. G.; Babcock, C. D.; Chai, H.

1980-01-01

The phenomenological aspects of propagation damage due to low velocity impact on heavily loaded graphite-epoxy composite laminates were investigated using high speed photography coupled with the moire fringe technique. High speed moire motion records of the impacted specimens are presented. The results provide information on the time scale and sequence of the failure process. While the generation of the initial damage cannot always be separated temporally from the spreading of the damage, the latter takes place on the average with a speed on the order of 200 m/sec.

Use of a new high-speed digital data acquisition system in airborne ice-sounding

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wright, David L.; Bradley, Jerry A.; Hodge, Steven M.

1989-01-01

A high-speed digital data acquisition and signal averaging system for borehole, surface, and airborne radio-frequency geophysical measurements was designed and built by the US Geological Survey. The system permits signal averaging at rates high enough to achieve significant signal-to-noise enhancement in profiling, even in airborne applications. The first field use of the system took place in Greenland in 1987 for recording data on a 150 by 150-km grid centered on the summit of the Greenland ice sheet. About 6000-line km were flown and recorded using the new system. The data can be used to aid in siting a proposed scientific corehole through the ice sheet.

Meteorological Automatic Weather Station (MAWS) Instrument Handbook

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

Holdridge, Donna J; Kyrouac, Jenni A

The Meteorological Automatic Weather Station (MAWS) is a surface meteorological station, manufactured by Vaisala, Inc., dedicated to the balloon-borne sounding system (BBSS), providing surface measurements of the thermodynamic state of the atmosphere and the wind speed and direction for each radiosonde profile. These data are automatically provided to the BBSS during the launch procedure and included in the radiosonde profile as the surface measurements of record for the sounding. The MAWS core set of measurements is: Barometric Pressure (hPa), Temperature (°C), Relative Humidity (%), Arithmetic-Averaged Wind Speed (m/s), and Vector-Averaged Wind Direction (deg). The sensors that collect the core variablesmore » are mounted at the standard heights defined for each variable.« less

A novel approach to estimate emissions from large transportation networks: Hierarchical clustering-based link-driving-schedules for EPA-MOVES using dynamic time warping measures

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

Aziz, H. M. Abdul; Ukkusuri, Satish V.

We present that EPA-MOVES (Motor Vehicle Emission Simulator) is often integrated with traffic simulators to assess emission levels of large-scale urban networks with signalized intersections. High variations in speed profiles exist in the context of congested urban networks with signalized intersections. The traditional average-speed-based emission estimation technique with EPA-MOVES provides faster execution while underestimates the emissions in most cases because of ignoring the speed variation at congested networks with signalized intersections. In contrast, the atomic second-by-second speed profile (i.e., the trajectory of each vehicle)-based technique provides accurate emissions at the cost of excessive computational power and time. We addressed thismore » issue by developing a novel method to determine the link-driving-schedules (LDSs) for the EPA-MOVES tool. Our research developed a hierarchical clustering technique with dynamic time warping similarity measures (HC-DTW) to find the LDS for EPA-MOVES that is capable of producing emission estimates better than the average-speed-based technique with execution time faster than the atomic speed profile approach. We applied the HC-DTW on a sample data from a signalized corridor and found that HC-DTW can significantly reduce computational time without compromising the accuracy. The developed technique in this research can substantially contribute to the EPA-MOVES-based emission estimation process for large-scale urban transportation network by reducing the computational time with reasonably accurate estimates. This method is highly appropriate for transportation networks with higher variation in speed such as signalized intersections. Lastly, experimental results show error difference ranging from 2% to 8% for most pollutants except PM 10.« less

A novel approach to estimate emissions from large transportation networks: Hierarchical clustering-based link-driving-schedules for EPA-MOVES using dynamic time warping measures

DOE PAGES

Aziz, H. M. Abdul; Ukkusuri, Satish V.

2017-06-29

We present that EPA-MOVES (Motor Vehicle Emission Simulator) is often integrated with traffic simulators to assess emission levels of large-scale urban networks with signalized intersections. High variations in speed profiles exist in the context of congested urban networks with signalized intersections. The traditional average-speed-based emission estimation technique with EPA-MOVES provides faster execution while underestimates the emissions in most cases because of ignoring the speed variation at congested networks with signalized intersections. In contrast, the atomic second-by-second speed profile (i.e., the trajectory of each vehicle)-based technique provides accurate emissions at the cost of excessive computational power and time. We addressed thismore » issue by developing a novel method to determine the link-driving-schedules (LDSs) for the EPA-MOVES tool. Our research developed a hierarchical clustering technique with dynamic time warping similarity measures (HC-DTW) to find the LDS for EPA-MOVES that is capable of producing emission estimates better than the average-speed-based technique with execution time faster than the atomic speed profile approach. We applied the HC-DTW on a sample data from a signalized corridor and found that HC-DTW can significantly reduce computational time without compromising the accuracy. The developed technique in this research can substantially contribute to the EPA-MOVES-based emission estimation process for large-scale urban transportation network by reducing the computational time with reasonably accurate estimates. This method is highly appropriate for transportation networks with higher variation in speed such as signalized intersections. Lastly, experimental results show error difference ranging from 2% to 8% for most pollutants except PM 10.« less

Up-down Asymmetries in Speed Perception

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thompson, Peter; Stone, Leland S.

1997-01-01

We compared speed matches for pairs of stimuli that moved in opposite directions (upward and downward). Stimuli were elliptical patches (2 deg horizontally by 1 deg vertically) of horizontal sinusoidal gratings of spatial. frequency 2 cycles/deg. Two sequential 380 msec reveal presentations were compared. One of each pair of gratings (the standard) moved at 4 Hz (2 deg/sec), the other (the test) moved at a rate determined by a simple up-down staircase. The point of subjectively equal speed was calculated from the average of the last eight reversals. The task was to fixate a central point and to determine which one of the pair appeared to move faster. Eight of 10 observers perceived the upward drifting grating as moving faster than a grating moving downward but otherwise identical. on average (N = 10), when the standard moved downward, it was matched by a test moving upward at 94.7+/-1.7(SE)% of the standard speed, and when the standard moved upward it was matched by a test moving downward at 105.1+/-2.3(SE)% of the standard speed. Extending this paradigm over a range of spatial (1.5 to 13.5 c/d) and temporal (1.5 to 13.5 Hz) frequencies, preliminary results (N = 4) suggest that, under the conditions of our experiment, upward matter is seen as faster than downward for speeds greater than approx.1 deg/sec, but the effect appears to reverse at speeds below approx.1 deg/sec with downward motion perceived as faster. Given that an up-down asymmetry has been observed for the optokinetic response, both perceptual and oculomotor contributions to this phenomenon deserve exploration.

Variability in the Speed of the Brewer-Dobson Circulation as Observed by Aura/MLS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Flury, Thomas; Wu, Dong L.; Read, W. G.

2013-01-01

We use Aura/MLS stratospheric water vapour (H2O) measurements as tracer for dynamics and infer interannual variations in the speed of the Brewer-Dobson circulation (BDC) from 2004 to 2011. We correlate one-year time series of H2O in the lower stratosphere at two subsequent pressure levels (68 hPa, approx.18.8 km and 56 hPa, approx 19.9 km at the Equator) and determine the time lag for best correlation. The same calculation is made on the horizontal on the 100 hPa (approx 16.6 km) level by correlating the H2O time series at the Equator with the ones at 40 N and 40 S. From these lag coefficients we derive the vertical and horizontal speeds of the BDC in the tropics and extra-tropics, respectively. We observe a clear interannual variability of the vertical and horizontal branch. The variability reflects signatures of the Quasi Biennial Oscillation (QBO). Our measurements confirm the QBO meridional circulation anomalies and show that the speed variations in the two branches of the BDC are out of phase and fairly well anti-correlated. Maximum ascent rates are found during the QBO easterly phase. We also find that transport of H2O towards the Northern Hemisphere (NH) is on the average two times faster than to the Southern Hemisphere (SH) with a mean speed of 1.15m/s at 100 hPa. Furthermore, the speed towards the NH shows much more interannual variability with an amplitude of about 21% whilst the speed towards the SH varies by only 10 %. An amplitude of 21% is also observed in the variability of the ascent rate at the Equator which is on the average 0.2mm/s.

The Relationship between Power Generated by Thrust and Power to Overcome Drag in Elite Short Distance Swimmers.

PubMed

Gatta, Giorgio; Cortesi, Matteo; Zamparo, Paola

At constant average speed (v), a balance between thrust force (Ft) and drag force (Fd) should occur: Ft-Fd = 0; hence the power generated by thrust forces (Pt = Ft·v) should be equal to the power needed to overcome drag forces at that speed (Pd = Fd·v); the aim of this study was to measure Pt (tethered swims), to estimate Pd in active conditions (at sprint speed) and to compare these values. 10 front crawl male elite swimmers (expertise: 93.1 ± 2.4% of 50 m world record) participated to the study; their sprint speed was measured during a 30 m maximal trial. Ft was assessed during a 15 s tethered effort; passive towing measurement were performed to determine speed specific drag in passive conditions (kP = passive drag force/v2); drag force in active conditions (Fd = kA·v2) was calculated assuming that kA = 1.5·kP. Average sprint speed was 2.20 ± 0.07 m·s-1; kA, at this speed, was 37.2 ± 2.7 N·s2·m-2. No significant differences (paired t-test: p > 0.8) were observed between Pt (399 ± 56 W) and Pd (400 ± 57 W) and a strong correlation (R = 0.95, p < 0.001) was observed between these two parameters. The Bland-Altman plot indicated a good agreement and a small, acceptable, error (bias: -0.89 W, limits of agreement: -25.5 and 23.7 W). Power thrust experiments can thus be suggested as a valid tool for estimating a swimmer's power propulsion.

A pilot study on the optimal speeds for passive wrist movements by a rehabilitation robot of stroke patients: A functional NIRS study.

PubMed

Bae, Sung Jin; Jang, Sung Ho; Seo, Jeong Pyo; Chang, Pyung Hun

2017-07-01

The optimal conditions inducing proper brain activation during performance of rehabilitation robots should be examined to enhance the efficiency of robot rehabilitation based on the concept of brain plasticity. In this study, we attempted to investigate differences in cortical activation according to the speeds of passive wrist movements performed by a rehabilitation robot for stroke patients. 9 stroke patients with right hemiparesis participated in this study. Passive movements of the affected wrist were performed by the rehabilitation robot at three different speeds: 0.25 Hz; slow, 0.5Hz; moderate and 0.75 Hz; fast. We used functional near-infrared spectroscopy to measure the brain activity during the passive movements performed by a robot. Group-average activation map and the relative changes in oxy-hemoglobin (ΔOxyHb) in two regions of interest: the primary sensory-motor cortex (SM1); premotor area (PMA) and region of all channels were measured. In the result of group-averaged activation map, the contralateral SM1, PMA and somatosensory association cortex (SAC) showed the greatest significant activation according to the movements at 0.75 Hz, while there is no significantly activated area at 0.5 Hz. Regarding ΔOxyHb, no significant diiference was observed among three speeds regardless of region. In conclusion, the contralateral SM1, PMA and SAC showed the greatest activation by a fast speed (0.75 Hz) rather than slow (0.25 Hz) and moderate (0. 5 Hz) speed. Our results suggest an optimal speed for execution of the wrist rehabilitation robot. Therefore, we believe that our findings might point to several promising applications for future research regarding useful and empirically-based robot rehabilitation therapy.

Relationship between wind speed and gas exchange over the ocean

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wanninkhof, Rik

1992-01-01

A quadratic dependence of gas exchange on wind speed is employed to analyze the relationship between gas transfer and wind speed with particular emphasizing variable and/or low wind speeds. The quadratic dependence is fit through gas-transfer velocities over the ocean determined by methods based on the natural C-14 disequilibrium and the bomb C-14 inventory. The variation in the CO2 levels is related to these mechanisms, but the results show that other causes play significant roles. A weaker dependence of gas transfer on wind is suggested for steady winds, and long-term averaged winds demonstrate a stronger dependence in the present model. The chemical enhancement of CO2 exchange is also shown to play a role by increasing CO2 fluxes at low wind speeds.

Fourier domain mode locking at 1050 nm for ultra-high-speed optical coherence tomography of the human retina at 236,000 axial scans per second.

PubMed

Huber, R; Adler, D C; Srinivasan, V J; Fujimoto, J G

2007-07-15

A Fourier domain mode-locked (FDML) laser at 1050 nm for ultra-high-speed optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging of the human retina is demonstrated. Achievable performance, physical limitations, design rules, and scaling principles for FDML operation and component choice in this wavelength range are discussed. The fiber-based FDML laser operates at a sweep rate of 236 kHz over a 63 nm tuning range, with 7 mW average output power. Ultra-high-speed retinal imaging is demonstrated at 236,000 axial scans per second. This represents a speed improvement of approximately10x over typical high-speed OCT systems, paving the way for densely sampled volumetric data sets and new imaging protocols.

A survey of Canadian Alpine ski racing coaches regarding spinal protective devices for their athletes

PubMed Central

Stainsby, Brynne; Law, Jeremy; Mackinnon, Amy

2014-01-01

Introduction: Spinal protective devices are a recent addition to the protective equipment worn by competitive and recreational alpine skiers and snowboarders. Their rate of use is not documented at the time of publication. The objective of this study was to examine the current attitudes and recommendations of Canadian alpine ski racing coaches towards spinal protective devices. Methods: A convenience sample of alpine ski racing coaches across Canada were contacted in each provincial sport governing body in the ski racing community. A ten question online survey was attached to the initial email. Descriptive statistical analysis was utilized. Results: A total of 29 Canadian alpine ski racing coaches completed the study survey. All participants were familiar with spinal protective devices and 51.7% of respondents reported that they do not actively enforce spinal protective device use with their ski racing athletes. 80% of respondents reported that their Canadian ski racing club did not have guidelines or policies regarding spinal protective device use. 86.2% of respondents were unaware if their provincial sport organization had a policy regarding their use. Discussion: The majority of coaches reporting training athletes aged 10–15, which may help to explain why only half of those surveyed enforce the use of spinal protective devices. This group of athletes may not participate in speed events as frequently as older athletes, where the use of spinal protective devices is more common. Conclusion: The majority of Canadian Alpine ski coaches report a belief that spinal protective device use is important, however, far fewer enforce their use, or work in an environment with a policy requiring it. Further research is required to determine the differences in beliefs and practice. PMID:25550668

The Pattern of Road Traffic Crashes in South East Iran

PubMed Central

Rad, Mahdieh; Martiniuk, Alexandra LC.; Ansari-Moghaddam, Alireza; Mohammadi, Mahdi; Rashedi, Fariborz; Ghasemi, Ardavan

2016-01-01

Background: In the present study, the epidemiologic aspects of road traffic crashes in South East of Iran are described. Methods: This cross-sectional study included the profile of 2398 motor vehicle crashes recorded in the police office in one Year in South East of Iran. Data collected included: demographics, the type of crash, type of involved vehicle, location of crash and factors contributing to the crash. Descriptive statistics were used for data analysis. Results: Collisions with other vehicles or objects contributed the highest proportion (62.4%) of motor vehicle crashes. Human factors including careless driving, violating traffic laws, speeding, and sleep deprivation/fatigue were the most important causal factors accounting for 90% of road crashes. Data shows that 41% of drivers were not using a seat belt at the time of crash. One- third of the crashes resulted in injury (25%) or death (5%). Conclusions: Reckless driving such as speeding and violation of traffic laws are major risk factors for crashes in the South East of Iran. This highlights the need for education along with traffic law enforcement to reduce motor vehicle crashes in future. PMID:27157159

The Pattern of Road Traffic Crashes in South East Iran.

PubMed

Rad, Mahdieh; Martiniuk, Alexandra Lc; Ansari-Moghaddam, Alireza; Mohammadi, Mahdi; Rashedi, Fariborz; Ghasemi, Ardavan

2016-09-01

In the present study, the epidemiologic aspects of road traffic crashes in South East of Iran are described. This cross-sectional study included the profile of 2398 motor vehicle crashes recorded in the police office in one Year in South East of Iran. Data collected included: demographics, the type of crash, type of involved vehicle, location of crash and factors contributing to the crash. Descriptive statistics were used for data analysis. Collisions with other vehicles or objects contributed the highest proportion (62.4%) of motor vehicle crashes. Human factors including careless driving, violating traffic laws, speeding, and sleep deprivation/fatigue were the most important causal factors accounting for 90% of road crashes. Data shows that 41% of drivers were not using a seat belt at the time of crash. One- third of the crashes resulted in injury (25%) or death (5%). Reckless driving such as speeding and violation of traffic laws are major risk factors for crashes in the South East of Iran. This highlights the need for education along with traffic law enforcement to reduce motor vehicle crashes in future.

Traffic citation rates among drivers of different residency status in the United States.

PubMed

Romano, Eduardo; Tippetts, Scott; Fell, James; Eichelberger, Angela; Grosz, Milton; Wiliszowski, Connie

2013-03-01

Racial/ethnic groups in the United States may be overrepresented in motor-vehicle incidents (crashes and violations), particularly among low-acculturated immigrants coming from countries in which traffic laws are not well enforced. Some evidence suggests just the opposite. We collected and analyzed information on the residency status of licensed drivers in Florida and Tennessee to examine the hypothesis that the prevalence of seat-belt nonuse, DWI, speeding, and failures to obey a traffic signal was higher among recent immigrants than among US citizens. We rejected this hypothesis. Both in Florida and Tennessee, US citizens were more likely to be cited for DWI, seat-belt, or speeding violations than the noncitizens. However, immigrants were more often cited for failure-to-obey than US citizens. We concluded that residency status does, appear to play a role in the likelihood of traffic violations, but this role is far from uniform; varying depending upon the type of traffic violation, the racial/ethnic group, and the state in which the violation occurred. Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Parallelization of fine-scale computation in Agile Multiscale Modelling Methodology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Macioł, Piotr; Michalik, Kazimierz

2016-10-01

Nowadays, multiscale modelling of material behavior is an extensively developed area. An important obstacle against its wide application is high computational demands. Among others, the parallelization of multiscale computations is a promising solution. Heterogeneous multiscale models are good candidates for parallelization, since communication between sub-models is limited. In this paper, the possibility of parallelization of multiscale models based on Agile Multiscale Methodology framework is discussed. A sequential, FEM based macroscopic model has been combined with concurrently computed fine-scale models, employing a MatCalc thermodynamic simulator. The main issues, being investigated in this work are: (i) the speed-up of multiscale models with special focus on fine-scale computations and (ii) on decreasing the quality of computations enforced by parallel execution. Speed-up has been evaluated on the basis of Amdahl's law equations. The problem of `delay error', rising from the parallel execution of fine scale sub-models, controlled by the sequential macroscopic sub-model is discussed. Some technical aspects of combining third-party commercial modelling software with an in-house multiscale framework and a MPI library are also discussed.

Acceleration of high resolution temperature based optimization for hyperthermia treatment planning using element grouping.

PubMed

Kok, H P; de Greef, M; Bel, A; Crezee, J

2009-08-01

In regional hyperthermia, optimization is useful to obtain adequate applicator settings. A speed-up of the previously published method for high resolution temperature based optimization is proposed. Element grouping as described in literature uses selected voxel sets instead of single voxels to reduce computation time. Elements which achieve their maximum heating potential for approximately the same phase/amplitude setting are grouped. To form groups, eigenvalues and eigenvectors of precomputed temperature matrices are used. At high resolution temperature matrices are unknown and temperatures are estimated using low resolution (1 cm) computations and the high resolution (2 mm) temperature distribution computed for low resolution optimized settings using zooming. This technique can be applied to estimate an upper bound for high resolution eigenvalues. The heating potential of elements was estimated using these upper bounds. Correlations between elements were estimated with low resolution eigenvalues and eigenvectors, since high resolution eigenvectors remain unknown. Four different grouping criteria were applied. Constraints were set to the average group temperatures. Element grouping was applied for five patients and optimal settings for the AMC-8 system were determined. Without element grouping the average computation times for five and ten runs were 7.1 and 14.4 h, respectively. Strict grouping criteria were necessary to prevent an unacceptable exceeding of the normal tissue constraints (up to approximately 2 degrees C), caused by constraining average instead of maximum temperatures. When strict criteria were applied, speed-up factors of 1.8-2.1 and 2.6-3.5 were achieved for five and ten runs, respectively, depending on the grouping criteria. When many runs are performed, the speed-up factor will converge to 4.3-8.5, which is the average reduction factor of the constraints and depends on the grouping criteria. Tumor temperatures were comparable. Maximum exceeding of the constraint in a hot spot was 0.24-0.34 degree C; average maximum exceeding over all five patients was 0.09-0.21 degree C, which is acceptable. High resolution temperature based optimization using element grouping can achieve a speed-up factor of 4-8, without large deviations from the conventional method.

Outdoor air pollution in close proximity to a continuous point source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klepeis, Neil E.; Gabel, Etienne B.; Ott, Wayne R.; Switzer, Paul

Data are lacking on human exposure to air pollutants occurring in ground-level outdoor environments within a few meters of point sources. To better understand outdoor exposure to tobacco smoke from cigarettes or cigars, and exposure to other types of outdoor point sources, we performed more than 100 controlled outdoor monitoring experiments on a backyard residential patio in which we released pure carbon monoxide (CO) as a tracer gas for continuous time periods lasting 0.5-2 h. The CO was emitted from a single outlet at a fixed per-experiment rate of 120-400 cc min -1 (˜140-450 mg min -1). We measured CO concentrations every 15 s at up to 36 points around the source along orthogonal axes. The CO sensors were positioned at standing or sitting breathing heights of 2-5 ft (up to 1.5 ft above and below the source) and at horizontal distances of 0.25-2 m. We simultaneously measured real-time air speed, wind direction, relative humidity, and temperature at single points on the patio. The ground-level air speeds on the patio were similar to those we measured during a survey of 26 outdoor patio locations in 5 nearby towns. The CO data exhibited a well-defined proximity effect similar to the indoor proximity effect reported in the literature. Average concentrations were approximately inversely proportional to distance. Average CO levels were approximately proportional to source strength, supporting generalization of our results to different source strengths. For example, we predict a cigarette smoker would cause average fine particle levels of approximately 70-110 μg m -3 at horizontal distances of 0.25-0.5 m. We also found that average CO concentrations rose significantly as average air speed decreased. We fit a multiplicative regression model to the empirical data that predicts outdoor concentrations as a function of source emission rate, source-receptor distance, air speed and wind direction. The model described the data reasonably well, accounting for ˜50% of the log-CO variability in 5-min CO concentrations.

Micromechanical models for textile structural composites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marrey, Ramesh V.; Sankar, Bhavani V.

1995-01-01

The objective is to develop micromechanical models for predicting the stiffness and strength properties of textile composite materials. Two models are presented to predict the homogeneous elastic constants and coefficients of thermal expansion of a textile composite. The first model is based on rigorous finite element analysis of the textile composite unit-cell. Periodic boundary conditions are enforced between opposite faces of the unit-cell to simulate deformations accurately. The second model implements the selective averaging method (SAM), which is based on a judicious combination of stiffness and compliance averaging. For thin textile composites, both models can predict the plate stiffness coefficients and plate thermal coefficients. The finite element procedure is extended to compute the thermal residual microstresses, and to estimate the initial failure envelope for textile composites.

Typical and Unusual Properties of Magnetic Clouds during the WIND Era

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lepping, R. P.; Berdichevsky, D.; Szabo, A.; Burlaga, L. F.; Thompson, B. J.; Mariani, F.; Lazarus, A. J.; Steinberg, J. T.

1999-01-01

A list of 33 magnetic clouds as identified in WIND magnetic field and plasma data has been compiled. The intervals for these events are provided as part of NASA/GSFC, WIND-MFI's Website under the URL http://lepmfi.qsfc.nasa.gov/mfi/mag_cloud publ.html#table The period covered in this study is from early 1995 to November 1998 which primarily occurs in the quiet part of the solar cycle. A force free, cylindrically symmetric, magnetic field model has been applied to the field data in 1-hour averaged form for all of these events (except one small event where 10 min avg's were used) and the resulting fit-parameters examined. Each event was provided a semi-quantitatively determined quality factor (excellent, good or poor). A set of 28 good or better cases, spanning a surprisingly large range of values for its various properties, was used for further analysis. These properties are, for example, durations, attitudes, sizes, asymmetries, axial field strengths, speeds, and relative impact parameters. They will be displayed and analyzed, along with some related derived quantities, with emphasis on typical vs unusual properties and on the magnetic fields magnetic clouds' relationships to the Sun and to upstream interplanetary shocks, where possible. For example, it is remarkable how narrowly distributed the speeds of these clouds are, and the overall average speed (390 techniques km/s) is less than that normally quoted for the average solar wind speed (420 km/s) despite the fact that many of these clouds are d"drivers" of interplanetary shocks. On average, a cloud appears to be a little less symmetric when the spacecraft is able to pass close to the cloud's axis as compared to a farther out passage. The average longitude and latitude (in GSE) of the axes of the clouds are 85 degrees and 8 degrees, respectively, with standard deviations near 40 degrees. Also, the half=yearly averaged axial magnetic flux has approximately tripled. almost monotonically, from about 6 to 17 X 10(exp 29) Mx over the first 3.5 years of consideration, but with a large uncertainty on each of the half-year estimates, because of small sampling. If true,this finding implies an approximate tripling of the events' solar fluxes over this period as it goes into solar maximum.

Current observations offshore Punta Tuna, Puerto Rico, 21 June-7 December 1980. Part A

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

Frye, D.; Leavitt, K.; Whitney, A.

1981-08-01

An oceanographic measurement program was conducted in the vicinity of a proposed ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) site about 20 km offshore of Punta Tuna, Puerto Rico. As part of the program, a mooring consisting of five current meters was maintained between 21 June and 7 December, 1980. The current data collected are summarized according to frequency of occurrence within 5 cm/sec speed and 15/sup 0/ direction intervals. Sums and percentages of total occurrence are given for each speed and direction class, along with mean speed, extreme speeds, mean component speeds, and standard deviations. Hourly averages of current speed, truemore » direction, current vector, temperature, and pressure are plotted as a function of time. On 13 December, 1980, a current meter array was deployed at the Punta Tuna site and recovered on May 16, 1981. The processed current data from this current meter array are described. (LEW)« less

Prevalence of drink driving and speeding in China: a time series analysis from two cities.

PubMed

Li, Q; He, H; Duan, L; Wang, Y; Bishai, D M; Hyder, A A

2017-03-01

To confront the public health challenge imposed by road traffic injuries in China. A consortium of international partners designed and implemented targeted interventions, such as social media campaigns, advocacy for legislative change and law enforcement training, to reduce the percentage of drink driving and speeding in two Chinese cities, Dalian and Suzhou, from 2010 to 2014. Time series models were developed to detect changes in the prevalence of drink driving and speeding using data collected through four years of observational studies. This analysis, based on 15 rounds of data, shows that from May 2011 to November 2014, the percentage of vehicles driving above the speed limit decreased from 31.8% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 29.2-34.5) to 7.4% (95% CI: 7.0-7.9) in Dalian and from 13.5% (95% CI: 11.7-15.5) to 6.9% (95% CI: 6.4-7.4) in Suzhou. Drink driving decreased from 1.7% (95% CI: 1.1-2.4) in January 2011 to 0.5% (95% CI: 0.2-0.9) in November 2014 in Dalian and from 6.4% (95% CI: 5.4-7.4) to 0.5% (95% CI: 0.1-2.4) in Suzhou during approximately the same period. Time series models confirmed declining trends in both risk factors in both cities (P-value: 0.06 for speeding prevalence in Suzhou; all other P-values are below 0.05). Disaggregated by vehicle type, saloon cars and SUVs were more likely to exceed the posted speed limit than other types of vehicles in both cities. The speeding rate was higher where the posted speed limit is lower. In Dalian, more drivers were driving above the posted speed limit on weekdays than on weekends (11.4% vs 6.8%); Suzhou had a similar pattern, but the difference was smaller (14.0% vs 12.2%). Despite the challenge in accurately attributing the observed changes to one programme, the substantial reduction in the prevalence of the two risk factors suggests that through coordinated actions, internationally recognized best practices in road safety may be effective in improving road traffic safety in China. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Design study of steel V-Belt CVT for electric vehicles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Swain, J. C.; Klausing, T. A.; Wilcox, J. P.

1980-01-01

A continuously variable transmission (CVT) design layout was completed. The intended application was for coupling the flywheel to the driveline of a flywheel battery hybrid electric vehicle. The requirements were that the CVT accommodate flywheel speeds from 14,000 to 28,000 rpm and driveline speeds of 850 to 5000 rpm without slipping. Below 850 rpm a slipping clutch was used between the CVT and the driveline. The CVT was required to accommodate 330 ft-lb maximum torque and 100 hp maximum transient. The weighted average power was 22 hp, the maximum allowable full range shift time was 2 seconds and the required lift was 2600 hours. The resulting design utilized two steel V-belts in series to accommodate the required wide speed ratio. The size of the CVT, including the slipping clutch, was 20.6 inches long, 9.8 inches high and 13.8 inches wide. The estimated weight was 155 lb. An overall potential efficiency of 95 percent was projected for the average power condition.

Anthropometry as a predictor of high speed performance.

PubMed

Caruso, J F; Ramey, E; Hastings, L P; Monda, J K; Coday, M A; McLagan, J; Drummond, J

2009-07-01

To assess anthropometry as a predictor of high-speed performance, subjects performed four seated knee- and hip-extension workouts with their left leg on an inertial exercise trainer (Impulse Technologies, Newnan GA). Workouts, done exclusively in either the tonic or phasic contractile mode, entailed two one-minute sets separated by a 90-second rest period and yielded three performance variables: peak force, average force and work. Subjects provided the following anthropometric data: height, weight, body mass index, as well as total, upper and lower left leg lengths. Via multiple regression, anthropometry attempted to predict the variance per performance variable. Anthropometry explained a modest (R2=0.27-0.43) yet significant degree of variance from inertial exercise trainer workouts. Anthropometry was a better predictor of peak force variance from phasic workouts, while it accounted for a significant degree of average force and work variance solely from tonic workouts. Future research should identify variables that account for the unexplained variance from high-speed exercise performance.

Fan Noise Source Diagnostic Test: Vane Unsteady Pressure Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Envia, Edmane

2002-01-01

To investigate the nature of fan outlet guide vane pressure fluctuations and their link to rotor-stator interaction noise, time histories of vane fluctuating pressures were digitally acquired as part of the Fan Noise Source Diagnostic Test. Vane unsteady pressures were measured at seven fan tip speeds for both a radial and a swept vane configuration. Using time-domain averaging and spectral analysis, the blade passing frequency (BPF) harmonic and broadband contents of the vane pressures were individually analyzed. Significant Sound Pressure Level (SPL) reductions were observed for the swept vane relative to the radial vane for the BPF harmonics of vane pressure, but vane broadband reductions due to sweep turned out to be much smaller especially on an average basis. Cross-correlation analysis was used to establish the level of spatial coherence of broadband pressures between different locations on the vane and integral length scales of pressure fluctuations were estimated from these correlations. Two main results of this work are: (1) the average broadband level on the vane (in dB) increases linearly with the fan tip speed for both the radial and swept vanes, and (2) the broadband pressure distribution on the vane is nearly homogeneous and its integral length scale is a monotonically decreasing function of fan tip speed.

Efficacy of spatial averaging of infrasonic pressure in varying wind speeds.

PubMed

DeWolf, Scott; Walker, Kristoffer T; Zumberge, Mark A; Denis, Stephane

2013-06-01

Wind noise reduction (WNR) is important in the measurement of infrasound. Spatial averaging theory led to the development of rosette pipe arrays. The efficacy of rosettes decreases with increasing wind speed and only provides a maximum of ~20 dB WNR due to a maximum size limitation. An Optical Fiber Infrasound Sensor (OFIS) reduces wind noise by instantaneously averaging infrasound along the sensor's length. In this study two experiments quantify the WNR achieved by rosettes and OFISs of various sizes and configurations. Specifically, it is shown that the WNR for a circular OFIS 18 m in diameter is the same as a collocated 32-inlet pipe array of the same diameter. However, linear OFISs ranging in length from 30 to 270 m provide a WNR of up to ~30 dB in winds up to 5 m/s. The measured WNR is a logarithmic function of the OFIS length and depends on the orientation of the OFIS with respect to wind direction. OFISs oriented parallel to the wind direction achieve ~4 dB greater WNR than those oriented perpendicular to the wind. Analytical models for the rosette and OFIS are developed that predict the general observed relationships between wind noise reduction, frequency, and wind speed.

EXPERIMENTAL AND MODEL-COMPUTED AREA AVERAGED VERTICAL PROFILES OF WIND SPEED FOR EVALUATION OF MESOSCALE URBAN CANOPY SCHEMES

EPA Science Inventory

Numerous urban canopy schemes have recently been developed for mesoscale models in order to approximate the drag and turbulent production effects of a city on the air flow. However, little data exists by which to evaluate the efficacy of the schemes since "area-averaged&quo...

Coronal Mass Ejection-driven Shocks and the Associated Sudden Commencements-sudden Impulses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Veenadhari, B.; Selvakumaran, R.; Singh, Rajesh; Maurya, Ajeet K.; Gopalswamy, N.; Kumar, Sushil; Kikuchi, T.

2012-01-01

Interplanetary (IP) shocks are mainly responsible for the sudden compression of the magnetosphere, causing storm sudden commencement (SC) and sudden impulses (SIs) which are detected by ground-based magnetometers. On the basis of the list of 222 IP shocks compiled by Gopalswamy et al., we have investigated the dependence of SC/SIs amplitudes on the speed of the coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that drive the shocks near the Sun as well as in the interplanetary medium. We find that about 91% of the IP shocks were associated with SC/SIs. The average speed of the SC/SI-associated CMEs is 1015 km/s, which is almost a factor of 2 higher than the general CME speed. When the shocks were grouped according to their ability to produce type II radio burst in the interplanetary medium, we find that the radio-loud (RL) shocks produce a much larger SC/SI amplitude (average approx. 32 nT) compared to the radio-quiet (RQ) shocks (average approx. 19 nT). Clearly, RL shocks are more effective in producing SC/SIs than the RQ shocks. We also divided the IP shocks according to the type of IP counterpart of interplanetary CMEs (ICMEs): magnetic clouds (MCs) and nonmagnetic clouds. We find that the MC-associated shock speeds are better correlated with SC/SI amplitudes than those associated with non-MC ejecta. The SC/SI amplitudes are also higher for MCs than ejecta. Our results show that RL and RQ type of shocks are important parameters in producing the SC/SI amplitude.

Enforcing Alcohol Policies on College Campuses: Reports from College Enforcement Officials

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Toomey, Traci L.; Miazga, Mark J.; Lenk, Kathleen M.; Erickson, Darin J.; Winters, Ken C.; Nelson, Toben F.

2011-01-01

We assessed alcohol enforcement practices at 343 U.S. colleges via surveys of directors of campus law enforcement. We measured types and frequency of enforcement and barriers to enforcement. We found that 61% of colleges indicated nearly always proactively enforcing alcohol policies, with most frequent enforcement at intercollegiate sporting…

Visual processing speed in old age.

PubMed

Habekost, Thomas; Vogel, Asmus; Rostrup, Egill; Bundesen, Claus; Kyllingsbaek, Søren; Garde, Ellen; Ryberg, Charlotte; Waldemar, Gunhild

2013-04-01

Mental speed is a common concept in theories of cognitive aging, but it is difficult to get measures of the speed of a particular psychological process that are not confounded by the speed of other processes. We used Bundesen's (1990) Theory of Visual Attention (TVA) to obtain specific estimates of processing speed in the visual system controlled for the influence of response latency and individual variations of the perception threshold. A total of 33 non-demented old people (69-87 years) were tested for the ability to recognize briefly presented letters. Performance was analyzed by the TVA model. Visual processing speed decreased approximately linearly with age and was on average halved from 70 to 85 years. Less dramatic aging effects were found for the perception threshold and the visual apprehension span. In the visual domain, cognitive aging seems to be most clearly related to reductions in processing speed. © 2012 The Authors. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology © 2012 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations.

Interplanetary medium data book, appendix

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

King, J. H.

1977-01-01

Computer generated listings of hourly average interplanetary plasma and magnetic field parameters are given. Parameters include proton temperature, proton density, bulk speed, an identifier of the source of the plasma data for the hour, average magnetic field magnitude and cartesian components of the magnetic field. Also included are longitude and latitude angles of the vector made up of the average field components, a vector standard deviation, and an identifier of the source of magnetic field data.

Speed and heart-rate profiles in skating and classical cross-country skiing competitions.

PubMed

Bolger, Conor M; Kocbach, Jan; Hegge, Ann Magdalen; Sandbakk, Øyvind

2015-10-01

To compare the speed and heart-rate profiles during international skating and classical competitions in male and female world-class cross-country skiers. Four male and 5 female skiers performed individual time trials of 15 km (men) and 10 km (women) in the skating and classical techniques on 2 consecutive days. Races were performed on the same 5-km course. The course was mapped with GPS and a barometer to provide a valid course and elevation profile. Time, speed, and heart rate were determined for uphill, flat, and downhill terrains throughout the entire competition by wearing a GPS and a heart-rate monitor. Times in uphill, flat, and downhill terrain were ~55%, 15-20%, and 25-30%, respectively, of the total race time for both techniques and genders. The average speed differences between skating and classical skiing were 9% and 11% for men and women, respectively, and these values were 12% and 15% for uphill, 8% and 13% for flat (all P < .05), and 2% and 1% for downhill terrain. The average speeds for men were 9% and 11% faster than for women in skating and classical, respectively, with corresponding numbers of 11% and 14% for uphill, 6% and 11% for flat, and 4% and 5% for downhill terrain (all P < .05). Heart-rate profiles were relatively independent of technique and gender. The greatest performance differences between the skating and classical techniques and between the 2 genders were found on uphill terrain. Therefore, these speed differences could not be explained by variations in exercise intensity.

Low External Workloads Are Related to Higher Injury Risk in Professional Male Basketball Games.

PubMed

Caparrós, Toni; Casals, Martí; Solana, Álvaro; Peña, Javier

2018-06-01

The primary purpose of this study was to identify potential risk factors for sports injuries in professional basketball. An observational retrospective cohort study involving a male professional basketball team, using game tracking data was conducted during three consecutive seasons. Thirty-three professional basketball players took part in this study. A total of 29 time-loss injuries were recorded during regular season games, accounting for 244 total missed games with a mean of 16.26 ± 15.21 per player and season. The tracking data included the following variables: minutes played, physiological load, physiological intensity, mechanical load, mechanical intensity, distance covered, walking maximal speed, maximal speed, sprinting maximal speed, maximal speed, average offensive speed, average defensive speed, level one acceleration, level two acceleration, level three acceleration, level four acceleration, level one deceleration, level two deceleration, level three deceleration, level four deceleration, player efficiency rating and usage percentage. The influence of demographic characteristics, tracking data and performance factors on the risk of injury was investigated using multivariate analysis with their incidence rate ratios (IRRs). Athletes with less or equal than 3 decelerations per game (IRR, 4.36; 95% CI, 1.78-10.6) and those running less or equal than 1.3 miles per game (lower workload) (IRR, 6.42 ; 95% CI, 2.52-16.3) had a higher risk of injury during games (p < 0.01 in both cases). Therefore, unloaded players have a higher risk of injury. Adequate management of training loads might be a relevant factor to reduce the likelihood of injury according to individual profiles.

The prevalence of speeding and drunk driving in two cities in China: a mid project evaluation of ongoing road safety interventions.

PubMed

Bhalla, Kavi; Li, Qingfeng; Duan, Leilen; Wang, Yuan; Bishai, David; Hyder, Adnan A

2013-12-01

Road traffic crashes in China kill in excess of 250,000 people annually, more than any other country in the world. They are the fourth leading cause of premature death in the country and are responsible for 2.4% of the burden of non-fatal health loss in the country. Interventions to curb speeding and drunk driving are being implemented in the cities of Suzhou and Dalian since late 2010. We evaluated the ongoing effect of these activities through five roadside surveys, seven rounds of observational studies, and analysis of crash statistics in the two cities. We find that thus far, the prevalence of speeding has not reduced in either city with the notable exception of one site in Dalian, where the percentage of speeding vehicles declined from nearly 70% to below 10% after an interval-based speed enforcement system was installed. The broader deployment of such speed control technologies across China and other countries should be explored. Roadside alcohol testing suggests that prevalence of drunk driving (i.e. BAC >20 mg%) declined from 6.4% to 0.5% in Suzhou and from 1.7% to 0.7% in Dalian during the monitored time period. However, the measured prevalence rates are very low and should be validated against estimates based on hospital studies. Roadside interviews suggest that the population of both cities is already highly sensitized to the risks associated with drunk driving and speeding. Crash statistics from the two cities do not show appreciable declines in injuries and fatalities as yet. However, the possibility of substantial underreporting in crash statistics sourced from traffic police poses a severe threat to monitoring progress towards road safety in Suzhou, Dalian and across China. There is an urgent need for China to invest in a reliable road traffic injury surveillance system that can provide information for describing key risk factors, evaluating the impact of safety policies, and benchmarking achievements. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Knowledge of commercial bus drivers about road safety measures in Lagos, Nigeria.

PubMed

Okafor Ifeoma, P; Odeyemi Kofoworola, A; Dolapo Duro, C

2013-01-01

Road traffic injuries have persisted as a serious public health problem and much of the health burden is in developing countries. Over-speeding, poor enforcement of traffic regulations and commuter buses have been highly implicated in road traffic injuries in developing countries. The aim of this study was to determine drivers' knowledge of selected road safety measures, i.e. the pre-requisites for driver's license, road signs and speed limits. This was a cross-sectional study carried out in Lagos, Nigeria. Simple random sampling was used to select the two motor parks used for the study and all the consenting commercial minibus drivers operating within the parks (407) were included in the study. Data was collected with a pre-tested, structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire and analyzed with epi-info statistical software. Two hundred and sixty-one (64.1%) of them knew that Visual Acuity test should be done before obtaining driver's license and 53.8% knew the correct minimum age for obtaining driver's license. Only 1% of the drivers had correct knowledge of the driver's license authorities in Nigeria. The drivers had poor knowledge of road signs (59.0%) and poor knowledge of maximum speed limits (100%). The oldest, least educated and least experienced drivers had the poorest level of knowledge. The drivers demonstrated poor knowledge of road safety measures. There is need for driver education to improve their knowledge.

Kinematic Measurements of the Vocal-Fold Displacement Waveform in Typical Children and Adult Populations: Quantification of High-Speed Endoscopic Videos

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Patel, Rita; Donohue, Kevin D.; Unnikrishnan, Harikrishnan; Kryscio, Richard J.

2015-01-01

Purpose: This article presents a quantitative method for assessing instantaneous and average lateral vocal-fold motion from high-speed digital imaging, with a focus on developmental changes in vocal-fold kinematics during childhood. Method: Vocal-fold vibrations were analyzed for 28 children (aged 5-11 years) and 28 adults (aged 21-45 years)…

Identification of tower-wake distortions using sonic anemometer and lidar measurements

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

McCaffrey, Katherine; Quelet, Paul T.; Choukulkar, Aditya

The eXperimental Planetary boundary layer Instrumentation Assessment (XPIA) field campaign took place in March through May 2015 at the Boulder Atmospheric Observatory, utilizing its 300 m meteorological tower, instrumented with two sonic anemometers mounted on opposite sides of the tower at six heights. This allowed for at least one sonic anemometer at each level to be upstream of the tower at all times and for identification of the times when a sonic anemometer is in the wake of the tower frame. Other instrumentation, including profiling and scanning lidars aided in the identification of the tower wake. Here we compare pairsmore » of sonic anemometers at the same heights to identify the range of directions that are affected by the tower for each of the opposing booms. The mean velocity and turbulent kinetic energy are used to quantify the wake impact on these first- and second-order wind measurements, showing up to a 50% reduction in wind speed and an order of magnitude increase in turbulent kinetic energy. Comparisons of wind speeds from profiling and scanning lidars confirmed the extent of the tower wake, with the same reduction in wind speed observed in the tower wake, and a speed-up effect around the wake boundaries. Wind direction differences between pairs of sonic anemometers and between sonic anemometers and lidars can also be significant, as the flow is deflected by the tower structure. Comparisons of lengths of averaging intervals showed a decrease in wind speed deficit with longer averages, but the flow deflection remains constant over longer averages. Furthermore, asymmetry exists in the tower effects due to the geometry and placement of the booms on the triangular tower. An analysis of the percentage of observations in the wake that must be removed from 2 min mean wind speed and 20 min turbulent values showed that removing even small portions of the time interval due to wakes impacts these two quantities. Furthermorew, a vast majority of intervals have no observations in the tower wake, so removing the full 2 or 20 min intervals does not diminish the XPIA dataset.« less

Identification of tower-wake distortions using sonic anemometer and lidar measurements

DOE PAGES

McCaffrey, Katherine; Quelet, Paul T.; Choukulkar, Aditya; ...

2017-02-02

The eXperimental Planetary boundary layer Instrumentation Assessment (XPIA) field campaign took place in March through May 2015 at the Boulder Atmospheric Observatory, utilizing its 300 m meteorological tower, instrumented with two sonic anemometers mounted on opposite sides of the tower at six heights. This allowed for at least one sonic anemometer at each level to be upstream of the tower at all times and for identification of the times when a sonic anemometer is in the wake of the tower frame. Other instrumentation, including profiling and scanning lidars aided in the identification of the tower wake. Here we compare pairsmore » of sonic anemometers at the same heights to identify the range of directions that are affected by the tower for each of the opposing booms. The mean velocity and turbulent kinetic energy are used to quantify the wake impact on these first- and second-order wind measurements, showing up to a 50% reduction in wind speed and an order of magnitude increase in turbulent kinetic energy. Comparisons of wind speeds from profiling and scanning lidars confirmed the extent of the tower wake, with the same reduction in wind speed observed in the tower wake, and a speed-up effect around the wake boundaries. Wind direction differences between pairs of sonic anemometers and between sonic anemometers and lidars can also be significant, as the flow is deflected by the tower structure. Comparisons of lengths of averaging intervals showed a decrease in wind speed deficit with longer averages, but the flow deflection remains constant over longer averages. Furthermore, asymmetry exists in the tower effects due to the geometry and placement of the booms on the triangular tower. An analysis of the percentage of observations in the wake that must be removed from 2 min mean wind speed and 20 min turbulent values showed that removing even small portions of the time interval due to wakes impacts these two quantities. Furthermorew, a vast majority of intervals have no observations in the tower wake, so removing the full 2 or 20 min intervals does not diminish the XPIA dataset.« less

[The Free Trade Agreement and environmental health in Mexico].

PubMed

Hernández-Peña, P; Gutiérrez-Zúñiga, C; Zurutuza-Fernández, R; Jiménez-González, O

1993-01-01

This work offers an overview of the state of the art and future state of environmental health in our country from a viewpoint of the impact of the commercial opening established in the Free Trade Agreement among Mexico, the USA, and Canada. In the first section of this work, we analyze the expected economic changes resulting from the implementation of the FTA and foretells the way in which those changes will influence the present environmental and epidemiologic profiles of this country in the medium and long term. The main changes predicted by the analysis are, in the epidemiologic context, the acceleration of the transference of occupational, consumption, environmental and population risks, characteristic of industrialized countries, to the country's polarized epidemiologic profile; and, in the environmental context, a transition consisting of a broadening and composition of the spectrum of pollutants, including and important lagging of bacteriologic control. The second section offers an analysis of the predicted response capacity facing the new environmental risk dynamics in the country, encompassing regulation, normativeness and enforcement of environmental and consumer protection, as well as obstacles found in health services to the implementation of surveillance, detection and treatment of health damages caused by environmental factors. The analysis of the organized social response to these problems discloses a relative flexibility of the normativeness and enforcement functions in comparison with our northern neighbors, a paramount factor for the possible transference of environmental risks, as well as the informational and research deficiency about environmental issues, basic elements for sustaining environmental health in the country, aiming at speeding up the development and transference of technologies for prevention, detection and management of environmental risks in the country, drawing upon the systematization of our experience and that of our neighbors. This speeding process ought to match, in the medium term, the velocity of risk transference produced by the commercial opening. In this way, the commercial integration of North America will become a favorable context for the development of the environmental health infrastructure of the country.

The machined surface of magnesium AZ31 after rotary turning at air cooling condition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akhyar, G.; Purnomo, B.; Hamni, A.; Harun, S.; Burhanuddin, Y.

2018-04-01

Magnesium is a lightweight metal that is widely used as an alternative to iron and steel. Magnesium has been applied in the automotive industry to reduce the weight of a component, but the machining process has the disadvantage that magnesium is highly flammable because it has a low flash point. High temperature can cause the cutting tool wear and contributes to the quality of the surface roughness. The purpose of this study is to obtain the value of surface roughness and implement methods of rotary cutting tool and air cooling output vortex tube cooler to minimize the surface roughness values. Machining parameters that is turning using rotary cutting tool at speed the workpiece of (Vw) 50, 120, 160 m/min, cutting speed of rotary tool of (Vt) 25, 50, 75 m/min, feed rate of (f) 0.1, 0.15, 0.2 mm/rev, and depth of cut of 0.3 mm. Type of tool used is a carbide tool diameter of 16 mm and air cooling pressure of 6 bar. The results show the average value of the lowest surface roughness on the speed the workpiece of 80 m/min, cutting speed of rotary tool of 50 m/min, feed rate of 0.2 mm/rev, and depth of cut of 0.3 mm. While the average value of the highest surface roughness on the speed the workpiece of 160 m/min, cutting speed of rotary tool of 50 m/min, feed rate of 0.2 mm/rev, and depth of cut of 0.3 mm. The influence of machining parameters concluded the higher the speed of the workpiece the surface roughness value higher. Otherwise the higher cutting speed of rotary tool then the lower the surface roughness value. The observation on the surface of the rotary tool, it was found that no uniform tool wear which causes non-uniform surface roughness. The use of rotary cutting tool contributing to lower surface roughness values generated.

Assessment of Aerodynamic Challenges of a Variable-Speed Power Turbine for Large Civil Tilt-Rotor Application

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Welch, Gerand E.

2010-01-01

The main rotors of the NASA Large Civil Tilt-Rotor notional vehicle operate over a wide speed-range (100% at take-off to 54% at cruise). The variable-speed power turbine, when coupled to a fixed-gear-ratio transmission, offers one approach to accomplish this speed variation. The key aero-challenges of the variable-speed power turbine are related to high work factors at cruise, where the power turbine operates at 54% of take-off speed, wide incidence variations into the vane, blade, and exit-guide-vane rows associated with the power-turbine speed change, and the impact of low aft-stage Reynolds number (transitional flow) at 28 kft cruise. Meanline and 2-D Reynolds-Averaged Navier- Stokes analyses are used to characterize the variable-speed power-turbine aerodynamic challenges and to outline a conceptual design approach that accounts for multi-point operation. Identified technical challenges associated with the aerodynamics of high work factor, incidence-tolerant blading, and low Reynolds numbers pose research needs outlined in the paper

Efficient Smoothed Concomitant Lasso Estimation for High Dimensional Regression

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ndiaye, Eugene; Fercoq, Olivier; Gramfort, Alexandre; Leclère, Vincent; Salmon, Joseph

2017-10-01

In high dimensional settings, sparse structures are crucial for efficiency, both in term of memory, computation and performance. It is customary to consider ℓ 1 penalty to enforce sparsity in such scenarios. Sparsity enforcing methods, the Lasso being a canonical example, are popular candidates to address high dimension. For efficiency, they rely on tuning a parameter trading data fitting versus sparsity. For the Lasso theory to hold this tuning parameter should be proportional to the noise level, yet the latter is often unknown in practice. A possible remedy is to jointly optimize over the regression parameter as well as over the noise level. This has been considered under several names in the literature: Scaled-Lasso, Square-root Lasso, Concomitant Lasso estimation for instance, and could be of interest for uncertainty quantification. In this work, after illustrating numerical difficulties for the Concomitant Lasso formulation, we propose a modification we coined Smoothed Concomitant Lasso, aimed at increasing numerical stability. We propose an efficient and accurate solver leading to a computational cost no more expensive than the one for the Lasso. We leverage on standard ingredients behind the success of fast Lasso solvers: a coordinate descent algorithm, combined with safe screening rules to achieve speed efficiency, by eliminating early irrelevant features.

Controlling new drugs under marketing regulations.

PubMed

Hughes, Brendan; Winstock, Adam R

2012-11-01

The rapid emergence of myriad substances openly marketed as 'legal highs' is straining traditional drug control systems which require time and basic scientific data on harms to react, presenting governments with the dilemma of no response or a disproportionate response. Some countries have side-stepped this using novel policy and legislative approaches. Should other countries consider them? We review the different laws invoked to stop the open sale of new psychoactive substances, focusing on the European Union (EU). Some countries have designed new catch-all control systems, or faster systems to classify substances as drugs. Others have enforced consumer safety or medicines legislation to stop the open sale of these products. The latter originate from harmonization of the internal market of the EU. Rigorous, objective evaluation is required, but first results suggest that these have been effective, while avoiding criminalization of users. Every EU country should have existing laws for protecting public health that can be applied swiftly yet proportionately to new drugs appearing on the open market with minimum political involvement. It seems the key is the speed, not the weight, of response. Given support for their enforcement mechanisms, these systems might be as effective and more efficient than the old ones. © 2011 The Authors, Addiction © 2011 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Multiscale Reconstruction for Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting

PubMed Central

Pierre, Eric Y.; Ma, Dan; Chen, Yong; Badve, Chaitra; Griswold, Mark A.

2015-01-01

Purpose To reduce acquisition time needed to obtain reliable parametric maps with Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting. Methods An iterative-denoising algorithm is initialized by reconstructing the MRF image series at low image resolution. For subsequent iterations, the method enforces pixel-wise fidelity to the best-matching dictionary template then enforces fidelity to the acquired data at slightly higher spatial resolution. After convergence, parametric maps with desirable spatial resolution are obtained through template matching of the final image series. The proposed method was evaluated on phantom and in-vivo data using the highly-undersampled, variable-density spiral trajectory and compared with the original MRF method. The benefits of additional sparsity constraints were also evaluated. When available, gold standard parameter maps were used to quantify the performance of each method. Results The proposed approach allowed convergence to accurate parametric maps with as few as 300 time points of acquisition, as compared to 1000 in the original MRF work. Simultaneous quantification of T1, T2, proton density (PD) and B0 field variations in the brain was achieved in vivo for a 256×256 matrix for a total acquisition time of 10.2s, representing a 3-fold reduction in acquisition time. Conclusions The proposed iterative multiscale reconstruction reliably increases MRF acquisition speed and accuracy. PMID:26132462

Speed Biases With Real-Life Video Clips

PubMed Central

Rossi, Federica; Montanaro, Elisa; de’Sperati, Claudio

2018-01-01

We live almost literally immersed in an artificial visual world, especially motion pictures. In this exploratory study, we asked whether the best speed for reproducing a video is its original, shooting speed. By using adjustment and double staircase methods, we examined speed biases in viewing real-life video clips in three experiments, and assessed their robustness by manipulating visual and auditory factors. With the tested stimuli (short clips of human motion, mixed human-physical motion, physical motion and ego-motion), speed underestimation was the rule rather than the exception, although it depended largely on clip content, ranging on average from 2% (ego-motion) to 32% (physical motion). Manipulating display size or adding arbitrary soundtracks did not modify these speed biases. Estimated speed was not correlated with estimated duration of these same video clips. These results indicate that the sense of speed for real-life video clips can be systematically biased, independently of the impression of elapsed time. Measuring subjective visual tempo may integrate traditional methods that assess time perception: speed biases may be exploited to develop a simple, objective test of reality flow, to be used for example in clinical and developmental contexts. From the perspective of video media, measuring speed biases may help to optimize video reproduction speed and validate “natural” video compression techniques based on sub-threshold temporal squeezing. PMID:29615875

Speed Biases With Real-Life Video Clips.

PubMed

Rossi, Federica; Montanaro, Elisa; de'Sperati, Claudio

2018-01-01

We live almost literally immersed in an artificial visual world, especially motion pictures. In this exploratory study, we asked whether the best speed for reproducing a video is its original, shooting speed. By using adjustment and double staircase methods, we examined speed biases in viewing real-life video clips in three experiments, and assessed their robustness by manipulating visual and auditory factors. With the tested stimuli (short clips of human motion, mixed human-physical motion, physical motion and ego-motion), speed underestimation was the rule rather than the exception, although it depended largely on clip content, ranging on average from 2% (ego-motion) to 32% (physical motion). Manipulating display size or adding arbitrary soundtracks did not modify these speed biases. Estimated speed was not correlated with estimated duration of these same video clips. These results indicate that the sense of speed for real-life video clips can be systematically biased, independently of the impression of elapsed time. Measuring subjective visual tempo may integrate traditional methods that assess time perception: speed biases may be exploited to develop a simple, objective test of reality flow, to be used for example in clinical and developmental contexts. From the perspective of video media, measuring speed biases may help to optimize video reproduction speed and validate "natural" video compression techniques based on sub-threshold temporal squeezing.

Automated mixed traffic vehicle control and scheduling study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Peng, T. K. C.; Chon, K.

1976-01-01

The operation and the expected performance of a proposed automatic guideway transit system which uses low speed automated mixed traffic vehicles (AMTVs) were analyzed. Vehicle scheduling and headway control policies were evaluated with a transit system simulation model. The effect of mixed traffic interference on the average vehicle speed was examined with a vehicle pedestrian interface model. Control parameters regulating vehicle speed were evaluated for safe stopping and passenger comfort. Some preliminary data on the cost and operation of an experimental AMTV system are included. These data were the result of a separate task conducted at JPL, and were included as background information.

Environmental Stochasticity and the Speed of Evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Danino, Matan; Kessler, David A.; Shnerb, Nadav M.

2018-03-01

Biological populations are subject to two types of noise: demographic stochasticity due to fluctuations in the reproductive success of individuals, and environmental variations that affect coherently the relative fitness of entire populations. The rate in which the average fitness of a community increases has been considered so far using models with pure demographic stochasticity; here we present some theoretical considerations and numerical results for the general case where environmental variations are taken into account. When the competition is pairwise, fitness fluctuations are shown to reduce the speed of evolution, while under global competition the speed increases due to environmental stochasticity.

Environmental Stochasticity and the Speed of Evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Danino, Matan; Kessler, David A.; Shnerb, Nadav M.

2018-07-01

Biological populations are subject to two types of noise: demographic stochasticity due to fluctuations in the reproductive success of individuals, and environmental variations that affect coherently the relative fitness of entire populations. The rate in which the average fitness of a community increases has been considered so far using models with pure demographic stochasticity; here we present some theoretical considerations and numerical results for the general case where environmental variations are taken into account. When the competition is pairwise, fitness fluctuations are shown to reduce the speed of evolution, while under global competition the speed increases due to environmental stochasticity.

Further We Travel the Faster We Go.

PubMed

Varga, Levente; Kovács, András; Tóth, Géza; Papp, István; Néda, Zoltán

2016-01-01

The average travelling speed increases in a nontrivial manner with the travel distance. This leads to scaling-like relations on quite extended spatial scales, for all mobility modes taken together and also for a given mobility mode in part. We offer a wide range of experimental results, investigating and quantifying this universal effect and its measurable causes. The increasing travelling speed with the travel distance arises from the combined effects of: choosing the most appropriate travelling mode; the structure of the travel networks; the travel times lost in the main hubs, starting or target cities; and the speed limit of roads and vehicles.

Sub-Microsecond Temperature Measurement in Liquid Water Using Laser Induced Thermal Acoustics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alderfer, David W.; Herring, G. C.; Danehy, Paul M.; Mizukaki, Toshiharu; Takayama, Kazuyoshi

2005-01-01

Using laser-induced thermal acoustics, we demonstrate non-intrusive and remote sound speed and temperature measurements over the range 10 - 45 C in liquid water. Averaged accuracy of sound speed and temperature measurements (10 s) are 0.64 m/s and 0.45 C respectively. Single-shot precisions based on one standard deviation of 100 or greater samples range from 1 m/s to 16.5 m/s and 0.3 C to 9.5 C for sound speed and temperature measurements respectively. The time resolution of each single-shot measurement was 300 nsec.

Recall of English Function Words and Inflections by Skilled and Average Deaf Readers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelly, Leonard P.

1993-01-01

The performance of 17 youth on a verbatim recall task indicated that skilled deaf readers are more able than average deaf readers to sustain a record of English function words and inflections. The relative speed of skilled readers when making lexical decisions about phonologically similar word pairs indicated greater access to phonological…

Determinants of translation speed are randomly distributed across transcripts resulting in a universal scaling of protein synthesis times

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharma, Ajeet K.; Ahmed, Nabeel; O'Brien, Edward P.

2018-02-01

Ribosome profiling experiments have found greater than 100-fold variation in ribosome density along mRNA transcripts, indicating that individual codon elongation rates can vary to a similar degree. This wide range of elongation times, coupled with differences in codon usage between transcripts, suggests that the average codon translation-rate per gene can vary widely. Yet, ribosome run-off experiments have found that the average codon translation rate for different groups of transcripts in mouse stem cells is constant at 5.6 AA/s. How these seemingly contradictory results can be reconciled is the focus of this study. Here, we combine knowledge of the molecular factors shown to influence translation speed with genomic information from Escherichia coli, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Homo sapiens to simulate the synthesis of cytosolic proteins in these organisms. The model recapitulates a near constant average translation rate, which we demonstrate arises because the molecular determinants of translation speed are distributed nearly randomly amongst most of the transcripts. Consequently, codon translation rates are also randomly distributed and fast-translating segments of a transcript are likely to be offset by equally probable slow-translating segments, resulting in similar average elongation rates for most transcripts. We also show that the codon usage bias does not significantly affect the near random distribution of codon translation rates because only about 10 % of the total transcripts in an organism have high codon usage bias while the rest have little to no bias. Analysis of Ribo-Seq data and an in vivo fluorescent assay supports these conclusions.

Seasonal trend analysis and ARIMA modeling of relative humidity and wind speed time series around Yamula Dam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eymen, Abdurrahman; Köylü, Ümran

2018-02-01

Local climate change is determined by analysis of long-term recorded meteorological data. In the statistical analysis of the meteorological data, the Mann-Kendall rank test, which is one of the non-parametrical tests, has been used; on the other hand, for determining the power of the trend, Theil-Sen method has been used on the data obtained from 16 meteorological stations. The stations cover the provinces of Kayseri, Sivas, Yozgat, and Nevşehir in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. Changes in land-use affect local climate. Dams are structures that cause major changes on the land. Yamula Dam is located 25 km northwest of Kayseri. The dam has huge water body which is approximately 85 km2. The mentioned tests have been used for detecting the presence of any positive or negative trend in meteorological data. The meteorological data in relation to the seasonal average, maximum, and minimum values of the relative humidity and seasonal average wind speed have been organized as time series and the tests have been conducted accordingly. As a result of these tests, the following have been identified: increase was observed in minimum relative humidity values in the spring, summer, and autumn seasons. As for the seasonal average wind speed, decrease was detected for nine stations in all seasons, whereas increase was observed in four stations. After the trend analysis, pre-dam mean relative humidity time series were modeled with Autoregressive Integrated Moving Averages (ARIMA) model which is statistical modeling tool. Post-dam relative humidity values were predicted by ARIMA models.

Self-selected speeds and metabolic cost of longboard skateboarding.

PubMed

Board, Wayne J; Browning, Raymond C

2014-11-01

The purpose of this study was to determine self-selected speeds, metabolic rate, and gross metabolic cost during longboard skateboarding. We measured overground speed and metabolic rate while 15 experienced longboarders traveled at their self-selected slow, typical and fast speeds. Mean longboarding speeds were 3.7, 4.5 and 5.1 m s(-1), during slow, typical and fast trials, respectively. Mean rates of oxygen consumption were 24.1, 29.1 and 37.2 ml kg(-1) min(-1) and mean rates of energy expenditure were 33.5, 41.8 and 52.7 kJ min(-1) at the slow, typical and fast speeds, respectively. At typical speeds, average intensity was ~8.5 METs. There was a significant positive relationship between oxygen consumption and energy expenditure versus speed (R(2) = 0.69 (P < 0.001), and R(2) = 0.78 (P < 0.001), respectively). The gross metabolic cost was ~2.2 J kg(-1) m(-1) at the typical speed, greater than that reported for cycling and ~50% smaller than that of walking. These results suggest that longboarding is a novel form of physical activity that elicits vigorous intensity, yet is economical compared to walking.

Temporal and spatial variability of wind resources in the United States as derived from the Climate Forecast System Reanalysis

Treesearch

Lejiang Yu; Shiyuan Zhong; Xindi Bian; Warren E. Heilman

2015-01-01

This study examines the spatial and temporal variability of wind speed at 80m above ground (the average hub height of most modern wind turbines) in the contiguous United States using Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR) data from 1979 to 2011. The mean 80-m wind exhibits strong seasonality and large spatial variability, with higher (lower) wind speeds in the...

Pilot study for quantifying driving characteristics during power wheelchair soccer.

PubMed

Kumar, Amit; Karmarkar, Amol M; Collins, Diane M; Souza, Ana; Oyster, Michelle L; Cooper, Rosemarie; Cooper, Rory A

2012-01-01

This study determined the driving characteristics of wheelchair users during power wheelchair soccer games. Data for this study were collected at the 28th and 29th National Veterans Wheelchair Games. Nineteen veterans who were 18 years or older and power wheelchair soccer players completed a brief demographic survey and provided information about their power wheelchairs. A customized data-logging device was placed on each participant's wheelchair before power soccer game participation. The data logger was removed at the end of the final game for each participant. The average distance traveled during the games was 899.5 +/- 592.5 m, and the average maximum continuous distance traveled was 256.0 +/- 209.4 m. The average wheelchair speed was 0.8 +/- 0.2 m/s, and the average duration of driving time was 17.6 +/- 8.3 min. Average proportion of time spent at a speed >1 m/s was 30.7% +/- 33.8%, between 0.5 and 1 m/s was 16.2% +/- 34.4%, and <0.5 m/s was 21.4% +/- 24.3%. The information from this descriptive study provides insight for future research in the field of adapted sports for people with high levels of impairments who use power wheelchairs for their mobility.

A short-term ensemble wind speed forecasting system for wind power applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baidya Roy, S.; Traiteur, J. J.; Callicutt, D.; Smith, M.

2011-12-01

This study develops an adaptive, blended forecasting system to provide accurate wind speed forecasts 1 hour ahead of time for wind power applications. The system consists of an ensemble of 21 forecasts with different configurations of the Weather Research and Forecasting Single Column Model (WRFSCM) and a persistence model. The ensemble is calibrated against observations for a 2 month period (June-July, 2008) at a potential wind farm site in Illinois using the Bayesian Model Averaging (BMA) technique. The forecasting system is evaluated against observations for August 2008 at the same site. The calibrated ensemble forecasts significantly outperform the forecasts from the uncalibrated ensemble while significantly reducing forecast uncertainty under all environmental stability conditions. The system also generates significantly better forecasts than persistence, autoregressive (AR) and autoregressive moving average (ARMA) models during the morning transition and the diurnal convective regimes. This forecasting system is computationally more efficient than traditional numerical weather prediction models and can generate a calibrated forecast, including model runs and calibration, in approximately 1 minute. Currently, hour-ahead wind speed forecasts are almost exclusively produced using statistical models. However, numerical models have several distinct advantages over statistical models including the potential to provide turbulence forecasts. Hence, there is an urgent need to explore the role of numerical models in short-term wind speed forecasting. This work is a step in that direction and is likely to trigger a debate within the wind speed forecasting community.

The Los Alamos Gap Stick Test

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Preston, Daniel; Hill, Larry; Johnson, Carl

2015-06-01

In this paper we describe a novel shock sensitivity test, the Gap Stick Test, which is a generalized variant of the ubiquitous Gap Test. Despite the popularity of the Gap Test, it has some disadvantages: multiple tests must be fired to obtain a single metric, and many tests must be fired to obtain its value to high precision and confidence. Our solution is a test wherein multiple gap tests are joined in series to form a rate stick. The complex re-initiation character of the traditional gap test is thereby retained, but the propagation speed is steady when measured at periodic intervals, and initiation delay in individual segments acts to decrement the average speed. We measure the shock arrival time before and after each inert gap, and compute the average detonation speed through the HE alone (discounting the gap thicknesses). We perform tests for a range of gap thicknesses. We then plot the aforementioned propagation speed as a function of gap thickness. The resulting curve has the same basic structure as a Diameter Effect (DE) curve, and (like the DE curve) terminates at a failure point. Comparison between experiment and hydrocode calculations using ALE3D and the Ignition and Growth reactive burn model calibrated for short duration shock inputs in PBX 9501 is discussed.

The difference engine: a model of diversity in speeded cognition.

PubMed

Myerson, Joel; Hale, Sandra; Zheng, Yingye; Jenkins, Lisa; Widaman, Keith F

2003-06-01

A theory of diversity in speeded cognition, the difference engine, is proposed, in which information processing is represented as a series of generic computational steps. Some individuals tend to perform all of these computations relatively quickly and other individuals tend to perform them all relatively slowly, reflecting the existence of a general cognitive speed factor, but the time required for response selection and execution is assumed to be independent of cognitive speed. The difference engine correctly predicts the positively accelerated form of the relation between diversity of performance, as measured by the standard deviation for the group, and task difficulty, as indexed by the mean response time (RT) for the group. In addition, the difference engine correctly predicts approximately linear relations between the RTs of any individual and average performance for the group, with the regression lines for fast individuals having slopes less than 1.0 (and positive intercepts) and the regression lines for slow individuals having slopes greater than 1.0 (and negative intercepts). Similar predictions are made for comparisons of slow, average, and fast subgroups, regardless of whether those subgroups are formed on the basis of differences in ability, age, or health status. These predictions are consistent with evidence from studies of healthy young and older adults as well as from studies of depressed and age-matched control groups.

Broadband ground-motion simulation using a hybrid approach

USGS Publications Warehouse

Graves, R.W.; Pitarka, A.

2010-01-01

This paper describes refinements to the hybrid broadband ground-motion simulation methodology of Graves and Pitarka (2004), which combines a deterministic approach at low frequencies (f 1 Hz). In our approach, fault rupture is represented kinematically and incorporates spatial heterogeneity in slip, rupture speed, and rise time. The prescribed slip distribution is constrained to follow an inverse wavenumber-squared fall-off and the average rupture speed is set at 80% of the local shear-wave velocity, which is then adjusted such that the rupture propagates faster in regions of high slip and slower in regions of low slip. We use a Kostrov-like slip-rate function having a rise time proportional to the square root of slip, with the average rise time across the entire fault constrained empirically. Recent observations from large surface rupturing earthquakes indicate a reduction of rupture propagation speed and lengthening of rise time in the near surface, which we model by applying a 70% reduction of the rupture speed and increasing the rise time by a factor of 2 in a zone extending from the surface to a depth of 5 km. We demonstrate the fidelity of the technique by modeling the strong-motion recordings from the Imperial Valley, Loma Prieta, Landers, and Northridge earthquakes.