49 CFR 231.5 - Drop-end low-side gondola cars.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 49 Transportation 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Drop-end low-side gondola cars. 231.5 Section 231... gondola cars. (a) Hand brakes—(1) Number. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(1)). (2) Dimensions. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(2)). (3...

49 CFR 231.3 - Drop-end high-side gondola cars.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 49 Transportation 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Drop-end high-side gondola cars. 231.3 Section 231... gondola cars. (a) Hand brakes—(1) Number. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(1)). (2) Dimensions. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(2)). (3...

49 CFR 231.3 - Drop-end high-side gondola cars.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 49 Transportation 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Drop-end high-side gondola cars. 231.3 Section 231... gondola cars. (a) Hand brakes—(1) Number. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(1)). (2) Dimensions. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(2)). (3...

49 CFR 231.3 - Drop-end high-side gondola cars.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 49 Transportation 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Drop-end high-side gondola cars. 231.3 Section 231... gondola cars. (a) Hand brakes—(1) Number. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(1)). (2) Dimensions. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(2)). (3...

49 CFR 231.5 - Drop-end low-side gondola cars.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 49 Transportation 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Drop-end low-side gondola cars. 231.5 Section 231... gondola cars. (a) Hand brakes—(1) Number. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(1)). (2) Dimensions. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(2)). (3...

49 CFR 231.3 - Drop-end high-side gondola cars.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 49 Transportation 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Drop-end high-side gondola cars. 231.3 Section 231... gondola cars. (a) Hand brakes—(1) Number. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(1)). (2) Dimensions. Same as specified for “Box and other house cars” (see § 231.1(a)(2)). (3...

Teaching and Learning Physics in a 1:1 Laptop School

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zucker, Andrew A.; Hug, Sarah T.

2008-12-01

1:1 laptop programs, in which every student is provided with a personal computer to use during the school year, permit increased and routine use of powerful, user-friendly computer-based tools. Growing numbers of 1:1 programs are reshaping the roles of teachers and learners in science classrooms. At the Denver School of Science and Technology, a public charter high school where a large percentage of students come from low-income families, 1:1 laptops are used often by teachers and students. This article describes the school's use of laptops, the Internet, and related digital tools, especially for teaching and learning physics. The data are from teacher and student surveys, interviews, classroom observations, and document analyses. Physics students and teachers use an interactive digital textbook; Internet-based simulations (some developed by a Nobel Prize winner); word processors; digital drop boxes; email; formative electronic assessments; computer-based and stand-alone graphing calculators; probes and associated software; and digital video cameras to explore hypotheses, collaborate, engage in scientific inquiry, and to identify strengths and weaknesses of students' understanding of physics. Technology provides students at DSST with high-quality tools to explore scientific concepts and the experiences of teachers and students illustrate effective uses of digital technology for high school physics.

Changes in ethylene signaling and MADS box gene expression are associated with banana finger drop.

PubMed

Hubert, O; Piral, G; Galas, C; Baurens, F-C; Mbéguié-A-Mbéguié, D

2014-06-01

Banana finger drop was examined in ripening banana harvested at immature (iMG), early (eMG) and late mature green (lMG) stages, with contrasting ripening rates and ethylene sensitivities. Concomitantly, 11 ethylene signal transduction components (ESTC) and 6 MADS box gene expressions were comparatively studied in median (control zone, CZ) and pedicel rupture (drop zone DZ) areas in peel tissue. iMG fruit did not ripen or develop finger drop while eMG and lMG fruits displayed a similar finger drop pattern. Several ESTC and MADS box gene mRNAs were differentially induced in DZ and CZ and sequentially in eMG and lMG fruits. MaESR2, 3 and MaEIL1, MaMADS2 and MaMADS5 had a higher mRNA level in eMG and acted earlier, whereas MaERS1, MaCTR1, MaEIL3/AB266319, MaEIL4/AB266320 and MaEIL5/AB266321, MaMADS4 and to a lesser extent MaMADS2 and 5 acted later in lMG. In this fruit, MaERS1 and 3, MaCTR1, MaEIL3, 4 and MaEIL5/AB266321, and MaMADS4 were enhanced by finger drop, suggesting their specific involvement in this process. MaEIL1, MaMADS1 and 3, induced at comparable levels in DZ and CZ, are probably related to the overall fruit ripening process. These findings led us to consider that developmental cues are the predominant finger drop regulation factor. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Measurement of interfacial tension by use of pendant drop video techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herd, Melvin D.; Thomas, Charles P.; Bala, Gregory A.; Lassahn, Gordon D.

1993-09-01

This report describes an instrument to measure the interfacial tension (IFT) of aqueous surfactant solutions and crude oil. The method involves injection of a drop of fluid (such as crude oil) into a second immiscible phase to determine the IFT between the two phases. The instrument is composed of an AT-class computer, optical cell, illumination, video camera and lens, video frame digitizer board, monitor, and software. The camera displays an image of the pendant drop on the monitor, which is then processed by the frame digitizer board and non-proprietary software to determine the IFT. Several binary and ternary phase systems were taken from the literature and used to measure the precision and accuracy of the instrument in determining IFT's. A copy of the software program is included in the report. A copy of the program on diskette can be obtained from the Energy Science and Technology Software Center, P.O. Box 1020, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-1020. The accuracy and precision of the technique and apparatus presented is very good for measurement of IFT's in the range from 72 to 10(exp -2) mN/m, which is adequate for many EOR applications. With modifications to the equipment and the numerical techniques, measurements of ultralow IFT's (less than 10(exp -3) mN/m) should be possible as well as measurements at reservoir temperature and pressure conditions. The instrument has been used at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory to support the research program on microbial enhanced oil recovery. Measurements of IFT's for several bacterial supernatants and unfractionated acid precipitates of microbial cultures containing biosurfactants against medium to heavy crude oils are reported. These experiments demonstrate that the use of automated video imaging of pendant drops is a simple and fast method to reliably determine interfacial tension between two immiscible liquid phases, or between a gas and a liquid phase.

The impact performance of headguards for combat sports.

PubMed

McIntosh, Andrew S; Patton, Declan A

2015-09-01

To assess the impact energy attenuation performance of a range of headguards for combat sports. Seven headguards worn during combat sport training or competition, including two Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA)-approved boxing models, were tested using drop tests. An International Organization for Standardization (ISO) rigid headform was used with a 5.6 kg drop assembly mass. Tests were conducted against a flat rigid anvil both with and without a boxing glove section. The centre forehead and lateral headguard areas were tested. Peak headform acceleration was measured. Tests from a selection of drop heights and repeated tests on the same headguard were conducted. Headguard performance varied by test condition. For the 0.4 m rigid anvil tests, the best model headguard was the thickest producing an average peak headform acceleration over 5 tests of 48 g compared with 456 g for the worst model. The mean peak acceleration for the 0.4, 0.5 and 0.6 frontal and lateral rigid anvil impact tests was between 32% and 40% lower for the Top Ten boxing model compared with the Adidas boxing model. The headguard performance deterioration observed with repeat impact against the flat anvil was reduced for impacts against the glove section. The overall reduction in acceleration for the combination of glove and headguard in comparison to the headguard condition was in the range of 72-93% for 0.6 and 0.8 m drop tests. The impact tests show the benefits of performance testing in identifying differences between headguard models. 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.

Hip and knee extensor moments predict vertical jump height in adolescent girls.

PubMed

Ford, Kevin R; Myer, Gregory D; Brent, Jensen L; Hewett, Timothy E

2009-07-01

Biomechanical factors, such as hip and knee extensor moments, related to drop jump (DJ) performance have not been investigated in adolescent girls. The purpose of this study was to determine the key independent biomechanical variables that predict overall vertical jump performance in adolescent girls. Sixteen high school adolescent girls from club-sponsored and high school-sponsored volleyball teams performed DJ at 3 different drop heights (15, 30, and 45 cm). A motion analysis system consisting of 10 digital cameras and a force platform was used to calculate vertical jump height, joint angles, and joint moments during the tasks. A multiple linear regression was used to determine the biomechanical parameters that were best predictive of vertical jump height at each box drop distance. The 2 predictor variables in all 3 models were knee and hip extensor moments. The models predicted 82.9, 81.9, and 88% of the vertical jump height variance in the 15, 30, and 45 cm trials, respectively. The results of the investigation indicate that knee and hip joint moments are the main contributors to vertical jump height during the DJ in adolescent girls. Strength and conditioning specialists attempting to improve vertical jump performance should target power and strength training to the hip and knee extensors in their athletes.

[The improved design of table operating box of digital subtraction angiography device].

PubMed

Qi, Xianying; Zhang, Minghai; Han, Fengtan; Tang, Feng; He, Lemin

2009-12-01

In this paper are analyzed the disadvantages of CGO-3000 digital subtraction angiography table Operating Box. The authors put forward a communication control scheme between single-chip microcomputer(SCM) and programmable logic controller(PLC). The details of hardware and software of communication are given.

Instruction and jump-landing kinematics in college-aged female athletes over time.

PubMed

Etnoyer, Jena; Cortes, Nelson; Ringleb, Stacie I; Van Lunen, Bonnie L; Onate, James A

2013-01-01

Instruction can be used to alter the biomechanical movement patterns associated with anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. To determine the effects of instruction through combination (self and expert) feedback or self-feedback on lower extremity kinematics during the box-drop-jump task, running-stop-jump task, and sidestep-cutting maneuver over time in college-aged female athletes. Randomized controlled clinical trial. Laboratory. Forty-three physically active women (age = 21.47 ± 1.55 years, height = 1.65 ± 0.08 m, mass = 63.78 ± 12.00 kg) with no history of ACL or lower extremity injuries or surgery in the 2 months before the study were assigned randomly to 3 groups: self-feedback (SE), combination feedback (CB), or control (CT). Participants performed a box-drop-jump task for the pretest and then received feedback about their landing mechanics. After the intervention, they performed an immediate posttest of the box-drop-jump task and a running-stop-jump transfer test. Participants returned 1 month later for a retention test of each task and a sidestep-cutting maneuver. Kinematic data were collected with an 8-camera system sampled at 500 Hz. The independent variables were feedback group (3), test time (3), and task (3). The dependent variables were knee- and hip-flexion, knee-valgus, and hip- abduction kinematics at initial contact and at peak knee flexion. For the box-drop-jump task, knee- and hip-flexion angles at initial contact were greater at the posttest than at the retention test (P < .001). At peak knee flexion, hip flexion was greater at the posttest than at the pretest (P = .003) and was greater at the retention test than at the pretest (P = .04); knee valgus was greater at the retention test than at the pretest (P = .03) and posttest (P = .02). Peak knee flexion was greater for the CB than the SE group (P = .03) during the box-drop-jump task at posttest. For the running-stop-jump task at the posttest, the CB group had greater peak knee flexion than the SE and CT (P ≤ .05). Our results suggest that feedback involving a combination of self-feedback and expert video feedback with oral instruction effectively improved lower extremity kinematics during jump-landing tasks.

Performance-oriented packaging testing of PPP-B-601 ERAPS wood box for packing Group II solid hazardous material. Test report for Oct 91

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

Wu, E.

1991-10-01

Qualification tests were performed to determine whether the in-service PPP-B-601 ERAPS Wood Box could be utilized to contain properly dunnaged solid type hazardous materials weighing up to a gross weight of 237 kg (523 pounds). The tests were conducted in accordance with Performance Oriented Packaging (POP) requirements specified by the United Nations Recommendations on the Transportation of Dangerous Goods. The box has conformed to the POP performance requirements; i.e., the box successfully retained its contents throughout the stacking, vibration and drop tests.

Experimental Research on Thermocapillary-Buoyancy Migration Interaction of Axisymmetric Two Drops by Using Digital Holographic Interferometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Shuoting; Duan, Li; Kang, Qi

2018-05-01

The migration and interaction of axisymmetric two drops in a vertical temperature gradient is investigated experimentally on the ground. A silicon oil is used as the continuous phase, and a water-ethanol mixture is used as the drop phase, respectively. The migration and interaction of two drops, under the combined effects of buoyancy and thermocapillary, is recorded by a digital holographic interferometry measurement in the experiment to analyse the velocities and temperature distribution of the drops. As a result, when two drops migrate together, the drop affects the other drop by perturbing the temperature field around itself. For the leading drop, the velocity is faster than the one of the isolated drop, and the maximum of the interfacial temperature distribution is larger than the one of the isolated drop. For the trailing drop, the velocity is slower than the one of the isolated drop, and the maximum of the interfacial temperature distribution is less than the one of the isolated drop. The influence of the dimensionless initial distance between the drop centres to the drop migration is discussed in detail in this study.

76 FR 37700 - Safety Zone; Myrtle Beach Triathlon, Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, Myrtle Beach, SC

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-06-28

... blue. In the ``Document Type'' drop down menu select ``Proposed Rule'' and insert ``USCG-2011-0001'' in... ``read comments'' box, which will then become highlighted in blue. In the ``Keyword'' box insert ``USCG...[deg]46'00'' N, 78[deg]48'57'' W; thence southwest back to origin. All coordinates are North American...

Finite Element Simulations of Two Vertical Drop Tests of F-28 Fuselage Sections

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jackson, Karen E.; Littell, Justin D.; Annett, Martin S.; Haskin, Ian M.

2018-01-01

In March 2017, a vertical drop test of a forward fuselage section of a Fokker F-28 MK4000 aircraft was conducted as part of a joint NASA/FAA project to investigate the performance of transport aircraft under realistic crash conditions. In June 2017, a vertical drop test was conducted of a wing-box fuselage section of the same aircraft. Both sections were configured with two rows of aircraft seats, in a triple-double configuration. A total of ten Anthropomorphic Test Devices (ATDs) were secured in seats using standard lap belt restraints. The forward fuselage section was also configured with luggage in the cargo hold. Both sections were outfitted with two hat racks, each with added ballast mass. The drop tests were performed at the Landing and Impact Research facility located at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The measured impact velocity for the forward fuselage section was 346.8-in/s onto soil. The wing-box section was dropped with a downward facing pitch angle onto a sloping soil surface in order to create an induced forward acceleration in the airframe. The vertical impact velocity of the wing-box section was 349.2-in/s. A second objective of this project was to assess the capabilities of finite element simulations to predict the test responses. Finite element models of both fuselage sections were developed for execution in LS-DYNA(Registered Trademark), a commercial explicit nonlinear transient dynamic code. The models contained accurate representations of the airframe structure, the hat racks and hat rack masses, the floor and seat tracks, the luggage in the cargo hold for the forward section, and the detailed under-floor structure in the wing-box section. Initially, concentrated masses were used to represent the inertial properties of the seats, restraints, and ATD occupants. However, later simulations were performed that included finite element representations of the seats, restraints, and ATD occupants. These models were developed to more accurately replicate the seat loading of the floor and to enable prediction of occupant impact responses. Models were executed to generate analytical predictions of airframe responses, which were compared with test data to validate the model. Comparisons of predicted and experimental structural deformation and failures were made. Finally, predicted and experimental soil deformation and crater depths were also compared for both drop test configurations.

Using a Personal Digital Assistant to Increase Completion of Novel Tasks and Independent Transitioning by Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mechling, Linda C.; Savidge, Erin J.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of a Personal Digital Assistant with multiple prompt levels to increase completion of novel task boxes and transitioning within and between tasks. The study used a multiple probe design across three sets of task boxes replicated with three students with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder.…

The Impact of Developing Technology on Media Communications.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacDonald, Lindsay W.

1997-01-01

Examines changes in media communications resulting from new information technologies: communications technologies (networks, World Wide Web, digital set-top box); graphic arts (digital photography, CD and digital archives, desktop design and publishing, printing technology); television and video (digital editing, interactive television, news and…

Broadband set-top box using MAP-CA processor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bush, John E.; Lee, Woobin; Basoglu, Chris

2001-12-01

Advances in broadband access are expected to exert a profound impact in our everyday life. It will be the key to the digital convergence of communication, computer and consumer equipment. A common thread that facilitates this convergence comprises digital media and Internet. To address this market, Equator Technologies, Inc., is developing the Dolphin broadband set-top box reference platform using its MAP-CA Broadband Signal ProcessorT chip. The Dolphin reference platform is a universal media platform for display and presentation of digital contents on end-user entertainment systems. The objective of the Dolphin reference platform is to provide a complete set-top box system based on the MAP-CA processor. It includes all the necessary hardware and software components for the emerging broadcast and the broadband digital media market based on IP protocols. Such reference design requires a broadband Internet access and high-performance digital signal processing. By using the MAP-CA processor, the Dolphin reference platform is completely programmable, allowing various codecs to be implemented in software, such as MPEG-2, MPEG-4, H.263 and proprietary codecs. The software implementation also enables field upgrades to keep pace with evolving technology and industry demands.

A Comparative Study of Microscopic Images Captured by a Box Type Digital Camera Versus a Standard Microscopic Photography Camera Unit

PubMed Central

Desai, Nandini J.; Gupta, B. D.; Patel, Pratik Narendrabhai

2014-01-01

Introduction: Obtaining images of slides viewed by a microscope can be invaluable for both diagnosis and teaching.They can be transferred among technologically-advanced hospitals for further consultation and evaluation. But a standard microscopic photography camera unit (MPCU)(MIPS-Microscopic Image projection System) is costly and not available in resource poor settings. The aim of our endeavour was to find a comparable and cheaper alternative method for photomicrography. Materials and Methods: We used a NIKON Coolpix S6150 camera (box type digital camera) with Olympus CH20i microscope and a fluorescent microscope for the purpose of this study. Results: We got comparable results for capturing images of light microscopy, but the results were not as satisfactory for fluorescent microscopy. Conclusion: A box type digital camera is a comparable, less expensive and convenient alternative to microscopic photography camera unit. PMID:25478350

76 FR 14042 - San Luis Valley National Wildlife Refuge Complex, Alamosa, CO; Comprehensive Conservation Plan...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-15

... the subject line of the message. Fax: Attn: Laurie Shannon, Planning Team Leader, 303/236-4792. U.S. Mail: Laurie Shannon, Planning Team Leader, Division of Refuge Planning, P.O. Box 25486, Denver, CO 80225-0486. In-Person Drop-off: You may drop off comments during regular business hours at the above...

MGBX - MS Thomas in Spacelab

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-09-18

STS083-302-002 (4-8 April 1997) --- At the MidDeck Glove Box (MGBX), astronaut Donald A. Thomas, mission specialist, prepares to conduct the Internal Flows in Free Drops (IFFD) experiment. The IFFD is meant to study drops of several liquids, including water, water/glycerin and silicon oil. Flows within the drops and shape and stability are studied under varying acoustic pressure. The MGBX is the overall facility that holds experiments on materials that are not approved for study in the open Spacelab environment.

ARIES: Enabling Visual Exploration and Organization of Art Image Collections.

PubMed

Crissaff, Lhaylla; Wood Ruby, Louisa; Deutch, Samantha; DuBois, R Luke; Fekete, Jean-Daniel; Freire, Juliana; Silva, Claudio

2018-01-01

Art historians have traditionally used physical light boxes to prepare exhibits or curate collections. On a light box, they can place slides or printed images, move the images around at will, group them as desired, and visual-ly compare them. The transition to digital images has rendered this workflow obsolete. Now, art historians lack well-designed, unified interactive software tools that effectively support the operations they perform with physi-cal light boxes. To address this problem, we designed ARIES (ARt Image Exploration Space), an interactive image manipulation system that enables the exploration and organization of fine digital art. The system allows images to be compared in multiple ways, offering dynamic overlays analogous to a physical light box, and sup-porting advanced image comparisons and feature-matching functions, available through computational image processing. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our system to support art historians tasks through real use cases.

[Optimize dropping process of Ginkgo biloba dropping pills by using design space approach].

PubMed

Shen, Ji-Chen; Wang, Qing-Qing; Chen, An; Pan, Fang-Lai; Gong, Xing-Chu; Qu, Hai-Bin

2017-07-01

In this paper, a design space approach was applied to optimize the dropping process of Ginkgo biloba dropping pills. Firstly, potential critical process parameters and potential process critical quality attributes were determined through literature research and pre-experiments. Secondly, experiments were carried out according to Box-Behnken design. Then the critical process parameters and critical quality attributes were determined based on the experimental results. Thirdly, second-order polynomial models were used to describe the quantitative relationships between critical process parameters and critical quality attributes. Finally, a probability-based design space was calculated and verified. The verification results showed that efficient production of Ginkgo biloba dropping pills can be guaranteed by operating within the design space parameters. The recommended operation ranges for the critical dropping process parameters of Ginkgo biloba dropping pills were as follows: dropping distance of 5.5-6.7 cm, and dropping speed of 59-60 drops per minute, providing a reference for industrial production of Ginkgo biloba dropping pills. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Designing Input Fields for Non-Narrative Open-Ended Responses in Web Surveys

PubMed Central

Couper, Mick P.; Kennedy, Courtney; Conrad, Frederick G.; Tourangeau, Roger

2012-01-01

Web surveys often collect information such as frequencies, currency amounts, dates, or other items requiring short structured answers in an open-ended format, typically using text boxes for input. We report on several experiments exploring design features of such input fields. We find little effect of the size of the input field on whether frequency or dollar amount answers are well-formed or not. By contrast, the use of templates to guide formatting significantly improves the well-formedness of responses to questions eliciting currency amounts. For date questions (whether month/year or month/day/year), we find that separate input fields improve the quality of responses over single input fields, while drop boxes further reduce the proportion of ill-formed answers. Drop boxes also reduce completion time when the list of responses is short (e.g., months), but marginally increases completion time when the list is long (e.g., birth dates). These results suggest that non-narrative open questions can be designed to help guide respondents to provide answers in the desired format. PMID:23411468

Pendant-Drop Surface-Tension Measurement On Molten Metal

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Man, Kin Fung; Thiessen, David

1996-01-01

Method of measuring surface tension of molten metal based on pendant-drop method implemented in quasi-containerless manner and augmented with digital processing of image data. Electrons bombard lower end of sample rod in vacuum, generating hanging drop of molten metal. Surface tension of drop computed from its shape. Technique minimizes effects of contamination.

Automated digital magnetofluidics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schneider, J.; Garcia, A. A.; Marquez, M.

2008-08-01

Drops can be moved in complex patterns on superhydrophobic surfaces using a reconfigured computer-controlled x-y metrology stage with a high degree of accuracy, flexibility, and reconfigurability. The stage employs a DMC-4030 controller which has a RISC-based, clock multiplying processor with DSP functions, accepting encoder inputs up to 22 MHz, provides servo update rates as high as 32 kHz, and processes commands at rates as fast as 40 milliseconds. A 6.35 mm diameter cylindrical NdFeB magnet is translated by the stage causing water drops to move by the action of induced magnetization of coated iron microspheres that remain in the drop and are attracted to the rare earth magnet through digital magnetofluidics. Water drops are easily moved in complex patterns in automated digital magnetofluidics at an average speed of 2.8 cm/s over a superhydrophobic polyethylene surface created by solvent casting. With additional components, some potential uses for this automated microfluidic system include characterization of superhydrophobic surfaces, water quality analysis, and medical diagnostics.

Monitoring of Dermanyssus gallinae in free-range poultry farms.

PubMed

Zenner, L; Bon, G; Chauve, C; Nemoz, C; Lubac, S

2009-06-01

Various methods for monitoring Dermanyssus gallinae infestations within free-range egg production units were compared. The study was carried out in five egg-producing free-range poultry buildings infested with D. gallinae. Each farm was divided into six zones (each zone including nest boxes, perches and duckboard) for placing two types of traps (corrugated cardboard and thick card traps) or examining dried droppings for presence of mites. Traps were removed 24 h later, placed into bags and mites were counted at the laboratory using binocular magnification. Droppings were also inspected by eye and mite numbers were estimated. All the methods used allowed us to detect mites although their efficacy differed. The number of mites collected was independent of the type of trap used. Examination of the droppings did not differentiate between buildings with differing mite populations. Placing traps in the nest boxes is a less reliable indicator than placing them on the perches. It appears that the most coherent method for evaluating the D. gallinae population within a free-range flock is to place thick card traps throughout the building, on perches favoured by birds.

Distinguishing intentional from accidental actions in orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus), chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), and human children (Homo sapiens).

PubMed

Call, J; Tomasello, M

1998-06-01

This study investigates the understanding of others' intentions in 2- and 3-year-old children, chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), and orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus). During training, subjects learned to use a discriminative cue to select a baited box. During testing, the experimenter placed a marker on top of the baited box to inform the subject of the reward's location. However, the experimenter also accidentally dropped the marker on top of an unbaited box, so that during any given trial the experimenter marked 2 boxes, 1 intentionally and 1 accidentally. All 3 species preferentially selected the box the experimenter had marked intentionally (especially during the initial trials), with 3-year-old children presenting the most robust results. These findings suggest that subjects understood something about the experimenter's intentions. The authors speculate that understanding of others' intentions may precede the understanding of others' beliefs both at the ontogenetic and phylogenetic levels.

Digitizing Sound: How Can Sound Waves be Turned into Ones and Zeros?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vick, Matthew

2010-10-01

From MP3 players to cell phones to computer games, we're surrounded by a constant stream of ones and zeros. Do we really need to know how this technology works? While nobody can understand everything, digital technology is increasingly making our lives a collection of "black boxes" that we can use but have no idea how they work. Pursuing scientific literacy should propel us to open up a few of these metaphorical boxes. High school physics offers opportunities to connect the curriculum to sports, art, music, and electricity, but it also offers connections to computers and digital music. Learning activities about digitizing sounds offer wonderful opportunities for technology integration and student problem solving. I used this series of lessons in high school physics after teaching about waves and sound but before optics and total internal reflection so that the concepts could be further extended when learning about fiber optics.

DLESE Teaching Box Pilot Project: Developing a Replicable Model for Collaboratively Creating Innovative Instructional Sequences Using Exemplary Resources in the Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weingroff, M.

2004-12-01

Before the advent of digital libraries, it was difficult for teachers to find suitable high-quality resources to use in their teaching. Digital libraries such as DLESE have eased the task by making high quality resources more easily accessible and providing search mechanisms that allow teachers to 'fine tune' the criteria over which they search. Searches tend to return lists of resources with some contextualizing information. However, teachers who are teaching 'out of discipline' or who have minimal training in science often need additional support to know how to use and sequence them. The Teaching Box Pilot Project was developed to address these concerns, bringing together educators, scientists, and instructional designers in a partnership to build an online framework to fully support innovative units of instruction about the Earth system. Each box integrates DLESE resources and activities, teaching tips, standards, concepts, teaching outcomes, reviews, and assessment information. Online templates and best practice guidelines are being developed that will enable teachers to create their own boxes or customize existing ones. Two boxes have been developed so far, one on weather for high school students, and one on the evidence for plate tectonics for middle schoolers. The project has met with significant enthusiasm and interest, and we hope to expand it by involving individual teachers, school systems, pre-service programs, and universities in the development and use of teaching boxes. A key ingredient in the project's success has been the close collaboration between the partners, each of whom has brought unique experiences, perspectives, knowledge, and skills to the project. This first effort involved teachers in the San Francisco Bay area, the University of California Museum of Paleontology, San Francisco State University, U.S. Geological Survey, and DLESE. This poster will allow participants to explore one of the teaching boxes. We will discuss how the boxes were developed, the conditions that engendered successful collaboration and high-quality results, lessons learned, and potential adaptations for networks of user communities, for example, in ocean education or seismology.

47 CFR 301.1 - Program purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... Telecommunication NATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE DIGITAL-TO... boxes. After February 17, 2009, the Federal Communications Commission will require that all full-power television stations in the United States broadcast using digital television technology. Consumers who wish to...

Energy use of set-top boxes and telephony products in the U.S.

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

Rosen, Karen B.; Meier, Alan K.; Zandelin, Stefan

2001-06-01

The goal of this investigation was to estimate the 1999 energy consumption of set-top boxes and telephony products in the U.S. residential sector. Results of this study will be used to identify new energy conservation opportunities and to align programs with those opportunities. We conducted a bottom-up analysis for set-top boxes and telephony products using our own power measurements and stock and usage estimates from secondary sources. The most common set-top boxes in U.S. homes in 1999 were analog cable boxes, digital cable boxes, wireless receivers, and game consoles. According to these measurements, analog cable boxes and wireless receivers drawmore » between 10 and 15 watts, while digital cable boxes draw between 20 and 25 watts in both the Active and Standby modes. Video games used less than 2 watts in Standby mode, and about 8 watts when Active. We estimate that set-top boxes accounted for 0.7% of residential electricity use in 1999. Our investigation of telephony products included answering machines, cordless phones, cordless phone answering machine combination units, and mobile phone chargers. Answering machines, cordless phones, and combination units use between 2 and 3 watts in both the Active and Standby modes. Mobile phone chargers use about 1 watt in standby. We estimate that these telephony products account for 0.5% of U.S. residential electricity consumption. Together, set-tops and telephony constituted 1.2% of U.S. residential electricity consumption in 1999. Standby power use accounted for about 60% of this energy use. The combined total energy use of the products investigated for this study and those researched previously for this series of reports account for about 6.6% of residential electricity use in the U.S.« less

Box/peanut and bar structures in edge-on and face-on nearby galaxies in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey - I. Catalogue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yoshino, Akira; Yamauchi, Chisato

2015-02-01

We investigate box/peanut and bar structures in image data of edge-on and face-on nearby galaxies taken from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) to present catalogues containing the surface brightness parameters and the morphology classification. About 1700 edge-on galaxies and 2600 face-on galaxies are selected from SDSS DR7 in the g, r and i-bands. The images of each galaxy are fitted with the model of two-dimensional surface brightness of the Sérsic bulge and exponential disk. After removing some irregular data, the box/peanut, bar and other structures are easily distinguished by eye using residual (observed minus model) images. We find 292 box/peanut structures in the 1329 edge-on samples and 630 bar structures in 1890 face-on samples in the i-band, after removing some irregular data. The fraction of box/peanut galaxies is about 22 per cent against the edge-on samples, and that of bar galaxies is about 33 per cent (about 50 per cent if 629 elliptical galaxies are removed) against the face-on samples. Furthermore the strengths of the box/peanuts and bars are evaluated as strong, standard or weak. We find that the strength increases slightly with increasing B/T (bulge-to-total flux ratio), and that the fraction of box/peanuts is generally about a half of that of bars, irrespective of the strength and B/T. Our result supports the idea that a box/peanut is a bar seen edge-on.

An Analysis of Music Fan towards Music Streaming Purchase Intention of Thailand's Music Industry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanitnarathorn, Pannawit

2018-01-01

Digital music streaming are climbing but overall music revenue is declining with digital music piracy being blamed as the culprit. In a 10 year period from 2003 to 2013, global music sales dropped from $US23.3 to $US15 billion dollars with Thailand's music industry following the trend dropping from $US 304 million in 2010 to $US 279 million in…

SPICE Supports Planetary Science Observation Geometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall Acton, Charles; Bachman, Nathaniel J.; Semenov, Boris V.; Wright, Edward D.

2015-11-01

"SPICE" is an information system, comprising both data and software, providing scientists with the observation geometry needed to plan observations from instruments aboard robotic spacecraft, and to subsequently help in analyzing the data returned from those observations. The SPICE system has been used on the majority of worldwide planetary exploration missions since the time of NASA's Galileo mission to Jupiter. Along with its "free" price tag, portability and the absence of licensing and export restrictions, its stable, enduring qualities help make it a popular choice. But stability does not imply rigidity-improvements and new capabilities are regularly added. This poster highlights recent additions that could be of interest to planetary scientists.Geometry Finder allows one to find all the times or time intervals when a particular geometric condition exists (e.g. occultation) or when a particular geometric parameter is within a given range or has reached a maximum or minimum.Digital Shape Kernel (DSK) provides means to compute observation geometry using accurately modeled target bodies: a tessellated plate model for irregular bodies and a digital elevation model for large, regular bodies.WebGeocalc (WGC) provides a graphical user interface (GUI) to a SPICE "geometry engine" installed at a mission operations facility, such as the one operated by NAIF. A WGC user need have only a computer with a web browser to access this geometry engine. Using traditional GUI widgets-drop-down menus, check boxes, radio buttons and fill-in boxes-the user inputs the data to be used, the kind of calculation wanted, and the details of that calculation. The WGC server makes the specified calculations and returns results to the user's browser.Cosmographia is a mission visualization program. This tool provides 3D visualization of solar system (target) bodies, spacecraft trajectory and orientation, instrument field-of-view "cones" and footprints, and more.The research described in this publication was carried out at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under a contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Taking Digital Creativity to the Art Classroom: Mystery Box Swap

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shin, Ryan

2010-01-01

Today's students are the first generation to grow up with computers, cell-phones, video games, music and video players, and other digital technologies. As "digital natives", a new term coined by Prensky (2001), they spend more time reading text messaging lines than lines from books, and they spend more time on Facebook than putting their energies…

76 FR 72484 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-11-23

... shall be posted on the NasdaqTrader.com Web site. Exchange Customer Firm MM Professional BATS $0.36 $0.55 $0.55 $0.[36]48 BOX 0.06 0.55 0.55 0.06 CBOE 0.06 0.55 0.55 0.26 CBOE orders greater than 99... Entry DROP Port Fee $500.00 OTTO DROP Port Fee $500.00 SQF Port Fee $0.00 [* As of October 3, 2011, the...

Premixed Turbulent Flame Propagation in Microgravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Menon, Suresh

1999-01-01

A combined numerical-experimental study has been carried out to investigate the structure and propagation characteristics of turbulent premixed flames with and without the influence of buoyancy. Experimentally, the premixed flame characteristics are studied in the wrinkled regime using a Couette flow facility and an isotropic flow facility in order to resolve the scale of flame wrinkling. Both facilities were chosen for their ability to achieve sustained turbulence at low Reynolds number. This implies that conventional diagnostics can be employed to resolve the smallest scales of wrinkling. The Couette facility was also built keeping in mind the constraints imposed by the drop tower requirements. Results showed that the flow in this Couette flow facility achieves full-developed turbulence at low Re and all turbulence statistics are in good agreement with past measurements on large-scale facilities. Premixed flame propagation studies were then carried out both using the isotropic box and the Couette facility. Flame imaging showed that fine scales of wrinkling occurs during flame propagation. Both cases in Ig showed significant buoyancy effect. To demonstrate that micro-g can remove this buoyancy effect, a small drop tower was built and drop experiments were conducted using the isotropic box. Results using the Couette facility confirmed the ability to carry out these unique reacting flow experiments at least in 1g. Drop experiments at NASA GRC were planned but were not completed due to termination of this project.

Analog circuit for controlling acoustic transducer arrays

DOEpatents

Drumheller, Douglas S.

1991-01-01

A simplified ananlog circuit is presented for controlling electromechanical transducer pairs in an acoustic telemetry system. The analog circuit of this invention comprises a single electrical resistor which replaces all of the digital components in a known digital circuit. In accordance with this invention, a first transducer in a transducer pair of array is driven in series with the resistor. The voltage drop across this resistor is then amplified and used to drive the second transducer. The voltage drop across the resistor is proportional and in phase with the current to the transducer. This current is approximately 90 degrees out of phase with the driving voltage to the transducer. This phase shift replaces the digital delay required by the digital control circuit of the prior art.

Discharge properties of hippocampal neurons during performance of a jump avoidance task

PubMed Central

Lenck-Santini, Pierre-Pascal; Fenton, André A.; Muller, Robert U.

2008-01-01

We recorded single hippocampal cells while rats performed a jump avoidance task. In this task, a rat was dropped onto the metal floor of a 33 cm gray wooden cube and was given a mild electric shock if it did not jump up onto the box rim in less than 15 sec. We found that many hippocampal pyramidal cells and most interneurons discharged preferentially at either the drop, the jump or on both events. By simultaneously recording the hippocampal EEG, we found that the discharge of most of the event-related pyramidal cells was modulated by the theta rhythm and moreover that discharge precessed with theta cycles in the same fashion seen for pyramidal cells in their role as place cells. The elevations of firing rate at drop and jump were accompanied by increases in theta frequency. We conclude that many of the features of event-related discharge can be interpreted as being equivalent to the activity of place cells with firing fields above the box floor. Nevertheless, there are sufficient differences between expectations from place cells and observed activity to indicate that pyramidal cells may be able to signal events as well as location. PMID:18596153

Advanced Digital Forensic and Steganalysis Methods

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-02-01

investigation is simultaneously cropped, scaled, and processed, extending the technology when the digital image is printed, developing technology capable ...or other common processing operations). TECNOLOGY APPLICATIONS 1. Determining the origin of digital images 2. Matching an image to a camera...Technology Transfer and Innovation Partnerships Division of Research P.O. Box 6000 State University of New York Binghamton, NY 13902-6000 Phone: 607-777

Adaptive box filters for removal of random noise from digital images

USGS Publications Warehouse

Eliason, E.M.; McEwen, A.S.

1990-01-01

We have developed adaptive box-filtering algorithms to (1) remove random bit errors (pixel values with no relation to the image scene) and (2) smooth noisy data (pixels related to the image scene but with an additive or multiplicative component of noise). For both procedures, we use the standard deviation (??) of those pixels within a local box surrounding each pixel, hence they are adaptive filters. This technique effectively reduces speckle in radar images without eliminating fine details. -from Authors

Digitizing an Analog Radiography Teaching File Under Time Constraint: Trade-Offs in Efficiency and Image Quality.

PubMed

Loehfelm, Thomas W; Prater, Adam B; Debebe, Tequam; Sekhar, Aarti K

2017-02-01

We digitized the radiography teaching file at Black Lion Hospital (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) during a recent trip, using a standard digital camera and a fluorescent light box. Our goal was to photograph every radiograph in the existing library while optimizing the final image size to the maximum resolution of a high quality tablet computer, preserving the contrast resolution of the radiographs, and minimizing total library file size. A secondary important goal was to minimize the cost and time required to take and process the images. Three workers were able to efficiently remove the radiographs from their storage folders, hang them on the light box, operate the camera, catalog the image, and repack the radiographs back to the storage folder. Zoom, focal length, and film speed were fixed, while aperture and shutter speed were manually adjusted for each image, allowing for efficiency and flexibility in image acquisition. Keeping zoom and focal length fixed, which kept the view box at the same relative position in all of the images acquired during a single photography session, allowed unused space to be batch-cropped, saving considerable time in post-processing, at the expense of final image resolution. We present an analysis of the trade-offs in workflow efficiency and final image quality, and demonstrate that a few people with minimal equipment can efficiently digitize a teaching file library.

The risk of chronic traumatic brain injury in professional boxing: change in exposure variables over the past century.

PubMed

Clausen, H; McCrory, P; Anderson, V

2005-09-01

To determine if boxing exposure has changed over time and hence if current professional boxers are at the same risk of developing chronic traumatic brain injury (CTBI) as historical controls. Literature review of published studies and analysis of data of active professional boxers. Professional boxers in the United Kingdom and Australia. Boxing history and participation in sparring and professional bouts. Since the 1930s, the average duration of a professional boxer's career has dropped from 19 years to five years, and the mean number of career bouts has reduced from 336 to 13. This is despite no significant decline in participation rates from 1931 until 2002. The incidence of boxing related CTBI will diminish in the current era of professional boxing because of the reduction in exposure to repetitive head trauma and increasing medical monitoring of boxers, with preparticipation medical and neuroimaging assessments resulting in the detection of early and potentially pre-symptomatic cases of CTBI.

Influence of safety warnings on ESA prescribing among dialysis patients using an interrupted time series

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background In March, 2007, a black box warning was issued by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to use the lowest possible erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESA) doses for treatment of anemia associated with renal disease. The goal is to determine if a change in ESA use was observed following the warning among US dialysis patients. Methods ESA therapy was examined from September 2004 through August 2009 (thirty months before and after the FDA black box warning) among adult Medicare hemodialysis patients. An interrupted time series model assessed the impact of the warnings. Results The FDA black box warning did not appear to influence ESA prescribing among the overall dialysis population. However, significant declines in ESA therapy after the FDA warnings were observed for selected populations. Patients with a hematocrit ≥36% had a declining month-to-month trend before (−164 units/week, p = <0.0001) and after the warnings (−80 units/week, p = .001), and a large drop in ESA level immediately after the black box (−4,744 units/week, p = <.0001). Not-for-profit facilities had a declining month-to-month trend before the warnings (−90 units/week, p = .009) and a large drop in ESA dose immediately afterwards (−2,487 units/week, p = 0.015). In contrast, for-profit facilities did not have a significant change in ESA prescribing. Conclusions ESA therapy had been both profitable for providers and controversial regarding benefits for nearly two decades. The extent to which a FDA black box warning highlighting important safety concerns influenced use of ESA therapy among nephrologists and dialysis providers was unknown. Our study found no evidence of changes in ESA prescribing for the overall dialysis population resulting from a FDA black box warning. PMID:23927675

Development of a low-cost temperature data monitoring. An upgrade for hot box apparatus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Rubeis, T.; Nardi, I.; Muttillo, M.

2017-11-01

The monitoring phase has gained a fundamental role in the energy efficiency evaluation of a system. Number and typology of the probes depend on the physical quantity to be monitored, and on the size and complexity of the system. Moreover, a measurement equipment should be designed to allow the employment of probes different for number and measured physical quantities. For this reason, a scalable equipment represents a good way for easily carrying out a system monitoring. Proprietary software and high costs characterize instruments of current use, thus limiting the possibilities to realize customized monitoring. In this paper, a temperature measuring instrument, conceived, designed, and realized for real time applications, is presented. The proposed system is based on digital thermometers and on open-source code. A remarkable feature of the instrument is the possibility of acquiring data from a high and variable number of probes (order of hundred), assuring flexibility of the software, since it can be programmed, and low-cost of the hardware components. The contemporary use of multiple temperature probes suggested to apply this instrument for a hot box apparatus, although the software can be set for recording different physical quantities. A hot box compliant with standard EN ISO 8990 should be equipped with several temperature probes to investigate heat exchanges of a specimen wall and thermal field of the chambers. In this work, preliminary tests have been carried out focusing only on the evaluation of the prototypal system’s performance. The tests were realized by comparing different sensors, such as thermocouples and resistance thermometers, traditionally employed in hot box experiments. A preliminary test was realized imposing a dynamic condition with a thermoelectric Peltier cell. Data obtained by digital thermometers DS18B20, compared with the ones of Pt100 probes, show a good correlation. Based on these encouraging results, a further test was carried out in hot box, comparing the data measured by digital thermometers, Pt100 and T-type thermocouples. In this case also, the analyses show a good correlation between either digital thermometers and analog sensors. From these results, it is reasonable to foresee that this measuring instrument could help those willing to realize or refurbish a hot box apparatus, and those who want to undertake temperature monitoring.

Digital microfluidics for automated hanging drop cell spheroid culture.

PubMed

Aijian, Andrew P; Garrell, Robin L

2015-06-01

Cell spheroids are multicellular aggregates, grown in vitro, that mimic the three-dimensional morphology of physiological tissues. Although there are numerous benefits to using spheroids in cell-based assays, the adoption of spheroids in routine biomedical research has been limited, in part, by the tedious workflow associated with spheroid formation and analysis. Here we describe a digital microfluidic platform that has been developed to automate liquid-handling protocols for the formation, maintenance, and analysis of multicellular spheroids in hanging drop culture. We show that droplets of liquid can be added to and extracted from through-holes, or "wells," and fabricated in the bottom plate of a digital microfluidic device, enabling the formation and assaying of hanging drops. Using this digital microfluidic platform, spheroids of mouse mesenchymal stem cells were formed and maintained in situ for 72 h, exhibiting good viability (>90%) and size uniformity (% coefficient of variation <10% intraexperiment, <20% interexperiment). A proof-of-principle drug screen was performed on human colorectal adenocarcinoma spheroids to demonstrate the ability to recapitulate physiologically relevant phenomena such as insulin-induced drug resistance. With automatable and flexible liquid handling, and a wide range of in situ sample preparation and analysis capabilities, the digital microfluidic platform provides a viable tool for automating cell spheroid culture and analysis. © 2014 Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening.

76 FR 30542 - Adult Signature Services

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-05-26

...[supreg]. USPS[supreg]-approved PC Postage[supreg] (registered end- users only). Permit imprint, if the.... Permit imprint, if the customer electronically submits postage statements and mailing documentation. d... mailpieces (not bearing a permit imprint) with Adult Signature at a Post Office lobby drop, collection box...

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-10-01

Students in the Young Astronaut Program at the Coca-Cola Space Science Center in Columbus, GA, constructed gloveboxes using the new NASA Student Glovebox Education Guide. The young astronauts used cardboard copier paper boxes as the heart of the glovebox. The paper boxes transformed into gloveboxes when the students pasted poster-pictures of an actual NASA microgravity science glovebox inside and outside of the paper boxes. The young astronauts then added holes for gloves and removable transparent top covers, which completed the construction of the gloveboxes. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

The Second Report on the State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Part 4, The State of the Art: Box 4A4: A digital enumeration method for collecting phenotypic data for genome association

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Consistent data across animal populations are required to inform genomic science aimed at finding important adaptive genetic variations. The ADAPTMap Digital Phenotype Collection- Prototype Method will yield a new procedure to provide consistent phenotypic data by digital enumeration of categorical ...

Contact Angle Measurements Using a Simplified Experimental Setup

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lamour, Guillaume; Hamraoui, Ahmed; Buvailo, Andrii; Xing, Yangjun; Keuleyan, Sean; Prakash, Vivek; Eftekhari-Bafrooei, Ali; Borguet, Eric

2010-01-01

A basic and affordable experimental apparatus is described that measures the static contact angle of a liquid drop in contact with a solid. The image of the drop is made with a simple digital camera by taking a picture that is magnified by an optical lens. The profile of the drop is then processed with ImageJ free software. The ImageJ contact…

DSMC simulations of vapor transport toward development of the lithium vapor box divertor concept

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jagoe, Christopher; Schwartz, Jacob; Goldston, Robert

2016-10-01

The lithium vapor divertor box concept attempts to achieve volumetric dissipation of the high heat efflux from a fusion power system. The vapor extracts the heat of the incoming plasma by ionization and radiation, while remaining localized in the vapor box due to differential pumping based on rapid condensation. Preliminary calculations with lithium vapor at densities appropriate for an NSTX-U-scale machine give Knudsen numbers between 0.01 and 1, outside both the range of continuum fluid dynamics and of collisionless Monte Carlo. The direct-simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method, however, can simulate rarefied gas flows in this regime. Using the solver contained in the OpenFOAM package, pressure-driven flows of water vapor will be analyzed. The use of water vapor in the relevant range of Knudsen number allows for a flexible similarity experiment to verify the reliability of the code before moving to tests with lithium. The simulation geometry consists of chains of boxes on a temperature gradient, connected by slots with widths that are a representative fraction of the dimensions of the box. We expect choked flow, sonic shocks, and order-of-magnitude pressure and density drops from box to box, but this expectation will be tested in the simulation and then experiment. This work is supported by the Princeton Environmental Institute.

MGBX - PS Crouch with experiment module

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-08-12

STS083-346-024 (4-8 April 1997) --- Payload specialist Roger K. Crouch performs the activation for the Mid Deck Glove Box (MGBX). Made to accommodate a variety of hardware and materials testing, the facility offers physical isolation and a negative air pressure environment so that items that are not suitable for handling in the open Spacelab can be protected. One experiment that was performed on STS-83 is the Internal Flows in a Free Drop (IFFD), an experiment that investigates rotation and position control of drops by varying acoustic pressures.

The risk of chronic traumatic brain injury in professional boxing: change in exposure variables over the past century

PubMed Central

Clausen, H; McCrory, P; Anderson, V; Fallon, K

2005-01-01

Objectives: To determine if boxing exposure has changed over time and hence if current professional boxers are at the same risk of developing chronic traumatic brain injury (CTBI) as historical controls. Design: Literature review of published studies and analysis of data of active professional boxers. Subjects: Professional boxers in the United Kingdom and Australia. Main outcome measures: Boxing history and participation in sparring and professional bouts. Results: Since the 1930s, the average duration of a professional boxer's career has dropped from 19 years to five years, and the mean number of career bouts has reduced from 336 to 13. This is despite no significant decline in participation rates from 1931 until 2002. Conclusions: The incidence of boxing related CTBI will diminish in the current era of professional boxing because of the reduction in exposure to repetitive head trauma and increasing medical monitoring of boxers, with preparticipation medical and neuroimaging assessments resulting in the detection of early and potentially pre-symptomatic cases of CTBI. PMID:16118306

Electrowetting-driven spreading and jumping of drops in oil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hong, Jiwoo; Lee, Sang Joon

2013-11-01

Electrowetting-based practical applications include digital microfluidics, liquid lenses, and reflective displays. Most of them are performed in water/oil system, because oil medium reduces the contact-angle hysteresis and prevents drop evaporation. In this study, the effects of drop volume, oil viscosity, and applied voltage on the dynamic behaviors of spreading drops, such as transition of spreading pattern and response time, are investigated. Interestingly, jumping phenomena of drops are observed in oil when the applied voltage is turned off after reaching the electrowetted equilibrium radius of drops. A numerical model to predict the transient behavior of jumping drops is formulated based on the phase-field method. The numerical results for the transient deformation of jumping drops show quantitative agreement with the experimental results.

Students build glovebox at Space Science Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

Students in the Young Astronaut Program at the Coca-Cola Space Science Center in Columbus, GA, constructed gloveboxes using the new NASA Student Glovebox Education Guide. The young astronauts used cardboard copier paper boxes as the heart of the glovebox. The paper boxes transformed into gloveboxes when the students pasted poster-pictures of an actual NASA microgravity science glovebox inside and outside of the paper boxes. The young astronauts then added holes for gloves and removable transparent top covers, which completed the construction of the gloveboxes. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

The Music of the Spheres

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewicki, Martin; Hughes, Stephen

2012-01-01

This article describes a method for making a spectroscope from scrap materials, i.e. a fragment of compact disc, a cardboard box, a tube and a digital camera to record the spectrum. An image processing program such as ImageJ can be used to calculate the wavelength of emission and absorption lines from the digital photograph. Multiple images of a…

­The Carnegie Quick Deploy Box (QDB) for use with broadband and intermediate period sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wagner, L. S.; Roman, D.; Bartholomew, T.; Golden, S.; Schleigh, B.

2017-12-01

Recent data processing advances have increased the call for dense recordings of teleseismic data. However, traditional broadband field installations typically comprise 1) a sensor vault 2) a field box to hold the recording and power systems, and 3) a solar panel mount. The construction of these installations is time consuming and requires bulky construction materials, limiting the number of stations that can be installed from a single vehicle without repeated trips to a storage facility. Depending on the deployment location, watertight containers for both vault and field box can be difficult to find, resulting in a loss of data due to flooding. Recent technological improvements have made possible the direct burial of sensors (no vault required) and a reduction in the size of the solar panels needed to run a station. With support from the Brinson Foundation, we take advantage of these advances to create a field box/shipping container that will greatly simplify these types of seismic deployments. The goal of the Carnegie Quick Deploy Box (QDB) is to have everything needed for an intermediate period station install (except battery and shovel) contained in a single box for shipment, and to be able to leave everything (except the shovel) in that box when the station is deployed. The box is small enough ( 13"x13"x21") and lightweight enough (< 35 lbs) to be checked as airline luggage. The solar panel mount can be attached securely to the top of the box, but it can also be pole mounted with U-bolts or hose clamps. The sensor can be direct-buried. The sensor cable and solar panel cable plug into watertight bulkhead-fitted plugs on the outside of the box that are in turn plugged into the digitizer and power regulator inside the box. Our prototype boxes (Pelican Cases) have proved watertight when submerged for days. This equipment has been tested in Alaska in winter and Nicaragua in summer without failure due to flooding or power. The cost for parts for a single box (not including sensor cable, sensor, or digitizer) is $500. The setup is simple, and can be completed in a matter of minutes once the sensor is installed. QDBs such as ours will make possible a dramatic increase in the number of stations that can be installed, while also significantly decreasing the cost of deployment per station by reducing vehicle time, fuel, personnel time, and shipping costs.

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS AND CASE STUDIES: Addressing the Public Outreach Responsibilities of the National Historic Preservation Act: Argonne National Laboratory’s Box Digital Display Platform

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

O’Rourke, Daniel J.; Weber, Cory C.; Richmond, Pamela D.

Federal agencies are made responsible for managing the historic properties under their jurisdiction by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended. A component of this responsibility is to mitigate the effect of a federal undertaking on historic properties through mitigation often through documentation. Providing public access to this documentation has always been a challenge. To address the issue of public access to mitigation information, personnel from Argonne National Laboratory created the Box Digital Display Platform, a system for communicating information about historic properties to the public. The platform, developed for the US Army Dugway Proving Ground, uses shortmore » introductory videos to present a topic but can also incorporate photos, drawings, GIS information, and documents. The system operates from a small, self-contained computer that can be attached to any digital monitor via an HDMI cable. The system relies on web-based software that allows the information to be republished as a touch-screen device application or as a website. The system does not connect to the Internet, and this increases security and eliminates the software maintenance fees associated with websites. The platform is designed to incorporate the products of past documentation to make this information more accessible to the public; specifically those documentations developed using the Historic American Building Survey/ Historic American Engineering Record (HABS/HAER) standards. Argonne National Laboratory’s Box Digital Display Platform can assist federal agencies in complying with the requirements of the National Historic Preservation Act. Environmental Practice 18: 209–213 (2016)« less

Acquisition of a Surface Plasmon Resonance Imager, Digital Microscope, and Peristaltic Pumps for Defense-Based Research

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-05-05

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: The goal of this proposal is to purchase the GWC Technologies, Inc. Horizontal Surface Plasmon Resonance Imaging (SPRi...Unlimited UU UU UU UU 05-05-2016 1-Feb-2014 31-Jan-2016 Final Report: Acquisition of a Surface Plasmon Resonance Imager, Digital Microscope, and...S) AND ADDRESS (ES) U.S. Army Research Office P.O. Box 12211 Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-2211 Surface Plasmon Resonance Imager, Digital

Peering Inside the Black Box of Undergraduate Study Habits: The Centrality of Self-Regulated Learning in a Digitized World. WCER Working Paper No. 2015-3

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hora, Matthew T.; Oleson, Amanda K.

2015-01-01

Research suggests which study strategies are effective but little descriptive research focuses on how undergraduate students study in real-world settings. Thus, the mechanisms of students' actual learning remain a black box for the field of higher education, with far more attention paid to inputs and outputs of the learning process. Using a…

Dealing with Unseen Obstacles to Education in the Digital Age

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Powell, Valerie J. H.; Sirinterlikci, Arif; Zomp, Christopher; Johnson, Randall S.; Miller, Phillip; Powell, James C.

2013-01-01

This paper updates the efforts to educate blind students in higher education in the digital age and describes how to support the development of mental models in learning through tactile learning and 3D-printing technology. It cites research documenting a drop in Braille literacy along with the growth in use of digital technologies by blind…

Citizen centered health and lifestyle management via interactive TV: The PANACEIA-ITV health system.

PubMed

Maglaveras, N; Chouvarda, I; Koutkias, V; Lekka, I; Tsakali, M; Tsetoglou, S; Maglavera, S; Leondaridis, L; Zeevi, B; Danelli, V; Kotis, T; De Moore, G; Balas, E A

2003-01-01

In the context of an IST European project with acronym PANACEIA-ITV, a home care service provisioning system is described, based on interactive TV technology. The purpose of PANACEIA-ITV is to facilitate essential lifestyle changes and to promote compliance with scientifically sound self-care recommendations, through the application of interactive digital television for family health maintenance. The means to achieve these goals are based on technological, health services and business models. PANACEIA-ITV is looking for communication of monitoring micro-devices with I-TV set-top-boxes using infrared technology, and embodiment of analogous H/W and S/W in the I-TV set-top-boxes. Intelligent agents are used to regulate data flow, user queries as well as service provisions from and to the household through the satellite digital platform, the portal and the back-end decision support mechanisms, using predominantly the Active Service Provision (ASP) model. Moreover, interactive digital TV services are developed for the delivery of health care in the home care environment.

Self-organization in the limb: a Turing mechanism for digit development.

PubMed

Cooper, Kimberly L

2015-06-01

The statistician George E. P. Box stated, 'Essentially all models are wrong, but some are useful.' (Box GEP, Draper NR: Empirical Model-Building and Response Surfaces. Wiley; 1987). Modeling biological processes is challenging for many of the reasons classically trained developmental biologists often resist the idea that black and white equations can explain the grayscale subtleties of living things. Although a simplified mathematical model of development will undoubtedly fall short of precision, a good model is exceedingly useful if it raises at least as many testable questions as it answers. Self-organizing Turing models that simulate the pattern of digits in the hand replicate events that have not yet been explained by classical approaches. The union of theory and experimentation has recently identified and validated the minimal components of a Turing network for digit pattern and triggered a cascade of questions that will undoubtedly be well-served by the continued merging of disciplines. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Increasing the realism of a laparoscopic box trainer: a simple, inexpensive method.

PubMed

Hull, Louise; Kassab, Eva; Arora, Sonal; Kneebone, Roger

2010-01-01

Simulation-based training in medical education is increasing. Realism is an integral element of creating an engaging, effective training environment. Although physical trainers offer a low-cost alternative to expensive virtual reality (VR) simulators, many lack in realism. The aim of this research was to enhance the realism of a laparoscopic box trainer by using a simple, inexpensive method. Digital images of the abdominal cavity were captured from a VR simulator. The images were printed onto a laminated card that lined the bottom and sides of the box-trainer cavity. The standard black neoprene material that encloses the abdominal cavity was replaced with a skin-colored silicon model. The realism of the modified box trainer was assessed by surgeons, using quantitative and qualitative methodologies. Results suggest that the modified box trainer was more realistic than a standard box trainer alone. Incorporating this technique in the training of laparoscopic skills is an inexpensive means of emulating surgical reality that may enhance the engagement of the learner in simulation.

Large charged drop levitation against gravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rhim, Won-Kyu; Chung, Sang Kun; Hyson, Michael T.; Trinh, Eugene H.; Elleman, Daniel D.

1987-01-01

A hybrid electrostatic-acoustic levitator that can levitate and manipulate a large liquid drop in one gravity is presented. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first time such large drops (up to 4 mm in diameter in the case of water) have been levitated against 1-gravity. This makes possible, for the first time, many new experiments both in space and in ground-based laboratories, such as 1)supercooling and superheating, 2) containerless crystal growth from various salt solutions or melts, 3) drop dynamics of oscillating or rotating liquid drops, 4) drop evaporation and Rayleigh bursting, and 5) containerless material processing in space. The digital control system, liquid drop launch process, principles of electrode design, and design of a multipurpose room temperature levitation chamber are described. Preliminary results that demonstrate drop oscillation and rotation, and crystal growth from supersaturated salt solutions are presented.

Enhanced Data Authentication System v. 2.0

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

Thomas, Maikael A.; Tolsch, Brandon Jeffrey; Schwartz, Steven Robert

EDAS is a system, comprised on hardware and software, that plugs in to an existing data stream, and branches all data for transmission to a secondary observer computer. The EDAS Junction box, which inserts into the data stream, has Java software that forms these data into packets, digitally signs, encrypts, and sends these packets to a safeguards inspector computer. Further, there is a second Java program running on the secondary observer computer that receives data from the EDAS Junction Box to decrypt, authenticate, and store incoming packets. Also, there is a stand-alone Java program that is used to configure themore » EDAS Junction Box.« less

Inside the Black Box

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kao, Yvonne S.; Cina, Anthony; Gimm, J. Aura

2006-01-01

Scientists often have to observe and study surfaces that are impossible or impractical to see directly, such as the ocean floor or the atomic surfaces of objects. Early in the history of oceanography scientists dropped weighted cables to the bottom of the ocean. By moving across the ocean at regular intervals and keeping track of how deep the…

Acoustically induced oscillation and rotation of a large drop in space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jacobi, N.; Croonquist, A. P.; Elleman, D. D.; Wang, T. G.

1982-03-01

A 2.5 cm diameter water drop was successfully deployed and manipulated in a triaxial acoustic resonance chamber during a 240 sec low-gravity SPAR rocket flight. Oscillation and rotation were induced by modulating and phase shifting the signals to the speakers. Portions of the film record were digitized and analyzed. Spectral analysis brought out the n = 2, 3, 4 free oscillation modes of the drop, its very low-frequency center-of-mass motion in the acoustic potential well, and the forced oscillation frequency. The drop boundaries were least-square fitted to general ellipses, providing eccentricities of the distorted drop. The normalized equatorial area of the rotating drop was plotted vs a rotational parameter, and was in excellent agreement with values derived from the theory of equilibrium shapes of rotating liquid drops.

Human behaviours associated with dominance in elite amateur boxing bouts: A comparison of winners and losers under the Ten Point Must System

PubMed Central

Humberstone, Clare E.; Iredale, K. Fiona; Martin, David T.; Blazevich, Anthony J.

2017-01-01

Humans commonly ascertain physical dominance through non-lethal fighting by participating in combat sports. However, the behaviours that achieve fight dominance are not fully understood. Amateur boxing competition, which is judged using the subjective “Ten Point Must-System”, provides insight into fight dominance behaviours. Notational analysis was performed on 26 elite male competitors in a national boxing championship. Behavioural (guard-drop time; movement style [stepping/bouncing time]; clinch-time; interaction-time) and technical (total punches; punches landed [%Hit]; air punches [%Air]; defence) measures were recorded. Participants reported effort required (0–100%) and perceived effect of fatigue on their own performance (5-point Likert scale) following bouts. Differences between winners and losers, and changes across the duration of the bout were examined. Winners punched more accurately than losers (greater %Hit [33% vs. 23%] and lower %Air [17% vs. 27%]) but total punches, defence and interaction-time were similar. From rounds 1–2, clinch-time and guard drops increased whilst bouncing decreased. Perceived effect of fatigue increased throughout the bout while perceived effort increased only from rounds 2–3. %Hit and movement index together in regression analysis correctly classified 85% of bout outcomes, indicating that judges (subjectively) chose winning (dominant) boxers according to punch accuracy and style, rather than assertiveness (more punches thrown). Boxers appear to use tactical strategies throughout the bout to pace their effort and minimise fatigue (increased guard drops, reduced bouncing), but these did not influence perceived dominance or bout outcome. These results show that judges use several performance indicators not including the total number of successful punches thrown to assess fight dominance and superiority between fighters. These results provide valuable information as to how experienced fight observers subjectively rate superiority and dominance during one-on-one human fighting. PMID:29287064

Human behaviours associated with dominance in elite amateur boxing bouts: A comparison of winners and losers under the Ten Point Must System.

PubMed

Dunn, Emily C; Humberstone, Clare E; Iredale, K Fiona; Martin, David T; Blazevich, Anthony J

2017-01-01

Humans commonly ascertain physical dominance through non-lethal fighting by participating in combat sports. However, the behaviours that achieve fight dominance are not fully understood. Amateur boxing competition, which is judged using the subjective "Ten Point Must-System", provides insight into fight dominance behaviours. Notational analysis was performed on 26 elite male competitors in a national boxing championship. Behavioural (guard-drop time; movement style [stepping/bouncing time]; clinch-time; interaction-time) and technical (total punches; punches landed [%Hit]; air punches [%Air]; defence) measures were recorded. Participants reported effort required (0-100%) and perceived effect of fatigue on their own performance (5-point Likert scale) following bouts. Differences between winners and losers, and changes across the duration of the bout were examined. Winners punched more accurately than losers (greater %Hit [33% vs. 23%] and lower %Air [17% vs. 27%]) but total punches, defence and interaction-time were similar. From rounds 1-2, clinch-time and guard drops increased whilst bouncing decreased. Perceived effect of fatigue increased throughout the bout while perceived effort increased only from rounds 2-3. %Hit and movement index together in regression analysis correctly classified 85% of bout outcomes, indicating that judges (subjectively) chose winning (dominant) boxers according to punch accuracy and style, rather than assertiveness (more punches thrown). Boxers appear to use tactical strategies throughout the bout to pace their effort and minimise fatigue (increased guard drops, reduced bouncing), but these did not influence perceived dominance or bout outcome. These results show that judges use several performance indicators not including the total number of successful punches thrown to assess fight dominance and superiority between fighters. These results provide valuable information as to how experienced fight observers subjectively rate superiority and dominance during one-on-one human fighting.

F-box genes: Genome-wide expansion, evolution and their contribution to pollen growth in pear (Pyrus bretschneideri).

PubMed

Wang, Guo-Ming; Yin, Hao; Qiao, Xin; Tan, Xu; Gu, Chao; Wang, Bao-Hua; Cheng, Rui; Wang, Ying-Zhen; Zhang, Shao-Ling

2016-12-01

F-box gene family, as one of the largest gene families in plants, plays crucial roles in regulating plant development, reproduction, cellular protein degradation and responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. However, comprehensive analysis of the F-box gene family in pear (Pyrus bretschneideri Rehd.) and other Rosaceae species has not been reported yet. Herein, we identified a total of 226 full-length F-box genes in pear for the first time. And these genes were further divided into various subgroups based on specific domains and phylogenetic analysis. Intriguingly, we observed that whole-genome duplication and dispersed duplication have a major contribution to F-box family expansion. Furthermore, the dynamic evolution for different modes of gene duplication was dissected. Interestingly, we found that dispersed and tandem duplicate have been evolving at a high rate. In addition, we found that F-box genes exhibited functional specificity based on GO analysis, and most of the F-box genes were significantly enriched in the protein binding (GO: 0005515) term, supporting that F-box genes might play a critical role for gene regulation in pear. Transcriptome and digital expression profiles revealed that F-box genes are involved in the development of multiple pear tissues. Overall, these results will set stage for elaborating the biological role of F-box genes in pear and other plants. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Internal Flow in a Free Drop (IFFD) Bubble Surface Tension Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1999-01-01

This digital QuickTime movie is of the Internal Flow in a Free Drop (IFFD) Bubble Surface Tension Experiment taking place in the Microgravity laboratory at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Huntsville, Alabama. The Bubble provides scientists with information about fluid surface tensions in a low-gravity environment.

A read-in IC for infrared scene projectors with voltage drop compensation for improved uniformity of emitter current

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cho, Min Ji; Shin, Uisub; Lee, Hee Chul

2017-05-01

This paper proposes a read-in integrated circuit (RIIC) for infrared scene projectors, which compensates for the voltage drops in ground lines in order to improve the uniformity of the emitter current. A current output digital-to-analog converter is utilized to convert digital scene data into scene data currents. The unit cells in the array receive the scene data current and convert it into data voltage, which simultaneously self-adjusts to account for the voltage drop in the ground line in order to generate the desired emitter current independently of variations in the ground voltage. A 32 × 32 RIIC unit cell array was designed and fabricated using a 0.18-μm CMOS process. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed RIIC can output a maximum emitter current of 150 μA and compensate for a voltage drop in the ground line of up to 500 mV under a 3.3-V supply. The uniformity of the emitter current is significantly improved compared to that of a conventional RIIC.

Digital antimicrobial susceptibility testing using the MilliDrop technology.

PubMed

Jiang, L; Boitard, L; Broyer, P; Chareire, A-C; Bourne-Branchu, P; Mahé, P; Tournoud, M; Franceschi, C; Zambardi, G; Baudry, J; Bibette, J

2016-03-01

We present the MilliDrop Analyzer (MDA), a droplet-based millifluidic system for digital antimicrobial susceptibility testing (D-AST), which enables us to determine minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) precisely and accurately. The MilliDrop technology was validated by using resazurin for fluorescence readout, for comparison with standard methodology, and for conducting reproducibility studies. In this first assessment, the susceptibility of a reference Gram-negative strain Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 to gentamicin, chloramphenicol, and nalidixic acid were tested by the MDA, VITEK®2, and broth microdilution as a reference standard. We measured the susceptibility of clinically relevant Gram-positive strains of Staphylococcus aureus to vancomycin, including vancomycin-intermediate S. aureus (VISA), heterogeneous vancomycin-intermediate S. aureus (hVISA), and vancomycin-susceptible S. aureus (VSSA) strains. The MDA provided results which were much more accurate than those of VITEK®2 and standard broth microdilution. The enhanced accuracy enabled us to reliably discriminate between VSSA and hVISA strains.

DLESE Teaching Boxes and Beyond: A promising prototype for structuring web services to support concept- and inquiry-based STEM learning and interdisciplinary partnerships.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davis, L.; Weatherley, J.; Bhushan, S.; Khan, H.; de La Chica, S.; Deardorff, R.

2004-12-01

An exciting pilot program took place this summer, pioneering the development of Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE) Teaching Boxes with the Univ. of CA. Berkeley Museum of Paleontology, SF State Univ., USGS and 7 middle/high school teachers from the San Francisco area. This session will share the DLESE Teaching Box concept, explain the pilot program, and explore the tremendous opportunities for expanding this notion to embrace interdisciplinary approaches to learning about the Earth in the undergraduate science and pre-service teaching arenas. A Teaching Box is a metaphor for an online assembly of interrelated learning concepts, digital resources, and cohesive narration that bridges the gap between discrete resources and understanding. Within a Teaching Box, an instructor or student can pick a topic and see the concepts that build an understanding of that topic, explore online resources that support learning of those concepts, and benefit from the narration (the glue) that weaves concepts, activities, and background information together into a complete teaching/learning story. In this session, we will demonstrate the emerging Teaching Box prototypes and explore how this platform may promote STEM learning by utilizing DLESE tools and services in ways that begin to blur traditional disciplinary boundaries, overcome limitations of discipline-specific vocabularies, and foster collaboration. We will show ways in which new DLESE Web Services could support learning in this highly contextualized environment. We will see glimpses of how learners and educators will be able to modify or create their own Teaching Boxes specific to a unit of study or course, and perhaps share them with the Earth Science Education community. We will see ways to stay abreast of current Earth events, emerging research, and real-time data and incorporate such dynamic information into one learning environment. Services will be described and demonstrated in the context of Teaching Boxes: - DLESE Web Services provide a programmatic interface that allows the Teaching Box (or any web page) to have the same DLESE search, bookmarking features, and data management that are found at the DLESE web site. - DLESE Smart Links are hyperlinks that can be created by anyone and implemented as easily as defining a specific query. Clicking a Smart Link displays a list of resources that corresponds to the specific query. We'll talk about how this service can help to bridge the gap between vocabularies and disciplines and the interesting possibilities it presents for contextualizing searches and building custom topical menus. - The Really Simple Syndication (RSS) service delivers online information immediately, and allows end-users to subscribe to receive regular news, events, and data on a given Teaching Box topic. This opens the door to event-based learning. - Strand Maps, developed by the AAAS, are diagrams of interconnected learning concepts across a range of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. The University of Colorado and its project partners are developing the Strand Map Service (SMS) to provide an interactive interface to interrelated learning goals, content knowledge, (including student misconceptions) and educational resources in the National Science Digital Library and DLESE.

DStat: A Versatile, Open-Source Potentiostat for Electroanalysis and Integration.

PubMed

Dryden, Michael D M; Wheeler, Aaron R

2015-01-01

Most electroanalytical techniques require the precise control of the potentials in an electrochemical cell using a potentiostat. Commercial potentiostats function as "black boxes," giving limited information about their circuitry and behaviour which can make development of new measurement techniques and integration with other instruments challenging. Recently, a number of lab-built potentiostats have emerged with various design goals including low manufacturing cost and field-portability, but notably lacking is an accessible potentiostat designed for general lab use, focusing on measurement quality combined with ease of use and versatility. To fill this gap, we introduce DStat (http://microfluidics.utoronto.ca/dstat), an open-source, general-purpose potentiostat for use alone or integrated with other instruments. DStat offers picoampere current measurement capabilities, a compact USB-powered design, and user-friendly cross-platform software. DStat is easy and inexpensive to build, may be modified freely, and achieves good performance at low current levels not accessible to other lab-built instruments. In head-to-head tests, DStat's voltammetric measurements are much more sensitive than those of "CheapStat" (a popular open-source potentiostat described previously), and are comparable to those of a compact commercial "black box" potentiostat. Likewise, in head-to-head tests, DStat's potentiometric precision is similar to that of a commercial pH meter. Most importantly, the versatility of DStat was demonstrated through integration with the open-source DropBot digital microfluidics platform. In sum, we propose that DStat is a valuable contribution to the "open source" movement in analytical science, which is allowing users to adapt their tools to their experiments rather than alter their experiments to be compatible with their tools.

Proposed Construction of Boulder Seismic Station Monitoring Sites, Boulder, Wyoming. Environmental Assessment

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-02-01

power battery box and controllers, WiFi radio, network switch, vault seismometers, infrasonic digitizers, and excess cabling. In addition to the...installed around the boreholes. Immediately upon completion, each site will be cleared of all unused equipment, debris, materials, and trash . All...controllers, WiFi radio, network switch, vault seismometers, infrasonic digitizers, and excess cabling. In addition to the permanent infrastructure listed

Digitizing Sound: How Can Sound Waves Be Turned into Ones and Zeros?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vick, Matthew

2010-01-01

From MP3 players to cell phones to computer games, we're surrounded by a constant stream of ones and zeros. Do we really need to know how this technology works? While nobody can understand everything, digital technology is increasingly making our lives a collection of "black boxes" that we can use but have no idea how they work. Pursuing…

A third-order silicon racetrack add-drop filter with a moderate feature size

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Ying; Zhou, Xin; Chen, Qian; Shao, Yue; Chen, Xiangning; Huang, Qingzhong; Jiang, Wei

2018-01-01

In this work, we design and fabricate a highly compact third-order racetrack add-drop filter consisting of silicon waveguides with modified widths on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafer. Compared to the previous approach that requires an exceedingly narrow coupling gap less than 100nm, we propose a new approach that enlarges the minimum feature size of the whole device to be 300 nm to reduce the process requirement. The three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain (3D-FDTD) method is used for simulation. Experiment results show good agreement with simulation results in property. In the experiment, the filter shows a nearly box-like channel dropping response, which has a large flat 3-dB bandwidth ({3 nm), relatively large FSR ({13.3 nm) and out-of-band rejection larger than 14 dB at the drop port with a footprint of 0.0006 mm2 . The device is small and simple enough to have a wide range of applications in large scale on-chip photonic integration circuits.

Emissions from open burning of simulated military waste from forward operating bases.

PubMed

Aurell, Johanna; Gullett, Brian K; Yamamoto, Dirk

2012-10-16

Emissions from open burning of simulated military waste from forward operating bases (FOBs) were extensively characterized as an initial step in assessing potential inhalation exposure of FOB personnel and future disposal alternatives. Emissions from two different burning scenarios, so-called "burn piles/pits" and an air curtain burner/"burn box", were compared using simulated FOB waste from municipal and commercial sources. A comprehensive array of emissions was quantified, including CO(2), PM(2.5), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated dibenzodioxins and -furans (PCDDs/PCDFs), polybrominated dibenzodioxins and -furans (PBDDs/PBDFs), and metals. In general, smoldering conditions in the burn box and the burn pile led to similar emissions. However, when the burn box underwent periodic waste charging to maintain sustained combustion, PM(2.5), VOCs, and PAH emissions dropped considerably compared to smoldering conditions and the overall burn pile results. The PCDD/PCDF and PBDD/PBDF emission factors for the burn piles were 50 times higher than those from the burn box likely due to the dominance of smoldering combustion in the burn piles.

Sampling and Chemical Analysis Quality Assurance Requirements for the Navy Installation Restoration Program

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-06-01

Mencer Mitzi S. Miller Dist J. W. Zolyniak Prepared by the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 operated by MARTIN MARIETTA...Drop A20 S Oak Ridge, TN 37830 * Mailing Address for Regular Mail: Martin Marietta Energy Systems, Inc. P.O. Box 2003 Oak Ridge, TN 37831-7440 Mitzi

Lenz's Law with Aluminum Foil and a Lengthwise Slit

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berls, Rob; Ruiz, Michael J.

2018-01-01

The classic demonstration illustrating Lenz's law by dropping a magnet through a copper pipe is presented using household aluminum foil right out of the box. Then comes the surprise. The teacher presents an aluminum foil cylinder with a missing lengthwise slice (cut before class). Will the demonstration still work? Students are amazed at the…

50 CFR 32.60 - South Carolina.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

.... You may possess only approved nontoxic shot while hunting on the refuge (see §32.2(k)). 4. We prohibit..., possessing, or transporting more than one 3-quart plastic bag of sea shells per person per day from the... in daily at one of the small game check sheet drop boxes. 3. We prohibit discharge of weapons (see...

50 CFR 32.60 - South Carolina.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

.... You may possess only approved nontoxic shot while hunting on the refuge (see §32.2(k)). 4. We prohibit..., possessing, or transporting more than one 3-quart plastic bag of sea shells per person per day from the... in daily at one of the small game check sheet drop boxes. 3. We prohibit discharge of weapons (see...

50 CFR 32.60 - South Carolina.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

.... You may possess only approved nontoxic shot while hunting on the refuge (see §32.2(k)). 4. We prohibit..., possessing, or transporting more than one 3-quart plastic bag of sea shells per person per day from the... in daily at one of the small game check sheet drop boxes. 3. We prohibit discharge of weapons (see...

50 CFR 32.60 - South Carolina.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

.... You may possess only approved nontoxic shot while hunting on the refuge (see §32.2(k)). 4. We prohibit..., possessing, or transporting more than one 3-quart plastic bag of sea shells per person per day from the... in daily at one of the small game check sheet drop boxes. 3. We prohibit discharge of weapons (see...

50 CFR 32.60 - South Carolina.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

.... You may possess only approved nontoxic shot while hunting on the refuge (see §32.2(k)). 4. We prohibit..., possessing, or transporting more than one 3-quart plastic bag of sea shells per person per day from the... in daily at one of the small game check sheet drop boxes. 3. We prohibit discharge of weapons (see...

Adopted children's co-production and use of 'trove' (a digitally enhanced memory box) to better understand their care histories through precious objects.

PubMed

Watson, Debbie; Meineck, Chloe; Lancaster, Beth

2018-05-01

This article presents an innovative project to develop and trial a prototype product called 'trove' to start to address challenges identified regarding current practice of life story work with children who are looked after and adopted. trove is a digitally enhanced memory box that utilises raspberry pi (a small single board computer) and radio-frequency identification (RFID) technologies to enable children to record their memories and to attach these to their precious objects using an electronic tag: providing a safe 'container' for their mementoes and memories. Located in theories of narrative identity and object attachment and drawing on Brodinsky's concept of communicative openness, we describe the children's engagements in the design and report the results of a small trial of 10 troves with adopted children in England.

Genome-wide survey and expression analysis of F-box genes in chickpea.

PubMed

Gupta, Shefali; Garg, Vanika; Kant, Chandra; Bhatia, Sabhyata

2015-02-13

The F-box genes constitute one of the largest gene families in plants involved in degradation of cellular proteins. F-box proteins can recognize a wide array of substrates and regulate many important biological processes such as embryogenesis, floral development, plant growth and development, biotic and abiotic stress, hormonal responses and senescence, among others. However, little is known about the F-box genes in the important legume crop, chickpea. The available draft genome sequence of chickpea allowed us to conduct a genome-wide survey of the F-box gene family in chickpea. A total of 285 F-box genes were identified in chickpea which were classified based on their C-terminal domain structures into 10 subfamilies. Thirteen putative novel motifs were also identified in F-box proteins with no known functional domain at their C-termini. The F-box genes were physically mapped on the 8 chickpea chromosomes and duplication events were investigated which revealed that the F-box gene family expanded largely due to tandem duplications. Phylogenetic analysis classified the chickpea F-box genes into 9 clusters. Also, maximum syntenic relationship was observed with soybean followed by Medicago truncatula, Lotus japonicus and Arabidopsis. Digital expression analysis of F-box genes in various chickpea tissues as well as under abiotic stress conditions utilizing the available chickpea transcriptome data revealed differential expression patterns with several F-box genes specifically expressing in each tissue, few of which were validated by using quantitative real-time PCR. The genome-wide analysis of chickpea F-box genes provides new opportunities for characterization of candidate F-box genes and elucidation of their function in growth, development and stress responses for utilization in chickpea improvement.

Measurement and control of a Coulomb-blockaded parafermion box

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Snizhko, Kyrylo; Egger, Reinhold; Gefen, Yuval

2018-02-01

Parafermionic zero modes are fractional topologically protected quasiparticles expected to arise in various platforms. We show that Coulomb charging effects define a parafermion box with unique access options via fractional edge states and/or quantum antidots. Basic protocols for the detection, manipulation, and control of parafermionic quantum states are formulated. With those tools, one may directly observe the dimension of the zero-mode Hilbert space, prove the degeneracy of this space, and perform on-demand digital operations satisfying a parafermionic algebra.

Fires. A Joint Professional Bulletin for U.S. Field and Air Defense Artillerymen. May-June 2010

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-06-01

United States Forces – Iraq PAO), 34th Infantry Division PAO, 1st Infantry Division PAO, 17th Fires Brigade Psychological Operations, 34th ID...stature by justifying the Arabic to the right and the English to the left. The 34th ID PAO provided a digital logo of the Department of Border Enforcement...mothers, March 11, 2009. Soldiers from the 101st were surrounded by excited children as they handed out boxes upon boxes of clothing , toys and

Lightweight Electronic Camera for Research on Clouds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lawson, Paul

2006-01-01

"Micro-CPI" (wherein "CPI" signifies "cloud-particle imager") is the name of a small, lightweight electronic camera that has been proposed for use in research on clouds. It would acquire and digitize high-resolution (3- m-pixel) images of ice particles and water drops at a rate up to 1,000 particles (and/or drops) per second.

Development and Application of an Oversize Reusable DOT 7A Type A Overpack Container at the Y-12 National Security Complex - 13150

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

Tharp, Tim; Martin, David; Franco, Paul

2013-07-01

Waste Management personnel at the Y-12 National Security Complex (Y-12) are concluding a multi-year effort to dispose of a large backlog of low-level waste. Six containers presented a particularly difficult technical challenge in that they each contained large robust equipment (mostly salt baths) with elevated levels of highly enriched uranium (exceeding U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) fissile-excepted quantities). The equipment was larger than the standard 1.2 m x 1.2 m x 1.8 m (4 ft x 4 ft x 6 ft) DOT Specification 7A Type A box and would have been very difficult to size-reduce because of several inches ofmore » steel plate (along with insulating block and concrete) in the equipment design. A critical breakthrough for the success of the project involved procuring and developing two oversize reusable DOT Specification 7A Type A (fissile tested) containers (referred to as the CTI Model 7AF-690-SC) that could be used as overpacks for the original boxes of equipment. The 7A Type A overpack containers are approximately 3.5 m long x 2.7 m wide x 2.8 m high (11.7 ft x 8.9 ft x 9.2 ft) with a maximum gross weight of 10,660 kg (23,500 lb) and a payload capacity of 6,804 kg (15,000 lbs). The boxes were designed and fabricated using a split cavity design that allowed the gasketed and bolted closure to lie along the horizontal centerline of the box. The central closure location in this design allows for strengthening of box corners that tend to be points of weakness or failure in 49CFR173.465 drop tests. By combining the split cavity design with large diameter tubing and diagonal cross bracing, drop test requirements of 49CFR173.465(1) and (2) were met and demonstrated through finite element analysis modeling. The development and use of this new container dramatically reduced the need for down-sizing the equipment and allowed the project to meet objectives within cost and schedule targets. (authors)« less

Trends in antidepressant prescribing to children and adolescents in Canadian primary care: A time-series analysis.

PubMed

Morkem, Rachael; Williamson, Tyler; Patten, Scott; Queenan, John A; Wong, Sabrina T; Manca, Donna; Barber, David

2017-09-01

The purpose of this study was to describe the trends and patterns of antidepressant (AD) prescribing to children and adolescents in Canadian primary care before and after the black-box warning in 2004. Prescription data from the Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network, a repository of primary care data on over 1 million patients, was used to analyze AD prescribing to children (8-11 y) and adolescents (12-18 y) between 2000 and 2014. Interrupted time series analyses were used to assess the impact of the 2004 black-box warning on the prescribing levels of ADs. The 2004 black-box warning had a significant and immediate effect on the prescribing of AD. However, this drop was not sustained, and 5 years after the advisory AD prescribing rates reversed direction and started to rise. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors dominated as the most common AD prescribed throughout the study period, increasing from 66% prior to the black-box warning to 83.12% after 2009. The black-box warning effectively reduced AD prescribing in primary care for approximately 5 years before a reversal back to a positive rate of prescribing. This rebounding could reflect an emerging consensus about the trade-off in risks and benefits. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Resistive method for measuring the disintegration speed of Prince Rupert's drops

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bochkov, Mark; Gusenkova, Daria; Glushkov, Evgenii; Zotova, Julia; Zhabin, S. N.

2016-09-01

We have successfully applied the resistance grid technique to measure the disintegration speed in a special type of glass objects, widely known as Prince Rupert's drops. We use a fast digital oscilloscope and a simple electrical circuit, glued to the surface of the drops, to detect the voltage changes, corresponding to the breaks in the specific parts of the drops. The results obtained using this method are in good qualitative and quantitative agreement with theoretical predictions and previously published data. Moreover, the proposed experimental setup does not include any expensive equipment (such as a high-speed camera) and can therefore be widely used in high schools and universities.

Optical image acquisition system for colony analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Weixing; Jin, Wenbiao

2006-02-01

For counting of both colonies and plaques, there is a large number of applications including food, dairy, beverages, hygiene, environmental monitoring, water, toxicology, sterility testing, AMES testing, pharmaceuticals, paints, sterile fluids and fungal contamination. Recently, many researchers and developers have made efforts for this kind of systems. By investigation, some existing systems have some problems since they belong to a new technology product. One of the main problems is image acquisition. In order to acquire colony images with good quality, an illumination box was constructed as: the box includes front lightning and back lightning, which can be selected by users based on properties of colony dishes. With the illumination box, lightning can be uniform; colony dish can be put in the same place every time, which make image processing easy. A digital camera in the top of the box connected to a PC computer with a USB cable, all the camera functions are controlled by the computer.

A PIV Study of Drop-interface Coalescence with Surfactants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weheliye, Weheliye Hashi; Dong, Teng; Angeli, Panagiota

2017-11-01

In this work, the coalescence of a drop with an aqueous-organic interface was studied by Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). The effect of surfactants on the drop surface evolution, the vorticity field and the kinetic energy distribution in the drop during coalescence were investigated. The coalescence took place in an acrylic rectangular box with 79% glycerol solution at the bottom and Exxsol D80 oil above. The glycerol solution drop was generated through a nozzle fixed at 2cm above the aqueous/oil interface and was seeded with Rhodamine particles. The whole process was captured by a high-speed camera. Different mass ratios of non-ionic surfactant Span80 to oil were studied. The increase of surfactant concentration promoted deformation of the interface before the rupture of the trapped oil film. At the early stages after film rupture, two counter-rotating vortices appeared at the bottom of the drop which then travelled to the upper part. The propagation rates, as well as the intensities of the vortices decreased at high surfactant concentrations. At early stages, the kinetic energy was mainly distributed near the bottom part of the droplet, while at later stages it was distributed near the upper part of the droplet. Programme Grant MEMPHIS, Chinese Scholarship Council (CSC).

Decreased precision contributes to the hypoxic thermoregulatory response in lizards.

PubMed

Cadena, Viviana; Tattersall, Glenn J

2009-01-01

The decrease in body temperature (T(b)) observed in most vertebrate classes in response to hypoxia has been attributed to a regulated decrease in set-point, protecting organs against tissue death due to oxygen depletion. Hypoxia, however, imparts particular challenges to metabolic function which may, in turn, affect thermoregulation. In ectotherms, where thermoregulation is mainly behavioural, stressors that influence the propensity to move and respond to temperature gradients are expected to have an impact on thermoregulatory control. Using low oxygen as a potent stressor, we evaluated the variability and level of thermoregulation of inland bearded dragons. To examine the source of thermoregulatory variability, we studied their behaviour in an electronically controlled temperature-choice shuttle box, a constant temperature dual-choice shuttle box, and a linear thermal gradient. A significant increase in the size of the T(b) range was observed at the lowest oxygen concentration (4% O(2)), reflecting a decrease in thermoregulatory precision in the temperature-choice shuttle box. This was also accompanied by a drop of approximately 2-4 degrees C in T(b), the drop being greatest in situations where T(b) must be actively defended. Situations that force the lizards to continually choose temperatures, rather than passively remain at a given temperature, lead to an increase in the variability in the manifested T(b), which is further exaggerated in hypoxia. This study reveals that a decrease in thermoregulatory precision caused by a diminished propensity to move or effect appropriate thermoregulatory responses may be a contributing component in the lowering of selected body temperatures observed in many hypoxic ectotherms.

Cold air systems: Sleeping giant

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

MacCracken, C.D.

1994-04-01

This article describes how cold air systems help owners increase the profits from their buildings by reducing electric costs and improving indoor air quality through lower relative humidity levels. Cold air distribution involves energy savings, cost savings, space savings, greater comfort, cleaner air, thermal storage, tighter ducting, coil redesign, lower relative humidities, retrofitting, and improved indoor air quality (IAQ). It opens a door for architects, engineers, owners, builders, environmentalists, retrofitters, designers, occupants, and manufacturers. Three things have held up cold air's usage: multiple fan-powered boxes that ate up the energy savings of primary fans. Cold air room diffusers that providedmore » inadequate comfort. Condensation from ducts, boxes, and diffusers. Such problems have been largely eliminated through research and development by utilities and manufacturers. New cold air diffusers no longer need fan powered boxes. It has also been found that condensation is not a concern so long as the ducts are located in air conditioned space, such as drop ceilings or central risers, where relative humidity falls quickly during morning startup.« less

Actuation of digital micro drops by electrowetting on open microfluidic chips fabricated in photolithography.

PubMed

Ko, Hyojin; Lee, Jeong Soo; Jung, Chan-Hee; Choi, Jae-Hak; Kwon, Oh-Sun; Shin, Kwanwoo

2014-08-01

Basic manipulations of discrete liquid drops on opened microfluidic chips based on electrowetting on dielectrics were described. While most developed microfluidic chips are closed systems equipped with a top plate to cover mechanically and to contact electrically to drop samples, our chips are opened systems with a single plate without any electric contact to drops directly. The chips consist of a linear array of patterned electrodes at 1.8 mm pitch was fabricated on a glass plate coated with thin hydrophobic and dielectric layers by using various methods including photolithography, spin coating and ion sputtering. Several actuations such as lateral oscillation, colliding mergence and translational motion for 3-10 μL water drops have been demonstrated satisfactory. All these kinetic performances of opened chips were similar to those of closed chip systems, indicating superiority of a none-contact method for the transport of drops on opened microfluidic chips actuated by using electrowetting technique.

The Electronic View Box: a software tool for radiation therapy treatment verification.

PubMed

Bosch, W R; Low, D A; Gerber, R L; Michalski, J M; Graham, M V; Perez, C A; Harms, W B; Purdy, J A

1995-01-01

We have developed a software tool for interactively verifying treatment plan implementation. The Electronic View Box (EVB) tool copies the paradigm of current practice but does so electronically. A portal image (online portal image or digitized port film) is displayed side by side with a prescription image (digitized simulator film or digitally reconstructed radiograph). The user can measure distances between features in prescription and portal images and "write" on the display, either to approve the image or to indicate required corrective actions. The EVB tool also provides several features not available in conventional verification practice using a light box. The EVB tool has been written in ANSI C using the X window system. The tool makes use of the Virtual Machine Platform and Foundation Library specifications of the NCI-sponsored Radiation Therapy Planning Tools Collaborative Working Group for portability into an arbitrary treatment planning system that conforms to these specifications. The present EVB tool is based on an earlier Verification Image Review tool, but with a substantial redesign of the user interface. A graphical user interface prototyping system was used in iteratively refining the tool layout to allow rapid modifications of the interface in response to user comments. Features of the EVB tool include 1) hierarchical selection of digital portal images based on physician name, patient name, and field identifier; 2) side-by-side presentation of prescription and portal images at equal magnification and orientation, and with independent grayscale controls; 3) "trace" facility for outlining anatomical structures; 4) "ruler" facility for measuring distances; 5) zoomed display of corresponding regions in both images; 6) image contrast enhancement; and 7) communication of portal image evaluation results (approval, block modification, repeat image acquisition, etc.). The EVB tool facilitates the rapid comparison of prescription and portal images and permits electronic communication of corrections in port shape and positioning.

13. Photographic copy of photograph. (Source: U.S. Department of Interior. ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

13. Photographic copy of photograph. (Source: U.S. Department of Interior. Office of Indian Affairs. Indian Irrigation Service. Annual Report, Fiscal Year 1926. Vol. I, Narrative and Photographs, RG 75, Entry 655, Box 29, National Archives, Washington, DC.) Photographer unknown. PIMA LATERAL DROP NEAR KENILWORTH, 5/10/26 - San Carlos Irrigation Project, Pima Lateral, Main Canal at Sacaton Dam, Coolidge, Pinal County, AZ

49 CFR 231.1 - Box and other house cars built or placed in service before October 1, 1966.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... and passing through the inside face of knuckle when closed with coupler horn against the buffer block... brake-shaft step which will permit the brake chain to drop under the brake shaft shall not be used. U...-eighths of an inch square. Square-fit taper, nominally 2 in 12 inches. (See plate A.) (vi) Brake chain...

49 CFR 231.1 - Box and other house cars built or placed in service before October 1, 1966.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... and passing through the inside face of knuckle when closed with coupler horn against the buffer block... brake-shaft step which will permit the brake chain to drop under the brake shaft shall not be used. U...-eighths of an inch square. Square-fit taper, nominally 2 in 12 inches. (See plate A.) (vi) Brake chain...

49 CFR 231.1 - Box and other house cars built or placed in service before October 1, 1966.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... and passing through the inside face of knuckle when closed with coupler horn against the buffer block... brake-shaft step which will permit the brake chain to drop under the brake shaft shall not be used. U...-eighths of an inch square. Square-fit taper, nominally 2 in 12 inches. (See plate A.) (vi) Brake chain...

49 CFR 231.1 - Box and other house cars built or placed in service before October 1, 1966.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... and passing through the inside face of knuckle when closed with coupler horn against the buffer block... brake-shaft step which will permit the brake chain to drop under the brake shaft shall not be used. U...-eighths of an inch square. Square-fit taper, nominally 2 in 12 inches. (See plate A.) (vi) Brake chain...

49 CFR 231.1 - Box and other house cars built or placed in service before October 1, 1966.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... and passing through the inside face of knuckle when closed with coupler horn against the buffer block... brake-shaft step which will permit the brake chain to drop under the brake shaft shall not be used. U...-eighths of an inch square. Square-fit taper, nominally 2 in 12 inches. (See plate A.) (vi) Brake chain...

Accuracy and consistency of radiographic interpretation among clinical instructors using two viewing systems.

PubMed

Lanning, Sharon K; Best, Al M; Temple, Henry J; Richards, Philip S; Carey, Allison; McCauley, Laurie K

2006-02-01

Accurate and consistent radiographic interpretation among clinical instructors is needed for assessment of teaching, student performance, and patient care. The purpose of this investigation was to determine if the method of radiographic viewing affects accuracy and consistency of instructors' determinations of bone loss. Forty-one clinicians who provide instruction in a dental school clinical teaching program (including periodontists, general dentists, periodontal graduate students, and dental hygienists) quantified bone loss for up to twenty-five teeth into four descriptive categories using a view box for plain film viewing or a projection system for digitized image viewing. Ratings were compared to the correct category as determined by direct measurement using the Schei ruler. Agreement with the correct choice for the view box and projection system was 70.2 percent and 64.5 percent, respectively. The mean difference was better for a projection system due to small rater error by graduate students. Projection system ratings were slightly less consistent than view box ratings. Dental hygiene faculty ratings were the most consistent but least accurate. Although the projection system resulted in slightly reduced accuracy and consistency among instructors, training sessions utilizing a single method for projecting digitized radiographic images have their advantages and may positively influence dental education and patient care by enhancing accuracy and consistency of radiographic interpretation among instructors.

Solar Anomalous and Magnetospheric Particle Explorer attitude control electronics box design and performance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chamberlin, K.; Clagett, C.; Correll, T.; Gruner, T.; Quinn, T.; Shiflett, L.; Schnurr, R.; Wennersten, M.; Frederick, M.; Fox, S. M.

1993-01-01

The attitude Control Electronics (ACE) Box is the center of the Attitude Control Subsystem (ACS) for the Solar Anomalous and Magnetospheric Particle Explorer (SAMPEX) satellite. This unit is the single point interface for all of the Attitude Control Subsystem (ACS) related sensors and actuators. Commands and telemetry between the SAMPEX flight computer and the ACE Box are routed via a MIL-STD-1773 bus interface, through the use of an 80C85 processor. The ACE Box consists of the flowing electronic elements: power supply, momentum wheel driver, electromagnet driver, coarse sun sensor interface, digital sun sensor interface, magnetometer interface, and satellite computer interface. In addition, the ACE Box also contains an independent Safehold electronics package capable of keeping the satellite pitch axis pointing towards the sun. The ACE Box has dimensions of 24 x 31 x 8 cm, a mass of 4.3 kg, and an average power consumption of 10.5 W. This set of electronics was completely designed, developed, integrated, and tested by personnel at NASA GSFC. SAMPEX was launched on July 3, 1992, and the initial attitude acquisition was successfully accomplished via the analog Safehold electronics in the ACE Box. This acquisition scenario removed the excess body rates via magnetic control and precessed the satellite pitch axis to within 10 deg of the sun line. The performance of the SAMPEX ACS in general and the ACE Box in particular has been quite satisfactory.

Determination of Contact Time of Rubber Balls Using a Digital Oscilloscope

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wadhwa, Ajay

2010-01-01

We present a new method for determining the contact time of a rubber ball with the rebounding surface by using a sound-detecting electronic circuit and a digital storage oscilloscope. The rubber ball (a tennis ball or squash ball) is dropped from a known height onto a rigid surface and its contact time on first bounce is determined on the…

Measurement of surface tension by sessile drop tensiometer with superoleophobic surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kwak, Wonshik; Park, Jun Kwon; Yoon, Jinsung; Lee, Sanghyun; Hwang, Woonbong

2018-03-01

A sessile drop tensiometer provides a simple and efficient method of determining the surface tension of various liquids. The technique involves obtaining the shape of an axisymmetric liquid droplet and iterative fitting of the Young-Laplace equation, which balances the gravitational deformation of the drop. Since the advent of high quality digital cameras and desktop computers, this process has been automated with precision. However, despite its appealing simplicity, there are complications and limitations in a sessile drop tensiometer, i.e., it must dispense spherical droplets with low surface tension. We propose a method of measuring surface tension using a sessile drop tensiometer with a superoleophobic surface fabricated by acidic etching and anodization for liquids with low surface tension and investigate the accuracy of the measurement by changing the wettability of the measuring plate surface.

The effect of shear and extensional viscosity on atomization in medical inhaler.

PubMed

Broniarz-Press, L; Ochowiak, M; Matuszak, M; Włodarczak, S

2014-07-01

The paper contains the results of experimental studies of water, aqueous solutions of glycerol and aqueous solutions of glycerol-polyethylene oxide (PEO) atomization process in a medical inhaler obtained by the use of the digital microphotography method. The effect of the shear and extensional viscosity on the drop size, drop size histogram and mean drop diameter has been analyzed. The obtained results have shown that the drop size increases with the increase in shear and extensional viscosity of liquid atomized. Extensional viscosity has a greater impact on the spraying process. It has been shown that the change in liquid viscosity leads to significant changes in drop size distribution. The correlation for Sauter mean diameter as function of the shear and extensional viscosity was proposed. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Processing of Cloud Databases for the Development of an Automated Global Cloud Climatology

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-06-30

cloud amounts in each DOE grid box. The actual population values were coded into one- and two- digit codes primarily for printing purposes. For example...IPIALES 72652 43.07 -95.53 0423 PICKSTOWNE S.D. 80110 6.22 -75.60 1498 MEDELLIN 72424 37.90 -85.97 0233 FT. KNOX KY 80069 7.00 -74.72 0610 AMALFI...12 According to Lund, Grantham, and Davis (1980), the quality of the whole sky photographs used in producing the WSP digital data ensemble was

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) Contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Sandi Thompson of the National Center for Microgravity Research GRC makes a final adjustment to the drop package. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here, students are briefed by NASA engineer Daniel Dietrich at the top of the drop tower. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) Contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Meredith Mendenhall of Sycamore High School, Cincinnati, Ohio, flips on a tape recorder in preparation for a drop. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

NASA Records Database

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Callac, Christopher; Lunsford, Michelle

2005-01-01

The NASA Records Database, comprising a Web-based application program and a database, is used to administer an archive of paper records at Stennis Space Center. The system begins with an electronic form, into which a user enters information about records that the user is sending to the archive. The form is smart : it provides instructions for entering information correctly and prompts the user to enter all required information. Once complete, the form is digitally signed and submitted to the database. The system determines which storage locations are not in use, assigns the user s boxes of records to some of them, and enters these assignments in the database. Thereafter, the software tracks the boxes and can be used to locate them. By use of search capabilities of the software, specific records can be sought by box storage locations, accession numbers, record dates, submitting organizations, or details of the records themselves. Boxes can be marked with such statuses as checked out, lost, transferred, and destroyed. The system can generate reports showing boxes awaiting destruction or transfer. When boxes are transferred to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the system can automatically fill out NARA records-transfer forms. Currently, several other NASA Centers are considering deploying the NASA Records Database to help automate their records archives.

Application development environment for advanced digital workstations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valentino, Daniel J.; Harreld, Michael R.; Liu, Brent J.; Brown, Matthew S.; Huang, Lu J.

1998-06-01

One remaining barrier to the clinical acceptance of electronic imaging and information systems is the difficulty in providing intuitive access to the information needed for a specific clinical task (such as reaching a diagnosis or tracking clinical progress). The purpose of this research was to create a development environment that enables the design and implementation of advanced digital imaging workstations. We used formal data and process modeling to identify the diagnostic and quantitative data that radiologists use and the tasks that they typically perform to make clinical decisions. We studied a diverse range of radiology applications, including diagnostic neuroradiology in an academic medical center, pediatric radiology in a children's hospital, screening mammography in a breast cancer center, and thoracic radiology consultation for an oncology clinic. We used object- oriented analysis to develop software toolkits that enable a programmer to rapidly implement applications that closely match clinical tasks. The toolkits support browsing patient information, integrating patient images and reports, manipulating images, and making quantitative measurements on images. Collectively, we refer to these toolkits as the UCLA Digital ViewBox toolkit (ViewBox/Tk). We used the ViewBox/Tk to rapidly prototype and develop a number of diverse medical imaging applications. Our task-based toolkit approach enabled rapid and iterative prototyping of workstations that matched clinical tasks. The toolkit functionality and performance provided a 'hands-on' feeling for manipulating images, and for accessing textual information and reports. The toolkits directly support a new concept for protocol based-reading of diagnostic studies. The design supports the implementation of network-based application services (e.g., prefetching, workflow management, and post-processing) that will facilitate the development of future clinical applications.

8. SEDIMENTATION CHAMBER, VIEW UPSTREAM (PLANK COVER REMOVED FOR CLARITY). ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

8. SEDIMENTATION CHAMBER, VIEW UPSTREAM (PLANK COVER REMOVED FOR CLARITY). BOX FLUME DROPS SLIGHTLY INTO CHAMBER ON LEFT SIDE. CHAMBER IS A SERIES OF BAFFLES DESIGNED TO SLOW THE FLOW OF WATER. FLOW IS REDUCED TO ALLOW PARTICULATES TO SETTLE TO THE BOTTOM. TWO SCREENS (NOT SHOWN) FILTER LARGER DEBRIS. - Kalaupapa Water Supply System, Waikolu Valley to Kalaupapa Settlement, Island of Molokai, Kalaupapa, Kalawao County, HI

A seven-year follow-up of intelligence test scores of foster grandparents.

PubMed

Troll, L E; Saltz, R; Dunin-Markiewicz, A

1976-09-01

After 7 years, a group of originally nonemployed poverty-level older people (over 60) who had been employed as foster grandparents were retested with the WAIS. Four WAIS subtests - Vocabulary Similarities, Digit Span, and Block Design - were employed. Of the original group of 39, complete data were available for 28; 18 of these were still working on the project, and the other 10 had dropped out. Dropouts as a group tested lower originally and also showed more deterioration in functional health ratings over time. For the total group of 32 foster grandparents, three subtest scores showed stability over the 7 years. Only Digit Span showed a statistically significant drop. Neither age nor the initial level of health or WAIS scores was related to test-score changes over time.

Comparison between different cost devices for digital capture of X-ray films: an image characteristics detection approach.

PubMed

Salazar, Antonio José; Camacho, Juan Camilo; Aguirre, Diego Andrés

2012-02-01

A common teleradiology practice is digitizing films. The costs of specialized digitizers are very high, that is why there is a trend to use conventional scanners and digital cameras. Statistical clinical studies are required to determine the accuracy of these devices, which are very difficult to carry out. The purpose of this study was to compare three capture devices in terms of their capacity to detect several image characteristics. Spatial resolution, contrast, gray levels, and geometric deformation were compared for a specialized digitizer ICR (US$ 15,000), a conventional scanner UMAX (US$ 1,800), and a digital camera LUMIX (US$ 450, but require an additional support system and a light box for about US$ 400). Test patterns printed in films were used. The results detected gray levels lower than real values for all three devices; acceptable contrast and low geometric deformation with three devices. All three devices are appropriate solutions, but a digital camera requires more operator training and more settings.

Technology as the Crayon Box.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garcia, Lilia

2000-01-01

While arts facilities should be equipped with computers, color scanners, MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) labs, connective video cameras, and appropriate software, music rooms still need pianos and visual art rooms need traditional art supplies. Dade County (Florida) Schools's pilot teacher assistance projects and arts-centered schools…

To provide additional coupons for the digital-to-analog converter box program and to expedite delivery of coupons under such program.

THOMAS, 111th Congress

Rep. Barton, Joe [R-TX-6

2009-01-23

House - 01/26/2009 Referred to the Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet. (All Actions) Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

Box-Counting Dimension Revisited: Presenting an Efficient Method of Minimizing Quantization Error and an Assessment of the Self-Similarity of Structural Root Systems

PubMed Central

Bouda, Martin; Caplan, Joshua S.; Saiers, James E.

2016-01-01

Fractal dimension (FD), estimated by box-counting, is a metric used to characterize plant anatomical complexity or space-filling characteristic for a variety of purposes. The vast majority of published studies fail to evaluate the assumption of statistical self-similarity, which underpins the validity of the procedure. The box-counting procedure is also subject to error arising from arbitrary grid placement, known as quantization error (QE), which is strictly positive and varies as a function of scale, making it problematic for the procedure's slope estimation step. Previous studies either ignore QE or employ inefficient brute-force grid translations to reduce it. The goals of this study were to characterize the effect of QE due to translation and rotation on FD estimates, to provide an efficient method of reducing QE, and to evaluate the assumption of statistical self-similarity of coarse root datasets typical of those used in recent trait studies. Coarse root systems of 36 shrubs were digitized in 3D and subjected to box-counts. A pattern search algorithm was used to minimize QE by optimizing grid placement and its efficiency was compared to the brute force method. The degree of statistical self-similarity was evaluated using linear regression residuals and local slope estimates. QE, due to both grid position and orientation, was a significant source of error in FD estimates, but pattern search provided an efficient means of minimizing it. Pattern search had higher initial computational cost but converged on lower error values more efficiently than the commonly employed brute force method. Our representations of coarse root system digitizations did not exhibit details over a sufficient range of scales to be considered statistically self-similar and informatively approximated as fractals, suggesting a lack of sufficient ramification of the coarse root systems for reiteration to be thought of as a dominant force in their development. FD estimates did not characterize the scaling of our digitizations well: the scaling exponent was a function of scale. Our findings serve as a caution against applying FD under the assumption of statistical self-similarity without rigorously evaluating it first. PMID:26925073

Numerical simulation on the powder propellant pickup characteristics of feeding system at high pressure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Haijun; Hu, Chunbo; Zhu, Xiaofei

2017-10-01

A numerical study of powder propellant pickup progress at high pressure was presented in this paper by using two-fluid model with kinetic theory of granular flow in the computational fluid dynamics software package ANSYS/Fluent. Simulations were conducted to evaluate the effects of initial pressure, initial powder packing rate and mean particle diameter on the flow characteristics in terms of velocity vector distribution, granular temperature, pressure drop, particle velocity and volume. The numerical results of pressure drop were also compared with experiments to verify the TFM model. The simulated results show that the pressure drop value increases as the initial pressure increases, and the granular temperature under the conditions of different initial pressures and packing rates is almost the same in the area of throttling orifice plate. While there is an appropriate value for particle size and packing rate to form a ;core-annulus; structure in powder box, and the time-averaged velocity vector distribution of solid phase is inordinate.

Self-Injurious Behavior: An Animal Model of an Autism Endophenotype

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-01-01

time there was a visible release of the pasta (not a drop) or a reformation of the digits holding the pasta via motor patterns of flexion/extension...review of 18 pasta -trials, nine trials randomly selected from each experimental group. Behaviors included on the code sheet were number of drops...failure to contact reaches, angling with head tilt, abnormal posture, use of a unilateral paw technique, and twirling of the pasta . Specific descriptions

Computational analysis of drop formation before and after the first singularity: the fate of free and satellite drops during simple dripping and DOD drop formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Alvin U.; Basaran, Osman A.

2000-11-01

Drop formation from a capillary --- dripping mode --- or an ink jet nozzle --- drop-on-demand (DOD) mode --- falls into a class of scientifically challenging yet practically useful free surface flows that exhibit a finite time singularity, i.e. the breakup of an initially single liquid mass into two or more fragments. While computational tools to model such problems have been developed recently, they lack the accuracy needed to quantitatively predict all the dynamics observed in experiments. Here we present a new finite element method (FEM) based on a robust algorithm for elliptic mesh generation and remeshing to handle extremely large interface deformations. The new algorithm allows continuation of computations beyond the first singularity to track fates of both primary and any satellite drops. The accuracy of the computations is demonstrated by comparison of simulations with experimental measurements made possible with an ultra high-speed digital imager capable of recording 100 million frames per second.

[Women boxing athletes' EMG of upper limbs and lumbar muscles in the training of air striking of straight punch].

PubMed

Zhang, Ri-Hui; Kang, Zhi-Xin

2011-05-01

To study training effect of upper limbs and lumbar muscles in the proceed of air striking of straight punch by analyzing boxing athletes' changes of electromyogram (EMG). We measured EMG of ten women boxing athletes' upper arm biceps (contractor muscle), upper arm triceps (antagonistic muscle), forearm flexor muscle (contractor muscle), forearm extensor muscle (antagonistic muscle), and lumbar muscles by ME6000 (Mega Electronics Ltd.). The stipulated exercise was to do air striking of straight punch with loads of 2.5 kg of dumbbell in the hand until exhausted. In the proceed of exercise-induce exhausted, the descend magnitude and speed of median frequency (MF) in upper limb antagonistic muscle exceeded to contracting muscle, moreover, the work percentage showed that contractor have done a larger percentage of work than antagonistic muscle. Compared with world champion's EMG, the majority of ordinary athletes' lumbar muscles MF revealed non-drop tendency, and the work percentage showed that lumbar muscles had a very little percentage of work. After comparing the EMG test index in upper limb and lumbar muscle of average boxing athletes with that of the world champion, we find the testees lack of the training of upper limb antagonistic muscle and lumbar muscle, and more trainings aimed at these muscles need to be taken.

Comparative hybrid and digital simulation studies of the behaviour of a wind generator equipped with a static frequency converter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dube, B.; Lefebvre, S.; Perocheau, A.; Nakra, H. L.

1988-01-01

This paper describes the comparative results obtained from digital and hybrid simulation studies on a variable speed wind generator interconnected to the utility grid. The wind generator is a vertical-axis Darrieus type coupled to a synchronous machine by a gear-box; the synchronous machine is connected to the AC utility grid through a static frequency converter. Digital simulation results have been obtained using CSMP software; these results are compared with those obtained from a real-time hybrid simulator that in turn uses a part of the IREQ HVDC simulator. The agreement between hybrid and digital simulation results is generally good. The results demonstrate that the digital simulation reproduces the dynamic behavior of the system in a satisfactory manner and thus constitutes a valid tool for the design of the control systems of the wind generator.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here students from Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, talk with Dr. Dennis Stocker, one of Glenn's lead microgravity scientists, about the uses of the drop tower. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Force Dental Facility Design Guidance (AFDFDG).

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-06-01

8217 Note: "A" designates 24"x48" drop in fluorescent light fixture having tubes with color rendering index greater than 90 (CRI...90). Since there are a varity of tube types to select from and varying lighting design concepts, certain tubes may be...terminated in utility center with 5/8" outside diameter (O.D.) tube . GRAVITY DRAIN, 1-1/2" nominal pipe protruding 1" from bottom of box. NOTE: Place

Affordance Boundaries Are Defined by Dynamic Capabilities of Parkour Athletes in Dropping from Various Heights

PubMed Central

Croft, James L.; Bertram, John E. A.

2017-01-01

Available behaviors are determined by the fit between features of the individual and reciprocal features of the environment. Beyond some critical boundary certain behaviors become impossible causing sudden transitions from one movement pattern to another. Parkour athletes have developed multiple movement patterns to deal with their momentum during landing. We were interested in whether drop distance would cause a sudden transition between a two-footed (precision) landing and a load-distributing roll and whether the transition height could be predicted by dynamic and geometric characteristics of individual subjects. Kinematics and ground reaction forces were measured as Parkour athletes stepped off a box from heights that were incrementally increased or decreased from 0.6 to 2.3 m. Individuals were more likely to roll from higher drops; those with greater body mass and less explosive leg power, were more likely to transition to a roll landing at a lower height. At some height a two-footed landing is no longer feasible but for some athletes this height was well within the maximum drop height used in this study. During low drops the primary task constraint of managing momentum could be achieved with either a precision landing or a roll. This meant that participants were free to select their preferred landing strategy, which was only partially influenced by the physical demands of the task. However, athletes with greater leg power appeared capable of managing impulse absorption through a leg mediated strategy up to a greater drop height. PMID:28979219

Combined Effects of Fatigue and Surface Instability on Jump Biomechanics in Elite Athletes.

PubMed

Prieske, Olaf; Demps, Marie; Lesinski, Melanie; Granacher, Urs

2017-09-01

The present study aimed to examine the effects of fatigue and surface instability on kinetic and kinematic jump performance measures. Ten female and 10 male elite volleyball players (18±2 years) performed repetitive vertical double-leg box jumps until failure. Pre and post fatigue, jump height/performance index, ground reaction force and knee flexion/valgus angles were assessed during drop and countermovement jumps on stable and unstable surfaces. Fatigue, surface condition, and sex resulted in significantly lower drop jump performance and ground reaction force (p≤0.031, 1.1≤d≤3.5). Additionally, drop jump knee flexion angles were significantly lower following fatigue (p=0.006, d=1.5). A significant fatigue×surface×sex interaction (p=0.020, d=1.2) revealed fatigue-related decrements in drop jump peak knee flexion angles under unstable conditions and in men only. Knee valgus angles were higher on unstable compared to stable surfaces during drop jumps and in females compared to males during drop and countermovement jumps (p≤0.054, 1.0≤d≤1.1). Significant surface×sex interactions during countermovement jumps (p=0.002, d=1.9) indicated that knee valgus angles at onset of ground contact were significantly lower on unstable compared to stable surfaces in males but higher in females. Our findings revealed that fatigue and surface instability resulted in sex-specific knee motion strategies during jumping in elite volleyball players. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Systems development of a stall/spin research facility using remotely controlled/augmented aircraft models. Volume 1: Systems overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Montoya, R. J.; Jai, A. R.; Parker, C. D.

1979-01-01

A ground based, general purpose, real time, digital control system simulator (CSS) is specified, developed, and integrated with the existing instrumentation van of the testing facility. This CSS is built around a PDP-11/55, and its operational software was developed to meet the dual goal of providing the immediate capability to represent the F-18 drop model control laws and the flexibility for expansion to represent more complex control laws typical of control configured vehicles. Overviews of the two CSS's developed are reviewed as well as the overall system after their integration with the existing facility. Also the latest version of the F-18 drop model control laws (REV D) is described and the changes needed for its incorporation in the digital and analog CSS's are discussed.

STS-116 MS Fuglesang uses digital camera on the STBD side of the S0 Truss during EVA 4

NASA Image and Video Library

2006-12-19

S116-E-06882 (18 Dec. 2006) --- European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Christer Fuglesang, STS-116 mission specialist, uses a digital still camera during the mission's fourth session of extravehicular activity (EVA) while Space Shuttle Discovery was docked with the International Space Station. Astronaut Robert L. Curbeam Jr. (out of frame), mission specialist, worked in tandem with Fuglesang, using specially-prepared, tape-insulated tools, to guide the array wing neatly inside its blanket box during the 6-hour, 38-minute spacewalk.

Task 1, Fractal characteristics of drainage patterns observed in the Appalachian Valley and Ridge and Plateau provinces

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

Wilson, T.; Dominic, J.; Halverson, J.

1996-04-10

Drainage patterns observed in the Appalachian Valley and Ridge and Plateau provinces exhibit distinctly different patterns. The patterns appear to be controlled by varying influences of local structural and lithologic variability. Drainage patterns in the Valley and Ridge study area can be classified as a combination of dendritic and trellis arrangements. The patterns vary over short distances in both the strike and dip directions. In the Granny Creek area of the Appalachian Plateau drainage patterns are predominantly dendritic. The possibility that these drainage patterns have fractal characteristics was evaluated by box-counting. Results obtained from box counting do not yield amore » well defined fractal regime in either areas. In the Valley and Ridge a space-filling, or random regime (D=2) is observed for boxes with side-lengths of 300 meters and greater. Below 300 meters, large changes in D occur between consecutively smaller box sizes. From side lengths of 300 to 150m, 150 to 75m, and 75 to 38m, D is measured at 1.77, 1.39, and 1.08 respectively. For box sizes less than 38m the fractal dimension is 1 or less. While the l0g-log response of the box counting data is nonlinear and does not define a fractal regime, the curves offer the possibility of characterizing non-fractal patterns. The rate at which D drops outside the random regime correlates to drainage density. D in areas with a smaller density of drainage segments fell toward saturation (D=1) more abruptly. The break-away point from the random regime and the transition to the saturated regime may provide useful information about the relative lengths of stream segments.« less

Single-Event Transient Testing of Low Dropout PNP Series Linear Voltage Regulators

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adell, Philippe; Allen, Gregory

2013-01-01

As demand for high-speed, on-board, digital-processing integrated circuits on spacecraft increases (field-programmable gate arrays and digital signal processors in particular), the need for the next generation point-of-load (POL) regulator becomes a prominent design issue. Shrinking process nodes have resulted in core rails dropping to values close to 1.0 V, drastically reducing margin to standard switching converters or regulators that power digital ICs. The goal of this task is to perform SET characterization of several commercial POL converters, and provide a discussion of the impact of these results to state-of-the-art digital processing IC through laser and heavy ion testing

Anticipatory synergy adjustments reflect individual performance of feedforward force control.

PubMed

Togo, Shunta; Imamizu, Hiroshi

2016-10-06

We grasp and dexterously manipulate an object through multi-digit synergy. In the framework of the uncontrolled manifold (UCM) hypothesis, multi-digit synergy is defined as the coordinated control mechanism of fingers to stabilize variable important for task success, e.g., total force. Previous studies reported anticipatory synergy adjustments (ASAs) that correspond to a drop of the synergy index before a quick change of the total force. The present study compared ASA's properties with individual performances of feedforward force control to investigate a relationship of those. Subjects performed a total finger force production task that consisted of a phase in which subjects tracked target line with visual information and a phase in which subjects produced total force pulse without visual information. We quantified their multi-digit synergy through UCM analysis and observed significant ASAs before producing total force pulse. The time of the ASA initiation and the magnitude of the drop of the synergy index were significantly correlated with the error of force pulse, but not with the tracking error. Almost all subjects showed a significant increase of the variance that affected the total force. Our study directly showed that ASA reflects the individual performance of feedforward force control independently of target-tracking performance and suggests that the multi-digit synergy was weakened to adjust the multi-digit movements based on a prediction error so as to reduce the future error. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here Jose Carrion, a lab mechanic with AKAC, starts the orange-colored drag shield, and the experiment apparatus inside, on the hoist upward to the control station at the top of the drop tower. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

OBSAPS Data Acquisition System: Operator’s Manual and System Overview

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-05-01

Explanation of Druck Voltage to Depth Conversion used during OBSAPS (April-May’11)   25   Druck  Pressure  sensor  conversion  from...for H-91, PA Voltage, PA Current and Sonobuoy and Druck pressure sensor analog inputs. 6. Software settable thresholds for H-91, PA Voltage, PA...17. Custom dry side box for Druck Pressure Sensor supply voltage and dropping resistor. 18. Battery 9-30VDC for supplying Druck power 19. Druck PTX

The effects of military body armour on the lower back and knee mechanics during box drop and prone to standing tasks.

PubMed

Phillips, Megan P; Shapiro, Robert; Bazrgari, Babak

2016-05-01

Modern day body armour (BA) has been successful at increasing survivability from previously lethal explosives; however, it has been suggested to reduce warfighter's performance and increase risk of injury. Joint biomechanics have a foremost impact on performance and risk of injury. The immediate and prolonged effects of wearing BA on biomechanics of the lower back and knee during box drop (BD) and prone to standing tasks were investigated. The immediate effects of BA on both tasks were an increase of ≥4% (p ≤ 0.02) in temporal task durations and a decrease of ~1.66 N/kg (p = 0.03) in normalised peak ground reaction force for the BD test. The prolonged duration of walking with BA (i.e. 45 min) was not found to cause more changes in our measures than walking without BA. Quantitative data related to the effects of BA are important for risk assessment and mission design such to reduce the risk of injury without compromising performance. Practitioner Summary: The effects of wearing military body armour (BA) on biomechanics of the lower back and knee were investigated. Though wearing BA was found to affect some biomechanical measures related to performance, the prolonged effects of exposure on our measures were the same whether or not the participants wore BA.

Plasma concentration of high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) after 100 drop to vertical jumps and after a 1200-km bicycle race.

PubMed

Behringer, M; Kilian, Y; Montag, J; Geesmann, B; Mester, J

2016-01-01

High-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) has recently been reported to be involved in proinflammation and tissue repair. Therefore, we hypothesized that HMGB1 is released into the bloodstream after eccentric exercises or prolonged endurance activities. Blood samples from 11 participants that performed 100 drop to vertical jumps (DVJ) and from 10 participants that took part in the 1200-km 'Paris-Brest-Paris' bicycle race (PBP) were tested for HMGB1 and creatine kinase (CK) levels. CK increased after both DVJ (pre: 150.6 ± 81.5 U/L; post: 188.8 ± 95.5 U/L 8 h: 790.5 ± 346.4 U/L) and PBP (pre: 81.3 ± 36.4 U/L; post: 725.2 ± 229.5 U/L; 12 h: 535.8 ± 188.6 U/L), indicating membrane damage. However, HMGB1 plasma levels remained below the detection limit (78 pg/mL) of the applied enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit for all blood samples analysed. That is, neither high intensity eccentric exercises (DVJ) nor prolonged endurance events (PBP) seemed to affect HMGB1 levels in blood at selected time points.

Specialized neuromuscular training to improve neuromuscular function and biomechanics in a patient with quiescent juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.

PubMed

Myer, Gregory D; Brunner, Hermine I; Melson, Paula G; Paterno, Mark V; Ford, Kevin R; Hewett, Timothy E

2005-08-01

The purpose of this case report is to describe a novel multidisciplinary approach for evaluating and preparing a patient with quiescent juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) for safe sports participation. The patient was a 10-year-old girl with a history of bilateral knee arthritis who desired to participate in soccer and basketball. Range of motion and manual muscle testing of the lower extremity were within normal limits. Neuromuscular testing included kinematic and kinetic testing, isokinetic assessment, and postural stability testing. The patient's gait was near normal; however, she had narrowed step width and increased knee flexion at heel-strike. Landing analysis during a box drop vertical jump task showed increased and imbalanced (right versus left lower extremity) peak impact forces. The testing was followed by specialized neuromuscular training (SNT). Following SNT, heel-strike and step width were within normal limits, peak impact forces on the box drop test decreased by 31%, imbalance decreased by 46%, and vertical jump increased 15%. The isokinetic strength ratio between knee flexors and extensors and the overall balance measures were within normal limits and equal bilaterally. Patients with quiescent JRA may have abnormal biomechanics, which could place them at increased risk for injury or future articular cartilage damage. Specialized neuromuscular training may have helped to decrease the patient's risk for future injury or disease progression.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Meredith Mendenhall of Sycamore High School, Cincinnati, Ohio, flips on a tape recorder in preparation for a drop. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Sandi Thompson of the National Center for Microgravity Research GRC makes a final adjustment to the drop package. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here, students are briefed by NASA engineer Daniel Dietrich at the top of the drop tower. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Drop impact on spherical soft surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Simeng; Bertola, Volfango

2017-08-01

The impact of water drops on spherical soft surfaces is investigated experimentally through high-speed imaging. The effect of a convex compliant surface on the dynamics of impacting drops is relevant to various applications, such as 3D ink-jet printing, where drops of fresh material impact on partially cured soft substrates with arbitrary shape. Several quantities which characterize the morphology of impacting drops are measured through image-processing, including the maximum and minimum spreading angles, length of the wetted curve, and dynamic contact angle. In particular, the dynamic contact angle is measured using a novel digital image-processing scheme based on a goniometric mask, which does not require edge fitting. It is shown that the surface with a higher curvature enhances the retraction of the spreading drop; this effect may be due to the difference of energy dissipation induced by the curvature of the surface. In addition, the impact parameters (elastic modulus, diameter ratio, and Weber number) are observed to significantly affect the dynamic contact angle during impact. A quantitative estimation of the deformation energy shows that it is significantly smaller than viscous dissipation.

Computer Simulations of Epoxy Adhesive Monomer Interactions with Alumina Surfaces

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-08-01

using Sybyl"’ molecular modeling software 9 on a Digital Equipment Corporation microVAXw cluster. The Tripos force field was employed in the...Ave, N, Ft Leonard Wood, MO 65473-5000 1 ATM- Libary Commander, US. Army Enginer Waterways Expenment Station, P.O. Box 631, Vicksburg, MS 39180 1 ATTN

Classroom Technology Rollouts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blow, Deborah; McConnell, Sandy

2012-01-01

At Cambrian School District, educators are trying a new approach as they investigate new technologies. Rather than roll out a one-size-fits-all mandate that one will use this new "box," which may also sit gathering dust, they have implemented a new model. Early in the last school year they announced the Digital Media Academy, and in…

47 CFR 15.124 - DTV transition notices by manufacturers of televisions and related devices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... April 1, 2009, and June 30, 2009, must include notices about the digital television (DTV) transition... from television broadcast receivers; and set-top boxes available for sale at retail that receive video programming provided by multi-channel video programming distributors. (b) The notices required under paragraph...

47 CFR 301.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Definitions. 301.2 Section 301.2 Telecommunication NATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE DIGITAL-TO-ANALOG CONVERTER BOX COUPON PROGRAM § 301.2 Definitions. Act means Title III of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, Pub. L. No. 109-171, 120 Stat. 4, 21...

"Open-Box" Approach to Measuring Fluorescence Quenching Using an iPad Screen and Digital SLR Camera

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koenig, Michael H.; Yi, Eun P.; Sandridge, Matthew J.; Mathew, Alexander S.; Demas, James N.

2015-01-01

Fluorescence quenching is an analytical technique and a common undergraduate laboratory exercise. Unfortunately, a typical quenching experiment requires the use of an expensive fluorometer that measures the relative fluorescence intensity of a single sample in a closed compartment unseen by the experimenter. To overcome these shortcomings, we…

A Pilot-Scale Heat Recovery System for Computer Process Control Teaching and Research.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Callaghan, P. J.; And Others

1988-01-01

Describes the experimental system and equipment including an interface box for displaying variables. Discusses features which make the circuit suitable for teaching and research in computing. Feedforward, decoupling, and adaptive control, examination of digital filtering, and a cascade loop are teaching experiments utilizing this rig. Diagrams and…

Micro-computed tomography of pupal metamorphosis in the solitary bee Megachile rotundata

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Insect metamorphosis involves a complex change in form and function, but most of these changes are internal and treated as a black box. In this study, we examined development of the solitary bee, Megachile rotundata, using micro-computed tomography (µCT) and digital volume analysis. We describe deve...

Potential method for relieving fatigue in radiologists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krupinski, Elizabeth A.

2013-03-01

Radiologists moved to an environment in which they read digital images off of computer displays instead of film images off of light boxes. With film and light boxes they typically would read for about an hour (seated) and then take a break while the film librarian changed the images on the view box. With digital viewing off computers they tend to sit all day in front of the computers with far fewer breaks and opportunity to stand up and move around than with film. There is concern that this lack of activity not only contributes to back, shoulder and neck discomfort, but also contributes to increased fatigue which has been shown to impact reader performance. The goal of this study was to determine if there are differences in physiologic vital signs (heart rate and blood pressure) of radiologists as a function of whether they read images while seated or while standing up. Five subjects had their blood pressure and heart rate measured while seated and while standing reading cases in the normal clinical setting. For all three measures there was a statistically significant (p < 0.0001) difference between seated and standing measures with seated being lower than standing. The higher heart rate and blood pressure with standing suggests that the radiologists are more active in this position and thus potentially more attentive than while seated. This study will be followed up to determine impact on diagnostic performance of standing vs seated as well as subjective ratings of wakefulness and mood.

Digital Waveguide Architectures for Virtual Musical Instruments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Julius O.

Digital sound synthesis has become a standard staple of modern music studios, videogames, personal computers, and hand-held devices. As processing power has increased over the years, sound synthesis implementations have evolved from dedicated chip sets, to single-chip solutions, and ultimately to software implementations within processors used primarily for other tasks (such as for graphics or general purpose computing). With the cost of implementation dropping closer and closer to zero, there is increasing room for higher quality algorithms.

Convective rainfall estimation from digital GOES-1 infrared data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sickler, G. L.; Thompson, A. H.

1979-01-01

An investigation was conducted to determine the feasibility of developing and objective technique for estimating convective rainfall from digital GOES-1 infrared data. The study area was a 240 km by 240 km box centered on College Station, Texas (Texas A and M University). The Scofield and Oliver (1977) rainfall estimation scheme was adapted and used with the digital geostationary satellite data. The concept of enhancement curves with respect to rainfall approximation is discussed. Raingage rainfall analyses and satellite-derived rainfall estimation analyses were compared. The correlation for the station data pairs (observed versus estimated rainfall amounts) for the convective portion of the storm was 0.92. It was demonstrated that a fairly accurate objective rainfall technique using digital geostationary infrared satellite data is feasible. The rawinsonde and some synoptic data that were used in this investigation came from NASA's Atmospheric Variability Experiment, AVE 7.

Lenz’s law with aluminum foil and a lengthwise slit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berls, Rob; Ruiz, Michael J.

2018-07-01

The classic demonstration illustrating Lenz’s law by dropping a magnet through a copper pipe is presented using household aluminum foil right out of the box. Then comes the surprise. The teacher presents an aluminum foil cylinder with a missing lengthwise slice (cut before class). Will the demonstration still work? Students are amazed at the result, described in this paper and included in our accompanying video (Ruiz 2018 Video: Lenz’s law with aluminum foil http://mjtruiz.com/ped/aluminum/).

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here, students from Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, help a NASA technician prepare their experiment. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) Contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Pictured are students from COSI Academy, Columbus, Ohio and their teacher. The other team was from Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here students from Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, talk with Dr. Dennis Stocker, one of Glenn's lead microgravity scientists, about the uses of the drop tower. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) Contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Students from Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio (girls), and the COSI Academy, Columbus, Ohio (boys), participated. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

A study of pressure losses in residential air distribution systems

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

Abushakra, Bass; Walker, Iain S.; Sherman, Max H.

2002-07-01

An experimental study was conducted to evaluate the pressure drop characteristics of residential duct system components that are either not available or not thoroughly (sometimes incorrectly) described in existing duct design literature. The tests were designed to imitate cases normally found in typical residential and light commercial installations. The study included three different sizes of flexible ducts, under different compression configurations, splitter boxes, supply boots, and a fresh air intake hood. The experimental tests conformed to ASHRAE Standard 120P--''Methods of Testing to Determine Flow Resistance of HVAC Air Ducts and Fittings''. The flexible duct study covered compressibility and bending effectsmore » on the total pressure drop, and the results showed that the available published references tend to underestimate the effects of compression in flexible ducts that can increase pressure drops by up to a factor of nine. The supply boots were tested under different configurations including a setup where a flexible duct elbow connection was considered as an integral part of the supply boot. The supply boots results showed that diffusers can increase the pressure drop by up to a factor of two in exit fittings, and the installation configuration can increase the pressure drop by up to a factor of five. The results showed that it is crucial for designers and contractors to be aware of the compressibility effects of the flexible duct, and the installation of supply boots and diffusers.« less

Digital lock-in amplifier based on soundcard interface for physics laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sinlapanuntakul, J.; Kijamnajsuk, P.; Jetjamnong, C.; Chotikaprakhan, S.

2017-09-01

The purpose of this paper is to develop a digital lock-in amplifier based on soundcard interface for undergraduate physics laboratory. Both series and parallel RLC circuit laboratory are tested because of its well-known, easy to understand and simple confirm. The sinusoidal signal at the frequency of 10 Hz - 15 kHz is generated to the circuits. The amplitude and phase of the voltage drop across the resistor, R are measured in 10 step decade. The signals from soundcard interface and lock-in amplifier are compared. The results give a good correlation. It indicates that the design digital lock-in amplifier is promising for undergraduate physic laboratory.

Max Headroom, Ad Man of the Eighties: When Commercial Becomes Cult.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wassmuth, Birgit L.; Carr, Douglas J.

With Coca-Cola's selection of a digital, computer-constructed "spokesthing" named Max Headroom, came a dramatic shift toward a reliance on high technology to deliver the advertising message. Headroom was developed in Britain, and made his debut on the Home Box Office television network in 1985. Coca-Cola then bought the rights to…

PDAs in Teacher Education: A Case Study Examining Mobile Technology Integration

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Franklin, Teresa; Sexton, Colleen; Lu, Young; Ma, Hongyan

2007-01-01

The classroom computer is no longer confined to a box on the desk. Mobile handheld computing devices have evolved into powerful and affordable learning tools. Handheld technologies are changing the way people access and work with information. The use of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs or handhelds) has been an evolving part of the business world…

Superconductive Microwave Single-Flux-Quantum Digital Circuits and Corresponding Opto-Electronic Interfaces: On-Going Studies and First Experimental Results

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-07-13

UHLMANN University of Technology Ilmenau– PO Box 105565 – D-98684 Ilmenau - Germany RESUME : Les circuits numériques supraconducteurs micro-ondes...circuits RSFQ. Ce banc de mesure comporte deux types d’interfaces opto-RSFQ, basées sur des matériaux semiconducteurs et supraconducteurs , respectivement

Digital Gaming Perspectives of Older Adults: Content vs. Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marston, Hannah R.

2013-01-01

There were two objectives to this study: (a) to establish flow and (2) to establish whether computer game interaction or content was important to the older adult, using the Nintendo Wii and the Sony PlayStation 2 consoles. An earlier study had identified the sports genre as a preference, and three games (golf, tennis, and boxing) were selected…

47 CFR 79.102 - Closed caption decoder requirements for digital television receivers and converter boxes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... COMMISSION (CONTINUED) BROADCAST RADIO SERVICES ACCESSIBILITY OF VIDEO PROGRAMMING Apparatus § 79.102 Closed... separated from the underlying video by a sufficient number of background pixels to insure the foreground is... the trailing “white” pixels of the last character on a row do not bleed into the underlying video. (i...

47 CFR 79.102 - Closed caption decoder requirements for digital television receivers and converter boxes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... COMMISSION (CONTINUED) BROADCAST RADIO SERVICES CLOSED CAPTIONING AND VIDEO DESCRIPTION OF VIDEO PROGRAMMING... separated from the underlying video by a sufficient number of background pixels to insure the foreground is... the trailing “white” pixels of the last character on a row do not bleed into the underlying video. (i...

47 CFR 79.102 - Closed caption decoder requirements for digital television receivers and converter boxes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... COMMISSION (CONTINUED) BROADCAST RADIO SERVICES CLOSED CAPTIONING AND VIDEO DESCRIPTION OF VIDEO PROGRAMMING... separated from the underlying video by a sufficient number of background pixels to insure the foreground is... the trailing “white” pixels of the last character on a row do not bleed into the underlying video. (i...

The E-music box: an empirical method for exploring the universal capacity for musical production and for social interaction through music.

PubMed

Novembre, Giacomo; Varlet, Manuel; Muawiyath, Shujau; Stevens, Catherine J; Keller, Peter E

2015-11-01

Humans are assumed to have a natural-universal-predisposition for making music and for musical interaction. Research in this domain is, however, typically conducted with musically trained individuals, and therefore confounded with expertise. Here, we present a rediscovered and updated invention-the E-music box-that we establish as an empirical method to investigate musical production and interaction in everyone. The E-music box transforms rotatory cyclical movements into pre-programmable digital musical output, with tempo varying according to rotation speed. The user's movements are coded as continuous oscillatory data, which can be analysed using linear or nonlinear analytical tools. We conducted a proof-of-principle experiment to demonstrate that, using this method, pairs of non-musically trained individuals can interact according to conventional musical practices (leader/follower roles and lower-pitch dominance). The results suggest that the E-music box brings 'active' and 'interactive' musical capacities within everyone's reach. We discuss the potential of this method for exploring the universal predisposition for music making and interaction in developmental and cross-cultural contexts, and for neurologic musical therapy and rehabilitation.

EMG analysis of peroneal and tibialis anterior muscle activity prior to foot contact during functional activities.

PubMed

McLoda, T A; Hansen, A J; Birrer, D A

2004-06-01

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the pre-activity of the tibialis anterior (TA), peroneus longus (PL), and peroneus brevis (PB) prior to foot contact during three conditions. Twenty-six subjects (age 22 +/- 2 yrs; 15 male, 11 female) with no lower extremity injuries reported for data collection. Data were collected from each subject's dominant leg using surface electromyography (EMG). EMG electrodes were applied over the test muscles using a standard protocol. A heel-toe strike transducer was affixed to the bottom of the subject's shoe. The subject completed two randomized trials of walking on a treadmill (5.6 kph), jogging on a treadmill (9.3 kph) and drop landing from a 38 cm box. Isometric reference positions (IRPs) were recorded for the TA, PL, and PB. Muscle data were normalized to IRPs and the average processed EMG for the 200 ms prior to heel strike during walking and jogging and prior to toe strike when dropping from the box was used for analysis. A one-way repeated measures MANOVA was used to detect differences in pre-activity of the muscles between the three conditions. Univariate tests were used to determine differences for each muscle and Tukey's was applied post hoc to determine individual effect differences. The MANOVA revealed significant differences among the three conditions (F2.50 = 10.770; P < .0005). Average TA activity was significantly higher during jogging (Tukey's; P < .0005). Significant differences existed between each condition for the TA. Average PL and PB activity was significantly higher when drop landing (Tukey's; P < .0005). There was no significant difference between walking and jogging for the PL and PB. The amount of muscle pre-activity occurring before heel or toe strike provides useful information for the examination of reaction times to unexpected inversion during dynamic activities.

Using a drug facts box to communicate drug benefits and harms: two randomized trials.

PubMed

Schwartz, Lisa M; Woloshin, Steven; Welch, H Gilbert

2009-04-21

Direct-to-consumer prescription drug ads typically fail to provide fundamental information that consumers need to make informed decisions: data on how well the drug works. To see whether providing consumers with a drug facts box-a table quantifying outcomes with and without the drug-improves knowledge and affects judgments about prescription medications. Two randomized, controlled trials conducted between October 2006 and April 2007: a symptom drug box trial using direct-to-consumer ads for a histamine-2 blocker and a proton-pump inhibitor to treat heartburn, and a prevention drug box trial using direct-to-consumer ads for a statin and clopidogrel to prevent cardiovascular events. National sample of U.S. adults identified by random-digit dialing. Adults age 35 to 70 years who completed a mailed survey; the final samples comprised 231 participants with completed surveys in the symptom drug box trial (49% response rate) and 219 in the prevention drug box trial (46% response rate). In both trials, the control group received 2 actual drug ads (including both the front page and brief summary). The drug box group received the same ads, except that the brief summary was replaced by a drug facts box. Choice between drugs (primary outcome of the symptom drug box trial) and accurate perceptions of drug benefits and side effects (primary outcome of the prevention drug box trial). In the symptom drug box trial, 70% of the drug box group and 8% of the control group correctly identified the PPI as being "a lot more effective" than the histamine-2 blocker (P < 0.001), and 80% and 38% correctly recognized that the side effects of the 2 drugs were similar (P < 0.001). When asked what they would do if they had bothersome heartburn and could have either drug for free, 68% of the drug box group and 31% of the control group chose the proton-pump inhibitor, the superior drug (P < 0.001). In the prevention drug box trial, the drug box improved consumers' knowledge of the benefits and side effects of a statin and clopidogrel. For example, 72% of the drug box group and 9% of the control group correctly quantified the benefit (absolute risk reduction) of the statin (P < 0.001). Most of the control participants overestimated this benefit, and 65% did so by a factor of 10 or more. The trials tested drug boxes in only 4 direct-to-consumer ads. If other direct-to-consumer ads were to communicate outcome data better, the effect of the drug box would be reduced. A drug facts box improved U.S. consumers' knowledge of prescription drug benefits and side effects. It resulted in better choices between drugs for current symptoms and corrected the overestimation of benefit in the setting of prevention. National Cancer Institute and Attorney General Consumer and Prescriber Education Program.

Activation of protein kinase C induces nuclear translocation of RFX1 and down-regulates c-myc via an intron 1 X box in undifferentiated leukemia HL-60 cells.

PubMed

Chen, L; Smith, L; Johnson, M R; Wang, K; Diasio, R B; Smith, J B

2000-10-13

Treatment of human promyelocytic leukemia cells (HL-60) with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) is known to decrease c-myc mRNA by blocking transcription elongation at sites near the first exon/intron border. Treatment of HL-60 cells with either PMA or bryostatin 1, which acutely activates protein kinase C (PKC), decreased the levels of myc mRNA and Myc protein. The inhibition of Myc synthesis accounted for the drop in Myc protein, because PMA treatment had no effect on Myc turnover. Treatment with PMA or bryostatin 1 increased nuclear protein binding to MIE1, a c-myc intron 1 element that defines an RFX1-binding X box. RFX1 antiserum supershifted MIE1-protein complexes. Increased MIE1 binding was independent of protein synthesis and abolished by a selective PKC inhibitor, which also prevented the effect of PMA on myc mRNA and protein levels and Myc synthesis. PMA treatment increased RFX1 in the nuclear fraction and decreased it in the cytosol without affecting total RFX1. Transfection of HL-60 cells with myc reporter gene constructs showed that the RFX1-binding X box was required for the down-regulation of reporter gene expression by PMA. These findings suggest that nuclear translocation and binding of RFX1 to the X box cause the down-regulation of myc expression, which follows acute PKC activation in undifferentiated HL-60 cells.

BrainIACS: a system for web-based medical image processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kishore, Bhaskar; Bazin, Pierre-Louis; Pham, Dzung L.

2009-02-01

We describe BrainIACS, a web-based medical image processing system that permits and facilitates algorithm developers to quickly create extensible user interfaces for their algorithms. Designed to address the challenges faced by algorithm developers in providing user-friendly graphical interfaces, BrainIACS is completely implemented using freely available, open-source software. The system, which is based on a client-server architecture, utilizes an AJAX front-end written using the Google Web Toolkit (GWT) and Java Servlets running on Apache Tomcat as its back-end. To enable developers to quickly and simply create user interfaces for configuring their algorithms, the interfaces are described using XML and are parsed by our system to create the corresponding user interface elements. Most of the commonly found elements such as check boxes, drop down lists, input boxes, radio buttons, tab panels and group boxes are supported. Some elements such as the input box support input validation. Changes to the user interface such as addition and deletion of elements are performed by editing the XML file or by using the system's user interface creator. In addition to user interface generation, the system also provides its own interfaces for data transfer, previewing of input and output files, and algorithm queuing. As the system is programmed using Java (and finally Java-script after compilation of the front-end code), it is platform independent with the only requirements being that a Servlet implementation be available and that the processing algorithms can execute on the server platform.

Effects of anti-glare particles on sedation in mice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Hongyu; Hao, Shaojun; Liu, Xiaobin; Kong, Xuejun; Wang, Xidong; Li, Wenjun; Zhang, Zhengchen

2018-04-01

To investigate the effect of anti-glare particles on sedation of mice, 60 mice were randomly divided into 5 groups, were fed by Ant-dizzy Granule Suspension, saline, Yang Xue Qing Nao Granule suspension and the same volume of saline, and administered 1 times daily, for 7 days. The mice in the wilderness box, hang - 150W light bulbs in the box above, the light recording activities within 2 minutes. The wilderness box into the box after the number of mice, mice with limbs went to the 1 squares is around 1 in the same case, mouse location and method of wilderness case; each group was placed in the turn/bar with rotating speed of 40RPM, each time 5 Parallel experiment recorded the mouse stay time on the rotating rod, if the mouse fell within 2 minutes, immediately put it on the rotating rod to continue the experiment, recorded the mouse on the rotating rod accumulated stay time. If 10 minutes did not drop, press 10 minutes; eighty mice were divided into 5 groups. The number of each rat injected subthreshold dose of pentobarbital sodium in mice. The sleep recording liquid were recorded sleep latency and sleep time. The anti-vertigo granule can obviously reduce the spontaneous activity of mice (P<0.05), can significantly increase the residence time of mice on the rotating rod (P<0.05) have obvious synergistic effect (P<0.05). Anti-glare particles have good sedative effect.

Design and Development of the SMAP Microwave Radiometer Electronics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Piepmeier, Jeffrey R.; Medeiros, James J.; Horgan, Kevin A.; Brambora, Clifford K.; Estep, Robert H.

2014-01-01

The SMAP microwave radiometer will measure land surface brightness temperature at L-band (1413 MHz) in the presence of radio frequency interference (RFI) for soil moisture remote sensing. The radiometer design was driven by the requirements to incorporate internal calibration, to operate synchronously with the SMAP radar, and to mitigate the deleterious effects of RFI. The system design includes a highly linear super-heterodyne microwave receiver with internal reference loads and noise sources for calibration and an innovative digital signal processor and detection system. The front-end comprises a coaxial cable-based feed network, with a pair of diplexers and a coupled noise source, and radiometer front-end (RFE) box. Internal calibration is provided by reference switches and a common noise source inside the RFE. The RF back-end (RBE) downconverts the 1413 MHz channel to an intermediate frequency (IF) of 120 MHz. The IF signals are then sampled and quantized by high-speed analog-to-digital converters in the radiometer digital electronics (RDE) box. The RBE local oscillator and RDE sampling clocks are phase-locked to a common reference to ensure coherency between the signals. The RDE performs additional filtering, sub-band channelization, cross-correlation for measuring third and fourth Stokes parameters, and detection and integration of the first four raw moments of the signals. These data are packetized and sent to the ground for calibration and further processing. Here we discuss the novel features of the radiometer hardware particularly those influenced by the need to mitigate RFI.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here Jose Carrion, a lab mechanic with AKAC, starts the orange-colored drag shield, and the experiment apparatus inside, on the hoist upward to the control station at the top of the drop tower. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. This is the interior of the Sycamore High School (Cincinnati, Ohio) students' experiment to observe the flame spreading on a 100 percent cotton T-shirt under low-g. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Diagnostic accuracy of chest X-rays acquired using a digital camera for low-cost teleradiology.

PubMed

Szot, Agnieszka; Jacobson, Francine L; Munn, Samson; Jazayeri, Darius; Nardell, Edward; Harrison, David; Drosten, Ralph; Ohno-Machado, Lucila; Smeaton, Laura M; Fraser, Hamish S F

2004-02-01

Store-and-forward telemedicine, using e-mail to send clinical data and digital images, offers a low-cost alternative for physicians in developing countries to obtain second opinions from specialists. To explore the potential usefulness of this technique, 91 chest X-ray images were photographed using a digital camera and a view box. Four independent readers (three radiologists and one pulmonologist) read two types of digital (JPEG and JPEG2000) and original film images and indicated their confidence in the presence of eight features known to be radiological indicators of tuberculosis (TB). The results were compared to a "gold standard" established by two different radiologists, and assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. There was no statistical difference in the overall performance between the readings from the original films and both types of digital images. The size of JPEG2000 images was approximately 120KB, making this technique feasible for slow internet connections. Our preliminary results show the potential usefulness of this technique particularly for tuberculosis and lung disease, but further studies are required to refine its potential.

The effectiveness of annotated (vs. non-annotated) digital pathology slides as a teaching tool during dermatology and pathology residencies.

PubMed

Marsch, Amanda F; Espiritu, Baltazar; Groth, John; Hutchens, Kelli A

2014-06-01

With today's technology, paraffin-embedded, hematoxylin & eosin-stained pathology slides can be scanned to generate high quality virtual slides. Using proprietary software, digital images can also be annotated with arrows, circles and boxes to highlight certain diagnostic features. Previous studies assessing digital microscopy as a teaching tool did not involve the annotation of digital images. The objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of annotated digital pathology slides versus non-annotated digital pathology slides as a teaching tool during dermatology and pathology residencies. A study group composed of 31 dermatology and pathology residents was asked to complete an online pre-quiz consisting of 20 multiple choice style questions, each associated with a static digital pathology image. After completion, participants were given access to an online tutorial composed of digitally annotated pathology slides and subsequently asked to complete a post-quiz. A control group of 12 residents completed a non-annotated version of the tutorial. Nearly all participants in the study group improved their quiz score, with an average improvement of 17%, versus only 3% (P = 0.005) in the control group. These results support the notion that annotated digital pathology slides are superior to non-annotated slides for the purpose of resident education. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

STS-72 Mission Specialist Koichi Wakata during ASCAN training

NASA Image and Video Library

1995-01-09

S95-00353 (12-14 September 1992) --- Several 1992 astronaut candidates brush the sand and gravel off one another following one of several phases of parachute familiarization and survival training at Vance Air Force Base in Oklahoma. Recognizable in the picture are Wendy B. Lawrence, Michael E. Lopez-Alegria, Chris A. Hadfield, Winston E. Scott and Koichi Wakata. The trainees had just completed an exercise, which required their jumping off a box into a gravel pit, in order to familiarize them the proper way to meet the ground following an emergency parachute drop.

US Japan Workshop. Hybrid 2000 Conference Held in Ithaca, New York on May 7-12, 2000

DTIC Science & Technology

2001-05-31

Illinois University) 10:30-10:45 BREAK 10:45-11:30 "Nano-Objects With Controlled Shape, Size and Composition From Block Copolymer-Ceramic Hybrid...Alkoxysilanes", Yoshiyuki Sugahara (Waseda University) 12:30 depart for Corning Glass Museum Tour Box lunches provided by Ramada Inn 5:30PM drop off at MV...well-controlled. If the size of the clusters is too large, the hybrids would be brittle as Si02 gels and glasses are. Thus, the control over the

Semi-automatic image analysis methodology for the segmentation of bubbles and drops in complex dispersions occurring in bioreactors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taboada, B.; Vega-Alvarado, L.; Córdova-Aguilar, M. S.; Galindo, E.; Corkidi, G.

2006-09-01

Characterization of multiphase systems occurring in fermentation processes is a time-consuming and tedious process when manual methods are used. This work describes a new semi-automatic methodology for the on-line assessment of diameters of oil drops and air bubbles occurring in a complex simulated fermentation broth. High-quality digital images were obtained from the interior of a mechanically stirred tank. These images were pre-processed to find segments of edges belonging to the objects of interest. The contours of air bubbles and oil drops were then reconstructed using an improved Hough transform algorithm which was tested in two, three and four-phase simulated fermentation model systems. The results were compared against those obtained manually by a trained observer, showing no significant statistical differences. The method was able to reduce the total processing time for the measurements of bubbles and drops in different systems by 21-50% and the manual intervention time for the segmentation procedure by 80-100%.

Predicting the Drop Performance of Solder Joints by Evaluating the Elastic Strain Energy from High-Speed Ball Pull Tests

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

You, Taehoon; Kim, Yunsung; Kim, Jina; Lee, Jaehong; Jung, Byungwook; Moon, Jungtak; Choe, Heeman

2009-03-01

Despite being expensive and time consuming, board-level drop testing has been widely used to assess the drop or impact resistance of the solder joints in handheld microelectronic devices, such as cellphones and personal digital assistants (PDAs). In this study, a new test method, which is much simpler and quicker, is proposed. The method involves evaluating the elastic strain energy and relating it to the impact resistance of the solder joint by considering the Young’s modulus of the bulk solder and the fracture stress of the solder joint during a ball pull test at high strain rates. The results show that solder joints can be ranked in order of descending elastic strain energy as follows: Sn-37Pb, Sn-1Ag-0.5Cu, Sn-3Ag-0.5Cu, and Sn-4Ag-0.5Cu. This order is consistent with the actual drop performances of the samples.

A microcontroller-based lock-in amplifier for sub-milliohm resistance measurements.

PubMed

Bengtsson, Lars E

2012-07-01

This paper presents a novel approach to the design of a digital ohmmeter with a resolution of <60 μΩ based on a general-purpose microcontroller and a high-impedance instrumentation amplifier only. The design uses two digital I/O-pins to alternate the current through the sample resistor and combined with a proper firmware routine, the design is a lock-in detector that discriminates any signal that is out of phase/frequency with the reference signal. This makes it possible to selectively detect the μV drop across sample resistors down to 55.6 μΩ using only the current that can be supplied by the digital output pins of a microcontroller. This is achieved without the need for an external reference signal generator and does not rely on the computing processing power of a digital signal processor.

Sparring and neurological function in professional boxers.

PubMed

Stiller, John W; Yu, Steven S; Brenner, Lisa A; Langenberg, Patricia; Scrofani, Phillip; Pannella, Patrick; Hsu, Edbert B; Roberts, Darryl W; Monsell, Ray M T; Binks, Sidney W; Guzman, Alvaro; Postolache, Teodor T

2014-01-01

Despite increased interest regarding the potentially long-term negative impact of chronic traumatic brain injury, limited research has been conducted regarding such injuries and neurological outcomes in real world settings. To increase understanding regarding the relationship between sparring (e.g., training under the tutelage of an experienced boxing coach for the purpose of improving skills and/or fitness) and neurological functioning, professional boxers (n = 237) who competed in Maryland between 2003 and 2008 completed measures regarding sparring exposure (Cumulative Sparring Index, CSI) and performance on tests of cognition (Symbol Digit Modalities Test, SDMT) and balance (Sharpened Romberg Test, SRT). Measures were completed prior to boxing matches. Higher scores on the CSI (increased sparring exposure) were associated with poorer performance on both tests of cognition (SDMT) and balance (SRT). A threshold effect was noted regarding performance on the SDMT, with those reporting CSI values greater than about 150 experiencing a decline in cognition. A history of frequent and/or intense sparring may pose a significant risk for developing boxing associated neurological sequelae. Implementing administration of clinically meaningful tests before bouts, such as the CSI, SDMT, and/or the SRT, as well as documentation of results into the boxer's physicals or medical profiles may be an important step for improving boxing safety.

Sparring and Neurological Function in Professional Boxers

PubMed Central

Stiller, John W.; Yu, Steven S.; Brenner, Lisa A.; Langenberg, Patricia; Scrofani, Phillip; Pannella, Patrick; Hsu, Edbert B.; Roberts, Darryl W.; Monsell, Ray M. T.; Binks, Sidney W.; Guzman, Alvaro; Postolache, Teodor T.

2014-01-01

Despite increased interest regarding the potentially long-term negative impact of chronic traumatic brain injury, limited research has been conducted regarding such injuries and neurological outcomes in real world settings. To increase understanding regarding the relationship between sparring (e.g., training under the tutelage of an experienced boxing coach for the purpose of improving skills and/or fitness) and neurological functioning, professional boxers (n = 237) who competed in Maryland between 2003 and 2008 completed measures regarding sparring exposure (Cumulative Sparring Index, CSI) and performance on tests of cognition (Symbol Digit Modalities Test, SDMT) and balance (Sharpened Romberg Test, SRT). Measures were completed prior to boxing matches. Higher scores on the CSI (increased sparring exposure) were associated with poorer performance on both tests of cognition (SDMT) and balance (SRT). A threshold effect was noted regarding performance on the SDMT, with those reporting CSI values greater than about 150 experiencing a decline in cognition. A history of frequent and/or intense sparring may pose a significant risk for developing boxing associated neurological sequelae. Implementing administration of clinically meaningful tests before bouts, such as the CSI, SDMT, and/or the SRT, as well as documentation of results into the boxer’s physicals or medical profiles may be an important step for improving boxing safety. PMID:25101253

Use of Digital Pens for Rapid Epidemiologic Data Collection During a Foodborne Outbreak Investigation.

PubMed

Mathewson, Abigail A; Daly, Elizabeth R; Cavallo, Steffany J; Alic, Adnela

2015-08-01

Public health investigations require rapid assessment, response, and initiation of control measures. In 2012, the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services used digital pens to rapidly acquire epidemiologic data during a gastrointestinal illness outbreak. Menus were obtained and a standard questionnaire was administered to exposed persons using digital pens. Questionnaire data were downloaded into an electronic file for analysis. Sixty-nine (74%) of 93 exposed persons completed a questionnaire. Of 6389 data entries made on digital paper, 218 (3%) required correction; of these, 201 (92%) involved a free-form variable and 17 (8%) involved a check-box variable. Digital pens saved an estimated 5 to 6 hours of data-entry time. This outbreak provided an opportunity to assess the value of digital pens for decreasing data-entry burden and allowing more timely data analysis in an emergent setting. Depending on the size of the outbreak and complexity of the survey, there is likely a threshold when use of digital pens would provide a clear benefit to outbreak response. As new technology becomes available for use in emergency preparedness settings, public health agencies must continuously review and update response plans and evaluate investigation tools to ensure timely disease control and response activities.

Viscoelastic drops moving on hydrophilic and superhydrophobic surfaces.

PubMed

Xu, H; Clarke, A; Rothstein, J P; Poole, R J

2018-03-01

So-called "superhydrophobic" surfaces are strongly non-wetting such that fluid droplets very easily roll off when the surface is tilted. Our interest here is in understanding if this is also true, all else held equal, for viscoelastic fluid drops. We study the movement of Newtonian and well-characterised constant-viscosity elastic liquids when various surfaces, including hydrophilic (smooth glass), weakly hydrophobic (embossed polycarbonate) and superhydrophobic surfaces (embossed PTFE), are impulsively tilted. Digital imaging is used to record the motion and extract drop velocity. Optical and SEM imaging is used to probe the surfaces. In comparison with "equivalent" Newtonian fluids (same viscosity, density surface tension and contact angles), profound differences for the elastic fluids are only observed on the superhydrophobic surfaces: the elastic drops slide at a significantly reduced rate and complex branch-like patterns are left on the surface by the drop's wake including, on various scales, beads-on-a-string-like phenomena. The strong viscoelastic effect is caused by stretching filaments of fluid from isolated islands, residing at pinning sites on the surface pillars, of order ∼30 µm in size. On this scale, the local strain rates are sufficient to extend the polymer chains, locally increasing the extensional viscosity of the solution, retarding the drop. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Gas Flow Detection System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moss, Thomas; Ihlefeld, Curtis; Slack, Barry

2010-01-01

This system provides a portable means to detect gas flow through a thin-walled tube without breaking into the tubing system. The flow detection system was specifically designed to detect flow through two parallel branches of a manifold with only one inlet and outlet, and is a means for verifying a space shuttle program requirement that saves time and reduces the risk of flight hardware damage compared to the current means of requirement verification. The prototype Purge Vent and Drain Window Cavity Conditioning System (PVD WCCS) Flow Detection System consists of a heater and a temperature-sensing thermistor attached to a piece of Velcro to be attached to each branch of a WCCS manifold for the duration of the requirement verification test. The heaters and thermistors are connected to a shielded cable and then to an electronics enclosure, which contains the power supplies, relays, and circuit board to provide power, signal conditioning, and control. The electronics enclosure is then connected to a commercial data acquisition box to provide analog to digital conversion as well as digital control. This data acquisition box is then connected to a commercial laptop running a custom application created using National Instruments LabVIEW. The operation of the PVD WCCS Flow Detection System consists of first attaching a heater/thermistor assembly to each of the two branches of one manifold while there is no flow through the manifold. Next, the software application running on the laptop is used to turn on the heaters and to monitor the manifold branch temperatures. When the system has reached thermal equilibrium, the software application s graphical user interface (GUI) will indicate that the branch temperatures are stable. The operator can then physically open the flow control valve to initiate the test flow of gaseous nitrogen (GN2) through the manifold. Next, the software user interface will be monitored for stable temperature indications when the system is again at thermal equilibrium with the test flow of GN2. The temperature drop of each branch from its "no flow" stable temperature peak to its stable "with flow" temperature will allow the operator to determine whether a minimum level of flow exists. An alternative operation has the operator turning on the software only long enough to record the ambient temperature of the tubing before turning on the heaters and initiating GN2 flow. The stable temperature of the heated tubing with GN2 flow is then compared with the ambient tubing temperature to determine if flow is present in each branch. To help quantify the level of flow in the manifolds, each branch will be bench calibrated to establish its thermal properties using the flow detection system and different flow rates. These calibration values can then be incorporated into the software application to provide more detailed flow rate information.

The use of computers in a materials science laboratory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neville, J. P.

1990-01-01

The objective is to make available a method of easily recording the microstructure of a sample by means of a computer. The method requires a minimum investment and little or no instruction on the operation of a computer. An outline of the setup involving a black and white TV camera, a digitizer control box, a metallurgical microscope and a computer screen, printer, and keyboard is shown.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here Carol Hodanbosi of the National Center for Microgravity Research and Jose Carrion, a lab mechanic with AKAC, prepare a student experiment package (inside the silver-colored frame) inside the orange-colored drag shield that encloses all experiment hardware. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Surface (sea floor) and near-surface (box cores) sediment mineralogy in Baffin Bay as a key to sediment provenance and ice sheet variations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Andrews, John T.; Eberl, D.D.

2011-01-01

To better understand the glacial history of the ice sheets surrounding Baffin Bay and to provide information on sediment pathways, samples from 82 seafloor grabs and core tops, and from seven box cores were subjected to quantitative X-ray diffraction weight percent (wt.%) analysis of the 2000 m) all show an abrupt drop in calcite wt.% (post-5 cal ka BP?) following a major peak in detrital carbonate (mainly dolomite). This dolomite-rich detrital carbonate (DC) event in JR175BC06 is possibly coeval with the Younger Dryas cold event. Four possible glacial-sourced end members were employed in a compositional unmixing algorithm to gain insight into down core changes in sediment provenance at the deep central basin. Estimates of the rates of sediment accumulation in the central basin are only in the range of 2 to 4 cm/cal ka, surprisingly low given the glaciated nature of the surrounding land.

Department of Combat Medic Training-Technology Enhancement

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-04-15

SAYS : ............................................................................................................................ 6 2 INTRODUCTION...determined to be exempt from IRB protocol per Appendix 1.3 What this report says : Section 1 – Executive Summary: (this section) Section 2...with automatic conversion to digital text (conversion of handwriting to text) or use pre-scripted comments from a drop-down menu. b. Validation of

Characterization of drop aerodynamic fragmentation in the bag and sheet-thinning regimes by crossed-beam, two-view, digital in-line holography

DOE PAGES

Guildenbecher, Daniel R.; Gao, Jian; Chen, Jun; ...

2017-04-19

When a spherical liquid drop is subjected to a step change in relative gas velocity, aerodynamic forces lead to drop deformation and possible breakup into a number of secondary fragments. In order to investigate this flow, a digital in-line holography (DIH) diagnostic is proposed which enables rapid quantification of spatial statistics with limited experimental repetition. To overcome the high uncertainty in the depth direction experienced in previous applications of DIH, a crossed-beam, two-view configuration is introduced. With appropriate calibration, this diagnostic is shown to provide accurate quantification of fragment sizes, three-dimensional positions and three-component velocities in a large measurement volume.more » We apply these capabilities in order to investigate the aerodynamic breakup of drops at two non-dimensional Weber numbers, We, corresponding to the bag (We = 14) and sheet-thinning (We = 55) regimes. Ensemble average results show the evolution of fragment size and velocity statistics during the course of breakup. Our results indicate that mean fragment sizes increase throughout the course of breakup. For the bag breakup case, the evolution of a multi-mode fragment size probability density is observed. This is attributed to separate fragmentation mechanisms for the bag and rim structures. In contrast, for the sheet-thinning case, the fragment size probability density shows only one distinct peak indicating a single fragmentation mechanism. Compared to previous related investigations of this flow, many orders of magnitude more fragments are measured per condition, resulting in a significant improvement in data fidelity. For this reason, this experimental dataset is likely to provide new opportunities for detailed validation of analytic and computational models of this flow.« less

Mass mortality of eastern box turtles with upper respiratory disease following atypical cold weather.

PubMed

Agha, Mickey; Price, Steven J; Nowakowski, A Justin; Augustine, Ben; Todd, Brian D

2017-04-20

Emerging infectious diseases cause population declines in many ectotherms, with outbreaks frequently punctuated by periods of mass mortality. It remains unclear, however, whether thermoregulation by ectotherms and variation in environmental temperature is associated with mortality risk and disease progression, especially in wild populations. Here, we examined environmental and body temperatures of free-ranging eastern box turtles Terrapene carolina during a mass die-off coincident with upper respiratory disease. We recorded deaths of 17 turtles that showed clinical signs of upper respiratory disease among 76 adult turtles encountered in Berea, Kentucky (USA), in 2014. Of the 17 mortalities, 11 occurred approximately 14 d after mean environmental temperature dropped 2.5 SD below the 3 mo mean. Partial genomic sequencing of the major capsid protein from 1 sick turtle identified a ranavirus isolate similar to frog virus 3. Turtles that lacked clinical signs of disease had significantly higher body temperatures (23°C) than sick turtles (21°C) during the mass mortality, but sick turtles that survived and recovered eventually warmed (measured by temperature loggers). Finally, there was a significant negative effect of daily environmental temperature deviation from the 3 mo mean on survival, suggesting that rapid decreases in environmental temperature were correlated with mortality. Our results point to a potential role for environmental temperature variation and body temperature in disease progression and mortality risk of eastern box turtles affected by upper respiratory disease. Given our findings, it is possible that colder or more variable environmental temperatures and an inability to effectively thermoregulate are associated with poorer disease outcomes in eastern box turtles.

Method and system for conserving power in a telecommunications network during emergency situations

DOEpatents

Conrad, Stephen H [Algodones, NM; O'Reilly, Gerard P [Manalapan, NJ

2011-10-11

Disclosed is a method and apparatus for conserving power in a telecommunications network during emergency situations. A permissible number list of emergency and/or priority numbers is stored in the telecommunications network. In the event of an emergency or power failure, input digits of a call to the telecommunications network are compared to the permissible number list. The call is processed in the telecommunications network and routed to its destination if the input digits match an entry in the permissible number list. The call is dropped without any further processing if the input digits do not match an entry in the permissible number list. Thus, power can be conserved in emergency situations by only allowing emergency and/or priority calls.

Success of digitizing the dept. of pathology: is it just to change the technical platform and go with the slide scanners or do we need a paradigm when it comes to informatics and workflow?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wintell, M.; Wehlander, E.; Samulesson, B.; Lindsköld, L.

2015-03-01

Can we create values and make success by creating digitized Pathology by only changing the technical platform within the department of pathology? The answer is definitely No. To be able to create values that will pay for the investment of going digital we need to go outside traditional ways of change-management in healthcare. Cooperation before buying the hardware is the key, going there by creating a unique negotiated information-model that spans the whole value chain within the care process in regard of pathology services. This is the core of creating great values throughout the whole healthcare sub process of cancer detection. Region Västra Götaland (VGR), has taken this path and will show that it's possible working/thinking outside the "box."

Energy savings opportunities in the global digital television transition

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

Park, Won Young; Gopal, Anand; Phadke, Amol

Globally, terrestrial television (TV) broadcasting is in the midst of a complete transition to digital signals. The last analog terrestrial broadcast is expected to be switched off in the early 2020s. This transition presents huge energy savings opportunities that have thus far been ignored. Digital TV switchovers have likely increased energy consumption as countries have completed transitions by providing digital TV converters to analog TV users, which increase energy consumption and extend the life of energy-inefficient analog TVs. We find that if analog TVs were retired at the time of a digital switchover and replaced with super-efficient flat-panel TVs, suchmore » as light-emitting diode (LED) backlit liquid crystal display (LCD) TVs, there is a combined electricity savings potential of 32 terawatt hours [TWh] per year in countries that have not yet completed their digital TV transition. In view of these findings as well as the dramatic drops of super-efficient TV prices and the unique early-retirement opportunity resulting from cessation of terrestrial analog broadcasts, TV-exchange programs would easily and substantially advance energy efficiency.« less

Energy savings opportunities in the global digital television transition

DOE PAGES

Park, Won Young; Gopal, Anand; Phadke, Amol

2016-12-20

Globally, terrestrial television (TV) broadcasting is in the midst of a complete transition to digital signals. The last analog terrestrial broadcast is expected to be switched off in the early 2020s. This transition presents huge energy savings opportunities that have thus far been ignored. Digital TV switchovers have likely increased energy consumption as countries have completed transitions by providing digital TV converters to analog TV users, which increase energy consumption and extend the life of energy-inefficient analog TVs. We find that if analog TVs were retired at the time of a digital switchover and replaced with super-efficient flat-panel TVs, suchmore » as light-emitting diode (LED) backlit liquid crystal display (LCD) TVs, there is a combined electricity savings potential of 32 terawatt hours [TWh] per year in countries that have not yet completed their digital TV transition. In view of these findings as well as the dramatic drops of super-efficient TV prices and the unique early-retirement opportunity resulting from cessation of terrestrial analog broadcasts, TV-exchange programs would easily and substantially advance energy efficiency.« less

Novel Sessile Drop Software for Quantitative Estimation of Slag Foaming in Carbon/Slag Interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khanna, Rita; Rahman, Mahfuzur; Leow, Richard; Sahajwalla, Veena

2007-08-01

Novel video-processing software has been developed for the sessile drop technique for a rapid and quantitative estimation of slag foaming. The data processing was carried out in two stages: the first stage involved the initial transformation of digital video/audio signals into a format compatible with computing software, and the second stage involved the computation of slag droplet volume and area of contact in a chosen video frame. Experimental results are presented on slag foaming from synthetic graphite/slag system at 1550 °C. This technique can be used for determining the extent and stability of foam as a function of time.

Dealing with Y2K

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Showstack, Randy

In 17 months, the ball drops in New York's Times Square to usher in a new millennium and new year ending in the digits 00. However, internal clocks in computers around the world may recognize the date as 1900 rather than 2000 if governments and businesses drop the ball in dealing with a simple computer design flaw that has ballooned into a complex management issue of correcting billions of lines of computer code worldwide.In a speech at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C, in July, U.S. President Bill Clinton proposed new legislation to make it easier for the private sector to collaborate in solving this problem.

[Corneal reepithelialization time with instillation of eye drops containing sodium hyaluronate and carboxymethylcellulose].

PubMed

Moreira, Luciane Bugman; Scalco, Rochelli; Hara, Silvia

2013-10-01

Evaluate the time of post-abrasion corneal re-epithelialization using commercially available eye drops, one of which containing 0.4% sodium hialuronate, and the other containing 1% carboxymethylcellulose, and compare them to the re-epithelialization without the drops. 24 rabbits were used, which had the mechanical abrasion of the central 8 mm of their corneas done. These animals were divided in 3 groups. The first one received the drops containing 0.4% of sodium hialuronate, the second one received the drops containing 1% of carboxymethylcellulose and the third group did not receive any drugs. The evaluations took place every 24 hours through the analysis of digital pictures under cobalt blue light and coloring of the corneas with 2% fluorescein. The pictures were analyzed with the software Autocad 2009®. The data was analyzed through the comparison of the total re-epithelialization time among the three groups The time of total re-epithelialization of the group using sodium hialuronate was on average 90 hours and the group using carboxymethylcellulose 105 hours, while the group using no drugs was 108 hours. There was a better performance of those groups using the drops and this difference can be proved statistically. The drops containing 0.4% of sodium hialuronate showed a higher efficiency rate compared to the drops containing 1% of carboxymethylcellulose, which was higher than the control group. The results of the present study show that the use of lubricants in the process of re-epithelialization are extremely valid and must be used frequently in ophthalmologic clinic.

The Third Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-03-01

Astronomy, MSC 4500, New Mexico State University, P.O. Box 30001, Las Cruces, NM 88003. 6 Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University... Mexico Institute of Technology, 801 Leroy Place, Socorro, NM 87801. 14 Department of Astronomy, University of Illinois, 1002 West Green Street, Urbana...NJ 08544. 49 FNRS Institut d’Astronomie et d’Astrophysique, Université Libre de Bruxelles, CP. 226, Boulevard du Triomphe, B-1050 Bruxelles, Belgium

Individual Differences in Planning-Related Activities for Simple Digital Circuit Design

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-01-01

Learning Technology Center Vanderbilt University 94-1 Box 45, Peabody Nashville, TN 37203 g. SPONSORING/ MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 10...they learned in class, rather than first constructing a deeper understanding of what role each component played in the problem-solving process. One of...Pezdek, & W. P. Banks (Eds.), Application of cognitive psychology: Problen, suiving, education and computing (pp. 123-137). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Chase

Decrease in corneal damage due to benzalkonium chloride by the addition of sericin into timolol maleate eye drops.

PubMed

Nagai, Noriaki; Ito, Yoshimasa; Okamoto, Norio; Shimomura, Yoshikazu

2013-01-01

We investigated the protective effects of sericin on corneal damage due to benzalkonium chloride (BAC) used as a preservative in commercially available timolol maleate eye drops using rat debrided corneal epithelium and a human cornea epithelial cell line (HCE-T). Corneal wounds were monitored using a fundus camera TRC-50X equipped with a digital camera; eye drops were instilled into the rat eyes five times a day after corneal epithelial abrasion. The viability of HCE-T cells was calculated by TetraColor One; and Escherichia coli (ATCC 8739) were used to measure antimicrobial activity. The reducing effects on transcorneal penetration and intraocular pressure (IOP) of the eye drops were determined using rabbits. The corneal wound healing rate and rate constants (kH) as well as cell viability were higher following treatment with 0.005% BAC solution containing 0.1% sericin than in the case of treatment with BAC solution alone; the antimicrobial activity was approximately the same for BAC solutions with and without sericin. In addition, the kH for rat eyes instilled with commercially available timolol maleate eye drops containing 0.1% sericin was significantly higher than that of eyes instilled with timolol maleate eye drops without sericin, and the addition of sericin did not affect the corneal penetration or IOP reducing effect of commercially available timolol maleate eye drops. A preservative system comprising BAC and sericin may provide effective therapy for glaucoma patients requiring long-term anti-glaucoma agents.

Breaking open the set top box

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Banks, David; Wiley, Anthony; Catania, Nicolas; Coles, Alastair N.; Smith, Duncan; Baynham, Simon; Deliot, Eric; Chidzey, Rod

1998-02-01

In this paper we describe the work being done at HP Labs Bristol in the area of home networks and gateways. This work is based on the idea of breaking open the set top box by physically separating the access network specific functions from the application specific functions. The access network specific functions reside in an access network gateway that can be shared by many end user devices. The first section of the paper present the philosophy behind this approach. The end user devices and the access network gateways must be interconnected by a high bandwidth network which can offer a bounded delay service for delay sensitive traffic. We are advocating the use of IEEE 1394 for this network, and the next section of the paper gives a brief introduction to this technology. We then describe a prototype digital video broadcasting satellite compliant gateway that we have built. This gateway could be used, for example, by a PC for receiving a data service or by a digital TV for receiving an MPEG-2 video service. A control architecture is the presented which uses a PC application to provide a web based user interface to the system. Finally, we provide details of our work on extending the reach of IEEE 1394 and its standardization status.

Amplifying Youth Voices in the Developing World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fotenos, Saori; Rohatgi, Deepti

2007-01-01

In the past few years, an explosion of user-generated content has flooded the Internet. The dramatic drop in the cost of digital video equipment and the increased accessibility of the Internet create a unique opportunity to allow youth to create meaningful content. Today youth around the world can leverage technological tools to give voice to…

The Digital Drag and Drop Pillbox

PubMed Central

Granger, Bradi B.; Locke, Susan C.; Bowers, Margaret; Sawyer, Tenita; Shang, Howard; Abernethy, Amy P.; Bloomfield, Richard A.; Gilliss, Catherine L.

2017-01-01

Objective: We present the design and feasibility testing for the “Digital Drag and Drop Pillbox” (D-3 Pillbox), a skill-based educational approach that engages patients and providers, measures performance, and generates reports of medication management skills. Methods: A single-cohort convenience sample of patients hospitalized with heart failure was taught pill management skills using a tablet-based D-3 Pillbox. Medication reconciliation was conducted, and aptitude, performance (% completed), accuracy (% correct), and feasibility were measured. Results: The mean age of the sample (n = 25) was 59 (36–89) years, 50% were women, 62% were black, 46% were uninsured, 46% had seventh-grade education or lower, and 31% scored very low for health literacy. However, most reported that the D-3 Pillbox was easy to read (78%), easy to repeat-demonstrate (78%), and comfortable to use (tablet weight) (75%). Accurate medication recognition was achieved by discharge in 98%, but only 25% reported having a “good understanding of my responsibilities.” Conclusions: The D-3 Pillbox is a feasible approach for teaching medication management skills and can be used across clinical settings to reinforce skills and medication list accuracy. PMID:28282304

Accelerating bacterial growth detection and antimicrobial susceptibility assessment in integrated picoliter droplet platform.

PubMed

Kaushik, Aniruddha M; Hsieh, Kuangwen; Chen, Liben; Shin, Dong Jin; Liao, Joseph C; Wang, Tza-Huei

2017-11-15

There remains an urgent need for rapid diagnostic methods that can evaluate antibiotic resistance for pathogenic bacteria in order to deliver targeted antibiotic treatments. Toward this end, we present a rapid and integrated single-cell biosensing platform, termed dropFAST, for bacterial growth detection and antimicrobial susceptibility assessment. DropFAST utilizes a rapid resazurin-based fluorescent growth assay coupled with stochastic confinement of bacteria in 20 pL droplets to detect signal from growing bacteria after 1h incubation, equivalent to 2-3 bacterial replications. Full integration of droplet generation, incubation, and detection into a single, uninterrupted stream also renders this platform uniquely suitable for in-line bacterial phenotypic growth assessment. To illustrate the concept of rapid digital antimicrobial susceptibility assessment, we employ the dropFAST platform to evaluate the antibacterial effect of gentamicin on E. coli growth. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dyspnoea, cyanosis and digital clubbing in a 28-year-old patient as a result of hepatopulmonary syndrome.

PubMed

Zieliński, Michał; Hartleb, Marek; Sitek, Piotr; Ziora, Dariusz

2017-01-01

This paper presents a case of a young patient with cyanosis and digital clubbing, until then an active, sporty person. He sought medical assistance due to the growing dyspnoea and the drop of effort tolerance. Initially the diagnostic process focused on the confirmation of the suspicion of pulmonary fibrosis or another interstitial lung disease as causes of the respiratory failure. Due to the atypical presentation of the symptoms, reaching the final diagnosis of digestive system disease with lung involvement required a more thorough multifaceted diagnostics of a number of systems and organs.

Effects of eustatic sea-level change, ocean dynamics, and nutrient utilization on atmospheric pCO2 and seawater composition over the last 130 000 years: a model study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wallmann, K.; Schneider, B.; Sarnthein, M.

2016-02-01

We have developed and employed an Earth system model to explore the forcings of atmospheric pCO2 change and the chemical and isotopic evolution of seawater over the last glacial cycle. Concentrations of dissolved phosphorus (DP), reactive nitrogen, molecular oxygen, dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), total alkalinity (TA), 13C-DIC, and 14C-DIC were calculated for 24 ocean boxes. The bi-directional water fluxes between these model boxes were derived from a 3-D circulation field of the modern ocean (Opa 8.2, NEMO) and tuned such that tracer distributions calculated by the box model were consistent with observational data from the modern ocean. To model the last 130 kyr, we employed records of past changes in sea-level, ocean circulation, and dust deposition. According to the model, about half of the glacial pCO2 drawdown may be attributed to marine regressions. The glacial sea-level low-stands implied steepened ocean margins, a reduced burial of particulate organic carbon, phosphorus, and neritic carbonate at the margin seafloor, a decline in benthic denitrification, and enhanced weathering of emerged shelf sediments. In turn, low-stands led to a distinct rise in the standing stocks of DIC, TA, and nutrients in the global ocean, promoted the glacial sequestration of atmospheric CO2 in the ocean, and added 13C- and 14C-depleted DIC to the ocean as recorded in benthic foraminifera signals. The other half of the glacial drop in pCO2 was linked to inferred shoaling of Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and more efficient utilization of nutrients in the Southern Ocean. The diminished ventilation of deep water in the glacial Atlantic and Southern Ocean led to significant 14C depletions with respect to the atmosphere. According to our model, the deglacial rapid and stepwise rise in atmospheric pCO2 was induced by upwelling both in the Southern Ocean and subarctic North Pacific and promoted by a drop in nutrient utilization in the Southern Ocean. The deglacial sea-level rise led to a gradual decline in nutrient, DIC, and TA stocks, a slow change due to the large size and extended residence times of dissolved chemical species in the ocean. Thus, the rapid deglacial rise in pCO2 can be explained by fast changes in ocean dynamics and nutrient utilization whereas the gradual pCO2 rise over the Holocene may be linked to the slow drop in nutrient and TA stocks that continued to promote an ongoing CO2 transfer from the ocean into the atmosphere.

Optical sensors based on the NiPc-CoPc composite films deposited by drop casting and under the action of centrifugal force

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fatima, Noshin; Ahmed, Muhammad M.; Karimov, Khasan S.; Ahmad, Zubair; Fariq Muhammad, Fahmi

2017-06-01

In this study, solution processed composite films of nickel phthalocyanine (NiPc) and cobalt phthalocyanine (CoPc) are deposited by drop casting and under centrifugal force. The films are deposited on surface-type inter-digitated silver electrodes on ceramic alumina substrates. The effects of illumination on the impedance and capacitance of the NiPc-CoPc composite samples are investigated. The samples deposited under centrifugal force show better conductivity than the samples deposited by drop casting technique. In terms of impedance and capacitance sensitivities the samples fabricated under centrifugal force are more sensitive than the drop casting samples. The values of impedance sensitivity ({S}z) are equal to (-1.83) {{M}}{{Ω }}\\cdot {{cm}}2/{mW} and (-5.365){{M}}{{Ω }}\\cdot {{cm}}2/{mW} for the samples fabricated using drop casting and under centrifugal force, respectively. Similarly, the values of capacitance sensitivity ({S}{{c}}) are equal to 0.083 {pF}\\cdot {{cm}}2/{mW} and 0.185 {pF}\\cdot {{cm}}2/{mW} for the samples fabricated by drop casting and under centrifugal force. The films deposited using the different procedures could potentially be viable for different operational modes (i.e., conductive or capacitive) of the optical sensors. Both experimental and simulated results are discussed. Project supported by the Center for Advanced Materials (CAM), Qatar University, Qatar.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) Contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. NASA and contractor personnel who conducted the DIME activity with the students. Shown (L-R) are: Daniel Dietrich (NASA) mentor for Sycamore High School team), Carol Hodanbosi (National Center for Microgravity Research; DIME staff), Jose Carrion (GRC Akima, drop tower technician), Dennis Stocker (NASA; DIME staff), Richard DeLombard (NASA; DIME staff), Sandi Thompson (NSMR sabbatical teacher; DIME staff), Peter Sunderland (NCMR, mentor for COSI Academy student team), Adam Malcolm (NASA co-op student; DIME staff). This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Experimental investigation of MHD pressure losses in a mock-up of a liquid metal blanket

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mistrangelo, C.; Bühler, L.; Brinkmann, H.-J.

2018-03-01

Experiments have been performed to investigate the influence of a magnetic field on liquid metal flows in a scaled mock-up of a helium cooled lead lithium (HCLL) blanket. During the experiments pressure differences between points on the mock-up have been recorded for various values of flow rate and magnitude of the imposed magnetic field. The main contributions to the total pressure drop in the test-section have been identified as a function of characteristic flow parameters. For sufficiently strong magnetic fields the non-dimensional pressure losses are practically independent on the flow rate, namely inertia forces become negligible. Previous experiments on MHD flows in a simplified test-section for a HCLL blanket showed that the main contributions to the total pressure drop in a blanket module originate from the flow in the distributing and collecting manifolds. The new experiments confirm that the largest pressure drops occur along manifolds and near the first wall of the blanket module, where the liquid metal passes through small openings in the stiffening plates separating two breeder units. Moreover, the experimental data shows that with the present manifold design the flow does not distribute homogeneously among the 8 stacked boxes that form the breeding zone.

The effect of box preparation on the strength of glass fiber-reinforced composite inlay-retained fixed partial dentures.

PubMed

Ozcan, Mutlu; Breuklander, Marijn H; Vallittu, Pekka K

2005-04-01

Nonstandardized box dimensions for inlay-retained fixed partial dentures (FPDs) may result in uneven distribution of the forces on the connector region of such restorations. The objective of this in vitro study was to evaluate the effect of box dimensions on the initial and final failure strength of inlay-retained fiber-reinforced composite (FRC) FPDs. Twenty-one inlay-retained FPDs were prepared using FRC (everStick) frameworks with unidirectional fiber reinforcement between mandibular first premolars and first molars. Boxes were prepared using conventional inlay burs (Cerinlay), and small and large ultrasonic tips (SONICSYS approx). Box dimensions were measured after preparation with a digital micrometer. All restorations were subjected to thermal cycling (6000 cycles, 5 degrees C-55 degrees C). Fracture testing was performed in a universal testing machine (1 mm/min). Acoustic emission signals were monitored during loading of the specimens. Initial and final fracture strength values (2-way ANOVA, Bonferroni post hoc tests, alpha =.05) and failure types (Fisher exact test) were statistically compared for each group. Significant differences (P =.0146 and P =.0086) were observed between the groups in the dimensions of the boxes prepared using conventional burs buccolingually (2.8-3.0 mm in molars, 3.1-4.3 mm in premolars) and the small size (2.5-2.9, 2.9-3.8 mm) or large size (2.6-3.8, 3.2-4.9 mm) ultrasonic tips for the premolars and the molars, respectively. No significant differences were found at the initial and final failures between the conventionally prepared group (842 +/- 267 N, 1161 +/- 428 N) and those prepared with either small (1088 +/- 381 N, 1320 +/- 380 N) or large ultrasonic tips (1070 +/- 280 N, 1557 +/- 321 N), respectively. The failure analysis demonstrated no significant difference in failure types but predominant delamination of the veneering resin (85%) in all experimental groups. According to acoustic emission tests, a higher energy level was required for final failure of the FRC FPDs with boxes finished using small ultrasonic tips. Standardized box dimensions showed no significant effect on fracture strength at either initial or final failure of the fiber-reinforced FPDs. The FRC FPDs with boxes refined with small ultrasonic burs required a greater energy level before failure. The type of failure observed after the fracture tests was primarily delamination of the veneering resin.

Linearization of digital derived rate algorithm for use in linear stability analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Graham, R. E.; Porada, T. W.

1985-01-01

The digital derived rate (DDR) algorithm is used to calculate the rate of rotation of the Centaur upper-stage rocket. The DDR is highly nonlinear algorithm, and classical linear stability analysis of the spacecraft cannot be performed without linearization. The performance of this rate algorithm is characterized by a gain and phase curve that drop off at the same frequency. This characteristic is desirable for many applications. A linearization technique for the DDR algorithm is investigated. The linearization method is described. Examples of the results of the linearization technique are illustrated, and the effects of linearization are described. A linear digital filter may be used as a substitute for performing classical linear stability analyses, while the DDR itself may be used in time response analysis.

Digital video timing analyzer for the evaluation of PC-based real-time simulation systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, Shawn R.; Crosby, Jay L.; Terry, John E., Jr.

2009-05-01

Due to the rapid acceleration in technology and the drop in costs, the use of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) PC-based hardware and software components for digital and hardware-in-the-loop (HWIL) simulations has increased. However, the increase in PC-based components creates new challenges for HWIL test facilities such as cost-effective hardware and software selection, system configuration and integration, performance testing, and simulation verification/validation. This paper will discuss how the Digital Video Timing Analyzer (DiViTA) installed in the Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center (AMRDEC) provides quantitative characterization data for PC-based real-time scene generation systems. An overview of the DiViTA is provided followed by details on measurement techniques, applications, and real-world examples of system benefits.

Physiological profile of a professional boxer preparing for Title Bout: A case study.

PubMed

Halperin, Israel; Hughes, Steven; Chapman, Dale W

2016-10-01

This study aimed to (1) profile a professional boxer (23 years and 80 kg) with boxing-specific, muscle function, aerobic capacity and body composition tests, and (2) quantify how these measures varied during an 8-week preparation phase leading to, and post a state-Title Bout fought in the 76.2-kg class. A series of boxing-specific and muscle function tests were completed on 11 occasions: 9 prior and twice after the bout, each separated by approximately 2 weeks. The boxing test included 36 maximal punches (9 of each: lead and rear straights, lead and rear hooks) to a punching integrator measuring forces and velocity. Muscle function tests included countermovement jump, drop-jumps, isometric mid-thigh pull and isometric bench-press. Body composition was assessed using skin-fold measurements on three occasions and one dual energy X-ray absorptiometry scan. Aerobic capacity was assessed using 2 VO2 max tests. Leading up to the bout, performance decreased in isometric mid-thigh pull (8%), isometric bench-press (5%), countermovement jump (15%) and impact forces in 3 of 4 punches (4%-7%). Whereas measures of dynamic and isometric muscle function remained depressed or unchanged post competition, punching forces (6%-15%) and aerobic power (6%) increased. Data suggest the athlete may have super-compensated following rest as fatigue dissipated and further adaptation occurred.

Technical Facilities Management, Loan Pool, and Calibration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Jacob

2011-01-01

My work at JPL for the SURF program began on June 11, 2012 with the Technical Facilities Management group (TFM). As well as TFM, I worked with Loan Pool and Metrology to help them out with various tasks. Unlike a lot of other interns, I did not have a specific project rather many different tasks to be completed over the course of the 10 weeks.The first task to be completed was to sort through old certification reports in 6 different boxes to locate reports that needed to be archived into a digital database. There were no reports within these boxes that needed to be archived but rather were to be shredded. The reports went back to the early 1980's and up to the early 2000's. I was looking for reports dated from 2002 to 2012

Automatic forensic face recognition from digital images.

PubMed

Peacock, C; Goode, A; Brett, A

2004-01-01

Digital image evidence is now widely available from criminal investigations and surveillance operations, often captured by security and surveillance CCTV. This has resulted in a growing demand from law enforcement agencies for automatic person-recognition based on image data. In forensic science, a fundamental requirement for such automatic face recognition is to evaluate the weight that can justifiably be attached to this recognition evidence in a scientific framework. This paper describes a pilot study carried out by the Forensic Science Service (UK) which explores the use of digital facial images in forensic investigation. For the purpose of the experiment a specific software package was chosen (Image Metrics Optasia). The paper does not describe the techniques used by the software to reach its decision of probabilistic matches to facial images, but accepts the output of the software as though it were a 'black box'. In this way, the paper lays a foundation for how face recognition systems can be compared in a forensic framework. The aim of the paper is to explore how reliably and under what conditions digital facial images can be presented in evidence.

Compton suppression and event triggering in a commercial data acquisition system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tabor, Samuel; Caussyn, D. D.; Tripathi, Vandana; Vonmoss, J.; Liddick, S. N.

2012-10-01

A number of groups are starting to use flash digitizer systems to directly convert the preamplifier signals of high-resolution Ge detectors to a stream of digital data. Some digitizers are also equipped with software constant fraction discriminator algorithms capable of operating on the resulting digital data stream to provide timing information. Because of the dropping cost per channel of these systems, it should now be possible to also connect outputs of the Bismuth Germanate (BGO) scintillators used for Compton suppression to other digitizer inputs so that BGO logic signals can also be available in the same system. This provides the possibility to perform all the Compton suppression and multiplicity trigger logic within the digital system, thus eliminating the need for separate timing filter amplifiers (TFA), constant fraction discriminators (CFD), logic units, and lots of cables. This talk will describe the performance of such a system based on Pixie16 modules from XIA LLC with custom field programmable gate array (FPGA) programming for an array of Compton suppressed single Ge crystal and 4-crystal ``Clover'' detector array along with optional particle detectors. Initial tests of the system have produced results comparable with the current traditional system of individual electronics and peak sensing analog to digital converters. The advantages of the all digital system will be discussed.

Method and apparatus for measuring solar radiation in a vegetative canopy

DOEpatents

Gutschick, V.P.; Barron, M.H.; Waechter, D.A.; Wolf, M.A.

1985-04-30

An apparatus and method for measuring solar radiation received in a vegetative canopy. A multiplicity of sensors selectively generates electrical signals in response to impinging photosynthetically active radiation in sunlight. Each sensor is attached to a plant within the canopy and is electrically connected to a separate port in a junction box having a multiplicity of ports. Each port is connected to an operational amplifier. Each amplifier amplifies the signals generated by the sensors. Each amplifier is connected to an analog-to-digital convertor which digitizes each signal. A computer is connected to the convertors and accumulates and stores solar radiation data. A data output device such as a printer is connected to the computer and displays the data.

Method and apparatus for measuring solar radiation in a vegetative canopy

DOEpatents

Gutschick, Vincent P.; Barron, Michael H.; Waechter, David A.; Wolf, Michael A.

1987-01-01

An apparatus and method for measuring solar radiation received in a vegetative canopy. A multiplicity of sensors selectively generates electrical signals in response to impinging photosynthetically active radiation in sunlight. Each sensor is attached to a plant within the canopy and is electrically connected to a separate port in a junction box having a multiplicity of ports. Each port is connected to an operational amplifier. Each amplifier amplifies the signals generated by the sensors. Each amplifier is connected to an analog-to-digital convertor which digitizes each signal. A computer is connected to the convertors and accumulates and stores solar radiation data. A data output device such as a printer is connected to the computer and displays the data.

FORGE Milford Digitized Geophysical Logs from Acord 1

DOE Data Explorer

Jones, Clay G.; Moore, Joseph N.

2016-03-31

This submission includes digitalized versions of the following: McCulloch Geothermal Corp Acord 1-26 Cover Letter McCulloch Geothermal Corp Acord 1-26 Drilling Plan McCulloch Geothermal Corp Acord 1-26 Bond Documents Division of Water Rights Permission to Drill Drillers Log Geothermal Data (Mud) Log Compensated Densilog - Neutron Log Dual Induction Focused Log BHC Acoustilog Differential Temperature Log Dual Induction Focused Log Gamma Ray Neutron Log Temperature Log Caliper Temperature Log (Run 3) Densilog Gamma Ray Neutron Log Temperature Log (Run 4) Compensated Densilog Sample Log (Page 1 of 2) Report of Well Driller Stratigraphic Report (J.E. Welsh) Photographs and Negatives of Acord 1-26 Well Site (7) Petrography Report (M.J. Sweeney) Cuttings Samples (21 Boxes at Utah Core Research Center)

[Effects of shadow boxing training on exercise endurance and quality of life of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease].

PubMed

Gu, Gang; Zhou, Yu-min; Wang, Da-li; Chen, Lian; Zhong, Nan-shan; Ran, Pi-xin

2012-04-10

To evaluate the effects of shadow boxing training on the exercise endurance and quality of life of Chinese patients with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). From May 2010 to March 2011, a total of 70 COPD patients in stable phases were recruited from Liwan, Yuexiu and Haizhu districts of Guangzhou. There were 35 patients in the shadow boxing exercise group and 35 patients in the control group. And they were matched by gender and age. The patients in the shadow boxing group exercised for 3 months while those in the control group received the conventional out-hospital management only. Their demographic, medical history, smoking status, medicinal use, spirometric data, clinical COPD questionnaire (CCQ) scores, 6-minute walking distance and Borg scores were collected before and after trial. A total of 63 COPD patients (33 in shadow boxing group vs. 30 in control group) completed the study. There was an average dropout rate of 5.7% (2/35) in shadow boxing group and 14.3% (5/35) in control group. No differences existed between two groups in age (67 ± 8 vs 69 ± 9 yr), male proportion (84.8% vs 86.7%), body mass index (22.8 ± 2.6 vs 22.7 ± 3.0), usage proportion of medicine (42.4% vs 33.3%), duration of disease (4.0 ± 7.5 vs 5.5 ± 7.3), percentage of smokers (78.8% vs 80.0%), 6-minute walking distance (447 ± 94 vs 414 ± 100), CCQ total score (15.0 ± 9.4 vs 14.1 ± 8.8), CCQ symptom score (9.2 ± 5.6 vs 8.3 ± 5.0) and activity score (5.8 ± 4.5 vs 5.8 ± 4.4) at baseline (all P > 0.05). At the end of study, the 6-minute walking distance of patients had statistical differences between two groups (P < 0.01). The shadow boxing group increased by (51 ± 55) m while the control dropped by (19 ± 58) m. The total score, symptom score and activity score of clinical COPD questionnaire had statistical differences between two groups. They decreased significantly in the shadow boxing group as compared with the baseline data while there was no significant change in the control group. No statistical differences existed between two groups in the changes of forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV(1)), FEV(1)% pred, Borg score and dyspnea scales. Capable of improving the exercise endurance and life quality of COPD patients, shadow boxing exercise may become one of effective rehabilitation programs for COPD patients in stable phases in communities.

Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) contest

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. NASA and contractor personnel who conducted the DIME activity with the students. Shown (L-R) are: Eric Baumann (NASA, 2.2-second Drop Tower Facility manager), Daniel Dietrich (NASA) mentor for Sycamore High School team), Carol Hodanbosi (National Center for Microgravity Research; DIME staff), Richard DeLombard (NASA; DIME staff), Jose Carrion (GRC Akima, drop tower technician), Dennis Stocker (NASA; DIME staff), Peter Sunderland (NCMR, mentor for COSI Academy student team), Sandi Thompson (NSMR sabbatical teacher; DIME staff), Dan Woodard (MASA Microgravity Outreach Program Manager), Adam Malcolm (NASA co-op student; DIME staff), Carla Rosenberg (NCMR; DIME staff), and Twila Schneider (Infinity Technology; NASA Microgravity Research program contractor). This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

OpenDrop: An Integrated Do-It-Yourself Platform for Personal Use of Biochips

PubMed Central

Alistar, Mirela; Gaudenz, Urs

2017-01-01

Biochips, or digital labs-on-chip, are developed with the purpose of being used by laboratory technicians or biologists in laboratories or clinics. In this article, we expand this vision with the goal of enabling everyone, regardless of their expertise, to use biochips for their own personal purposes. We developed OpenDrop, an integrated electromicrofluidic platform that allows users to develop and program their own bio-applications. We address the main challenges that users may encounter: accessibility, bio-protocol design and interaction with microfluidics. OpenDrop consists of a do-it-yourself biochip, an automated software tool with visual interface and a detailed technique for at-home operations of microfluidics. We report on two years of use of OpenDrop, released as an open-source platform. Our platform attracted a highly diverse user base with participants originating from maker communities, academia and industry. Our findings show that 47% of attempts to replicate OpenDrop were successful, the main challenge remaining the assembly of the device. In terms of usability, the users managed to operate their platforms at home and are working on designing their own bio-applications. Our work provides a step towards a future in which everyone will be able to create microfluidic devices for their personal applications, thereby democratizing parts of health care. PMID:28952524

Database-Aided Diagnosis in Digital Mammography

DTIC Science & Technology

2001-07-01

Assurance By my signature as sponsor on the research application, I certify that the student is knowledgeable about the regulations and policies governing...responsibility during my absence and I will advise the IRB of such arrangements. Faculty Sponsor (if PI is a student , resident, or fellow) Date D...approval m. Students n. Terminally ill 3. If the research involves any of the following, check the appropriate boxes D D D TT D n □ D a

Microprocessor Technology for Managers.

DTIC Science & Technology

1976-05-01

HOURS IS THE APPLICATION OF MICROPROCESSORS TO VIDEO GAMES SUCH AS PING PONG, HANDBALL 1 SPACE WAR GAMES , AND COWBOYS AND INDIANS. MANY MANUFACTURERS OF...MICR OPROCESSOR COMPANIES AEG—T ELEFUNKEN~ 6 FRANKFURT 70, AEG-HOCHHAUS 1 GERMANY . ADAPTIVE SYSTEMS1 P.O . BOX 1481, POMPANO BEACH , FL 33061. -(305...KAWASAKI — CHI , JAPAN . WESTERN DIGITAL , 19242 RED HILL AVE. 1 NEWPORT BEACH I CA 92663. {714) 557-3550. ZILOG, 170 STATE ST., LOS ALTOS 1 CA 94022. {415

Coplanar electrowetting-induced stirring as a tool to manipulate biological samples in lubricated digital microfluidics. Impact of ambient phase on drop internal flow patterna)

PubMed Central

Davoust, Laurent; Fouillet, Yves; Malk, Rachid; Theisen, Johannes

2013-01-01

Oscillating electrowetting on dielectrics (EWOD) with coplanar electrodes is investigated in this paper as a way to provide efficient stirring within a drop with biological content. A supporting model inspired from Ko et al. [Appl. Phys. Lett. 94, 194102 (2009)] is proposed allowing to interpret oscillating EWOD-induced drop internal flow as the result of a current streaming along the drop surface deformed by capillary waves. Current streaming behaves essentially as a surface flow generator and the momentum it sustains within the (viscous) drop is even more significant as the surface to volume ratio is small. With the circular electrode pair considered in this paper, oscillating EWOD sustains toroidal vortical flows when the experiments are conducted with aqueous drops in air as ambient phase. But when oil is used as ambient phase, it is demonstrated that the presence of an electrode gap is responsible for a change in drop shape: a pinch-off at the electrode gap yields a peanut-shaped drop and a symmetry break-up of the EWOD-induced flow pattern. Viscosity of oil is also responsible for promoting an efficient damping of the capillary waves which populate the surface of the actuated drop. As a result, the capillary network switches from one standing wave to two superimposed traveling waves of different mechanical energy, provided that actuation frequency is large enough, for instance, as large as the one commonly used in electrowetting applications (f ∼ 500 Hz and beyond). Special emphasis is put on stirring of biological samples. As a typical application, it is demonstrated how beads or cell clusters can be focused under flow either at mid-height of the drop or near the wetting plane, depending on how the nature of the capillary waves is (standing or traveling), and therefore, depending on the actuation frequency (150 Hz–1 KHz). PMID:24404038

Development of a constant surface pressure penetration langmuir balance based on axisymmetric drop shape analysis.

PubMed

Wege, H A; Holgado-Terriza, J A; Cabrerizo-Vílchez, M A

2002-05-15

A new constant pressure pendant-drop penetration surface balance has been developed combining a pendant-drop surface balance, a rapid-subphase-exchange technique, and a fuzzy logic control algorithm. Beside the determination of insoluble monolayer compression-expansion isotherms, it allows performance of noninvasive kinetic studies of the adsorption of surfactants added to the new subphase onto the free surface and of the adsorption/penetration/reaction of the former onto/into/with surface layers, respectively. The interfacial pressure pi is a fundamental parameter in these studies: by working at constant pi one controls the height of the energy barrier to adsorption/penetration and can select different regimes and steps of the adsorption/penetration process. In our device a solution drop is formed at the tip of a coaxial double capillary, connected to a double microinjector. Drop profiles are extracted from digital drop micrographs and fitted to the equation of capillarity, yielding pi, the drop volume V, and the interfacial area A. pi is varied changing V (and hence A) with the microinjector. Control is based on a case-adaptable modulated fuzzy-logic PID algorithm able to maintain constant pi (or A) under a wide range of experimental conditions. The drop subphase liquid can be exchanged quantitatively by the coaxial capillaries. The adsorption/penetration/reaction kinetics at constant pi are then studied monitoring A(t), i.e., determining the relative area change necessary at each instant to compensate the pressure variation due to the interaction of the surfactant in the subsurface with the surface layer. A fully Windows-integrated program manages the whole setup. Examples of experimental protein adsorption and monolayer penetration kinetics are presented.

Portfolio: a prototype workstation for development and evaluation of tools for analysis and management of digital portal images.

PubMed

Boxwala, A A; Chaney, E L; Fritsch, D S; Friedman, C P; Rosenman, J G

1998-09-01

The purpose of this investigation was to design and implement a prototype physician workstation, called PortFolio, as a platform for developing and evaluating, by means of controlled observer studies, user interfaces and interactive tools for analyzing and managing digital portal images. The first observer study was designed to measure physician acceptance of workstation technology, as an alternative to a view box, for inspection and analysis of portal images for detection of treatment setup errors. The observer study was conducted in a controlled experimental setting to evaluate physician acceptance of the prototype workstation technology exemplified by PortFolio. PortFolio incorporates a windows user interface, a compact kit of carefully selected image analysis tools, and an object-oriented data base infrastructure. The kit evaluated in the observer study included tools for contrast enhancement, registration, and multimodal image visualization. Acceptance was measured in the context of performing portal image analysis in a structured protocol designed to simulate clinical practice. The acceptability and usage patterns were measured from semistructured questionnaires and logs of user interactions. Radiation oncologists, the subjects for this study, perceived the tools in PortFolio to be acceptable clinical aids. Concerns were expressed regarding user efficiency, particularly with respect to the image registration tools. The results of our observer study indicate that workstation technology is acceptable to radiation oncologists as an alternative to a view box for clinical detection of setup errors from digital portal images. Improvements in implementation, including more tools and a greater degree of automation in the image analysis tasks, are needed to make PortFolio more clinically practical.

A Study of the Effects of Fieldbus Network Induced Delays on Control Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mainoo, Joseph

2012-01-01

Fieldbus networks are all-digital, two-way, multi-drop communication systems that are used to connect field devices such as sensors and actuators, and controllers. These fieldbus network systems are also called networked control systems (NCS). Although, there are different varieties of fieldbus networks such as Foundation Field Bus, DeviceNet, and…

Dropout Prevention: An EPI Research Brief

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnston, J. Howard

2010-01-01

Tons of paper and thousands of gallons of ink, not to mention countless digits and bytes, have been devoted to the study of dropouts--much of it focused on the causes of dropping out of school and the complex factors that contribute to that decision. Despite the intensity of this investigation, little has changed, except that the consequences of…

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-05-02

John Henson (grade 12) and Suzi Bryce (grade 10) conducted the drop from DuPont Manual High School in Louisville, Kentucky, conduct a drop with NASA's Microgravity Demonstrator. A camera and a TV/VCR unit let students play back recordings of how different physical devices behave differently during freefall as compared to 1-g. The activity was part of the education outreach segment of the Pan-Pacific Basin Workshop on Microgravity Sciences held in Pasadena, California. The event originated at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. The DuPont Manual students patched in to the event through the distance learning lab at the Louisville Science Center. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here, students from Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, help a NASA technician prepare their experiment. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Students from Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio (girls), and the COSI Academy, Columbus, Ohio (boys), participated. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

The E-music box: an empirical method for exploring the universal capacity for musical production and for social interaction through music

PubMed Central

Novembre, Giacomo; Varlet, Manuel; Muawiyath, Shujau; Stevens, Catherine J.; Keller, Peter E.

2015-01-01

Humans are assumed to have a natural—universal—predisposition for making music and for musical interaction. Research in this domain is, however, typically conducted with musically trained individuals, and therefore confounded with expertise. Here, we present a rediscovered and updated invention—the E-music box—that we establish as an empirical method to investigate musical production and interaction in everyone. The E-music box transforms rotatory cyclical movements into pre-programmable digital musical output, with tempo varying according to rotation speed. The user’s movements are coded as continuous oscillatory data, which can be analysed using linear or nonlinear analytical tools. We conducted a proof-of-principle experiment to demonstrate that, using this method, pairs of non-musically trained individuals can interact according to conventional musical practices (leader/follower roles and lower-pitch dominance). The results suggest that the E-music box brings ‘active’ and ‘interactive’ musical capacities within everyone’s reach. We discuss the potential of this method for exploring the universal predisposition for music making and interaction in developmental and cross-cultural contexts, and for neurologic musical therapy and rehabilitation. PMID:26715993

Novel Authentication of Monitoring Data Through the use of Secret and Public Cryptographic Keys

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

Benz, Jacob M.; Tolk, Keith; Tanner, Jennifer E.

The Office of Nuclear Verification (ONV) is supporting the development of a piece of equipment to provide data authentication and protection for a suite of monitoring sensors as part of a larger effort to create an arms control technology toolkit. This device, currently called the Red Box, leverages the strengths of both secret and public cryptographic keys to authenticate, digitally sign, and pass along monitoring data to allow for host review, and redaction if necessary, without the loss of confidence in the authenticity of the data by the monitoring party. The design of the Red Box will allow for themore » addition and removal of monitoring equipment and can also verify that the data was collected by authentic monitoring equipment prior to signing the data and sending it to the host and for review. The host will then forward the data to the monitor for review and inspection. This paper will highlight the progress to date of the Red Box development, and will explain the novel method of leveraging both symmetric and asymmetric (secret and public key) cryptography to authenticate data within a warhead monitoring regime.« less

Late Holocene sedimentation in coastal areas of the northwestern Ross Sea (Antarctica)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Colizza, Ester; Finocchiaro, Furio; Kuhn, Gerhard; Langone, Leonardo; Melis, Romana; Mezgec, Karin; Severi, Mirko; Traversi, Rita; Udisti, Roberto; Stenni, Barbara; Braida, Martina

2013-04-01

Sediment cores and box cores collected in two coastal areas of the northwestern Ross Sea (Antarctica) highlight the possibility of studying the Late Holocene period in detail. In this work we propose a study on two box cores and two gravity cores collected in the Cape Hallett and Wood Bay areas during the 2005 PNRA oceanographic cruise. The two sites are feed by Eastern Antarctic Ice Shelf (EAIS) and previous studies have highlighted a complex postglacial sedimentary sequence, also influenced by local morphology. This study is performed within the framework of the PNRA-ESF PolarCLIMATE HOLOCLIP (Holocene climate variability at high-southern latitudes: an integrated perspective) Project. The data set includes: magnetic susceptibility, X-ray analyses, 210Pb, 14C dating, diatoms and foraminifera assemblages, organic carbon, and grain-size analyses. Furthermore XRF core scanner analyses, colour analysis from digital images, and major, minor and trace element concentration analyses (ICP-AES) are performed. Data show that the box core and upper core sediments represent a very recent sedimentation in which it is possible to observe the parameter variability probably linked to climate variability/changes: these variation will be compared with isotopic record form ice cores collected form the same Antarctic sector.

Prevention as policy: how Thailand reduced STD and HIV transmission.

PubMed

Hanenberg, R; Rojanapithayakorn, W

1996-05-01

In 1989, in response to growing HIV seroprevalences among intravenous drug users and low-fee commercial sex workers in northern Chiang Mai, the Government of Thailand launched a massive expansion of its HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Program. The most ambitious, innovative aspect of this effort was the 100% Condom Program established in 1991 to enforce universal condom use in all commercial sex establishments. Every sex worker is presented with a box of 100 condoms or more when she reports for a regular sexually transmitted disease (STD) checkup at a government clinic. When health officials visit commercial sex establishments, they take along boxes of condoms. Strong pressure, often from the police, is placed on brothel owners who fail to support the campaign. By 1994, over 90% of commercial sex acts were protected by condoms and the number of men presenting to government clinics for STD treatment dropped by 90% from 1989 to 1995. Moreover, the number of commercial sex workers has declined by 25% since 1989. Models of the AIDS epidemic indicate that Thai health authorities should continue to focus on commercial sex for the control of HIV.

Automated Droplet Manipulation Using Closed-Loop Axisymmetric Drop Shape Analysis.

PubMed

Yu, Kyle; Yang, Jinlong; Zuo, Yi Y

2016-05-17

Droplet manipulation plays an important role in a wide range of scientific and industrial applications, such as synthesis of thin-film materials, control of interfacial reactions, and operation of digital microfluidics. Compared to micron-sized droplets, which are commonly considered as spherical beads, millimeter-sized droplets are generally deformable by gravity, thus introducing nonlinearity into control of droplet properties. Such a nonlinear drop shape effect is especially crucial for droplet manipulation, even for small droplets, at the presence of surfactants. In this paper, we have developed a novel closed-loop axisymmetric drop shape analysis (ADSA), integrated into a constrained drop surfactometer (CDS), for manipulating millimeter-sized droplets. The closed-loop ADSA generalizes applications of the traditional drop shape analysis from a surface tension measurement methodology to a sophisticated tool for manipulating droplets in real time. We have demonstrated the feasibility and advantages of the closed-loop ADSA in three applications, including control of drop volume by automatically compensating natural evaporation, precise control of surface area variations for high-fidelity biophysical simulations of natural pulmonary surfactant, and steady control of surface pressure for in situ Langmuir-Blodgett transfer from droplets. All these applications have demonstrated the accuracy, versatility, applicability, and automation of this new ADSA-based droplet manipulation technique. Combining with CDS, the closed-loop ADSA holds great promise for advancing droplet manipulation in a variety of material and surface science applications, such as thin-film fabrication, self-assembly, and biophysical study of pulmonary surfactant.

Using a high-speed movie camera to evaluate slice dropping in clinical image interpretation with stack mode viewers.

PubMed

Yakami, Masahiro; Yamamoto, Akira; Yanagisawa, Morio; Sekiguchi, Hiroyuki; Kubo, Takeshi; Togashi, Kaori

2013-06-01

The purpose of this study is to verify objectively the rate of slice omission during paging on picture archiving and communication system (PACS) viewers by recording the images shown on the computer displays of these viewers with a high-speed movie camera. This study was approved by the institutional review board. A sequential number from 1 to 250 was superimposed on each slice of a series of clinical Digital Imaging and Communication in Medicine (DICOM) data. The slices were displayed using several DICOM viewers, including in-house developed freeware and clinical PACS viewers. The freeware viewer and one of the clinical PACS viewers included functions to prevent slice dropping. The series was displayed in stack mode and paged in both automatic and manual paging modes. The display was recorded with a high-speed movie camera and played back at a slow speed to check whether slices were dropped. The paging speeds were also measured. With a paging speed faster than half the refresh rate of the display, some viewers dropped up to 52.4 % of the slices, while other well-designed viewers did not, if used with the correct settings. Slice dropping during paging was objectively confirmed using a high-speed movie camera. To prevent slice dropping, the viewer must be specially designed for the purpose and must be used with the correct settings, or the paging speed must be slower than half of the display refresh rate.

Exsanguinated blood volume estimation using fractal analysis of digital images.

PubMed

Sant, Sonia P; Fairgrieve, Scott I

2012-05-01

The estimation of bloodstain volume using fractal analysis of digital images of passive blood stains is presented. Binary digital photos of bloodstains of known volumes (ranging from 1 to 7 mL), dispersed in a defined area, were subjected to image analysis using FracLac V. 2.0 for ImageJ. The box-counting method was used to generate a fractal dimension for each trial. A positive correlation between the generated fractal number and the volume of blood was found (R(2) = 0.99). Regression equations were produced to estimate the volume of blood in blind trials. An error rate ranging from 78% for 1 mL to 7% for 6 mL demonstrated that as the volume increases so does the accuracy of the volume estimation. This method used in the preliminary study proved that bloodstain patterns may be deconstructed into mathematical parameters, thus removing the subjective element inherent in other methods of volume estimation. © 2012 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Unsupervised color image segmentation using a lattice algebra clustering technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Urcid, Gonzalo; Ritter, Gerhard X.

2011-08-01

In this paper we introduce a lattice algebra clustering technique for segmenting digital images in the Red-Green- Blue (RGB) color space. The proposed technique is a two step procedure. Given an input color image, the first step determines the finite set of its extreme pixel vectors within the color cube by means of the scaled min-W and max-M lattice auto-associative memory matrices, including the minimum and maximum vector bounds. In the second step, maximal rectangular boxes enclosing each extreme color pixel are found using the Chebychev distance between color pixels; afterwards, clustering is performed by assigning each image pixel to its corresponding maximal box. The two steps in our proposed method are completely unsupervised or autonomous. Illustrative examples are provided to demonstrate the color segmentation results including a brief numerical comparison with two other non-maximal variations of the same clustering technique.

Uses of DARPA Materials Sciences Technology in DoD Systems.

DTIC Science & Technology

1996-05-01

and Lasers NUMBER: University of Central Florida 4000 Central Florida Blvd. P.O. Box 162700 Orlando, FL 32816-2700 9. S PONSO RIN GMO NITO RING AGENCY...course of the program. These advances were communicated to the industry through seminars and workshops, individual plant and agency visits, videotapes on...1995) • P3 ISAR Radar Processor * Digital Signal Processor for OH-58D helicopter * Motorola building a GaAs IC plant for IRIDIUM 26 GALLIUM ARSENIDE

Alanna Conners and the Origins of Principled Data Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scargle, Jeffrey D.

2013-01-01

Alanna was one of the most important pioneers in the development of not just sophisticated algorithms for analyzing astronomical data but more importantly an overall viewpoint emphasizing the use of statistically sound principles in place of blind application of cook-book recipes, or black boxes. I will outline some of the threads of this viewpoint, emphasizing time series data, with a focus on the importance of these developments for the Age of Digital Astronomy that we are entering.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-25

The arnual conference for the Educator Resource Center Network (ERCN) Coordinators was held at Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field in Cleveland, Ohio. The conference included participants from NASA's Educator Resource Centers located throughout the country. The Microgravity Science Division at Glenn sponsored a Microgravity Day for all the conference participants. Twila Schneider of Infinity Technology, a NASA contractor, explains the basics of building a glovebox mockup from a copier paper box. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Summary of SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) Ocean Wave Data Archived at ERIM (Environmental Research Institute of Michigan).

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-05-01

transform (FFT) techniques achieve the required azi- muthal compression of the SAR Doppler history (Ausherman, 1980). Specially- designed digital...processors have also been designed for 3 -[RIM RADAR DIVISION real-time processing of SAR data aboard the aircraft for display or transmission to a ground...included a multi-sided box pattern designed to image the dominant waves from various directions. Figure 2 presents the results obtained as a function of

TV Audience Measurement with Big Data.

PubMed

Hill, Shawndra

2014-06-01

TV audience measurement involves estimating the number of viewers tuned into a TV show at any given time as well as their demographics. First introduced shortly after commercial television broadcasting began in the late 1940s, audience measurement allowed the business of television to flourish by offering networks a way to quantify the monetary value of TV audiences for advertisers, who pay for the estimated number of eyeballs watching during commercials. The first measurement techniques suffered from multiple limitations because reliable, large-scale data were costly to acquire. Yet despite these limitations, measurement standards remained largely unchanged for decades until devices such as cable boxes, video-on-demand boxes, and cell phones, as well as web apps, Internet browser clicks, web queries, and social media activity, resulted in an explosion of digitally available data. TV viewers now leave digital traces that can be used to track almost every aspect of their daily lives, allowing the potential for large-scale aggregation across data sources for individual users and groups and enabling the tracking of more people on more dimensions for more shows. Data are now more comprehensive, available in real time, and cheaper to acquire, enabling accurate and fine-grained TV audience measurement. In this article, I discuss the evolution of audience measurement and what the recent data explosion means for the TV industry and academic research.

Flat-top passband filter based on parallel-coupled double microring resonators in silicon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Qingzhong; Xiao, Xi; Li, Yuntao; Li, Zhiyong; Yu, Yude; Yu, Jinzhong

2009-08-01

Optical filters with box-like response were designed and realized based on parallel-coupled double microrings in silicon-on-insulator. The properties of this design are simulated, considering the impact of the center-to-center distance of two rings, and coupling efficiency. Flat-top passband in the drop channel of the fabricated device was demonstrated with a 1dB bandwidth of 0.82nm, a 1dB/10dB bandwidth ratio of 0.51, an out of band rejection ratio of 14.6dB, as well as a free spectrum range of 13.6nm.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. NASA and contractor personnel who conducted the DIME activity with the students. Shown (L-R) are: Eric Baumann (NASA, 2.2-second Drop Tower Facility manager), Daniel Dietrich (NASA) mentor for Sycamore High School team), Carol Hodanbosi (National Center for Microgravity Research; DIME staff), Richard DeLombard (NASA; DIME staff), Jose Carrion (GRC Akima, drop tower technician), Dennis Stocker (NASA; DIME staff), Peter Sunderland (NCMR, mentor for COSI Academy student team), Sandi Thompson (NSMR sabbatical teacher; DIME staff), Dan Woodard (MASA Microgravity Outreach Program Manager), Adam Malcolm (NASA co-op student; DIME staff), Carla Rosenberg (NCMR; DIME staff), and Twila Schneider (Infinity Technology; NASA Microgravity Research program contractor). This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Quest to Learn: Developing the School for Digital Kids

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salen, Katie; Torres, Robert; Wolozin, Loretta; Rufo-Tepper, Rebecca; Shapiro, Arana

2011-01-01

Quest to Learn, an innovative school for grades 6 to 12 in New York City, grew out of the idea that gaming and game design offer a promising new paradigm for curriculum and learning. The designers of Quest to Learn developed an approach to learning that draws from what games do best: drop kids into inquiry-based, complex problem spaces that are…

A Seven-Year Follow-Up of Intelligence Test Scores of Foster Grandparents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Troll, Lillian E.; And Others

1976-01-01

After seven years, a group (N=32) of originally nonemployed poverty-level older people (over 60) now employed as foster grandparents were retested with the WAIS. Three subtest scores showed stability and Digit Span showed a statistically significant drop. Neither age nor initial level of health or WAIS scores was related to test-score changes over…

Determination of Hydrodynamic Parameters on Two--Phase Flow Gas - Liquid in Pipes with Different Inclination Angles Using Image Processing Algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Montoya, Gustavo; Valecillos, María; Romero, Carlos; Gonzáles, Dosinda

2009-11-01

In the present research a digital image processing-based automated algorithm was developed in order to determine the phase's height, hold up, and statistical distribution of the drop size in a two-phase system water-air using pipes with 0 , 10 , and 90 of inclination. Digital images were acquired with a high speed camera (up to 4500fps), using an equipment that consist of a system with three acrylic pipes with diameters of 1.905, 3.175, and 4.445 cm. Each pipe is arranged in two sections of 8 m of length. Various flow patterns were visualized for different superficial velocities of water and air. Finally, using the image processing program designed in Matlab/Simulink^, the captured images were processed to establish the parameters previously mentioned. The image processing algorithm is based in the frequency domain analysis of the source pictures, which allows to find the phase as the edge between the water and air, through a Sobel filter that extracts the high frequency components of the image. The drop size was found using the calculation of the Feret diameter. Three flow patterns were observed: Annular, ST, and ST&MI.

The Digital Drag and Drop Pillbox: Design and Feasibility of a Skill-based Education Model to Improve Medication Management.

PubMed

Granger, Bradi B; Locke, Susan C; Bowers, Margaret; Sawyer, Tenita; Shang, Howard; Abernethy, Amy P; Bloomfield, Richard A; Gilliss, Catherine L

We present the design and feasibility testing for the "Digital Drag and Drop Pillbox" (D-3 Pillbox), a skill-based educational approach that engages patients and providers, measures performance, and generates reports of medication management skills. A single-cohort convenience sample of patients hospitalized with heart failure was taught pill management skills using a tablet-based D-3 Pillbox. Medication reconciliation was conducted, and aptitude, performance (% completed), accuracy (% correct), and feasibility were measured. The mean age of the sample (n = 25) was 59 (36-89) years, 50% were women, 62% were black, 46% were uninsured, 46% had seventh-grade education or lower, and 31% scored very low for health literacy. However, most reported that the D-3 Pillbox was easy to read (78%), easy to repeat-demonstrate (78%), and comfortable to use (tablet weight) (75%). Accurate medication recognition was achieved by discharge in 98%, but only 25% reported having a "good understanding of my responsibilities." The D-3 Pillbox is a feasible approach for teaching medication management skills and can be used across clinical settings to reinforce skills and medication list accuracy.

Digital Avionics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koelbl, Terry G.; Ponchak, Denise; Lamarche, Teresa

2002-01-01

The field of digital avionics experienced another year of important advances in civil aviation, military systems, and space applications. As a result of the events of 9/11/2001, NASA has pursued activities to apply its aerospace technologies toward improved aviation security. Both NASA Glenn Research Center and Langley Research Center have performed flight research demonstrations using advanced datalink concepts to transmit live pictures from inside a jetliner, and to downlink the contents of the plane's 'black box' recorder in real time. The U.S. Navy and General Electric demonstrated survivable engine control (SEC) algorithms during engine ground tests at the Weapons Survivability Laboratory at China Lake. The scientists at Boeing Satellite Systems advanced the field of stellar inertial technology with the development of a new method for positioning optical star trackers on satellites.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. NASA and contractor personnel who conducted the DIME activity with the students. Shown (L-R) are: Daniel Dietrich (NASA) mentor for Sycamore High School team), Carol Hodanbosi (National Center for Microgravity Research; DIME staff), Jose Carrion (GRC Akima, drop tower technician), Dennis Stocker (NASA; DIME staff), Richard DeLombard (NASA; DIME staff), Sandi Thompson (NSMR sabbatical teacher; DIME staff), Peter Sunderland (NCMR, mentor for COSI Academy student team), Adam Malcolm (NASA co-op student; DIME staff). This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Aerospace Communications Security Technologies Demonstrated

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Griner, James H.; Martzaklis, Konstantinos S.

2003-01-01

In light of the events of September 11, 2001, NASA senior management requested an investigation of technologies and concepts to enhance aviation security. The investigation was to focus on near-term technologies that could be demonstrated within 90 days and implemented in less than 2 years. In response to this request, an internal NASA Glenn Research Center Communications, Navigation, and Surveillance Aviation Security Tiger Team was assembled. The 2-year plan developed by the team included an investigation of multiple aviation security concepts, multiple aircraft platforms, and extensively leveraged datalink communications technologies. It incorporated industry partners from NASA's Graphical Weather-in-the-Cockpit research, which is within NASA's Aviation Safety Program. Two concepts from the plan were selected for demonstration: remote "black box," and cockpit/cabin surveillance. The remote "black box" concept involves real-time downlinking of aircraft parameters for remote monitoring and archiving of aircraft data, which would assure access to the data following the loss or inaccessibility of an aircraft. The cockpit/cabin surveillance concept involves remote audio and/or visual surveillance of cockpit and cabin activity, which would allow immediate response to any security breach and would serve as a possible deterrent to such breaches. The datalink selected for the demonstrations was VDL Mode 2 (VHF digital link), the first digital datalink for air-ground communications designed for aircraft use. VDL Mode 2 is beginning to be implemented through the deployment of ground stations and aircraft avionics installations, with the goal of being operational in 2 years. The first demonstration was performed December 3, 2001, onboard the LearJet 25 at Glenn. NASA worked with Honeywell, Inc., for the broadcast VDL Mode 2 datalink capability and with actual Boeing 757 aircraft data. This demonstration used a cockpitmounted camera for video surveillance and a coupling to the intercom system for audio surveillance. Audio, video, and "black box" data were simultaneously streamed to the ground, where they were displayed to a Glenn audience of senior management and aviation security team members.

A Digital Broadcast Item (DBI) enabling metadata repository for digital, interactive television (digiTV) feedback channel networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lugmayr, Artur R.; Mailaparampil, Anurag; Tico, Florina; Kalli, Seppo; Creutzburg, Reiner

2003-01-01

Digital television (digiTV) is an additional multimedia environment, where metadata is one key element for the description of arbitrary content. This implies adequate structures for content description, which is provided by XML metadata schemes (e.g. MPEG-7, MPEG-21). Content and metadata management is the task of a multimedia repository, from which digiTV clients - equipped with an Internet connection - can access rich additional multimedia types over an "All-HTTP" protocol layer. Within this research work, we focus on conceptual design issues of a metadata repository for the storage of metadata, accessible from the feedback channel of a local set-top box. Our concept describes the whole heterogeneous life-cycle chain of XML metadata from the service provider to the digiTV equipment, device independent representation of content, accessing and querying the metadata repository, management of metadata related to digiTV, and interconnection of basic system components (http front-end, relational database system, and servlet container). We present our conceptual test configuration of a metadata repository that is aimed at a real-world deployment, done within the scope of the future interaction (fiTV) project at the Digital Media Institute (DMI) Tampere (www.futureinteraction.tv).

An operations manual for the digital data system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Michael G.

1988-01-01

The Digital Data System (DDS) was designed to incorporate the analog-to-digital conversion process into the initial data acquisition stage and to store the data in a digital format. This conversion is done as part of the acquisition process. Consequently, the data are ready to be analyzed as soon as the test is completed. This capability permits the researcher to alter test parameters during the course of the experiment based on the information acquired in a prior portion of the test. The DDS is currently able to simultaneously acquire up to 10 channels of data. The purpose of this document is fourfold: (1) to describe the capabilities of the hardware in sufficient detail to allow the reader to determine whether the DDS is the optimum system for a particular experiment; (2) to present some of the more significant software developed to provide analyses within a short time of the completion of data acquisition; (3) to provide the reader with sample runs of major software routines to demonstrate their convenience and simple usage; and (4) a portion of the document is used to describe software which uses an FFT-box to provide a means of comparison against which the DDS can be checked.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Pictured are students from COSI Academy, Columbus, Ohio and their teacher. The other team was from Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. This is the interior of the Sycamore High School (Cincinnati, Ohio) students' experiment to observe the flame spreading on a 100 percent cotton T-shirt under low-g. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Study of cryogenic propellant systems for loading the space shuttle. Part 2: Hydrogen systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Steward, W. G.

1975-01-01

Computer simulation studies of liquid hydrogen fill and vent systems for the space shuttle are studied. The computer programs calculate maximum and minimum permissible flow rates during cooldown as limited by thermal stress considerations, fill line cooldown time, pressure drop, flow rates, vapor content, vent line pressure drop and vent line discharge temperature. The input data for these programs are selected through graphic displays which schematically depict the part of the system being analyzed. The computed output is also displayed in the form of printed messages and graphs. Digital readouts of graph coordinates may also be obtained. Procedures are given for operation of the graphic display unit and the associated minicomputer and timesharing computer.

Effetto black drop e istanti dei contatti nel transito di Venere sul Sole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

di Giovanni, Giovanni

2005-04-01

Digital measurements of the chords common to the Sun and Venus during the transit of 8 June 2004 are reported. The time of the four contacts of the planet with the solar limb are calculated resolving the relative equations for entry and exit phases. The solutions were obtained with least square methods applied to experimental data with analytical functions used by different Authors during the Sun's eclipses. The well-known black drop effect was observed during the third contact. Atmospheric turbulence and optical effects interfere making timings uncertain by at least one second. There is also a comment about the numerical values and the estimate of the experimental errors. The observations were made by four high school students.

Deposition of radionuclides by fogwater on plants at Houdelaincourt, France

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tav, Jackie; Masson, Olivier; Burnet, Frédéric; De Visme, Anne; Paulat, Pascal; Bourrianne, Thierrry; Conil, Sébastien; Simon, Maxime

2015-04-01

After a nuclear accident like Fukushima, large quantities of radionuclides attached to particles are released in the atmosphere. Those particles can act as condensation nuclei to form fog droplets. To determine the radiological impact of fog droplets deposition on plants, an analysis of the fogwater radioactivity levels and a quantification of the fogwater deposition have been performed. To collect fogwater samples, a replica of the Caltech Active Strand Cloudwater Collector (Demoz et al. 1996) is implemented at the atmospheric research platform in Houdelaincourt (North-East region of France). This instrument allows air containing fog drops to be drawn through a cylinder by a fan. In this tube, rows of Teflon strands are collecting the drops by impaction. Other active collectors have been developed on the same principle with a tube and a mesh grid as the impaction surface. Passive collectors are also used; they consist of vertical strings surrounding a container where the drops are collected. Once the fogwater is collected, it is analyzed to determine the activity levels of gamma emitter radionuclides. In previous studies (Bourcier 2009) the mean level activity for cesium 137, beryllium 7 and lead 210 in rainwater at the Puy de DÙme have been previously estimated. A comparison between activity levels found in rainwater and in fogwater highlights the fact that fog deposition of radionuclides is far from negligible. At the same time a fog monitor FM-120 from DMT provides the size distribution of droplets from 1 to 30 microns. A visibility meter and a PVM from Gerber Scientific Inc. provide respectively the visibility and the liquid water content (LWC) to identify and characterize fog events. In order to quantify the deposition of water on plants, plastics plants were exposed to fog droplet deposition and weighed at the end of the event to measure the amount of water deposited. A second experiment was conducted, during which plastics plants were implemented on a polystyrene support; the whole set was placed on a precision balance and under a protection box to avoid wind induced variations. The box was removed for ten minutes for the fog droplets to be deposited, then the box was put back for weighing. Simultaneously another precision balance was used to determine the deposition of water only on the polystyrene support in order to remove its weight from that of the precious set. A mass of water deposited by surface or mass unit of plant was measured for each fog event. The first results of fog activity levels and fogwater deposition on plants are presented along with the characterization of the studied fog events. References Bourcier, L. (2009). "Transport and deposition of radionuclides and particles at the Puy De DÙme, France". Demoz, B. B., J. L. Collett Jr, et al. (1996). "On the Caltech Active Strand Cloudwater Collectors." Atmospheric Research 41(1): 47-62.

Application of Multi-Input Multi-Output Feedback Control for F-16 Ventral Fin Buffet Alleviation Using Piezoelectric Actuators

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-03-22

Power Amplifier (7). A power amplifier was required to drive the actuators. For this research a Trek , Inc. Model PZD 700 Dual Channel Amplifier was used...while the flight test amplifier was being built. The Trek amplifier was capable of amplifying 32 Figure 3.19: dSpace MicroAutoBox II Digital...averaging of 25% was used to reduce the errors caused by noise but still maintain accuracy. For the laboratory Trek amplifier, a 100 millivolt input

47 CFR 15.122 - Closed caption decoder requirements for digital television receivers and converter boxes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... code 0×2D Lower-left border (⌊), G2 char code 0×7C G0 dash (-), char code 0×2D Horizontal border... (-), char code 0×2D Upper-left border (⌈), G2 char code 0×7F G0 dash (-), char code 0×2D (4) Support for..., if the character to the left of the embedded return is a hyphen, the embedded return should be...

47 CFR 15.122 - Closed caption decoder requirements for digital television receivers and converter boxes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... code 0×2D Lower-left border (⌊), G2 char code 0×7C G0 dash (-), char code 0×2D Horizontal border... (-), char code 0×2D Upper-left border (⌈), G2 char code 0×7F G0 dash (-), char code 0×2D (4) Support for..., if the character to the left of the embedded return is a hyphen, the embedded return should be...

Digital Bathymetric Model of Mono Lake, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Raumann, Christian G.; Stine, Scott; Evans, Alexander; Wilson, Jerry

2002-01-01

In 1986 and 1987, Pelagos Corporation of San Diego (now Racal Pelagos) undertook a bathymetric survey of Mono Lake in eastern California for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP). The result of that survey was a series of maps at various scales and contour intervals. From these maps, the DWP hoped to predict consequences of the drop in lake level that resulted from their diversion of streams in the Mono Basin. No digital models, including shaded-relief and perspective-view renderings, were made from the data collected during the survey. With the permission of Pelagos Corporation and DWP, these data are used to produce a digital model of the floor of Mono Lake. The model was created using a geographic information system (GIS) to incorporate these data with new observations and measurements made in the field. This model should prove to be a valuable tool for enhanced visualization and analyses of the floor of Mono Lake.

Is the thumb a fifth finger? A study of digit interaction during force production tasks

PubMed Central

Olafsdottir, Halla; Zatsiorsky, Vladimir M.; Latash, Mark L.

2010-01-01

We studied indices of digit interaction in single- and multi-digit maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) tests when the thumb acted either in parallel or in opposition to the fingers. The peak force produced by the thumb was much higher when the thumb acted in opposition to the fingers and its share of the total force in the five-digit MVC test increased dramatically. The fingers showed relatively similar peak forces and unchanged sharing patterns in the four-finger MVC task when the thumb acted in parallel and in opposition to the fingers. Enslaving during one-digit tasks showed relatively mild differences between the two conditions, while the differences became large when enslaving was quantified for multi-digit tasks. Force deficit was pronounced when the thumb acted in parallel to the fingers; it showed a monotonic increase with the number of explicitly involved digits up to four digits and then a drop when all five digits were involved. Force deficit all but disappeared when the thumb acted in opposition to the fingers. However, for both thumb positions, indices of digit interaction were similar for groups of digits that did or did not include the thumb. These results suggest that, given a certain hand configuration, the central nervous system treats the thumb as a fifth finger. They provide strong support for the hypothesis that indices of digit interaction reflect neural factors, not the peripheral design of the hand. An earlier formal model was able to account for the data when the thumb acted in parallel to the fingers. However, it failed for the data with the thumb acting in opposition to the fingers. PMID:15322785

Processing techniques for digital sonar images from GLORIA.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chavez, P.S.

1986-01-01

Image processing techniques have been developed to handle data from one of the newest members of the remote sensing family of digital imaging systems. This paper discusses software to process data collected by the GLORIA (Geological Long Range Inclined Asdic) sonar imaging system, designed and built by the Institute of Oceanographic Sciences (IOS) in England, to correct for both geometric and radiometric distortions that exist in the original 'raw' data. Preprocessing algorithms that are GLORIA-specific include corrections for slant-range geometry, water column offset, aspect ratio distortion, changes in the ship's velocity, speckle noise, and shading problems caused by the power drop-off which occurs as a function of range.-from Author

Stability Analysis of Distributed Engine Control Systems Under Communication Packet Drop (Postprint)

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-07-01

use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose the work. 14. ABSTRACT Currently, Full Authority Digital Engine Control ( FADEC ...based on a centralized architecture framework is being widely used for gas turbine engine control. However, current FADEC is not able to meet the...system (DEC). FADEC based on Distributed Control Systems (DCS) offers modularity, improved control systems prognostics and fault tolerance along with

An intercomparison of methods for solving the stochastic collection equation with a focus on cloud radar Doppler spectra in drizzling stratocumulus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, H.; Fridlind, A. M.; Ackerman, A. S.; Kollias, P.

2017-12-01

Cloud radar Doppler spectra provide rich information for evaluating the fidelity of particle size distributions from cloud models. The intrinsic simplifications of bulk microphysics schemes generally preclude the generation of plausible Doppler spectra, unlike bin microphysics schemes, which develop particle size distributions more organically at substantial computational expense. However, bin microphysics schemes face the difficulty of numerical diffusion leading to overly rapid large drop formation, particularly while solving the stochastic collection equation (SCE). Because such numerical diffusion can cause an even greater overestimation of radar reflectivity, an accurate method for solving the SCE is essential for bin microphysics schemes to accurately simulate Doppler spectra. While several methods have been proposed to solve the SCE, here we examine those of Berry and Reinhardt (1974, BR74), Jacobson et al. (1994, J94), and Bott (2000, B00). Using a simple box model to simulate drop size distribution evolution during precipitation formation with a realistic kernel, it is shown that each method yields a converged solution as the resolution of the drop size grid increases. However, the BR74 and B00 methods yield nearly identical size distributions in time, whereas the J94 method produces consistently larger drops throughout the simulation. In contrast to an earlier study, the performance of the B00 method is found to be satisfactory; it converges at relatively low resolution and long time steps, and its computational efficiency is the best among the three methods considered here. Finally, a series of idealized stratocumulus large-eddy simulations are performed using the J94 and B00 methods. The reflectivity size distributions and Doppler spectra obtained from the different SCE solution methods are presented and compared with observations.

Long Valley Coring Project, Inyo County, California, 1998, preliminary stratigraphy and images of recovered core

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sackett, Penelope C.; McConnell, Vicki S.; Roach, Angela L.; Priest, Susan S.; Sass, John H.

1999-01-01

Phase III of the Long Valley Exploratory Well, the Long Valley Coring Project, obtained continuous core between the depths of 7,180 and 9,831 ft (2,188 to 2,996 meters) during the summer of 1998. This report contains a compendium of information designed to facilitate post-drilling research focussed on the study of the core. Included are a preliminary stratigraphic column compiled primarily from field observations and a general description of well lithology for the Phase III drilling interval. Also included are high-resolution digital photographs of every core box (10 feet per box) as well as scanned images of pieces of recovered core. The user can easily move from the stratigraphic column to corresponding core box photographs for any depth. From there, compressed, "unrolled" images of the individual core pieces (core scans) can be accessed. Those interested in higher-resolution core scans can go to archive CD-ROMs stored at a number of locations specified herein. All core is stored at the USGS Core Research Center in Denver, Colorado where it is available to researchers following the protocol described in this report. Preliminary examination of core provided by this report and the archive CD-ROMs should assist researchers in narrowing their choices when requesting core splits.

DStat: A Versatile, Open-Source Potentiostat for Electroanalysis and Integration

PubMed Central

Dryden, Michael D. M.; Wheeler, Aaron R.

2015-01-01

Most electroanalytical techniques require the precise control of the potentials in an electrochemical cell using a potentiostat. Commercial potentiostats function as “black boxes,” giving limited information about their circuitry and behaviour which can make development of new measurement techniques and integration with other instruments challenging. Recently, a number of lab-built potentiostats have emerged with various design goals including low manufacturing cost and field-portability, but notably lacking is an accessible potentiostat designed for general lab use, focusing on measurement quality combined with ease of use and versatility. To fill this gap, we introduce DStat (http://microfluidics.utoronto.ca/dstat), an open-source, general-purpose potentiostat for use alone or integrated with other instruments. DStat offers picoampere current measurement capabilities, a compact USB-powered design, and user-friendly cross-platform software. DStat is easy and inexpensive to build, may be modified freely, and achieves good performance at low current levels not accessible to other lab-built instruments. In head-to-head tests, DStat’s voltammetric measurements are much more sensitive than those of “CheapStat” (a popular open-source potentiostat described previously), and are comparable to those of a compact commercial “black box” potentiostat. Likewise, in head-to-head tests, DStat’s potentiometric precision is similar to that of a commercial pH meter. Most importantly, the versatility of DStat was demonstrated through integration with the open-source DropBot digital microfluidics platform. In sum, we propose that DStat is a valuable contribution to the “open source” movement in analytical science, which is allowing users to adapt their tools to their experiments rather than alter their experiments to be compatible with their tools. PMID:26510100

[Ergonomics of the workplace in radiology].

PubMed

García-Lallana, A; Viteri-Ramírez, G; Saiz-Mendiguren, R; Broncano, J; Dámaso Aquerreta, J

2011-01-01

The replacement of conventional films and view boxes with digital images and computer monitors managed by PACS has clearly improved the diagnostic imaging workplace. The new setup has many advantages, including increased productivity brought about by decreased overall time required for image interpretation. On the other hand, the implementation of the digital workplace has increased the importance of factors like background lighting and the position of the chair, work table, mouse, keyboard, and monitor to prevent lesions that can disable the radiologist. The influence of these factors is often undervalued in the design and implementation of the radiological workplace. This article provides recommendations for the design of the radiological workplace based on ergonomics, which is the science that studies interactions among humans and other elements of a system. Copyright © 2011 SERAM. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

KSC-2010-1274

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-01-15

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A trio of green sea turtles rest in a box at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida after the animals were outfitted with tracking transmitters. The turtles were some of nearly 2,000 that were "stunned" by the recent drop in temperatures. Many of the turtles were rescued from the Mosquito Lagoon, with others coming from the Indian River Lagoon and Cocoa Beach. Biologists, environmentalists, wildlife experts and other volunteers joined forces with a massive rescue effort at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, where the turtles were identified, examined and transported to rehabilitation facilities throughout Florida and South Georgia. The animals stayed at these facilities until local waters warmed up to safe temperatures. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

Causal Analysis For Occurrence Report OR NA-SS-SNL-2000-2015-0005 Unexpected Type of Failure of Thermal Battery

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

Forbes, Elizabeth H.

2015-08-01

On 6/26/2015 at approximately 1445 in 894/136, a pulse thermal battery (approximately the size of a commercial size C cell) experienced an unexpected failure following an electrical performance test that is routinely conducted on thermal batteries. A dedicated tester for this operation was used and it ran the test until the nominal 28-volt output of the battery had dropped to 5 volts, usually indicative of the battery being spent and safe enough to move. The failure occurred while a test operator was transferring the battery from the testing primary containment box to another primary containment box within the same room;more » initial indications are that the battery experienced an over-pressurization failure which led to the battery's base plate being expelled and the operator receiving a non-recordable injury (bruising to the palm of the hand) from the pressure of the expulsion. The operator was wearing the prescribed PPE (safety glasses and high temperature glove) and was handling the battery appropriately with an open, flat hand. Pictures of the scene are below.« less

Calibration of PVDF Film Transducers for the Cavitation Impact Measurement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hujer, Jan; Müller, Miloš

2018-06-01

This paper describes investigation of the influence of the protective layer thickness on the calibration sensitivity of PVDF films sensors for the cavitation impacts measurements. The PVDF film sensor is casted into an aluminium block. The drop ball method is used for the measurement of the relation between impact force and the voltage detected on the PVDF film sensor. The calibration constants are measured for three different protective layers thicknesses. Five different ball weights for 400 mm drop height are used to reach the required impact force range. The ball positions for the evaluation of the impact force are measured with a high speed camera. The voltage signal detected on the PVDF film clamps was measured with a high speed digitizer. The measured signals are analysed in LabVIEW Signal Express.

Electrochemical measurements on a droplet using gold microelectrodes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jenabi, Amin; Souri, Asma; Rastkhadiv, Ali

2016-03-01

Facile methods of ion recognition are important for the fabrication of electronic tongue systems. In this work, we demonstrate performing pulsed conductometry on microliter electrolyte droplets dropped on gold microelectrodes vapor deposited on soda lime glass slides. A droplet is dropped between two microelectrodes when a voltage waveform from a preprogramed power supply is applied on them. The temporal variation of the electric current passing through the droplet is recorded, digitized and stored. The obtained data are compared with the database formed out of the previous experiences for the classification of the sample electrolytes. It is shown that the shape of the voltage waveform is the important parameter of the process. We devised a method for the optimization of the voltage waveform profile for obtaining the maximum of discriminating information from the recorded current variations.

PowerWheel - A new look at waterwheels

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

Weisman, R.N.; Broome, K.R.; Mayo, H.A.

1995-12-31

The PowerWheel is an advanced overshot water wheel, designed to generate electric power at drop structures on canals or on overflow spillways. Unlike the wheels of the 18th and 19th century which were designed to have maximum efficiency at a single flow rate, the current applications demand a wheel that can operate efficiently over a wide range of flows. The prototype PowerWheel will have a width to diameter ratio of 3 or more, in contrast to the wheels of the 19th century, which had large diameters and narrow widths. A model PowerWheel was built of plexiglass and delivered for testingmore » to the Imbt Hydraulics Laboratory at Lehigh University. The wheel has a diameter of 3.5 ft and is 16 in wide. The wheel contains 20 buckets and the bucket depth can be varied from a shallow depth of 4 in to a mid depth of 7 in to 10 in for the deep bucket. The blades have a rather simple geometry with a 4 in radius quarter circle at the outside of the wheel and then straight to the bottom of the bucket. The flume in which the wheel was tested has a width of 18 in. A hole was cut in the head box of the flume and a delivery chute was connected to the head box. The position of the chute can readily be moved up or down in relation to the wheel; for a fixed position of the chute on the head box, the slope of the chute can be changed because the chute was attached to the head box with a piano hinge. The laboratory flow system can deliver flow up to 6 cfs through a calibrated Venturi meter. The PowerWheel was subjected to flows ranging from 0.3 to 3.5 cfs.« less

Time-Dependent Traveling Wave Tube Model for Intersymbol Interference Investigations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kory, Carol L.; Andro, Monty; Downey, Alan (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

For the first time, a computational model has been used to provide a direct description of the effects of the traveling wave tube (TWT) on modulated digital signals. The TWT model comprehensively takes into account the effects of frequency dependent AM/AM and AM/PM conversion, gain and phase ripple; drive-induced oscillations; harmonic generation; intermodulation products; and backward waves. Thus, signal integrity can be investigated in the presence of these sources of potential distortion as a function of the physical geometry of the high power amplifier and the operational digital signal. This method promises superior predictive fidelity compared to methods using TWT models based on swept-amplitude and/or swept-frequency data. The fully three-dimensional (3D), time-dependent, TWT interaction model using the electromagnetic code MAFIA is presented. This model is used to investigate assumptions made in TWT black-box models used in communication system level simulations. In addition, digital signal performance, including intersymbol interference (ISI), is compared using direct data input into the MAFIA model and using the system level analysis tool, SPW.

Intersymbol Interference Investigations Using a 3D Time-Dependent Traveling Wave Tube Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kory, Carol L.; Andro, Monty; Downey, Alan (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

For the first time, a physics based computational model has been used to provide a direct description of the effects of the TWT (Traveling Wave Tube) on modulated digital signals. The TWT model comprehensively takes into account the effects of frequency dependent AM/AM and AM/PM conversion; gain and phase ripple; drive-induced oscillations; harmonic generation; intermodulation products; and backward waves. Thus, signal integrity can be investigated in the presence of these sources of potential distortion as a function of the physical geometry of the high power amplifier and the operational digital signal. This method promises superior predictive fidelity compared to methods using TWT models based on swept amplitude and/or swept frequency data. The fully three-dimensional (3D), time-dependent, TWT interaction model using the electromagnetic code MAFIA is presented. This model is used to investigate assumptions made in TWT black box models used in communication system level simulations. In addition, digital signal performance, including intersymbol interference (ISI), is compared using direct data input into the MAFIA model and using the system level analysis tool, SPW (Signal Processing Worksystem).

A methodology for the semi-automatic digital image analysis of fragmental impactites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chanou, A.; Osinski, G. R.; Grieve, R. A. F.

2014-04-01

A semi-automated digital image analysis method is developed for the comparative textural study of impact melt-bearing breccias. This method uses the freeware software ImageJ developed by the National Institute of Health (NIH). Digital image analysis is performed on scans of hand samples (10-15 cm across), based on macroscopic interpretations of the rock components. All image processing and segmentation are done semi-automatically, with the least possible manual intervention. The areal fraction of components is estimated and modal abundances can be deduced, where the physical optical properties (e.g., contrast, color) of the samples allow it. Other parameters that can be measured include, for example, clast size, clast-preferred orientations, average box-counting dimension or fragment shape complexity, and nearest neighbor distances (NnD). This semi-automated method allows the analysis of a larger number of samples in a relatively short time. Textures, granulometry, and shape descriptors are of considerable importance in rock characterization. The methodology is used to determine the variations of the physical characteristics of some examples of fragmental impactites.

Investigation of Self Triggered Cosmic Ray Detectors using Silicon Photomultiplier

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knox, Adrian; Niduaza, Rommel; Hernandez, Victor; Ruiz, Daniel; Ramos, Daniel; Fan, Sewan; Fatuzzo, Laura; Ritt, Stefan

2015-04-01

The silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) is a highly sensitive light detector capable of measuring single photons. It costs a fraction of the photomultiplier tube and operates slightly above the breakdown voltage. At this conference we describe our investigation of SiPM, the multipixel photon counters (MPPC) from Hamamatsu as readout detectors for plastic scintillators working for detecting cosmic ray particles. Our setup consists of scintillator sheets embedded with blue to green wavelength shifting fibers optically coupled to MPPCs to detect scintillating light. Four detector assemblies would be constructed and arranged to work in self triggered mode. Using custom matching tee boxes, the amplified MPPC signals are fed to discriminators with threshold set to give a reasonable coincidence count rate. Moreover, the detector waveforms are digitized using a 5 Giga Samples per second waveform digitizer, the DRS4, and triggered with the coincidence logic to capture the MPPC waveforms. Offline analysis of the digitized waveforms is accomplished using the CERN package PAW and results of our experiments and the data analysis would also be discussed. US Department of Education Title V Grant Number PO31S090007.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-25

The arnual conference for the Educator Resource Center Network (ERCN) Coordinators was held at Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field in Cleveland, Ohio. The conference included participants from NASA's Educator Resource Centers located throughout the country. The Microgravity Science Division at Glenn sponsored a Microgravity Day for all the conference participants. Dr. Wil Roberson and Marge Lehky prepare a demonstration with the mini-drop tower. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Benchtop evaluation of pressure barrier insufflator and standard insufflator systems.

PubMed

Nepple, Kenneth G; Kallogjeri, Dorina; Bhayani, Sam B

2013-01-01

Previous experimental research has reported minimal differences in pressure maintenance between different versions of standard insufflators (SI). However, a recent report identified potential clinical benefits with a valveless pressure barrier insufflator (PBI). We sought to perform a benchtop objective evaluation of SI and PBI systems. A rigid box system with continuous pressure manometry was used to evaluate a PBI (Surgiquest Airseal) and two SIs (SI1 = Stryker PneumoSure High Flow Insufflator and SI2 = Storz SCB Thermoflator). Pressure maintenance of 15 mmHg was evaluated during experimental conditions of leakage from a 5 mm port site, leakage from a 12 mm port site, and continuous suction. With leakage from the 5 mm port site, the PBI maintained pressure of >13 mmHg whereas the pressures dropped moderately with the SI1 (7-13 mmHg) and SI2 insufflators (3-7 mmHg) and did not regain goal pressure until leakage was stopped. With leakage from 12 mm port site, the PBI pressure decreased to 9-11 mmHg, whereas the SI1 and SI2 lost insufflation pressures completely. The PBI maintained pressure of >11 mmHg during continuous suction while the SI1 and SI2 lost pressure entirely, and actually showed negative pressure from air suction into the rigid box system. When evaluated statistically with the mixed model repeated measures ANOVA, the SI1 and SI2 performed similarly while the PBI maintained increased pressure. In the experimental rigid box system, the PBI more successfully maintained pressure in response to leakage and suction than SIs.

Source parameters of the 2013, Ms 7.0, Lushan earthquake and the characteristics of the near-fault strong ground motion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Fengfan; Meng, Lingyuan

2016-04-01

The April 20, 2013 Ms 7.0, earthquake in Lushan city, Sichuan province of China occurred as the result of east-west oriented reverse-type motion on a north-south striking fault. The source location suggests the event occurred on the Southern part of Longmenshan fault at a depth of 13km. The maximum intensity is up to VIII to IX at Boxing and Lushan city, which are located in the meizoseismal area. In this study, we analyzed the dynamic source process with the source mechanism and empirical relationships, estimated the strong ground motion in the near-fault field based on the Brune's circle model. A dynamical composite source model (DCSM) has been developed to simulate the near-fault strong ground motion with associated fault rupture properties at Boxing and Lushan city, respectively. The results indicate that the frictional undershoot behavior in the dynamic source process of Lushan earthquake, which is actually different from the overshoot activity of the Wenchuan earthquake. Moreover, we discussed the characteristics of the strong ground motion in the near-fault field, that the broadband synthetic seismogram ground motion predictions for Boxing and Lushan city produced larger peak values, shorter durations and higher frequency contents. It indicates that the factors in near-fault strong ground motion was under the influence of higher effect stress drop and asperity slip distributions on the fault plane. This work is financially supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41404045) and by Science for Earthquake Resilience of CEA (XH14055Y).

Supplemental materials for the ICDP-USGS Eyreville A, B, and C core holes, Chesapeake Bay impact structure: Core-box photographs, coring-run tables, and depth-conversion files

USGS Publications Warehouse

Durand, C.T.; Edwards, L.E.; Malinconico, M.L.; Powars, D.S.

2009-01-01

During 2005-2006, the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program and the U.S. Geological Survey drilled three continuous core holes into the Chesapeake Bay impact structure to a total depth of 1766.3 m. A collection of supplemental materials that presents a record of the core recovery and measurement data for the Eyreville cores is available on CD-ROM at the end of this volume and in the GSA Data Repository. The supplemental materials on the CD-ROM include digital photographs of each core box from the three core holes, tables of the three coring-run logs, as recorded on site, and a set of depth-conversion programs. In this chapter, the contents, purposes, and basic applications of the supplemental materials are briefly described. With this information, users can quickly decide if the materials will apply to their specific research needs. ?? 2009 The Geological Society of America.

Restoring proximal caries lesions conservatively with tunnel restorations

PubMed Central

Chu, Chun-Hung; Mei, May L; Cheung, Chloe; Nalliah, Romesh P

2013-01-01

The tunnel restoration has been suggested as a conservative alternative to the conventional box preparation for treating proximal caries. The main advantage of tunnel restoration over the conventional box or slot preparation includes being more conservative and increasing tooth integrity and strength by preserving the marginal ridge. However, tunnel restoration is technique-sensitive and can be particularly challenging for inexperienced restorative dentists. Recent advances in technology, such as the contemporary design of dental handpieces with advanced light-emitting diode (LED) and handheld comfort, offer operative dentists better vision, illumination, and maneuverability. The use of magnifying loupes also enhances the visibility of the preparation. The advent of digital radiographic imaging has improved dental imaging and reduced radiation. The new generation of restorative materials has improved mechanical properties. Tunnel restoration can be an option to restore proximal caries if the dentist performs proper case selection and pays attention to the details of the restorative procedures. This paper describes the clinical technique of tunnel restoration and reviews the studies of tunnel restorations. PMID:24019754

A noise resistant symmetric key cryptosystem based on S8 S-boxes and chaotic maps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hussain, Iqtadar; Anees, Amir; Aslam, Muhammad; Ahmed, Rehan; Siddiqui, Nasir

2018-04-01

In this manuscript, we have proposed an encryption algorithm to encrypt any digital data. The proposed algorithm is primarily based on the substitution-permutation in which the substitution process is performed by the S 8 Substitution boxes. The proposed algorithm incorporates three different chaotic maps. We have analysed the behaviour of chaos by secure communication in great length, and accordingly, we have applied those chaotic sequences in the proposed encryption algorithm. The simulation and statistical results revealed that the proposed encryption scheme is secure against different attacks. Moreover, the encryption scheme can tolerate the channel noise as well; if the encrypted data is corrupted by the unauthenticated user or by the channel noise, the decryption can still be successfully done with some distortion. The overall results confirmed that the presented work has good cryptographic features, low computational complexity and resistant to the channel noise which makes it suitable for low profile mobile applications.

Restoring proximal caries lesions conservatively with tunnel restorations.

PubMed

Chu, Chun-Hung; Mei, May L; Cheung, Chloe; Nalliah, Romesh P

2013-07-30

The tunnel restoration has been suggested as a conservative alternative to the conventional box preparation for treating proximal caries. The main advantage of tunnel restoration over the conventional box or slot preparation includes being more conservative and increasing tooth integrity and strength by preserving the marginal ridge. However, tunnel restoration is technique-sensitive and can be particularly challenging for inexperienced restorative dentists. Recent advances in technology, such as the contemporary design of dental handpieces with advanced light-emitting diode (LED) and handheld comfort, offer operative dentists better vision, illumination, and maneuverability. The use of magnifying loupes also enhances the visibility of the preparation. The advent of digital radiographic imaging has improved dental imaging and reduced radiation. The new generation of restorative materials has improved mechanical properties. Tunnel restoration can be an option to restore proximal caries if the dentist performs proper case selection and pays attention to the details of the restorative procedures. This paper describes the clinical technique of tunnel restoration and reviews the studies of tunnel restorations.

Heat pipe design handbook, part 2. [digital computer code specifications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Skrabek, E. A.

1972-01-01

The utilization of a digital computer code for heat pipe analysis and design (HPAD) is described which calculates the steady state hydrodynamic heat transport capability of a heat pipe with a particular wick configuration, the working fluid being a function of wick cross-sectional area. Heat load, orientation, operating temperature, and heat pipe geometry are specified. Both one 'g' and zero 'g' environments are considered, and, at the user's option, the code will also perform a weight analysis and will calculate heat pipe temperature drops. The central porous slab, circumferential porous wick, arterial wick, annular wick, and axial rectangular grooves are the wick configurations which HPAD has the capability of analyzing. For Vol. 1, see N74-22569.

Development of an imaging method for quantifying a large digital PCR droplet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Jen-Yu; Lee, Shu-Sheng; Hsu, Yu-Hsiang

2017-02-01

Portable devices have been recognized as the future linkage between end-users and lab-on-a-chip devices. It has a user friendly interface and provides apps to interface headphones, cameras, and communication duct, etc. In particular, the digital resolution of cameras installed in smartphones or pads already has a high imaging resolution with a high number of pixels. This unique feature has triggered researches to integrate optical fixtures with smartphone to provide microscopic imaging capabilities. In this paper, we report our study on developing a portable diagnostic tool based on the imaging system of a smartphone and a digital PCR biochip. A computational algorithm is developed to processing optical images taken from a digital PCR biochip with a smartphone in a black box. Each reaction droplet is recorded in pixels and is analyzed in a sRGB (red, green, and blue) color space. Multistep filtering algorithm and auto-threshold algorithm are adopted to minimize background noise contributed from ccd cameras and rule out false positive droplets, respectively. Finally, a size-filtering method is applied to identify the number of positive droplets to quantify target's concentration. Statistical analysis is then performed for diagnostic purpose. This process can be integrated in an app and can provide a user friendly interface without professional training.

Preliminary Results from Electric Arc Furnace Off-Gas Enthalpy Modeling

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

Nimbalkar, Sachin U; Thekdi, Arvind; Keiser, James R

2015-01-01

This article describes electric arc furnace (EAF) off-gas enthalpy models developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to calculate overall heat availability (sensible and chemical enthalpy) and recoverable heat values (steam or power generation potential) for existing EAF operations and to test ORNL s new EAF waste heat recovery (WHR) concepts. ORNL s new EAF WHR concepts are: Regenerative Drop-out Box System and Fluidized Bed System. The two EAF off-gas enthalpy models described in this paper are: 1.Overall Waste Heat Recovery Model that calculates total heat availability in off-gases of existing EAF operations 2.Regenerative Drop-out Box System Model in whichmore » hot EAF off-gases alternately pass through one of two refractory heat sinks that store heat and then transfer it to another gaseous medium These models calculate the sensible and chemical enthalpy of EAF off-gases based on the off-gas chemical composition, temperature, and mass flow rate during tap to tap time, and variations in those parameters in terms of actual values over time. The models provide heat transfer analysis for the aforementioned concepts to confirm the overall system and major component sizing (preliminary) to assess the practicality of the systems. Real-time EAF off-gas composition (e.g., CO, CO2, H2, and H2O), volume flow, and temperature data from one EAF operation was used to test the validity and accuracy of the modeling work. The EAF off-gas data was used to calculate the sensible and chemical enthalpy of the EAF off-gases to generate steam and power. The article provides detailed results from the modeling work that are important to the success of ORNL s EAF WHR project. The EAF WHR project aims to develop and test new concepts and materials that allow cost-effective recovery of sensible and chemical heat from high-temperature gases discharged from EAFs.« less

Sinus Meridiani: uncontrolled Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbital Camera (MOC): digital context photomosaic (250 megapixel resolution)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Noreen, Eric

2000-01-01

These images were processed from a raw format using Integrated Software for Images and Spectrometers (ISIS) to perform radiometric corrections and projection. All the images were projected in sinusoidal using a center longitude of 0 degrees. There are two versions of the mosaic, one unfiltered (sinusmos.tif), and one produced with all images processed through a box filter with an averaged pixel tone of 7.5 (sinusmosflt.tif). Both mosaics are ArcView-ArcInfo(2) ready in TIF format with associated world files (*.tfw).

Central Valles Marineris: uncontrolled Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbital Camera (MOC) digital context photomosaic (250 megapixel resolution)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Noreen, Eric

2000-01-01

These images were processed from a raw format using Integrated Software for Images and Spectrometers (ISIS) to perform radiometric corrections and projection. All the images were projected in sinusoidal using a center longitude of 70 degrees. There are two versions of the mosaic, one unfiltered (vallesmos.tif), and one produced with all images processed through a box filter with an averaged pixel tone of 7.699 (vallesmosflt.tif). Both mosaics are ArcView-ArcInfo ready in TIF format with associated world files (*.tfw).

STS-53 Discovery, OV-103, DOD Hercules digital electronic imagery equipment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

STS-53 Discovery, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 103, Department of Defense (DOD) mission Hand-held Earth-oriented Real-time Cooperative, User-friendly, Location, targeting, and Environmental System (Hercules) spaceborne experiment equipment is documented in this table top view. HERCULES is a joint NAVY-NASA-ARMY payload designed to provide real-time high resolution digital electronic imagery and geolocation (latitude and longitude determination) of earth surface targets of interest. HERCULES system consists of (from left to right): a specially modified GRID Systems portable computer mounted atop NASA developed Playback-Downlink Unit (PDU) and the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) developed HERCULES Attitude Processor (HAP); the NASA-developed Electronic Still Camera (ESC) Electronics Box (ESCEB) including removable imagery data storage disks and various connecting cables; the ESC (a NASA modified Nikon F-4 camera) mounted atop the NRL HERCULES Inertial Measurement Unit (HIMU) containing the three

STS-53 Discovery, OV-103, DOD Hercules digital electronic imagery equipment

NASA Image and Video Library

1992-04-22

STS-53 Discovery, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 103, Department of Defense (DOD) mission Hand-held Earth-oriented Real-time Cooperative, User-friendly, Location, targeting, and Environmental System (Hercules) spaceborne experiment equipment is documented in this table top view. HERCULES is a joint NAVY-NASA-ARMY payload designed to provide real-time high resolution digital electronic imagery and geolocation (latitude and longitude determination) of earth surface targets of interest. HERCULES system consists of (from left to right): a specially modified GRID Systems portable computer mounted atop NASA developed Playback-Downlink Unit (PDU) and the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) developed HERCULES Attitude Processor (HAP); the NASA-developed Electronic Still Camera (ESC) Electronics Box (ESCEB) including removable imagery data storage disks and various connecting cables; the ESC (a NASA modified Nikon F-4 camera) mounted atop the NRL HERCULES Inertial Measurement Unit (HIMU) containing the three-axis ring-laser gyro.

Creation of digital contours that approach the characteristics of cartographic contours

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tyler, Dean J.; Greenlee, Susan K.

2012-01-01

The capability to easily create digital contours using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software has existed for decades. Out-of-the-box raw contours are suitable for many scientific applications without pre- or post-processing; however, cartographic applications typically require additional improvements. For example, raw contours generally require smoothing before placement on a map. Cartographic contours must also conform to certain spatial/logical rules; for example, contours may not cross waterbodies. The objective was to create contours that match as closely as possible the cartographic contours produced by manual methods on the 1:24,000-scale, 7.5-minute Topographic Map series. This report outlines the basic approach, describes a variety of problems that were encountered, and discusses solutions. Many of the challenges described herein were the result of imperfect input raster elevation data and the requirement to have the contours integrated with hydrographic features from the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD).

On-chip quasi-digital optical switch using silicon microring resonator-coupled Mach-Zehnder interferometer.

PubMed

Song, Junfeng; Luo, Xianshu; Tu, Xiaoguang; Jia, Lianxi; Fang, Qing; Liow, Tsung-Yang; Yu, Mingbin; Lo, Guo-Qiang

2013-05-20

In this work, we demonstrate thermo-optical quasi-digital optical switch (q-DOS) using silicon microring resonator-coupled Mach-Zehnder interferometer. The optical transmission spectra show box-like response with 1-dB and 3-dB bandwidths of ~1.3 nm and ~1.6 nm, respectively. Such broadband flat-top optical response improves the tolerance to the light source wavelength fluctuation of ± 6 Å and temperature variation of ± 6 °C. Dynamic characterizations show the device with switching power of ~37 mW, switching time of ~7 μs, and on/off ratio of > 30 dB. For performance comparison, we also demonstrate a carrier injection-based electro-optical q-DOS by integrating lateral P-i-N junction with the microring resonator, which significantly reduces power consumption to ~12 mW and switching time to ~0.7 ns only.

Experimental measurement of cooling tower emissions using image processing of sensitive papers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ruiz, J.; Kaiser, A. S.; Ballesta, M.; Gil, A.; Lucas, M.

2013-04-01

Cooling tower emissions are harmful for several reasons such as air polluting, wetting, icing and solid particle deposition, but mainly due to human health hazards (i.e. Legionella). There are several methods for measuring drift drops. This paper is focussed on the sensitive paper technique, which is suitable in low drift scenarios and real conditions. The lack of an automatic classification method motivated the development of a digital image process algorithm for the Sensitive Paper method. This paper presents a detailed description of this method, in which, drop-like elements are identified by means of the Canny edge detector combined with some morphological operations. Afterwards, the application of a J48 decision tree is proposed as one of the most relevant contributions. This classification method allows us to discern between stains whose origin is a drop and stains whose origin is not a drop. The method is applied to a real case and results are presented in terms of drift and PM10 emissions. This involves the calculation of the main features of the droplet distribution at the cooling tower exit surface in terms of drop size distribution data, cumulative mass distribution curve and characteristic drop diameters. The Log-normal and the Rosin-Rammler distribution functions have been fitted to the experimental data collected in the tests and it can been concluded that the first one is the most suitable for experimental data among the functions tested (whereas the second one is less suitable). Realistic PM10 calculations include the measurement of drift emissions and Total Dissolved Solids as well as the size and number of drops. Results are compared to the method proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency assessing its overestimation. Drift emissions have found to be 0.0517% of the recirculating water, which is over the Spanish standards limit (0.05%).

Droplet morphometry and velocimetry (DMV): a video processing software for time-resolved, label-free tracking of droplet parameters.

PubMed

Basu, Amar S

2013-05-21

Emerging assays in droplet microfluidics require the measurement of parameters such as drop size, velocity, trajectory, shape deformation, fluorescence intensity, and others. While micro particle image velocimetry (μPIV) and related techniques are suitable for measuring flow using tracer particles, no tool exists for tracking droplets at the granularity of a single entity. This paper presents droplet morphometry and velocimetry (DMV), a digital video processing software for time-resolved droplet analysis. Droplets are identified through a series of image processing steps which operate on transparent, translucent, fluorescent, or opaque droplets. The steps include background image generation, background subtraction, edge detection, small object removal, morphological close and fill, and shape discrimination. A frame correlation step then links droplets spanning multiple frames via a nearest neighbor search with user-defined matching criteria. Each step can be individually tuned for maximum compatibility. For each droplet found, DMV provides a time-history of 20 different parameters, including trajectory, velocity, area, dimensions, shape deformation, orientation, nearest neighbour spacing, and pixel statistics. The data can be reported via scatter plots, histograms, and tables at the granularity of individual droplets or by statistics accrued over the population. We present several case studies from industry and academic labs, including the measurement of 1) size distributions and flow perturbations in a drop generator, 2) size distributions and mixing rates in drop splitting/merging devices, 3) efficiency of single cell encapsulation devices, 4) position tracking in electrowetting operations, 5) chemical concentrations in a serial drop dilutor, 6) drop sorting efficiency of a tensiophoresis device, 7) plug length and orientation of nonspherical plugs in a serpentine channel, and 8) high throughput tracking of >250 drops in a reinjection system. Performance metrics show that highest accuracy and precision is obtained when the video resolution is >300 pixels per drop. Analysis time increases proportionally with video resolution. The current version of the software provides throughputs of 2-30 fps, suggesting the potential for real time analysis.

Millikan Movies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zou, Xueli; Dietz, Eric; McGuire, Trevor; Fox, Louise; Norris, Tiara; Diamond, Brendan; Chavez, Ricardo; Cheng, Stephen

2008-09-01

Since Robert Millikan discovered the quantization of electric charge and measured its fundamental value over 90 years ago, his oil-drop experiment has become essential in physics laboratory classes at both the high school and college level. As physics instructors, however, many of us have used the traditional setup and experienced the tedium of collecting data and the frustration of students who obtain disappointing results for the charges on individual oil drops after two or three hours of hard work. Some novel approaches have been developed to make the data collection easier and more accurate. One method is to attach a CCD (charge coupled device) camera to the microscope of the traditional setup.1,2 Through the CCD camera, the motion of an oil drop can be displayed on a TV monitor and/or on a computer.2 This allows several students to view the image of a droplet simultaneously instead of taking turns squinting through the tiny microscope eyepiece on the traditional setup. Furthermore, the motion of an oil drop can be captured and analyzed using software such as VideoPoint,3 which enhances the accuracy of the measurement of the charge on each oil drop.2 While these innovative methods improve the convenience and efficiency with which data can be collected, an instructor has to invest a considerable amount of money and time so as to adapt the new techniques to his or her own classroom. In this paper, we will report on the QuickTime movies we made, which can be used to analyze the motions of 16 selected oil drops. These digital videos are available on the web4 for teachers to download and use with their own students. We will also share the procedure for analyzing the videos using Logger Pro,5 as well as our results for the charges on the oil drops and some pedagogical aspects of using the movies with students.

Time-critical Database Condition Data Handling in the CMS Experiment During the First Data Taking Period

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cavallari, Francesca; de Gruttola, Michele; Di Guida, Salvatore; Govi, Giacomo; Innocente, Vincenzo; Pfeiffer, Andreas; Pierro, Antonio

2011-12-01

Automatic, synchronous and reliable population of the condition databases is critical for the correct operation of the online selection as well as of the offline reconstruction and analysis of data. In this complex infrastructure, monitoring and fast detection of errors is a very challenging task. In this paper, we describe the CMS experiment system to process and populate the Condition Databases and make condition data promptly available both online for the high-level trigger and offline for reconstruction. The data are automatically collected using centralized jobs or are "dropped" by the users in dedicated services (offline and online drop-box), which synchronize them and take care of writing them into the online database. Then they are automatically streamed to the offline database, and thus are immediately accessible offline worldwide. The condition data are managed by different users using a wide range of applications.In normal operation the database monitor is used to provide simple timing information and the history of all transactions for all database accounts, and in the case of faults it is used to return simple error messages and more complete debugging information.

Management of digital eye strain.

PubMed

Coles-Brennan, Chantal; Sulley, Anna; Young, Graeme

2018-05-23

Digital eye strain, an emerging public health issue, is a condition characterised by visual disturbance and/or ocular discomfort related to the use of digital devices and resulting from a range of stresses on the ocular environment. This review aims to provide an overview of the extensive literature on digital eye strain research with particular reference to the clinical management of symptoms. As many as 90 per cent of digital device users experience symptoms of digital eye strain. Many studies suggest that the following factors are associated with digital eye strain: uncorrected refractive error (including presbyopia), accommodative and vergence anomalies, altered blinking pattern (reduced rate and incomplete blinking), excessive exposure to intense light, closer working distance, and smaller font size. Since a symptom may be caused by one or more factors, a holistic approach should be adopted. The following management strategies have been suggested: (i) appropriate correction of refractive error, including astigmatism and presbyopia; (ii) management of vergence anomalies, with the aim of inducing or leaving a small amount of heterophoria (~1.5 Δ Exo); (iii) blinking exercise/training to maintain normal blinking pattern; (iv) use of lubricating eye drops (artificial tears) to help alleviate dry eye-related symptoms; (v) contact lenses with enhanced comfort, particularly at end-of-day and in challenging environments; (vi) prescription of colour filters in all vision correction options, especially blue light-absorbing filters; and (vii) management of accommodative anomalies. Prevention is the main strategy for management of digital eye strain, which involves: (i) ensuring an ergonomic work environment and practice (through patient education and the implementation of ergonomic workplace policies); and (ii) visual examination and eye care to treat visual disorders. Special consideration is needed for people at a high risk of digital eye strain, such as computer workers and contact lens wearers. © 2018 Optometry Australia.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-04-26

The first NASA Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) student competition pilot project came to a conclusion at the Glenn Research Center in April 2001. The competition involved high-school student teams who developed the concept for a microgravity experiment and prepared an experiment proposal. The two student teams - COSI Academy, sponsored by the Columbus Center of Science and Industry, and another team from Cincinnati, Ohio's Sycamore High School, designed a microgravity experiment, fabricated the experimental apparatus, and visited NASA Glenn to operate their experiment in the 2.2 Second Drop Tower. Here Carol Hodanbosi of the National Center for Microgravity Research and Jose Carrion, a lab mechanic with AKAC, prepare a student experiment package (inside the silver-colored frame) inside the orange-colored drag shield that encloses all experiment hardware. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Digital genome-wide ncRNA expression, including SnoRNAs, across 11 human tissues using polyA-neutral amplification.

PubMed

Castle, John C; Armour, Christopher D; Löwer, Martin; Haynor, David; Biery, Matthew; Bouzek, Heather; Chen, Ronghua; Jackson, Stuart; Johnson, Jason M; Rohl, Carol A; Raymond, Christopher K

2010-07-26

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are an essential class of molecular species that have been difficult to monitor on high throughput platforms due to frequent lack of polyadenylation. Using a polyadenylation-neutral amplification protocol and next-generation sequencing, we explore ncRNA expression in eleven human tissues. ncRNAs 7SL, U2, 7SK, and HBII-52 are expressed at levels far exceeding mRNAs. C/D and H/ACA box snoRNAs are associated with rRNA methylation and pseudouridylation, respectively: spleen expresses both, hypothalamus expresses mainly C/D box snoRNAs, and testes show enriched expression of both H/ACA box snoRNAs and RNA telomerase TERC. Within the snoRNA 14q cluster, 14q(I-6) is expressed at much higher levels than other cluster members. More reads align to mitochondrial than nuclear tRNAs. Many lincRNAs are actively transcribed, particularly those overlapping known ncRNAs. Within the Prader-Willi syndrome loci, the snoRNA HBII-85 (group I) cluster is highly expressed in hypothalamus, greater than in other tissues and greater than group II or III. Additionally, within the disease locus we find novel transcription across a 400,000 nt span in ovaries. This genome-wide polyA-neutral expression compendium demonstrates the richness of ncRNA expression, their high expression patterns, their function-specific expression patterns, and is publicly available.

Decline in Soluble Phosphorus Mobility from Land-Applied Dairy Manure - Modeling and Practical Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Archibald, J. A.; Walter, M. T.; Peterson, M.; Richards, B. K.; Giri, S. K.

2014-12-01

Non-point source transport of soluble-reactive phosphorus (SRP) from agricultural systems to freshwater ecosystems is a significant water quality concern. Although farmers are encouraged to avoid manure or fertilizer application before runoff events, the implications of these management choices remain largely unquantified. We conducted soil box experiments to test how manure application timing and temperature or moisture conditions impact SRP concentration in runoff. We found that SRP concentrations dropped off exponentially over time, and that higher temperatures accelerated the decline in SRP in overland runoff over time. During the first runoff events after manure application, infiltration depth prior to runoff was not a primary driver of SRP concentrations. This research has implications for incorporating manure spreading timing into watershed models.

Evaluation of common cleaning and disinfection programmes in battery cage and on-floor layer houses in France.

PubMed

Huneau-Salaün, A; Michel, V; Balaine, L; Petetin, I; Eono, F; Ecobichon, F; Bouquin, S Le

2010-04-01

1. The aim in this study was to evaluate cleaning and disinfection programmes in battery cage and on-floor layer houses in France. 2. Cleaning and disinfection efficiency was assessed by a visual evaluation of cleaning and a bacteriological monitoring of surface contamination from counts of thermotolerant streptococci on contact agar plates. 3. In battery cage houses, dropping belts, manure conveyors, and house floors remained highly contaminated due to poor cleaning in half of the buildings examined. 4. In on-floor houses, a high standard of cleaning was achieved but errors in the planning of cleaning and disinfection operations sometimes led to a high residual contamination of nest boxes and egg sorting tables.

Biomechanical Analyses of Stair-climbing while Dual-tasking

PubMed Central

Vallabhajosula, Srikant; Tan, Chi Wei; Mukherjee, Mukul; Davidson, Austin J.; Stergiou, Nicholas

2015-01-01

Stair-climbing while doing a concurrent task like talking or holding an object is a common activity of daily living which poses high risk for falls. While biomechanical analyses of overground walking during dual-tasking have been studied extensively, little is known on the biomechanics of stair-climbing while dual-tasking. We sought to determine the impact of performing a concurrent cognitive or motor task during stair-climbing. We hypothesized that a concurrent cognitive task will have a greater impact on stair climbing performance compared to a concurrent motor task and that this impact will be greater on a higher-level step. Ten healthy young adults performed 10 trials of stair-climbing each under four conditions: stair ascending only, stair ascending and performing subtraction of serial sevens from a three-digit number, stair ascending and carrying an empty opaque box and stair ascending, performing subtraction of serial sevens from a random three-digit number and carrying an empty opaque box. Kinematics (lower extremity joint angles and minimum toe clearance) and kinetics (ground reaction forces and joint moments and powers) data were collected. We found that a concurrent cognitive task impacted kinetics but not kinematics of stair-climbing. The effect of dual-tasking during stair ascent also seemed to vary based on the different phases of stair ascent stance and seem to have greater impact as one climbs higher. Overall, the results of the current study suggest that the association between the executive functioning and motor task (like gait) becomes stronger as the level of complexity of the motor task increases. PMID:25773590

Application of video recording technology to improve husbandry and reproduction in the carmine bee-eater (Merops n. nubicus).

PubMed

Ferrie, Gina M; Sky, Christy; Schutz, Paul J; Quinones, Glorieli; Breeding, Shawnlei; Plasse, Chelle; Leighty, Katherine A; Bettinger, Tammie L

2016-01-01

Incorporating technology with research is becoming increasingly important to enhance animal welfare in zoological settings. Video technology is used in the management of avian populations to facilitate efficient information collection on aspects of avian reproduction that are impractical or impossible to obtain through direct observation. Disney's Animal Kingdom(®) maintains a successful breeding colony of Northern carmine bee-eaters. This African species is a cavity nester, making their nesting behavior difficult to study and manage in an ex situ setting. After initial research focused on developing a suitable nesting environment, our goal was to continue developing methods to improve reproductive success and increase likelihood of chicks fledging. We installed infrared bullet cameras in five nest boxes and connected them to a digital video recording system, with data recorded continuously through the breeding season. We then scored and summarized nesting behaviors. Using remote video methods of observation provided much insight into the behavior of the birds in the colony's nest boxes. We observed aggression between birds during the egg-laying period, and therefore immediately removed all of the eggs for artificial incubation which completely eliminated egg breakage. We also used observations of adult feeding behavior to refine chick hand-rearing diet and practices. Although many video recording configurations have been summarized and evaluated in various reviews, we found success with the digital video recorder and infrared cameras described here. Applying emerging technologies to cavity nesting avian species is a necessary addition to improving management in and sustainability of zoo avian populations. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Digital gene expression analysis of male and female bud transition in Metasequoia reveals high activity of MADS-box transcription factors and hormone-mediated sugar pathways.

PubMed

Zhao, Ying; Liang, Haiying; Li, Lan; Tang, Sha; Han, Xiao; Wang, Congpeng; Xia, Xinli; Yin, Weilun

2015-01-01

Metasequoia glyptostroboides is a famous redwood tree of ecological and economic importance, and requires more than 20 years of juvenile-to-adult transition before producing female and male cones. Previously, we induced reproductive buds using a hormone solution in juvenile Metasequoia trees as young as 5-to-7 years old. In the current study, hormone-treated shoots found in female and male buds were used to identify candidate genes involved in reproductive bud transition in Metasequoia. Samples from hormone-treated cone reproductive shoots and naturally occurring non-cone setting shoots were analyzed using 24 digital gene expression (DGE) tag profiles using Illumina, generating a total of 69,520 putative transcripts. Next, 32 differentially and specifically expressed transcripts were determined using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, including the upregulation of MADS-box transcription factors involved in male bud transition and flowering time control proteins involved in female bud transition. These differentially expressed transcripts were associated with 243 KEGG pathways. Among the significantly changed pathways, sugar pathways were mediated by hormone signals during the vegetative-to-reproductive phase transition, including glycolysis/gluconeogenesis and sucrose and starch metabolism pathways. Key enzymes were identified in these pathways, including alcohol dehydrogenase (NAD) and glutathione dehydrogenase for the glycolysis/gluconeogenesis pathway, and glucanphosphorylase for sucrose and starch metabolism pathways. Our results increase our understanding of the reproductive bud transition in gymnosperms. In addition, these studies on hormone-mediated sugar pathways increase our understanding of the relationship between sugar and hormone signaling during female and male bud initiation in Metasequoia.

Design of digital load torque observer in hybrid electric vehicle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Yukun; Zhang, Haoming; Wang, Yinghai

2008-12-01

In hybrid electric vehicle, engine begain to work only when motor was in high speed in order to decrease tail gas emission. However, permanent magnet motor was sensitive to its load, adding engine to the system always made its speed drop sharply, which caused engine to work in low efficiency again and produced much more environment pollution. Dynamic load torque model of permanent magnet synchronous motor is established on the basic of motor mechanical equation and permanent magnet synchronous motor vector control theory, Full- digital load torque observer and compensation control system is made based on TMS320F2407A. Experiment results prove load torque observer and compensation control system can detect and compensate torque disturbing effectively, which can solve load torque disturbing and decrease gas pollution of hybrid electric vehicle.

Data Mining and Information Technology: Its Impact on Intelligence Collection and Privacy Rights

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-11-26

sources include: Cameras - Digital cameras (still and video ) have been improving in capability while simultaneously dropping in cost at a rate...citizen is caught on camera 300 times each day.5 The power of extensive video coverage is magnified greatly by the nascent capability for voice and...software on security videos and tracking cell phone usage in the local area. However, it would only return the names and data of those who

Box Model of a Series of Salt Ponds, as Applied to the Alviso Salt Pond Complex, South San Francisco Bay, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lionberger, Megan A.; Schoellhamer, David H.; Shellenbarger, Gregory; Orlando, James L.; Ganju, Neil K.

2007-01-01

This report documents the development and application of a box model to simulate water level, salinity, and temperature of the Alviso Salt Pond Complex in South San Francisco Bay. These ponds were purchased for restoration in 2003 and currently are managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to maintain existing wildlife habitat and prevent a build up of salt during the development of a long-term restoration plan. The model was developed for the purpose of aiding pond managers during the current interim management period to achieve these goals. A previously developed box model of a salt pond, SPOOM, which calculates daily pond volume and salinity, was reconfigured to simulate multiple connected ponds and a temperature subroutine was added. The updated model simulates rainfall, evaporation, water flowing between the ponds and the adjacent tidal slough network, and water flowing from one pond to the next by gravity and pumps. Theoretical and measured relations between discharge and corresponding differences in water level are used to simulate most flows between ponds and between ponds and sloughs. The principle of conservation of mass is used to calculate daily pond volume and salinity. The model configuration includes management actions specified in the Interim Stewardship Plan for the ponds. The temperature subroutine calculates hourly net heat transfer to or from a pond resulting in a rise or drop in pond temperature and daily average, minimum, and maximum pond temperatures are recorded. Simulated temperature was compared with hourly measured data from pond 3 of the Napa?Sonoma Salt Pond Complex and monthly measured data from pond A14 of the Alviso Salt-Pond Complex. Comparison showed good agreement of measured and simulated pond temperature on the daily and monthly time scales.

Application of Box-Behnken design for preparation of levofloxacin-loaded stearic acid solid lipid nanoparticles for ocular delivery: Optimization, in vitro release, ocular tolerance, and antibacterial activity.

PubMed

Baig, Mirza Salman; Ahad, Abdul; Aslam, Mohammed; Imam, Syed Sarim; Aqil, Mohd; Ali, Asgar

2016-04-01

The aim of the present study was to develop and optimize levofloxacin loaded solid lipid nanoparticles for the treatment of conjunctivitis. Box-Behnken experimental design was applied for optimization of solid lipid nanoparticles. The independent variables were stearic acid as lipid (X1), Tween 80 as surfactant (X2) and sodium deoxycholate as co-surfactant (X3) while particle size (Y1) and entrapment efficiency (Y2) were the dependent variables. Further in vitro release and antibacterial activity in vitro were also performed. The optimized formulation of levofloxacin provides particle size of 237.82 nm and showed 78.71% entrapment efficiency and achieved flux 0.2,493 μg/cm(2)/h across excised goat cornea. In vitro release study showed prolonged drug release from the optimized formulation following Korsmeyer-Peppas model. Antimicrobial study revealed that the developed formulation possesses antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli equivalent to marketed eye drops. HET-CAM test demonstrated that optimized formulation was found to be non-irritant and safe for topical ophthalmic use. Our results concluded that solid lipid nanoparticles are an efficient carrier for ocular delivery of levofloxacin and other drugs. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Higher Order Modulation Intersymbol Interference Caused by Traveling-wave Tube Amplifiers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kory, Carol L.; Andro, Monty; Williams, W. D. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

For the first time, a time-dependent, physics-based computational model has been used to provide a direct description of the effects of the traveling wave tube amplifier (TWTA) on modulated digital signals. The TWT model comprehensively takes into account the effects of frequency dependent AM/AM and AM/PM conversion; gain and phase ripple; drive-induced oscillations; harmonic generation; intermodulation products; and backward waves, Thus, signal integrity can be investigated in the presence of these sources of potential distortion as a function of the physical geometry and operating characteristics of the high power amplifier and the operational digital signal. This method promises superior predictive fidelity compared to methods using TWT models based on swept-amplitude and/or swept-frequency data. First, the TWT model using the three dimensional (3D) electromagnetic code MAFIA is presented. Then, this comprehensive model is used to investigate approximations made in conventional TWT black-box models used in communication system level simulations, To quantitatively demonstrate the effects these approximations have on digital signal performance predictions, including intersymbol interference (ISI), the MAFIA results are compared to the system level analysis tool, Signal Processing, Workstation (SPW), using high order modulation schemes including 16 and 64-QAM.

Intersymbol Interference Investigations Using a 3D Time-Dependent Traveling Wave Tube Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kory, Carol L.; Andro, Monty

2002-01-01

For the first time, a time-dependent, physics-based computational model has been used to provide a direct description of the effects of the traveling wave tube amplifier (TWTA) on modulated digital signals. The TWT model comprehensively takes into account the effects of frequency dependent AM/AM and AM/PM conversion; gain and phase ripple; drive-induced oscillations; harmonic generation; intermodulation products; and backward waves. Thus, signal integrity can be investigated in the presence of these sources of potential distortion as a function of the physical geometry and operating characteristics of the high power amplifier and the operational digital signal. This method promises superior predictive fidelity compared to methods using TWT models based on swept- amplitude and/or swept-frequency data. First, the TWT model using the three dimensional (3D) electromagnetic code MAFIA is presented. Then, this comprehensive model is used to investigate approximations made in conventional TWT black-box models used in communication system level simulations. To quantitatively demonstrate the effects these approximations have on digital signal performance predictions, including intersymbol interference (ISI), the MAFIA results are compared to the system level analysis tool, Signal Processing Workstation (SPW), using high order modulation schemes including 16 and 64-QAM.

Out-of-plane ultrasonic velocity measurement

DOEpatents

Hall, M.S.; Brodeur, P.H.; Jackson, T.G.

1998-07-14

A method for improving the accuracy of measuring the velocity and time of flight of ultrasonic signals through moving web-like materials such as paper, paperboard and the like, includes a pair of ultrasonic transducers disposed on opposing sides of a moving web-like material. In order to provide acoustical coupling between the transducers and the web-like material, the transducers are disposed in fluid-filled wheels. Errors due to variances in the wheel thicknesses about their circumference which can affect time of flight measurements and ultimately the mechanical property being tested are compensated by averaging the ultrasonic signals for a predetermined number of revolutions. The invention further includes a method for compensating for errors resulting from the digitization of the ultrasonic signals. More particularly, the invention includes a method for eliminating errors known as trigger jitter inherent with digitizing oscilloscopes used to digitize the signals for manipulation by a digital computer. In particular, rather than cross-correlate ultrasonic signals taken during different sample periods as is known in the art in order to determine the time of flight of the ultrasonic signal through the moving web, a pulse echo box is provided to enable cross-correlation of predetermined transmitted ultrasonic signals with predetermined reflected ultrasonic or echo signals during the sample period. By cross-correlating ultrasonic signals in the same sample period, the error associated with trigger jitter is eliminated. 20 figs.

Out-of-plane ultrasonic velocity measurement

DOEpatents

Hall, Maclin S.; Brodeur, Pierre H.; Jackson, Theodore G.

1998-01-01

A method for improving the accuracy of measuring the velocity and time of flight of ultrasonic signals through moving web-like materials such as paper, paperboard and the like, includes a pair of ultrasonic transducers disposed on opposing sides of a moving web-like material. In order to provide acoustical coupling between the transducers and the web-like material, the transducers are disposed in fluid-filled wheels. Errors due to variances in the wheel thicknesses about their circumference which can affect time of flight measurements and ultimately the mechanical property being tested are compensated by averaging the ultrasonic signals for a predetermined number of revolutions. The invention further includes a method for compensating for errors resulting from the digitization of the ultrasonic signals. More particularly, the invention includes a method for eliminating errors known as trigger jitter inherent with digitizing oscilloscopes used to digitize the signals for manipulation by a digital computer. In particular, rather than cross-correlate ultrasonic signals taken during different sample periods as is known in the art in order to determine the time of flight of the ultrasonic signal through the moving web, a pulse echo box is provided to enable cross-correlation of predetermined transmitted ultrasonic signals with predetermined reflected ultrasonic or echo signals during the sample period. By cross-correlating ultrasonic signals in the same sample period, the error associated with trigger jitter is eliminated.

An object-based approach for tree species extraction from digital orthophoto maps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jamil, Akhtar; Bayram, Bulent

2018-05-01

Tree segmentation is an active and ongoing research area in the field of photogrammetry and remote sensing. It is more challenging due to both intra-class and inter-class similarities among various tree species. In this study, we exploited various statistical features for extraction of hazelnut trees from 1 : 5000 scaled digital orthophoto maps. Initially, the non-vegetation areas were eliminated using traditional normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) followed by application of mean shift segmentation for transforming the pixels into meaningful homogeneous objects. In order to eliminate false positives, morphological opening and closing was employed on candidate objects. A number of heuristics were also derived to eliminate unwanted effects such as shadow and bounding box aspect ratios, before passing them into the classification stage. Finally, a knowledge based decision tree was constructed to distinguish the hazelnut trees from rest of objects which include manmade objects and other type of vegetation. We evaluated the proposed methodology on 10 sample orthophoto maps obtained from Giresun province in Turkey. The manually digitized hazelnut tree boundaries were taken as reference data for accuracy assessment. Both manually digitized and segmented tree borders were converted into binary images and the differences were calculated. According to the obtained results, the proposed methodology obtained an overall accuracy of more than 85 % for all sample images.

Incorporating electronic media into medical student education: a survey of AMSER members on computer and web use in radiology courses. Alliance of Medical Student Educators in Radiology.

PubMed

Durfee, Sara M; Jain, Sidney; Shaffer, Kitt

2003-02-01

The purpose of this study was to define the current use of information technology in radiology tutorials for medical students. The authors conducted a Web-based survey of directors of medical school courses in radiology. The survey dealt with the details of the courses and the use of computers and the Web during the courses. There were 48 responses. Most radiology courses were elective (73%) and were offered monthly. Most institutions (79%) had picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) available or were completely filmless. The teaching case presentations, however, often included film images displayed on a view box or by an overhead projector. Computers dedicated to student use were uncommon (28%). The Web was used infrequently as a teaching resource, and a Web site was not available in most courses. Computer technical support was variable and usually provided by the course director. Course directors at institutions with PACS were more likely to use digital technology for case presentations and more likely to use the Web for teaching purposes. Despite the widespread use of digital technology and PACS in the field of radiology, digital technology is underused in radiology courses. However, departments with PACS tend to use digital technology more frequently in education than do departments without PACS.

A Macintosh-Based Scientific Images Video Analysis System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Groleau, Nicolas; Friedland, Peter (Technical Monitor)

1994-01-01

A set of experiments was designed at MIT's Man-Vehicle Laboratory in order to evaluate the effects of zero gravity on the human orientation system. During many of these experiments, the movements of the eyes are recorded on high quality video cassettes. The images must be analyzed off-line to calculate the position of the eyes at every moment in time. To this aim, I have implemented a simple inexpensive computerized system which measures the angle of rotation of the eye from digitized video images. The system is implemented on a desktop Macintosh computer, processes one play-back frame per second and exhibits adequate levels of accuracy and precision. The system uses LabVIEW, a digital output board, and a video input board to control a VCR, digitize video images, analyze them, and provide a user friendly interface for the various phases of the process. The system uses the Concept Vi LabVIEW library (Graftek's Image, Meudon la Foret, France) for image grabbing and displaying as well as translation to and from LabVIEW arrays. Graftek's software layer drives an Image Grabber board from Neotech (Eastleigh, United Kingdom). A Colour Adapter box from Neotech provides adequate video signal synchronization. The system also requires a LabVIEW driven digital output board (MacADIOS II from GW Instruments, Cambridge, MA) controlling a slightly modified VCR remote control used mainly to advance the video tape frame by frame.

Colliding nuclei to colliding galaxies: Illustrations using a simple colliding liquid-drop apparatus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Becchetti, F. D.; Mack, S. L.; Robinson, W. R.; Ojaruega, M.

2015-10-01

A simple apparatus suitable for observing the collisions between drops of fluids of various properties is described. Typical results are shown for experiments performed by undergraduate students using various types of fluids. The collisions take place under free-fall (zero-g) conditions, with analysis employing digital video. Two specific types of collisions are examined in detail, head-on collisions and peripheral, grazing collisions. The collisions for certain fluids illustrate many types of nuclear collisions and provide useful insight into these processes, including both fusion and non-fusion outcomes, often with the formation of exotic shapes or emission of secondary fragments. Collisions of other liquids show a more chaotic behavior, often resembling galactic collisions. As expected, the Weber number associated with a specific collision impact parameter is found to be the important quantity in determining the initial outcome of these colliding systems. The features observed resemble those reported by others using more elaborate experimental techniques.

Laser Calibration of an Impact Disdrometer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lane, John E.; Kasparis, Takis; Metzger, Philip T.; Jones, W. Linwood

2014-01-01

A practical approach to developing an operational low-cost disdrometer hinges on implementing an effective in situ adaptive calibration strategy. This calibration strategy lowers the cost of the device and provides a method to guarantee continued automatic calibration. In previous work, a collocated tipping bucket rain gauge was utilized to provide a calibration signal to the disdrometer's digital signal processing software. Rainfall rate is proportional to the 11/3 moment of the drop size distribution (a 7/2 moment can also be assumed, depending on the choice of terminal velocity relationship). In the previous case, the disdrometer calibration was characterized and weighted to the 11/3 moment of the drop size distribution (DSD). Optical extinction by rainfall is proportional to the 2nd moment of the DSD. Using visible laser light as a means to focus and generate an auxiliary calibration signal, the adaptive calibration processing is significantly improved.

Detection of seizures from small samples using nonlinear dynamic system theory.

PubMed

Yaylali, I; Koçak, H; Jayakar, P

1996-07-01

The electroencephalogram (EEG), like many other biological phenomena, is quite likely governed by nonlinear dynamics. Certain characteristics of the underlying dynamics have recently been quantified by computing the correlation dimensions (D2) of EEG time series data. In this paper, D2 of the unbiased autocovariance function of the scalp EEG data was used to detect electrographic seizure activity. Digital EEG data were acquired at a sampling rate of 200 Hz per channel and organized in continuous frames (duration 2.56 s, 512 data points). To increase the reliability of D2 computations with short duration data, raw EEG data were initially simplified using unbiased autocovariance analysis to highlight the periodic activity that is present during seizures. The D2 computation was then performed from the unbiased autocovariance function of each channel using the Grassberger-Procaccia method with Theiler's box-assisted correlation algorithm. Even with short duration data, this preprocessing proved to be computationally robust and displayed no significant sensitivity to implementation details such as the choices of embedding dimension and box size. The system successfully identified various types of seizures in clinical studies.

Multi-modality 3D breast imaging with X-Ray tomosynthesis and automated ultrasound.

PubMed

Sinha, Sumedha P; Roubidoux, Marilyn A; Helvie, Mark A; Nees, Alexis V; Goodsitt, Mitchell M; LeCarpentier, Gerald L; Fowlkes, J Brian; Chalek, Carl L; Carson, Paul L

2007-01-01

This study evaluated the utility of 3D automated ultrasound in conjunction with 3D digital X-Ray tomosynthesis for breast cancer detection and assessment, to better localize and characterize lesions in the breast. Tomosynthesis image volumes and automated ultrasound image volumes were acquired in the same geometry and in the same view for 27 patients. 3 MQSA certified radiologists independently reviewed the image volumes, visually correlating the images from the two modalities with in-house software. More sophisticated software was used on a smaller set of 10 cases, which enabled the radiologist to draw a 3D box around the suspicious lesion in one image set and isolate an anatomically correlated, similarly boxed region in the other modality image set. In the primary study, correlation was found to be moderately useful to the readers. In the additional study, using improved software, the median usefulness rating increased and confidence in localizing and identifying the suspicious mass increased in more than half the cases. As automated scanning and reading software techniques advance, superior results are expected.

Factors Contributing to Pelvis Instability in Female Adolescent Athletes During Unilateral Repeated Partial Squat Activity

PubMed Central

Scarborough, Donna Moxley; Linderman, Shannon; Berkson, Eric M.; Oh, Luke S.

2017-01-01

Objectives: Unilateral partial squat tasks are often used to assess athletes’ lower extremity (LE) neuromuscular control. Single squat biomechanics such as lateral drop of the non-stance limb’s pelvis have been linked to knee injury risk. Yet, there are limited studies on the factors contributing to pelvic instability during the unilateral partial squat such as anatomical alignment of the knee and hip strength. The purpose of this study was 1) to assess the influence of leg dominance on pelvic drop among female athletes during the repeated unilateral partial squat activity and 2) to investigate the contributions that lower limb kinematics and hip strength have on pelvis drop. Methods: 42 female athletes (27= softball pitchers, 15=gymnasts, avg age=16.48 ± 2.54 years) underwent lower limb assessment. The quadriceps angle (Q angle) and the average of 3 trials for hip abduction and extension strength (handheld dynamometer measurements) were used for analyses. 3D biomechanical analysis of the repeated unilateral partial squat activity followed using a 20 motion capture camera system which created a 15 segment model of each subject. The subject stood on one leg at the lateral edge of a 17.78 cm box with hands placed on the hips and squatted so that the free hanging contralateral limb came as close to the ground without contact for 5 continuous repetitions. One trial for each limb was performed. Peak pelvic drop and ankle, knee and hip angles and torques (normalized by weight) at this time point were calculated using Visual 3D (C-Motion) biomechanical software. Paired T-test, Spearman correlations and multiple regression model statistical analyses were performed. Results: Peak pelvic drop during the unilateral partial squat did not differ significantly on the basis of limb dominance (p=0.831, Dom: -3.40 ± 5.10° , ND: -3.46 ± 4.44°). Peak pelvic drop displayed a Spearman correlation with the functional measure of hip abduction/adduction (ABD/ADD) angle (rs= 0.627, p< 0.001) (Figure 1). No association was noted between peak pelvic drop and anatomical measures of Q angle or isometric hip extension strength. A multiple regression was performed to predict pelvis drop angle from the following 6 variables: isometric hip ABD strength, hip ABD/ADD angle, hip internal/external rotation angle, ankle supination/pronation (S/P) angle, height and weight. These variables statistically predicted pelvis drop, F(6,73) = 17.848, p < .0005, R2 = 0.595. The strongest combined predictor variables for pelvic drop in the female athletes were hip abduction/ adduction angle and strength followed by subject’s weight and ankle S/P angle (Table 1). Conclusion: Peak pelvic drop during the repeated unilateral partial squat activity did not correlate significantly with Q angle and hip extension strength. Instead, peak pelvic drop appears more related to a combination of biomechanical limb positioning, hip ABD strength and subject demographics. The regression model run on the repeated unilateral partial squat demonstrates predictive power of this dynamic assessment tool based on kinematic measures across multiple joints. Results could guide clinician screening for excessive pelvic drop in female athletes and based on the predictive model make recommendations for corrective conditioning to help prevent knee injury and guide return to sport following LE surgery. Table 1: Multivariate linear regression model for pelvic drop, Isometric hip strength and lower extremity kinematics during repeated partial squat activity among female athletes. Variable P Isometric hip abduction strength 0.034* Hip Abduction/Adduction Angle <0.001* Hip Internal/External Rotation Angle 0.936 Ankle Internal/External Rotation Angle 0.072 Height 0.398 Weight 0.011* * Level of significance established at p<0.05

Time course of changes in tear meniscus radius and blink rate after instillation of artificial tears.

PubMed

Bandlitz, Stefan; Purslow, Christine; Murphy, Paul J; Pult, Heiko

2014-08-26

Using a novel digital meniscometer (PDM), alterations in tear meniscus radius (TMR) were measured simultaneously with blink rate (BR) following the instillation of artificial tears. Central TMR and BR of 22 subjects (11 male and 11 female; mean age, 24.3 ± 2.6 SD years) were measured at baseline, and 0, 1, 5, 10, and 30 minutes after instillation of an artificial tear containing hydroxypropyl-guar and glycol (SYS) or saline (SAL). A dose of 35 μL was applied in one eye in a randomized order with a washout period between each drop. For SAL, compared to baseline TMR (0.33 ± 0.08 mm), TMR significantly increased with drop instillation (1.55 ± 0.69 mm) and at 1 minute (0.66 ± 0.36 mm; P < 0.05), but returned to baseline after 5 minutes. For SYS, TMR (0.32 ± 0.07 mm) remained significantly increased after application (1.62 ± 0.81 mm), and at 1 minute (0.81 ± 0.43 mm) and 5 minutes (0.39 ± 0.08 mm; P < 0.05). Compared to baseline BR with SAL (14.8 ± 7.7) and SYS (14.9 ± 9.4), values were significantly increased upon drop instillation (22.5 ± 11.8; 21.3 ± 11.8; P < 0.05), but returned to baseline after 1 minute. Dry eye symptoms were correlated with baseline BR (r = 0.550, P = 0.008). Results indicate that PDM can detect changes in TMR following instillation of artificial tears. Difference in residence time reflects the different viscosity of each drop. An overload with a large drop may result in an initially increased BR. Copyright 2014 The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, Inc.

Frank Snodgrass 1920-1985

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Munk, Walter

Frank Snodgrass died this morning on his farm in Oregon. He had been my partner for 23 years prior to his retirement in 1976.So many oceanographic techniques that are taken for granted today were introduced by Frank. He pioneered digital recording. He was the first (in 1965) to drop gear in freefall to the sea floor for subsequent acoustic recall. I believe that he was the first to use a portable sea-going laboratory. We still use the frame of Frank's first model, which dates back over 20 years.

A Digital Signal Processor for Doppler Radar Sensing of Vital Signs

DTIC Science & Technology

2001-10-25

shows a small spike halfway each heartbeat. This is known as the dicrotic notch , which signifies a sudden drop in pressure after systolic contraction...It is caused by a small reflux flow of blood back into the aortic valve and coronary vessels. This dicrotic notch in the heart signal is clipped...signal, and amax was the maximum amplitude of the signal in the specified window. The user could set the factor k, and it determined the threshold at

Highlight shapes and perception of gloss for real and photographed objects.

PubMed

van Assen, Jan Jaap R; Wijntjes, Maarten W A; Pont, Sylvia C

2016-01-01

Gloss perception strongly depends on the three-dimensional shape and the illumination of the object under consideration. In this study we investigated the influence of the spatial structure of the illumination on gloss perception. A diffuse light box in combination with differently shaped masks was used to produce a set of six simple and complex highlight shapes. The geometry of the simple highlight shapes was inspired by conventional artistic practice (e.g., ring flash for photography, window shape for painting and disk or square for cartoons). In the box we placed spherical stimuli that were painted in six degrees of glossiness. This resulted in a stimulus set of six highlight shapes and six gloss levels, a total of 36 stimuli. We performed three experiments of which two took place using digital photographs on a computer monitor and one with the real spheres in the light box. The observers had to perform a comparison task in which they chose which of two stimuli was glossiest and a rating task in which they rated the glossiness. The results show that, perhaps surprisingly, more complex highlight shapes were perceived to produce a less glossy appearance than simple highlight shapes such as a disk or square. These findings were confirmed for both viewing conditions, on a computer display and in a real setting. The results show that variations in the spatial structure of "rather simple" illumination of the "extended source" type highlight influences perceived glossiness.

High-Altitude Balloon Launches for Effective Education, Inspiration and Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Voss, H. D.; Dailey, J.; Patterson, D.; Krueger, J.

2006-12-01

Over a three-year period the Taylor University Science Research Training Program (SRTP) has successfully launched and recovered 33 sophisticated payloads to altitudes between 20-33 km (100% success with rapid recovery). All of the payloads included two GPS tracking systems, cameras and monitors, a 110 kbit down link, and uplink command capability for educational experiments (K-12 and undergrad) and nanosatellite subsystem testing. Launches were conducted both day and night, with multiple balloons, with up to 10 experiment boxes, and under varying weather and upper atmospheric conditions. The many launches in a short period of time allowed the payload bus design to evolve toward increased performance, reliability, standardization, simplicity, and modularity for low-cost launch services. The current design uses a Zigbee wireless connection (50 kbaud rate) for each of the payload experiment boxes for rapid assembly and checkout with a common interface board for gathering analog and digital data and for commanding. Common data from each box is processed and displayed using modular LabView software. The use of balloons for active research (ozone, aerosols, cosmic rays. UV, IR, remote sensing, energy, propulsion) significantly invigorates and motivates student development, drives team schedule, uncovers unexpected problems, permits end-to-end closure, and forces calibration and validation of real data. The SRTP has helped to spin off a student company called StratoStar Systems for providing an affordable low-cost balloon launch service capability, insurance plan, and other technical assistance for scientific, industrial and STEM educational use.

Digital Genome-Wide ncRNA Expression, Including SnoRNAs, across 11 Human Tissues Using PolyA-Neutral Amplification

PubMed Central

Castle, John C.; Armour, Christopher D.; Löwer, Martin; Haynor, David; Biery, Matthew; Bouzek, Heather; Chen, Ronghua; Jackson, Stuart; Johnson, Jason M.; Rohl, Carol A.; Raymond, Christopher K.

2010-01-01

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are an essential class of molecular species that have been difficult to monitor on high throughput platforms due to frequent lack of polyadenylation. Using a polyadenylation-neutral amplification protocol and next-generation sequencing, we explore ncRNA expression in eleven human tissues. ncRNAs 7SL, U2, 7SK, and HBII-52 are expressed at levels far exceeding mRNAs. C/D and H/ACA box snoRNAs are associated with rRNA methylation and pseudouridylation, respectively: spleen expresses both, hypothalamus expresses mainly C/D box snoRNAs, and testes show enriched expression of both H/ACA box snoRNAs and RNA telomerase TERC. Within the snoRNA 14q cluster, 14q(I-6) is expressed at much higher levels than other cluster members. More reads align to mitochondrial than nuclear tRNAs. Many lincRNAs are actively transcribed, particularly those overlapping known ncRNAs. Within the Prader-Willi syndrome loci, the snoRNA HBII-85 (group I) cluster is highly expressed in hypothalamus, greater than in other tissues and greater than group II or III. Additionally, within the disease locus we find novel transcription across a 400,000 nt span in ovaries. This genome-wide polyA-neutral expression compendium demonstrates the richness of ncRNA expression, their high expression patterns, their function-specific expression patterns, and is publicly available. PMID:20668672

How to Manage Rejected Scientific Papers? UNAIS as Final Solution.

PubMed

Diana, Alessandro

2012-01-01

Before publication, biomedical papers might undergo a very complex process, from journal selection, authors' motivations for submissions, modifications, and final publication or refusal. UNAIS (Unpublished Articles In Science) is an online repository in which authors can publish previously rejected scientific articles or articles that have never been submitted for publication. At UNAIS, authors can also publish the reasons behind the refusals to publication. UNAIS is more than an e-journal: it is a scientific drop box in which scientists can find indicative and negative results, as well as ideas that can inspire others. UNAIS's goal is also to help students and scientists who want to learn how to write scientific articles. UNAIS' aim is to exchange and promote knowledge. Have a look on www.unais.net.

Clock jitter generator with picoseconds resolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jovanović, Goran; Stojčev, Mile; Nikolić, Tatjana

2013-06-01

The clock is one of the most critical signals in any synchronous system. As CMOS technology has scaled, supply voltages have dropped chip power consumption has increased and the effects of jitter due to clock frequency increase have become critical and jitter budget has become tighter. This article describes design and development of low-cost mixed-signal programmable jitter generator with high resolution. The digital technique is used for coarse-grain and an analogue technique for fine-grain clock phase shifting. Its structure allows injection of various random and deterministic jitter components in a controllable and programmable fashion. Each jitter component can be switched on or off. The jitter generator can be used in jitter tolerance test and jitter transfer function measurement of high-speed synchronous digital circuits. At operating system clock frequency of 220 MHz, a jitter with 4 ps resolution can be injected.

Electronic drop sensing in microfluidic devices: automated operation of a nanoliter viscometer

PubMed Central

Srivastava, Nimisha; Burns, Mark A.

2007-01-01

We describe three droplet sensing techniques: a digital electrode, an analog electrode, and a thermal method. All three techniques use a single layer of metal lines that is easy to microfabricate and an electronic signal can be produced using low DC voltages. While the electrode methods utilize changes in electrical conductivity when the air/liquid interface of the droplet passes over a pair of electrodes, the thermal method is based on convective heat loss from a locally heated region. For the electrode method, the analog technique is able to detect 25 nL droplets while the digital technique is capable of detecting droplets as small as 100 pL. For thermal sensing, temperature profiles in the range of 36 °C and higher were used. Finally, we have used the digital electrode method and an array of electrodes located at preset distances to automate the operation of a previously described microfluidic viscometer. The viscometer is completely controlled by a laptop computer, and the total time for operation including setup, calibration, sample addition and viscosity calculation is approximately 4 minutes. PMID:16738725

Fractal scaling of apparent soil moisture estimated from vertical planes of Vertisol pit images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cumbrera, Ramiro; Tarquis, Ana M.; Gascó, Gabriel; Millán, Humberto

2012-07-01

SummaryImage analysis could be a useful tool for investigating the spatial patterns of apparent soil moisture at multiple resolutions. The objectives of the present work were (i) to define apparent soil moisture patterns from vertical planes of Vertisol pit images and (ii) to describe the scaling of apparent soil moisture distribution using fractal parameters. Twelve soil pits (0.70 m long × 0.60 m width × 0.30 m depth) were excavated on a bare Mazic Pellic Vertisol. Six of them were excavated in April/2011 and six pits were established in May/2011 after 3 days of a moderate rainfall event. Digital photographs were taken from each Vertisol pit using a Kodak™ digital camera. The mean image size was 1600 × 945 pixels with one physical pixel ≈373 μm of the photographed soil pit. Each soil image was analyzed using two fractal scaling exponents, box counting (capacity) dimension (DBC) and interface fractal dimension (Di), and three prefractal scaling coefficients, the total number of boxes intercepting the foreground pattern at a unit scale (A), fractal lacunarity at the unit scale (Λ1) and Shannon entropy at the unit scale (S1). All the scaling parameters identified significant differences between both sets of spatial patterns. Fractal lacunarity was the best discriminator between apparent soil moisture patterns. Soil image interpretation with fractal exponents and prefractal coefficients can be incorporated within a site-specific agriculture toolbox. While fractal exponents convey information on space filling characteristics of the pattern, prefractal coefficients represent the investigated soil property as seen through a higher resolution microscope. In spite of some computational and practical limitations, image analysis of apparent soil moisture patterns could be used in connection with traditional soil moisture sampling, which always renders punctual estimates.

Digital gene expression analysis of male and female bud transition in Metasequoia reveals high activity of MADS-box transcription factors and hormone-mediated sugar pathways

PubMed Central

Zhao, Ying; Liang, Haiying; Li, Lan; Tang, Sha; Han, Xiao; Wang, Congpeng; Xia, Xinli; Yin, Weilun

2015-01-01

Metasequoia glyptostroboides is a famous redwood tree of ecological and economic importance, and requires more than 20 years of juvenile-to-adult transition before producing female and male cones. Previously, we induced reproductive buds using a hormone solution in juvenile Metasequoia trees as young as 5-to-7 years old. In the current study, hormone-treated shoots found in female and male buds were used to identify candidate genes involved in reproductive bud transition in Metasequoia. Samples from hormone-treated cone reproductive shoots and naturally occurring non-cone setting shoots were analyzed using 24 digital gene expression (DGE) tag profiles using Illumina, generating a total of 69,520 putative transcripts. Next, 32 differentially and specifically expressed transcripts were determined using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, including the upregulation of MADS-box transcription factors involved in male bud transition and flowering time control proteins involved in female bud transition. These differentially expressed transcripts were associated with 243 KEGG pathways. Among the significantly changed pathways, sugar pathways were mediated by hormone signals during the vegetative-to-reproductive phase transition, including glycolysis/gluconeogenesis and sucrose and starch metabolism pathways. Key enzymes were identified in these pathways, including alcohol dehydrogenase (NAD) and glutathione dehydrogenase for the glycolysis/gluconeogenesis pathway, and glucanphosphorylase for sucrose and starch metabolism pathways. Our results increase our understanding of the reproductive bud transition in gymnosperms. In addition, these studies on hormone-mediated sugar pathways increase our understanding of the relationship between sugar and hormone signaling during female and male bud initiation in Metasequoia. PMID:26157452

Design and Use of a Guided Weight Impactor to Impart Barely Visible Impact Damage

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lovejoy, Andrew E.; Przekop, Adam

2016-01-01

Aircraft structure is required to demonstrate satisfaction of the FAR requirements for Category 1, such as barely visible impact damage (BVID). Typical aircraft structure is impacted using a dropped weight impactor, which can impart BVID to the top surface of the structure. A recent test of a multi-bay box (MBB) composite test article, that represents an 80% scale center section of a hybrid wing body aircraft, required impact to be in a direction other than vertical from above, but still in an direction that is normal to the surface. This requirement eliminated the use of the conventional dropped weight impactor. Therefore, a design study was undertaken to determine the most effective way to efficiently and reliably impact the MBB. The chosen design was a guided weight impactor that is gravity driven. This paper describes the design of the guided weight impactor, and presents the results of its use for imparting BVID to the MBB. The guided weight impactor was seen to be a very reliable method to impart BVID, while at the same time having the capability to be highly configurable for use on other aircraft structure that is impacted at a variety of impact energies and from a variety of directions.

Relationship between resolution and accuracy of four intraoral scanners in complete-arch impressions

PubMed Central

Pascual-Moscardó, Agustín; Camps, Isabel

2018-01-01

Background The scanner does not measure the dental surface continually. Instead, it generates a point cloud, and these points are then joined to form the scanned object. This approximation will depend on the number of points generated (resolution), which can lead to low accuracy (trueness and precision) when fewer points are obtained. The purpose of this study is to determine the resolution of four intraoral digital imaging systems and to demonstrate the relationship between accuracy and resolution of the intraoral scanner in impressions of a complete dental arch. Material and Methods A master cast of the complete maxillary arch was prepared with different dental preparations. Using four digital impression systems, the cast was scanned inside of a black methacrylate box, obtaining a total of 40 digital impressions from each scanner. The resolution was obtained by dividing the number of points of each digital impression by the total surface area of the cast. Accuracy was evaluated using a three-dimensional measurement software, using the “best alignment” method of the casts with a highly faithful reference model obtained from an industrial scanner. Pearson correlation was used for statistical analysis of the data. Results Of the intraoral scanners, Omnicam is the system with the best resolution, with 79.82 points per mm2, followed by True Definition with 54.68 points per mm2, Trios with 41.21 points per mm2, and iTero with 34.20 points per mm2. However, the study found no relationship between resolution and accuracy of the study digital impression systems (P >0.05), except for Omnicam and its precision. Conclusions The resolution of the digital impression systems has no relationship with the accuracy they achieve in the impression of a complete dental arch. The study found that the Omnicam scanner is the system that obtains the best resolution, and that as the resolution increases, its precision increases. Key words:Trueness, precision, accuracy, resolution, intraoral scanner, digital impression. PMID:29750097

Medical-grade footwear: the impact of fit and comfort.

PubMed

Hurst, Bessie; Branthwaite, Helen; Greenhalgh, Andrew; Chockalingam, Nachiappan

2017-01-01

Pressure-related skin lesions on the digits are a significant cause of discomfort. Most foot pain related to ill-fitting shoes occurs in the forefoot and digital areas. Pain has been associated with poor shoe fit, reduced toe box volume, as well as contour and shape of the shoe Off-the-shelf medical-grade footwear is designed as an intervention for chronic lesions on the digits. These shoes are designed with a flexible neoprene fabric upper that is thought to reduce pressure on the forefoot and reduce discomfort associated with ill-fitting shoes. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of an off-the-shelf, medical-grade shoe on dorsal digital pressure and perceived comfort when compared to participant's own preferred shoe. Thirty participants (18 females, 12 males) scored their perceived comfort whilst wearing each footwear style using a visual analog comfort scale. Dorsal digital and interdigital pressures were measured in using the WalkinSense® in-shoe pressure system. Sensors were placed on predetermined anatomical landmarks on the digits. Participants were randomly assigned the test shoe and their own shoe. Once wearing the shoe, the participants walked across a 6 m walkway and pressure data from each sensor was collected and processed to obtain peak pressure, time to peak pressure and contact time. Participants scored the test shoe with higher comfort points than their own footwear. Overall peak pressure, pressure time integral and contact time decreased, whilst the time taken to reach peak pressure increased across all anatomical landmarks whilst wearing the test shoe. Statistically significant changes were observed for all of the measured variables relating to pressure on the medial border of the first metatarsophalangeal joint. The test shoe provided greater comfort and reduced the amount of pressure on the forefoot. The medical-grade footwear therefore, is a viable alternative to custom made prescription footwear and is more suitable than a regular everyday shoe when treating digital lesions associated with pressure.

Three-Dimensional Computer-Aided Detection of Microcalcification Clusters in Digital Breast Tomosynthesis.

PubMed

Jeong, Ji-Wook; Chae, Seung-Hoon; Chae, Eun Young; Kim, Hak Hee; Choi, Young-Wook; Lee, Sooyeul

2016-01-01

We propose computer-aided detection (CADe) algorithm for microcalcification (MC) clusters in reconstructed digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) images. The algorithm consists of prescreening, MC detection, clustering, and false-positive (FP) reduction steps. The DBT images containing the MC-like objects were enhanced by a multiscale Hessian-based three-dimensional (3D) objectness response function and a connected-component segmentation method was applied to extract the cluster seed objects as potential clustering centers of MCs. Secondly, a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) enhanced image was also generated to detect the individual MC candidates and prescreen the MC-like objects. Each cluster seed candidate was prescreened by counting neighboring individual MC candidates nearby the cluster seed object according to several microcalcification clustering criteria. As a second step, we introduced bounding boxes for the accepted seed candidate, clustered all the overlapping cubes, and examined. After the FP reduction step, the average number of FPs per case was estimated to be 2.47 per DBT volume with a sensitivity of 83.3%.

A study of kinematic cues and anticipatory performance in tennis using computational manipulation and computer graphics.

PubMed

Ida, Hirofumi; Fukuhara, Kazunobu; Kusubori, Seiji; Ishii, Motonobu

2011-09-01

Computer graphics of digital human models can be used to display human motions as visual stimuli. This study presents our technique for manipulating human motion with a forward kinematics calculation without violating anatomical constraints. A motion modulation of the upper extremity was conducted by proportionally modulating the anatomical joint angular velocity calculated by motion analysis. The effect of this manipulation was examined in a tennis situation--that is, the receiver's performance of predicting ball direction when viewing a digital model of the server's motion derived by modulating the angular velocities of the forearm or that of the elbow during the forward swing. The results showed that the faster the server's forearm pronated, the more the receiver's anticipation of the ball direction tended to the left side of the serve box. In contrast, the faster the server's elbow extended, the more the receiver's anticipation of the ball direction tended to the right. This suggests that tennis players are sensitive to the motion modulation of their opponent's racket-arm.

a Quadtree Organization Construction and Scheduling Method for Urban 3d Model Based on Weight

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yao, C.; Peng, G.; Song, Y.; Duan, M.

2017-09-01

The increasement of Urban 3D model precision and data quantity puts forward higher requirements for real-time rendering of digital city model. Improving the organization, management and scheduling of 3D model data in 3D digital city can improve the rendering effect and efficiency. This paper takes the complexity of urban models into account, proposes a Quadtree construction and scheduling rendering method for Urban 3D model based on weight. Divide Urban 3D model into different rendering weights according to certain rules, perform Quadtree construction and schedule rendering according to different rendering weights. Also proposed an algorithm for extracting bounding box extraction based on model drawing primitives to generate LOD model automatically. Using the algorithm proposed in this paper, developed a 3D urban planning&management software, the practice has showed the algorithm is efficient and feasible, the render frame rate of big scene and small scene are both stable at around 25 frames.

Millisecond precision psychological research in a world of commodity computers: new hardware, new problems?

PubMed

Plant, Richard R; Turner, Garry

2009-08-01

Since the publication of Plant, Hammond, and Turner (2004), which highlighted a pressing need for researchers to pay more attention to sources of error in computer-based experiments, the landscape has undoubtedly changed, but not necessarily for the better. Readily available hardware has improved in terms of raw speed; multi core processors abound; graphics cards now have hundreds of megabytes of RAM; main memory is measured in gigabytes; drive space is measured in terabytes; ever larger thin film transistor displays capable of single-digit response times, together with newer Digital Light Processing multimedia projectors, enable much greater graphic complexity; and new 64-bit operating systems, such as Microsoft Vista, are now commonplace. However, have millisecond-accurate presentation and response timing improved, and will they ever be available in commodity computers and peripherals? In the present article, we used a Black Box ToolKit to measure the variability in timing characteristics of hardware used commonly in psychological research.

Evaluation of computer-aided detection of lesions in mammograms obtained with a digital phase-contrast mammography system.

PubMed

Tanaka, Toyohiko; Nitta, Norihisa; Ohta, Shinichi; Kobayashi, Tsuyoshi; Kano, Akiko; Tsuchiya, Keiko; Murakami, Yoko; Kitahara, Sawako; Wakamiya, Makoto; Furukawa, Akira; Takahashi, Masashi; Murata, Kiyoshi

2009-12-01

A computer-aided detection (CAD) system was evaluated for its ability to detect microcalcifications and masses on images obtained with a digital phase-contrast mammography (PCM) system, a system characterised by the sharp images provided by phase contrast and by the high resolution of 25-μm-pixel mammograms. Fifty abnormal and 50 normal mammograms were collected from about 3,500 mammograms and printed on film for reading on a light box. Seven qualified radiologists participated in an observer study based on receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The average of the areas under ROC curve (AUC) values for the ROC analysis with and without CAD were 0.927 and 0.897 respectively (P = 0.015). The AUC values improved from 0.840 to 0.888 for microcalcifications (P = 0.034) and from 0.947 to 0.962 for masses (P = 0.025) respectively. The application of CAD to the PCM system is a promising approach for the detection of breast cancer in its early stages.

Droplet Velocity Measurement Based on Dielectric Layer Thickness Variation Using Digital Microfluidic Devices.

PubMed

Zulkepli, Siti Noor Idora Syafinaz; Hamid, Nor Hisham; Shukla, Vineeta

2018-05-08

In recent years, the number of interdisciplinary research works related to the development of miniaturized systems with integrated chemical and biological analyses is increasing. Digital microfluidic biochips (DMFBs) are one kind of miniaturized systems designed for conducting inexpensive, fast, convenient and reliable biochemical assay procedures focusing on basic scientific research and medical diagnostics. The role of a dielectric layer in the digital microfluidic biochips is prominent as it helps in actuating microliter droplets based on the electrowetting-on-dielectric (EWOD) technique. The advantages of using three different material layers of dielectric such as parafilm, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) were reported in the current work. A simple fabrication process of a digital microfluidic device was performed and good results were obtained. The threshold of the actuation voltage was determined for all dielectric materials of varying thicknesses. Additionally, the OpenDrop device was tested by utilizing a single-plate system to transport microliter droplets for a bioassay operation. With the newly proposed fabrication methods, these dielectric materials showed changes in contact angle and droplet velocity when the actuation voltage was applied. The threshold actuation voltage for the dielectric layers of 10⁻13 μm was 190 V for the open plate DMFBs.

Mammographic interpretation training in the UK: current difficulties and future outlook

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Yan; Gale, Alastair G.; Scott, Hazel

2009-02-01

In the UK, most mammographic interpretation training needs to be undertaken where there is a mammo-alternator or other suitable light box; consequently limiting the time and places where training can take place. However, the gradual introduction of digital mammography is opening up new opportunities of providing such training without the restriction of current viewing devices. Whilst high-resolution monitors in appropriate viewing environments are de rigour for actual reporting; advantages of the digital image over film are in the flexibility of training opportunity afforded, e.g. training whenever, wherever suits the individual. A previous study indicated the possible potential for reporting mammographic cases utilising handheld devices with suitable interaction techniques. In a pilot study, a group of mammographers (n=4) were questioned in semi-structured interviews in order to help establish current UK film-readers' training profile. On the basis of the pilot study data, 109 Breast Screening Units (601 film readers) were approached to complete a structured questionnaire in order to establish the potential role of smaller computer devices in mammographic interpretation training (given the use of digital mammography). Subsequently, a study of radiologists' visual search behaviour in digital screening has begun. This has highlighted different image manipulations than found in structured experiments in this area and poses new challenges for visualising the inspection process. Overall the results indicate that using different display sizes for training is possible but is also a challenging task requiring novel interaction approaches.

Experimental and numerical study on thermal conductivity of partially saturated unconsolidated sands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Youngmin; Keehm, Youngseuk; Kim, Seong-Kyun; Shin, Sang Ho

2016-04-01

A class of problems in heat flow applications requires an understanding of how water saturation affects thermal conductivity in the shallow subsurface. We conducted a series of experiments using a sand box to evaluate thermal conductivity (TC) of partially saturated unconsolidated sands under varying water saturation (Sw). We first saturated sands fully with water and varied water saturation by drainage through the bottom of the sand box. Five water-content sensors were integrated vertically into the sand box to monitor water saturation changes and a needle probe was embedded to measure thermal conductivity of partially saturated sands. The experimental result showed that thermal conductivity decreases from 2.5 W/mK for fully saturated sands to 0.7 W/mK when water saturation is 5%. We found that the decreasing trend is quite non-linear: highly sensitive at very high and low water saturations. However, the boundary effects on the top and the bottom of the sand box seemed to be responsible for this high nonlinearity. We also found that the determination of water saturation is quite important: the saturation by averaging values from all five sensors and that from the sensor at the center position, showed quite different trends in the TC-Sw domain. In parallel, we conducted a pore-scale numerical modeling, which consists of the steady-state two-phase Lattice-Boltzmann simulator and FEM thermal conduction simulator on digital pore geometry of sand aggregation. The simulation results showed a monotonous decreasing trend, and are reasonably well matched with experimental data when using average water saturations. We concluded that thermal conductivity would decrease smoothly as water saturation decreases if we can exclude boundary effects. However, in dynamic conditions, i.e. imbibition or drainage, the thermal conductivity might show hysteresis, which can be investigated with pore-scale numerical modeling with unsteady-state two-phase flow simulators in our future work.

A Preliminary Comparison of Three Dimensional Particle Tracking and Sizing using Plenoptic Imaging and Digital In-line Holography

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

Guildenbecher, Daniel Robert; Munz, Elise Dahnke; Farias, Paul Abraham

2015-12-01

Digital in-line holography and plenoptic photography are two techniques for single-shot, volumetric measurement of 3D particle fields. Here we present a preliminary comparison of the two methods by applying plenoptic imaging to experimental configurations that have been previously investigated with digital in-line holography. These experiments include the tracking of secondary droplets from the impact of a water drop on a thin film of water and tracking of pellets from a shotgun. Both plenoptic imaging and digital in-line holography successfully quantify the 3D nature of these particle fields. This includes measurement of the 3D particle position, individual particle sizes, and three-componentmore » velocity vectors. For the initial processing methods presented here, both techniques give out-of-plane positional accuracy of approximately 1-2 particle diameters. For a fixed image sensor, digital holography achieves higher effective in-plane spatial resolutions. However, collimated and coherent illumination makes holography susceptible to image distortion through index of refraction gradients, as demonstrated in the shotgun experiments. On the other hand, plenotpic imaging allows for a simpler experimental configuration. Furthermore, due to the use of diffuse, white-light illumination, plenoptic imaging is less susceptible to image distortion in the shotgun experiments. Additional work is needed to better quantify sources of uncertainty, particularly in the plenoptic experiments, as well as develop data processing methodologies optimized for the plenoptic measurement.« less

A Preliminary Comparison of Three Dimensional Particle Tracking and Sizing using Plenoptic Imaging and Digital In-line Holography [PowerPoint

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

Guildenbecher, Daniel Robert; Munz, Elise Dahnke; Farias, Paul Abraham

2015-12-01

Digital in-line holography and plenoptic photography are two techniques for single-shot, volumetric measurement of 3D particle fields. Here we present a preliminary comparison of the two methods by applying plenoptic imaging to experimental configurations that have been previously investigated with digital in-line holography. These experiments include the tracking of secondary droplets from the impact of a water drop on a thin film of water and tracking of pellets from a shotgun. Both plenoptic imaging and digital in-line holography successfully quantify the 3D nature of these particle fields. This includes measurement of the 3D particle position, individual particle sizes, and three-componentmore » velocity vectors. For the initial processing methods presented here, both techniques give out-of-plane positional accuracy of approximately 1-2 particle diameters. For a fixed image sensor, digital holography achieves higher effective in-plane spatial resolutions. However, collimated and coherent illumination makes holography susceptible to image distortion through index of refraction gradients, as demonstrated in the shotgun experiments. On the other hand, plenotpic imaging allows for a simpler experimental configuration. Furthermore, due to the use of diffuse, white-light illumination, plenoptic imaging is less susceptible to image distortion in the shotgun experiments. Additional work is needed to better quantify sources of uncertainty, particularly in the plenoptic experiments, as well as develop data processing methodologies optimized for the plenoptic measurement.« less

First results from the IllustrisTNG simulations: the galaxy colour bimodality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, Dylan; Pillepich, Annalisa; Springel, Volker; Weinberger, Rainer; Hernquist, Lars; Pakmor, Rüdiger; Genel, Shy; Torrey, Paul; Vogelsberger, Mark; Kauffmann, Guinevere; Marinacci, Federico; Naiman, Jill

2018-03-01

We introduce the first two simulations of the IllustrisTNG project, a next generation of cosmological magnetohydrodynamical simulations, focusing on the optical colours of galaxies. We explore TNG100, a rerun of the original Illustris box, and TNG300, which includes 2 × 25003 resolution elements in a volume 20 times larger. Here, we present first results on the galaxy colour bimodality at low redshift. Accounting for the attenuation of stellar light by dust, we compare the simulated (g - r) colours of 109 < M⋆/M⊙ < 1012.5 galaxies to the observed distribution from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We find a striking improvement with respect to the original Illustris simulation, as well as excellent quantitative agreement with the observations, with a sharp transition in median colour from blue to red at a characteristic M⋆ ˜ 1010.5 M⊙. Investigating the build-up of the colour-mass plane and the formation of the red sequence, we demonstrate that the primary driver of galaxy colour transition is supermassive black hole feedback in its low accretion state. Across the entire population the median colour transition time-scale Δtgreen is ˜1.6 Gyr, a value which drops for increasingly massive galaxies. We find signatures of the physical process of quenching: at fixed stellar mass, redder galaxies have lower star formation rates, gas fractions, and gas metallicities; their stellar populations are also older and their large-scale interstellar magnetic fields weaker than in bluer galaxies. Finally, we measure the amount of stellar mass growth on the red sequence. Galaxies with M⋆ > 1011 M⊙ which redden at z < 1 accumulate on average ˜25 per cent of their final z = 0 mass post-reddening; at the same time, ˜18 per cent of such massive galaxies acquire half or more of their final stellar mass while on the red sequence.

EVA 4

NASA Image and Video Library

2006-12-18

ISS014-E-10089 (18 Dec. 2006) --- European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Christer Fuglesang, STS-116 mission specialist, uses a digital still camera to expose a photo of his helmet visor during the mission's fourth session of extravehicular activity (EVA) while Space Shuttle Discovery was docked with the International Space Station. Also visible in the reflections in the visor is astronaut Robert L. Curbeam Jr., mission specialist, as he works with the port overhead solar array wing on the station's P6 truss. The spacewalkers worked in tandem, using specially prepared, tape-insulated tools, to guide the array wing neatly inside its blanket box during the 6-hour, 38-minute spacewalk.

A Global Audience for New Race to the Moon: Outreach for the Google Lunar XPRIZE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heward, A.; Gonzales, C.; Ashley, C.; Hwang, P.; Canvin, S.

2015-06-01

The Google Lunar XPRIZE aims to open up a new era of space exploration and entrepreneurship through a competition to land a commercially funded robot on the Moon. To raise awareness of the competition, and to help inspire a new generation of scientists and engineers, XPRIZE has developed a suite of public engagement and informal learning activities. These include the MoonBots Challenge robotics competition, the digital planetarium show, Back To The Moon For Good, and the MoonBots-in-a-Box interactive kit for science centres. This article presents a review and preliminary evaluation of the Google Lunar XPRIZE's outreach activities to date.

A minimalist approach to receiver architecture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Collins, O.

1991-01-01

New signal processing techniques are described for Deep Space Network radios and a proposed receiver architecture is presented, as well as experimental results on this new receiver's analog front end. The receiver's design employs direct downconversion rather than high speed digitization, and it is just as suitable for use as a space based probe relay receiver as it is for installation at a ground antenna. The advantages of having an inexpensive, shoe box size receiver, which could be carried around to antennas of opportunity, used for spacecraft testing or installed in the base of every antenna in a large array are the force behind this project.

Diagnostic accuracy of phosphor plate systems and conventional radiography in the detection of simulated internal root resorption.

PubMed

Vasconcelos, Karla de Faria; Rovaris, Karla; Nascimento, Eduarda Helena Leandro; Oliveira, Matheus Lima; Távora, Débora de Melo; Bóscolo, Frab Norberto

2017-11-01

To evaluate the performance of conventional radiography and photostimulable phosphor (PSP) plate in the detection of simulated internal root resorption (IRR) lesions in early stages. Twenty single-rooted teeth were X-rayed before and after having a simulated IRR early lesion. Three imaging systems were used: Kodak InSight dental film and two PSPs digital systems, Digora Optime and VistaScan. The digital images were displayed on a 20.1″ LCD monitor using the native software of each system, and the conventional radiographs were evaluated on a masked light box. Two radiologists were asked to indicate the presence or absence of IRR and, after two weeks, all images were re-evaluated. Cohen's kappa coefficient was calculated to assess intra- and interobserver agreement. The three imaging systems were compared using the Kruskal-Wallis test. For interexaminer agreement, overall kappa values were 0.70, 0.65 and 0.70 for conventional film, Digora Optima and VistaScan, respectively. Both the conventional and digital radiography presented low sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive and negative predictive values with no significant difference between imaging systems (p = .0725). The performance of conventional and PSP was similar in the detection of simulated IRR lesions in early stages with low accuracy.

Property-Based Monitoring of Analog and Mixed-Signal Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Havlicek, John; Little, Scott; Maler, Oded; Nickovic, Dejan

In the recent past, there has been a steady growth of the market for consumer embedded devices such as cell phones, GPS and portable multimedia systems. In embedded systems, digital, analog and software components are combined on a single chip, resulting in increasingly complex designs that introduce richer functionality on smaller devices. As a consequence, the potential insertion of errors into a design becomes higher, yielding an increasing need for automated analog and mixed-signal validation tools. In the purely digital setting, formal verification based on properties expressed in industrial specification languages such as PSL and SVA is nowadays successfully integrated in the design flow. On the other hand, the validation of analog and mixed-signal systems still largely depends on simulation-based, ad-hoc methods. In this tutorial, we consider some ingredients of the standard verification methodology that can be successfully exported from digital to analog and mixed-signal setting, in particular property-based monitoring techniques. Property-based monitoring is a lighter approach to the formal verification, where the system is seen as a "black-box" that generates sets of traces, whose correctness is checked against a property, that is its high-level specification. Although incomplete, monitoring is effectively used to catch faults in systems, without guaranteeing their full correctness.

Color reproduction software for a digital still camera

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Bong S.; Park, Du-Sik; Nam, Byung D.

1998-04-01

We have developed a color reproduction software for a digital still camera. The image taken by the camera was colorimetrically reproduced on the monitor after characterizing the camera and the monitor, and color matching between two devices. The reproduction was performed at three levels; level processing, gamma correction, and color transformation. The image contrast was increased after the level processing adjusting the level of dark and bright portions of the image. The relationship between the level processed digital values and the measured luminance values of test gray samples was calculated, and the gamma of the camera was obtained. The method for getting the unknown monitor gamma was proposed. As a result, the level processed values were adjusted by the look-up table created by the camera and the monitor gamma correction. For a color transformation matrix for the camera, 3 by 3 or 3 by 4 matrix was used, which was calculated by the regression between the gamma corrected values and the measured tristimulus values of each test color samples the various reproduced images were displayed on the dialogue box implemented in our software, which were generated according to four illuminations for the camera and three color temperatures for the monitor. An user can easily choose he best reproduced image comparing each others.

Adsorption of diatoms at the oil-water interface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fathollahi, Niloofar; Sheng, Jian

2013-11-01

Statistically robust experimental observations on 3D trajectory of diatoms approaching an oil-water interface is crucial for understanding sorption mechanisms of active particles, and interfacial rheology with over-arching implications in interfacial dynamics, droplet break and coalescence. Digital Holographic Cinematography is utilized to measure 3-D trajectories of diatoms, Thalassiosira pseudomona and T. weissflogii and simultaneously track the interface. Experiments are conducted in a 300 × 100 × 100 mm chamber containing 32 ppt artificial seawater. A stationary pendant drop is created on the tip of a needle located at the center of the chamber. Three oil samples, Louisiana crude, hexadecane, and mineral oil, are used. Diatoms are injected at a height above the drop with a negligible velocity, where Diatom precipitates freely on its excess weight. Holograms of diatom and drop are recorded at 5 fps with a magnification of 1.3X and are streamed in real time allowing for long-term study of sorption onto a slowly aging interface. A novel autofocus algorithm enables us to determine 3D locations within an uncertainty of 0.05 particle diameter. This allows us to perform super-resolution measurement to determine the effects of location and orientation of diatoms on the adsorption rate at the oil-water interface. Funded by GoMRI.

AirBase - A database of 160,000 aerial photos of Greenland 1930-1980s

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korsgaard, Niels; Weng, Willy L.; Kjær, Kurt H.

2017-04-01

Beginning in the 1930s Danish survey agencies and US military organizations conducted large-scale aerial photograph surveys of Greenland for mapping purposes (1), eventuating in the recording of more than 160,000 photographs. Glaciological researchers have used this amazing resource of multi-decadal observations of the Greenlandic cryosphere for many decades (e.g. (2), (3), (4)). In recent years this information has been synthesized with modern remote sensing data resulting in a range of published research and data sets ((5), (6), (7), (8)). Today, the historical aerial photographs are stored at the SDFE (Agency for Data Supply and Effiency), the successor agency for the institutions doing the surveying and mapping of Greenland where the material is accessible to researchers and general public alike. The digitized flightline maps and databases necessary for the creation of this data for this work was made available by the SDFE, and it the past and present work with this database we present here. Based on digitized flight line maps, the database contains geocoded metadata such as recording dates, camera and film roll canister, connecting the database with the analog archive material. Past work concentrated on bulk digitization, while the focus of the current work is to improve positional accuracy, completeness, and refinements for web publication. (1) Nielsen, A., Olsen, J. & Weng, W. L. Grønlands opmåling og kortlægning. Landinspektøren 37 (1995). (2) Weidick A. Frontal variations at Upernaviks Isstrøm in the last 100 years. Medd. fra Dansk Geol. Forening. Vol. 14 (1958. (3) Bauer, A., Baussart, M., Carbonnell, M., Kasser, P. Perroud, P. & Renaud, A. Missions aériennes de reconnaissance au Groenland 1957-1958. Observations aériennes et terrestres, exploitation des photographies aériennes, détermination des vitesses des glaciers vêlant dans Disko Bugt et Umanak Fjord. Meddelelser om Grønland 173(3) (1968a. (4) Rignot, E. Box, J.E., Burgess, E. & Hanna, E. Mass balance of the Greenland ice sheet from 1958 to 2007. Geophys. Res. Lett. (2008. (5) Kjær, K.H., Khan, S.A., Korsgaard, N.J., Wahr, J., Bamber, J.L., Hurkmans, R., van den Broeke, M., Timm, L.H., Kjeldsen, K.K., Bjørk, A.A., Larsen, N.K., Jørgensen, L.T., Færch-Jensen, A. & Willerslev, E. Aerial Photographs Reveal Late-20th-Century Dynamic Ice Loss in Northwestern Greenland. Science 337 (2012). (6) Bjørk, A.A., Kjær, K.H., Korsgaard, N.J., Khan, S.A., Kjeldsen, K.K., Andresen, C.S., Box, J, Larsen, N.K. & Funder, S.V. An aerial view of 80 years of climate-related glacier fluctuations in southeast Greenland. Nat. Geosci. 5 (2012). (7) Kjeldsen, K.K., Korsgaard, N.J., Bjørk, A.A., Khan, S.A., Box, J.E., Funder, S., Larsen, N.K., Bamber, J.L., Colgan, W., van den Broeke, M., Siggaard-Andersen, M.-L., Nuth, C., Schomacker, A., Andresen, C.S., Willerslev, E. & Kjær, K.H. Spatial and temporal distribution of mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet since AD 1900. Nature 528 (2015). (8) Korsgaard, N.J., Nuth, C., Khan, S.A., Kjeldsen, K.K., Bjørk, A.A., Schomacker A. & Kjær, K.H. Digital elevation model and orthophotographs of Greenland based on aerial photographs from 1978-1987. Sci. Data 3:160032 (2016).

Crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction of the DEAD-box protein Mss116p complexed with an RNA oligonucleotide and AMP-PNP

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

Del Campo, Mark; Lambowitz, Alan M.; Texas)

2009-09-02

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae DEAD-box protein Mss116p is a general RNA chaperone which functions in mitochondrial group I and group II intron splicing, translation and RNA-end processing. For crystallization trials, full-length Mss116p and a C-terminally truncated protein (Mss116p/{Delta}598-664) were overproduced in Escherichia coli and purified to homogeneity. Mss116p exhibited low solubility in standard solutions ({le}1 mg ml{sup -1}), but its solubility could be increased by adding 50 mM L-arginine plus 50 mM L-glutamate and 50% glycerol to achieve concentrations of {approx}10 mg ml{sup -1}. Initial crystals were obtained by the microbatch method in the presence of a U{sub 10} RNA oligonucleotidemore » and the ATP analog AMP-PNP and were then improved by using seeding and sitting-drop vapor diffusion. A cryocooled crystal of Mss116p/{Delta}598-664 in complex with AMP-PNP and U{sub 10} belonged to space group P2{sub 1}2{sub 1}2, with unit-cell parameters a = 88.54, b = 126.52, c = 55.52 {angstrom}, and diffracted X-rays to beyond 1.9 {angstrom} resolution using synchrotron radiation from sector 21 at the Advanced Photon Source.« less

Imparting Barely Visible Impact Damage to a Stitched Composite Large-Scale Pressure Box

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lovejoy, Andrew E.; Przekop, Adam

2016-01-01

The Pultruded Rod Stitched Efficient Unitized Structure (PRSEUS) is a concept that was developed by The Boeing Company to address the complex structural design aspects associated with a pressurized hybrid wing body (HWB) aircraft configuration, which has been a focus of the NASA Environmentally Responsible Aviation Project. The NASA-Boeing structural development for the HWB aircraft culminated in testing of the multi-bay box, which is an 80%-scale representation of the pressurized center-body section. This structure was tested in the NASA Langley Research Center Combined Loads Test System facility. As part of this testing, barely visible impact damage was imparted to the interior and exterior of the test article to demonstrate compliance with a condition representative of the requirements for Category 1 damaged composite structure as defined by the Federal Aviation Regulations. Interior impacts were imparted using an existing spring-loaded impactor, while the exterior impacts were imparted using a newly designed, gravity-driven impactor. This paper describes the impacts to the test article, and the design of the gravitydriven guided-weight impactor. The guided-weight impactor proved to be a very reliable method to impart barely visible impact damage in locations which are not easily accessible for a traditional drop-weight impactor, while at the same time having the capability to be highly configurable for use on other aircraft structures.

Application of a digital high-speed camera and image processing system for investigations of short-term hypersonic fluids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Renken, Hartmut; Oelze, Holger W.; Rath, Hans J.

1998-04-01

The design and application of a digital high sped image data capturing system with a following image processing system applied to the Bremer Hochschul Hyperschallkanal BHHK is the content of this presentation. It is also the result of the cooperation between the departments aerodynamic and image processing at the ZARM-institute at the Drop Tower of Brennen. Similar systems are used by the combustion working group at ZARM and other external project partners. The BHHK, camera- and image storage system as well as the personal computer based image processing software are described next. Some examples of images taken at the BHHK are shown to illustrate the application. The new and very user-friendly Windows 32-bit system is capable to capture all camera data with a maximum pixel clock of 43 MHz and to process complete sequences of images in one step by using only one comfortable program.

Digital synthetic impedance for application in vibration damping.

PubMed

Nečásek, J; Václavík, J; Marton, P

2016-02-01

In this work we present construction details of a precision, standalone, and compact digital synthetic impedance for application in the field of vibration damping. The presented device is based on an embedded ARM microcontroller with external AD and DA converters and a special analog front-end. The performance of the device is tested by comparing the actually synthesized impedance with several prescribed impedances and shows very good match. Fine-tuning ability of the device, which is crucial for the considered application, is also demonstrated and reaches as small step as 0.1% for the most complicated impedance structure and drops below the level of direct measurability with less complex structures. The real application in vibration damping is demonstrated on a simple and well understood case of a one-dimensional vibrating spring-mass system with piezoelectric actuator embedded as the interface between source of vibrations and vibrating mass.

Digital synthetic impedance for application in vibration damping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nečásek, J.; Václavík, J.; Marton, P.

2016-02-01

In this work we present construction details of a precision, standalone, and compact digital synthetic impedance for application in the field of vibration damping. The presented device is based on an embedded ARM microcontroller with external AD and DA converters and a special analog front-end. The performance of the device is tested by comparing the actually synthesized impedance with several prescribed impedances and shows very good match. Fine-tuning ability of the device, which is crucial for the considered application, is also demonstrated and reaches as small step as 0.1% for the most complicated impedance structure and drops below the level of direct measurability with less complex structures. The real application in vibration damping is demonstrated on a simple and well understood case of a one-dimensional vibrating spring-mass system with piezoelectric actuator embedded as the interface between source of vibrations and vibrating mass.

Digital Sequences and a Time Reversal-Based Impact Region Imaging and Localization Method

PubMed Central

Qiu, Lei; Yuan, Shenfang; Mei, Hanfei; Qian, Weifeng

2013-01-01

To reduce time and cost of damage inspection, on-line impact monitoring of aircraft composite structures is needed. A digital monitor based on an array of piezoelectric transducers (PZTs) is developed to record the impact region of impacts on-line. It is small in size, lightweight and has low power consumption, but there are two problems with the impact alarm region localization method of the digital monitor at the current stage. The first one is that the accuracy rate of the impact alarm region localization is low, especially on complex composite structures. The second problem is that the area of impact alarm region is large when a large scale structure is monitored and the number of PZTs is limited which increases the time and cost of damage inspections. To solve the two problems, an impact alarm region imaging and localization method based on digital sequences and time reversal is proposed. In this method, the frequency band of impact response signals is estimated based on the digital sequences first. Then, characteristic signals of impact response signals are constructed by sinusoidal modulation signals. Finally, the phase synthesis time reversal impact imaging method is adopted to obtain the impact region image. Depending on the image, an error ellipse is generated to give out the final impact alarm region. A validation experiment is implemented on a complex composite wing box of a real aircraft. The validation results show that the accuracy rate of impact alarm region localization is approximately 100%. The area of impact alarm region can be reduced and the number of PZTs needed to cover the same impact monitoring region is reduced by more than a half. PMID:24084123

Rapid RHD Zygosity Determination Using Digital PCR.

PubMed

Sillence, Kelly A; Halawani, Amr J; Tounsi, Wajnat A; Clarke, Kirsty A; Kiernan, Michele; Madgett, Tracey E; Avent, Neil D

2017-08-01

Paternal zygosity testing is used for determining homo- or hemizygosity of RHD in pregnancies that are at a risk of hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn. At present, this is achieved by using real-time PCR or the Rhesus box PCR, which can be difficult to interpret and unreliable, particularly for black African populations. DNA samples extracted from 53 blood donors were analyzed using 2 multiplex reactions for RHD -specific targets against a reference ( AGO1 ) 2 to determine gene dosage by digital PCR. Results were compared with serological data, and the correct genotype for 2 discordant results was determined by long-range PCR (LR-PCR), next-generation sequencing, and conventional Sanger sequencing. The results showed clear and reliable determination of RHD zygosity using digital PCR and revealed that 4 samples did not match the serologically predicted genotype. Sanger sequencing and long-range PCR followed by next-generation sequencing revealed that the correct genotypes for samples 729M and 351D, which were serologically typed as R 1 R 2 (DCe/DcE), were R 2 r' (DcE/dCe) for 729M and R 1 r″ (DCe/dcE), R 0 r y (Dce/dCE), or R Z r (DCE/dce) for 351D, in concordance with the digital PCR data. Digital PCR provides a highly accurate method to rapidly define blood group zygosity and has clinical application in the analysis of Rh phenotyped or genotyped samples. The vast majority of current blood group genotyping platforms are not designed to define zygosity, and thus, this technique may be used to define paternal RH zygosity in pregnancies that are at a risk of hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn and can distinguish between homo- and hemizygous RHD -positive individuals. © 2017 American Association for Clinical Chemistry.

Manual versus automated coding of free-text self-reported medication data in the 45 and Up Study: a validation study.

PubMed

Gnjidic, Danijela; Pearson, Sallie-Anne; Hilmer, Sarah N; Basilakis, Jim; Schaffer, Andrea L; Blyth, Fiona M; Banks, Emily

2015-03-30

Increasingly, automated methods are being used to code free-text medication data, but evidence on the validity of these methods is limited. To examine the accuracy of automated coding of previously keyed in free-text medication data compared with manual coding of original handwritten free-text responses (the 'gold standard'). A random sample of 500 participants (475 with and 25 without medication data in the free-text box) enrolled in the 45 and Up Study was selected. Manual coding involved medication experts keying in free-text responses and coding using Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) codes (i.e. chemical substance 7-digit level; chemical subgroup 5-digit; pharmacological subgroup 4-digit; therapeutic subgroup 3-digit). Using keyed-in free-text responses entered by non-experts, the automated approach coded entries using the Australian Medicines Terminology database and assigned corresponding ATC codes. Based on manual coding, 1377 free-text entries were recorded and, of these, 1282 medications were coded to ATCs manually. The sensitivity of automated coding compared with manual coding was 79% (n = 1014) for entries coded at the exact ATC level, and 81.6% (n = 1046), 83.0% (n = 1064) and 83.8% (n = 1074) at the 5, 4 and 3-digit ATC levels, respectively. The sensitivity of automated coding for blank responses was 100% compared with manual coding. Sensitivity of automated coding was highest for prescription medications and lowest for vitamins and supplements, compared with the manual approach. Positive predictive values for automated coding were above 95% for 34 of the 38 individual prescription medications examined. Automated coding for free-text prescription medication data shows very high to excellent sensitivity and positive predictive values, indicating that automated methods can potentially be useful for large-scale, medication-related research.

Digital obstructive arterial disease can be detected by laser Doppler measurements with high sensitivity and specificity.

PubMed

Mahe, Guillaume; Liedl, David A; McCarter, Charlene; Shepherd, Roger; Gloviczki, Peter; McPhail, Ian R; Rooke, Thom W; Wennberg, Paul W

2014-04-01

This study was conducted to determine the sensitivity and specificity of laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF) measurements for digital obstructive arterial disease (DOAD) using angiography as the reference standard and to compare the accuracy of different classical tests used to assess DOAD. Diagnosis of vascular abnormalities at the digital level is challenging. Angiography is the gold standard for assessment of DOAD but is invasive and expensive to perform. We performed a retrospective analysis of consecutive patients referred at Mayo Clinic (Rochester, Minn) for upper extremity arterial assessment during a 27-month period. Finger-brachial index, skin blood flow (in arbitrary units [a.u.]), and skin temperature (in degrees Celsius) were recorded in each digit on the pulp at baseline and after a thermal challenge test (hand placed in a thermal box at 47.0°C for 15 minutes). Angiogram analysis was blinded and performed by a radiologist using a vascularization scale ranging from 0 (no vessel) to 4 (normal). The receiver operating characteristic curve was used to define a specific cutoff point to detect DOAD. Twenty-two patients had LDF measurements and complete angiograms. A total of 185 digits were analyzed because some patients had only analysis of one hand. The best area under the curve (AUC) was 0.98 (range, 0.94-0.99) for postwarming skin blood flow, with a cutoff point of ≤206 a.u. This AUC was statistically different from AUCs of all the other tests (P < .01). Sensitivity and specificity were 93% (95% confidence interval, 85%-97%) and 96% (95% confidence interval, 90%-99%), respectively. LDF combined with a thermal challenge is highly accurate, safe, and noninvasive means to detect DOAD. Copyright © 2014 Society for Vascular Surgery. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Impact of digital impression techniques on the adaption of ceramic partial crowns in vitro.

PubMed

Schaefer, Oliver; Decker, Mike; Wittstock, Frank; Kuepper, Harald; Guentsch, Arndt

2014-06-01

To investigate the effects, digital impression procedures can have on the three-dimensional fit of ceramic partial crowns in vitro. An acrylic model of a mandibular first molar was prepared to receive a partial coverage all-ceramic crown (mesio-occlusal-distal inlay preparation with reduction of all cusps and rounded shoulder finish line of buccal wall). Digital impressions were taken using iTero (ITE), cara TRIOS (TRI), CEREC AC with Bluecam (CBC), and Lava COS (COS) systems, before restorations were designed and machined from lithium disilicate blanks. Both the preparation and the restorations were digitised using an optical reference-scanner. Data were entered into quality inspection software, which superimposed the records (best-fit-algorithm), calculated fit-discrepancies for every pixel, and colour-coded the results to aid visualisation. Furthermore, mean quadratic deviations (RMS) were computed and analysed statistically with a one-way ANOVA. Scheffé's procedure was applied for multiple comparisons (n=5, α=0.05). Mean marginal (internal) discrepancies were: ITE 90 (92) μm, TRI 128 (106) μm, CBC 146 (84) μm, and COS 109 (93) μm. Differences among impression systems were statistically significant at p<0.001 (p=0.039). Qualitatively, partial crowns were undersized especially around cusp tips or the occluso-approximal isthmus. By contrast, potential high-spots could be detected along the preparation finishline and at central occlusal boxes. Marginal and internal fit of milled lithium disilicate partial crowns depended on the employed digital impression technique. The investigated digital impression procedures demonstrated significant fit discrepancies. However, all fabricated restorations showed acceptable marginal and internal gap sizes, when considering clinically relevant thresholds reported in the literature. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Smartphone-based Video of Demodex folliculorum In Biopsied Human Eyelash Follicles.

PubMed

Vahedi, Mithaq; Davis, Gavin; Coleman, Michael James; Garrett, Brian Steven; Eghrari, Allen Omid

2015-01-01

The ability of smartphone technology to document static microscopy images has been well documented and is gaining widespread use in ophthalmology, where slit-lamp biomicroscopy is frequently utilized. However, little has been described regarding the use of smartphone technology to relay video of tissue microscopy results to patients, particularly when a tissue sample integrates motility of organisms as a characteristic feature of the disease. Here, we describe the method to use smartphone video to document motility of Demodex folliculorum in human eyelashes, individual results of which can be shown to patients for education and counseling purposes. The use of smartphone video in documenting the motility of organisms may prove to be beneficial in a variety of medical fields; producers of electronic medical records, therefore, may find it helpful to integrate video drop box tools.

Further development and testing of the metabolic gas analyzer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1973-01-01

Continued development of a metabolic monitor utilizing a mass spectrometer and digital computer to perform measurements and data reduction, is reported. The device prints-out breath-by-breath values for 02 consumption, C02 production, minute volume and tidal volume. The flow is measured by introduction of a tracer gas to the expired gas stream. Design modifications to reduce pressure drop in the flow splitter to one inch of water at 600 liters/min flow and to extend the range of linear flow measurement to 1000 liters/min are discussed.

ERTS-B applications to Minnesota resource management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sizer, J. E. (Principal Investigator)

1976-01-01

The author has identified the following significant results. The shape, pattern, and extent of surface water (e.g. lakes) can be readily mapped. Comparing detailed maps of several lakes in Itasca County with the areas classified as water by the LANDSAT data shows that some lakes have changed considerably since they were mapped. Due to several droughts this year (1976), the water level in most lakes has dropped. At this time, it seems feasible that LANDSAT digital tape data estimate lake water level change, due to the 1976 drought conditions.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-05-02

Suzarne Nichols (12th grade) from DuPont Manual High School in Louisville, Kentucky, asks a question of on of the on-line lecturers during the Pan-Pacific Basin Workshop on Microgravity Sciences held in Pasadena, California. The event originated at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. The DuPont Manual students patched in to the event through the distance learning lab at the Louisville Science Center. NASA materials engineer Chris Cochrane prepare students for the on-line workshop helps two students prepare a drop demonstration. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Printing of metallic 3D micro-objects by laser induced forward transfer.

PubMed

Zenou, Michael; Kotler, Zvi

2016-01-25

Digital printing of 3D metal micro-structures by laser induced forward transfer under ambient conditions is reviewed. Recent progress has allowed drop on demand transfer of molten, femto-liter, metal droplets with a high jetting directionality. Such small volume droplets solidify instantly, on a nanosecond time scale, as they touch the substrate. This fast solidification limits their lateral spreading and allows the fabrication of high aspect ratio and complex 3D metal structures. Several examples of micron-scale resolution metal objects printed using this method are presented and discussed.

Mapping the droplet transfer modes for an ER100S-1 GMAW electrode

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

Heald, P.R.; Madigan, R.B.; Siewert, T.A.

1994-02-01

Welds were made with a 1.2-mm-diameter AWS ER100S-1 electrode using Ar-2% O[sub 2] shielding gas to map the effects of contact-tube-to-work distance (13, 19 and 25 mm), current, voltage, and wire feed rate on metal transfer. The droplet transfer modes were identified for each map by both the sound of the arc and images from a laser back-lit high-speed video system. The modes were correlated to digital records of the voltage and current fluctuations. The maps contain detailed information on the spray transfer mode, including the boundaries of drop spray, streaming spray and rotating spray modes. The metal transfer modemore » boundaries shifted with an increase in contact-tube-to-work distance. Increasing the contact-tube-to-work distance from 13 to 19 mm resulted in a 15 mm/s increase in the wire feet rate for the globular-to-drop-spray transition.« less

Initial comparison of single cylinder Stirling engine computer model predictions with test results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tew, R. C., Jr.; Thieme, L. G.; Miao, D.

1979-01-01

A NASA developed digital computer code for a Stirling engine, modelling the performance of a single cylinder rhombic drive ground performance unit (GPU), is presented and its predictions are compared to test results. The GPU engine incorporates eight regenerator/cooler units and the engine working space is modelled by thirteen control volumes. The model calculates indicated power and efficiency for a given engine speed, mean pressure, heater and expansion space metal temperatures and cooler water inlet temperature and flow rate. Comparison of predicted and observed powers implies that the reference pressure drop calculations underestimate actual pressure drop, possibly due to oil contamination in the regenerator/cooler units, methane contamination in the working gas or the underestimation of mechanical loss. For a working gas of hydrogen, the predicted values of brake power are from 0 to 6% higher than experimental values, and brake efficiency is 6 to 16% higher, while for helium the predicted brake power and efficiency are 2 to 15% higher than the experimental.

Box spaces in pictorial space: linear perspective versus templates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Ridder, Huib; Pont, Sylvia C.

2012-03-01

In the past decades perceptual (or perceived) image quality has been one of the most important criteria for evaluating digitally processed image and video content. With the growing popularity of new media like stereoscopic displays there is a tendency to replace image quality with viewing experience as the ultimate criterion. Adopting such a high-level psychological criterion calls for a rethinking of the premises underlying human judgment. One premise is that perception is about accurately reconstructing the physical world in front of you ("inverse optics"). That is, human vision is striving for veridicality. The present study investigated one of its consequences, namely, that linear perspective will always yield the correct description of the perceived 3D geometry in 2D images. To this end, human observers adjusted the frontal view of a wireframe box on a television screen so as to look equally deep and wide (i.e. to look like a cube) or twice as deep as wide. In a number of stimulus configurations, the results showed huge deviations from veridicality suggesting that the inverse optics model fails. Instead, the results seem to be more in line with a model of "vision as optical interface".

Using YOLO based deep learning network for real time detection and localization of lung nodules from low dose CT scans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramachandran S., Sindhu; George, Jose; Skaria, Shibon; V. V., Varun

2018-02-01

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer related deaths in the world. The survival rate can be improved if the presence of lung nodules are detected early. This has also led to more focus being given to computer aided detection (CAD) and diagnosis of lung nodules. The arbitrariness of shape, size and texture of lung nodules is a challenge to be faced when developing these detection systems. In the proposed work we use convolutional neural networks to learn the features for nodule detection, replacing the traditional method of handcrafting features like geometric shape or texture. Our network uses the DetectNet architecture based on YOLO (You Only Look Once) to detect the nodules in CT scans of lung. In this architecture, object detection is treated as a regression problem with a single convolutional network simultaneously predicting multiple bounding boxes and class probabilities for those boxes. By performing training using chest CT scans from Lung Image Database Consortium (LIDC), NVIDIA DIGITS and Caffe deep learning framework, we show that nodule detection using this single neural network can result in reasonably low false positive rates with high sensitivity and precision.

Predictive Risk Modelling to Prevent Child Maltreatment and Other Adverse Outcomes for Service Users: Inside the 'Black Box' of Machine Learning.

PubMed

Gillingham, Philip

2016-06-01

Recent developments in digital technology have facilitated the recording and retrieval of administrative data from multiple sources about children and their families. Combined with new ways to mine such data using algorithms which can 'learn', it has been claimed that it is possible to develop tools that can predict which individual children within a population are most likely to be maltreated. The proposed benefit is that interventions can then be targeted to the most vulnerable children and their families to prevent maltreatment from occurring. As expertise in predictive modelling increases, the approach may also be applied in other areas of social work to predict and prevent adverse outcomes for vulnerable service users. In this article, a glimpse inside the 'black box' of predictive tools is provided to demonstrate how their development for use in social work may not be straightforward, given the nature of the data recorded about service users and service activity. The development of predictive risk modelling (PRM) in New Zealand is focused on as an example as it may be the first such tool to be applied as part of ongoing reforms to child protection services.

A low-cost, computer-interfaced drawing pad for FMRI studies of dysgraphia and dyslexia.

PubMed

Reitz, Frederick; Richards, Todd; Wu, Kelvin; Boord, Peter; Askren, Mary; Lewis, Thomas; Berninger, Virginia

2013-04-17

We have developed a pen and writing tablet for use by subjects during fMRI scanning. The pen consists of two jacketed, multi-mode optical fibers routed to the tip of a hollowed-out ball-point pen. The pen has been further modified by addition of a plastic plate to maintain a perpendicular pen-tablet orientation. The tablet is simply a non-metallic frame holding a paper print of continuously varying color gradients. The optical fibers are routed out of the MRI bore to a light-tight box in an adjacent control room. Within the box, light from a high intensity LED is coupled into one of the fibers, while the other fiber abuts a color sensor. Light from the LED exits the pen tip, illuminating a small spot on the tablet, and the resulting reflected light is routed to the color sensor. Given a lookup table of position for each color on the tablet, the coordinates of the pen on the tablet may be displayed and digitized in real-time. While simple and inexpensive, the system achieves sufficient resolution to grade writing tasks testing dysgraphic and dyslexic phenomena.

Simulation of Thin Film Equations on an Eye-Shaped Domain with Moving Boundary

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brosch, Joseph; Driscoll, Tobin; Braun, Richard

During a normal eye blink, the upper lid moves, and during the upstroke the lid paints a thin tear film over the exposed corneal and conjunctival surfaces. This thin tear film may be modeled by a nonlinear fourth-order PDE derived from lubrication theory. A major stumbling block in the numerical simulation of this model is to include both the geometry of the eye and the movement of the eyelid. Using a pair of orthogonal and conformal maps, we transform a computational box into a rough representation of a human eye where we proceed to simulate the thin tear film equations. Although we give up some realism, we gain spectrally accurate numerical methods on the computational box. We have applied this method to the heat equation on the blinking domain with both Dirichlet and no-flux boundary conditions, in each case demonstrating at least 10 digits of accuracy.. We are able to perform these simulations very quickly (generally in under a minute) using a desktop version of MATLAB. This project was supported by Grant 1022706 (R.J.B., T.A.D., J.K.B.) from the NSF.

Imaging and computational considerations for image computed permeability: Operating envelope of Digital Rock Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saxena, Nishank; Hows, Amie; Hofmann, Ronny; Alpak, Faruk O.; Freeman, Justin; Hunter, Sander; Appel, Matthias

2018-06-01

This study defines the optimal operating envelope of the Digital Rock technology from the perspective of imaging and numerical simulations of transport properties. Imaging larger volumes of rocks for Digital Rock Physics (DRP) analysis improves the chances of achieving a Representative Elementary Volume (REV) at which flow-based simulations (1) do not vary with change in rock volume, and (2) is insensitive to the choice of boundary conditions. However, this often comes at the expense of image resolution. This trade-off exists due to the finiteness of current state-of-the-art imaging detectors. Imaging and analyzing digital rocks that sample the REV and still sufficiently resolve pore throats is critical to ensure simulation quality and robustness of rock property trends for further analysis. We find that at least 10 voxels are needed to sufficiently resolve pore throats for single phase fluid flow simulations. If this condition is not met, additional analyses and corrections may allow for meaningful comparisons between simulation results and laboratory measurements of permeability, but some cases may fall outside the current technical feasibility of DRP. On the other hand, we find that the ratio of field of view and effective grain size provides a reliable measure of the REV for siliciclastic rocks. If this ratio is greater than 5, the coefficient of variation for single-phase permeability simulations drops below 15%. These imaging considerations are crucial when comparing digitally computed rock flow properties with those measured in the laboratory. We find that the current imaging methods are sufficient to achieve both REV (with respect to numerical boundary conditions) and required image resolution to perform digital core analysis for coarse to fine-grained sandstones.

[Newly designed skin temperature monitoring system for microvascular anastomosis--an experimental and clinical study (author's transl)].

PubMed

Okutsu, I

1982-05-01

Blood circulation must be carefully evaluated following the microvascular anastomosis, such replantation of the digits and hands, free toe-to-hand transfer, and free flaps. From May 173, we have performed replantation of forty-five digits, seven wrists or forearm in thirty-four patients and one leg in one patient. The overall survival rate was 92.5%, including near total amputation. Also, from May 1974, we have performed eleven free flaps or free musculocutaneous flaps in ten patients. Seven out of eleven free flaps survived without any problems. The clinical inspections such as skin color and capillary refill are of subjective nature, and not always reliable. Therefore, from 1974, we have been measuring the skin temperature in the revascularized parts by means of a thermister. We usually use an electric blanket to warm the proximal part of the operated limb to maintain the peripheral circulation. Under normal ward environment, we analyzed the patterns of temperature fluctuations, and compared them against the revascularized parts and control sites. On our animal experiments, with the rats' hind limbs, a drastic temperature drop by about 2.0 degrees C was observed in 30 min, compared against the control group, when either artery or vein or both were obstructed. In the cases of the replantations, the skin temperature of control digits ranged from 30.4 to 37.1 degrees C. It usually remained above 32.0 degrees, fluctuating within 3 degrees. Also the skin temperatures of the successfully replanted parts and free flaps usually indicated the level above 32.0 degrees C, which corresponds to more than 80% of the axillary temperature in replanted cases and 90% in free flaps. In one failure case of replantation, the skin temperature fluctuated fom 27.2 to 32.1 degrees. On the fifth post operative day, the temperature suddenly dropped by 5 degrees in two hours. Arteriography was performed, and the arterial obstruction was confirmed. For the four flap operations, the skin temperatures had dropped below 32.0 degrees C, of which two had recovered by an auto-vein graft and the removal of haematoma respectively. We have concluded from these results, that the critical skin temperature in replantation and free flap cases was apparently above 32.0 degrees C in the normal ward environment. Based on our experiences, we have designed a continuous skin temperature monitoring device which consists of a resistance bridge and a thermister. The power source is a D.C. 12V. A high accuracy is maintained at the range of 32.1 +/- 0.3 degrees C when the system is set at 32.0 degrees C in the ward. The circuit is designed to flash a blue lamp when the temperature of the operated site is maintained above the pre-established temperature, while a red lamp and buzz signal give a warning when the temperature drops below the pre-established temperature. This equipment and skin thermometer have been simultaneously used following the various operations of microvascular anastomoses...

Comparison of three-dimensional particle tracking and sizing using plenoptic imaging and digital in-line holography.

PubMed

Hall, Elise M; Thurow, Brian S; Guildenbecher, Daniel R

2016-08-10

Digital in-line holography (DIH) and plenoptic photography are two techniques for single-shot, volumetric measurement of 3D particle fields. Here we present a comparison of the two methods by applying plenoptic imaging to experimental configurations that have been previously investigated with DIH. These experiments include the tracking of secondary droplets from the impact of a water drop on a thin film of water and tracking of pellets from a shotgun. Both plenoptic imaging and DIH successfully quantify the 3D nature of these particle fields. This includes measurement of the 3D particle position, individual particle sizes, and three-component velocity vectors. For the initial processing methods presented here, both techniques give out-of-plane positional accuracy of approximately 1-2 particle diameters. For a fixed image sensor, digital holography achieves higher effective in-plane spatial resolutions. However, collimated and coherent illumination makes holography susceptible to image distortion through index of refraction gradients, as demonstrated in the shotgun experiments. In contrast, plenoptic imaging allows for a simpler experimental configuration and, due to the use of diffuse, white-light illumination, plenoptic imaging is less susceptible to image distortion in the shotgun experiments.

Single-Cell-Based Platform for Copy Number Variation Profiling through Digital Counting of Amplified Genomic DNA Fragments.

PubMed

Li, Chunmei; Yu, Zhilong; Fu, Yusi; Pang, Yuhong; Huang, Yanyi

2017-04-26

We develop a novel single-cell-based platform through digital counting of amplified genomic DNA fragments, named multifraction amplification (mfA), to detect the copy number variations (CNVs) in a single cell. Amplification is required to acquire genomic information from a single cell, while introducing unavoidable bias. Unlike prevalent methods that directly infer CNV profiles from the pattern of sequencing depth, our mfA platform denatures and separates the DNA molecules from a single cell into multiple fractions of a reaction mix before amplification. By examining the sequencing result of each fraction for a specific fragment and applying a segment-merge maximum likelihood algorithm to the calculation of copy number, we digitize the sequencing-depth-based CNV identification and thus provide a method that is less sensitive to the amplification bias. In this paper, we demonstrate a mfA platform through multiple displacement amplification (MDA) chemistry. When performing the mfA platform, the noise of MDA is reduced; therefore, the resolution of single-cell CNV identification can be improved to 100 kb. We can also determine the genomic region free of allelic drop-out with mfA platform, which is impossible for conventional single-cell amplification methods.

Fractional-N phase-locked loop for split and direct automatic frequency control in A-GPS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Chester Sungchung; Park, Sungkyung

2018-07-01

A low-power mixed-signal phase-locked loop (PLL) is modelled and designed for the DigRF interface between the RF chip and the modem chip. An assisted-GPS or A-GPS multi-standard system includes the DigRF interface and uses the split automatic frequency control (AFC) technique. The PLL circuitry uses the direct AFC technique and is based on the fractional-N architecture using a digital delta-sigma modulator along with a digital counter, fulfilling simple ultra-high-resolution AFC with robust digital circuitry and its timing. Relative to the output frequency, the measured AFC resolution or accuracy is <5 parts per billion (ppb) or on the order of a Hertz. The cycle-to-cycle rms jitter is <6 ps and the typical settling time is <30 μs. A spur reduction technique is adopted and implemented as well, demonstrating spur reduction without employing dithering. The proposed PLL includes a low-leakage phase-frequency detector, a low-drop-out regulator, power-on-reset circuitry and precharge circuitry. The PLL is implemented in a 90-nm CMOS process technology with 1.2 V single supply. The overall PLL draws about 1.1 mA from the supply.

Fluid Line Evacuation and Freezing Experiments for Digital Radiator Concept

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Berisford, Daniel F.; Birur, Gajanana C.; Miller, Jennifer R.; Sunada, Eric T.; Ganapathi, Gani B.; Stephan, Ryan; Johnson, Mark

2011-01-01

The digital radiator technology is one of three variable heat rejection technologies being investigated for future human-rated NASA missions. The digital radiator concept is based on a mechanically pumped fluid loop with parallel tubes carrying coolant to reject heat from the radiator surface. A series of valves actuate to start and stop fluid flow to di erent combinations of tubes, in order to vary the heat rejection capability of the radiator by a factor of 10 or more. When the flow in a particular leg is stopped, the fluid temperature drops and the fluid can freeze, causing damage or preventing flow from restarting. For this reason, the liquid in a stopped leg must be partially or fully evacuated upon shutdown. One of the challenges facing fluid evacuation from closed tubes arises from the vapor generated during pumping to low pressure, which can cause pump cavitation and incomplete evacuation. Here we present a series of laboratory experiments demonstrating fluid evacuation techniques to overcome these challenges by applying heat and pumping to partial vacuum. Also presented are results from qualitative testing of the freezing characteristics of several different candidate fluids, which demonstrate significant di erences in freezing properties, and give insight to the evacuation process.

Do-It-Yourself Device for Recovery of Cryopreserved Samples Accidentally Dropped into Cryogenic Storage Tanks

PubMed Central

Mehta, Rohini; Baranova, Ancha; Birerdinc, Aybike

2012-01-01

Liquid nitrogen is colorless, odorless, extremely cold (-196 °C) liquid kept under pressure. It is commonly used as a cryogenic fluid for long term storage of biological materials such as blood, cells and tissues 1,2. The cryogenic nature of liquid nitrogen, while ideal for sample preservation, can cause rapid freezing of live tissues on contact - known as 'cryogenic burn'2, which may lead to severe frostbite in persons closely involved in storage and retrieval of samples from Dewars. Additionally, as liquid nitrogen evaporates it reduces the oxygen concentration in the air and might cause asphyxia, especially in confined spaces2. In laboratories, biological samples are often stored in cryovials or cryoboxes stacked in stainless steel racks within the Dewar tanks1. These storage racks are provided with a long shaft to prevent boxes from slipping out from the racks and into the bottom of Dewars during routine handling. All too often, however, boxes or vials with precious samples slip out and sink to the bottom of liquid nitrogen filled tank. In such cases, samples could be tediously retrieved after transferring the liquid nitrogen into a spare container or discarding it. The boxes and vials can then be relatively safely recovered from emptied Dewar. However, the cryogenic nature of liquid nitrogen and its expansion rate makes sunken sample retrieval hazardous. It is commonly recommended by Safety Offices that sample retrieval be never carried out by a single person. Another alternative is to use commercially available cool grabbers or tongs to pull out the vials3. However, limited visibility within the dark liquid filled Dewars poses a major limitation in their use. In this article, we describe the construction of a Cryotolerant DIY retrieval device, which makes sample retrieval from Dewar containing cryogenic fluids both safe and easy. PMID:22617806

The Early Cretaceous Sulfur Isotope Record: New Data, Revised Ages, and Updated Modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kristall, B.; Hurtgen, M.; Sageman, B. B.; Jacobson, A. D.

2015-12-01

The Early Cretaceous is a time of significant transformation with the continued break-up of Pangea, the emplacement of several LIPs, and a climatic shift from a cool greenhouse to a warm greenhouse. The timing of these major events and their relationship to seawater geochemistry (as recorded in isotope records) is critical for understanding changes in global biogeochemical cycles during this time. Within this context, recent revisions to the Cretaceous portion of the geologic timescale necessitate a reevaluation of the Cretaceous S isotope record as recorded in marine barite (Paytan et al., 2004). We present a revised Early Cretaceous S isotope record and present new δ34Sbarite data that extend the record further back in time and provide more detail during two major S isotope shifts of the Early Cretaceous. The new data maintain the major ~5‰ negative shift but raise questions on the timing and structure of this perturbation. Furthermore, recently updated estimates for global rates of marine microbial sulfate reduction (MSR) (Bowles et al., 2014) and sulfate burial during the Phanerozoic (Halevy et al., 2012) require notable revisions in the fluxes and isotopic values used to model the global S cycle. We present a revised global S cycle box model and reconstruct the evolution of the Early Cretaceous S isotope record primarily through perturbations in volcanic and hydrothermal fluxes (e.g., submarine LIPs). Changes to the weathering and pyrite burial fluxes and the global integrated fractionation factor for MSR are also used to modulate, balance, and smooth the LIP-driven perturbation. The massive evaporite burial during the Late Aptian post dates the major -5‰ shift and has little affect on the modeled S isotope composition of seawater sulfate, despite causing a major drop in sulfate concentration. The S cycle box model is coupled to a Sr cycle box model to provide additional constraints on the magnitude and timing of perturbations within the S isotope record.

Do-It-Yourself device for recovery of cryopreserved samples accidentally dropped into cryogenic storage tanks.

PubMed

Mehta, Rohini; Baranova, Ancha; Birerdinc, Aybike

2012-05-11

Liquid nitrogen is colorless, odorless, extremely cold (-196 °C) liquid kept under pressure. It is commonly used as a cryogenic fluid for long term storage of biological materials such as blood, cells and tissues (1,2). The cryogenic nature of liquid nitrogen, while ideal for sample preservation, can cause rapid freezing of live tissues on contact - known as 'cryogenic burn' (2), which may lead to severe frostbite in persons closely involved in storage and retrieval of samples from Dewars. Additionally, as liquid nitrogen evaporates it reduces the oxygen concentration in the air and might cause asphyxia, especially in confined spaces (2). In laboratories, biological samples are often stored in cryovials or cryoboxes stacked in stainless steel racks within the Dewar tanks (1). These storage racks are provided with a long shaft to prevent boxes from slipping out from the racks and into the bottom of Dewars during routine handling. All too often, however, boxes or vials with precious samples slip out and sink to the bottom of liquid nitrogen filled tank. In such cases, samples could be tediously retrieved after transferring the liquid nitrogen into a spare container or discarding it. The boxes and vials can then be relatively safely recovered from emptied Dewar. However, the cryogenic nature of liquid nitrogen and its expansion rate makes sunken sample retrieval hazardous. It is commonly recommended by Safety Offices that sample retrieval be never carried out by a single person. Another alternative is to use commercially available cool grabbers or tongs to pull out the vials (3). However, limited visibility within the dark liquid filled Dewars poses a major limitation in their use. In this article, we describe the construction of a Cryotolerant DIY retrieval device, which makes sample retrieval from Dewar containing cryogenic fluids both safe and easy.

Massive nest-box supplementation boosts fecundity, survival and even immigration without altering mating and reproductive behaviour in a rapidly recovered bird population.

PubMed

Berthier, Karine; Leippert, Fabio; Fumagalli, Luca; Arlettaz, Raphaël

2012-01-01

Habitat restoration measures may result in artificially high breeding density, for instance when nest-boxes saturate the environment, which can negatively impact species' demography. Potential risks include changes in mating and reproductive behaviour such as increased extra-pair paternity, conspecific brood parasitism, and polygyny. Under particular cicumstances, these mechanisms may disrupt reproduction, with populations dragged into an extinction vortex. With the use of nuclear microsatellite markers, we investigated the occurrence of these potentially negative effects in a recovered population of a rare secondary cavity-nesting farmland bird of Central Europe, the hoopoe (Upupa epops). High intensity farming in the study area has resulted in a total eradication of cavity trees, depriving hoopoes from breeding sites. An intensive nest-box campaign rectified this problem, resulting in a spectacular population recovery within a few years only. There was some concern, however, that the new, high artificially-induced breeding density might alter hoopoe mating and reproductive behaviour. As the species underwent a serious demographic bottleneck in the 1970-1990s, we also used the microsatellite markers to reconstitute the demo-genetic history of the population, looking in particular for signs of genetic erosion. We found i) a low occurrence of extra-pair paternity, polygyny and conspecific brood parasitism, ii) a high level of neutral genetic diversity (mean number of alleles and expected heterozygosity per locus: 13.8 and 83%, respectively) and, iii) evidence for genetic connectivity through recent immigration of individuals from well differentiated populations. The recent increase in breeding density did thus not induce so far any noticeable detrimental changes in mating and reproductive behaviour. The demographic bottleneck undergone by the population in the 1970s-1990s was furthermore not accompanied by any significant drop in neutral genetic diversity. Finally, genetic data converged with a concomitant demographic study to evidence that immigration strongly contributed to local population recovery.

New Drop Fluidics Enabled by Magnetic-Field-Mediated Elastocapillary Transduction.

PubMed

Biswas, Saheli; Pomeau, Yves; Chaudhury, Manoj K

2016-07-12

This research introduces a new drop fluidics that uses a deformable and stretchable elastomeric film as the platform instead of the commonly used rigid supports. Such a soft film impregnated with magnetic particles can be modulated with an external electromagnetic field that produces a vast array of topographical landscapes with varying surface curvature, which, in conjunction with capillarity, can direct and control the motion of water droplets efficiently and accurately. When a thin layer of oil is present on this film that is deformed locally, a centrosymmetric wedge is formed. A water droplet placed on this oil-laden film becomes asymmetrically deformed, thus producing a gradient of Laplace pressure within the droplet and setting it in motion. A simple theory is presented that accounts for the droplet speed in terms of such geometric variables as the volume of the droplet and the thickness of the oil film covering the soft elastomeric film as well as material variables such as the viscosity of the oil and the interfacial tension of the oil-water interfaces. Following the verification of the theoretical result using well-controlled model systems, we demonstrate how the electromagnetically controlled elastocapillary force can be used to manipulate the motion of single and/or multiple droplets on the surface of the elastomeric film and how elementary operations such as drop fusion and thermally addressed chemical transformation can be carried out in aqueous droplets. It is expected that the resulting drop fluidics would be suitable for the digital control of drop motion by simply switching on and off the electromagnetic fields applied at different positions underneath the elastomeric film in a Boolean sequence. We anticipate that this method of directing and manipulating water droplets is poised for application in various biochemical reaction engineering situations, an example of which is the polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

Impact differences in ground reaction force and center of mass between the first and second landing phases of a drop vertical jump and their implications for injury risk assessment.

PubMed

Bates, Nathaniel A; Ford, Kevin R; Myer, Gregory D; Hewett, Timothy E

2013-04-26

The drop vertical jump (DVJ) task is commonly used to assess biomechanical performance measures that are associated with ACL injury risk in athletes. Previous investigations have solely assessed the first landing phase. We examined the first and second landings of a DVJ for differences in the magnitude of vertical ground reaction force (vGRF) and position of center of mass (CoM). A cohort of 239 adolescent female basketball athletes completed a series of DVJ tasks from an initial box height of 31 cm. Dual force platforms and a three dimensional motion capture system recorded force and positional data for each trial. There was no difference in peak vGRF between landings (p=0.445), but side-to-side differences increased from the first to second landing (p=0.007). Participants demonstrated a lower minimum CoM during stance in the first landing than the second landing (p<0.001). The results have important implications for the future assessment of ACL injury risk behaviors in adolescent female athletes. Greater side-to-side asymmetry in vGRF and higher CoM during impact indicate the second landing of a DVJ may exhibit greater perturbation and better represent in-game mechanics associated with ACL injury risk. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

SCAR Radiologic Technologist Survey: analysis of the impact of digital technologies on productivity.

PubMed

Reiner, Bruce I; Siegel, Eliot L; Carrino, John A; Goldburgh, Mitchell M

2002-09-01

As medical reimbursements continue to decline, increasing financial pressures are placed upon medical imaging providers. This burden is exacerbated by the existing radiologic technologist (RT) crisis, which has caused RT salaries to trend upward. One strategy to address these trends is employing technology to improve technologist productivity. While industry-wide RT productivity benchmarks have been established for film-based operation, little to date has been published in the medical literature regarding similar productivity measures for filmless operation using PACS. This study was undertaken to document the complex relationship between technologist productivity and implementation of digital radiography and digital information technologies, including PACS and hospital/radiology information systems (HIS/RIS). A nationwide survey was conducted with 112 participating institutions, in varying degrees of digital technology implementation. Technologist productivity was defined as the number of annual exams performed per technologist full-time equivalent (FTE). Productivity analyses were performed among the different demographic and technology profile groups, with a focus on general radiography, which accounts for 65-70% of imaging department volumes. When evaluating the relationship between technologist productivity and digital technology implementation, improved productivity measures were observed for institutions implementing HIS/RIS, modality worklist, and PACS. The timing of PACS implementation was found to have a significant effect on technologist productivity measures, with an initial 10.8% drop in productivity during the first year of PACS implementation, followed by a 27.8% increase in productivity beyond year one. This suggests there is a "PACS learning curve" phenomenon, which should be considered when institutions are planning for PACS implementation.

Suspension and simple optical characterization of two-dimensional membranes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Northeast, David B.; Knobel, Robert G.

2018-03-01

We report on a method for suspending two-dimensional crystal materials in an electronic circuit using an only photoresists and solvents. Graphene and NbSe2 are suspended tens of nanometers above metal electrodes with clamping diameters of several microns. The optical cavity formed from the membrane/air/metal structures enables a quick method to measure the number of layers and the gap separation using comparisons between the expected colour and optical microscope images. This characterization technique can be used with just an illuminated microscope with a digital camera which makes it adaptable to environments where other means of characterization are not possible, such as inside nitrogen glove boxes used in handling oxygen-sensitive materials.

The IASI detection chain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicol, Patrick; Fleury, Joel; Le Naour, Claire; Bernard, Frédéric

2017-11-01

IASI (Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer) is an infrared atmospheric sounder. It will provide meteorologist and scientific community with atmospheric spectra. The instrument is composed of a Fourier transform spectrometer and an associated infrared imager. The presentation will describe the spectrometer detection chain architecture, composed by three different detectors cooled in a passive cryo-cooler (so called CBS : Cold Box Subsystem) and associated analog electronics up to digital conversion. It will mainly focus on design choices with regards to environment constraints, implemented technologies, and associated performances. CNES is leading the IASI program in collaboration with EUMETSAT. The instrument Prime is ALCATEL SPACE responsible, notably, of the detection chain architecture. SAGEM SA provides the detector package (so called CAU : Cold Acquisition Unit).

The IASI detection chain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicol, Patrick; Fleury, Joel; Bernard, Frédéric

2004-06-01

IASI (Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer) is an infrared atmospheric sounder. It will provide meteorologist and scientific community with atmospheric spectra. The instrument is composed of a Fourier transform spectrometer and an associated infrared imager. The presentation will describe the spectrometer detection chain architecture, composed by three different detectors cooled in a passive cryo-cooler (so called CBS : Cold Box Subsystem) and associated analog electronics up to digital conversion. It will mainly focus on design choices with regards to environment constraints, implemented technologies, and associated performances . CNES is leading the IASI program in collaboration with EUMETSAT. The instrument Prime is ALCATEL SPACE responsible, notably, of the detection chain architecture. SAGEM SA provides the detector package (so called CAU: Cold Acquisition Unit).

Spatial Databases of Geological, Geophysical, and Mineral Resource Data Relevant to Sandstone-Hosted Copper Deposits in Central Kazakhstan

USGS Publications Warehouse

Syusyura, Boris; Box, Stephen E.; Wallis, John C.

2010-01-01

Central Kazakhstan is host to one of the world's giant sandstone-hosted copper deposits, the Dzhezkazgan deposit, and several similar, smaller deposits. The United Stated Geological Survey (USGS) is assessing the potential for other, undiscovered deposits of this type in the surrounding region of central Kazakhstan. As part of this effort, Syusyura compiled and partially translated an array of mostly unpublished geologic, geophysical, and mineral resource data for this region in digital format from the archives of the former Union of Soviet Socialists Republics (of which Kazakhstan was one of the member republics until its dissolution in 1991), as well as from later archives of the Republic of Kazakhstan or of the Kazakhstan consulting firm Mining Economic Consulting (MEC). These digital data are primarily map-based displays of information that were transmitted either in ESRI ArcGIS, georeferenced format, or non-georeferenced map image files. Box and Wallis reviewed all the data, translated Cyrillic text where necessary, inspected the maps for consistency, georeferenced the unprojected map images, and reorganized the data into the filename and folder structure of this publication.

ELUCID - Exploring the Local Universe with ReConstructed Initial Density Field III: Constrained Simulation in the SDSS Volume

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Huiyuan; Mo, H. J.; Yang, Xiaohu; Zhang, Youcai; Shi, JingJing; Jing, Y. P.; Liu, Chengze; Li, Shijie; Kang, Xi; Gao, Yang

2016-11-01

A method we developed recently for the reconstruction of the initial density field in the nearby universe is applied to the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 7. A high-resolution N-body constrained simulation (CS) of the reconstructed initial conditions, with 30723 particles evolved in a 500 {h}-1 {Mpc} box, is carried out and analyzed in terms of the statistical properties of the final density field and its relation with the distribution of Sloan Digital Sky Survey galaxies. We find that the statistical properties of the cosmic web and the halo populations are accurately reproduced in the CS. The galaxy density field is strongly correlated with the CS density field, with a bias that depends on both galaxy luminosity and color. Our further investigations show that the CS provides robust quantities describing the environments within which the observed galaxies and galaxy systems reside. Cosmic variance is greatly reduced in the CS so that the statistical uncertainties can be controlled effectively, even for samples of small volumes.

A Digital 3D-Reconstruction of the Younger Dryas Baltic Ice Lake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jakobsson, M.; Alm, G.; Bjorck, S.; Lindeberg, G.; Svensson, N.

2005-12-01

A digital 3D-reconstruction of the final stage of the ice dammed Baltic Ice Lake (BIL), dated to the very end of the Younger Dryas cold period (ca. 11 600 cal. yr BP) has been compiled using a combined bathymetric-topographic Digital Terrain Model (DTM), Scandinavian ice sheet limits, Baltic Sea Holocene bottom sediment thickness information, and a paleoshoreline database maintained at the Lund University. The combined bathymetric-topographic Digital Terrain Model (DTM) model used to reconstruct the ice dammed lake was compiled specifically for this study from publicly available data sets. The final DTM is in the form of a digital grid on Lamberts Equal Area projection with a resolution of 500 x 500 m, which permits a much more detailed reconstruction of the BIL than previously made. The lake was constructed through a series of experiments where mathematical algorithms were applied to fit the paleolake's surface through the shoreline database. The accumulated Holocene bottom sediments in the Baltic Sea were subsequently subtracted from the present bathymetry in our reconstruction. This allows us to estimate the Baltic Ice Lake's paleobathymetry, area, volume, and hypsometry, which will comprise key input data to lake/climate modeling exercises following this study. The Scandinavian ice sheet margin eventually retreated north of Mount Billingen, which was the high point in terrain of Southern central Sweden bordering to lower terrain further to the North. As a consequence, the BIL was catastrophically drained through this area, resulting in a 25 m drop of the lake level. With our digital BIL model we estimate that approximately 7, 800 km3 of water drained during this event and that the ice dammed lake area was reduced with ca 18 percent. The digital BIL reconstruction is analyzed using 3D-visualization techniques that provide new detailed information on the paleogeography in the area, both before and after the lake drainage, with implications for interpretations of geological records concerning the post-glacial environmental development of southern Scandinavia.

Creative foraging: An experimental paradigm for studying exploration and discovery

PubMed Central

Mayo, Avraham E.; Mayo, Ruth; Rozenkrantz, Liron; Tendler, Avichai; Alon, Uri; Noy, Lior

2017-01-01

Creative exploration is central to science, art and cognitive development. However, research on creative exploration is limited by a lack of high-resolution automated paradigms. To address this, we present such an automated paradigm, the creative foraging game, in which people search for novel and valuable solutions in a large and well-defined space made of all possible shapes made of ten connected squares. Players discovered shape categories such as digits, letters, and airplanes as well as more abstract categories. They exploited each category, then dropped it to explore once again, and so on. Aligned with a prediction of optimal foraging theory (OFT), during exploration phases, people moved along meandering paths that are about three times longer than the shortest paths between shapes; when exploiting a category of related shapes, they moved along the shortest paths. The moment of discovery of a new category was usually done at a non-prototypical and ambiguous shape, which can serve as an experimental proxy for creative leaps. People showed individual differences in their search patterns, along a continuum between two strategies: a mercurial quick-to-discover/quick-to-drop strategy and a thorough slow-to-discover/slow-to-drop strategy. Contrary to optimal foraging theory, players leave exploitation to explore again far before categories are depleted. This paradigm opens the way for automated high-resolution study of creative exploration. PMID:28767668

Higuchi Dimension of Digital Images

PubMed Central

Ahammer, Helmut

2011-01-01

There exist several methods for calculating the fractal dimension of objects represented as 2D digital images. For example, Box counting, Minkowski dilation or Fourier analysis can be employed. However, there appear to be some limitations. It is not possible to calculate only the fractal dimension of an irregular region of interest in an image or to perform the calculations in a particular direction along a line on an arbitrary angle through the image. The calculations must be made for the whole image. In this paper, a new method to overcome these limitations is proposed. 2D images are appropriately prepared in order to apply 1D signal analyses, originally developed to investigate nonlinear time series. The Higuchi dimension of these 1D signals is calculated using Higuchi's algorithm, and it is shown that both regions of interests and directional dependencies can be evaluated independently of the whole picture. A thorough validation of the proposed technique and a comparison of the new method to the Fourier dimension, a common two dimensional method for digital images, are given. The main result is that Higuchi's algorithm allows a direction dependent as well as direction independent analysis. Actual values for the fractal dimensions are reliable and an effective treatment of regions of interests is possible. Moreover, the proposed method is not restricted to Higuchi's algorithm, as any 1D method of analysis, can be applied. PMID:21931854

A guide for the use of digital elevation model data for making soil surveys

USGS Publications Warehouse

Klingebiel, A.A.; Horvath, Emil H.; Reybold, William U.; Moore, D.G.; Fosnight, E.A.; Loveland, Thomas R.

1988-01-01

The intent of this publication is twofold: (1) to serve as a user guide for soil scientists and others interested in learning about the value and use of digital elevation model (DEM) data in making soil surveys and (2) to provide documentation of the Soil Landscape Analysis Project (SLAP). This publication provides a step-by-step guide on how digital slope-class maps are adjusted to topographic maps and orthophotoquads to obtain accurate slope-class maps, and how these derivative maps can be used as a base for soil survey premaps. In addition, guidance is given on the use of aspect-class maps and other resource data in making pre-maps. The value and use of tabular summaries are discussed. Examples of the use of DEM products by the authors and by selected field soil scientists are also given. Additional information on SLAP procedures may be obtained from USDA, Soil Conservation Service, Soil Survey Division, P.O. Box 2890, Washington, D.C. 20013, and from references (Horvath and others, 1987; Horvath and others, 1983; Klingebiel and others, 1987; and Young, 1987) listed in this publication. The slope and aspect products and the procedures for using these products have evolved during 5 years of cooperative research with the USDA, Soil Conservation Service and Forest Service, and the USDI, Bureau of Land Management.

Mediaprocessors in medical imaging for high performance and flexibility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Managuli, Ravi; Kim, Yongmin

2002-05-01

New high performance programmable processors, called mediaprocessors, have been emerging since the early 1990s for various digital media applications, such as digital TV, set-top boxes, desktop video conferencing, and digital camcorders. Modern mediaprocessors, e.g., TI's TMS320C64x and Hitachi/Equator Technologies MAP-CA, can offer high performance utilizing both instruction-level and data-level parallelism. During this decade, with continued performance improvement and cost reduction, we believe that the mediaprocessors will become a preferred choice in designing imaging and video systems due to their flexibility in incorporating new algorithms and applications via programming and faster-time-to-market. In this paper, we will evaluate the suitability of these mediaprocessors in medical imaging. We will review the core routines of several medical imaging modalities, such as ultrasound and DR, and present how these routines can be mapped to mediaprocessors and their resultant performance. We will analyze the architecture of several leading mediaprocessors. By carefully mapping key imaging routines, such as 2D convolution, unsharp masking, and 2D FFT, to the mediaprocessor, we have been able to achieve comparable (if not better) performance to that of traditional hardwired approaches. Thus, we believe that future medical imaging systems will benefit greatly from these advanced mediaprocessors, offering significantly increased flexibility and adaptability, reducing the time-to-market, and improving the cost/performance ratio compared to the existing systems while meeting the high computing requirements.

Instantaneous stroke volume in man during lower body negative pressure /LBNP/

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Loeppky, J. A.; Richards, K. L.; Greene, E. R.; Eldridge, M. W.; Hoekenga, D. E.; Venters, M. D.; Luft, U. C.

1982-01-01

Results of an examination of the instantaneous time course of the stroke volume (SV) and cardiac output (Q) in response to the onset and release of -50 torr lower body negative pressure (LBNP) are reported. Six male subjects were sealed into a LBNP box up to the iliac crest while being monitored by echocardiograph for centerlamina blood velocity, fluid displacement, stroke volume, heart rate, and leg volume. Particular use was made of pulsed ultrasonic Doppler velocity meters for measuring the blood velocities and flow dynamics. Measurements were made of the subjects continuously beginning from 20 sec prior to and one min after LBNP onset and release. A linear fall in the SV was observed with LBNP at 49% of the baseline value after 33 sec. A 62% drop, the lowest, was detected after 8 min of LBNP. The leg volume was inversely related to Q for the duration of the experiment.

Impact of slowdown of Atlantic overturning circulation on heat and freshwater transports

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelly, Kathryn A.; Drushka, Kyla; Thompson, LuAnne; Le Bars, Dewi; McDonagh, Elaine L.

2016-07-01

Recent measurements of the strength of the Atlantic overturning circulation at 26°N show a 1 year drop and partial recovery amid a gradual weakening. To examine the extent and impact of the slowdown on basin wide heat and freshwater transports for 2004-2012, a box model that assimilates hydrographic and satellite observations is used to estimate heat transport and freshwater convergence as residuals of the heat and freshwater budgets. Using an independent transport estimate, convergences are converted to transports, which show a high level of spatial coherence. The similarity between Atlantic heat transport and the Agulhas Leakage suggests that it is the source of the surface heat transport anomalies. The freshwater budget in the North Atlantic is dominated by a decrease in freshwater flux. The increasing salinity during the slowdown supports modeling studies that show that heat, not freshwater, drives trends in the overturning circulation in a warming climate.

Full length view of the Spacelab module

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-08-12

STS083-312-031 (4-8 April 1997) --- Payload specialist Gregory T. Linteris (left) is seen at the Mid Deck Glove Box (MGBX), while astronaut Donald A. Thomas, mission specialist, works at the Expedite the Processing of Experiments to Space Station (EXPRESS) rack. MGBX is a facility that allows scientists the capability of doing tests on hardware and materials that are not approved to be handled in the open Spacelab. It is equipped with photographic, video and data recording capability, allowing a complete record of experiment operations. Experiments performed on STS-83 were Bubble Drop Nonlinear Dynamics and Fiber Supported Droplet Combustion. EXPRESS is designed to provide accommodations for Sub-rack payloads on Space Station. For STS-83, it held two payloads. The Physics of Hard Colloidal Spheres (PHaSE) and ASTRO-Plant Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus (ASTRO-PGBA), a facility with light and atmospheric controls which supports plant growth for commercial research.

Fifteen-year survival of anterior all-ceramic cantilever resin-bonded fixed dental prostheses.

PubMed

Kern, Matthias

2017-01-01

The aim of this follow-up study was to report the long-term outcome of all-ceramic cantilever resin-bonded fixed dental prostheses (RBFDPs). In 16 patients (mean age of 33.3±17.5years) 22 RBFDPs made from a glass-infiltrated alumina ceramic (In-Ceram) were inserted with a phosphate monomer containing luting agent after air-abrasion of the retainer wings. The abutment preparation included a shallow groove on the cingulum and a small proximal box. The restorations replacing 16 maxillary and 6 mandibular incisors were followed over a mean observation time of 188.7 months. No restoration debonded. Two RBFDPs fractured and were lost 48 and 214 months after insertion, respectively. The 10-year and 15-year survival rates were both 95.4% and dropped to 81.8% after 18 years. Anterior all-ceramic cantilever RBFDPs exhibited an excellent clinical longevity. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Infrared-Proximity-Sensor Modules For Robot

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parton, William; Wegerif, Daniel; Rosinski, Douglas

1995-01-01

Collision-avoidance system for articulated robot manipulators uses infrared proximity sensors grouped together in array of sensor modules. Sensor modules, called "sensorCells," distributed processing board-level products for acquiring data from proximity-sensors strategically mounted on robot manipulators. Each sensorCell self-contained and consists of multiple sensing elements, discrete electronics, microcontroller and communications components. Modules connected to central control computer by redundant serial digital communication subsystem including both serial and a multi-drop bus. Detects objects made of various materials at distance of up to 50 cm. For some materials, such as thermal protection system tiles, detection range reduced to approximately 20 cm.

An efficient and secure partial image encryption for wireless multimedia sensor networks using discrete wavelet transform, chaotic maps and substitution box

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khan, Muazzam A.; Ahmad, Jawad; Javaid, Qaisar; Saqib, Nazar A.

2017-03-01

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) is widely deployed in monitoring of some physical activity and/or environmental conditions. Data gathered from WSN is transmitted via network to a central location for further processing. Numerous applications of WSN can be found in smart homes, intelligent buildings, health care, energy efficient smart grids and industrial control systems. In recent years, computer scientists has focused towards findings more applications of WSN in multimedia technologies, i.e. audio, video and digital images. Due to bulky nature of multimedia data, WSN process a large volume of multimedia data which significantly increases computational complexity and hence reduces battery time. With respect to battery life constraints, image compression in addition with secure transmission over a wide ranged sensor network is an emerging and challenging task in Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks. Due to the open nature of the Internet, transmission of data must be secure through a process known as encryption. As a result, there is an intensive demand for such schemes that is energy efficient as well as highly secure since decades. In this paper, discrete wavelet-based partial image encryption scheme using hashing algorithm, chaotic maps and Hussain's S-Box is reported. The plaintext image is compressed via discrete wavelet transform and then the image is shuffled column-wise and row wise-wise via Piece-wise Linear Chaotic Map (PWLCM) and Nonlinear Chaotic Algorithm, respectively. To get higher security, initial conditions for PWLCM are made dependent on hash function. The permuted image is bitwise XORed with random matrix generated from Intertwining Logistic map. To enhance the security further, final ciphertext is obtained after substituting all elements with Hussain's substitution box. Experimental and statistical results confirm the strength of the anticipated scheme.

Evaluating the use of augmented reality to support undergraduate student learning in geomorphology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ockelford, A.; Bullard, J. E.; Burton, E.; Hackney, C. R.

2016-12-01

Augmented Reality (AR) supports the understanding of complex phenomena by providing unique visual and interactive experiences that combine real and virtual information and help communicate abstract problems to learners. With AR, designers can superimpose virtual graphics over real objects, allowing users to interact with digital content through physical manipulation. One of the most significant pedagogic features of AR is that it provides an essentially student-centred and flexible space in which students can learn. By actively engaging participants using a design-thinking approach, this technology has the potential to provide a more productive and engaging learning environment than real or virtual learning environments alone. AR is increasingly being used in support of undergraduate learning and public engagement activities across engineering, medical and humanities disciplines but it is not widely used across the geosciences disciplines despite the obvious applicability. This paper presents preliminary results from a multi-institutional project which seeks to evaluate the benefits and challenges of using an augmented reality sand box to support undergraduate learning in geomorphology. The sandbox enables users to create and visualise topography. As the sand is sculpted, contours are projected onto the miniature landscape. By hovering a hand over the box, users can make it `rain' over the landscape and the water `flows' down in to rivers and valleys. At undergraduate level, the sand-box is an ideal focus for problem-solving exercises, for example exploring how geomorphology controls hydrological processes, how such processes can be altered and the subsequent impacts of the changes for environmental risk. It is particularly valuable for students who favour a visual or kinesthetic learning style. Results presented in this paper discuss how the sandbox provides a complex interactive environment that encourages communication, collaboration and co-design.

Digital Gene Expression Analysis Based on De Novo Transcriptome Assembly Reveals New Genes Associated with Floral Organ Differentiation of the Orchid Plant Cymbidium ensifolium

PubMed Central

Yang, Fengxi; Zhu, Genfa

2015-01-01

Cymbidium ensifolium belongs to the genus Cymbidium of the orchid family. Owing to its spectacular flower morphology, C. ensifolium has considerable ecological and cultural value. However, limited genetic data is available for this non-model plant, and the molecular mechanism underlying floral organ identity is still poorly understood. In this study, we characterize the floral transcriptome of C. ensifolium and present, for the first time, extensive sequence and transcript abundance data of individual floral organs. After sequencing, over 10 Gb clean sequence data were generated and assembled into 111,892 unigenes with an average length of 932.03 base pairs, including 1,227 clusters and 110,665 singletons. Assembled sequences were annotated with gene descriptions, gene ontology, clusters of orthologous group terms, the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, and the plant transcription factor database. From these annotations, 131 flowering-associated unigenes, 61 CONSTANS-LIKE (COL) unigenes and 90 floral homeotic genes were identified. In addition, four digital gene expression libraries were constructed for the sepal, petal, labellum and gynostemium, and 1,058 genes corresponding to individual floral organ development were identified. Among them, eight MADS-box genes were further investigated by full-length cDNA sequence analysis and expression validation, which revealed two APETALA1/AGL9-like MADS-box genes preferentially expressed in the sepal and petal, two AGAMOUS-like genes particularly restricted to the gynostemium, and four DEF-like genes distinctively expressed in different floral organs. The spatial expression of these genes varied distinctly in different floral mutant corresponding to different floral morphogenesis, which validated the specialized roles of them in floral patterning and further supported the effectiveness of our in silico analysis. This dataset generated in our study provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying floral patterning of Cymbidium and supports a valuable resource for molecular breeding of the orchid plant. PMID:26580566

Computed tomographic (CT) neuroradiological evaluation of intra-axial and extra-axial lesions: a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) study of film and 1K workstation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

El-Saden, Suzie; Hademenos, George J.; Zhu, Wei; Sayre, James W.; Glenn, Brad; Steidler, Jim; Kode, L.; King, Brian; Quinones, Diana; Valentino, Daniel J.; Bentsen, John R.

1995-04-01

Digital display workstations are now commonly used for cross-sectional image viewing; however, few receiver operating characteristic (ROC) studies have been performed to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of hard copy versus a workstation display for neuroradiology applications. We have performed an ROC study of film and 1K workstation based on the diagnostic performance of neuroradiology fellows to detect subtle intra- axial (high density (HD) and low density (LD)) and extra-axial (fluid, blood) lesions presented on computed tomographic (CT) images. An ROC analysis of the interpretation of approximately 200 CT images (1/2 normals and 1/2 abnormals) was performed by five experienced observers. The total number of abnormal images were equally divided among the three represented types of lesions (HD, LD, and extra-axial lesions). The images comprising the extra-axial lesion group were further subdivided into the following three distinct types: subdural hemorrhage, subarachnoid hemorrhage, and epidural hemorrhage. A fraction of the abnormal images were represented by more than one type of lesion, e.g., one abnormal image could contain both a HD and LD lesion. The digitized CT images were separated into four groups and read on the standard light box and a 1K workstation monitor equipped with simple image processing functions. Confidence ratings were scaled on a range from 0 (least confident) to 4 (most confident). Reader order sequences were randomized for each reader and for each modality. Each observer read from a total of eight different groups with a four-week intermission following the fourth group. The randomly assigned image number, lesion type and approximate location, incidental findings and comments, and confidence ratings were reported in individual worksheets for each image. ROC curves that were generated and analyzed for the various subgroups are presented in addition to the overall generalized jackknifed estimates of the grouped data. Also, 95% confidence intervals are presented for the differences in the area under the ROC curves. Although there were no statistically significant differences in the diagnostic accuracy between the original CT slice with HD and LD lesions viewed on the light box and on the 1K display workstation, the observers tended to record extra- axial lesions more frequently and with more confidence on the 1K display in comparison to the light box primarily due to the added advantage of adjusting the display window levels.

Logic Gates Made of N-Channel JFETs and Epitaxial Resistors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krasowski, Michael J.

2008-01-01

Prototype logic gates made of n-channel junction field-effect transistors (JFETs) and epitaxial resistors have been demonstrated, with a view toward eventual implementation of digital logic devices and systems in silicon carbide (SiC) integrated circuits (ICs). This development is intended to exploit the inherent ability of SiC electronic devices to function at temperatures from 300 to somewhat above 500 C and withstand large doses of ionizing radiation. SiC-based digital logic devices and systems could enable operation of sensors and robots in nuclear reactors, in jet engines, near hydrothermal vents, and in other environments that are so hot or radioactive as to cause conventional silicon electronic devices to fail. At present, current needs for digital processing at high temperatures exceed SiC integrated circuit production capabilities, which do not allow for highly integrated circuits. Only single to small number component production of depletion mode n-channel JFETs and epitaxial resistors on a single substrate is possible. As a consequence, the fine matching of components is impossible, resulting in rather large direct-current parameter distributions within a group of transistors typically spanning multiples of 5 to 10. Add to this the lack of p-channel devices to complement the n-channel FETs, the lack of precise dropping diodes, and the lack of enhancement mode devices at these elevated temperatures and the use of conventional direct coupled and buffered direct coupled logic gate design techniques is impossible. The presented logic gate design is tolerant of device parameter distributions and is not hampered by the lack of complementary devices or dropping diodes. In addition to n-channel JFETs, these gates include level-shifting and load resistors (see figure). Instead of relying on precise matching of parameters among individual JFETS, these designs rely on choosing the values of these resistors and of supply potentials so as to make the circuits perform the desired functions throughout the ranges over which the parameters of the JFETs are distributed. The supply rails V(sub dd) and V(sub ss) and the resistors R are chosen as functions of the distribution of direct-current operating parameters of the group of transistors used.

Digital Compositing Techniques for Coronal Imaging (Invited review)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Espenak, F.

2000-04-01

The solar corona exhibits a huge range in brightness which cannot be captured in any single photographic exposure. Short exposures show the bright inner corona and prominences, while long exposures reveal faint details in equatorial streamers and polar brushes. For many years, radial gradient filters and other analog techniques have been used to compress the corona's dynamic range in order to study its morphology. Such techniques demand perfect pointing and tracking during the eclipse, and can be difficult to calibrate. In the past decade, the speed, memory and hard disk capacity of personal computers have rapidly increased as prices continue to drop. It is now possible to perform sophisticated image processing of eclipse photographs on commercially available CPU's. Software programs such as Adobe Photoshop permit combining multiple eclipse photographs into a composite image which compresses the corona's dynamic range and can reveal subtle features and structures. Algorithms and digital techniques used for processing 1998 eclipse photographs will be discussed which are equally applicable to the recent eclipse of 1999 August 11.

High-speed (20 kHz) digital in-line holography for transient particle tracking and sizing in multiphase flows

DOE PAGES

Guildenbecher, Daniel R.; Cooper, Marcia A.; Sojka, Paul E.

2016-04-05

High-speed (20 kHz) digital in-line holography (DIH) is applied for 3D quantification of the size and velocity of fragments formed from the impact of a single water drop onto a thin film of water and burning aluminum particles from the combustion of a solid rocket propellant. To address the depth-of-focus problem in DIH, a regression-based multiframe tracking algorithm is employed, and out-of-plane experimental displacement accuracy is shown to be improved by an order-of-magnitude. Comparison of the results with previous DIH measurements using low-speed recording shows improved positional accuracy with the added advantage of detailed resolution of transient dynamics from singlemore » experimental realizations. Furthermore, the method is shown to be particularly advantageous for quantification of particle mass flow rates. For the investigated particle fields, the mass flows rates, which have been automatically measured from single experimental realizations, are found to be within 8% of the expected values.« less

Consideration of the effect for enhancing the disaster prevention awareness by visualization of the tsunami lore

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiharu, M.

2017-12-01

One effective measure for enhancing the residents' disaster prevention awareness is to know the natural hazard which has occurred in the past at residence. Mie Disaster Mitigation Center had released the digital archive for promoting an understanding of disaster prevention on April 28, 2015. This archive is recording the past disaster information as digital catalog. An effective contribution to enhancement of the inhabitants' disaster prevention awareness is expected. It includes the following contents (1) The interview with disaster victim (the 1944 Tonankai Earthquake, The Ise Bay Typhoon and so on) (2) The information on "monument of Tsunami" (3) The description of disaster on the local history material (the school history books, municipal history books, and so on). These contents are being dropped on a map and it is being shown clearly geographically. For all age groups, this way makes it easy to understand that the past disaster information relates to their residence address.

Investigation of plume dynamics during picosecond laser ablation of H13 steel using high-speed digital holography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pangovski, Krste; Otanocha, Omonigho B.; Zhong, Shan; Sparkes, Martin; Liu, Zhu; O'Neill, William; Li, Lin

2017-02-01

Ablation of H13 tool steel using pulse packets with repetition rates of 400 and 1000 kHz and pulse energies of 75 and 44 μ {J}, respectively, is investigated. A drop in ablation efficiency (defined here as the depth per pulse or μ {m}{/}μ {J}) is shown to occur when using pulse energies of E_{{pulse}} > 44 μ {J}, accompanied by a marked difference in crater morphology. A pulsed digital holographic system is applied to image the resulting plumes, showing a persistent plume in both cases. Holographic data are used to calculate the plume absorption and subsequently the fraction of pulse energy arriving at the surface after traversing the plume for different pulse arrival times. A significant proportion of the pulse energy is shown to be absorbed in the plume for E_{{pulse}} > 44 μ {J} for pulse arrival times corresponding to {>}1 MHz pulse repetition rate, shifting the interaction to a vapour-dominated ablation regime, an energetically costlier ablation mechanism.

On DESTINY Science Instrument Electrical and Electronics Subsystem Framework

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kizhner, Semion; Benford, Dominic J.; Lauer, Tod R.

2009-01-01

Future space missions are going to require large focal planes with many sensing arrays and hundreds of millions of pixels all read out at high data rates'' . This will place unique demands on the electrical and electronics (EE) subsystem design and it will be critically important to have high technology readiness level (TRL) EE concepts ready to support such missions. One such omission is the Joint Dark Energy Mission (JDEM) charged with making precise measurements of the expansion rate of the universe to reveal vital clues about the nature of dark energy - a hypothetical form of energy that permeates all of space and tends to increase the rate of the expansion. One of three JDEM concept studies - the Dark Energy Space Telescope (DESTINY) was conducted in 2008 at the NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) in Greenbelt, Maryland. This paper presents the EE subsystem framework, which evolved from the DESTINY science instrument study. It describes the main challenges and implementation concepts related to the design of an EE subsystem featuring multiple focal planes populated with dozens of large arrays and millions of pixels. The focal planes are passively cooled to cryogenic temperatures (below 140 K). The sensor mosaic is controlled by a large number of Readout Integrated Circuits and Application Specific Integrated Circuits - the ROICs/ASICs in near proximity to their sensor focal planes. The ASICs, in turn, are serviced by a set of "warm" EE subsystem boxes performing Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) based digital signal processing (DSP) computations of complex algorithms, such as sampling-up-the-ramp algorithm (SUTR), over large volumes of fast data streams. The SUTR boxes are supported by the Instrument Control/Command and Data Handling box (ICDH Primary and Backup boxes) for lossless data compression, command and low volume telemetry handling, power conversion and for communications with the spacecraft. The paper outlines how the JDEM DESTINY concept instrument EE subsystem can be built now, a design; which is generally U.S. Government work not protected by U.S. copyright IEEEAC paper # 1429. Version 4. Updated October 19, 2009 applicable to a wide variety of missions using large focal planes with lar ge mosaics of sensors.

Using A New Model for Main Sequence Turnoff Absolute Magnitudes to Measure Stellar Streams in the Milky Way Halo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weiss, Jake; Newberg, Heidi Jo; Arsenault, Matthew; Bechtel, Torrin; Desell, Travis; Newby, Matthew; Thompson, Jeffery M.

2016-01-01

Statistical photometric parallax is a method for using the distribution of absolute magnitudes of stellar tracers to statistically recover the underlying density distribution of these tracers. In previous work, statistical photometric parallax was used to trace the Sagittarius Dwarf tidal stream, the so-called bifurcated piece of the Sagittaritus stream, and the Virgo Overdensity through the Milky Way. We use an improved knowledge of this distribution in a new algorithm that accounts for the changes in the stellar population of color-selected stars near the photometric limit of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Although we select bluer main sequence turnoff stars (MSTO) as tracers, large color errors near the survey limit cause many stars to be scattered out of our selection box and many fainter, redder stars to be scattered into our selection box. We show that we are able to recover parameters for analogues of these streams in simulated data using a maximum likelihood optimization on MilkyWay@home. We also present the preliminary results of fitting the density distribution of major Milky Way tidal streams in SDSS data. This research is supported by generous gifts from the Marvin Clan, Babette Josephs, Manit Limlamai, and the MilkyWay@home volunteers.

Hydrologic analysis of the High Plains aquifer system in Box Butte County, Nebraska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pettijohn, R.A.; Chen, Hsiu-Hsiung

1984-01-01

During the past 40 years, pumpage of ground water for irrigation from the High Plains aquifer system underlying Box Butte County, Nebraska, has resulted in a steady decline of water levels. Consequently, a digital model of the aquifer system was constructed to evaluate various water-management alternatives. The hydraulic conductivity of the aquifer system ranges from 6 to 60 feet per day; the specific yield ranges from 12 to 21 percent; and natural recharge ranges from 0.06 to 4.33 inches annually. Predevelopment saturated thickness (1938) ranged from 190 to 510 feet. Water pumped in 1980 was estimated at 104,000 acre-feet from an estimated recoverable volume of 34.4 million acre-feet in the aquifer system. Results from model simulation predict that the area of water-level declines of 10 feet or more will increase from 336 square miles (1981) to 630 square miles by 1991 if pumpage is increased at the maximum annual rate experienced for the period 1972-81. Maximum water-level declines would increase from 50 feet (1981) to 79 feet (1991). However, pumpage rates held at the 1981 level (no further development) would limit the decline area of 10 feet or more to 530 square miles by 1991 and the maximum decline to 63 feet. (USGS)

Computer-assisted recording of tensile tests for the evaluation of serrated flow

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

Weinhandl, H.; Mitter, F.; Bernt, W.

1994-12-01

In a previous paper the authors pointed out the difficulties which arise in the evaluation of serrated flow curves when the applied tensile strain rates are just above normal''. The recording system of tensile testing machines which were built, say, twenty years ago, are not capable of recording the full size of the load drops due to the inertia of the recording pen. This handicap was then overcome by establishing correction factors which were determined from recording a small number of load drops with an oscilloscope. Modern testing machines are equipped with digital recording. The disadvantage of the common systemmore » is, however, their limited capacity, so that not enough space for data points is available. Consequently, the time intervals between data points are of the order of tenths of seconds. It will become obvious from the present results that such a time interval is too large for recording a correct serration size. This report is concerned with the recording of complete load-extension relations during tensile tests using a computer which is capable of storing the data at sufficiently small time intervals.« less

An experimental and analytical investigation of thermoacoustic convection heat transfer in gravity and zero-gravity environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parang, Masood

1986-01-01

An experimental and analytical study of Thermoacoustic Convection heat transfer in gravity and zero-gravity environments is presented. The experimental apparatus consisted of a cylinder containing air as a fluid. The side wall of the cylinder was insulated while the bottom wall was allowed to remain at the ambient temperature. The enclosed air was rapidly heated by the top surface which consisted of a thin stainless steel foil connected to a battery pack as the power source. Thermocouples were used to measure the transient temperature of the air on the axis of the cylinder. The ouput of the thermocouples was displayed on digital thermometers and the temperature displays were recorded on film using a high-speed movie camera. Temperature measurements were obtained in the zero-gravity environment by dropping the apparatus in the 2-Seconds Zero-Gravity Drop Tower Facilities of NASA Lewis Research Center. In addition, experiments were also performed in the gravity environment and the results are compared in detail with those obtained under zero-gravity conditions.

Engine Hydraulic Stability. [injector model for analyzing combustion instability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kesselring, R. C.; Sprouse, K. M.

1977-01-01

An analytical injector model was developed specifically to analyze combustion instability coupling between the injector hydraulics and the combustion process. This digital computer dynamic injector model will, for any imposed chamber of inlet pressure profile with a frequency ranging from 100 to 3000 Hz (minimum) accurately predict/calculate the instantaneous injector flowrates. The injector system is described in terms of which flow segments enter and leave each pressure node. For each flow segment, a resistance, line lengths, and areas are required as inputs (the line lengths and areas are used in determining inertance). For each pressure node, volume and acoustic velocity are required as inputs (volume and acoustic velocity determine capacitance). The geometric criteria for determining inertances of flow segments and capacitance of pressure nodes was set. Also, a technique was developed for analytically determining time averaged steady-state pressure drops and flowrates for every flow segment in an injector when such data is not known. These pressure drops and flowrates are then used in determining the linearized flow resistance for each line segment of flow.

Numerical Simulations of the Digital Microfluidic Manipulation of Single Microparticles.

PubMed

Lan, Chuanjin; Pal, Souvik; Li, Zhen; Ma, Yanbao

2015-09-08

Single-cell analysis techniques have been developed as a valuable bioanalytical tool for elucidating cellular heterogeneity at genomic, proteomic, and cellular levels. Cell manipulation is an indispensable process for single-cell analysis. Digital microfluidics (DMF) is an important platform for conducting cell manipulation and single-cell analysis in a high-throughput fashion. However, the manipulation of single cells in DMF has not been quantitatively studied so far. In this article, we investigate the interaction of a single microparticle with a liquid droplet on a flat substrate using numerical simulations. The droplet is driven by capillary force generated from the wettability gradient of the substrate. Considering the Brownian motion of microparticles, we utilize many-body dissipative particle dynamics (MDPD), an off-lattice mesoscopic simulation technique, in this numerical study. The manipulation processes (including pickup, transport, and drop-off) of a single microparticle with a liquid droplet are simulated. Parametric studies are conducted to investigate the effects on the manipulation processes from the droplet size, wettability gradient, wetting properties of the microparticle, and particle-substrate friction coefficients. The numerical results show that the pickup, transport, and drop-off processes can be precisely controlled by these parameters. On the basis of the numerical results, a trap-free delivery of a hydrophobic microparticle to a destination on the substrate is demonstrated in the numerical simulations. The numerical results not only provide a fundamental understanding of interactions among the microparticle, the droplet, and the substrate but also demonstrate a new technique for the trap-free immobilization of single hydrophobic microparticles in the DMF design. Finally, our numerical method also provides a powerful design and optimization tool for the manipulation of microparticles in DMF systems.

Diabetes screening by telecentric digital holographic microscopy.

PubMed

Doblas, A; Roche, E; Ampudia-Blasco, F J; Martínez-Corral, M; Saavedra, G; Garcia-Sucerquia, J

2016-03-01

Diabetes is currently the world's fastest growing chronic disease and it is caused by deficient production of insulin by the endocrine pancreas or by abnormal insulin action in peripheral tissues. This results in persistent hyperglycaemia that over time may produce chronic diabetic complications. Determination of glycated haemoglobin level is currently the gold standard method to evaluate and control sustained hyperglycaemia in diabetic people. This measurement is currently made by high-performance liquid chromatography, which is a complex chemical process that requires the extraction of blood from the antecubital vein. To reduce the complexity of that measurement, we propose a fully-optical technique that is based in the fact that there are changes in the optical properties of erythrocytes due to the presence of glucose-derived adducts in the haemoglobin molecule. To evaluate these changes, we propose to perform quantitative phase maps of erythrocytes by using telecentric digital holographic microscopy. Our experiments show that telecentric digital holographic microscopy allows detecting, almost in real time and from a single drop of blood, significant differences between erythrocytes of diabetic patients and healthy patients. Besides, our phase measurements are well correlated with the values of glycated haemoglobin and the blood glucose values. © 2015 The Authors Journal of Microscopy © 2015 Royal Microscopical Society.

Improved performance of analog and digital acousto-optic modulation with feedback under profiled beam propagation for secure communication using chaos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Almehmadi, Fares S.; Chatterjee, Monish R.

2014-12-01

Using intensity feedback, the closed-loop behavior of an acousto-optic hybrid device under profiled beam propagation has been recently shown to exhibit wider chaotic bands potentially leading to an increase in both the dynamic range and sensitivity to key parameters that characterize the encryption. In this work, a detailed examination is carried out vis-à-vis the robustness of the encryption/decryption process relative to parameter mismatch for both analog and pulse code modulation signals, and bit error rate (BER) curves are used to examine the impact of additive white noise. The simulations with profiled input beams are shown to produce a stronger encryption key (i.e., much lower parametric tolerance thresholds) relative to simulations with uniform plane wave input beams. In each case, it is shown that the tolerance for key parameters drops by factors ranging from 10 to 20 times below those for uniform plane wave propagation. Results are shown to be at consistently lower tolerances for secure transmission of analog and digital signals using parameter tolerance measures, as well as BER performance measures for digital signals. These results hold out the promise for considerably greater information transmission security for such a system.

Comparison of three-dimensional particle tracking and sizing using plenoptic imaging and digital in-line holography

DOE PAGES

Hall, Elise M.; Thurow, Brian S.; Guildenbecher, Daniel R.

2016-08-08

Digital in-line holography (DIH) and plenoptic photography are two techniques for single-shot, volumetric measurement of 3D particle fields. Here we present a comparison of the two methods by applying plenoptic imaging to experimental configurations that have been previously investigated with DIH. These experiments include the tracking of secondary droplets from the impact of a water drop on a thin film of water and tracking of pellets from a shotgun. Both plenoptic imaging and DIH successfully quantify the 3D nature of these particle fields. Furthermore, this includes measurement of the 3D particle position, individual particle sizes, and three-component velocity vectors. Formore » the initial processing methods presented here, both techniques give out-of-plane positional accuracy of approximately 1–2 particle diameters. For a fixed image sensor, digital holography achieves higher effective in-plane spatial resolutions. However, collimated and coherent illumination makes holography susceptible to image distortion through index of refraction gradients, as demonstrated in the shotgun experiments. In contrast, plenoptic imaging allows for a simpler experimental configuration and, due to the use of diffuse, white-light illumination, plenoptic imaging is less susceptible to image distortion in the shotgun experiments.« less

Biofeedback, autogenic training, and progressive relaxation in the treatment of Raynaud's disease: a comparative study.

PubMed Central

Keefe, F J; Surwit, R S; Pilon, R N

1980-01-01

Twenty-one female patients suffering from diagnosed idiopathic Raynaud's Disease were trained to raise digital skin temperature using either autogenic training, progressive muscle relaxation, or a combination of autogenic training and skin temperature feedback. Patients were instructed in the treatment procedures in three one-hour group sessions spaced one week apart. All patients were instructed to practice what they had learned twice a day at home. Patients kept records of the frequency of vasospastic attacks occurring over a four-week baseline period, and during the first four weeks and the ninth week of training. In addition, patients underwent four laboratory cold stress tests during which they were instructed to maintain digital temperature as the ambient temperature was slowly dropped from 26 degrees to 17 degrees C. Cold stress tests were given during week 1 of baseline and during weeks 1, 3, and 5 of training. No significant differences between the three behavioral treatment procedures were obtained. In addition, the ability of patients to maintain digital temperature during the cold stress challenge showed significant improvement from the first to the last tests. Symptomatic improvement was maintained by all patients nine weeks after the start of training. The implications of these findings for the behavioral treatment of Raynaud's Disease are discussed. PMID:6988380

Lower Body Stiffness and Muscle Activity Differences Between Female Dancers and Basketball Players During Drop Jumps

PubMed Central

Ambegaonkar, Jatin P.; Shultz, Sandra J.; Perrin, David H.; Schmitz, Randy J.; Ackerman, Terry A.; Schulz, Mark R.

2011-01-01

Background: Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries often occur during landing, with female athletes at higher injury risk than male athletes. Interestingly, female dancers have lower ACL injury rates than do female athletes in general. Hypothesis: Female dancers will have earlier and greater lower extremity muscle activity and higher sagittal knee joint and leg stiffness than will female basketball players. Study Design: Cross-sectional group comparison. Methods: Fifty-five healthy female athletes (35 dancers, 20 basketball players) performed 5 double-leg drop jumps from a 45-cm box. Surface electromyography (onsets and amplitudes; prelanding and postlanding) was recorded from the lateral gastrocnemius, medial and lateral hamstrings, lateral quadriceps muscles with a 3-dimensional electromagnetic tracking system, and forceplates recording biomechanics (leg spring stiffness and knee joint stiffness). Results: Compared with basketball players, dancers had greater leg spring stiffness (P = 0.047) but similar knee joint stiffness (P = 0.44). Although no significant differences were observed in overall muscle onset times (P = 0.22) or activation amplitudes (prelanding, P = 0.60; postlanding, P = 0.78), small to moderate effect sizes (ESs) suggest trends in dancers toward earlier (ES = 0.53) and higher medial hamstrings activation pre- (ES = 0.55) and post- (ES = 0.41) landing and lower lateral quadriceps (ES = 0.30) and higher gastrocnemius (ES = 0.33) postlanding muscle activation. Conclusions: In dancers, the higher leg spring stiffness and trends toward higher hamstrings prelanding and postlanding, as well as lower quadriceps and higher gastrocnemius activation postlanding with similar knee joint stiffness, indicate lower extremity neuromechanical differences across other joints. Clinical Relevance: Female dancers may have lower extremity neuromechanics that are different from those of basketball players during drop jumps. If dancers use ACL-protective strategies during activity, then their training routines should be further investigated to improve ACL injury prevention programs. PMID:23015996

Building a Digital Library for Multibeam Data, Images and Documents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, S. P.; Staudigel, H.; Koppers, A.; Johnson, C.; Cande, S.; Sandwell, D.; Peckman, U.; Becker, J. J.; Helly, J.; Zaslavsky, I.; Schottlaender, B. E.; Starr, S.; Montoya, G.

2001-12-01

The Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the UCSD Libraries and the San Diego Supercomputing Center have joined forces to establish a digital library for accessing a wide range of multibeam and marine geophysical data, to a community that ranges from the MGG researcher to K-12 outreach clients. This digital library collection will include 233 multibeam cruises with grids, plots, photographs, station data, technical reports, planning documents and publications, drawn from the holdings of the Geological Data Center and the SIO Archives. Inquiries will be made through an Ocean Exploration Console, reminiscent of a cockpit display where a multitude of data may be displayed individually or in two or three-dimensional projections. These displays will provide access to cruise data as well as global databases such as Global Topography, crustal age, and sediment thickness, thus meeting the day-to-day needs of researchers as well as educators, students, and the public. The prototype contains a few selected expeditions, and a review of the initial approach will be solicited from the user community during the poster session. The search process can be focused by a variety of constraints: geospatial (lat-lon box), temporal (e.g., since 1996), keyword (e.g., cruise, place name, PI, etc.), or expert-level (e.g., K-6 or researcher). The Storage Resource Broker (SRB) software from the SDSC manages the evolving collection as a series of distributed but related archives in various media, from shipboard data through processing and final archiving. The latest version of MB-System provides for the systematic creation of standard metadata, and for the harvesting of metadata from multibeam files. Automated scripts will be used to load the metadata catalog to enable queries with an Oracle database management system. These new efforts to bridge the gap between libraries and data archives are supported by the NSF Information Technology and National Science Digital Library (NSDL) programs, augmented by UC funds, and closely coordinated with Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE) activities.

Determining the Completeness of the Nimbus Meteorological Data Archive

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, James; Moses, John; Kempler, Steven; Zamkoff, Emily; Al-Jazrawi, Atheer; Gerasimov, Irina; Trivedi, Bhagirath

2011-01-01

NASA launched the Nimbus series of meteorological satellites in the 1960s and 70s. These satellites carried instruments for making observations of the Earth in the visible, infrared, ultraviolet, and microwave wavelengths. The original data archive consisted of a combination of digital data written to 7-track computer tapes and on various film media. Many of these data sets are now being migrated from the old media to the GES DISC modern online archive. The process involves recovering the digital data files from tape as well as scanning images of the data from film strips. Some of the challenges of archiving the Nimbus data include the lack of any metadata from these old data sets. Metadata standards and self-describing data files did not exist at that time, and files were written on now obsolete hardware systems and outdated file formats. This requires creating metadata by reading the contents of the old data files. Some digital data files were corrupted over time, or were possibly improperly copied at the time of creation. Thus there are data gaps in the collections. The film strips were stored in boxes and are now being scanned as JPEG-2000 images. The only information describing these images is what was written on them when they were originally created, and sometimes this information is incomplete or missing. We have the ability to cross-reference the scanned images against the digital data files to determine which of these best represents the data set from the various missions, or to see how complete the data sets are. In this presentation we compared data files and scanned images from the Nimbus-2 High-Resolution Infrared Radiometer (HRIR) for September 1966 to determine whether the data and images are properly archived with correct metadata.

Analog Signal Pre-Processing For The Fermilab Main Injector BPM Upgrade

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

Saewert, A. L.; Rapisarda, S. M.; Wendt, M.

2006-11-20

An analog signal pre-processing scheme was developed, in the framework of the Fermilab Main Injector Beam Position Monitor (BPM) Upgrade, to interface BPM pickup signals to the new digital receiver based read-out system. A key component is the 8-channel electronics module, which uses separate frequency-selective gain stages to acquire 53 MHz bunched proton and 2.5 MHz antiproton signals. Related hardware includes a filter and combiner box to sum pickup electrode signals in the tunnel. A controller module allows local/remote control of gain settings and activation of gain stages and supplies test signals. Theory of operation, system overview, and some designmore » details are presented, as well as first beam measurements of the prototype hardware.« less

Preparing and probing many-body correlated systems in a Quantum Gas Microscope by engineering arbitrary landscape potentials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rispoli, Matthew; Lukin, Alexander; Ma, Ruichao; Preiss, Philipp; Tai, M. Eric; Islam, Rajibul; Greiner, Markus

2015-05-01

Ultracold atoms in optical lattices provide a versatile tool box for observing the emergence of strongly correlated physics in quantum systems. Dynamic control of optical potentials on the single-site level allows us to prepare and probe many-body quantum states through local Hamiltonian engineering. We achieve these high precision levels of optical control through spatial light modulation with a DMD (digital micro-mirror device). This allows for both arbitrary beam shaping and aberration compensation in our imaging system to produce high fidelity optical potentials. We use these techniques to control state initialization, Hamiltonian dynamics, and measurement in experiments investigating low-dimensional many-body physics - from one-dimensional correlated quantum walks to characterizing entanglement.

Evolution of the Cosmic Web

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Einasto, J.

2017-07-01

In the evolution of the cosmic web dark energy plays an important role. To understand the role of dark energy we investigate the evolution of superclusters in four cosmological models: standard model SCDM, conventional model LCDM, open model OCDM, and a hyper-dark-energy model HCDM. Numerical simulations of the evolution are performed in a box of size 1024 Mpc/h. Model superclusters are compared with superclusters found for Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Superclusters are searched using density fields. LCDM superclusters have properties, very close to properties of observed SDSS superclusters. Standard model SCDM has about 2 times more superclusters than other models, but SCDM superclusters are smaller and have lower luminosities. Superclusters as principal structural elements of the cosmic web are present at all cosmological epochs.

Reactive Strength Index: A Poor Indicator of Reactive Strength?

PubMed

Healy, Robin; Kenny, Ian; Harrison, Drew

2017-11-28

The primary aim was to assess the relationships between reactive strength measures and associated kinematic and kinetic performance variables achieved during drop jumps. A secondary aim was to highlight issues with the use of reactive strength measures as performance indicators. Twenty eight national and international level sprinters, consisting of fourteen men and women, participated in this cross-sectional analysis. Athletes performed drop jumps from a 0.3 m box onto a force platform with dependent variables contact time (CT), landing time (TLand), push-off time (TPush), flight time (FT), jump height (JH), reactive strength index (RSI, calculated as JH / CT), reactive strength ratio (RSR, calculated as FT / CT) and vertical leg spring stiffness (Kvert) recorded. Pearson's correlation test found very high to near perfect relationships between RSI and RSR (r = 0.91 to 0.97), with mixed relationships found between RSI, RSR and the key performance variables, (Men: r = -0.86 to -0.71 between RSI/RSR and CT, r = 0.80 to 0.92 between RSI/RSR and JH; Women: r = -0.85 to -0.56 between RSR and CT, r = 0.71 between RSI and JH). This study demonstrates that the method of assessing reactive strength (RSI versus RSR) may be influenced by the performance strategies adopted i.e. whether an athlete achieves their best reactive strength scores via low CTs, high JHs or a combination. Coaches are advised to limit the variability in performance strategies by implementing upper and / or lower CT thresholds to accurately compare performances between individuals.

Digital Geologic Map of the Wallace 1:100,000 Quadrangle, Idaho

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lewis, Reed S.; Burmester, Russell F.; McFaddan, Mark D.; Derkey, Pamela D.; Oblad, Jon R.

1999-01-01

The geology of the Wallace 1:100,000 quadrangle, Idaho was compiled by Reed S. Lewis in 1997 primarily from published materials including 1983 data from Foster, Harrison's unpublished mapping done from 1975 to 1985, Hietenan's 1963, 1967, 1968, and 1984 mapping, Hobbs and others 1965 mapping, and Vance's 1981 mapping, supplemented by eight weeks of field mapping by Reed S. Lewis, Russell F. Burmester, and Mark D. McFaddan in 1997 and 1998. This geologic map information was inked onto a 1:100,000-scale greenline mylar of the topographic base map for input into a geographic information system (GIS). The resulting digital geologic map GIS can be queried in many ways to produce a variety of geologic maps. Digital base map data files (topography, roads, towns, rivers and lakes, etc.) are not included: they may be obtained from a variety of commercial and government sources. This database is not meant to be used or displayed at any scale larger than 1:100,000 (e.g., 1:62,500 or 1:24,000). The map area is located in north Idaho. The primary sources of map data are shown in figure 2 and additional sources are shown in figure 3. This open-file report describes the geologic map units, the methods used to convert the geologic map data into a digital format, the Arc/Info GIS file structures and relationships, and explains how to download the digital files from the U.S. Geological Survey public access World Wide Web site on the Internet. Mapping and compilation was completed by the Idaho Geological Survey under contract with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) office in Spokane, Washington. The authors would like to acknowledge the help of the following field assistants: Josh Goodman, Yvonne Issak, Jeremy Johnson and Kevin Myer. Don Winston provided help with our ongoing study of Belt stratigraphy, and Tom Frost assisted with logistical problems and sample collection. Manuscript reviews by Steve Box, Tom Frost, and Brian White are greatly appreciated. We wish to thank Karen S. Bolm of the USGS for reviewing the digital files.

Source parameters and tectonic interpretation of recent earthquakes (1995 1997) in the Pannonian basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Badawy, Ahmed; Horváth, Frank; Tóth, László

2001-01-01

From January 1995 to December 1997, about 74 earthquakes were located in the Pannonian basin and digitally recorded by a recently established network of seismological stations in Hungary. On reviewing the notable events, about 12 earthquakes were reported as felt with maximum intensity varying between 4 and 6 MSK. The dynamic source parameters of these earthquakes have been derived from P-wave displacement spectra. The displacement source spectra obtained are characterised by relatively small values of corner frequency ( f0) ranging between 2.5 and 10 Hz. The seismic moments change from 1.48×10 20 to 1.3×10 23 dyne cm, stress drops from 0.25 to 76.75 bar, fault length from 0.42 to 1.7 km and relative displacement from 0.05 to 15.35 cm. The estimated source parameters suggest a good agreement with the scaling law for small earthquakes. The small values of stress drops in the studied earthquakes can be attributed to the low strength of crustal materials in the Pannonian basin. However, the values of stress drops are not different for earthquake with thrust or normal faulting focal mechanism solutions. It can be speculated that an increase of the seismic activity in the Pannonian basin can be predicted in the long run because extensional development ceased and structural inversion is in progress. Seismic hazard assessment is a delicate job due to the inadequate knowledge of the seismo-active faults, particularly in the interior part of the Pannonian basin.

Magical Boxes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Costello, Judith

2005-01-01

Students get excited when they realize that they can transform a flat sheet of paper into a box. By using different sizes of paper, they can make different sizes of boxes and put a box inside a box, inside a box. These magical boxes within boxes can contain unwanted emotions or special treasures. The project described in this article incorporates…

Experimental evaluation of Gd3Al2Ga3O12:Ce (GAGG:Ce) single crystals coupled to a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) under high gamma ray irradiation conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Metallinos, A.; Kefalidis, E.; Kandarakis, I.; David, S.

2017-11-01

Cerium (Ce) ion doped scintillators are of high interest in Medical Imaging systems and radiation monitoring devices, due to their very fast response and very good emission characteristics. In this study, a series of measurements regarding the energy resolution, photofraction, sensitivity, as well as the figure of merit, of Gd3Al2Ga3O12:Ce (GAGG:Ce) scintillator crystals, is presented. All GAGG:Ce crystals have a surface area of 3x3 mm2 with varying thicknesses, from 4 up to 20 mm (4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 15 and 20 mm). These crystals were exposed to γ radiation, using two different radioactive sources: 137Cs (0.662 MeV) and 60Co (1.173 MeV and 1.332 MeV). Each crystal was measured individually and was optically coupled to a KETEK PM3350 SiPM, an optical sensor with high gain, suitable to operate in room temperature. The digitization of the pulses was accomplished using CAEN DT5720 desktop digitizer and its corresponding digital pulse processing (DPP) firmware. Each measurement was performed in a light-tight box and had duration of 30 min. The best energy resolution value was measured for the GAGG:Ce crystal with dimensions 3x3x15mm3, equal to 3.9% at 1.332 MeV. Results were evaluated and compared to previous published data.

Electrowetting for Digital Microfluidics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hunt, Tom; Adamson, Kristi; Issadore, David; Westervelt, Robert

2006-03-01

Droplet based chemistry promises to greatly impact biomedical research, providing new avenues for high throughput, low volume assays such as drug screening. Electrowetting on Dielectric (EWOD) is an excellent technique for manipulating microscopic drops of liquid. EWOD uses buried electrodes to locally change the surface energy between a droplet and a substrate. We present microfabricated devices for moving droplets with EWOD. One example of such a device consists of a series of 16 interdigitated electrodes, decreasing in size from 1mm to 20 microns. Each electrode is addressable by an independent, computer controlled, high voltage supply. This work made possible by a gift from Phillip Morris and the NSEC NSF grant PHY-0117795.

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-05-02

John Henson (grade 12) and Suzi Bryce (grade 10) from DuPont Manual High School in Louisville, Kentucky, conduct a drop with NASA's Microgravity Demonstrator. A camera and a TV/VCR unit let students play back recordings of how different physical devices behave differently during freefall as compared to 1-g. The activity was part of the education outreach segment of the Pan-Pacific Basin Workshop on Microgravity Sciences held in Pasadena, California. The event originated at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. The DuPont Manual students patched in to the event through the distance learning lab at the Louisville Science Center. This image is from a digital still camera; higher resolution is not available.

Does dual-task coordination performance decline in later life?

PubMed

Sebastián, María V; Mediavilla, Roberto

2017-05-01

This cross-sectional study examined whether changes occur in people’s capacity to coordinate two simultaneous tasks (dual-task) when transitioning from adulthood to later life. The central executive, Baddeley’s working memory model component, is responsible for this coordination. Contradictory results have been reported regarding the relationship between ageing and dual-task performance; but these seem to be related to methodological issues that have been addressed in this study. Nine hundred and seventy-two participants, aged between 35 and 90 years old, volunteered to carry out a verbal digit span task, followed by single and concurrent (dual-task) tests: first, a box crossing task, then, the digit recall task in relation to their memory span, and finally, both these tests simultaneously. We found no difference in people’s capacity to coordinate their attention when doing two tasks in adulthood or healthy later life, including those in the oldest age groups. Furthermore, gender and educational level were not related to dual-task performance. The results support the normal functioning of the central executive in very old people. These data contrast with research with patients suffering from different types of dementia, which show a decrease in their dual-task performance.

Detecting the activation of a self-healing mechanism in concrete by acoustic emission and digital image correlation.

PubMed

Tsangouri, E; Aggelis, D G; Van Tittelboom, K; De Belie, N; Van Hemelrijck, D

2013-01-01

Autonomous crack healing in concrete is obtained when encapsulated healing agent is embedded into the material. Cracking damage in concrete elements ruptures the capsules and activates the healing process by healing agent release. Previously, the strength and stiffness recovery as well as the sealing efficiency after autonomous crack repair was well established. However, the mechanisms that trigger capsule breakage remain unknown. In parallel, the conditions under which the crack interacts with embedded capsules stay black-box. In this research, an experimental approach implementing an advanced optical and acoustic method sets up scopes to monitor and justify the crack formation and capsule breakage of concrete samples tested under three-point bending. Digital Image Correlation was used to visualize the crack opening. The optical information was the basis for an extensive and analytical study of the damage by Acoustic Emission analysis. The influence of embedding capsules on the concrete fracture process, the location of capsule damage, and the differentiation between emissions due to capsule rupture and crack formation are presented in this research. A profound observation of the capsules performance provides a clear view of the healing activation process.

The Unseen Companion of HD 114762

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Latham, David W.

2014-01-01

I have told the story of the discovery of the unseen companion of HD114762 (Latham et al. 1989, Nature, 389, 38-40) in a recent publication (Latham 2012, New Astronomy Reviews 56, 16-18). The discovery was enabled by a happy combination of some thinking outside the box by Tsevi Mazeh at Tel Aviv University and the development of new technology for measuring stellar spectra at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. Tsevi's unconventional idea was that giant exoplanets might be found much closer to their host stars than Jupiter and Saturn are to the Sun, well inside the snow line. Our instrument was a high-resolution echelle spectrograph optimized for measuring radial velocities of stars similar to the Sun. The key technological developments were an intensified Reticon photon-counting detector under computer control combined with sophisticated analysis of the digital spectra. The detector signal-processing electronics eliminated persistence, which had plagued other intensified systems. This allowed bright Th-Ar calibration exposures before and after every stellar observation, which in turn enabled careful correction for spectrograph drifts. We built three of these systems for telescopes in Massachusetts and Arizona and christened them the "CfA Digital Speedometers". The discovery of HD 114762-b was serendipitous, but not accidental.

Detecting the Activation of a Self-Healing Mechanism in Concrete by Acoustic Emission and Digital Image Correlation

PubMed Central

Tsangouri, E.; Aggelis, D. G.; Van Tittelboom, K.; De Belie, N.; Van Hemelrijck, D.

2013-01-01

Autonomous crack healing in concrete is obtained when encapsulated healing agent is embedded into the material. Cracking damage in concrete elements ruptures the capsules and activates the healing process by healing agent release. Previously, the strength and stiffness recovery as well as the sealing efficiency after autonomous crack repair was well established. However, the mechanisms that trigger capsule breakage remain unknown. In parallel, the conditions under which the crack interacts with embedded capsules stay black-box. In this research, an experimental approach implementing an advanced optical and acoustic method sets up scopes to monitor and justify the crack formation and capsule breakage of concrete samples tested under three-point bending. Digital Image Correlation was used to visualize the crack opening. The optical information was the basis for an extensive and analytical study of the damage by Acoustic Emission analysis. The influence of embedding capsules on the concrete fracture process, the location of capsule damage, and the differentiation between emissions due to capsule rupture and crack formation are presented in this research. A profound observation of the capsules performance provides a clear view of the healing activation process. PMID:24381518

Medical and Safety Reforms in Boxing

PubMed Central

Jordan, Barry D.

1988-01-01

The continued existence of boxing as an accepted sport in civilized society has been long debated. The position of the American Medical Association (AMA) has evolved from promoting increased safety and medical reform to recommending total abolition of both amateur and professional boxing. In response to the AMA opposition to boxing, the boxing community has attempted to increase the safeguards in amateur and professional boxing. The United States of America Amateur Boxing Federation, which is the national regulatory agency for all amateur boxing in the United States, has taken several actions to prevent the occurrence of acute brain injury and is currently conducting epidemiologic studies to assess the long-term neuropsychologic consequences of amateur boxing. In professional boxing, state regulatory agencies such as the New York State Athletic Commission have introduced several medical interventions to prevent and reduce neurologic injury. The lack of a national regulatory agency to govern professional boxing has stimulated the formation of the Association of Boxing Commissions and potential legislation for the federal regulation of professional boxing by a federally chartered organization called the United States Boxing Commission. The AMA's opposition to boxing and the medical and safety reforms implemented by the proponents of boxing are discussed. PMID:3385788

Morphological characteristics of waste polyethylene/polypropylene plastics during pyrolysis and representative morphological signal characterizing pyrolysis stages.

PubMed

Wang, H; Chen, D; Yuan, G; Ma, X; Dai, X

2013-02-01

In this work, the morphological characteristics of waste polyethylene (PE)/polypropylene (PP) plastics during their pyrolysis process were investigated, and based on their basic image changing patterns representative morphological signals describing the pyrolysis stages were obtained. PE and PP granules and films were used as typical plastics for testing, and influence of impurities was also investigated. During pyrolysis experiments, photographs of the testing samples were taken sequentially with a high-speed infrared camera, and the quantitative parameters that describe the morphological characteristics of these photographs were explored using the "Image Pro Plus (v6.3)" digital image processing software. The experimental results showed that plastics pyrolysis involved four stages: melting, two stages of decomposition which are characterized with bubble formation caused by volatile evaporating, and ash deposition; and each stage was characterized with its own phase changing behaviors and morphological features. Two stages of decomposition are the key step of pyrolysis since they took up half or more of the reaction time; melting step consumed another half of reaction time in experiments when raw materials were heated up from ambient temperatures; and coke-like deposition appeared as a result of decomposition completion. Two morphological signals defined from digital image processing, namely, pixel area of the interested reaction region and bubble ratio (BR) caused by volatile evaporating were found to change regularly with pyrolysis stages. In particular, for all experimental scenarios with plastics films and granules, the BR curves always exhibited a slowly drop as melting started and then a sharp increase followed by a deep decrease corresponding to the first stage of intense decomposition, afterwards a second increase - drop section corresponding to the second stage of decomposition appeared. As ash deposition happened, the BR dropped to zero or very low values. When impurities were involved, the shape of BR curves showed that intense decomposition started earlier but morphological characteristics remained the same. In addition, compared to parameters such as pressure, the BR reflects reaction stages better and its change with pyrolysis process of PE/PP plastics with or without impurities was more intrinsically process correlated; therefore it can be adopted as a signal for pyrolysis process characterization, as well as offering guide to process improvement and reactor design. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improving performance of natural language processing part-of-speech tagging on clinical narratives through domain adaptation.

PubMed

Ferraro, Jeffrey P; Daumé, Hal; Duvall, Scott L; Chapman, Wendy W; Harkema, Henk; Haug, Peter J

2013-01-01

Natural language processing (NLP) tasks are commonly decomposed into subtasks, chained together to form processing pipelines. The residual error produced in these subtasks propagates, adversely affecting the end objectives. Limited availability of annotated clinical data remains a barrier to reaching state-of-the-art operating characteristics using statistically based NLP tools in the clinical domain. Here we explore the unique linguistic constructions of clinical texts and demonstrate the loss in operating characteristics when out-of-the-box part-of-speech (POS) tagging tools are applied to the clinical domain. We test a domain adaptation approach integrating a novel lexical-generation probability rule used in a transformation-based learner to boost POS performance on clinical narratives. Two target corpora from independent healthcare institutions were constructed from high frequency clinical narratives. Four leading POS taggers with their out-of-the-box models trained from general English and biomedical abstracts were evaluated against these clinical corpora. A high performing domain adaptation method, Easy Adapt, was compared to our newly proposed method ClinAdapt. The evaluated POS taggers drop in accuracy by 8.5-15% when tested on clinical narratives. The highest performing tagger reports an accuracy of 88.6%. Domain adaptation with Easy Adapt reports accuracies of 88.3-91.0% on clinical texts. ClinAdapt reports 93.2-93.9%. ClinAdapt successfully boosts POS tagging performance through domain adaptation requiring a modest amount of annotated clinical data. Improving the performance of critical NLP subtasks is expected to reduce pipeline error propagation leading to better overall results on complex processing tasks.

7 CFR 51.1527 - Standard pack.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... peach boxes, lug boxes and small consumer packages. In layer-packed California peach boxes or lug boxes... package. The number of plums or prunes in California peach boxes or lug boxes shall not vary more than 4... container. (ii) Face and fill packs in cartons and lug boxes. In face and fill packs in cartons and lug...

7 CFR 51.1527 - Standard pack.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... peach boxes, lug boxes and small consumer packages. In layer-packed California peach boxes or lug boxes... package. The number of plums or prunes in California peach boxes or lug boxes shall not vary more than 4... container. (ii) Face and fill packs in cartons and lug boxes. In face and fill packs in cartons and lug...

Surface reflectance drives nest box temperature profiles and thermal suitability for target wildlife.

PubMed

Griffiths, Stephen R; Rowland, Jessica A; Briscoe, Natalie J; Lentini, Pia E; Handasyde, Kathrine A; Lumsden, Linda F; Robert, Kylie A

2017-01-01

Thermal properties of tree hollows play a major role in survival and reproduction of hollow-dependent fauna. Artificial hollows (nest boxes) are increasingly being used to supplement the loss of natural hollows; however, the factors that drive nest box thermal profiles have received surprisingly little attention. We investigated how differences in surface reflectance influenced temperature profiles of nest boxes painted three different colors (dark-green, light-green, and white: total solar reflectance 5.9%, 64.4%, and 90.3% respectively) using boxes designed for three groups of mammals: insectivorous bats, marsupial gliders and brushtail possums. Across the three different box designs, dark-green (low reflectance) boxes experienced the highest average and maximum daytime temperatures, had the greatest magnitude of variation in daytime temperatures within the box, and were consistently substantially warmer than light-green boxes (medium reflectance), white boxes (high reflectance), and ambient air temperatures. Results from biophysical model simulations demonstrated that variation in diurnal temperature profiles generated by painting boxes either high or low reflectance colors could have significant ecophysiological consequences for animals occupying boxes, with animals in dark-green boxes at high risk of acute heat-stress and dehydration during extreme heat events. Conversely in cold weather, our modelling indicated that there are higher cumulative energy costs for mammals, particularly smaller animals, occupying light-green boxes. Given their widespread use as a conservation tool, we suggest that before boxes are installed, consideration should be given to the effect of color on nest box temperature profiles, and the resultant thermal suitability of boxes for wildlife, particularly during extremes in weather. Managers of nest box programs should consider using several different colors and installing boxes across a range of both orientations and shade profiles (i.e., levels of canopy cover), to ensure target animals have access to artificial hollows with a broad range of thermal profiles, and can therefore choose boxes with optimal thermal conditions across different seasons.

Surface reflectance drives nest box temperature profiles and thermal suitability for target wildlife

PubMed Central

Rowland, Jessica A.; Briscoe, Natalie J.; Lentini, Pia E.; Handasyde, Kathrine A.; Lumsden, Linda F.; Robert, Kylie A.

2017-01-01

Thermal properties of tree hollows play a major role in survival and reproduction of hollow-dependent fauna. Artificial hollows (nest boxes) are increasingly being used to supplement the loss of natural hollows; however, the factors that drive nest box thermal profiles have received surprisingly little attention. We investigated how differences in surface reflectance influenced temperature profiles of nest boxes painted three different colors (dark-green, light-green, and white: total solar reflectance 5.9%, 64.4%, and 90.3% respectively) using boxes designed for three groups of mammals: insectivorous bats, marsupial gliders and brushtail possums. Across the three different box designs, dark-green (low reflectance) boxes experienced the highest average and maximum daytime temperatures, had the greatest magnitude of variation in daytime temperatures within the box, and were consistently substantially warmer than light-green boxes (medium reflectance), white boxes (high reflectance), and ambient air temperatures. Results from biophysical model simulations demonstrated that variation in diurnal temperature profiles generated by painting boxes either high or low reflectance colors could have significant ecophysiological consequences for animals occupying boxes, with animals in dark-green boxes at high risk of acute heat-stress and dehydration during extreme heat events. Conversely in cold weather, our modelling indicated that there are higher cumulative energy costs for mammals, particularly smaller animals, occupying light-green boxes. Given their widespread use as a conservation tool, we suggest that before boxes are installed, consideration should be given to the effect of color on nest box temperature profiles, and the resultant thermal suitability of boxes for wildlife, particularly during extremes in weather. Managers of nest box programs should consider using several different colors and installing boxes across a range of both orientations and shade profiles (i.e., levels of canopy cover), to ensure target animals have access to artificial hollows with a broad range of thermal profiles, and can therefore choose boxes with optimal thermal conditions across different seasons. PMID:28472147

77 FR 26323 - In the Matter of the Application of BOX Options Exchange LLC for Registration as a National...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-03

.... Ownership Structure of BOX Exchange, BOX Holdings, and BOX Market BOX Exchange will issue Economic Units, as well as Voting Units, to each of its owners, or Members.\\53\\ Economic Units, comprising all interests... BOX Exchange or other economic value in BOX Exchange.\\55\\ The total number of Voting Units will be...

Comic image understanding based on polygon detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Luyuan; Wang, Yongtao; Tang, Zhi; Liu, Dong

2013-01-01

Comic image understanding aims to automatically decompose scanned comic page images into storyboards and then identify the reading order of them, which is the key technique to produce digital comic documents that are suitable for reading on mobile devices. In this paper, we propose a novel comic image understanding method based on polygon detection. First, we segment a comic page images into storyboards by finding the polygonal enclosing box of each storyboard. Then, each storyboard can be represented by a polygon, and the reading order of them is determined by analyzing the relative geometric relationship between each pair of polygons. The proposed method is tested on 2000 comic images from ten printed comic series, and the experimental results demonstrate that it works well on different types of comic images.

Analog signal pre-processing for the Fermilab Main Injector BPM upgrade

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

Saewert, A.L.; Rapisarda, S.M.; Wendt, M.

2006-05-01

An analog signal pre-processing scheme was developed, in the framework of the Fermilab Main Injector Beam Position Monitor (BPM) Upgrade, to interface BPM pickup signals to the new digital receiver based read-out system. A key component is the 8-channel electronics module, which uses separate frequency selective gain stages to acquire 53 MHz bunched proton, and 2.5 MHz anti-proton signals. Related hardware includes a filter and combiner box to sum pickup electrode signals in the tunnel. A controller module allows local/remote control of gain settings and activation of gain stages, and supplies test signals. Theory of operation, system overview, and somemore » design details are presented, as well as first beam measurements of the prototype hardware.« less

Tabletop computed lighting for practical digital photography.

PubMed

Mohan, Ankit; Bailey, Reynold; Waite, Jonathan; Tumblin, Jack; Grimm, Cindy; Bodenheimer, Bobby

2007-01-01

We apply simplified image-based lighting methods to reduce the equipment, cost, time, and specialized skills required for high-quality photographic lighting of desktop-sized static objects such as museum artifacts. We place the object and a computer-steered moving-head spotlight inside a simple foam-core enclosure and use a camera to record photos as the light scans the box interior. Optimization, guided by interactive user sketching, selects a small set of these photos whose weighted sum best matches the user-defined target sketch. Unlike previous image-based relighting efforts, our method requires only a single area light source, yet it can achieve high-resolution light positioning to avoid multiple sharp shadows. A reduced version uses only a handheld light and may be suitable for battery-powered field photography equipment that fits into a backpack.

Development of real-time motion capture system for 3D on-line games linked with virtual character

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Jong Hyeong; Ryu, Young Kee; Cho, Hyung Suck

2004-10-01

Motion tracking method is being issued as essential part of the entertainment, medical, sports, education and industry with the development of 3-D virtual reality. Virtual human character in the digital animation and game application has been controlled by interfacing devices; mouse, joysticks, midi-slider, and so on. Those devices could not enable virtual human character to move smoothly and naturally. Furthermore, high-end human motion capture systems in commercial market are expensive and complicated. In this paper, we proposed a practical and fast motion capturing system consisting of optic sensors, and linked the data with 3-D game character with real time. The prototype experiment setup is successfully applied to a boxing game which requires very fast movement of human character.

Analysis of S-box in Image Encryption Using Root Mean Square Error Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hussain, Iqtadar; Shah, Tariq; Gondal, Muhammad Asif; Mahmood, Hasan

2012-07-01

The use of substitution boxes (S-boxes) in encryption applications has proven to be an effective nonlinear component in creating confusion and randomness. The S-box is evolving and many variants appear in literature, which include advanced encryption standard (AES) S-box, affine power affine (APA) S-box, Skipjack S-box, Gray S-box, Lui J S-box, residue prime number S-box, Xyi S-box, and S8 S-box. These S-boxes have algebraic and statistical properties which distinguish them from each other in terms of encryption strength. In some circumstances, the parameters from algebraic and statistical analysis yield results which do not provide clear evidence in distinguishing an S-box for an application to a particular set of data. In image encryption applications, the use of S-boxes needs special care because the visual analysis and perception of a viewer can sometimes identify artifacts embedded in the image. In addition to existing algebraic and statistical analysis already used for image encryption applications, we propose an application of root mean square error technique, which further elaborates the results and enables the analyst to vividly distinguish between the performances of various S-boxes. While the use of the root mean square error analysis in statistics has proven to be effective in determining the difference in original data and the processed data, its use in image encryption has shown promising results in estimating the strength of the encryption method. In this paper, we show the application of the root mean square error analysis to S-box image encryption. The parameters from this analysis are used in determining the strength of S-boxes

Passive decay heat removal system for water-cooled nuclear reactors

DOEpatents

Forsberg, Charles W.

1991-01-01

A passive decay-heat removal system for a water-cooled nuclear reactor employs a closed heat transfer loop having heat-exchanging coils inside an open-topped, insulated box located inside the reactor vessel, below its normal water level, in communication with a condenser located outside of containment and exposed to the atmosphere. The heat transfer loop is located such that the evaporator is in a position where, when the water level drops in the reactor, it will become exposed to steam. Vapor produced in the evaporator passes upward to the condenser above the normal water level. In operation, condensation in the condenser removes heat from the system, and the condensed liquid is returned to the evaporator. The system is disposed such that during normal reactor operations where the water level is at its usual position, very little heat will be removed from the system, but during emergency, low water level conditions, substantial amounts of decay heat will be removed.

Optical micro-cavities on silicon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dai, Daoxin; Liu, Erhu; Tan, Ying

2018-01-01

Silicon-based optical microcavities are very popular for many applications because of the ultra-compact footprint, easy scalability, and functional versatility. In this paper we give a discussion about the challenges of the optical microcavities on silicon and also give a review of our recent work, including the following parts. First, a near-"perfect" high-order MRR optical filter with a box-like filtering response is realized by introducing bent directional couplers to have sufficient coupling between the access waveguide and the microrings. Second, an efficient thermally-tunable MRR-based optical filter with graphene transparent nano-heater is realized by introducing transparent graphene nanoheaters. Thirdly, a polarization-selective microring-based optical filter is realized to work with resonances for only one of TE and TM polarizations for the first time. Finally, a on-chip reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer for hybrid mode- /wavelength-division-multiplexing systems is realized for the first time by monolithically integrating a mode demultiplexer, four MRR optical switches, and a mode multiplexer.

How to improve your PubMed/MEDLINE searches: 2. display settings, complex search queries and topic searching.

PubMed

Fatehi, Farhad; Gray, Leonard C; Wootton, Richard

2014-01-01

The way that PubMed results are displayed can be changed using the Display Settings drop-down menu in the result screen. There are three groups of options: Format, Items per page and Sort by, which allow a good deal of control. The results from several searches can be temporarily stored on the Clipboard. Records of interest can be selected on the results page using check boxes and can then be combined, for example to form a reference list. The Related Citations is a valuable feature of PubMed that can provide a set of similar articles when you have identified a record of interest among the results. You can easily search for RCTs or reviews using the appropriate filters or field tags. If you are interested in clinical articles, rather than basic science or health service research, then the Clinical Queries tool on the PubMed home page can be used to retrieve them.

Investigative studies into the recovery of DNA from improvised explosive device containers.

PubMed

Hoffmann, Shane G; Stallworth, Shawn E; Foran, David R

2012-05-01

Apprehending those who utilize improvised explosive devices (IEDs) is a national priority owing to their use both domestically and abroad. IEDs are often concealed in bags, boxes, or backpacks to prevent their detection. Given this, the goal of the research presented was to identify IED handlers through postblast DNA recovery from IED containers. Study participants were asked to use backpacks for 11 days, after which they served as containers for pipe bombs. Eleven postdeflagration backpack regions likely to be handled were swabbed and analyzed via mini-short tandem repeats (miniSTRs) and alleles were called blind. An experimental consensus method was examined in which profiles from all regions were considered, to help identify spurious drop-in/out. Results were correct for all loci, except one that remained ambiguous. The results show that recovering DNA from IED containers is a viable approach for aiding in the identification of those who may have been involved in an IED event. © 2011 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

How to integrate quantitative information into imaging reports for oncologic patients.

PubMed

Martí-Bonmatí, L; Ruiz-Martínez, E; Ten, A; Alberich-Bayarri, A

2018-05-01

Nowadays, the images and information generated in imaging tests, as well as the reports that are issued, are digital and represent a reliable source of data. Reports can be classified according to their content and to the type of information they include into three main types: organized (free text in natural language), predefined (with templates and guidelines elaborated with previously determined natural language like that used in BI-RADS and PI-RADS), or structured (with drop-down menus displaying questions with various possible answers that have been agreed on with the rest of the multidisciplinary team, which use standardized lexicons and are structured in the form of a database with data that can be traced and exploited with statistical tools and data mining). The structured report, compatible with Management of Radiology Report Templates (MRRT), makes it possible to incorporate quantitative information related with the digital analysis of the data from the acquired images to accurately and precisely describe the properties and behavior of tissues by means of radiomics (characteristics and parameters). In conclusion, structured digital information (images, text, measurements, radiomic features, and imaging biomarkers) should be integrated into computerized reports so that they can be indexed in large repositories. Radiologic databanks are fundamental for exploiting health information, phenotyping lesions and diseases, and extracting conclusions in personalized medicine. Copyright © 2018 SERAM. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Digital all-sky polarization imaging of partly cloudy skies.

PubMed

Pust, Nathan J; Shaw, Joseph A

2008-12-01

Clouds reduce the degree of linear polarization (DOLP) of skylight relative to that of a clear sky. Even thin subvisual clouds in the "twilight zone" between clouds and aerosols produce a drop in skylight DOLP long before clouds become visible in the sky. In contrast, the angle of polarization (AOP) of light scattered by a cloud in a partly cloudy sky remains the same as in the clear sky for most cases. In unique instances, though, select clouds display AOP signatures that are oriented 90 degrees from the clear-sky AOP. For these clouds, scattered light oriented parallel to the scattering plane dominates the perpendicularly polarized Rayleigh-scattered light between the instrument and the cloud. For liquid clouds, this effect may assist cloud particle size identification because it occurs only over a relatively limited range of particle radii that will scatter parallel polarized light. Images are shown from a digital all-sky-polarization imager to illustrate these effects. Images are also shown that provide validation of previously published theories for weak (approximately 2%) polarization parallel to the scattering plane for a 22 degrees halo.

Calculation of day and night emittance values

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kahle, Anne B.

1986-01-01

In July 1983, the Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) was flown over Death Valley, California on both a midday and predawn flight within a two-day period. The availability of calibrated digital data permitted the calculation of day and night surface temperature and surface spectral emittance. Image processing of the data included panorama correction and calibration to radiance using the on-board black bodies and the measured spectral response of each channel. Scene-dependent isolated-point noise due to bit drops, was located by its relatively discontinuous values and replaced by the average of the surrounding data values. A method was developed in order to separate the spectral and temperature information contained in the TIMS data. Night and day data sets were processed. The TIMS is unique in allowing collection of both spectral emittance and thermal information in digital format with the same airborne scanner. For the first time it was possible to produce day and night emittance images of the same area, coregistered. These data add to an understanding of the physical basis for the discrimination of difference in surface materials afforded by TIMS.

Pictorial Review of Digital Radiography Artifacts.

PubMed

Walz-Flannigan, Alisa I; Brossoit, Kimberly J; Magnuson, Dayne J; Schueler, Beth A

2018-01-01

Visual familiarity with the variety of digital radiographic artifacts is needed to identify, resolve, or prevent image artifacts from creating issues with patient imaging. Because the mechanism for image creation is different between flat-panel detectors and computed radiography, the causes and appearances of some artifacts can be unique to these different modalities. Examples are provided of artifacts that were found on clinical images or during quality control testing with flat-panel detectors. The examples are meant to serve as learning tools for future identification and troubleshooting of artifacts and as a reminder for steps that can be taken for prevention. The examples of artifacts provided are classified according to their causal connection in the imaging chain, including an equipment defect as a result of an accident or mishandling, debris or gain calibration flaws, a problematic acquisition technique, signal transmission failures, and image processing issues. Specific artifacts include those that are due to flat-panel detector drops, backscatter, debris in the x-ray field during calibration, detector saturation or underexposure, or collimation detection errors, as well as a variety of artifacts that are processing induced. © RSNA, 2018.

Spin-Up Instability of a Levitated Molten Drop in MHD-Flow Transition to Turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abedian, B.; Hyers, R. W.; Curreri, Peter A. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

When an alternating magnetic field interacts with induced eddy currents in a conducting body, there will be a repulsive force between the body and the driving coil system generating the field. This repulsive force is the basis of electromagnetic levitation, which allows containerless processing of different materials. The eddy currents in the conducting body also generate Joule heating. Axial rotation of electromagnetically levitated objects is a common observation in levitation systems and often an undesirable side effect of such experiments on 1-g and -g. There have been recent efforts to use magnetic damping and suppress this tendency of body rotation. The first report of rotation in EML drops was attributed to a slight asymmetry of the shape and location of the levitation coils could change the axis and speed of rotation. Other theories of sample rotation include a frequency difference in the traveling electromagnetic waves and a phase difference in two different applied fields of the same frequency. All of these different mechanisms share the following characteristics: the torque is small, constant for constant field strength, and very weakly dependent on the sample's temperature and phase (solid or liquid). During experiments on the MSL-1 (First Microgravity Science Laboratory) mission of the Space Shuttle (STS-83 and STS-94, April and July 1997), a droplet of palladium-silicon alloy was electromagnetically levitated for viscosity measurements. For the non-deforming droplet, the resultant MHD flow inside the drop is inferred from motion of impurities on the surface. These observations indicate formation of a pair of co-rotating toroidal flow structures inside the spheroidal levitated drop that undergo secondary flow instabilities. As rise in the fluid temperature rises, the viscosity falls and the internal flow accelerates and becomes oscillatory; and beyond a point in the experiments, the surface impurities exhibit non-coherent chaotic motion signifying emergence of turbulence inside the drop. In this work, a background of these set of observations will be given followed by a presentation of our results on the digital particle tracking analysis that has been performed on a number of available videos. The analysis indicates that the levitated drop attains a constant rotational speed during the melting phase and formation of the co-rotating axi-symmetric laminar toroidal structures. However, the rate of axial rotation increases dramatically during the deformation of the toroidal structures anti their breakup into chaotic entities. This new data suggests an interaction between the flow inside the levitated molten drop and the driving coils in the experiments. Possible mechanisms for this interaction will be reviewed. The data will also be used to make an assessment of existing theories on droplet rotation.

Application of lightweight materials in structure concept design of large-scale solar energy unmanned aerial vehicle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Wei; Lv, Shengli; Guan, XiQi

2017-09-01

Carbon fiber composites and film materials can be effectively used in light aircraft structures, especially for solar unmanned aerial vehicles. The use of light materials can reduce the weight of the aircraft, but also can effectively improve the aircraft's strength and stiffness. The structure of the large aspect ratio solar energy UAV was analyzed in detail, taking Solar-impulse solar aircraft as an example. The solar energy UAV has a wing aspect ratio greater than 20, and the detailed digital model of the wing structure including beam, ribs and skin was built, also the Finite Element Method was applied to analyze the static and dynamic performance of the structure. The upper skin of the wing is covered with silicon solar cells, while the lower skin is light and transparent film. The single beam truss form of carbon fiber lightweight material is used in the wing structure. The wing beam is a box beam with rectangular cross sections. The box beam connected the front parts and after parts of the ribs together. The fuselage of the aircraft was built by space truss structure. According to the static and dynamic analysis with Finite Element method, it was found that the aircraft has a small wingtip deflection relative to the wingspan in the level flight state. The first natural frequency of the wing structure is pretty low, which is closed to the gust load.

Blending the art and science of color

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bourges, Jean

1998-07-01

An often neglected factor of cognition is the color, the natural and created hues that are an integral part of the image. This happens because the information is divided in two basically very different languages and they do not relate well to each other. One is for science that deals in facts and uses numbers to transmit the message. The other relates to intangibles and is used for the Arts. One speaks to reality and the other to emotions. Both are valid and correctly address the needs of their profession. Not very long ago the digital world was born. The computer came and put it all together in one little box, that probably sits on your desk and is accessible to most everyone else. Now there is the need to communicate and because the box only understands numbers, the artists have to shift and identify the colors by a simple numerical code. Conversely science can learn a lot from the arts, where for centuries painters have been studying the mysteries of creating light on canvas. While color needs a responsive set of eyes, it has always been here. Let us start now by using the same words to identify a particular color, its tint and shade, how the artists use it, the essential structure that lets one move from one color to another and the colorimetric measurements that make the exact color match a practical reality.