Effect of Intracoronal Depth of Teeth Restored with Endocrowns on Fracture Resistance: In Vitro and 3-dimensional Finite Element Analysis.

PubMed

Dartora, Nereu Roque; de Conto Ferreira, Michele Bertoluzi; Moris, Izabela Cristina Maurício; Brazão, Elisabeth Helena; Spazin, Aloísio Oro; Sousa-Neto, Manoel Damião; Silva-Sousa, Yara Terezinha; Gomes, Erica Alves

2018-07-01

Endodontically treated teeth have an increased risk of biomechanical failure because of significant loss of tooth structure. The biomechanical behavior of endodontically treated teeth restored was evaluated using different extensions of endocrowns inside the pulp chamber by in vitro and 3-dimensional finite element analysis (FEA). Thirty mandibular human molars were endodontically treated. Standardized endocrown preparations were performed, and the teeth were randomly divided into 3 groups (n = 10) according to different endocrown extensions inside the pulp chamber: G-5 mm, a 5-mm extension; G-3 mm, a 3-mm extension; and G-1 mm, a 1-mm extension. After adhesive cementation, all specimens were subjected to thermocycling and dynamic loading. The survival specimens were subjected to fracture resistance testing at a crosshead speed of 1 mm/min in a universal testing machine. All fractured specimens were subjected to fractography. Data were analyzed by 1-way analysis of variance and the Tukey post hoc test (P < .05). Stress distribution patterns in each group were analyzed using FEA. Qualitative analyses were performed according to the von Mises criterion. After dynamic loading, a survival rate of 100% was observed in all groups. For static loading, statistically significant differences among the groups were observed (P < .05) (G-5 mm = 2008.61 N, G-3 mm = 1795.41 N, and G-1 mm = 1268.12 N). Fractography showed a higher frequency of compression curls for G-5 mm and G-3 mm than for G-1 mm. FEA explained the results of fracture strength testing and fractography. Greater extension of endocrowns inside the pulp chamber provided better mechanical performance. Copyright © 2018 American Association of Endodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Neutron imaging data processing using the Mantid framework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pouzols, Federico M.; Draper, Nicholas; Nagella, Sri; Yang, Erica; Sajid, Ahmed; Ross, Derek; Ritchie, Brian; Hill, John; Burca, Genoveva; Minniti, Triestino; Moreton-Smith, Christopher; Kockelmann, Winfried

2016-09-01

Several imaging instruments are currently being constructed at neutron sources around the world. The Mantid software project provides an extensible framework that supports high-performance computing for data manipulation, analysis and visualisation of scientific data. At ISIS, IMAT (Imaging and Materials Science & Engineering) will offer unique time-of-flight neutron imaging techniques which impose several software requirements to control the data reduction and analysis. Here we outline the extensions currently being added to Mantid to provide specific support for neutron imaging requirements.

User's guide to the Parallel Processing Extension of the Prognosis Model

Treesearch

Nicholas L. Crookston; Albert R. Stage

1991-01-01

The Parallel Processing Extension (PPE) of the Prognosis Model was designed to analyze responses of numerous stands to coordinated management and pest impacts that operate at the landscape level of forests. Vegetation-related resource supply analysis can be readily performed for a thousand or more sample stands for projections 400 years into the future. Capabilities...

Comments on the 1950s applications and extensions of Skinner's operant psychology

PubMed Central

Morris, Edward K.

2003-01-01

These comments address Laties', Dewsbury's, and Rutherford's papers on the extension and application of Skinner's operant psychology during the 1950s. I begin by reflecting on the papers' overall theme—that the success of behavior analysis lies in its practical applications—and add some comments on Planck's principle. I then turn to the three papers and address such topics as (a) other applications and extensions (e.g., the U.S. space program), (b) relations between the research and researchers at the Yerkes Laboratories of Primate Biology (e.g., a Yerkes' researcher in Skinner's laboratory), and (c) human schedule performance (e.g., continuity and discontinuity with nonhuman behavior). I end with a discussion of the fundamental reason for the success of the extensions and applications of behavior analysis—the experimental analysis of behavior. PMID:22478408

Cortical hypometabolism and hypoperfusion in Parkinson's disease is extensive: probably even at early disease stages.

PubMed

Borghammer, Per; Chakravarty, Mallar; Jonsdottir, Kristjana Yr; Sato, Noriko; Matsuda, Hiroshi; Ito, Kengo; Arahata, Yutaka; Kato, Takashi; Gjedde, Albert

2010-05-01

Recent cerebral blood flow (CBF) and glucose consumption (CMRglc) studies of Parkinson's disease (PD) revealed conflicting results. Using simulated data, we previously demonstrated that the often-reported subcortical hypermetabolism in PD could be explained as an artifact of biased global mean (GM) normalization, and that low-magnitude, extensive cortical hypometabolism is best detected by alternative data-driven normalization methods. Thus, we hypothesized that PD is characterized by extensive cortical hypometabolism but no concurrent widespread subcortical hypermetabolism and tested it on three independent samples of PD patients. We compared SPECT CBF images of 32 early-stage and 33 late-stage PD patients with that of 60 matched controls. We also compared PET FDG images from 23 late-stage PD patients with that of 13 controls. Three different normalization methods were compared: (1) GM normalization, (2) cerebellum normalization, (3) reference cluster normalization (Yakushev et al.). We employed standard voxel-based statistics (fMRIstat) and principal component analysis (SSM). Additionally, we performed a meta-analysis of all quantitative CBF and CMRglc studies in the literature to investigate whether the global mean (GM) values in PD are decreased. Voxel-based analysis with GM normalization and the SSM method performed similarly, i.e., both detected decreases in small cortical clusters and concomitant increases in extensive subcortical regions. Cerebellum normalization revealed more widespread cortical decreases but no subcortical increase. In all comparisons, the Yakushev method detected nearly identical patterns of very extensive cortical hypometabolism. Lastly, the meta-analyses demonstrated that global CBF and CMRglc values are decreased in PD. Based on the results, we conclude that PD most likely has widespread cortical hypometabolism, even at early disease stages. In contrast, extensive subcortical hypermetabolism is probably not a feature of PD.

Discerning Trends in Performance Across Multiple Events

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Slater, Simon; Hiltz, Mike; Rice, Craig

2006-01-01

Mass Data is a computer program that enables rapid, easy discernment of trends in performance data across multiple flights and ground tests. The program can perform Fourier analysis and other functions for the purposes of frequency analysis and trending of all variables. These functions facilitate identification of past use of diagnosed systems and of anomalies in such systems, and enable rapid assessment of related current problems. Many variables, for computation of which it is usually necessary to perform extensive manual manipulation of raw downlist data, are automatically computed and made available to all users, regularly eliminating the need for what would otherwise be an extensive amount of engineering analysis. Data from flight, ground test, and simulation are preprocessed and stored in one central location for instantaneous access and comparison for diagnostic and trending purposes. Rules are created so that an event log is created for every flight, making it easy to locate information on similar maneuvers across many flights. The same rules can be created for test sets and simulations, and are searchable, so that information on like events is easily accessible.

Dakota, a multilevel parallel object-oriented framework for design optimization, parameter estimation, uncertainty quantification, and sensitivity analysis :

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

Adams, Brian M.; Ebeida, Mohamed Salah; Eldred, Michael S.

The Dakota (Design Analysis Kit for Optimization and Terascale Applications) toolkit provides a exible and extensible interface between simulation codes and iterative analysis methods. Dakota contains algorithms for optimization with gradient and nongradient-based methods; uncertainty quanti cation with sampling, reliability, and stochastic expansion methods; parameter estimation with nonlinear least squares methods; and sensitivity/variance analysis with design of experiments and parameter study methods. These capabilities may be used on their own or as components within advanced strategies such as surrogate-based optimization, mixed integer nonlinear programming, or optimization under uncertainty. By employing object-oriented design to implement abstractions of the key components requiredmore » for iterative systems analyses, the Dakota toolkit provides a exible and extensible problem-solving environment for design and performance analysis of computational models on high performance computers. This report serves as a user's manual for the Dakota software and provides capability overviews and procedures for software execution, as well as a variety of example studies.« less

[Subjective Aspects of Return to Work and Social Reintegration in Patients with Extensive Work-related Problems in Cardiac Rehabilitation - Results of a Qualitative Investigation].

PubMed

Schulz-Behrendt, C; Salzwedel, A; Rabe, S; Ortmann, K; Völler, H

2017-06-01

This study investigated subjective biopsychosocial effects of coronary heart disease (CHD), coping strategies and social support in patients undergoing cardiac rehabilitation (CR) and having extensive work-related problems. A qualitative investigation was performed in 17 patients (48.9±7.0 y, 13 male) with extensive work-related problems (SIMBO-C>30). All patients were interviewed with structured surveys. Data analysis was performed using a software that is based on the content analysis approach of Mayring. In regard to effects of disease, patients indicated social aspects including occupational aspects (62%) more often than physical or mental factors (9 or 29%). Applied coping strategies and support services are mainly focused on physical impairments (70 or 45%). The development of appropriate coping strategies was insufficient although social effects of disease were subjectively meaningful for patients in CR. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Using Dominance Analysis to Determine Predictor Importance in Logistic Regression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Azen, Razia; Traxel, Nicole

2009-01-01

This article proposes an extension of dominance analysis that allows researchers to determine the relative importance of predictors in logistic regression models. Criteria for choosing logistic regression R[superscript 2] analogues were determined and measures were selected that can be used to perform dominance analysis in logistic regression. A…

Topology Design for Directional Range Extension Networks with Antenna Blockage

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-03-19

introduced by pod-based antenna blockages. Using certain modeling approximations, the paper presents a quantitative analysis showing design trade-offs...parameters. Sec- tion IV develops quantitative relationships among key design elements and performance metrics. Section V considers some implications of the...Topology Design for Directional Range Extension Networks with Antenna Blockage Thomas Shake MIT Lincoln Laboratory shake@ll.mit.edu Abstract

Shear-lag analysis about an internally-dropped ply

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

Vizzini, A.J.

1995-12-31

The region around a terminated ply is modeled as several elastic layers separated by shear regions. A shear-lag analysis is then performed allowing for the thickness of the elastic and shear layers to vary. Boundary conditions, away for the ply drop, are based on the deflections determined by a finite element model. The interlaminar stresses are compared against those generated by the finite element model for tapered laminates under pure extension, pure bending, and extension-bending coupling. The shear-lag analysis predicts the interlaminar shear at and near the ply drop for pure extension and in cases involving bending if the deflectionsmore » due to bending are removed. The interlaminar shear stress and force equilibrium are used to determine the interlaminar normal stress. The trends in the interlaminar normal stress shown by the finite element model are partially captured by the shear-lag analysis. This simple analysis indicates that the mechanism for load transfer about a ply drop is primarily due to shear transfer through the resin rich areas.« less

Amplitude analysis of four-body decays using a massively-parallel fitting framework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hasse, C.; Albrecht, J.; Alves, A. A., Jr.; d'Argent, P.; Evans, T. D.; Rademacker, J.; Sokoloff, M. D.

2017-10-01

The GooFit Framework is designed to perform maximum-likelihood fits for arbitrary functions on various parallel back ends, for example a GPU. We present an extension to GooFit which adds the functionality to perform time-dependent amplitude analyses of pseudoscalar mesons decaying into four pseudoscalar final states. Benchmarks of this functionality show a significant performance increase when utilizing a GPU compared to a CPU. Furthermore, this extension is employed to study the sensitivity on the {{{D}}}0-{\\bar{{{D}}}}0 mixing parameters x and y in a time-dependent amplitude analysis of the decay D0 → K+π-π+π-. Studying a sample of 50 000 events and setting the central values to the world average of x = (0.49 ± 0.15)% and y = (0.61 ± 0.08)%, the statistical sensitivities of x and y are determined to be σ(x) = 0.019 % and σ(y) = 0.019 %.

Subreflector extension for improved efficiencies in Cassegrain antennas - GTD/PO analysis. [Geometrical Theory of Diffraction/Physical Optics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rahmat-Samii, Yahya

1986-01-01

Both offset and symmetric Cassegrain reflector antennas are used in satellite and ground communication systems. It is known that the subreflector diffraction can degrade the performance of these reflectors. A geometrical theory of diffraction/physical optics analysis technique is used to investigate the effects of the extended subreflector, beyond its optical rim, on the reflector efficiency and far-field patterns. Representative numerical results are shown for an offset Cassegrain reflector antenna with different feed illumination tapers and subreflector extensions. It is observed that for subreflector extensions as small as one wavelength, noticeable improvements in the overall efficiencies can be expected. Useful design data are generated for the efficiency curves and far-field patterns.

Strong monogamy inequalities for four qubits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Regula, Bartosz; Osterloh, Andreas; Adesso, Gerardo

2016-05-01

We investigate possible generalizations of the Coffman-Kundu-Wootters monogamy inequality to four qubits, accounting for multipartite entanglement in addition to the bipartite terms. We show that the most natural extension of the inequality does not hold in general, and we describe the violations of this inequality in detail. We investigate alternative ways to extend the monogamy inequality to express a constraint on entanglement sharing valid for all four-qubit states, and perform an extensive numerical analysis of randomly generated four-qubit states to explore the properties of such extensions.

Effect of mahlep on molecular weight distribution of cookie flour gluten proteins

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Size Exclusion-High performance Chromatography (SE-HPLC) has been extensively used in molecular weight distribution analysis of wheat proteins. In this study the protein analysis was conducted on different cookie dough blends with different percentages of some ingredients. The mean chromatography ...

Xi-cam: a versatile interface for data visualization and analysis

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

Pandolfi, Ronald J.; Allan, Daniel B.; Arenholz, Elke

Xi-cam is an extensible platform for data management, analysis and visualization.Xi-camaims to provide a flexible and extensible approach to synchrotron data treatment as a solution to rising demands for high-volume/high-throughput processing pipelines. The core ofXi-camis an extensible plugin-based graphical user interface platform which provides users with an interactive interface to processing algorithms. Plugins are available for SAXS/WAXS/GISAXS/GIWAXS, tomography and NEXAFS data. WithXi-cam's `advanced' mode, data processing steps are designed as a graph-based workflow, which can be executed live, locally or remotely. Remote execution utilizes high-performance computing or de-localized resources, allowing for the effective reduction of high-throughput data.Xi-cam's plugin-based architecture targetsmore » cross-facility and cross-technique collaborative development, in support of multi-modal analysis.Xi-camis open-source and cross-platform, and available for download on GitHub.« less

Xi-cam: a versatile interface for data visualization and analysis

DOE PAGES

Pandolfi, Ronald J.; Allan, Daniel B.; Arenholz, Elke; ...

2018-05-31

Xi-cam is an extensible platform for data management, analysis and visualization.Xi-camaims to provide a flexible and extensible approach to synchrotron data treatment as a solution to rising demands for high-volume/high-throughput processing pipelines. The core ofXi-camis an extensible plugin-based graphical user interface platform which provides users with an interactive interface to processing algorithms. Plugins are available for SAXS/WAXS/GISAXS/GIWAXS, tomography and NEXAFS data. WithXi-cam's `advanced' mode, data processing steps are designed as a graph-based workflow, which can be executed live, locally or remotely. Remote execution utilizes high-performance computing or de-localized resources, allowing for the effective reduction of high-throughput data.Xi-cam's plugin-based architecture targetsmore » cross-facility and cross-technique collaborative development, in support of multi-modal analysis.Xi-camis open-source and cross-platform, and available for download on GitHub.« less

The bioimpedance analysis of a parenchyma of a liver in the conditions of its extensive resection in experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Agibalov, D. Y.; Panchenkov, D. N.; Chertyuk, V. B.; Leonov, S. D.; Astakhov, D. A.

2017-01-01

The liver failure which is result of disharmony of functionality of a liver to requirements of an organism is the main reason for unsatisfactory results of an extensive resection of a liver. However, uniform effective criterion of definition of degree of a liver failure it isn’t developed now. One of data acquisition methods about a morfo-functional condition of internals is the bioimpedance analysis (BIA) based on impedance assessment (full electric resistance) of a biological tissue. Measurements of an impedance are used in medicine and biology for the characteristic of physical properties of living tissue, studying of the changes bound to a functional state and its structural features. In experimental conditions we carried out an extensive resection of a liver on 27 white laboratory rats of the Vistar line. The comparative characteristic of data of a bioimpedansometriya in intraoperative and after the operational period with the main existing methods of assessment of a functional condition of a liver was carried out. By results of the work performed by us it is possible to claim that the bioimpedance analysis of a liver on the basis of an invasive bioimpedansometriya allows to estimate morphological features and functional activity of a liver before performance of an extensive resection of a liver. The data obtained during scientific work are experimental justification for use of an impedansometriya during complex assessment of functional reserves of a liver. Preliminary data of clinical approbation at a stage of introduction of a technique speak about rather high informational content of a bioimpedansometriya. The subsequent analysis of efficiency of the invasive bioimpedance analysis of a liver requires further accumulation of clinical data. However even at this stage the method showed the prospect for further use in clinical surgical hepathology.

Analysis of Chemical, REP, and SEP missions to the Trojan asteroids

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bonfiglio, Eugene P.; Oh, David; Yen, Chen-Wan

2005-01-01

Recent studies suggest significant benefits from using 1st and 2nd generation Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) as a power source for electric propulsion (EP) missions to the outer planets. This study focuses on trajectories to the Trojan asteroids. A high level analysis is performed with chemical trajectories to determine potential canidates for REP trajectory optimization. Extensive analysis of direct trajectories using REP is performed on these candidates. Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP) trajectories are also considered for comparison against REP trajectories.

Broadband Scattering from Sand and Sand/Mud Sediments with Extensive Environmental Characterization

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-01-30

experiment , extensive envi- ronmental characterization was also performed to support data/model comparisons for both experimental efforts. The site...mechanisms, potentially addressing questions left unresolved from the previous sediment acoustics experiments , SAX99 and SAX04. This work was also to provide...environmental characterization to support the analysis of data collected during the Target and Reverberation Experiment in 2013 (TREX13) as well as

DAKOTA Design Analysis Kit for Optimization and Terascale

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

Adams, Brian M.; Dalbey, Keith R.; Eldred, Michael S.

2010-02-24

The DAKOTA (Design Analysis Kit for Optimization and Terascale Applications) toolkit provides a flexible and extensible interface between simulation codes (computational models) and iterative analysis methods. By employing object-oriented design to implement abstractions of the key components required for iterative systems analyses, the DAKOTA toolkit provides a flexible and extensible problem-solving environment for design and analysis of computational models on high performance computers.A user provides a set of DAKOTA commands in an input file and launches DAKOTA. DAKOTA invokes instances of the computational models, collects their results, and performs systems analyses. DAKOTA contains algorithms for optimization with gradient and nongradient-basedmore » methods; uncertainty quantification with sampling, reliability, polynomial chaos, stochastic collocation, and epistemic methods; parameter estimation with nonlinear least squares methods; and sensitivity/variance analysis with design of experiments and parameter study methods. These capabilities may be used on their own or as components within advanced strategies such as hybrid optimization, surrogate-based optimization, mixed integer nonlinear programming, or optimization under uncertainty. Services for parallel computing, simulation interfacing, approximation modeling, fault tolerance, restart, and graphics are also included.« less

Application of Item Analysis to Assess Multiple-Choice Examinations in the Mississippi Master Cattle Producer Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parish, Jane A.; Karisch, Brandi B.

2013-01-01

Item analysis can serve as a useful tool in improving multiple-choice questions used in Extension programming. It can identify gaps between instruction and assessment. An item analysis of Mississippi Master Cattle Producer program multiple-choice examination responses was performed to determine the difficulty of individual examinations, assess the…

Post-analysis report on Chesapeake Bay data processing. [spectral analysis and recognition computer signature extension

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thomson, F.

1972-01-01

The additional processing performed on data collected over the Rhode River Test Site and Forestry Site in November 1970 is reported. The techniques and procedures used to obtain the processed results are described. Thermal data collected over three approximately parallel lines of the site were contoured, and the results color coded, for the purpose of delineating important scene constituents and to identify trees attacked by pine bark beetles. Contouring work and histogram preparation are reviewed and the important conclusions from the spectral analysis and recognition computer (SPARC) signature extension work are summarized. The SPARC setup and processing records are presented and recommendations are made for future data collection over the site.

Genetic and Environmental Etiologies of Reading Difficulties: DeFries-Fulker Analysis of Reading Performance Data from Twin Pairs and Their Non-Twin Siblings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Astrom, Raven L.; Wadsworth, Sally J.; Olson, Richard K.; Willcutt, Erik G.; DeFries, John C.

2012-01-01

Reading performance data from 254 pairs of identical (MZ) and 420 pairs of fraternal (DZ) twins, 8.0 to 20.0 years of age, were subjected to multiple regression analyses. An extension of the DeFries-Fulker (DF) analysis (DeFries & Fulker, 1985, 1988) that facilitated inclusion of data from 303 of their nontwin siblings was employed. In addition to…

Neophyte experiences of football (soccer) match analysis: a multiple case study approach.

PubMed

McKenna, Mark; Cowan, Daryl Thomas; Stevenson, David; Baker, Julien Steven

2018-03-05

Performance analysis is extensively used in sport, but its pedagogical application is little understood. Given its expanding role across football, this study explored the experiences of neophyte performance analysts. Experiences of six analysis interns, across three professional football clubs, were investigated as multiple cases of new match analysis. Each intern was interviewed after their first season, with archival data providing background information. Four themes emerged from qualitative analysis: (1) "building of relationships" was important, along with trust and role clarity; (2) "establishing an analysis system" was difficult due to tacit coach knowledge, but analysis was established; (3) the quality of the "feedback process" hinged on coaching styles, with balance of feedback and athlete engagement considered essential; (4) "establishing effect" was complex with no statistical effects reported; yet enhanced relationships, role clarity, and improved performances were reported. Other emic accounts are required to further understand occupational culture within performance analysis.

76 FR 21700 - Notice of Request for Extension and Revision of a Currently Approved Collection

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-04-18

... analyses has its own methodology and time necessary to perform the analyses. (3) Aflatoxin in Pistachios Program (A High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) method for exporting pistachios to European Union requested by the California Pistachio Committee) and the domestic program using HPLC or a test kit analysis...

EMAAS: An extensible grid-based Rich Internet Application for microarray data analysis and management

PubMed Central

Barton, G; Abbott, J; Chiba, N; Huang, DW; Huang, Y; Krznaric, M; Mack-Smith, J; Saleem, A; Sherman, BT; Tiwari, B; Tomlinson, C; Aitman, T; Darlington, J; Game, L; Sternberg, MJE; Butcher, SA

2008-01-01

Background Microarray experimentation requires the application of complex analysis methods as well as the use of non-trivial computer technologies to manage the resultant large data sets. This, together with the proliferation of tools and techniques for microarray data analysis, makes it very challenging for a laboratory scientist to keep up-to-date with the latest developments in this field. Our aim was to develop a distributed e-support system for microarray data analysis and management. Results EMAAS (Extensible MicroArray Analysis System) is a multi-user rich internet application (RIA) providing simple, robust access to up-to-date resources for microarray data storage and analysis, combined with integrated tools to optimise real time user support and training. The system leverages the power of distributed computing to perform microarray analyses, and provides seamless access to resources located at various remote facilities. The EMAAS framework allows users to import microarray data from several sources to an underlying database, to pre-process, quality assess and analyse the data, to perform functional analyses, and to track data analysis steps, all through a single easy to use web portal. This interface offers distance support to users both in the form of video tutorials and via live screen feeds using the web conferencing tool EVO. A number of analysis packages, including R-Bioconductor and Affymetrix Power Tools have been integrated on the server side and are available programmatically through the Postgres-PLR library or on grid compute clusters. Integrated distributed resources include the functional annotation tool DAVID, GeneCards and the microarray data repositories GEO, CELSIUS and MiMiR. EMAAS currently supports analysis of Affymetrix 3' and Exon expression arrays, and the system is extensible to cater for other microarray and transcriptomic platforms. Conclusion EMAAS enables users to track and perform microarray data management and analysis tasks through a single easy-to-use web application. The system architecture is flexible and scalable to allow new array types, analysis algorithms and tools to be added with relative ease and to cope with large increases in data volume. PMID:19032776

CORSS: Cylinder Optimization of Rings, Skin, and Stringers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Finckenor, J.; Rogers, P.; Otte, N.

1994-01-01

Launch vehicle designs typically make extensive use of cylindrical skin stringer construction. Structural analysis methods are well developed for preliminary design of this type of construction. This report describes an automated, iterative method to obtain a minimum weight preliminary design. Structural optimization has been researched extensively, and various programs have been written for this purpose. Their complexity and ease of use depends on their generality, the failure modes considered, the methodology used, and the rigor of the analysis performed. This computer program employs closed-form solutions from a variety of well-known structural analysis references and joins them with a commercially available numerical optimizer called the 'Design Optimization Tool' (DOT). Any ring and stringer stiffened shell structure of isotropic materials that has beam type loading can be analyzed. Plasticity effects are not included. It performs a more limited analysis than programs such as PANDA, but it provides an easy and useful preliminary design tool for a large class of structures. This report briefly describes the optimization theory, outlines the development and use of the program, and describes the analysis techniques that are used. Examples of program input and output, as well as the listing of the analysis routines, are included.

Training Manual for the Energy Conservation Analysis Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Massachusetts Univ., Amherst. Cooperative Extension Service.

This document is the Massachusetts Energy Extension Service training manual for Residential Energy Auditors. This manual is part of a four-week program to train persons to perform home energy audits and was developed under the Energy Conservation Analysis Project (ECAP) at the University of Massachusetts. The chapter titles include: (1) Project…

Telecommunication market research processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dupont, J. F.

1983-06-01

The data processing in two telecommunication market investigations is described. One of the studies concerns the office applications of communication and the other the experiences with a videotex terminal. Statistical factorial analysis was performed on a large mass of data. A comparison between utilization intentions and effective utilization is made. Extensive rewriting of statistical analysis computer programs was required.

A Robust Kalman Framework with Resampling and Optimal Smoothing

PubMed Central

Kautz, Thomas; Eskofier, Bjoern M.

2015-01-01

The Kalman filter (KF) is an extremely powerful and versatile tool for signal processing that has been applied extensively in various fields. We introduce a novel Kalman-based analysis procedure that encompasses robustness towards outliers, Kalman smoothing and real-time conversion from non-uniformly sampled inputs to a constant output rate. These features have been mostly treated independently, so that not all of their benefits could be exploited at the same time. Here, we present a coherent analysis procedure that combines the aforementioned features and their benefits. To facilitate utilization of the proposed methodology and to ensure optimal performance, we also introduce a procedure to calculate all necessary parameters. Thereby, we substantially expand the versatility of one of the most widely-used filtering approaches, taking full advantage of its most prevalent extensions. The applicability and superior performance of the proposed methods are demonstrated using simulated and real data. The possible areas of applications for the presented analysis procedure range from movement analysis over medical imaging, brain-computer interfaces to robot navigation or meteorological studies. PMID:25734647

Easily extensible unix software for spectral analysis, display, modification, and synthesis of musical sounds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beauchamp, James W.

2002-11-01

Software has been developed which enables users to perform time-varying spectral analysis of individual musical tones or successions of them and to perform further processing of the data. The package, called sndan, is freely available in source code, uses EPS graphics for display, and is written in ansi c for ease of code modification and extension. Two analyzers, a fixed-filter-bank phase vocoder (''pvan'') and a frequency-tracking analyzer (''mqan'') constitute the analysis front end of the package. While pvan's output consists of continuous amplitudes and frequencies of harmonics, mqan produces disjoint ''tracks.'' However, another program extracts a fundamental frequency and separates harmonics from the tracks, resulting in a continuous harmonic output. ''monan'' is a program used to display harmonic data in a variety of formats, perform various spectral modifications, and perform additive resynthesis of the harmonic partials, including possible pitch-shifting and time-scaling. Sounds can also be synthesized according to a musical score using a companion synthesis language, Music 4C. Several other programs in the sndan suite can be used for specialized tasks, such as signal display and editing. Applications of the software include producing specialized sounds for music compositions or psychoacoustic experiments or as a basis for developing new synthesis algorithms.

Effects of trunk stability on isometric knee extension muscle strength measurement while sitting.

PubMed

Hirano, Masahiro; Gomi, Masahiro; Katoh, Munenori

2016-09-01

[Purpose] This study aimed to investigate the effect of trunk stability on isometric knee extension muscle strength measurement while sitting by performing simultaneous measurements with a handheld dynamometer (HHD) and an isokinetic dynamometer (IKD) in the same seated condition. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 30 healthy volunteers. Isometric knee extension muscle strength was simultaneously measured with a HHD and an IKD by using an IKD-specific chair. The measurement was performed twice. Measurement instrument variables and the number of measurements were examined by using the analysis of variance and correlation tests. [Results] The measurement instrument variables and the number of measurements were not significantly different. The correlation coefficients between the HHD and IKD measurements were ≥0.96. [Conclusion] Isometric knee extension muscle strength measurement using the HHD in the sitting position resulted in a lower value than that using the IKD, presumably because of the effect of trunk stability on the measurement. In the same seated posture with trunk stability, no significant difference in measurement values was observed between the HHD and IKD. The present findings suggest that trunk stability while seated during isometric knee extension muscle strength measurement influenced the HHD measurement.

Extensions and applications of a second-order landsurface parameterization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Andreou, S. A.; Eagleson, P. S.

1983-01-01

Extensions and applications of a second order land surface parameterization, proposed by Andreou and Eagleson are developed. Procedures for evaluating the near surface storage depth used in one cell land surface parameterizations are suggested and tested by using the model. Sensitivity analysis to the key soil parameters is performed. A case study involving comparison with an "exact" numerical model and another simplified parameterization, under very dry climatic conditions and for two different soil types, is also incorporated.

Complete Placenta Previa: Ultrasound Biometry and Surgical Outcomes

PubMed Central

Wortman, Alison C.; Schaefer, Stephanie L.; McIntire, Donald D.; Sheffield, Jeanne S.; Twickler, Diane M.

2018-01-01

Objective  To evaluate the relationship between surgical outcomes and ultrasound measurement of placental extension beyond the cervical os in women with placenta previa. Study Design  This is a retrospective cohort study of singleton pregnancies with placenta previa undergoing third-trimester ultrasound and delivering at our institution from 2002 through 2011. For study purposes, an investigator measured placental extension, defined as the placental distance from the internal os across the placenta continuing out to the lowest placental edge. If morbidly adherent placentation was suspected, women were excluded. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were developed for pertinent surgical outcomes, and multivariate analysis was performed to determine the placental extension with the best predictive discriminatory zone. Results  In total, 157 women had placenta previa, ultrasound, and delivery data: 86 (55%) had a placental extension of <40 mm, and 71 (45%) had a placental extension of ≥40 mm. Women with placental extension of ≥40 mm had increased surgical time, blood loss > 2,000 mL, blood transfusion, and rate of peripartum hysterectomy. After multivariate analysis, only peripartum hysterectomy and surgical time > 90 minutes remained significant, p ≤ 0.05 and p ≤ 0.01, respectively. Conclusion  In women with placenta previa, the placental extension ultrasound measurement of ≥40 mm is a predictor of adverse surgical outcomes. PMID:29686936

Complete Placenta Previa: Ultrasound Biometry and Surgical Outcomes.

PubMed

Wortman, Alison C; Schaefer, Stephanie L; McIntire, Donald D; Sheffield, Jeanne S; Twickler, Diane M

2018-04-01

Objective  To evaluate the relationship between surgical outcomes and ultrasound measurement of placental extension beyond the cervical os in women with placenta previa. Study Design  This is a retrospective cohort study of singleton pregnancies with placenta previa undergoing third-trimester ultrasound and delivering at our institution from 2002 through 2011. For study purposes, an investigator measured placental extension, defined as the placental distance from the internal os across the placenta continuing out to the lowest placental edge. If morbidly adherent placentation was suspected, women were excluded. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were developed for pertinent surgical outcomes, and multivariate analysis was performed to determine the placental extension with the best predictive discriminatory zone. Results  In total, 157 women had placenta previa, ultrasound, and delivery data: 86 (55%) had a placental extension of <40 mm, and 71 (45%) had a placental extension of ≥40 mm. Women with placental extension of ≥40 mm had increased surgical time, blood loss > 2,000 mL, blood transfusion, and rate of peripartum hysterectomy. After multivariate analysis, only peripartum hysterectomy and surgical time > 90 minutes remained significant, p ≤ 0.05 and p ≤ 0.01, respectively. Conclusion  In women with placenta previa, the placental extension ultrasound measurement of ≥40 mm is a predictor of adverse surgical outcomes.

Integrating Reliability Analysis with a Performance Tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nicol, David M.; Palumbo, Daniel L.; Ulrey, Michael

1995-01-01

A large number of commercial simulation tools support performance oriented studies of complex computer and communication systems. Reliability of these systems, when desired, must be obtained by remodeling the system in a different tool. This has obvious drawbacks: (1) substantial extra effort is required to create the reliability model; (2) through modeling error the reliability model may not reflect precisely the same system as the performance model; (3) as the performance model evolves one must continuously reevaluate the validity of assumptions made in that model. In this paper we describe an approach, and a tool that implements this approach, for integrating a reliability analysis engine into a production quality simulation based performance modeling tool, and for modeling within such an integrated tool. The integrated tool allows one to use the same modeling formalisms to conduct both performance and reliability studies. We describe how the reliability analysis engine is integrated into the performance tool, describe the extensions made to the performance tool to support the reliability analysis, and consider the tool's performance.

An Analysis of Online Course Sizes as It Relates to Student Success and Faculty Performance through Hierarchical Regression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aylward, Bryan T.

2018-01-01

Online distance education program has continued to change the educational landscape in higher education. There has been extensive research on the relationship between course size, faculty performance, and student success within traditional on-ground colleges and universities, but limited research as it related to online educational modalities. The…

Hierarchy of Dysfunction Related to Dressing Performance in Stroke Patients: A Path Analysis Study.

PubMed

Fujita, Takaaki; Nagayama, Hirofumi; Sato, Atsushi; Yamamoto, Yuichi; Yamane, Kazuhiro; Otsuki, Koji; Tsuchiya, Kenji; Tozato, Fusae

2016-01-01

Previous reports indicated that various dysfunctions caused by stroke affect the level of independence in dressing. These dysfunctions can be hierarchical, and these effects on dressing performance can be complicated in stroke patients. However, there are no published reports focusing on the hierarchical structure of the relationships between the activities of daily living and balance function, motor and sensory functions of the affected lower limb, strength of the abdominal muscles and knee extension on the unaffected side, and visuospatial deficits. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the hierarchical and causal relationships between dressing performance and these dysfunctions in stroke patients. This retrospective study included 104 first-time stroke patients. The causal relationship between the dressing performance and age, time post stroke, balance function, motor and sensory functions of the affected lower limb, strength of the abdominal muscles and knee extension on the unaffected side, and visuospatial deficits were examined using path analysis. A hypothetical path model was created based on previous studies, and the goodness of fit between the data and model were verified. A modified path model was created that achieved an almost perfect fit to the data. Balance function and abdominal muscle strength have direct effects on dressing performance, with standardized direct effect estimates of 0.78 and 0.15, respectively. Age, motor and sensory functions of the affected lower limb, and strength of abdominal muscle and knee extension on the unaffected side have indirect effects on dressing by influencing balance function. Our results suggest that dressing performance depends strongly on balance function, and it is mainly influenced by the motor function of the affected lower limb.

Weightlifting performance is related to kinematic and kinetic patterns of the hip and knee joints.

PubMed

Kipp, Kristof; Redden, Josh; Sabick, Michelle B; Harris, Chad

2012-07-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the correlations between biomechanical outcome measures and weightlifting performance. Joint kinematics and kinetics of the hip, knee, and ankle were calculated while 10 subjects performed a clean at 85% of 1 repetition maximum (1RM). Kinematic and kinetic time-series patterns were extracted with principal components analysis. Discrete scores for each time-series pattern were calculated and used to determine how each pattern was related to body mass-normalized 1RM. Two hip kinematic and 2 knee kinetic patterns were significantly correlated with relative 1RM. The kinematic patterns captured hip and trunk motions during the first pull and hip joint motion during the movement transition between the first and second pulls. The first kinetic pattern captured a peak in the knee extension moment during the second pull. The second kinetic pattern captured a spatiotemporal shift in the timing and amplitude of the peak knee extension moment. The kinematic results suggest that greater lift mass was associated with steady trunk position during the first pull and less hip extension motion during the second-knee bend transition. Further, the kinetic results suggest that greater lift mass was associated with a smaller knee extensor moments during the first pull, but greater knee extension moments during the second pull, and an earlier temporal transition between knee flexion-extension moments at the beginning of the second pull. Collectively, these results highlight the importance of controlled trunk and hip motions during the first pull and rapid employment of the knee extensor muscles during the second pull in relation to weightlifting performance.

Development and application of structural dynamics analysis capabilities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heinemann, Klaus W.; Hozaki, Shig

1994-01-01

Extensive research activities were performed in the area of multidisciplinary modeling and simulation of aerospace vehicles that are relevant to NASA Dryden Flight Research Facility. The efforts involved theoretical development, computer coding, and debugging of the STARS code. New solution procedures were developed in such areas as structures, CFD, and graphics, among others. Furthermore, systems-oriented codes were developed for rendering the code truly multidisciplinary and rather automated in nature. Also, work was performed in pre- and post-processing of engineering analysis data.

Statistical analysis of Geopotential Height (GH) timeseries based on Tsallis non-extensive statistical mechanics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karakatsanis, L. P.; Iliopoulos, A. C.; Pavlos, E. G.; Pavlos, G. P.

2018-02-01

In this paper, we perform statistical analysis of time series deriving from Earth's climate. The time series are concerned with Geopotential Height (GH) and correspond to temporal and spatial components of the global distribution of month average values, during the period (1948-2012). The analysis is based on Tsallis non-extensive statistical mechanics and in particular on the estimation of Tsallis' q-triplet, namely {qstat, qsens, qrel}, the reconstructed phase space and the estimation of correlation dimension and the Hurst exponent of rescaled range analysis (R/S). The deviation of Tsallis q-triplet from unity indicates non-Gaussian (Tsallis q-Gaussian) non-extensive character with heavy tails probability density functions (PDFs), multifractal behavior and long range dependences for all timeseries considered. Also noticeable differences of the q-triplet estimation found in the timeseries at distinct local or temporal regions. Moreover, in the reconstructive phase space revealed a lower-dimensional fractal set in the GH dynamical phase space (strong self-organization) and the estimation of Hurst exponent indicated multifractality, non-Gaussianity and persistence. The analysis is giving significant information identifying and characterizing the dynamical characteristics of the earth's climate.

Decision-Making, Information Communication Technology, and Data Analysis by School Leaders about Student Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akoma, Ahunna Margaux

2012-01-01

This case study of one school district examined how school leaders use student performance data and technology-based data analysis tools to engage in data-informed decision-making for continuous improvement. School leaders in this context included leaders at the district, school, and classroom levels. An extensive literature review provided the…

Performance Evaluation of Counter-Based Dynamic Load Balancing Schemes for Massive Contingency Analysis with Different Computing Environments

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

Chen, Yousu; Huang, Zhenyu; Chavarría-Miranda, Daniel

Contingency analysis is a key function in the Energy Management System (EMS) to assess the impact of various combinations of power system component failures based on state estimation. Contingency analysis is also extensively used in power market operation for feasibility test of market solutions. High performance computing holds the promise of faster analysis of more contingency cases for the purpose of safe and reliable operation of today’s power grids with less operating margin and more intermittent renewable energy sources. This paper evaluates the performance of counter-based dynamic load balancing schemes for massive contingency analysis under different computing environments. Insights frommore » the performance evaluation can be used as guidance for users to select suitable schemes in the application of massive contingency analysis. Case studies, as well as MATLAB simulations, of massive contingency cases using the Western Electricity Coordinating Council power grid model are presented to illustrate the application of high performance computing with counter-based dynamic load balancing schemes.« less

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

Coleman, Justin; Slaughter, Andrew; Veeraraghavan, Swetha

Multi-hazard Analysis for STOchastic time-DOmaiN phenomena (MASTODON) is a finite element application that aims at analyzing the response of 3-D soil-structure systems to natural and man-made hazards such as earthquakes, floods and fire. MASTODON currently focuses on the simulation of seismic events and has the capability to perform extensive ‘source-to-site’ simulations including earthquake fault rupture, nonlinear wave propagation and nonlinear soil-structure interaction (NLSSI) analysis. MASTODON is being developed to be a dynamic probabilistic risk assessment framework that enables analysts to not only perform deterministic analyses, but also easily perform probabilistic or stochastic simulations for the purpose of risk assessment.

Biochemical, endocrine, and hematological factors in human oxygen tolerance extension: Predictive studies 6

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lambertsen, C. J.; Clark, J. M.

1992-01-01

The Predictive Studies VI (Biochemical, endocrine, and hematological factors in human oxygen tolerance extension) Program consisted of two related areas of research activity, integrated in design and performance, that were each based on an ongoing analysis of human organ oxygen tolerance data obtained for the continuous oxygen exposures of the prior Predictive Studies V Program. The two research areas effectively blended broad investigation of systematically varied intermittent exposure patterns in animals with very selective evaluation of specific exposure patterns in man.

Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics Version 4 (ANAM4): Select Psychometric Properties and Administration Procedures

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-12-01

month no- cost extension for this study was approved on 7 November 2012, extending study activities through December 2013. A modified statement of work...approved as part of the no- cost extension and currently pending approval by the USARIEM HURC (Amendment #14), is presented in Table 2. 5...ptjournal.apta.org/Downloaded from 13     time. SAS 9.2 was used to perform a mixed model analysis with random individual intercept to account for

Sampling methods for microbiological analysis of red meat and poultry carcasses.

PubMed

Capita, Rosa; Prieto, Miguel; Alonso-Calleja, Carlos

2004-06-01

Microbiological analysis of carcasses at slaughterhouses is required in the European Union for evaluating the hygienic performance of carcass production processes as required for effective hazard analysis critical control point implementation. The European Union microbial performance standards refer exclusively to the excision method, even though swabbing using the wet/dry technique is also permitted when correlation between both destructive and nondestructive methods can be established. For practical and economic reasons, the swab technique is the most extensively used carcass surface-sampling method. The main characteristics, advantages, and limitations of the common excision and swabbing methods are described here.

A hybrid wavelet analysis-cloud model data-extending approach for meteorologic and hydrologic time series

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Dong; Ding, Hao; Singh, Vijay P.; Shang, Xiaosan; Liu, Dengfeng; Wang, Yuankun; Zeng, Xiankui; Wu, Jichun; Wang, Lachun; Zou, Xinqing

2015-05-01

For scientific and sustainable management of water resources, hydrologic and meteorologic data series need to be often extended. This paper proposes a hybrid approach, named WA-CM (wavelet analysis-cloud model), for data series extension. Wavelet analysis has time-frequency localization features, known as "mathematics microscope," that can decompose and reconstruct hydrologic and meteorologic series by wavelet transform. The cloud model is a mathematical representation of fuzziness and randomness and has strong robustness for uncertain data. The WA-CM approach first employs the wavelet transform to decompose the measured nonstationary series and then uses the cloud model to develop an extension model for each decomposition layer series. The final extension is obtained by summing the results of extension of each layer. Two kinds of meteorologic and hydrologic data sets with different characteristics and different influence of human activity from six (three pairs) representative stations are used to illustrate the WA-CM approach. The approach is also compared with four other methods, which are conventional correlation extension method, Kendall-Theil robust line method, artificial neural network method (back propagation, multilayer perceptron, and radial basis function), and single cloud model method. To evaluate the model performance completely and thoroughly, five measures are used, which are relative error, mean relative error, standard deviation of relative error, root mean square error, and Thiel inequality coefficient. Results show that the WA-CM approach is effective, feasible, and accurate and is found to be better than other four methods compared. The theory employed and the approach developed here can be applied to extension of data in other areas as well.

Estimation and prediction of statewide Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) by highway category and vehicle classification.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-02-01

Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) is a critical performance measure that is used extensively in highway transportation management for financial analysis, resource allocation, impact assessments, and reporting to oversight agencies. As highway revenue from...

GLSENS: A Generalized Extension of LSENS Including Global Reactions and Added Sensitivity Analysis for the Perfectly Stirred Reactor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bittker, David A.

1996-01-01

A generalized version of the NASA Lewis general kinetics code, LSENS, is described. The new code allows the use of global reactions as well as molecular processes in a chemical mechanism. The code also incorporates the capability of performing sensitivity analysis calculations for a perfectly stirred reactor rapidly and conveniently at the same time that the main kinetics calculations are being done. The GLSENS code has been extensively tested and has been found to be accurate and efficient. Nine example problems are presented and complete user instructions are given for the new capabilities. This report is to be used in conjunction with the documentation for the original LSENS code.

A non-iterative extension of the multivariate random effects meta-analysis.

PubMed

Makambi, Kepher H; Seung, Hyunuk

2015-01-01

Multivariate methods in meta-analysis are becoming popular and more accepted in biomedical research despite computational issues in some of the techniques. A number of approaches, both iterative and non-iterative, have been proposed including the multivariate DerSimonian and Laird method by Jackson et al. (2010), which is non-iterative. In this study, we propose an extension of the method by Hartung and Makambi (2002) and Makambi (2001) to multivariate situations. A comparison of the bias and mean square error from a simulation study indicates that, in some circumstances, the proposed approach perform better than the multivariate DerSimonian-Laird approach. An example is presented to demonstrate the application of the proposed approach.

Structure identification methods for atomistic simulations of crystalline materials

DOE PAGES

Stukowski, Alexander

2012-05-28

Here, we discuss existing and new computational analysis techniques to classify local atomic arrangements in large-scale atomistic computer simulations of crystalline solids. This article includes a performance comparison of typical analysis algorithms such as common neighbor analysis (CNA), centrosymmetry analysis, bond angle analysis, bond order analysis and Voronoi analysis. In addition we propose a simple extension to the CNA method that makes it suitable for multi-phase systems. Finally, we introduce a new structure identification algorithm, the neighbor distance analysis, which is designed to identify atomic structure units in grain boundaries.

A Collaborative Extensible User Environment for Simulation and Knowledge Management

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

Freedman, Vicky L.; Lansing, Carina S.; Porter, Ellen A.

2015-06-01

In scientific simulation, scientists use measured data to create numerical models, execute simulations and analyze results from advanced simulators executing on high performance computing platforms. This process usually requires a team of scientists collaborating on data collection, model creation and analysis, and on authorship of publications and data. This paper shows that scientific teams can benefit from a user environment called Akuna that permits subsurface scientists in disparate locations to collaborate on numerical modeling and analysis projects. The Akuna user environment is built on the Velo framework that provides both a rich client environment for conducting and analyzing simulations andmore » a Web environment for data sharing and annotation. Akuna is an extensible toolset that integrates with Velo, and is designed to support any type of simulator. This is achieved through data-driven user interface generation, use of a customizable knowledge management platform, and an extensible framework for simulation execution, monitoring and analysis. This paper describes how the customized Velo content management system and the Akuna toolset are used to integrate and enhance an effective collaborative research and application environment. The extensible architecture of Akuna is also described and demonstrates its usage for creation and execution of a 3D subsurface simulation.« less

Examining the Use of Deep Touch Pressure to Improve the Educational Performance of Students with Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Losinski, Mickey; Sanders, Sara A.; Wiseman, Nicole M.

2016-01-01

The current meta-analysis examined the use of deep touch pressure (DTP; e.g., weighted vests) with students with disabilities. DTP is a form of sensory integration therapy that is currently used extensively in schools with students with autism and other disabilities. Each study in the analysis was evaluated using the Council for Exceptional…

A comparison between flexible electrogoniometers, inclinometers and three-dimensional video analysis system for recording neck movement.

PubMed

Carnaz, Letícia; Moriguchi, Cristiane S; de Oliveira, Ana Beatriz; Santiago, Paulo R P; Caurin, Glauco A P; Hansson, Gert-Åke; Coury, Helenice J C Gil

2013-11-01

This study compared neck range of movement recording using three different methods goniometers (EGM), inclinometers (INC) and a three-dimensional video analysis system (IMG) in simultaneous and synchronized data collection. Twelve females performed neck flexion-extension, lateral flexion, rotation and circumduction. The differences between EGM, INC, and IMG were calculated sample by sample. For flexion-extension movement, IMG underestimated the amplitude by 13%; moreover, EGM showed a crosstalk of about 20% for lateral flexion and rotation axes. In lateral flexion movement, all systems showed similar amplitude and the inter-system differences were moderate (4-7%). For rotation movement, EGM showed a high crosstalk (13%) for flexion-extension axis. During the circumduction movement, IMG underestimated the amplitude of flexion-extension movements by about 11%, and the inter-system differences were high (about 17%) except for INC-IMG regarding lateral flexion (7%) and EGM-INC regarding flexion-extension (10%). For application in workplace, INC presents good results compared to IMG and EGM though INC cannot record rotation. EGM should be improved in order to reduce its crosstalk errors and allow recording of the full neck range of movement. Due to non-optimal positioning of the cameras for recording flexion-extension, IMG underestimated the amplitude of these movements. Copyright © 2013 IPEM. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multiprocessor smalltalk: Implementation, performance, and analysis

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

Pallas, J.I.

1990-01-01

Multiprocessor Smalltalk demonstrates the value of object-oriented programming on a multiprocessor. Its implementation and analysis shed light on three areas: concurrent programming in an object oriented language without special extensions, implementation techniques for adapting to multiprocessors, and performance factors in the resulting system. Adding parallelism to Smalltalk code is easy, because programs already use control abstractions like iterators. Smalltalk's basic control and concurrency primitives (lambda expressions, processes and semaphores) can be used to build parallel control abstractions, including parallel iterators, parallel objects, atomic objects, and futures. Language extensions for concurrency are not required. This implementation demonstrates that it is possiblemore » to build an efficient parallel object-oriented programming system and illustrates techniques for doing so. Three modification tools-serialization, replication, and reorganization-adapted the Berkeley Smalltalk interpreter to the Firefly multiprocessor. Multiprocessor Smalltalk's performance shows that the combination of multiprocessing and object-oriented programming can be effective: speedups (relative to the original serial version) exceed 2.0 for five processors on all the benchmarks; the median efficiency is 48%. Analysis shows both where performance is lost and how to improve and generalize the experimental results. Changes in the interpreter to support concurrency add at most 12% overhead; better access to per-process variables could eliminate much of that. Changes in the user code to express concurrency add as much as 70% overhead; this overhead could be reduced to 54% if blocks (lambda expressions) were reentrant. Performance is also lost when the program cannot keep all five processors busy.« less

CONTROLLING ORGANICS WITH GAC: A COST AND PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS

EPA Science Inventory

The amendments to the US Safe Drinking Water Act require extensive evaluation of the feasibility or removing organic compounds using granular activated carbon (GAC). To meet deadlines for this technology evaluation, the US Environmental Prtotection Agency has combined the use of ...

Modular space station phase B extension preliminary system design. Volume 3: Experiment analyses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wengrow, G. L.; Lillenas, A. N.

1972-01-01

Experiment analysis tasks performed during program definition study are described. Experiment accommodation and scheduling, and defining and implementing the laboratory evolution are discussed. The general purpose laboratory requirements and concepts are defined, and supplemental studies are reported.

Muscle contributions to knee extension in the early stance phase in patients with knee osteoarthritis.

PubMed

Ogaya, Shinya; Kubota, Ryo; Chujo, Yuta; Hirooka, Eiko; Kwang-Ho, Kim; Hase, Kimitaka

2017-10-01

The aim of this study was to analyze individual muscle contributions to knee angular acceleration using a musculoskeletal simulation analysis and evaluate knee extension mechanics in the early stance phase in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). The subjects comprised 15 patients with medial knee OA and 14 healthy elderly individuals. All participants underwent gait performance test using 8 infrared cameras and two force plates to measure the kinetic and kinematic data. The simulation was driven by 92 Hill-type muscle-tendon units of the lower extremities and a trunk with 23° of freedom. We analyzed each muscle contribution to knee angular acceleration in the 5%-15% and 15%-25% periods of the stance phase (% SP) using an induced acceleration analysis. We compared accelerations by individual muscles between the two groups using an analysis of covariance for controlling gait speed. Patients with knee OA had a significantly lesser knee extension acceleration by the vasti muscles and higher knee acceleration by hip adductors than those in controls in 5-15% SP. In addition, knee OA resulted in significantly lesser knee extension acceleration by the vasti muscles in 15-25% SP. These results indicate that patients with knee OA have decreased dependency on the vasti muscles to control knee movements during early stance phase. Hip adductor muscles, which mainly control mediolateral motion, partly compensate for the weak knee extension by the vasti muscles in patients with knee OA. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Metrics and methods for characterizing dairy farm intensification using farm survey data.

PubMed

Gonzalez-Mejia, Alejandra; Styles, David; Wilson, Paul; Gibbons, James

2018-01-01

Evaluation of agricultural intensification requires comprehensive analysis of trends in farm performance across physical and socio-economic aspects, which may diverge across farm types. Typical reporting of economic indicators at sectorial or the "average farm" level does not represent farm diversity and provides limited insight into the sustainability of specific intensification pathways. Using farm business data from a total of 7281 farm survey observations of English and Welsh dairy farms over a 14-year period we calculate a time series of 16 key performance indicators (KPIs) pertinent to farm structure, environmental and socio-economic aspects of sustainability. We then apply principle component analysis and model-based clustering analysis to identify statistically the number of distinct dairy farm typologies for each year of study, and link these clusters through time using multidimensional scaling. Between 2001 and 2014, dairy farms have largely consolidated and specialized into two distinct clusters: more extensive farms relying predominantly on grass, with lower milk yields but higher labour intensity, and more intensive farms producing more milk per cow with more concentrate and more maize, but lower labour intensity. There is some indication that these clusters are converging as the extensive cluster is intensifying slightly faster than the intensive cluster, in terms of milk yield per cow and use of concentrate feed. In 2014, annual milk yields were 6,835 and 7,500 l/cow for extensive and intensive farm types, respectively, whilst annual concentrate feed use was 1.3 and 1.5 tonnes per cow. For several KPIs such as milk yield the mean trend across all farms differed substantially from the extensive and intensive typologies mean. The indicators and analysis methodology developed allows identification of distinct farm types and industry trends using readily available survey data. The identified groups allow the accurate evaluation of the consequences of the reduction in dairy farm numbers and intensification at national and international scales.

Metrics and methods for characterizing dairy farm intensification using farm survey data

PubMed Central

Gonzalez-Mejia, Alejandra; Styles, David; Wilson, Paul

2018-01-01

Evaluation of agricultural intensification requires comprehensive analysis of trends in farm performance across physical and socio-economic aspects, which may diverge across farm types. Typical reporting of economic indicators at sectorial or the “average farm” level does not represent farm diversity and provides limited insight into the sustainability of specific intensification pathways. Using farm business data from a total of 7281 farm survey observations of English and Welsh dairy farms over a 14-year period we calculate a time series of 16 key performance indicators (KPIs) pertinent to farm structure, environmental and socio-economic aspects of sustainability. We then apply principle component analysis and model-based clustering analysis to identify statistically the number of distinct dairy farm typologies for each year of study, and link these clusters through time using multidimensional scaling. Between 2001 and 2014, dairy farms have largely consolidated and specialized into two distinct clusters: more extensive farms relying predominantly on grass, with lower milk yields but higher labour intensity, and more intensive farms producing more milk per cow with more concentrate and more maize, but lower labour intensity. There is some indication that these clusters are converging as the extensive cluster is intensifying slightly faster than the intensive cluster, in terms of milk yield per cow and use of concentrate feed. In 2014, annual milk yields were 6,835 and 7,500 l/cow for extensive and intensive farm types, respectively, whilst annual concentrate feed use was 1.3 and 1.5 tonnes per cow. For several KPIs such as milk yield the mean trend across all farms differed substantially from the extensive and intensive typologies mean. The indicators and analysis methodology developed allows identification of distinct farm types and industry trends using readily available survey data. The identified groups allow the accurate evaluation of the consequences of the reduction in dairy farm numbers and intensification at national and international scales. PMID:29742166

Statistical power and utility of meta-analysis methods for cross-phenotype genome-wide association studies.

PubMed

Zhu, Zhaozhong; Anttila, Verneri; Smoller, Jordan W; Lee, Phil H

2018-01-01

Advances in recent genome wide association studies (GWAS) suggest that pleiotropic effects on human complex traits are widespread. A number of classic and recent meta-analysis methods have been used to identify genetic loci with pleiotropic effects, but the overall performance of these methods is not well understood. In this work, we use extensive simulations and case studies of GWAS datasets to investigate the power and type-I error rates of ten meta-analysis methods. We specifically focus on three conditions commonly encountered in the studies of multiple traits: (1) extensive heterogeneity of genetic effects; (2) characterization of trait-specific association; and (3) inflated correlation of GWAS due to overlapping samples. Although the statistical power is highly variable under distinct study conditions, we found the superior power of several methods under diverse heterogeneity. In particular, classic fixed-effects model showed surprisingly good performance when a variant is associated with more than a half of study traits. As the number of traits with null effects increases, ASSET performed the best along with competitive specificity and sensitivity. With opposite directional effects, CPASSOC featured the first-rate power. However, caution is advised when using CPASSOC for studying genetically correlated traits with overlapping samples. We conclude with a discussion of unresolved issues and directions for future research.

Application of dynamic programming to evaluate the slope stability of a vertical extension to a balefill.

PubMed

Kremen, Arie; Tsompanakis, Yiannis

2010-04-01

The slope-stability of a proposed vertical extension of a balefill was investigated in the present study, in an attempt to determine a geotechnically conservative design, compliant with New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection regulations, to maximize the utilization of unclaimed disposal capacity. Conventional geotechnical analytical methods are generally limited to well-defined failure modes, which may not occur in landfills or balefills due to the presence of preferential slip surfaces. In addition, these models assume an a priori stress distribution to solve essentially indeterminate problems. In this work, a different approach has been applied, which avoids several of the drawbacks of conventional methods. Specifically, the analysis was performed in a two-stage process: (a) calculation of stress distribution, and (b) application of an optimization technique to identify the most probable failure surface. The stress analysis was performed using a finite element formulation and the location of the failure surface was located by dynamic programming optimization method. A sensitivity analysis was performed to evaluate the effect of the various waste strength parameters of the underlying mathematical model on the results, namely the factor of safety of the landfill. Although this study focuses on the stability investigation of an expanded balefill, the methodology presented can easily be applied to general geotechnical investigations.

Dakota, a multilevel parallel object-oriented framework for design optimization, parameter estimation, uncertainty quantification, and sensitivity analysis version 6.0 theory manual

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

Adams, Brian M.; Ebeida, Mohamed Salah; Eldred, Michael S

The Dakota (Design Analysis Kit for Optimization and Terascale Applications) toolkit provides a exible and extensible interface between simulation codes and iterative analysis methods. Dakota contains algorithms for optimization with gradient and nongradient-based methods; uncertainty quanti cation with sampling, reliability, and stochastic expansion methods; parameter estimation with nonlinear least squares methods; and sensitivity/variance analysis with design of experiments and parameter study methods. These capabilities may be used on their own or as components within advanced strategies such as surrogate-based optimization, mixed integer nonlinear programming, or optimization under uncertainty. By employing object-oriented design to implement abstractions of the key components requiredmore » for iterative systems analyses, the Dakota toolkit provides a exible and extensible problem-solving environment for design and performance analysis of computational models on high performance computers. This report serves as a theoretical manual for selected algorithms implemented within the Dakota software. It is not intended as a comprehensive theoretical treatment, since a number of existing texts cover general optimization theory, statistical analysis, and other introductory topics. Rather, this manual is intended to summarize a set of Dakota-related research publications in the areas of surrogate-based optimization, uncertainty quanti cation, and optimization under uncertainty that provide the foundation for many of Dakota's iterative analysis capabilities.« less

Conformational Analysis of Stiff Chiral Polymers with End-Constraints

PubMed Central

Kim, Jin Seob; Chirikjian, Gregory S.

2010-01-01

We present a Lie-group-theoretic method for the kinematic and dynamic analysis of chiral semi-flexible polymers with end constraints. The first is to determine the minimum energy conformations of semi-flexible polymers with end constraints, and the second is to perform normal mode analysis based on the determined minimum energy conformations. In this paper, we use concepts from the theory of Lie groups and principles of variational calculus to model such polymers as inextensible or extensible chiral elastic rods with coupling between twisting and bending stiffnesses, and/or between twisting and extension stiffnesses. This method is general enough to include any stiffness and chirality parameters in the context of elastic filament models with the quadratic elastic potential energy function. As an application of this formulation, the analysis of DNA conformations is discussed. We demonstrate our method with examples of DNA conformations in which topological properties such as writhe, twist, and linking number are calculated from the results of the proposed method. Given these minimum energy conformations, we describe how to perform the normal mode analysis. The results presented here build both on recent experimental work in which DNA mechanical properties have been measured, and theoretical work in which the mechanics of non-chiral elastic rods has been studied. PMID:20198114

Excess science accommodation capabilities and excess performance capabilities assessment for Mars Geoscience and Climatology Orbiter: Extended study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clark, K.; Flacco, A.; Kaskiewicz, P.; Lebsock, K.

1983-01-01

The excess science accommodation and excess performance capabilities of a candidate spacecraft bus for the Mars Geoscience and Climatology Orbiter MGCO mission are assessed. The appendices are included to support the conclusions obtained during this contract extension. The appendices address the mission analysis, the attitude determination and control, the propulsion subsystem, and the spacecraft configuration.

An Analysis of Estimated Versus Actual Development Costs for an Electronics State-of-the-Art (SOA) Extension.

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-12-01

DOWNGPAONG SC-EDULE distributiJ-_ _ . 1.,1J=.ted 4 PERFORMING ORGANZA ;ON REPORT NuMBERIS) S MONiTORING ORGANIZATION REP(CRT %L%𔄂ERS, 6a NAME OF PERFORMING...process. It is the one where assistance of other technical experts may be required. It may also require some restructuring of the program merely to

Threshold-free high-power methods for the ontological analysis of genome-wide gene-expression studies

PubMed Central

Nilsson, Björn; Håkansson, Petra; Johansson, Mikael; Nelander, Sven; Fioretos, Thoas

2007-01-01

Ontological analysis facilitates the interpretation of microarray data. Here we describe new ontological analysis methods which, unlike existing approaches, are threshold-free and statistically powerful. We perform extensive evaluations and introduce a new concept, detection spectra, to characterize methods. We show that different ontological analysis methods exhibit distinct detection spectra, and that it is critical to account for this diversity. Our results argue strongly against the continued use of existing methods, and provide directions towards an enhanced approach. PMID:17488501

Failure Analysis of Composite Structure Materials.

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-05-27

cracking intersected the trailing edge of the skin at a radius for a runout of an overhanging tab. Extensive delamination was evident or each side of...structure with an abrasive cutoff wheel to minimize artifacts. Detailed crack mapping of the delamination surfaces was performed by optical microscopy

Electromyographic analysis of knee push up plus variations: what is the influence of the kinetic chain on scapular muscle activity?

PubMed

Maenhout, A; Van Praet, K; Pizzi, L; Van Herzeele, M; Cools, A

2010-11-01

First, to look for appropriate closed kinetic chain exercises to restore intramuscular imbalance between upper trapezius (UT) and serratus anterior (SA) in overhead athletes. Second, to determine the influence of using diagonal pattern muscle recruitment during knee push up plus (KPP) exercises on scapular electromyographic activity. Single group repeated-measures design. Controlled laboratory study. Thirty-two physically active individuals in good general health who did not have a history of neck and/or shoulder injury or surgery nor participated in high-level overhead sports or performed upper limb strength training for more than 5 h/week. Interventions Subjects performed the standard KPP and six variations. Electromyographic activity of the three trapezius parts and the SA. Four exercises with a low UT/SA can be selected for rehabilitation of intramuscular balance: standard KPP, KPP with homolateral leg extension, KPP with a wobble board and homolateral leg extension and one-handed KPP. The use of a wobble board during KPP exercises and performance on one hand has no influence on SA electromyographic activity. Heterolateral leg extension during KPP stimulates lower trapezius activity, whereas homolateral leg extension stimulates SA activity. In case of intramuscular scapular imbalance, some exercises are preferable over others because of their low UT/SA ratio. The use of a kinetic chain approach during KPP exercises influences scapular muscle activity.

Differentiation between malignant and benign thyroid nodules and stratification of papillary thyroid cancer with aggressive histological features: Whole-lesion diffusion-weighted imaging histogram analysis.

PubMed

Hao, Yonghong; Pan, Chu; Chen, WeiWei; Li, Tao; Zhu, WenZhen; Qi, JianPin

2016-12-01

To explore the usefulness of whole-lesion histogram analysis of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) derived from reduced field-of-view (r-FOV) diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) in differentiating malignant and benign thyroid nodules and stratifying papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) with aggressive histological features. This Institutional Review Board-approved, retrospective study included 93 patients with 101 pathologically proven thyroid nodules. All patients underwent preoperative r-FOV DWI at 3T. The whole-lesion ADC assessments were performed for each patient. Histogram-derived ADC parameters between different subgroups (pathologic type, extrathyroidal extension, lymph node metastasis) were compared. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to determine optimal histogram parameters in differentiating benign and malignant nodules and predicting aggressiveness of PTC. Mean ADC, median ADC, 5 th percentile ADC, 25 th percentile ADC, 75 th percentile ADC, 95 th percentile ADC (all P < 0.001), and kurtosis (P = 0.001) were significantly lower in malignant thyroid nodules, and mean ADC achieved the highest AUC (0.919) with a cutoff value of 1842.78 × 10 -6 mm 2 /s in differentiating malignant and benign nodules. Compared to the PTCs without extrathyroidal extension, PTCs with extrathyroidal extension showed significantly lower median ADC, 5 th percentile ADC, and 25 th percentile ADC. The 5 th percentile ADC achieved the highest AUC (0.757) with cutoff value of 911.5 × 10 -6 mm 2 /s for differentiating between PTCs with and without extrathyroidal extension. Whole-lesion ADC histogram analysis might help to differentiate malignant nodules from benign ones and show the PTCs with extrathyroidal extension. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2016;44:1546-1555. © 2016 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Integrative Analysis of Cancer Diagnosis Studies with Composite Penalization

PubMed Central

Liu, Jin; Huang, Jian; Ma, Shuangge

2013-01-01

Summary In cancer diagnosis studies, high-throughput gene profiling has been extensively conducted, searching for genes whose expressions may serve as markers. Data generated from such studies have the “large d, small n” feature, with the number of genes profiled much larger than the sample size. Penalization has been extensively adopted for simultaneous estimation and marker selection. Because of small sample sizes, markers identified from the analysis of single datasets can be unsatisfactory. A cost-effective remedy is to conduct integrative analysis of multiple heterogeneous datasets. In this article, we investigate composite penalization methods for estimation and marker selection in integrative analysis. The proposed methods use the minimax concave penalty (MCP) as the outer penalty. Under the homogeneity model, the ridge penalty is adopted as the inner penalty. Under the heterogeneity model, the Lasso penalty and MCP are adopted as the inner penalty. Effective computational algorithms based on coordinate descent are developed. Numerical studies, including simulation and analysis of practical cancer datasets, show satisfactory performance of the proposed methods. PMID:24578589

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

Jannik, Tim; Hartman, Larry

During the operational history of Savannah River Site, many different radionuclides have been released from site facilities. However, as shown in this analysis, only a relatively small number of the released radionuclides have been significant contributors to doses to the offsite public. This report is an update to the 2011 analysis, Critical Radionuclide and Pathway Analysis for the Savannah River Site. SRS-based Performance Assessments for E-Area, Saltstone, F-Tank Farm, H-Tank Farm, and a Comprehensive SRS Composite Analysis have been completed. The critical radionuclides and pathways identified in those extensive reports are also detailed and included in this analysis.

Influence of hamstring muscles extensibility on spinal curvatures and pelvic tilt in highly trained cyclists.

PubMed

Muyor, José M; Alacid, Fernando; López-Miñarro, Pedro A

2011-09-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of hamstring muscles extensibility in standing, maximal trunk flexion with knees extended and on the bicycle in lower handlebar-hands position of highly trained cyclists. Ninety-six cyclists were recruited for the study (mean ± SD, age: 30.36 ± 5.98 years). Sagittal spinal curvatures and pelvic tilt were measured in the standing position, maximal trunk flexion with knees extended (sit-and-reach test) and while sitting on a bicycle in lower handlebar-hand position using a Spinal Mouse system. Hamstring muscles extensibility was determined in both legs by passive straight leg raise test (PSLR). The sample was divided into three groups according to PSLR angle: (1) reduced extensibility (PSLR < 80º; n = 30), (2) moderate hamstring extensibility group (PSLR = 80º - 90º; n = 35), and (3) high hamstring extensibility (PSLR = > 90º; n = 31). ANOVA analysis showed significant differences among groups for thoracic (p < 0.001) and pelvic tilt (p < 0.001) angles in the sit-and-reach test. No differences were found between groups for standing and on the bicycle position. Post hoc analysis showed significant differences in all pairwise comparisons for thoracic angle (p < 0.01) and pelvic angle (p < 0.001) in the sit-and-reach test. No differences were found in lumbar angle in any posture. In conclusion, the hamstring muscles extensibility influence the thoracic and pelvic postures when maximal trunk flexion with knees extended is performed, but not when cyclists are seated on their bicycles.

Influence of Hamstring Muscles Extensibility on Spinal Curvatures and Pelvic Tilt in Highly Trained Cyclists

PubMed Central

Muyor, José M.; Alacid, Fernando; López-Miñarro, Pedro A.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of hamstring muscles extensibility in standing, maximal trunk flexion with knees extended and on the bicycle in lower handlebar-hands position of highly trained cyclists. Ninety-six cyclists were recruited for the study (mean ± SD, age: 30.36 ± 5.98 years). Sagittal spinal curvatures and pelvic tilt were measured in the standing position, maximal trunk flexion with knees extended (sit-and-reach test) and while sitting on a bicycle in lower handlebar-hand position using a Spinal Mouse system. Hamstring muscles extensibility was determined in both legs by passive straight leg raise test (PSLR). The sample was divided into three groups according to PSLR angle: (1) reduced extensibility (PSLR < 80º; n = 30), (2) moderate hamstring extensibility group (PSLR = 80º – 90º; n = 35), and (3) high hamstring extensibility (PSLR = > 90º; n = 31). ANOVA analysis showed significant differences among groups for thoracic (p < 0.001) and pelvic tilt (p < 0.001) angles in the sit-and-reach test. No differences were found between groups for standing and on the bicycle position. Post hoc analysis showed significant differences in all pairwise comparisons for thoracic angle (p < 0.01) and pelvic angle (p < 0.001) in the sit-and-reach test. No differences were found in lumbar angle in any posture. In conclusion, the hamstring muscles extensibility influence the thoracic and pelvic postures when maximal trunk flexion with knees extended is performed, but not when cyclists are seated on their bicycles PMID:23486997

Sneak Preview: NSTW 1993.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Science and Children, 1992

1992-01-01

Presents an activity that is part of the National Science and Technology Week (NSTW) 1993. Students apply principles of biomechanics to find the most effective techniques for performing a standing broad jump and use that analysis to improve their own jumping. Instructions include procedures, materials needed, and possible extensions to the…

Dual Interlocked Logic for Single-Event Transient Mitigation

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-03-01

SPICE simulation and fault-injection analysis. Exemplar SPICE simulations have been performed in a 32nm partially- depleted silicon-on-insulator...in this work. The model has been validated at the 32nm SOI technology node with extensive heavy-ion data [7]. For the SPICE simulations, three

Diagnostic Testing in Mathematics: An Extension of the PIAT?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Algozzine, Bob; McGraw, Karen

1980-01-01

The article addresses the usefulness of the Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT) in assessing various levels of arithmetic performance. The mathematics subtest of the PIAT is considered in terms of purpose; mathematical abilities subsections (foundations, basic facts, applications); diagnostic testing (the error analysis matrix); and poor…

Relationship between physical fitness at the end of pre-season and the in-season game performance in Japanese female professional baseball players.

PubMed

Watanabe, Yuya; Yamada, Yosuke; Yoshida, Tsukasa; Matsui, Tomoyuki; Seo, Kazuya; Azuma, Yoshikazu; Hiramoto, Machiko; Miura, Yuichiro; Fukushima, Hideaki; Shimazu, Akito; Eto, Toshiaki; Saotome, Homare; Kida, Noriyuki; Morihara, Toru

2017-10-30

This study examined anthropometric and fitness profiles of Japanese female professional baseball players and investigated the relationship between players' physical fitness and in-season game performance. Fifty-seven players who were registered in the Japan Women's Baseball League (JWBL) participated. Height, weight, grip strength, back strength, knee-extension and -flexion strength, hamstring extensibility, vertical jump height, and horizontal jump distance were measured at pre-season (February and March) in 2013. Game performance during the 2013 season (March to November) was obtained from official JWBL statistics. Vertical jump height showed significant positive correlations with individual performance records [e.g., total bases (r = 0.551), slugging percentage (r = 0.459), and stolen bases (r = 0.442)]. Similar relationships were observed between horizontal jump distance and performance statistics in most cases. In contrast, grip, back, and lower-limb strength, and hamstring extensibility were not significantly correlated with game performance. Stepwise regression analysis selected vertical jump height as an independent variable, significantly correlating with several game performance measures (e.g., total bases: adjusted R = 0.257). Also, vertical jump height and body mass index were identified as independent variables significantly associated with stolen bases (adjusted R = 0.251). Maximal jump performance, rather than simple isometric muscle strength or flexibility, is a good performance test that can be used at the end of pre-season to predict in-season batting and stolen base performance. Our findings demonstrate the importance of constructing pre-season training programs to enhance lower-limb muscular power that is linked to successful in-season performance in female baseball players.

Does Food Insecurity at Home Affect Non-Cognitive Performance at School? A Longitudinal Analysis of Elementary Student Classroom Behavior

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howard, Larry L.

2011-01-01

This paper estimates models of the transitional effects of food insecurity experiences on children's non-cognitive performance in school classrooms using a panel of 4710 elementary students enrolled in 1st, 3rd, and 5th grade (1999-2003). In addition to an extensive set of child and household-level characteristics, we use information on U.S.…

A Biomechanical Comparison of the Long Snap in Football Between High School and University Football Players.

PubMed

Chizewski, Michael G; Alexander, Marion J L

2015-08-01

Limited previous research was located that examined the technique of the long snap in football. The purpose of the study was to compare the joint movements, joint velocities, and body positions used to perform fast and accurate long snaps in high school (HS) and university (UNI) athletes. Ten HS and 10 UNI subjects were recruited for filming, each performing 10 snaps at a target with the fastest and most accurate trial being selected for subject analysis. Eighty-three variables were measured using Dartfish Team Pro 4.5.2 video analysis software, with statistical analysis performed using Microsoft Excel and SPSS 16.0. Several significant comparisons to long snapping technique between groups were noted during analysis; however, the body position and movement variables at release showed the greatest number of significant differences. The UNI athletes demonstrated significantly higher release velocity and left elbow extension velocity, with significantly lower release height and release angle than the HS group. Total snap time (release time + total flight time) was determined to have the strongest correlation to release velocity for the HS group (r = -0.915) and UNI group (r = -0.918). The study suggests HS long snappers may benefit from less elbow flexion and more knee flexion in the backswing (set position) to increase release velocity. University long snappers may benefit from increased left elbow extension range of motion during force production and decreased shoulder flexion at critical instant to increase long snap release velocity.

Operational Consequences of Literacy Gap.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-05-01

Comprehension Scores on the Safety and Sanitation Content 37 11. Statistics on Experimental Groups’ Performance by Sex and Content 37 12. Analysis of...Variance of Experimental Groups by Sex and Content 38 13. Mean Comprehension Scores Broken Down by Content, Subject RGL and Reading Time 39 14. Analysis...ratings along a scale of difficulty which parallels the school grade scale. Burkett (1975) and Klare (1963; 1974-1975) provide summaries of the extensive

Single scattering from nonspherical Chebyshev particles: A compendium of calculations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wiscombe, W. J.; Mugnai, A.

1986-01-01

A large set of exact calculations of the scattering from a class of nonspherical particles known as Chebyshev particles' has been performed. Phase function and degree of polarization in random orientation, and parallel and perpendicular intensities in fixed orientations, are plotted for a variety of particles shapes and sizes. The intention is to furnish a data base against which both experimental data, and the predictions of approximate methods, can be tested. The calculations are performed with the widely-used Extended Boundary Condition Method. An extensive discussion of this method is given, including much material that is not easily available elsewhere (especially the analysis of its convergence properties). An extensive review is also given of all extant methods for nonspherical scattering calculations, as well as of the available pool of experimental data.

Shaded-Color Picture Generation of Computer-Defined Arbitrary Shapes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cozzolongo, J. V.; Hermstad, D. L.; Mccoy, D. S.; Clark, J.

1986-01-01

SHADE computer program generates realistic color-shaded pictures from computer-defined arbitrary shapes. Objects defined for computer representation displayed as smooth, color-shaded surfaces, including varying degrees of transparency. Results also used for presentation of computational results. By performing color mapping, SHADE colors model surface to display analysis results as pressures, stresses, and temperatures. NASA has used SHADE extensively in sign and analysis of high-performance aircraft. Industry should find applications for SHADE in computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing. SHADE written in VAX FORTRAN and MACRO Assembler for either interactive or batch execution.

The Relationship between Performance and Satisfaction: A Utility Analysis.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-03-01

Journal of Applied Psychology, 52, 343-347. 21 Korman, A.K. (1980) Career success /personal failure. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall. Lawler...this extensively in his book Career Success / Personal Failure (1980). Korman quotes from Matters (1976, p. 124): "After you’ve sold widgets for twenty

An Extension of Analysis of Solar-Heated Thermal Wadis to Support Extended-Duration Lunar Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Balasubramaniam, R.; Gokoglu, S. A.; Sacksteder, K. R.; Wegeng, R. S.; Suzuki, N. H.

2010-01-01

The realization of the renewed exploration of the Moon presents many technical challenges; among them is the survival of lunar surface assets during periods of darkness when the lunar environment is very cold. Thermal wadis are engineered sources of stored solar energy using modified lunar regolith as a thermal storage mass that can supply energy to protect lightweight robotic rovers or other assets during the lunar night. This paper describes an extension of an earlier analysis of performance of thermal wadis based on the known solar illumination of the Moon and estimates of producible thermal properties of modified lunar regolith. The current analysis has been performed for the lunar equatorial region and validates the formerly used 1-D model by comparison of predictions to those obtained from 2-D and 3-D computations. It includes the effects of a thin dust layer covering the surface of the wadi, and incorporating either water as a phase-change material or aluminum stakes as a high thermal conductivity material into the regolith. The calculations indicate that thermal wadis can provide the desired thermal energy and temperature control for the survival of rovers or other equipment during periods of darkness.

Evaluation of the use of nodal methods for MTR neutronic analysis

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

Reitsma, F.; Mueller, E.Z.

1997-08-01

Although modern nodal methods are used extensively in the nuclear power industry, their use for research reactor analysis has been very limited. The suitability of nodal methods for material testing reactor analysis is investigated with the emphasis on the modelling of the core region (fuel assemblies). The nodal approach`s performance is compared with that of the traditional finite-difference fine mesh approach. The advantages of using nodal methods coupled with integrated cross section generation systems are highlighted, especially with respect to data preparation, simplicity of use and the possibility of performing a great variety of reactor calculations subject to strict timemore » limitations such as are required for the RERTR program.« less

Increased Trunk Extension Endurance is Associated with Meaningful Improvement in Balance among Older Adults with Mobility Problems

PubMed Central

Suri, Pradeep; Kiely, Dan K.; Leveille, Suzanne G.; Frontera, Walter R.; Bean, Jonathan. F.

2011-01-01

Objective To determine if trunk extension endurance changes with training are associated with clinically meaningful improvements in balance among mobility-limited older adults. Design Longitudinal data from a randomized clinical trial. Setting Outpatient rehabilitation research center. Participants Community-dwelling older adults (N=64; mean age 75.9 y) with mobility limitations as defined by a score of 4 to 10 on the Short Physical Performance Battery. Interventions 16 weeks of progressive resistance training. Main Outcome Measures Outcomes were the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and the Unipedal Stance Test (UST). Predictors included leg strength, leg power, trunk extension endurance and the product of heart rate and blood pressure (RPP) at the final stage of an exercise tolerance test. We performed an analysis of data from participants who completed 16 weeks of training using binary outcomes defined by a clinically meaningful change from baseline to completion of the intervention (CMC) (BBS= 4 units; UST= 5 seconds). The association of predictor variables with balance outcomes was examined separately and together in multivariate adjusted logistic regression models. Results Trunk extension endurance in seconds (1.04 [1.00– 1.09]) was independently associated with CMC on the BBS. Trunk extension endurance (1.02 [1.00– 1.03]) was independently associated with CMC on the UST. Other physical attributes were not associated with meaningful change in balance. Conclusions Improvements in trunk extension endurance were independently associated with clinically meaningful changes in balance in older adults. Leg strength, leg power, and RPP were not associated with CMC in balance. Poor trunk extension endurance may be a rehabilitative impairment worthy of further study as a modifiable factor linked to balance among older adults. PMID:21636073

Increased trunk extension endurance is associated with meaningful improvement in balance among older adults with mobility problems.

PubMed

Suri, Pradeep; Kiely, Dan K; Leveille, Suzanne G; Frontera, Walter R; Bean, Jonathan F

2011-07-01

To determine whether trunk extension endurance changes with training are associated with clinically meaningful improvements in balance among mobility-limited older adults. Longitudinal data from a randomized controlled trial. Outpatient rehabilitation research center. Community-dwelling older adults (N=64; mean age, 75.9y) with mobility limitations as defined by a score of 4 to 10 on the Short Physical Performance Battery. Sixteen weeks of progressive resistance training. Outcomes were the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and the Unipedal Stance Time (UST). Predictors included leg strength, leg power, trunk extension endurance, and the product of heart rate and blood pressure (RPP) at the final stage of an exercise tolerance test. We performed an analysis of data from participants who completed 16 weeks of training by using binary outcomes defined by a clinically meaningful change (CMC) from baseline to completion of the intervention (BBS=4 units; UST=5s). The association of predictor variables with balance outcomes was examined separately and together in multivariate adjusted logistic regression models. Trunk extension endurance in seconds (1.04 [1.00-1.09]) was independently associated with CMC on the BBS. Trunk extension endurance (1.02 [1.00-1.03]) was independently associated with CMC on the UST. Other physical attributes were not associated with meaningful change in balance. Improvements in trunk extension endurance were independently associated with CMCs in balance in older adults. Leg strength, leg power, and RPP were not associated with CMC in balance. Poor trunk extension endurance may be a rehabilitative impairment worthy of further study as a modifiable factor linked to balance among older adults. Copyright © 2011 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Nonflammable, Nonaqueous, Low Atmospheric Impact, High Performance Cleaning Solvents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dhooge, P. M.; Glass, S. M.; Nimitz, J. S.

2001-01-01

For many years, chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) and chlorocarbon solvents have played an important part in aerospace operations. These solvents found extensive use as cleaning and analysis (EPA) solvents in precision and critical cleaning. However, CFCs and chlorocarbon solvents have deleterious effects on the ozone layer, are relatively strong greenhouse gases, and some are suspect or known carcinogens. Because of their ozone-depletion potential (ODP), the Montreal Protocol and its amendments, as well as other environmental regulations, have resulted in the phaseout of CFC-113 and 1,1,1-trichloroethane (TCA). Although alternatives have been recommended, they do not perform as well as the original solvents. In addition, some analyses, such as the infrared analysis of extracted hydrocarbons, cannot be performed with the substitute solvents that contain C-H bonds. CFC-113 solvent has been used for many critical aerospace applications. CFC-113, also known as Freon (registered) TF, has been used extensively in NASA's cleaning facilities for precision and critical cleaning, in particular the final rinsing in Class 100 areas, with gas chromatography analysis of rinse residue. While some cleaning can be accomplished by other processes, there are certain critical applications where CFC-113 or a similar solvent is highly cost-effective and ensures safety. Oxygen system components are one example where a solvent compatible with oxygen and capable of removing fluorocarbon grease is needed. Electronic components and precision mechanical components can also be damaged by aggressive cleaning solvents.

Tennessee Extension Agents' Perceptions of Performance Appraisal

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Donaldson, Joseph L.; French, Russell L.

2013-01-01

Performance appraisal is necessary for summative decisions about employees, such as merit pay and promotion. The research reported here describes Extension agent perceptions of their performance appraisal system. The population studied consisted of all Tennessee Extension agents (N = 312). Surveys were completed by 218 respondents, for a completed…

Integrative sparse principal component analysis of gene expression data.

PubMed

Liu, Mengque; Fan, Xinyan; Fang, Kuangnan; Zhang, Qingzhao; Ma, Shuangge

2017-12-01

In the analysis of gene expression data, dimension reduction techniques have been extensively adopted. The most popular one is perhaps the PCA (principal component analysis). To generate more reliable and more interpretable results, the SPCA (sparse PCA) technique has been developed. With the "small sample size, high dimensionality" characteristic of gene expression data, the analysis results generated from a single dataset are often unsatisfactory. Under contexts other than dimension reduction, integrative analysis techniques, which jointly analyze the raw data of multiple independent datasets, have been developed and shown to outperform "classic" meta-analysis and other multidatasets techniques and single-dataset analysis. In this study, we conduct integrative analysis by developing the iSPCA (integrative SPCA) method. iSPCA achieves the selection and estimation of sparse loadings using a group penalty. To take advantage of the similarity across datasets and generate more accurate results, we further impose contrasted penalties. Different penalties are proposed to accommodate different data conditions. Extensive simulations show that iSPCA outperforms the alternatives under a wide spectrum of settings. The analysis of breast cancer and pancreatic cancer data further shows iSPCA's satisfactory performance. © 2017 WILEY PERIODICALS, INC.

A Comparison Study of Multivariate Fixed Models and Gene Association with Multiple Traits (GAMuT) for Next-Generation Sequencing

PubMed Central

Chiu, Chi-yang; Jung, Jeesun; Wang, Yifan; Weeks, Daniel E.; Wilson, Alexander F.; Bailey-Wilson, Joan E.; Amos, Christopher I.; Mills, James L.; Boehnke, Michael; Xiong, Momiao; Fan, Ruzong

2016-01-01

In this paper, extensive simulations are performed to compare two statistical methods to analyze multiple correlated quantitative phenotypes: (1) approximate F-distributed tests of multivariate functional linear models (MFLM) and additive models of multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), and (2) Gene Association with Multiple Traits (GAMuT) for association testing of high-dimensional genotype data. It is shown that approximate F-distributed tests of MFLM and MANOVA have higher power and are more appropriate for major gene association analysis (i.e., scenarios in which some genetic variants have relatively large effects on the phenotypes); GAMuT has higher power and is more appropriate for analyzing polygenic effects (i.e., effects from a large number of genetic variants each of which contributes a small amount to the phenotypes). MFLM and MANOVA are very flexible and can be used to perform association analysis for: (i) rare variants, (ii) common variants, and (iii) a combination of rare and common variants. Although GAMuT was designed to analyze rare variants, it can be applied to analyze a combination of rare and common variants and it performs well when (1) the number of genetic variants is large and (2) each variant contributes a small amount to the phenotypes (i.e., polygenes). MFLM and MANOVA are fixed effect models which perform well for major gene association analysis. GAMuT can be viewed as an extension of sequence kernel association tests (SKAT). Both GAMuT and SKAT are more appropriate for analyzing polygenic effects and they perform well not only in the rare variant case, but also in the case of a combination of rare and common variants. Data analyses of European cohorts and the Trinity Students Study are presented to compare the performance of the two methods. PMID:27917525

Farmers Extension Program Effects on Yield Gap in North China Plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sum, N.; Zhao, Y.

2015-12-01

Improving crop yield of the lowest yielding smallholder farmers in developing countries is essential to both food security of the country and the farmers' livelihood. Although wheat and maize production in most developed countries have reached 80% or greater of yield potential determined by simulated models, yield gap remains high in the developing world. One of these cases is the yield gap of maize in the North China Plain (NCP), where the average farmer's yield is 41% of his or her potential yield. This large yield gap indicates opportunity to raise yields substantially by improving agronomy, especially in nutrition management, irrigation facility, and mechanization issues such as technical services. Farmers' agronomic knowledge is essential to yield performance. In order to propagate such knowledge to farmers, agricultural extension programs, especially in-the-field guidance with training programs at targeted demonstration fields, have become prevalent in China. Although traditional analyses of the effects of the extension program are done through surveys, they are limited to only one to two years and to a small area. However, the spatial analysis tool Google Earth Engine (GEE) and its extensive satellite imagery data allow for unprecedented spatial temporal analysis of yield variation. We used GEE to analyze maize yield in Quzhou county in the North China Plain from 2007 to 2013. We based our analysis on the distance from a demonstration farm plot, the source of the farmers' agronomic knowledge. Our hypothesis was that the farther the farmers' fields were from the demonstration plot, the less access they would have to the knowledge, and the less increase in yield over time. Testing this hypothesis using GEE helps us determine the effectiveness of the demonstration plot in disseminating optimal agronomic practices in addition to evaluating yield performance of the demonstration field itself. Furthermore, we can easily extend this methodology to analyze the whole NCP and any other parts of the world for any type of crop.

Multijoint kinetic chain analysis of knee extension during the soccer instep kick.

PubMed

Naito, Kozo; Fukui, Yosuke; Maruyama, Takeo

2010-04-01

Although previous studies have shown that motion-dependent interactions between adjacent segments play an important role in producing knee extension during the soccer instep kick, detailed knowledge about the mechanisms underlying those interactions is lacking. The present study aimed to develop a 3-D dynamical model for the multijoint kinetic chain of the instep kick in order to quantify the contributions of the causal dynamical factors to the production of maximum angular velocity during knee extension. Nine collegiate soccer players volunteered to participate in the experiment and performed instep kicking movements while 3-D positional data and the ground reaction force were measured. A dynamical model was developed in the form of a linked system containing 8 segments and 18 joint rotations, and the knee extension/flexion motion was decomposed into causal factors related to muscular moment, gyroscopic moment, centrifugal force, Coriolis force, gravity, proximal endpoint linear acceleration, and external force-dependent terms. The rapid knee extension during instep kicking was found to result almost entirely from kicking leg centrifugal force, trunk rotation muscular moment, kicking leg Coriolis force, and trunk rotation gyroscopic-dependent components. Based on the finding that rapid knee extension during instep kicking stems from multiple dynamical factors, it is suggested that the multijoint kinetic chain analysis used in the present study is more useful for achieving a detailed understanding of the cause of rapid kicking leg movement than the previously used 2-D, two-segment kinetic chain model. The present results also indicated that the centrifugal effect due to the kicking hip flexion angular velocity contributed substantially to the generation of a rapid knee extension, suggesting that the adjustment between the kicking hip flexion angular velocity and the leg configuration (knee flexion angle) is more important for effective instep kicking than other joint kinematics.

Performance Analysis of Receive Diversity in Wireless Sensor Networks over GBSBE Models

PubMed Central

Goel, Shivali; Abawajy, Jemal H.; Kim, Tai-hoon

2010-01-01

Wireless sensor networks have attracted a lot of attention recently. In this paper, we develop a channel model based on the elliptical model for multipath components involving randomly placed scatterers in the scattering region with sensors deployed on a field. We verify that in a sensor network, the use of receive diversity techniques improves the performance of the system. Extensive performance analysis of the system is carried out for both single and multiple antennas with the applied receive diversity techniques. Performance analyses based on variations in receiver height, maximum multipath delay and transmit power have been performed considering different numbers of antenna elements present in the receiver array, Our results show that increasing the number of antenna elements for a wireless sensor network does indeed improve the BER rates that can be obtained. PMID:22163510

New multivariable capabilities of the INCA program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bauer, Frank H.; Downing, John P.; Thorpe, Christopher J.

1989-01-01

The INteractive Controls Analysis (INCA) program was developed at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center to provide a user friendly, efficient environment for the design and analysis of control systems, specifically spacecraft control systems. Since its inception, INCA has found extensive use in the design, development, and analysis of control systems for spacecraft, instruments, robotics, and pointing systems. The (INCA) program was initially developed as a comprehensive classical design analysis tool for small and large order control systems. The latest version of INCA, expected to be released in February of 1990, was expanded to include the capability to perform multivariable controls analysis and design.

Control system design and analysis using the INteractive Controls Analysis (INCA) program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bauer, Frank H.; Downing, John P.

1987-01-01

The INteractive Controls Analysis (INCA) program was developed at the Goddard Space Flight Center to provide a user friendly efficient environment for the design and analysis of linear control systems. Since its inception, INCA has found extensive use in the design, development, and analysis of control systems for spacecraft, instruments, robotics, and pointing systems. Moreover, the results of the analytic tools imbedded in INCA have been flight proven with at least three currently orbiting spacecraft. This paper describes the INCA program and illustrates, using a flight proven example, how the package can perform complex design analyses with relative ease.

Non-Ionic Highly Permeable Polymer Shells for Encapsulation of Living Cells

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-05-01

I would like to thank Irina Drachuk for her extensive assistance in data collection and analysis , and Drs. Veronika Kozlovskaya and Olga Shchepelina...considered complete when the intensity of the photobleached region stabilized. The quantitative analysis was performed using ImageJ software, and curve...E., Tannin -protein complexes as radical scavengers and radical sinks. J Agric Food Chem 2001, 49 (10), 4917-23. 53. Lopes, G. K.; Schulman, H. M

NASA: Model development for human factors interfacing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, L. L.

1984-01-01

The results of an intensive literature review in the general topics of human error analysis, stress and job performance, and accident and safety analysis revealed no usable techniques or approaches for analyzing human error in ground or space operations tasks. A task review model is described and proposed to be developed in order to reduce the degree of labor intensiveness in ground and space operations tasks. An extensive number of annotated references are provided.

Extensions to decision curve analysis, a novel method for evaluating diagnostic tests, prediction models and molecular markers

PubMed Central

Vickers, Andrew J; Cronin, Angel M; Elkin, Elena B; Gonen, Mithat

2008-01-01

Background Decision curve analysis is a novel method for evaluating diagnostic tests, prediction models and molecular markers. It combines the mathematical simplicity of accuracy measures, such as sensitivity and specificity, with the clinical applicability of decision analytic approaches. Most critically, decision curve analysis can be applied directly to a data set, and does not require the sort of external data on costs, benefits and preferences typically required by traditional decision analytic techniques. Methods In this paper we present several extensions to decision curve analysis including correction for overfit, confidence intervals, application to censored data (including competing risk) and calculation of decision curves directly from predicted probabilities. All of these extensions are based on straightforward methods that have previously been described in the literature for application to analogous statistical techniques. Results Simulation studies showed that repeated 10-fold crossvalidation provided the best method for correcting a decision curve for overfit. The method for applying decision curves to censored data had little bias and coverage was excellent; for competing risk, decision curves were appropriately affected by the incidence of the competing risk and the association between the competing risk and the predictor of interest. Calculation of decision curves directly from predicted probabilities led to a smoothing of the decision curve. Conclusion Decision curve analysis can be easily extended to many of the applications common to performance measures for prediction models. Software to implement decision curve analysis is provided. PMID:19036144

Extensions to decision curve analysis, a novel method for evaluating diagnostic tests, prediction models and molecular markers.

PubMed

Vickers, Andrew J; Cronin, Angel M; Elkin, Elena B; Gonen, Mithat

2008-11-26

Decision curve analysis is a novel method for evaluating diagnostic tests, prediction models and molecular markers. It combines the mathematical simplicity of accuracy measures, such as sensitivity and specificity, with the clinical applicability of decision analytic approaches. Most critically, decision curve analysis can be applied directly to a data set, and does not require the sort of external data on costs, benefits and preferences typically required by traditional decision analytic techniques. In this paper we present several extensions to decision curve analysis including correction for overfit, confidence intervals, application to censored data (including competing risk) and calculation of decision curves directly from predicted probabilities. All of these extensions are based on straightforward methods that have previously been described in the literature for application to analogous statistical techniques. Simulation studies showed that repeated 10-fold crossvalidation provided the best method for correcting a decision curve for overfit. The method for applying decision curves to censored data had little bias and coverage was excellent; for competing risk, decision curves were appropriately affected by the incidence of the competing risk and the association between the competing risk and the predictor of interest. Calculation of decision curves directly from predicted probabilities led to a smoothing of the decision curve. Decision curve analysis can be easily extended to many of the applications common to performance measures for prediction models. Software to implement decision curve analysis is provided.

Principal Angle Enrichment Analysis (PAEA): Dimensionally Reduced Multivariate Gene Set Enrichment Analysis Tool

PubMed Central

Clark, Neil R.; Szymkiewicz, Maciej; Wang, Zichen; Monteiro, Caroline D.; Jones, Matthew R.; Ma’ayan, Avi

2016-01-01

Gene set analysis of differential expression, which identifies collectively differentially expressed gene sets, has become an important tool for biology. The power of this approach lies in its reduction of the dimensionality of the statistical problem and its incorporation of biological interpretation by construction. Many approaches to gene set analysis have been proposed, but benchmarking their performance in the setting of real biological data is difficult due to the lack of a gold standard. In a previously published work we proposed a geometrical approach to differential expression which performed highly in benchmarking tests and compared well to the most popular methods of differential gene expression. As reported, this approach has a natural extension to gene set analysis which we call Principal Angle Enrichment Analysis (PAEA). PAEA employs dimensionality reduction and a multivariate approach for gene set enrichment analysis. However, the performance of this method has not been assessed nor its implementation as a web-based tool. Here we describe new benchmarking protocols for gene set analysis methods and find that PAEA performs highly. The PAEA method is implemented as a user-friendly web-based tool, which contains 70 gene set libraries and is freely available to the community. PMID:26848405

Principal Angle Enrichment Analysis (PAEA): Dimensionally Reduced Multivariate Gene Set Enrichment Analysis Tool.

PubMed

Clark, Neil R; Szymkiewicz, Maciej; Wang, Zichen; Monteiro, Caroline D; Jones, Matthew R; Ma'ayan, Avi

2015-11-01

Gene set analysis of differential expression, which identifies collectively differentially expressed gene sets, has become an important tool for biology. The power of this approach lies in its reduction of the dimensionality of the statistical problem and its incorporation of biological interpretation by construction. Many approaches to gene set analysis have been proposed, but benchmarking their performance in the setting of real biological data is difficult due to the lack of a gold standard. In a previously published work we proposed a geometrical approach to differential expression which performed highly in benchmarking tests and compared well to the most popular methods of differential gene expression. As reported, this approach has a natural extension to gene set analysis which we call Principal Angle Enrichment Analysis (PAEA). PAEA employs dimensionality reduction and a multivariate approach for gene set enrichment analysis. However, the performance of this method has not been assessed nor its implementation as a web-based tool. Here we describe new benchmarking protocols for gene set analysis methods and find that PAEA performs highly. The PAEA method is implemented as a user-friendly web-based tool, which contains 70 gene set libraries and is freely available to the community.

The relative contribution of physical fitness to the technical execution score in youth rhythmic gymnastics.

PubMed

Donti, Olyvia; Bogdanis, Gregory C; Kritikou, Maria; Donti, Anastasia; Theodorakou, Kalliopi

2016-06-01

This study examined the association between physical fitness and a technical execution score in rhythmic gymnasts varying in the performance level. Forty-six young rhythmic gymnasts (age: 9.9 ±1.3 years) were divided into two groups (qualifiers, n=24 and non-qualifiers, n=22) based on the results of the National Championships. Gymnasts underwent a series of physical fitness tests and technical execution was evaluated in a routine without apparatus. There were significant differences between qualifiers and non-qualifiers in the technical execution score (p=0.01, d=1.0), shoulder flexion (p=0.01, d=0.8), straight leg raise (p=0.004, d=0.9), sideways leg extension (p=0.002, d=0.9) and body fat (p=.021, d=0.7), but no differences were found in muscular endurance and jumping performance. The technical execution score for the non-qualifiers was significantly correlated with shoulder extension (r=0.423, p<0.05), sideways leg extension (r=0.687, p<0.01), push ups (r=0.437, p<0.05) and body fat (r=0.642, p<0.01), while there was only one significant correlation with sideways leg extension (r=0.467, p<0.05) for the qualifiers. Multiple regression analysis revealed that sideways leg extension, body fat, and push ups accounted for a large part (62.9%) of the variance in the technical execution score for the non-qualifiers, while for the qualifiers, only 37.3% of the variance in the technical execution score was accounted for by sideways leg extension and spine flexibility. In conclusion, flexibility and body composition can effectively discriminate between qualifiers and non-qualifiers in youth rhythmic gymnastics. At the lower level of performance (non-qualifiers), physical fitness seems to have a greater effect on the technical execution score.

Three-dimensional variations in the lower limb caused by the windlass mechanism

PubMed Central

Tovaruela-Carrión, Natalia; Távara-Vidalón, Priscila; Fernández-Seguín, Lourdes María

2017-01-01

Background The windlass mechanism was described as the effect caused by the extension of the first metatarsalphalangeal joint (1st MTPJ). Quantify the degrees of movement produced in the leg by means of the Bioval® sensor system, after performing two measurements in the 1st MTPJ, 45° extension and maximum extension. Methods Tests-post-test study with just one intervention group, performed in the Clinical Podiatry Area of the Faculty of Nursing, Physiotherapy and Podiatry of the University of Seville. Subjects were included as of age 20, with a value from 0° to 3° valgus, Helbing line, a value from 0° to +5° for the foot postural index, and a localisation axis for the normalised subtalar joint. Subjects with surgical operations of the first ray, fractures and surgical operations in the leg, pathologies in the first ray and rheumatic diseases were excluded. Measurement was performed with the Bioval® system by means of inserting four sensors in the bone structures involved in the windlass mechanism. Results With the 45° wedge we observed a direct correlation among the variables extension–plantar flexion 1st MTPJ and rotation of the femur. With maximal extension of the 1st MTPJ we obtained a direct relationship between the variable extension of the 1st MTPJ and the variables plantar flexion and prono-supination of the 1st metatarsal as well as with the variables tibia rotation and femur rotation. Conclusion Kinematic analysis suggested that the higher the degree of extension the more movement will be generated. This reduces the level of impact the more distal the structure with respect to the 1st MTPJ, which has an impact on the entire leg. Because of the kinematic system used wasn’t suitable, its impact wasn’t exactly quantified. PMID:29302385

LLIMAS: Revolutionizing integrating modeling and analysis at MIT Lincoln Laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Doyle, Keith B.; Stoeckel, Gerhard P.; Rey, Justin J.; Bury, Mark E.

2017-08-01

MIT Lincoln Laboratory's Integrated Modeling and Analysis Software (LLIMAS) enables the development of novel engineering solutions for advanced prototype systems through unique insights into engineering performance and interdisciplinary behavior to meet challenging size, weight, power, environmental, and performance requirements. LLIMAS is a multidisciplinary design optimization tool that wraps numerical optimization algorithms around an integrated framework of structural, thermal, optical, stray light, and computational fluid dynamics analysis capabilities. LLIMAS software is highly extensible and has developed organically across a variety of technologies including laser communications, directed energy, photometric detectors, chemical sensing, laser radar, and imaging systems. The custom software architecture leverages the capabilities of existing industry standard commercial software and supports the incorporation of internally developed tools. Recent advances in LLIMAS's Structural-Thermal-Optical Performance (STOP), aeromechanical, and aero-optical capabilities as applied to Lincoln prototypes are presented.

GobyWeb: Simplified Management and Analysis of Gene Expression and DNA Methylation Sequencing Data

PubMed Central

Dorff, Kevin C.; Chambwe, Nyasha; Zeno, Zachary; Simi, Manuele; Shaknovich, Rita; Campagne, Fabien

2013-01-01

We present GobyWeb, a web-based system that facilitates the management and analysis of high-throughput sequencing (HTS) projects. The software provides integrated support for a broad set of HTS analyses and offers a simple plugin extension mechanism. Analyses currently supported include quantification of gene expression for messenger and small RNA sequencing, estimation of DNA methylation (i.e., reduced bisulfite sequencing and whole genome methyl-seq), or the detection of pathogens in sequenced data. In contrast to previous analysis pipelines developed for analysis of HTS data, GobyWeb requires significantly less storage space, runs analyses efficiently on a parallel grid, scales gracefully to process tens or hundreds of multi-gigabyte samples, yet can be used effectively by researchers who are comfortable using a web browser. We conducted performance evaluations of the software and found it to either outperform or have similar performance to analysis programs developed for specialized analyses of HTS data. We found that most biologists who took a one-hour GobyWeb training session were readily able to analyze RNA-Seq data with state of the art analysis tools. GobyWeb can be obtained at http://gobyweb.campagnelab.org and is freely available for non-commercial use. GobyWeb plugins are distributed in source code and licensed under the open source LGPL3 license to facilitate code inspection, reuse and independent extensions http://github.com/CampagneLaboratory/gobyweb2-plugins. PMID:23936070

Extreme Performance Scalable Operating Systems Final Progress Report (July 1, 2008 - October 31, 2011)

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

Malony, Allen D; Shende, Sameer

This is the final progress report for the FastOS (Phase 2) (FastOS-2) project with Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Oregon (UO). The project started at UO on July 1, 2008 and ran until April 30, 2010, at which time a six-month no-cost extension began. The FastOS-2 work at UO delivered excellent results in all research work areas: * scalable parallel monitoring * kernel-level performance measurement * parallel I/0 system measurement * large-scale and hybrid application performance measurement * onlne scalable performance data reduction and analysis * binary instrumentation

Experiences in autotuning matrix multiplication for energy minimization on GPUs

DOE PAGES

Anzt, Hartwig; Haugen, Blake; Kurzak, Jakub; ...

2015-05-20

In this study, we report extensive results and analysis of autotuning the computationally intensive graphics processing units kernel for dense matrix–matrix multiplication in double precision. In contrast to traditional autotuning and/or optimization for runtime performance only, we also take the energy efficiency into account. For kernels achieving equal performance, we show significant differences in their energy balance. We also identify the memory throughput as the most influential metric that trades off performance and energy efficiency. Finally, as a result, the performance optimal case ends up not being the most efficient kernel in overall resource use.

Isokinetic Extension Strength Is Associated With Single-Leg Vertical Jump Height.

PubMed

Fischer, Felix; Blank, Cornelia; Dünnwald, Tobias; Gföller, Peter; Herbst, Elmar; Hoser, Christian; Fink, Christian

2017-11-01

Isokinetic strength testing is an important tool in the evaluation of the physical capacities of athletes as well as for decision making regarding return to sports after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction in both athletes and the lay population. However, isokinetic testing is time consuming and requires special testing equipment. A single-jump test, regardless of leg dominance, may provide information regarding knee extension strength through the use of correlation analysis of jump height and peak torque of isokinetic muscle strength. Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3. A total of 169 patients who underwent ACL reconstruction were included in this study. Isokinetic testing was performed on the injured and noninjured legs. Additionally, a single-leg countermovement jump was performed to assess jump height using a jump accelerometer sensor. Extension strength values were used to assess the association between isokinetic muscle strength and jump height. The sample consisted of 60 female (mean age, 20.8 ± 8.3 years; mean weight, 61.7 ± 6.5 kg; mean height, 167.7 ± 5.3 cm) and 109 male (mean age, 23.2 ± 7.7 years; mean weight, 74.6 ± 10.2 kg; mean height, 179.9 ± 6.9 cm) patients. Bivariate correlation analysis showed an association ( r = 0.56, P < .001) between jump height and isokinetic extension strength on the noninvolved side as well as an association ( r = 0.52, P < .001) for the involved side. Regression analysis showed that in addition to jump height (beta = 0.49, P < .001), sex (beta = -0.17, P = .008) and body mass index (beta = 0.37, P < .001) affected isokinetic strength. The final model explained 51.1% of the variance in isokinetic muscle strength, with jump height having the strongest impact (beta = 0.49, P < .001) and explaining 31.5% of the variance. Initial analysis showed a strong association between isokinetic strength and jump height. The study population encompassed various backgrounds, skill levels, and activity profiles, which might have affected the outcome. Even after controlling for age and sex, isokinetic strength was still moderately associated with jump height. Therefore, the jump technique and type of sport should be considered in future research.

Analysis and comparison of wrist splint designs using the finite element method: Multi-material three-dimensional printing compared to typical existing practice with thermoplastics.

PubMed

Cazon, Aitor; Kelly, Sarah; Paterson, Abby M; Bibb, Richard J; Campbell, R Ian

2017-09-01

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease affecting the joints. Treatment can include immobilisation of the affected joint with a custom-fitting splint, which is typically fabricated by hand from low temperature thermoplastic, but the approach poses several limitations. This study focused on the evaluation, by finite element analysis, of additive manufacturing techniques for wrist splints in order to improve upon the typical splinting approach. An additive manufactured/3D printed splint, specifically designed to be built using Objet Connex multi-material technology and a virtual model of a typical splint, digitised from a real patient-specific splint using three-dimensional scanning, were modelled in computer-aided design software. Forty finite element analysis simulations were performed in flexion-extension and radial-ulnar wrist movements to compare the displacements and the stresses. Simulations have shown that for low severity loads, the additive manufacturing splint has 25%, 76% and 27% less displacement in the main loading direction than the typical splint in flexion, extension and radial, respectively, while ulnar values were 75% lower in the traditional splint. For higher severity loads, the flexion and extension movements resulted in deflections that were 24% and 60%, respectively, lower in the additive manufacturing splint. However, for higher severity loading, the radial defection values were very similar in both splints and ulnar movement deflection was higher in the additive manufacturing splint. A physical prototype of the additive manufacturing splint was also manufactured and was tested under normal conditions to validate the finite element analysis data. Results from static tests showed maximum displacements of 3.46, 0.97, 3.53 and 2.51 mm flexion, extension, radial and ulnar directions, respectively. According to these results, the present research argues that from a technical point of view, the additive manufacturing splint design stands at the same or even better level of performance in displacements and stress values in comparison to the typical low temperature thermoplastic approach and is therefore a feasible approach to splint design and manufacture.

Performance bounds for modal analysis using sparse linear arrays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Yuanxin; Pezeshki, Ali; Scharf, Louis L.; Chi, Yuejie

2017-05-01

We study the performance of modal analysis using sparse linear arrays (SLAs) such as nested and co-prime arrays, in both first-order and second-order measurement models. We treat SLAs as constructed from a subset of sensors in a dense uniform linear array (ULA), and characterize the performance loss of SLAs with respect to the ULA due to using much fewer sensors. In particular, we claim that, provided the same aperture, in order to achieve comparable performance in terms of Cramér-Rao bound (CRB) for modal analysis, SLAs require more snapshots, of which the number is about the number of snapshots used by ULA times the compression ratio in the number of sensors. This is shown analytically for the case with one undamped mode, as well as empirically via extensive numerical experiments for more complex scenarios. Moreover, the misspecified CRB proposed by Richmond and Horowitz is also studied, where SLAs suffer more performance loss than their ULA counterpart.

Group Investigation as a Cooperative Learning Strategy: An Integrated Analysis of the Literature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mitchell, Mitzi G.; Montgomery, Hilary; Holder, Michelle; Stuart, Dan

2008-01-01

The cooperative learning strategy of group investigation has been used extensively in elementary and high school classrooms. Whereas this learning strategy seems to benefit low- and middle-achieving students, the performance of high-achieving students seems to change little. This article examines the literature on group investigation as a…

Evaluation of Green Roof Water Quantity and Quality Performance in an Urban Climate

EPA Science Inventory

In this report we present an analysis of water benefits from an array of observed green roof and control (non-vegetated) roof project sites throughout NYC. The projects are located on a variety of building sites and represent a diverse set of available extensive green roof instal...

CMOS array design automation techniques. [metal oxide semiconductors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ramondetta, P.; Feller, A.; Noto, R.; Lombardi, T.

1975-01-01

A low cost, quick turnaround technique for generating custom metal oxide semiconductor arrays using the standard cell approach was developed, implemented, tested and validated. Basic cell design topology and guidelines are defined based on an extensive analysis that includes circuit, layout, process, array topology and required performance considerations particularly high circuit speed.

The Sally-Anne Test: An Interactional Analysis of a Dyadic Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Korkiakangas, Terhi; Dindar, Katja; Laitila, Aarno; Kärnä, Eija

2016-01-01

Background: The Sally-Anne test has been extensively used to examine children's theory of mind understanding. Many task-related factors have been suggested to impact children's performance on this test. Yet little is known about the interactional aspects of such dyadic assessment situations that might contribute to the ways in which children…

DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNITY POWER FROM SUSTAINABLE SMALL HYDRO POWER SYSTEMS – A CAPACITY BUILDING PROJECT IN BANGANG, CAMEROON

EPA Science Inventory

The hydro-turbine developed in Phase I will be fabricated on-site in Bangang, Cameroon using locally sourced materials. Data of the performance tests will be collected and analyzed using appropriate engineering analysis tools. A second trip will be planned for extensive testin...

Proficiency Verification Systems (PVS): Skills Indices for Language Arts. Technical Note.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Humes, Ann

The procedures undertaken in developing and organizing skills indexes for use in coding elementary school language arts textbooks to determine what is actually taught are presented in this paper. The outlined procedures included performing a preliminary analysis on four language arts textbooks to compile an extensive list of skills and performance…

Using Rose and Compass for Authentication

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

White, G

2009-07-09

Many recent non-proliferation software projects include a software authentication component. In this context, 'authentication' is defined as determining that a software package performs only its intended purpose and performs that purpose correctly and reliably over many years. In addition to visual inspection by knowledgeable computer scientists, automated tools are needed to highlight suspicious code constructs both to aid the visual inspection and to guide program development. While many commercial tools are available for portions of the authentication task, they are proprietary, and have limited extensibility. An open-source, extensible tool can be customized to the unique needs of each project. ROSEmore » is an LLNL-developed robust source-to-source analysis and optimization infrastructure currently addressing large, million-line DOE applications in C, C++, and FORTRAN. It continues to be extended to support the automated analysis of binaries (x86, ARM, and PowerPC). We continue to extend ROSE to address a number of security specific requirements and apply it to software authentication for non-proliferation projects. We will give an update on the status of our work.« less

Greater-than-bulk melting temperatures explained: Gallium melts Gangnam style

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaston, Nicola; Steenbergen, Krista

2014-03-01

The experimental discovery of superheating in gallium clusters contradicted the clear and well-demonstrated paradigm that the melting temperature of a particle should decrease with its size. However the extremely sensitive dependence of melting temperature on size also goes to the heart of cluster science, and the interplay between the effects of electronic and geometric structure. We have performed extensive first-principles molecular dynamics calculations, incorporating parallel tempering for an efficient exploration of configurational phase space. This is necessary, due to the complicated energy landscape of gallium. In the nanoparticles, melting is preceded by a transitions between phases. A structural feature, referred to here as the Gangnam motif, is found to increase with the latent heat and appears throughout the observed phase changes of this curious metal. We will present our detailed analysis of the solid-state isomers, performed using extensive statistical sampling of the trajectory data for the assignment of cluster structures to known phases of gallium. Finally, we explain the greater-than-bulk melting through analysis of the factors that stabilise the liquid structures.

AphasiaBank: a resource for clinicians.

PubMed

Forbes, Margaret M; Fromm, Davida; Macwhinney, Brian

2012-08-01

AphasiaBank is a shared, multimedia database containing videos and transcriptions of ~180 aphasic individuals and 140 nonaphasic controls performing a uniform set of discourse tasks. The language in the videos is transcribed in Codes for the Human Analysis of Transcripts (CHAT) format and coded for analysis with Computerized Language ANalysis (CLAN) programs, which can perform a wide variety of language analyses. The database and the CLAN programs are freely available to aphasia researchers and clinicians for educational, clinical, and scholarly uses. This article describes the database, suggests some ways in which clinicians and clinician researchers might find these materials useful, and introduces a new language analysis program, EVAL, designed to streamline the transcription and coding processes, while still producing an extensive and useful language profile. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

76 FR 35344 - Airworthiness Directives; Costruzioni Aeronautiche Tecnam srl Model P2006T Airplanes

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-06-17

... retraction/extension ground checks performed on the P2006T, a loose Seeger ring was found on the nose landing... specified products. The MCAI states: During Landing Gear retraction/extension ground checks performed on the... airworthiness information (MCAI) states: During Landing Gear retraction/extension ground checks performed on the...

32 CFR 644.462 - Performance of restoration work by district engineer-extension of time.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Performance of restoration work by district engineer-extension of time. 644.462 Section 644.462 National Defense Department of Defense (Continued... Leasehold Improvements § 644.462 Performance of restoration work by district engineer—extension of time...

Transmission Index Research of Parallel Manipulators Based on Matrix Orthogonal Degree

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shao, Zhu-Feng; Mo, Jiao; Tang, Xiao-Qiang; Wang, Li-Ping

2017-11-01

Performance index is the standard of performance evaluation, and is the foundation of both performance analysis and optimal design for the parallel manipulator. Seeking the suitable kinematic indices is always an important and challenging issue for the parallel manipulator. So far, there are extensive studies in this field, but few existing indices can meet all the requirements, such as simple, intuitive, and universal. To solve this problem, the matrix orthogonal degree is adopted, and generalized transmission indices that can evaluate motion/force transmissibility of fully parallel manipulators are proposed. Transmission performance analysis of typical branches, end effectors, and parallel manipulators is given to illustrate proposed indices and analysis methodology. Simulation and analysis results reveal that proposed transmission indices possess significant advantages, such as normalized finite (ranging from 0 to 1), dimensionally homogeneous, frame-free, intuitive and easy to calculate. Besides, proposed indices well indicate the good transmission region and relativity to the singularity with better resolution than the traditional local conditioning index, and provide a novel tool for kinematic analysis and optimal design of fully parallel manipulators.

Volumetric neuroimage analysis extensions for the MIPAV software package.

PubMed

Bazin, Pierre-Louis; Cuzzocreo, Jennifer L; Yassa, Michael A; Gandler, William; McAuliffe, Matthew J; Bassett, Susan S; Pham, Dzung L

2007-09-15

We describe a new collection of publicly available software tools for performing quantitative neuroimage analysis. The tools perform semi-automatic brain extraction, tissue classification, Talairach alignment, and atlas-based measurements within a user-friendly graphical environment. They are implemented as plug-ins for MIPAV, a freely available medical image processing software package from the National Institutes of Health. Because the plug-ins and MIPAV are implemented in Java, both can be utilized on nearly any operating system platform. In addition to the software plug-ins, we have also released a digital version of the Talairach atlas that can be used to perform regional volumetric analyses. Several studies are conducted applying the new tools to simulated and real neuroimaging data sets.

Assessment of commercial optical amplifiers for potential use in space applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barbero, Juan; Sotom, Michel; Benazet, Benoit; Esquivias, Ignacio; López Hernández, Francisco José

2017-11-01

This paper describes the activities and results of an ESA-funded project concerned with the assessment of optical amplifier technologies and products for applications in fiber optic subsystems of future satellite payloads. On-board applications are briefly introduced, together with associated system-level requirements. Optical amplifier technologies, research achievements and products are reviewed. They are compared in terms of current performance, perspectives and suitability for the target space applications. Optical fibre amplifiers, not limited to Erbium-doped amplifiers, Erbium-doped waveguide amplifiers and Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers are covered. The review includes analysis and trade-off of all performance parameters including saturation output power, noise figure, polarisation maintaining capability, wall-plug efficiency, and mass and size. A selection of optical amplifier products for further evaluation and testing is presented. Results of extensive testing covering both functional performance and environmental behaviour (mechanical, thermal vacuum, radiations) aspects are reported. Most of the work has been completed, but an extension has been proposed for checking and comparing the behaviour of doped fibers under gamma radiation.

OPAD-EDIFIS Real-Time Processing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Katsinis, Constantine

1997-01-01

The Optical Plume Anomaly Detection (OPAD) detects engine hardware degradation of flight vehicles through identification and quantification of elemental species found in the plume by analyzing the plume emission spectra in a real-time mode. Real-time performance of OPAD relies on extensive software which must report metal amounts in the plume faster than once every 0.5 sec. OPAD software previously written by NASA scientists performed most necessary functions at speeds which were far below what is needed for real-time operation. The research presented in this report improved the execution speed of the software by optimizing the code without changing the algorithms and converting it into a parallelized form which is executed in a shared-memory multiprocessor system. The resulting code was subjected to extensive timing analysis. The report also provides suggestions for further performance improvement by (1) identifying areas of algorithm optimization, (2) recommending commercially available multiprocessor architectures and operating systems to support real-time execution and (3) presenting an initial study of fault-tolerance requirements.

The Brazilian Experience with Agroecological Extension: A Critical Analysis of Reform in a Pluralistic Extension System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diesel, Vivien; Miná Dias, Marcelo

2016-01-01

Purpose: To analyze the Brazilian experience in designing and implementing a recent extension policy reform based on agroecology, and reflect on its wider theoretical implications for extension reform literature. Design/methodology/approach: Using a critical public analysis we characterize the evolution of Brazilian federal extension policy…

Relationship between agility and lower limb muscle strength, targeting university badminton players.

PubMed

Sonoda, Takuya; Tashiro, Yuto; Suzuki, Yusuke; Kajiwara, Yu; Zeidan, Hala; Yokota, Yuki; Kawagoe, Mirei; Nakayama, Yasuaki; Bito, Tsubasa; Shimoura, Kanako; Tatsumi, Masataka; Nakai, Kengo; Nishida, Yuichi; Yoshimi, Soyoka; Aoyama, Tomoki

2018-02-01

[Purpose] Targeting university badminton players, this study investigated the relationship between agility, which is associated with performance in badminton, and lower limb muscle strength, and examined which muscles influence agility. [Subjects and Methods] A total of 23 male university badminton players were evaluated for side-shuffle test scores and lower limb strength. The relationships between agility, lower limb strength, and duration of experience playing badminton were evaluated using a correlation analysis. Moreover, the relationship between agility and lower limb strength was evaluated by partial correlation analysis, adjusting for the effects of experience of each badminton player. [Results] The agility score correlated with hip extension and ankle plantar flexion strength, with adjustment for badminton experience. [Conclusion] This study suggests that hip extension training and improvement in ankle plantar flexion strength may improve agility.

Kinematic analysis of lumbar and hip motion while rising from a forward, flexed position in patients with and without a history of low back pain.

PubMed

McClure, P W; Esola, M; Schreier, R; Siegler, S

1997-03-01

This study analyzed two groups of individuals during return to an upright position (extension) from a forward, bent position. Group 1 (n = 12) included individuals with no history of low back pain who were currently asymptomatic, and group 2 (n = 12) included individuals with no history of low back pain. To determine the amount and pattern of lumbar spine and hip motion that occur as an individual rises from a forward, flexed position, to determine if differences exist in this measurement between individuals with and without a history of low back pain, and to determine if hamstring length is related to the pattern of motion. Reports of interaction between lumbar spine and hip movement vary for forward bending and extension. Differences may be a result of variations in measurement methods, loading conditions, or the pathology present, such as low back pain. A three-dimensional optoelectric motion analysis system was used to measure the amount and velocity of lumbar spine and hip motion during extension. Each participant in the study performed three trials of a complete flexion-extension cycle at a self-selected speed. The data for the extension portion of the cycle were averaged and used for statistical analysis. Hamstring length also was determined using two clinical tests, the passive straight-leg raise and the active knee-extension tests. The pattern of movement was described by calculating lumbar to hip extension ratios for each 25% interval of total extension. Individuals with a history of low back pain tended to move from the lumbar spine earlier than those with no history of low back pain, especially in the initial 25% of the extension motion. For all participants, mean lumbar to hip extension ratios were 0.26 for 0-25% of extension, 0.61 for 25-50%, 0.81 for 50-75%, and 2.3 for 75-100%. The lumbar to hip ratios were different in each 25% interval, demonstrating that the hips had a greater contribution to early extension, with the lumbar spine contribution increasing in the middle intervals and becoming the primary source of motion in the final interval. When lumbar to hip extension ratios were compared with corresponding intervals of flexion, three of four were positively correlated to flexion ratios, demonstrating a reversible lumbopelvic rhythm. Although participants with a history of low back pain had significantly tighter hamstrings than participants with no history of low back pain, hamstring length was not correlated with any of the kinematic characteristics during extension. Participants who were currently asymptomatic but had a history of low back pain moved in a manner similar to that of participants with no history of low back pain except that they demonstrated greater lumbar motion and velocity during the initial phase of extension. This may have been the result of low back pain or a contributing factor in recurrent low back pain.

Fabrication and test of inorganic/organic separators. [for silver zinc batteries

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smatko, J. S.

1974-01-01

Completion of testing and failure analysis of MDC 40 Ahr silver zinc cells containing largely inorganic separators was accomplished. The results showed that the wet stand and cycle life objectives of the silver zinc cell development program were accomplished. Building, testing and failure analysis of two plate cells employing three optimum separators selected on the basis of extensive screening tests, was performed. The best separator material as a result of these tests was doped calcium zirconate.

Compilation of Abstracts of Theses Submitted by Candidates for Degrees: October 1990 to September 1991

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-09-30

Tool (ASSET) COMPUTER SCIENCE Vicki Sue Abel VIEWER - A User Interface for Failure 49 Lieutenant Commander, U.S. Navy Region Analysis and Medio Monti...California Current System using a Primitive Equation Model Charles C. McGlothin, Jr. Ambient Sound in the Ocean Induced by 257 Lieutenant, U.S. Navy Heavy...parameters,, and ambient flow/oscillating flow combinations using VAX-3520 and NASA’s Supercomputers. Extensive sensitivity analysis has been performed

Power Extension Package (PEP) system definition extension, orbital service module systems analysis study. Volume 1: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1979-01-01

An array deployment assembly, power regulation and control assembly, the necessary interface, and display and control equipment comprise the power extension package (PEP) which is designed to provide increased power and duration, as well as reduce fuel cell cryogen consumption during Spacelab missions. Compatible with all currently defined missions and payloads, PEP imposes minimal weight and volume penalties on sortie missions, and can be installed and removed as needed at the launch site within the normal Orbiter turnaround cycle. The technology on which it is based consists of a modified solar electric propulsion array, standard design regulator and control equipment, and a minimally modified Orbiter design. The requirements from which PEP was derived, and the system and its performance capabilities are described. Features of the recommended project are presented.

Coupled modeling of a directly heated tubular solar receiver for supercritical carbon dioxide Brayton cycle: Structural and creep-fatigue evaluation

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

Ortega, Jesus; Khivsara, Sagar; Christian, Joshua

A supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO 2) Brayton cycle is an emerging high energy-density cycle undergoing extensive research due to the appealing thermo-physical properties of sCO 2 and single phase operation. Development of a solar receiver capable of delivering sCO 2 at 20 MPa and 700 °C is required for implementation of the high efficiency (~50%) solar powered sCO 2 Brayton cycle. In this work, extensive candidate materials are review along with tube size optimization using the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code. Moreover, temperature and pressure distribution obtained from the thermal-fluid modeling (presented in a complementary publication) are used tomore » evaluate the thermal and mechanical stresses along with detailed creep-fatigue analysis of the tubes. The lifetime performance of the receiver tubes were approximated using the resulting body stresses. A cyclic loading analysis is performed by coupling the Strain-Life approach and the Larson-Miller creep model. The structural integrity of the receiver was examined and it was found that the stresses can be withstood by specific tubes, determined by a parametric geometric analysis. Furthermore, the creep-fatigue analysis displayed the damage accumulation due to cycling and the permanent deformation on the tubes showed that the tubes can operate for the full lifetime of the receiver.« less

Coupled modeling of a directly heated tubular solar receiver for supercritical carbon dioxide Brayton cycle: Structural and creep-fatigue evaluation

DOE PAGES

Ortega, Jesus; Khivsara, Sagar; Christian, Joshua; ...

2016-06-06

A supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO 2) Brayton cycle is an emerging high energy-density cycle undergoing extensive research due to the appealing thermo-physical properties of sCO 2 and single phase operation. Development of a solar receiver capable of delivering sCO 2 at 20 MPa and 700 °C is required for implementation of the high efficiency (~50%) solar powered sCO 2 Brayton cycle. In this work, extensive candidate materials are review along with tube size optimization using the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code. Moreover, temperature and pressure distribution obtained from the thermal-fluid modeling (presented in a complementary publication) are used tomore » evaluate the thermal and mechanical stresses along with detailed creep-fatigue analysis of the tubes. The lifetime performance of the receiver tubes were approximated using the resulting body stresses. A cyclic loading analysis is performed by coupling the Strain-Life approach and the Larson-Miller creep model. The structural integrity of the receiver was examined and it was found that the stresses can be withstood by specific tubes, determined by a parametric geometric analysis. Furthermore, the creep-fatigue analysis displayed the damage accumulation due to cycling and the permanent deformation on the tubes showed that the tubes can operate for the full lifetime of the receiver.« less

Summary of ionizing radiation analysis on the Long Duration Exposure Facility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parnell, T. A.

1991-01-01

The Ionizing Radiation Special Investigation Group (IRSIG) for the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) was established to perform radiation measurements and analysis not planned in the original experiments, and to assure availability of LDEF analysis results in a form useful to future missions. The IRSIG has organized extensive induced radioactivity measurements throughout LDEF, and a comprehensive program to compare the LDEF radiation measurements to values calculated using environment models. The activities and present status of the Group is described. The ionizing radiation results presented is summarized.

Cycles till failure of silver-zinc cells with completing failures modes: Preliminary data analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sidik, S. M.; Leibecki, H. F.; Bozek, J. M.

1980-01-01

One hundred and twenty nine cells were run through charge-discharge cycles until failure. The experiment design was a variant of a central composite factorial in five factors. Preliminary data analysis consisted of response surface estimation of life. Batteries fail under two basic modes; a low voltage condition and an internal shorting condition. A competing failure modes analysis using maximum likelihood estimation for the extreme value life distribution was performed. Extensive diagnostics such as residual plotting and probability plotting were employed to verify data quality and choice of model.

MSFC crack growth analysis computer program, version 2 (users manual)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Creager, M.

1976-01-01

An updated version of the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center Crack Growth Analysis Program is described. The updated computer program has significantly expanded capabilities over the original one. This increased capability includes an extensive expansion of the library of stress intensity factors, plotting capability, increased design iteration capability, and the capability of performing proof test logic analysis. The technical approaches used within the computer program are presented, and the input and output formats and options are described. Details of the stress intensity equations, example data, and example problems are presented.

Extended performance electric propulsion power processor design study. Volume 2: Technical summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biess, J. J.; Inouye, L. Y.; Schoenfeld, A. D.

1977-01-01

Electric propulsion power processor technology has processed during the past decade to the point that it is considered ready for application. Several power processor design concepts were evaluated and compared. Emphasis was placed on a 30 cm ion thruster power processor with a beam power rating supply of 2.2KW to 10KW for the main propulsion power stage. Extension in power processor performance were defined and were designed in sufficient detail to determine efficiency, component weight, part count, reliability and thermal control. A detail design was performed on a microprocessor as the thyristor power processor controller. A reliability analysis was performed to evaluate the effect of the control electronics redesign. Preliminary electrical design, mechanical design and thermal analysis were performed on a 6KW power transformer for the beam supply. Bi-Mod mechanical, structural and thermal control configurations were evaluated for the power processor and preliminary estimates of mechanical weight were determined.

Muscle activity during knee-extension strengthening exercise performed with elastic tubing and isotonic resistance.

PubMed

Jakobsen, Markus Due; Sundstrup, Emil; Andersen, Christoffer H; Bandholm, Thomas; Thorborg, Kristian; Zebis, Mette K; Andersen, Lars L

2012-12-01

While elastic resistance training, targeting the upper body is effective for strength training, the effect of elastic resistance training on lower body muscle activity remains questionable. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the EMG-angle relationship of the quadriceps muscle during 10-RM knee-extensions performed with elastic tubing and an isotonic strength training machine. 7 women and 9 men aged 28-67 years (mean age 44 and 41 years, respectively) participated. Electromyographic (EMG) activity was recorded in 10 muscles during the concentric and eccentric contraction phase of a knee extension exercise performed with elastic tubing and in training machine and normalized to maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVC) EMG (nEMG). Knee joint angle was measured during the exercises using electronic inclinometers (range of motion 0-90°). When comparing the machine and elastic resistance exercises there were no significant differences in peak EMG of the rectus femoris (RF), vastus lateralis (VL), vastus medialis (VM) during the concentric contraction phase. However, during the eccentric phase, peak EMG was significantly higher (p<0.01) in RF and VM when performing knee extensions using the training machine. In VL and VM the EMG-angle pattern was different between the two training modalities (significant angle by exercise interaction). When using elastic resistance, the EMG-angle pattern peaked towards full knee extension (0°), whereas angle at peak EMG occurred closer to knee flexion position (90°) during the machine exercise. Perceived loading (Borg CR10) was similar during knee extensions performed with elastic tubing (5.7±0.6) compared with knee extensions performed in training machine (5.9±0.5). Knee extensions performed with elastic tubing induces similar high (>70% nEMG) quadriceps muscle activity during the concentric contraction phase, but slightly lower during the eccentric contraction phase, as knee extensions performed using an isotonic training machine. During the concentric contraction phase the two different conditions displayed reciprocal EMG-angle patterns during the range of motion. 5.

Power Extension Package (PEP) system definition extension, orbital service module systems analysis study. Volume 7: PEP logistics and training plan requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1979-01-01

Recommendations for logistics activities and logistics planning are presented based on the assumption that a system prime contractor will perform logistics functions to support all program hardware and will implement a logistics system to include the planning and provision of products and services to assure cost effective coverage of the following: maintainability; maintenance; spares and supply support; fuels; pressurants and fluids; operations and maintenance documentation training; preservation, packaging and packing; transportation and handling; storage; and logistics management information reporting. The training courses, manpower, materials, and training aids required will be identified and implemented in a training program.

Search for neutral supersymmetric Higgs Bosons in multijet events at sqrt[s]=1.96 TeV.

PubMed

Abazov, V M; Abbott, B; Abolins, M; Acharya, B S; Adams, M; Adams, T; Agelou, M; Agram, J-L; Ahn, S H; Ahsan, M; Alexeev, G D; Alkhazov, G; Alton, A; Alverson, G; Alves, G A; Anastasoaie, M; Andeen, T; Anderson, S; Andrieu, B; Arnoud, Y; Askew, A; Asman, B; Assis Jesus, A C S; Atramentov, O; Autermann, C; Avila, C; Badaud, F; Baden, A; Baldin, B; Balm, P W; Banerjee, S; Barberis, E; Bargassa, P; Baringer, P; Barnes, C; Barreto, J; Bartlett, J F; Bassler, U; Bauer, D; Bean, A; Beauceron, S; Begel, M; Bellavance, A; Beri, S B; Bernardi, G; Bernhard, R; Bertram, I; Besançon, M; Beuselinck, R; Bezzubov, V A; Bhat, P C; Bhatnagar, V; Binder, M; Biscarat, C; Black, K M; Blackler, I; Blazey, G; Blekman, F; Blessing, S; Bloch, D; Blumenschein, U; Boehnlein, A; Boeriu, O; Bolton, T A; Borcherding, F; Borissov, G; Bos, K; Bose, T; Brandt, A; Brock, R; Brooijmans, G; Bross, A; Buchanan, N J; Buchholz, D; Buehler, M; Buescher, V; Burdin, S; Burnett, T H; Busato, E; Buszello, C P; Butler, J M; Cammin, J; Caron, S; Carvalho, W; Casey, B C K; Cason, N M; Castilla-Valdez, H; Chakrabarti, S; Chakraborty, D; Chan, K M; Chandra, A; Chapin, D; Charles, F; Cheu, E; Cho, D K; Choi, S; Choudhary, B; Christiansen, T; Christofek, L; Claes, D; Clément, B; Clément, C; Coadou, Y; Cooke, M; Cooper, W E; Coppage, D; Corcoran, M; Cothenet, A; Cousinou, M-C; Cox, B; Crépé-Renaudin, S; Cutts, D; da Motta, H; Davies, B; Davies, G; Davis, G A; De, K; de Jong, P; de Jong, S J; De La Cruz-Burelo, E; De Oliveira Martins, C; Dean, S; Degenhardt, J D; Déliot, F; Demarteau, M; Demina, R; Demine, P; Denisov, D; Denisov, S P; Desai, S; Diehl, H T; Diesburg, M; Doidge, M; Dong, H; Doulas, S; Dudko, L V; Duflot, L; Dugad, S R; Duperrin, A; Dyer, J; Dyshkant, A; Eads, M; Edmunds, D; Edwards, T; Ellison, J; Elmsheuser, J; Elvira, V D; Eno, S; Ermolov, P; Eroshin, O V; Estrada, J; Evans, H; Evdokimov, A; Evdokimov, V N; Fast, J; Fatakia, S N; Feligioni, L; Ferapontov, A V; Ferbel, T; Fiedler, F; Filthaut, F; Fisher, W; Fisk, H E; Fleck, I; Fortner, M; Fox, H; Fu, S; Fuess, S; Gadfort, T; Galea, C F; Gallas, E; Galyaev, E; Garcia, C; Garcia-Bellido, A; Gardner, J; Gavrilov, V; Gay, P; Gelé, D; Gelhaus, R; Genser, K; Gerber, C E; Gershtein, Y; Gillberg, D; Ginther, G; Golling, T; Gollub, N; Gómez, B; Gounder, K; Goussiou, A; Grannis, P D; Greder, S; Greenlee, H; Greenwood, Z D; Gregores, E M; Gris, Ph; Grivaz, J-F; Groer, L; Grünendahl, S; Grünewald, M W; Gurzhiev, S N; Gutierrez, G; Gutierrez, P; Haas, A; Hadley, N J; Hagopian, S; Hall, I; Hall, R E; Han, C; Han, L; Hanagaki, K; Harder, K; Harel, A; Harrington, R; Hauptman, J M; Hauser, R; Hays, J; Hebbeker, T; Hedin, D; Heinmiller, J M; Heinson, A P; Heintz, U; Hensel, C; Hesketh, G; Hildreth, M D; Hirosky, R; Hobbs, J D; Hoeneisen, B; Hohlfeld, M; Hong, S J; Hooper, R; Houben, P; Hu, Y; Huang, J; Hynek, V; Iashvili, I; Illingworth, R; Ito, A S; Jabeen, S; Jaffré, M; Jain, S; Jain, V; Jakobs, K; Jenkins, A; Jesik, R; Johns, K; Johnson, M; Jonckheere, A; Jonsson, P; Juste, A; Käfer, D; Kahn, S; Kajfasz, E; Kalinin, A M; Kalk, J; Karmanov, D; Kasper, J; Kau, D; Kaur, R; Kehoe, R; Kermiche, S; Kesisoglou, S; Khanov, A; Kharchilava, A; Kharzheev, Y M; Kim, H; Kim, T J; Klima, B; Kohli, J M; Kopal, M; Korablev, V M; Kotcher, J; Kothari, B; Koubarovsky, A; Kozelov, A V; Kozminski, J; Kryemadhi, A; Krzywdzinski, S; Kulik, Y; Kumar, A; Kunori, S; Kupco, A; Kurca, T; Kvita, J; Lager, S; Lahrichi, N; Landsberg, G; Lazoflores, J; Le Bihan, A-C; Lebrun, P; Lee, W M; Leflat, A; Lehner, F; Leonidopoulos, C; Leveque, J; Lewis, P; Li, J; Li, Q Z; Lima, J G R; Lincoln, D; Linn, S L; Linnemann, J; Lipaev, V V; Lipton, R; Lobo, L; Lobodenko, A; Lokajicek, M; Lounis, A; Love, P; Lubatti, H J; Lueking, L; Lynker, M; Lyon, A L; Maciel, A K A; Madaras, R J; Mättig, P; Magass, C; Magerkurth, A; Magnan, A-M; Makovec, N; Mal, P K; Malbouisson, H B; Malik, S; Malyshev, V L; Mao, H S; Maravin, Y; Martens, M; Mattingly, S E K; Mayorov, A A; McCarthy, R; McCroskey, R; Meder, D; Melnitchouk, A; Mendes, A; Merkin, M; Merritt, K W; Meyer, A; Meyer, J; Michaut, M; Miettinen, H; Mitrevski, J; Molina, J; Mondal, N K; Moore, R W; Muanza, G S; Mulders, M; Mutaf, Y D; Nagy, E; Narain, M; Naumann, N A; Neal, H A; Negret, J P; Nelson, S; Neustroev, P; Noeding, C; Nomerotski, A; Novaes, S F; Nunnemann, T; Nurse, E; O'dell, V; O'neil, D C; Oguri, V; Oliveira, N; Oshima, N; Otero Y Garzón, G J; Padley, P; Parashar, N; Park, S K; Parsons, J; Partridge, R; Parua, N; Patwa, A; Pawloski, G; Perea, P M; Perez, E; Pétroff, P; Petteni, M; Piegaia, R; Pleier, M-A; Podesta-Lerma, P L M; Podstavkov, V M; Pogorelov, Y; Pompos, A; Pope, B G; Prado da Silva, W L; Prosper, H B; Protopopescu, S; Qian, J; Quadt, A; Quinn, B; Rani, K J; Ranjan, K; Rapidis, P A; Ratoff, P N; Reucroft, S; Rijssenbeek, M; Ripp-Baudot, I; Rizatdinova, F; Robinson, S; Rodrigues, R F; Royon, C; Rubinov, P; Ruchti, R; Rud, V I; Sajot, G; Sánchez-Hernández, A; Sanders, M P; Santoro, A; Savage, G; Sawyer, L; Scanlon, T; Schaile, D; Schamberger, R D; Schellman, H; Schieferdecker, P; Schmitt, C; Schwanenberger, C; Schwartzman, A; Schwienhorst, R; Sengupta, S; Severini, H; Shabalina, E; Shamim, M; Shary, V; Shchukin, A A; Shephard, W D; Shivpuri, R K; Shpakov, D; Sidwell, R A; Simak, V; Sirotenko, V; Skubic, P; Slattery, P; Smith, R P; Smolek, K; Snow, G R; Snow, J; Snyder, S; Söldner-Rembold, S; Song, X; Sonnenschein, L; Sopczak, A; Sosebee, M; Soustruznik, K; Souza, M; Spurlock, B; Stanton, N R; Stark, J; Steele, J; Stevenson, K; Stolin, V; Stone, A; Stoyanova, D A; Strandberg, J; Strang, M A; Strauss, M; Ströhmer, R; Strom, D; Strovink, M; Stutte, L; Sumowidagdo, S; Sznajder, A; Talby, M; Tamburello, P; Taylor, W; Telford, P; Temple, J; Tomoto, M; Toole, T; Torborg, J; Towers, S; Trefzger, T; Trincaz-Duvoid, S; Tuchming, B; Tully, C; Turcot, A S; Tuts, P M; Uvarov, L; Uvarov, S; Uzunyan, S; Vachon, B; Van Kooten, R; van Leeuwen, W M; Varelas, N; Varnes, E W; Vartapetian, A; Vasilyev, I A; Vaupel, M; Verdier, P; Vertogradov, L S; Verzocchi, M; Villeneuve-Seguier, F; Vlimant, J-R; Von Toerne, E; Vreeswijk, M; Vu Anh, T; Wahl, H D; Wang, L; Warchol, J; Watts, G; Wayne, M; Weber, M; Weerts, H; Wegner, M; Wermes, N; White, A; White, V; Wicke, D; Wijngaarden, D A; Wilson, G W; Wimpenny, S J; Wittlin, J; Wobisch, M; Womersley, J; Wood, D R; Wyatt, T R; Xu, Q; Xuan, N; Yacoob, S; Yamada, R; Yan, M; Yasuda, T; Yatsunenko, Y A; Yen, Y; Yip, K; Yoo, H D; Youn, S W; Yu, J; Yurkewicz, A; Zabi, A; Zatserklyaniy, A; Zdrazil, M; Zeitnitz, C; Zhang, D; Zhang, X; Zhao, T; Zhao, Z; Zhou, B; Zhu, J; Zielinski, M; Zieminska, D; Zieminski, A; Zitoun, R; Zutshi, V; Zverev, E G

2005-10-07

We have performed a search for neutral Higgs bosons produced in association with bottom quarks in pp collisions, using 260 pb-1 of data collected with the D0 detector in Run II of the Fermilab Tevatron Collider. The cross sections for these processes are enhanced in many extensions of the standard model (SM), such as in its minimal supersymmetric extension at large tanbeta. The results of our analysis agree with expectations from the SM, and we use our measurements to set upper limits on the production of neutral Higgs bosons in the mass range of 90 to 150 GeV.

Sensor image prediction techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stenger, A. J.; Stone, W. R.; Berry, L.; Murray, T. J.

1981-02-01

The preparation of prediction imagery is a complex, costly, and time consuming process. Image prediction systems which produce a detailed replica of the image area require the extensive Defense Mapping Agency data base. The purpose of this study was to analyze the use of image predictions in order to determine whether a reduced set of more compact image features contains enough information to produce acceptable navigator performance. A job analysis of the navigator's mission tasks was performed. It showed that the cognitive and perceptual tasks he performs during navigation are identical to those performed for the targeting mission function. In addition, the results of the analysis of his performance when using a particular sensor can be extended to the analysis of this mission tasks using any sensor. An experimental approach was used to determine the relationship between navigator performance and the type of amount of information in the prediction image. A number of subjects were given image predictions containing varying levels of scene detail and different image features, and then asked to identify the predicted targets in corresponding dynamic flight sequences over scenes of cultural, terrain, and mixed (both cultural and terrain) content.

Anesthesia for collagenase clostridium histolyticum injection in patients with dupuytren disease: A cohort analysis.

PubMed

Sanjuan-Cerveró, Rafael; Carrera-Hueso, Francisco J; Vazquez-Ferreiro, Pedro; Peimer, Clayton A

2018-04-12

Procedural pain is one of the most common adverse effects reported by patients with Dupuytren disease (DD) treated with collagenase clostridium histolyticum (CCH). The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of wrist block before CCH injection in reducing procedural pain and to analyze its impact on adverse effects. We performed a prospective, single-center study in which we compared two groups of patients in a consecutive cohort. In the first group (NO-BLOCK), wrist block was only performed before finger extension, whereas in the second group (BLOCK), it was performed before CCH injection and finger extension. Pain was assessed on a 10-item numerical rating scale. Our results show that pain scores were clearlylower in the BLOCK group than in the NO-BLOCK group: 4.72 vs. 0.61 for CCH injection and 3.43 vs. 0.82 for finger extension. Patients who rated CCH injection pain with a score of 4 or higher were 11 times more likely to experience pain during extension. There was a weak correlation between the use of wrist block for CCH injection and the occurrence of skin lacerations (Spearman's rho = -0.222, p < 0.01) and the presence of pruritus (Spearman's rho = 0.183, p < 0.07). In conclusion, wrist block before CCH injection is an effective measure of decreasing perceived pain throughout the different stages of CCH treatment in patients with DD. Copyright © 2018 British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cognitive Task Analysis of En Route Air Traffic Control: Model Extension and Validation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Redding, Richard E.; And Others

Phase II of a project extended data collection and analytic procedures to develop a model of expertise and skill development for en route air traffic control (ATC). New data were collected by recording the Dynamic Simulator (DYSIM) performance of five experts with a work overload problem. Expert controllers were interviewed in depth for mental…

Modular space station, phase B extension. Information management advanced development. Volume 4: Data processing assembly

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gerber, C. R.

1972-01-01

The computation and logical functions which are performed by the data processing assembly of the modular space station are defined. The subjects discussed are: (1) requirements analysis, (2) baseline data processing assembly configuration, (3) information flow study, (4) throughput simulation, (5) redundancy study, (6) memory studies, and (7) design requirements specification.

DIF Analysis with Multilevel Data: A Simulation Study Using the Latent Variable Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jin, Ying; Eason, Hershel

2016-01-01

The effects of mean ability difference (MAD) and short tests on the performance of various DIF methods have been studied extensively in previous simulation studies. Their effects, however, have not been studied under multilevel data structure. MAD was frequently observed in large-scale cross-country comparison studies where the primary sampling…

Unlocking the forest inventory data: relating individual tree performance to unmeasured environmental factors

Treesearch

Jeremy W. Lichstein; Jonathan Dushoff; Kiona Ogle; Anping Chen; Drew W. Purves; John P. Caspersen; Stephen W. Pacala

2010-01-01

Geographically extensive forest inventories, such as the USDA Forest Service's Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program, contain millions of individual tree growth and mortality records that could be used to develop broad-scale models of forest dynamics. A limitation of inventory data, however, is that individual-level measurements of light (L) and other...

43 CFR 3207.12 - What work am I required to perform each year for BLM to continue the initial and additional...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

...: (1) Geologic investigation and analysis; (2) Drilling temperature gradient wells; (3) Core drilling; (4) Geochemical or geophysical surveys; (5) Drilling production or injection wells; (6) Reservoir... lease at the end of that year unless you qualify for a drilling extension under § 3207.13. (i) Every...

43 CFR 3207.12 - What work am I required to perform each year for BLM to continue the initial and additional...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

...: (1) Geologic investigation and analysis; (2) Drilling temperature gradient wells; (3) Core drilling; (4) Geochemical or geophysical surveys; (5) Drilling production or injection wells; (6) Reservoir... lease at the end of that year unless you qualify for a drilling extension under § 3207.13. (i) Every...

43 CFR 3207.12 - What work am I required to perform each year for BLM to continue the initial and additional...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

...: (1) Geologic investigation and analysis; (2) Drilling temperature gradient wells; (3) Core drilling; (4) Geochemical or geophysical surveys; (5) Drilling production or injection wells; (6) Reservoir... lease at the end of that year unless you qualify for a drilling extension under § 3207.13. (i) Every...

43 CFR 3207.12 - What work am I required to perform each year for BLM to continue the initial and additional...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

...: (1) Geologic investigation and analysis; (2) Drilling temperature gradient wells; (3) Core drilling; (4) Geochemical or geophysical surveys; (5) Drilling production or injection wells; (6) Reservoir... lease at the end of that year unless you qualify for a drilling extension under § 3207.13. (i) Every...

The Effects of Discrete-Trial Training Commission Errors on Learner Outcomes: An Extension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jenkins, Sarah R.; Hirst, Jason M.; DiGennaro Reed, Florence D.

2015-01-01

We conducted a parametric analysis of treatment integrity errors during discrete-trial training and investigated the effects of three integrity conditions (0, 50, or 100 % errors of commission) on performance in the presence and absence of programmed errors. The presence of commission errors impaired acquisition for three of four participants.…

Lost Opportunity: An Empirical Analysis of How Vouchers Affected Florida Public Schools. School Choice Issues in the State

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Forster, Greg

2008-01-01

The impact of Florida's "A+" accountability program, which until 2006 included a voucher program for chronically failing schools, on public school performance has been extensively studied. The results have consistently shown a positive effect on academic outcomes in Florida public schools. However, no empirical research has been done on…

KMgene: a unified R package for gene-based association analysis for complex traits.

PubMed

Yan, Qi; Fang, Zhou; Chen, Wei; Stegle, Oliver

2018-02-09

In this report, we introduce an R package KMgene for performing gene-based association tests for familial, multivariate or longitudinal traits using kernel machine (KM) regression under a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) framework. Extensive simulations were performed to evaluate the validity of the approaches implemented in KMgene. http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/KMgene. qi.yan@chp.edu or wei.chen@chp.edu. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author(s) 2018. Published by Oxford University Press.

Life-cycle environmental performance of renewable building materials in the context of residential construction : phase II research report : an extension to the 2005 phase I research report. Module N, Life-cycle inventory of manufacturing prefinished engineered wood flooring in the eastern United States

Treesearch

Richard D. Bergman; Scott A. Bowe

2011-01-01

This study summarizes the environmental performance of prefinished engineered wood flooring using life-cycle inventory (LCI) analysis. Using primary mill data gathered from manufacturers in the eastern United States and applying the methods found in Consortium for Research on Renewable Industrial Materials (CORRIM) Research Guidelines and International Organization of...

CSM digital autopilot testing in support of ASTP experiments control requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rue, D. L.

1975-01-01

Results are presented of CSM digital autopilot (DAP) testing. The testing was performed to demonstrate and evaluate control modes which are currently planned or could be considered for use in support of experiments on the ASTP mission. The testing was performed on the Lockheed Guidance, Navigation, and Control System Functional Simulator (GNCFS). This simulator, which was designed to test the Apollo and Skylab DAP control system, has been used extensively and is a proven tool for CSM DAP analysis.

Shear behavior of thermoformed woven-textile thermoplastic prepregs: An analysis combining bias-extension test and X-ray microtomography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gassoumi, M.; Rolland du Roscoat, S.; Casari, P.; Dumont, P. J. J.; Orgéas, L.; Jacquemin, F.

2017-10-01

Thermoforming allows the manufacture of structural parts for the automotive and aeronautical domains using long fiber thermoplastic prepregs with short cycle times. During this operation, several sheets of molten prepregs are stacked and subjected to large macroscale strains, mainly via in-plane shear, out-of-plane consolidation or dilatation, and bending of the fibrous reinforcement. These deformation modes and the related meso and microstructure evolutions are still poorly understood. However, they can drastically alter the end-use macroscale properties of fabricated parts. To better understand these phenomena, bias extension tests were performed using specimens made of several stacked layers of glass woven fabrics and polyamide matrix. The macroscale shear behavior of these prepregs was investigated at various temperatures. A multiscale analysis of deformed samples was performed using X-ray microtomography images of the deformed specimens acquired at two different spatial resolutions. The low-resolution images were used to analyze the deformation mechanisms and the structural characteristics of prepregs at the macroscale and bundle scales. It was possible to analyze the 3D shapes of deformed samples and, in particular, the spatial variations of their thickness so as to quantify the out-of-plane dilatancy or consolidation phenomena induced by the in-plane shear of prepregs. At a lower scale, the analysis of the high-resolution images showed that these mechanisms were accompanied by the growth of pores and the deformation of fiber bundles. The orientation of the fiber bundles and its through-thickness evolution were measured along the weft and warp directions in the deformed samples, allowing the relevance of geometrical models currently used to analyze bias extension tests to be discussed. Results can be used to enhance the current rheological models for the prediction of thermoforming of thermoplastic prepregs.

Performance Analysis of Scientific and Engineering Applications Using MPInside and TAU

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Saini, Subhash; Mehrotra, Piyush; Taylor, Kenichi Jun Haeng; Shende, Sameer Suresh; Biswas, Rupak

2010-01-01

In this paper, we present performance analysis of two NASA applications using performance tools like Tuning and Analysis Utilities (TAU) and SGI MPInside. MITgcmUV and OVERFLOW are two production-quality applications used extensively by scientists and engineers at NASA. MITgcmUV is a global ocean simulation model, developed by the Estimating the Circulation and Climate of the Ocean (ECCO) Consortium, for solving the fluid equations of motion using the hydrostatic approximation. OVERFLOW is a general-purpose Navier-Stokes solver for computational fluid dynamics (CFD) problems. Using these tools, we analyze the MPI functions (MPI_Sendrecv, MPI_Bcast, MPI_Reduce, MPI_Allreduce, MPI_Barrier, etc.) with respect to message size of each rank, time consumed by each function, and how ranks communicate. MPI communication is further analyzed by studying the performance of MPI functions used in these two applications as a function of message size and number of cores. Finally, we present the compute time, communication time, and I/O time as a function of the number of cores.

Performance analysis and experimental study on rainfall water purification with an extensive green roof matrix layer in Shanghai, China.

PubMed

Guo, Jiankang; Zhang, Yanting; Che, Shengquan

2018-02-01

Current research has validated the purification of rainwater by a substrate layer of green roofs to some extent, though the effects of the substrate layer on rainwater purification have not been adequately quantified. The present study set up nine extensive green roof experiment combinations based on the current conditions of precipitation characteristics observed in Shanghai, China. Different rain with pollutants were simulated, and the orthogonal design L9 (33) test was conducted to measure purification performance. The purification influences of the extensive green roof substrate layer were quantitatively analyzed in Shanghai to optimize the thickness, proportion of substrate, and sodium polyacrylate content. The experimental outcomes resulted in ammonium nitrogen (NH 4 + -N), lead (Pb), and zinc (Zn) removal of up to 93.87%, 98.81%, and 94.55% in the artificial rainfall, respectively, and NH 4 + -N, Pb, and Zn event mean concentration (EMC) was depressed to 0.263 mg/L, 0.002 mg/L and 0.018 mg/L, respectively, which were all well below the pollutant concentrations of artificial rainfall. With reference to the rainfall chemical characteristics of Shanghai, a combination of a 200 mm thickness, proportions of 1:1:2 of Loam: Perlite: Cocopeat and 2 g/L sodium polyacrylate content was suggested for the design of an extensive green roof substrate to purify NH 4 + -N, Pb and Zn.

Performance-based measures associate with frailty in patients with end-stage liver disease

PubMed Central

Lai, Jennifer C.; Volk, Michael L; Strasburg, Debra; Alexander, Neil

2016-01-01

Background Physical frailty, as measured by the Fried Frailty Index, is increasingly recognized as a critical determinant of outcomes in cirrhotics. However, its utility is limited by the inclusion of self-reported components. We aimed to identify performance-based measures associated with frailty in patients with cirrhosis. Methods Cirrhotics ≥50 years underwent: 6-minute walk test (6MWT, cardiopulmonary endurance), chair stands in 30 seconds (muscle endurance), isometric knee extension (lower extremity strength), unipedal stance time (static balance), and maximal step length (dynamic balance/coordination). Linear regression associated each physical performance test with frailty. Principal components exploratory factor analysis evaluated the inter-relatedness of frailty and the 5 physical performance tests. Results Of forty cirrhotics, with a median age of 64 years and Model for End-stage Liver Disease (MELD) MELD of 12,10 (25%) were frail by Fried Frailty Index ≥3. Frail cirrhotics had poorer performance in 6MWT distance (231 vs. 338 meters), 30 second chair stands (7 vs. 10), isometric knee extension (86 vs. 122 Newton meters), and maximal step length (22 vs. 27 inches) [p≤0.02 for each]. Each physical performance test was significantly associated with frailty (p<0.01), even after adjustment for MELD or hepatic encephalopathy. Principal component factor analysis demonstrated substantial, but unique, clustering of each physical performance test to a single factor – frailty. Conclusion Frailty in cirrhosis is a multi-dimensional construct that is distinct from liver dysfunction and incorporates endurance, strength, and balance. Our data provide specific targets for prehabilitation interventions aimed at reducing frailty in cirrhotics in preparation for liver transplantation. PMID:27495749

Performance-Based Measures Associate With Frailty in Patients With End-Stage Liver Disease.

PubMed

Lai, Jennifer C; Volk, Michael L; Strasburg, Debra; Alexander, Neil

2016-12-01

Physical frailty, as measured by the Fried Frailty Index, is increasingly recognized as a critical determinant of outcomes in patients with cirrhosis. However, its utility is limited by the inclusion of self-reported components. We aimed to identify performance-based measures associated with frailty in patients with cirrhosis. Patients with cirrhosis, aged 50 years or older, underwent: 6-minute walk test (cardiopulmonary endurance), chair stands in 30 seconds (muscle endurance), isometric knee extension (lower extremity strength), unipedal stance time (static balance), and maximal step length (dynamic balance/coordination). Linear regression associated each physical performance test with frailty. Principal components exploratory factor analysis evaluated the interrelatedness of frailty and the 5 physical performance tests. Of 40 patients with cirrhosis, with a median age of 64 years and Model for End-stage Liver Disease (MELD) MELD of 12.10 (25%) were frail by Fried Frailty Index ≥3. Frail patients with cirrhosis had poorer performance in 6-minute walk test distance (231 vs 338 m), 30-second chair stands (7 vs 10), isometric knee extension (86 vs 122 Newton meters), and maximal step length (22 vs 27 in. (P ≤ 0.02 for each). Each physical performance test was significantly associated with frailty (P < 0.01), even after adjustment for MELD or hepatic encephalopathy. Principal component factor analysis demonstrated substantial, but unique, clustering of each physical performance test to a single factor-frailty. Frailty in cirrhosis is a multidimensional construct that is distinct from liver dysfunction and incorporates endurance, strength, and balance. Our data provide specific targets for prehabilitation interventions aimed at reducing frailty in patients with cirrhosis in preparation for liver transplantation.

META-ANALYSIS OF CYP2D6 METABOLIZER PHENOTYPE AND METOPROLOL PHARMACOKINETICS

PubMed Central

Blake, CM; Kharasch, ED; Schwab, M; Nagele, P

2013-01-01

Metoprolol, a commonly prescribed beta-blocker, is primarily metabolized by cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6), an enzyme with substantial genetic heterogeneity. Several smaller studies have shown that metoprolol pharmacokinetics is influenced by CYP2D6 genotype and metabolizer phenotype. To increase robustness of metoprolol pharmacokinetic estimates, a systematic review and meta-analysis of pharmacokinetic studies that administered a single oral dose of immediate release metoprolol was performed. Pooled analysis (n= 264) demonstrated differences in peak plasma metoprolol concentration, area under the concentration-time curve, elimination half-life, and apparent oral clearance that were 2.3-, 4.9-, 2.3-, and 5.9-fold between extensive and poor metabolizers, respectively, and 5.3-, 13-, 2.6-, and 15-fold between ultra-rapid and poor metabolizers (all p<0.001). Enantiomer-specific analysis revealed genotype-dependent enantio-selective metabolism, with nearly 40% greater R- vs S-metoprolol metabolism in ultra-rapid and extensive metabolizers. This study demonstrates a marked effect of CYP2D6 metabolizer phenotype on metoprolol pharmacokinetics and confirms enantiomer specific metabolism of metoprolol. PMID:23665868

SPICODYN: A Toolbox for the Analysis of Neuronal Network Dynamics and Connectivity from Multi-Site Spike Signal Recordings.

PubMed

Pastore, Vito Paolo; Godjoski, Aleksandar; Martinoia, Sergio; Massobrio, Paolo

2018-01-01

We implemented an automated and efficient open-source software for the analysis of multi-site neuronal spike signals. The software package, named SPICODYN, has been developed as a standalone windows GUI application, using C# programming language with Microsoft Visual Studio based on .NET framework 4.5 development environment. Accepted input data formats are HDF5, level 5 MAT and text files, containing recorded or generated time series spike signals data. SPICODYN processes such electrophysiological signals focusing on: spiking and bursting dynamics and functional-effective connectivity analysis. In particular, for inferring network connectivity, a new implementation of the transfer entropy method is presented dealing with multiple time delays (temporal extension) and with multiple binary patterns (high order extension). SPICODYN is specifically tailored to process data coming from different Multi-Electrode Arrays setups, guarantying, in those specific cases, automated processing. The optimized implementation of the Delayed Transfer Entropy and the High-Order Transfer Entropy algorithms, allows performing accurate and rapid analysis on multiple spike trains from thousands of electrodes.

Integrated Aero-Propulsion CFD Methodology for the Hyper-X Flight Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cockrell, Charles E., Jr.; Engelund, Walter C.; Bittner, Robert D.; Dilley, Arthur D.; Jentink, Tom N.; Frendi, Abdelkader

2000-01-01

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tools have been used extensively in the analysis and development of the X-43A Hyper-X Research Vehicle (HXRV). A significant element of this analysis is the prediction of integrated vehicle aero-propulsive performance, which includes an integration of aerodynamic and propulsion flow fields. This paper describes analysis tools used and the methodology for obtaining pre-flight predictions of longitudinal performance increments. The use of higher-fidelity methods to examine flow-field characteristics and scramjet flowpath component performance is also discussed. Limited comparisons with available ground test data are shown to illustrate the approach used to calibrate methods and assess solution accuracy. Inviscid calculations to evaluate lateral-directional stability characteristics are discussed. The methodology behind 3D tip-to-tail calculations is described and the impact of 3D exhaust plume expansion in the afterbody region is illustrated. Finally, future technology development needs in the area of hypersonic propulsion-airframe integration analysis are discussed.

Post-Flight Analysis of the Guidance, Navigation, and Control Performance During Orion Exploration Flight Test 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barth, Andrew; Mamich, Harvey; Hoelscher, Brian

2015-01-01

The first test flight of the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle presented additional challenges for guidance, navigation and control as compared to a typical re-entry from the International Space Station or other Low Earth Orbit. An elevated re-entry velocity and steeper flight path angle were chosen to achieve aero-thermal flight test objectives. New IMU's, a GPS receiver, and baro altimeters were flight qualified to provide the redundant navigation needed for human space flight. The guidance and control systems must manage the vehicle lift vector in order to deliver the vehicle to a precision, coastal, water landing, while operating within aerodynamic load, reaction control system, and propellant constraints. Extensive pre-flight six degree-of-freedom analysis was performed that showed mission success for the nominal mission as well as in the presence of sensor and effector failures. Post-flight reconstruction analysis of the test flight is presented in this paper to show whether that all performance metrics were met and establish how well the pre-flight analysis predicted the in-flight performance.

Mixed Criticality Scheduling for Industrial Wireless Sensor Networks

PubMed Central

Jin, Xi; Xia, Changqing; Xu, Huiting; Wang, Jintao; Zeng, Peng

2016-01-01

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) have been widely used in industrial systems. Their real-time performance and reliability are fundamental to industrial production. Many works have studied the two aspects, but only focus on single criticality WSNs. Mixed criticality requirements exist in many advanced applications in which different data flows have different levels of importance (or criticality). In this paper, first, we propose a scheduling algorithm, which guarantees the real-time performance and reliability requirements of data flows with different levels of criticality. The algorithm supports centralized optimization and adaptive adjustment. It is able to improve both the scheduling performance and flexibility. Then, we provide the schedulability test through rigorous theoretical analysis. We conduct extensive simulations, and the results demonstrate that the proposed scheduling algorithm and analysis significantly outperform existing ones. PMID:27589741

Weak lensing magnification in the Dark Energy Survey Science Verification data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garcia-Fernandez, M.; Sanchez, E.; Sevilla-Noarbe, I.; Suchyta, E.; Huff, E. M.; Gaztanaga, E.; Aleksić, J.; Ponce, R.; Castander, F. J.; Hoyle, B.; Abbott, T. M. C.; Abdalla, F. B.; Allam, S.; Annis, J.; Benoit-Lévy, A.; Bernstein, G. M.; Bertin, E.; Brooks, D.; Buckley-Geer, E.; Burke, D. L.; Carnero Rosell, A.; Carrasco Kind, M.; Carretero, J.; Crocce, M.; Cunha, C. E.; D'Andrea, C. B.; da Costa, L. N.; DePoy, D. L.; Desai, S.; Diehl, H. T.; Eifler, T. F.; Evrard, A. E.; Fernandez, E.; Flaugher, B.; Fosalba, P.; Frieman, J.; García-Bellido, J.; Gerdes, D. W.; Giannantonio, T.; Gruen, D.; Gruendl, R. A.; Gschwend, J.; Gutierrez, G.; James, D. J.; Jarvis, M.; Kirk, D.; Krause, E.; Kuehn, K.; Kuropatkin, N.; Lahav, O.; Lima, M.; MacCrann, N.; Maia, M. A. G.; March, M.; Marshall, J. L.; Melchior, P.; Miquel, R.; Mohr, J. J.; Plazas, A. A.; Romer, A. K.; Roodman, A.; Rykoff, E. S.; Scarpine, V.; Schubnell, M.; Smith, R. C.; Soares-Santos, M.; Sobreira, F.; Tarle, G.; Thomas, D.; Walker, A. R.; Wester, W.; DES Collaboration

2018-05-01

In this paper, the effect of weak lensing magnification on galaxy number counts is studied by cross-correlating the positions of two galaxy samples, separated by redshift, using the Dark Energy Survey Science Verification data set. This analysis is carried out for galaxies that are selected only by its photometric redshift. An extensive analysis of the systematic effects, using new methods based on simulations is performed, including a Monte Carlo sampling of the selection function of the survey.

Value Driven Outcomes (VDO): a pragmatic, modular, and extensible software framework for understanding and improving health care costs and outcomes

PubMed Central

Kawamoto, Kensaku; Martin, Cary J; Williams, Kip; Tu, Ming-Chieh; Park, Charlton G; Hunter, Cheri; Staes, Catherine J; Bray, Bruce E; Deshmukh, Vikrant G; Holbrook, Reid A; Morris, Scott J; Fedderson, Matthew B; Sletta, Amy; Turnbull, James; Mulvihill, Sean J; Crabtree, Gordon L; Entwistle, David E; McKenna, Quinn L; Strong, Michael B; Pendleton, Robert C; Lee, Vivian S

2015-01-01

Objective To develop expeditiously a pragmatic, modular, and extensible software framework for understanding and improving healthcare value (costs relative to outcomes). Materials and methods In 2012, a multidisciplinary team was assembled by the leadership of the University of Utah Health Sciences Center and charged with rapidly developing a pragmatic and actionable analytics framework for understanding and enhancing healthcare value. Based on an analysis of relevant prior work, a value analytics framework known as Value Driven Outcomes (VDO) was developed using an agile methodology. Evaluation consisted of measurement against project objectives, including implementation timeliness, system performance, completeness, accuracy, extensibility, adoption, satisfaction, and the ability to support value improvement. Results A modular, extensible framework was developed to allocate clinical care costs to individual patient encounters. For example, labor costs in a hospital unit are allocated to patients based on the hours they spent in the unit; actual medication acquisition costs are allocated to patients based on utilization; and radiology costs are allocated based on the minutes required for study performance. Relevant process and outcome measures are also available. A visualization layer facilitates the identification of value improvement opportunities, such as high-volume, high-cost case types with high variability in costs across providers. Initial implementation was completed within 6 months, and all project objectives were fulfilled. The framework has been improved iteratively and is now a foundational tool for delivering high-value care. Conclusions The framework described can be expeditiously implemented to provide a pragmatic, modular, and extensible approach to understanding and improving healthcare value. PMID:25324556

Snap-through instability analysis of dielectric elastomers with consideration of chain entanglements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Jiakun; Luo, Jun; Xiao, Zhongmin

2018-06-01

It is widely recognized that the extension limit of polymer chains has a significant effect on the snap-through instability of dielectric elastomers (DEs). The snap-through instability performance of DEs has been extensively studied by two limited-stretch models, i.e., the eight-chain model and Gent model. However, the real polymer networks usually have many entanglements due to the impenetrability of the network chains as well as a finite extensibility resulting from the full stretching of the polymer chains. The effects of entanglements on the snap-through instability of DEs cannot be captured by the previous two limited-stretch models. In this paper, the nonaffine model proposed by Davidson and Goulbourne is adopted to characterize the influence of entanglements and extension limit of the polymer chains. It is demonstrated that the nonaffine model is almost identical to the eight-chain model and is close to the Gent model if we ignore the effects of chain entanglements and adopt the affine assumption. The suitability of the nonaffine model to characterize the mechanical behavior of elastomers is validated by fitting the experimental results reported in the open literature. After that, the snap-through stability performance of an ideal DE membrane under equal-biaxial prestretches is studied with the nonaffine model. It is revealed that besides the prestretch and chain extension limit, the chain entanglements can markedly influence the snap-through instability and the path to failure of DEs. These results provide a more comprehensive understanding on the snap-through instability of a DE and may be helpful to guide the design of DE devices.

Investigation of the 27 February 2010 Mw 8.8 Chilean earthquake integrating aftershock analysis, back-projection imaging and cGPS results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clévédé, E.; Satriano, C.; Bukchin, B.; Lancieri, M.; Fuenzalida, A.; Vilotte, J.; Lyon-Caen, H.; Vigny, C.; Socquet, A.; Aranda, C.; Campos, J. A.; Scientific Team of the Lia Montessus de Ballore (Cnrs-Insu, U. Chile)

2010-12-01

The Mw 8.8 earthquake in central Chile ruptured more than 400 km along the subduction bound between the Nazca and the South American plates. The aftershock distribution clearly shows that this earthquake filled a well-known seismic gap, corresponding to rupture extension of the 1835 earthquake. The triggered post-seismic activity extends farther north of the gap, partially overlapping the 1985 and the 1960 Valparaiso earthquakes. However, the analysis of continuous GPS (cGPS) recordings, and back projection imaging of teleseismic body wave energy, indicate that the rupture stopped south of Valparaiso, around -33.5 degrees of latitude. An important question is how far the rupture actually extended to the north and the potential relation between the northernmost aftershock activity and remaining asperities within the ruptured zone of the previous Valparaiso earthquakes. The extension of the rupture offshore, towards west, also deserves further investigation. The aftershock distribution and the back propagation analysis support the hypothesis that, in the northern part, the rupture may have reached the surface at the trench. In this work, we performed a CMT and depth location study for more than 10 of the immediate largest aftershocks using teleseismic surface wave analysis constrained by P-wave polarity. In parallel, a detailed analysis of aftershocks in the northern part of the rupture, between 2010-03-11 and 2010-05-13, have been performed using the data from the station of the Chilean Servicio Sismológico Nacional (SSN), and of the post-seismic network, deployed by the French CNRS-INSU, GFZ, IRIS, and Caltech. We accurately hand-picked 153 larger events, which have been located using a non-linear probabilistic code, with improved depth location. Focal mechanisms have been computed for the larger events. Those results have been integrated with the analysis of cGPS and teleseismic back projection, and the overall kinematic of the Maule earthquake is discussed as well as the extension of the rupture along strike and dip.

Building code compliance and enforcement: The experience of San Francisco's residential energy conservation ordinance and California's building standards for new construction

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

Vine, E.

1990-11-01

As part of Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory's (LBL) technical assistance to the Sustainable City Project, compliance and enforcement activities related to local and state building codes for existing and new construction were evaluated in two case studies. The analysis of the City of San Francisco's Residential Energy Conservation Ordinance (RECO) showed that a limited, prescriptive energy conservation ordinance for existing residential construction can be enforced relatively easily with little administrative costs, and that compliance with such ordinances can be quite high. Compliance with the code was facilitated by extensive publicity, an informed public concerned with the cost of energy and knowledgeablemore » about energy efficiency, the threat of punishment (Order of Abatement), the use of private inspectors, and training workshops for City and private inspectors. The analysis of California's Title 24 Standards for new residential and commercial construction showed that enforcement of this type of code for many climate zones is more complex and requires extensive administrative support for education and training of inspectors, architects, engineers, and builders. Under this code, prescriptive and performance approaches for compliance are permitted, resulting in the demand for alternative methods of enforcement: technical assistance, plan review, field inspection, and computer analysis. In contrast to existing to construction, building design and new materials and construction practices are of critical importance in new construction, creating a need for extensive technical assistance and extensive interaction between enforcement personnel and the building community. Compliance problems associated with building design and installation did occur in both residential and nonresidential buildings. 12 refs., 5 tabs.« less

Assumed--stress hybrid elements with drilling degrees of freedom for nonlinear analysis of composite structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knight, Norman F., Jr. (Principal Investigator)

1996-01-01

The goal of this research project is to develop assumed-stress hybrid elements with rotational degrees of freedom for analyzing composite structures. During the first year of the three-year activity, the effort was directed to further assess the AQ4 shell element and its extensions to buckling and free vibration problems. In addition, the development of a compatible 2-node beam element was to be accomplished. The extensions and new developments were implemented in the Computational Structural Mechanics Testbed COMET. An assessment was performed to verify the implementation and to assess the performance of these elements in terms of accuracy. During the second and third years, extensions to geometrically nonlinear problems were developed and tested. This effort involved working with the nonlinear solution strategy as well as the nonlinear formulation for the elements. This research has resulted in the development and implementation of two additional element processors (ES22 for the beam element and ES24 for the shell elements) in COMET. The software was developed using a SUN workstation and has been ported to the NASA Langley Convex named blackbird. Both element processors are now part of the baseline version of COMET.

Effects of physiotherapy treatment on knee osteoarthritis gait data using principal component analysis.

PubMed

Gaudreault, Nathaly; Mezghani, Neila; Turcot, Katia; Hagemeister, Nicola; Boivin, Karine; de Guise, Jacques A

2011-03-01

Interpreting gait data is challenging due to intersubject variability observed in the gait pattern of both normal and pathological populations. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of using principal component analysis for grouping knee osteoarthritis (OA) patients' gait data in more homogeneous groups when studying the effect of a physiotherapy treatment. Three-dimensional (3D) knee kinematic and kinetic data were recorded during the gait of 29 participants diagnosed with knee OA before and after they received 12 weeks of physiotherapy treatment. Principal component analysis was applied to extract groups of knee flexion/extension, adduction/abduction and internal/external rotation angle and moment data. The treatment's effect on parameters of interest was assessed using paired t-tests performed before and after grouping the knee kinematic data. Increased quadriceps and hamstring strength was observed following treatment (P<0.05). Except for the knee flexion/extension angle, two different groups (G(1) and G(2)) were extracted from the angle and moment data. When pre- and post-treatment analyses were performed considering the groups, participants exhibiting a G(2) knee moment pattern demonstrated a greater first peak flexion moment, lower adduction moment impulse and smaller rotation angle range post-treatment (P<0.05). When pre- and post-treatment comparisons were performed without grouping, the data showed no treatment effect. The results of the present study suggest that the effect of physiotherapy on gait mechanics of knee osteoarthritis patients may be masked or underestimated if kinematic data are not separated into more homogeneous groups when performing pre- and post-treatment comparisons. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Principal components of wrist circumduction from electromagnetic surgical tracking.

PubMed

Rasquinha, Brian J; Rainbow, Michael J; Zec, Michelle L; Pichora, David R; Ellis, Randy E

2017-02-01

An electromagnetic (EM) surgical tracking system was used for a functionally calibrated kinematic analysis of wrist motion. Circumduction motions were tested for differences in subject gender and for differences in the sense of the circumduction as clockwise or counter-clockwise motion. Twenty subjects were instrumented for EM tracking. Flexion-extension motion was used to identify the functional axis. Subjects performed unconstrained wrist circumduction in a clockwise and counter-clockwise sense. Data were decomposed into orthogonal flexion-extension motions and radial-ulnar deviation motions. PCA was used to concisely represent motions. Nonparametric Wilcoxon tests were used to distinguish the groups. Flexion-extension motions were projected onto a direction axis with a root-mean-square error of [Formula: see text]. Using the first three principal components, there was no statistically significant difference in gender (all [Formula: see text]). For motion sense, radial-ulnar deviation distinguished the sense of circumduction in the first principal component ([Formula: see text]) and in the third principal component ([Formula: see text]); flexion-extension distinguished the sense in the second principal component ([Formula: see text]). The clockwise sense of circumduction could be distinguished by a multifactorial combination of components; there were no gender differences in this small population. These data constitute a baseline for normal wrist circumduction. The multifactorial PCA findings suggest that a higher-dimensional method, such as manifold analysis, may be a more concise way of representing circumduction in human joints.

Performance Evaluation of Extension Education Centers in Universities Based on the Balanced Scorecard

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Hung-Yi; Lin, Yi-Kuei; Chang, Chi-Hsiang

2011-01-01

This study aims at developing a set of appropriate performance evaluation indices mainly based on balanced scorecard (BSC) for extension education centers in universities by utilizing multiple criteria decision making (MCDM). Through literature reviews and experts who have real practical experiences in extension education, adequate performance…

Biomechanical Effects of Capsular Shift in the Treatment of Hip Microinstability: Creation and Testing of a Novel Hip Instability Model.

PubMed

Jackson, Timothy J; Peterson, Alexander B; Akeda, Masaki; Estess, Allyson; McGarry, Michelle H; Adamson, Gregory J; Lee, Thay Q

2016-03-01

A capsular shift procedure has been described for the treatment of hip instability; however, the biomechanical effects of such a shift are unknown. To create a cadaveric model of hip capsule laxity and evaluate the biomechanical effects of a capsular shift used to treat hip instability on this model. Controlled laboratory study. Eight cadaveric hips with an average age of 58.5 years were tested with a custom hip testing system in 6 conditions: intact, vented, instability, capsulotomy, side-to-side repair, and capsular shift. To create the hip model, the capsule was stretched in extension under 35 N·m of torque for 1 hour in neutral rotation. Measurements included internal and external rotation with 1.5 N·m of torque at 5 positions: 5° of extension and 0°, 15°, 30°, and 45° of flexion for each of the above conditions. The degree of maximum extension with 5 N·m of torque and the amount of femoral distraction with 40 N and 80 N of force were measured. Statistical analysis was performed by use of repeated-measures analysis of variance with Tukey post hoc analysis. The instability state significantly increased internal rotation at all flexion angles and increased distraction compared with the intact state. The capsulotomy condition resulted in significantly increased external rotation and internal rotation at all positions, increased distraction, and maximum extension compared with the intact state. The side-to-side repair condition restored internal rotation back to the instability state but not to the intact state at 5° of extension and 0° of flexion. The capsular shift state significantly decreased internal rotation compared with the instability state at 5° of extension and 0° and 15° of flexion. The capsular shift and side-to-side repair conditions had similar effects on external rotation at all flexion-extension positions. The capsular shift state decreased distraction and maximum extension compared with the instability state, but the side-to-side repair state did not. The hip capsular instability model was shown to have significantly greater total range of motion, external rotation, and extension compared with the intact condition. The greatest effects of capsular shift are seen with internal rotation, maximum extension, and distraction, with minimal effect on external rotation compared with the side-to side repair state. The biomechanical effects of the capsular shift procedure indicate that it can be used to treat hip capsular laxity by decreasing extension and distraction with minimal effect on external rotation. © 2015 The Author(s).

Independent component analysis algorithm FPGA design to perform real-time blind source separation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meyer-Baese, Uwe; Odom, Crispin; Botella, Guillermo; Meyer-Baese, Anke

2015-05-01

The conditions that arise in the Cocktail Party Problem prevail across many fields creating a need for of Blind Source Separation. The need for BSS has become prevalent in several fields of work. These fields include array processing, communications, medical signal processing, and speech processing, wireless communication, audio, acoustics and biomedical engineering. The concept of the cocktail party problem and BSS led to the development of Independent Component Analysis (ICA) algorithms. ICA proves useful for applications needing real time signal processing. The goal of this research was to perform an extensive study on ability and efficiency of Independent Component Analysis algorithms to perform blind source separation on mixed signals in software and implementation in hardware with a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). The Algebraic ICA (A-ICA), Fast ICA, and Equivariant Adaptive Separation via Independence (EASI) ICA were examined and compared. The best algorithm required the least complexity and fewest resources while effectively separating mixed sources. The best algorithm was the EASI algorithm. The EASI ICA was implemented on hardware with Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) to perform and analyze its performance in real time.

Diagnostic performance of semi-quantitative and quantitative stress CMR perfusion analysis: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

van Dijk, R; van Assen, M; Vliegenthart, R; de Bock, G H; van der Harst, P; Oudkerk, M

2017-11-27

Stress cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) perfusion imaging is a promising modality for the evaluation of coronary artery disease (CAD) due to high spatial resolution and absence of radiation. Semi-quantitative and quantitative analysis of CMR perfusion are based on signal-intensity curves produced during the first-pass of gadolinium contrast. Multiple semi-quantitative and quantitative parameters have been introduced. Diagnostic performance of these parameters varies extensively among studies and standardized protocols are lacking. This study aims to determine the diagnostic accuracy of semi- quantitative and quantitative CMR perfusion parameters, compared to multiple reference standards. Pubmed, WebOfScience, and Embase were systematically searched using predefined criteria (3272 articles). A check for duplicates was performed (1967 articles). Eligibility and relevance of the articles was determined by two reviewers using pre-defined criteria. The primary data extraction was performed independently by two researchers with the use of a predefined template. Differences in extracted data were resolved by discussion between the two researchers. The quality of the included studies was assessed using the 'Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies Tool' (QUADAS-2). True positives, false positives, true negatives, and false negatives were subtracted/calculated from the articles. The principal summary measures used to assess diagnostic accuracy were sensitivity, specificity, andarea under the receiver operating curve (AUC). Data was pooled according to analysis territory, reference standard and perfusion parameter. Twenty-two articles were eligible based on the predefined study eligibility criteria. The pooled diagnostic accuracy for segment-, territory- and patient-based analyses showed good diagnostic performance with sensitivity of 0.88, 0.82, and 0.83, specificity of 0.72, 0.83, and 0.76 and AUC of 0.90, 0.84, and 0.87, respectively. In per territory analysis our results show similar diagnostic accuracy comparing anatomical (AUC 0.86(0.83-0.89)) and functional reference standards (AUC 0.88(0.84-0.90)). Only the per territory analysis sensitivity did not show significant heterogeneity. None of the groups showed signs of publication bias. The clinical value of semi-quantitative and quantitative CMR perfusion analysis remains uncertain due to extensive inter-study heterogeneity and large differences in CMR perfusion acquisition protocols, reference standards, and methods of assessment of myocardial perfusion parameters. For wide spread implementation, standardization of CMR perfusion techniques is essential. CRD42016040176 .

Statistical Analysis of NAS Parallel Benchmarks and LINPACK Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meuer, Hans-Werner; Simon, Horst D.; Strohmeier, Erich; Lasinski, T. A. (Technical Monitor)

1994-01-01

In the last three years extensive performance data have been reported for parallel machines both based on the NAS Parallel Benchmarks, and on LINPACK. In this study we have used the reported benchmark results and performed a number of statistical experiments using factor, cluster, and regression analyses. In addition to the performance results of LINPACK and the eight NAS parallel benchmarks, we have also included peak performance of the machine, and the LINPACK n and n(sub 1/2) values. Some of the results and observations can be summarized as follows: 1) All benchmarks are strongly correlated with peak performance. 2) LINPACK and EP have each a unique signature. 3) The remaining NPB can grouped into three groups as follows: (CG and IS), (LU and SP), and (MG, FT, and BT). Hence three (or four with EP) benchmarks are sufficient to characterize the overall NPB performance. Our poster presentation will follow a standard poster format, and will present the data of our statistical analysis in detail.

Extended performance solar electric propulsion thrust system study. Volume 4: Thruster technology evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poeschel, R. L.; Hawthorne, E. I.; Weisman, Y. C.; Frisman, M.; Benson, G. C.; Mcgrath, R. J.; Martinelli, R. M.; Linsenbardt, T. L.; Beattie, J. R.

1977-01-01

Several thrust system design concepts were evaluated and compared using the specifications of the most advanced 30 cm engineering model thruster as the technology base. Emphasis was placed on relatively high power missions (60 to 100 kW) such as a Halley's comet rendezvous. The extensions in thruster performance required for the Halley's comet mission were defined and alternative thrust system concepts were designed in sufficient detail for comparing mass, efficiency, reliability, structure, and thermal characteristics. Confirmation testing and analysis of thruster and power processing components were performed, and the feasibility of satisfying extended performance requirements was verified. A baseline design was selected from the alternatives considered, and the design analysis and documentation were refined. The baseline thrust system design features modular construction, conventional power processing, and a concentrator solar array concept and is designed to interface with the Space Shuttle.

Extended performance solar electric propulsion thrust system study. Volume 2: Baseline thrust system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poeschel, R. L.; Hawthorne, E. I.

1977-01-01

Several thrust system design concepts were evaluated and compared using the specifications of the most advanced 30- cm engineering model thruster as the technology base. Emphasis was placed on relatively high-power missions (60 to 100 kW) such as a Halley's comet rendezvous. The extensions in thruster performance required for the Halley's comet mission were defined and alternative thrust system concepts were designed in sufficient detail for comparing mass, efficiency, reliability, structure, and thermal characteristics. Confirmation testing and analysis of thruster and power-processing components were performed, and the feasibility of satisfying extended performance requirements was verified. A baseline design was selected from the alternatives considered, and the design analysis and documentation were refined. The baseline thrust system design features modular construction, conventional power processing, and a concentractor solar array concept and is designed to interface with the space shuttle.

Analysis and comparison of nonlinear tree height prediction strategies for Douglas-fir forest.

Treesearch

H. Temesgen; V.J. Monleon; D.W. Hann

2008-01-01

Using an extensive Douglas-fir data set from southwest Oregon, we examined the (I) performance and suitability of selected prediction strategies, (2) contribution of relative position and stand-density measures in improving tree height (h) prediction values, and (3) effect of different subsampling designs to fill in missing h values in a new stand using a regional...

Remedial Coursetaking at U.S. Public 2- and 4-Year Institutions: Scope, Experiences, and Outcomes. Statistical Analysis Report. NCES 2016-405

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Xianglei

2016-01-01

Every year, millions of new college students arrive on campus lacking the necessary academic skills to perform at the college level. Postsecondary institutions address this problem with extensive remedial programs designed to strengthen students' basic skills. While much research on the effectiveness of remedial education has been conducted,…

Gasoline Price Pass-through

EIA Publications

2003-01-01

Over the past several years, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) has extensively studied the relationships between wholesale and retail markets for transportation fuels. This article represents a return to gasoline markets, where EIA first performed this type of analysis and modeling in 1997. The current effort takes advantage of improvements and enhancements to our approach over the intervening years, resulting in more detailed and accurate results.

The Use of Multiple Imputation for Missing Data in Uniform DIF Analysis: Power and Type I Error Rates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Finch, Holmes

2011-01-01

Methods of uniform differential item functioning (DIF) detection have been extensively studied in the complete data case. However, less work has been done examining the performance of these methods when missing item responses are present. Research that has been done in this regard appears to indicate that treating missing item responses as…

Titanium Honeycomb Panel Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Richards, W. Lance; Thompson, Randolph C.

1996-01-01

Thermal-mechanical tests were performed on a titanium honeycomb sandwich panel to experimentally validate the hypersonic wing panel concept and compare test data with analysis. Details of the test article, test fixture development, instrumentation, and test results are presented. After extensive testing to 900 deg. F, non-destructive evaluation of the panel has not detected any significant structural degradation caused by the applied thermal-mechanical loads.

Direct Numerical Simulations of Aerofoils with Serrated Trailing-Edge Extensions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shahab, Muhammad Farrukh; Omidyeganeh, Mohammad; Pinelli, Alfredo

2017-11-01

Owl-feather-inspired technology motivates engineers to develop quieter wings. Direct numerical simulations of NACA-4412 aerofoil with retrofitted flat plate, serrated sawtooth shaped and porous (serrations with filaments) extensions have been performed to study the effects of these modifications on the hydrodynamic characteristics of the turbulent wake and their upstream influence on the interacting boundary layer. A chord based Reynolds number of 100,000 and an angle of attack of 5° has been chosen for all simulations, moreover the surface boundary layers are tripped using a a volume forcing method. This contribution will present a detailed statistical analysis of the mean and fluctuating behaviour of the flow and the key differences in the flow topologies will be highlighted. The preliminary analysis of results identifies a system of counter rotating streamwise vortices for the case of saw-tooth shaped serrations. The presence of the latter is generally considered responsible for an increased parasitic higher frequency noise for serrated aerofoils. To palliate the effect of aforementioned system of streamwise vortices, a filamentous layer occupying the voids of the serrations has been added which is expected to improve the aeroacoustic performance of the system.

Acute Lower Extremity Running Kinematics After a Hamstring Stretch

PubMed Central

Davis Hammonds, Autumn L.; Laudner, Kevin G.; McCaw, Steve; McLoda, Todd A.

2012-01-01

Context: Limited passive hamstring flexibility might affect kinematics, performance, and injury risk during running. Pre-activity static straight-leg raise stretching often is used to gain passive hamstring flexibility. Objective: To investigate the acute effects of a single session of passive hamstring stretching on pelvic, hip, and knee kinematics during the swing phase of running. Design: Randomized controlled clinical trial. Setting: Biomechanics research laboratory. Patients or Other Participants: Thirty-four male (age = 21.2 ± 1.4 years) and female (age = 21.3±2.0 years) recreational athletes. Intervention(s): Participants performed treadmill running pretests and posttests at 70% of their age-predicted maximum heart rate. Pelvis, hip, and knee joint angles during the swing phase of 5 consecutive gait cycles were collected using a motion analysis system. Right and left hamstrings of the intervention group participants were passively stretched 3 times for 30 seconds in random order immediately after the pretest. Control group participants performed no stretching or movement between running sessions. Main Outcome Measure(s): Six 2-way analyses of variance to determine joint angle differences between groups at maximum hip flexion and maximum knee extension with an α level of .008. Results: Flexibility increased between pretest and post-test in all participants (F1,30 = 80.61, P<.001). Anterior pelvic tilt (F1,30 = 0.73, P=.40), hip flexion (F1,30 = 2.44, P=.13), and knee extension (F1,30 = 0.06, P=.80) at maximum hip flexion were similar between groups throughout testing. Anterior pelvic tilt (F1,30 = 0.69, P=.41), hip flexion (F1,30 = 0.23, P=.64), and knee extension (F1,30 = 3.38, P=.62) at maximum knee extension were similar between groups throughout testing. Men demonstrated greater anterior pelvic tilt than women at maximum knee extension (F1,30 = 13.62, P=.001). Conclusions: A single session of 3 straight-leg raise hamstring stretches did not change pelvis, hip, or knee running kinematics. PMID:22488225

Reducing the complexity of the CCSDS standard for image compression decreasing the DWT filter order

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ito, Leandro H.; Pinho, Marcelo S.

2014-10-01

The goal for this work is to evaluate the impact of utilizing shorter wavelet filters in the CCSDS standard for lossy and lossless image compression. Another constraint considered was the existence of symmetry in the filters. That approach was desired to maintain the symmetric extension compatibility of the filter banks. Even though this strategy works well for oat wavelets, it is not always the case for their integer approximations. The periodic extension was utilized whenever symmetric extension was not applicable. Even though the latter outperforms the former, for fair comparison the symmetric extension compatible integer-to-integer wavelet approximations were evaluated under both extensions. The evaluation methods adopted were bit rate (bpp), PSNR and the number of operations required by each wavelet transforms. All these results were compared against the ones obtained utilizing the standard CCSDS with 9/7 filter banks, for lossy and lossless compression. The tests were performed over tallies (512x512) of raw remote sensing images from CBERS-2B (China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellites) captured from its high resolution CCD camera. These images were cordially made available by INPE (National Institute for Space Research) in Brazil. For the CCSDS implementation, it was utilized the source code developed by Hongqiang Wang from the Electrical Department at Nebraska-Lincoln University, applying the appropriate changes on the wavelet transform. For lossy compression, the results have shown that the filter bank built from the Deslauriers-Dubuc scaling function, with respectively 2 and 4 vanishing moments on the synthesis and analysis banks, presented not only a reduction of 21% in the number of operations required, but also a performance on par with the 9/7 filter bank. In the lossless case, the biorthogonal Cohen-Daubechies-Feauveau with 2 vanishing moments presented a performance close to the 9/7 integer approximation of the CCSDS, with the number of operations reduced by 1/3.

Is digital photography an accurate and precise method for measuring range of motion of the hip and knee?

PubMed

Russo, Russell R; Burn, Matthew B; Ismaily, Sabir K; Gerrie, Brayden J; Han, Shuyang; Alexander, Jerry; Lenherr, Christopher; Noble, Philip C; Harris, Joshua D; McCulloch, Patrick C

2017-09-07

Accurate measurements of knee and hip motion are required for management of musculoskeletal pathology. The purpose of this investigation was to compare three techniques for measuring motion at the hip and knee. The authors hypothesized that digital photography would be equivalent in accuracy and show higher precision compared to the other two techniques. Using infrared motion capture analysis as the reference standard, hip flexion/abduction/internal rotation/external rotation and knee flexion/extension were measured using visual estimation, goniometry, and photography on 10 fresh frozen cadavers. These measurements were performed by three physical therapists and three orthopaedic surgeons. Accuracy was defined by the difference from the reference standard, while precision was defined by the proportion of measurements within either 5° or 10°. Analysis of variance (ANOVA), t-tests, and chi-squared tests were used. Although two statistically significant differences were found in measurement accuracy between the three techniques, neither of these differences met clinical significance (difference of 1.4° for hip abduction and 1.7° for the knee extension). Precision of measurements was significantly higher for digital photography than: (i) visual estimation for hip abduction and knee extension, and (ii) goniometry for knee extension only. There was no clinically significant difference in measurement accuracy between the three techniques for hip and knee motion. Digital photography only showed higher precision for two joint motions (hip abduction and knee extension). Overall digital photography shows equivalent accuracy and near-equivalent precision to visual estimation and goniometry.

A Parallel Independent Component Analysis Approach to Investigate Genomic Influence on Brain Function

PubMed Central

Liu, Jingyu; Demirci, Oguz; Calhoun, Vince D.

2009-01-01

Relationships between genomic data and functional brain images are of great interest but require new analysis approaches to integrate the high-dimensional data types. This letter presents an extension of a technique called parallel independent component analysis (paraICA), which enables the joint analysis of multiple modalities including interconnections between them. We extend our earlier work by allowing for multiple interconnections and by providing important overfitting controls. Performance was assessed by simulations under different conditions, and indicated reliable results can be extracted by properly balancing overfitting and underfitting. An application to functional magnetic resonance images and single nucleotide polymorphism array produced interesting findings. PMID:19834575

A Parallel Independent Component Analysis Approach to Investigate Genomic Influence on Brain Function.

PubMed

Liu, Jingyu; Demirci, Oguz; Calhoun, Vince D

2008-01-01

Relationships between genomic data and functional brain images are of great interest but require new analysis approaches to integrate the high-dimensional data types. This letter presents an extension of a technique called parallel independent component analysis (paraICA), which enables the joint analysis of multiple modalities including interconnections between them. We extend our earlier work by allowing for multiple interconnections and by providing important overfitting controls. Performance was assessed by simulations under different conditions, and indicated reliable results can be extracted by properly balancing overfitting and underfitting. An application to functional magnetic resonance images and single nucleotide polymorphism array produced interesting findings.

The effects of sleep extension on the athletic performance of collegiate basketball players.

PubMed

Mah, Cheri D; Mah, Kenneth E; Kezirian, Eric J; Dement, William C

2011-07-01

To investigate the effects of sleep extension over multiple weeks on specific measures of athletic performance as well as reaction time, mood, and daytime sleepiness. Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic and Research Laboratory and Maples Pavilion, Stanford University, Stanford, CA. Eleven healthy students on the Stanford University men's varsity basketball team (mean age 19.4 ± 1.4 years). Subjects maintained their habitual sleep-wake schedule for a 2-4 week baseline followed by a 5-7 week sleep extension period. Subjects obtained as much nocturnal sleep as possible during sleep extension with a minimum goal of 10 h in bed each night. Measures of athletic performance specific to basketball were recorded after every practice including a timed sprint and shooting accuracy. Reaction time, levels of daytime sleepiness, and mood were monitored via the Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT), Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), and Profile of Mood States (POMS), respectively. Total objective nightly sleep time increased during sleep extension compared to baseline by 110.9 ± 79.7 min (P < 0.001). Subjects demonstrated a faster timed sprint following sleep extension (16.2 ± 0.61 sec at baseline vs. 15.5 ± 0.54 sec at end of sleep extension, P < 0.001). Shooting accuracy improved, with free throw percentage increasing by 9% and 3-point field goal percentage increasing by 9.2% (P < 0.001). Mean PVT reaction time and Epworth Sleepiness Scale scores decreased following sleep extension (P < 0.01). POMS scores improved with increased vigor and decreased fatigue subscales (P < 0.001). Subjects also reported improved overall ratings of physical and mental well-being during practices and games. Improvements in specific measures of basketball performance after sleep extension indicate that optimal sleep is likely beneficial in reaching peak athletic performance.

The Impact of the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) on Two State Cooperative Extension Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baughman, Sarah; Boyd, Heather H.; Kelsey, Kathleen D.

2012-01-01

The research reported here examined the impact of the Government Performance and Results Act on accountability and evaluation activities in two state Cooperative Extension Systems. Accountability was examined using five dimensions from Koppell's (2005) framework. Findings indicated both Extension systems transferred accountability activities to…

Types and Role Performance of the Extension Field Staff in a Midwestern University.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lionberger, Herbert F.; Pope, LaVern A.

To identify and describe extension role types, all educational assistants in the Small Farm Program, agricultural specialists, and community development and local government specialists in Missouri were asked to fill out questionnaires asking how frequently they performed 56 activities broadly representing what extension field staff might do.…

Isokinetic Extension Strength Is Associated With Single-Leg Vertical Jump Height

PubMed Central

Fischer, Felix; Blank, Cornelia; Dünnwald, Tobias; Gföller, Peter; Herbst, Elmar; Hoser, Christian; Fink, Christian

2017-01-01

Background: Isokinetic strength testing is an important tool in the evaluation of the physical capacities of athletes as well as for decision making regarding return to sports after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction in both athletes and the lay population. However, isokinetic testing is time consuming and requires special testing equipment. Hypothesis: A single-jump test, regardless of leg dominance, may provide information regarding knee extension strength through the use of correlation analysis of jump height and peak torque of isokinetic muscle strength. Study Design: Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: A total of 169 patients who underwent ACL reconstruction were included in this study. Isokinetic testing was performed on the injured and noninjured legs. Additionally, a single-leg countermovement jump was performed to assess jump height using a jump accelerometer sensor. Extension strength values were used to assess the association between isokinetic muscle strength and jump height. Results: The sample consisted of 60 female (mean age, 20.8 ± 8.3 years; mean weight, 61.7 ± 6.5 kg; mean height, 167.7 ± 5.3 cm) and 109 male (mean age, 23.2 ± 7.7 years; mean weight, 74.6 ± 10.2 kg; mean height, 179.9 ± 6.9 cm) patients. Bivariate correlation analysis showed an association (r = 0.56, P < .001) between jump height and isokinetic extension strength on the noninvolved side as well as an association (r = 0.52, P < .001) for the involved side. Regression analysis showed that in addition to jump height (beta = 0.49, P < .001), sex (beta = –0.17, P = .008) and body mass index (beta = 0.37, P < .001) affected isokinetic strength. The final model explained 51.1% of the variance in isokinetic muscle strength, with jump height having the strongest impact (beta = 0.49, P < .001) and explaining 31.5% of the variance. Conclusion: Initial analysis showed a strong association between isokinetic strength and jump height. The study population encompassed various backgrounds, skill levels, and activity profiles, which might have affected the outcome. Even after controlling for age and sex, isokinetic strength was still moderately associated with jump height. Therefore, the jump technique and type of sport should be considered in future research. PMID:29147670

Highly accurate apparatus for electrochemical characterization of the felt electrodes used in redox flow batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Jong Ho; Park, Jung Jin; Park, O. Ok; Jin, Chang-Soo; Yang, Jung Hoon

2016-04-01

Because of the rise in renewable energy use, the redox flow battery (RFB) has attracted extensive attention as an energy storage system. Thus, many studies have focused on improving the performance of the felt electrodes used in RFBs. However, existing analysis cells are unsuitable for characterizing felt electrodes because of their complex 3-dimensional structure. Analysis is also greatly affected by the measurement conditions, viz. compression ratio, contact area, and contact strength between the felt and current collector. To address the growing need for practical analytical apparatus, we report a new analysis cell for accurate electrochemical characterization of felt electrodes under various conditions, and compare it with previous ones. In this cell, the measurement conditions can be exhaustively controlled with a compression supporter. The cell showed excellent reproducibility in cyclic voltammetry analysis and the results agreed well with actual RFB charge-discharge performance.

Global spectral graph wavelet signature for surface analysis of carpal bones

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Masoumi, Majid; Rezaei, Mahsa; Ben Hamza, A.

2018-02-01

Quantitative shape comparison is a fundamental problem in computer vision, geometry processing and medical imaging. In this paper, we present a spectral graph wavelet approach for shape analysis of carpal bones of the human wrist. We employ spectral graph wavelets to represent the cortical surface of a carpal bone via the spectral geometric analysis of the Laplace-Beltrami operator in the discrete domain. We propose global spectral graph wavelet (GSGW) descriptor that is isometric invariant, efficient to compute, and combines the advantages of both low-pass and band-pass filters. We perform experiments on shapes of the carpal bones of ten women and ten men from a publicly-available database of wrist bones. Using one-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and permutation testing, we show through extensive experiments that the proposed GSGW framework gives a much better performance compared to the global point signature embedding approach for comparing shapes of the carpal bones across populations.

Global spectral graph wavelet signature for surface analysis of carpal bones.

PubMed

Masoumi, Majid; Rezaei, Mahsa; Ben Hamza, A

2018-02-05

Quantitative shape comparison is a fundamental problem in computer vision, geometry processing and medical imaging. In this paper, we present a spectral graph wavelet approach for shape analysis of carpal bones of the human wrist. We employ spectral graph wavelets to represent the cortical surface of a carpal bone via the spectral geometric analysis of the Laplace-Beltrami operator in the discrete domain. We propose global spectral graph wavelet (GSGW) descriptor that is isometric invariant, efficient to compute, and combines the advantages of both low-pass and band-pass filters. We perform experiments on shapes of the carpal bones of ten women and ten men from a publicly-available database of wrist bones. Using one-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and permutation testing, we show through extensive experiments that the proposed GSGW framework gives a much better performance compared to the global point signature embedding approach for comparing shapes of the carpal bones across populations.

Computational analysis of a multistage axial compressor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mamidoju, Chaithanya

Turbomachines are used extensively in Aerospace, Power Generation, and Oil & Gas Industries. Efficiency of these machines is often an important factor and has led to the continuous effort to improve the design to achieve better efficiency. The axial flow compressor is a major component in a gas turbine with the turbine's overall performance depending strongly on compressor performance. Traditional analysis of axial compressors involves throughflow calculations, isolated blade passage analysis, Quasi-3D blade-to-blade analysis, single-stage (rotor-stator) analysis, and multi-stage analysis involving larger design cycles. In the current study, the detailed flow through a 15 stage axial compressor is analyzed using a 3-D Navier Stokes CFD solver in a parallel computing environment. Methodology is described for steady state (frozen rotor stator) analysis of one blade passage per component. Various effects such as mesh type and density, boundary conditions, tip clearance and numerical issues such as turbulence model choice, advection model choice, and parallel processing performance are analyzed. A high sensitivity of the predictions to the above was found. Physical explanation to the flow features observed in the computational study are given. The total pressure rise verses mass flow rate was computed.

Physics based modeling of a series parallel battery pack for asymmetry analysis, predictive control and life extension

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ganesan, Nandhini; Basu, Suman; Hariharan, Krishnan S.; Kolake, Subramanya Mayya; Song, Taewon; Yeo, Taejung; Sohn, Dong Kee; Doo, Seokgwang

2016-08-01

Lithium-Ion batteries used for electric vehicle applications are subject to large currents and various operation conditions, making battery pack design and life extension a challenging problem. With increase in complexity, modeling and simulation can lead to insights that ensure optimal performance and life extension. In this manuscript, an electrochemical-thermal (ECT) coupled model for a 6 series × 5 parallel pack is developed for Li ion cells with NCA/C electrodes and validated against experimental data. Contribution of the cathode to overall degradation at various operating conditions is assessed. Pack asymmetry is analyzed from a design and an operational perspective. Design based asymmetry leads to a new approach of obtaining the individual cell responses of the pack from an average ECT output. Operational asymmetry is demonstrated in terms of effects of thermal gradients on cycle life, and an efficient model predictive control technique is developed. Concept of reconfigurable battery pack is studied using detailed simulations that can be used for effective monitoring and extension of battery pack life.

Wound closure in flexion versus extension following total knee arthroplasty: a systematic review.

PubMed

Smith, Toby O; Davies, Leigh; Hing, Caroline B

2010-06-01

Optimising knee range of motion following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is important for patient satisfaction, functional outcome and early rehabilitation to promote accelerated discharge. Historically, wound closure following TKA has been performed in extension. It has been suggested that knee position during wound closure may influence range of motion and clinical outcomes following TKA. The purpose of this study was to determine whether TKA wounds should be closed in flexion or extension. An electronic search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and AMED databases was made in addition to a review of unpublished material. All included papers were critically appraised using a modified PEDro (Physiotherapy Evidence Database) critical appraisal tool. Three papers were eligible, assessing 237 TKAs. On analysis, patients with TKA wounds closed in flexion had greater flexion range of motion and required less domiciliary physiotherapy compared to those with wounds closed in full extension. The specific degree of knee flexion used when closing total knee replacement wounds may be an important variable to clinical outcome. However, the present evidence-base is limited in both size and methodological quality.

The Tracking Meteogram, an AWIPS II Tool for Time-Series Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burks, Jason Eric; Sperow, Ken

2015-01-01

A new tool has been developed for the National Weather Service (NWS) Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS) II through collaboration between NASA's Short-term Prediction Research and Transition (SPoRT) and the NWS Meteorological Development Laboratory (MDL). Referred to as the "Tracking Meteogram", the tool aids NWS forecasters in assessing meteorological parameters associated with moving phenomena. The tool aids forecasters in severe weather situations by providing valuable satellite and radar derived trends such as cloud top cooling rates, radial velocity couplets, reflectivity, and information from ground-based lightning networks. The Tracking Meteogram tool also aids in synoptic and mesoscale analysis by tracking parameters such as the deepening of surface low pressure systems, changes in surface or upper air temperature, and other properties. The tool provides a valuable new functionality and demonstrates the flexibility and extensibility of the NWS AWIPS II architecture. In 2014, the operational impact of the tool was formally evaluated through participation in the NOAA/NWS Operations Proving Ground (OPG), a risk reduction activity to assess performance and operational impact of new forecasting concepts, tools, and applications. Performance of the Tracking Meteogram Tool during the OPG assessment confirmed that it will be a valuable asset to the operational forecasters. This presentation reviews development of the Tracking Meteogram tool, performance and feedback acquired during the OPG activity, and future goals for continued support and extension to other application areas.

Validation of the Leap Motion Controller using markered motion capture technology.

PubMed

Smeragliuolo, Anna H; Hill, N Jeremy; Disla, Luis; Putrino, David

2016-06-14

The Leap Motion Controller (LMC) is a low-cost, markerless motion capture device that tracks hand, wrist and forearm position. Integration of this technology into healthcare applications has begun to occur rapidly, making validation of the LMC׳s data output an important research goal. Here, we perform a detailed evaluation of the kinematic data output from the LMC, and validate this output against gold-standard, markered motion capture technology. We instructed subjects to perform three clinically-relevant wrist (flexion/extension, radial/ulnar deviation) and forearm (pronation/supination) movements. The movements were simultaneously tracked using both the LMC and a marker-based motion capture system from Motion Analysis Corporation (MAC). Adjusting for known inconsistencies in the LMC sampling frequency, we compared simultaneously acquired LMC and MAC data by performing Pearson׳s correlation (r) and root mean square error (RMSE). Wrist flexion/extension and radial/ulnar deviation showed good overall agreement (r=0.95; RMSE=11.6°, and r=0.92; RMSE=12.4°, respectively) with the MAC system. However, when tracking forearm pronation/supination, there were serious inconsistencies in reported joint angles (r=0.79; RMSE=38.4°). Hand posture significantly influenced the quality of wrist deviation (P<0.005) and forearm supination/pronation (P<0.001), but not wrist flexion/extension (P=0.29). We conclude that the LMC is capable of providing data that are clinically meaningful for wrist flexion/extension, and perhaps wrist deviation. It cannot yet return clinically meaningful data for measuring forearm pronation/supination. Future studies should continue to validate the LMC as updated versions of their software are developed. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Cross-Platform Infrastructure for Scalable Runtime Application Performance Analysis

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

Jack Dongarra; Shirley Moore; Bart Miller, Jeffrey Hollingsworth

2005-03-15

The purpose of this project was to build an extensible cross-platform infrastructure to facilitate the development of accurate and portable performance analysis tools for current and future high performance computing (HPC) architectures. Major accomplishments include tools and techniques for multidimensional performance analysis, as well as improved support for dynamic performance monitoring of multithreaded and multiprocess applications. Previous performance tool development has been limited by the burden of having to re-write a platform-dependent low-level substrate for each architecture/operating system pair in order to obtain the necessary performance data from the system. Manual interpretation of performance data is not scalable for large-scalemore » long-running applications. The infrastructure developed by this project provides a foundation for building portable and scalable performance analysis tools, with the end goal being to provide application developers with the information they need to analyze, understand, and tune the performance of terascale applications on HPC architectures. The backend portion of the infrastructure provides runtime instrumentation capability and access to hardware performance counters, with thread-safety for shared memory environments and a communication substrate to support instrumentation of multiprocess and distributed programs. Front end interfaces provides tool developers with a well-defined, platform-independent set of calls for requesting performance data. End-user tools have been developed that demonstrate runtime data collection, on-line and off-line analysis of performance data, and multidimensional performance analysis. The infrastructure is based on two underlying performance instrumentation technologies. These technologies are the PAPI cross-platform library interface to hardware performance counters and the cross-platform Dyninst library interface for runtime modification of executable images. The Paradyn and KOJAK projects have made use of this infrastructure to build performance measurement and analysis tools that scale to long-running programs on large parallel and distributed systems and that automate much of the search for performance bottlenecks.« less

Functional network mediates age-related differences in reaction time: a replication and extension study

PubMed Central

Gazes, Yunglin; Habeck, Christian; O'Shea, Deirdre; Razlighi, Qolamreza R; Steffener, Jason; Stern, Yaakov

2015-01-01

Introduction A functional activation (i.e., ordinal trend) pattern was previously identified in both young and older adults during task-switching performance, the expression of which correlated with reaction time. The current study aimed to (1) replicate this functional activation pattern in a new group of fMRI activation data, and (2) extend the previous study by specifically examining whether the effect of aging on reaction time can be explained by differences in the activation of the functional activation pattern. Method A total of 47 young and 50 older participants were included in the extension analysis. Participants performed task-switching as the activation task and were cued by the color of the stimulus for the task to be performed in each block. To test for replication, two approaches were implemented. The first approach tested the replicability of the predictive power of the previously identified functional activation pattern by forward applying the pattern to the Study II data and the second approach was rederivation of the activation pattern in the Study II data. Results Both approaches showed successful replication in the new data set. Using mediation analysis, expression of the pattern from the first approach was found to partially mediate age-related effects on reaction time such that older age was associated with greater activation of the brain pattern and longer reaction time, suggesting that brain activation efficiency (defined as “the rate of activation increase with increasing task difficulty” in Neuropsychologia 47, 2009, 2015) of the regions in the Ordinal trend pattern directly accounts for age-related differences in task performance. Discussion The successful replication of the functional activation pattern demonstrates the versatility of the Ordinal Trend Canonical Variates Analysis, and the ability to summarize each participant's brain activation map into one number provides a useful metric in multimodal analysis as well as cross-study comparisons. PMID:25874162

A Decentralized Wireless Solution to Monitor and Diagnose PV Solar Module Performance Based on Symmetrized-Shifted Gompertz Functions

PubMed Central

Molina-García, Angel; Campelo, José Carlos; Blanc, Sara; Serrano, Juan José; García-Sánchez, Tania; Bueso, María C.

2015-01-01

This paper proposes and assesses an integrated solution to monitor and diagnose photovoltaic (PV) solar modules based on a decentralized wireless sensor acquisition system. Both DC electrical variables and environmental data are collected at PV module level using low-cost and high-energy efficiency node sensors. Data is real-time processed locally and compared with expected PV module performances obtained by a PV module model based on symmetrized-shifted Gompertz functions (as previously developed and assessed by the authors). Sensor nodes send data to a centralized sink-computing module using a multi-hop wireless sensor network architecture. Such integration thus provides extensive analysis of PV installations, and avoids off-line tests or post-processing processes. In comparison with previous approaches, this solution is enhanced with a low-cost system and non-critical performance constraints, and it is suitable for extensive deployment in PV power plants. Moreover, it is easily implemented in existing PV installations, since no additional wiring is required. The system has been implemented and assessed in a Spanish PV power plant connected to the grid. Results and estimations of PV module performances are also included in the paper. PMID:26230694

High-Level Performance Modeling of SAR Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Curtis

2006-01-01

SAUSAGE (Still Another Utility for SAR Analysis that s General and Extensible) is a computer program for modeling (see figure) the performance of synthetic- aperture radar (SAR) or interferometric synthetic-aperture radar (InSAR or IFSAR) systems. The user is assumed to be familiar with the basic principles of SAR imaging and interferometry. Given design parameters (e.g., altitude, power, and bandwidth) that characterize a radar system, the software predicts various performance metrics (e.g., signal-to-noise ratio and resolution). SAUSAGE is intended to be a general software tool for quick, high-level evaluation of radar designs; it is not meant to capture all the subtleties, nuances, and particulars of specific systems. SAUSAGE was written to facilitate the exploration of engineering tradeoffs within the multidimensional space of design parameters. Typically, this space is examined through an iterative process of adjusting the values of the design parameters and examining the effects of the adjustments on the overall performance of the system at each iteration. The software is designed to be modular and extensible to enable consideration of a variety of operating modes and antenna beam patterns, including, for example, strip-map and spotlight SAR acquisitions, polarimetry, burst modes, and squinted geometries.

A Decentralized Wireless Solution to Monitor and Diagnose PV Solar Module Performance Based on Symmetrized-Shifted Gompertz Functions.

PubMed

Molina-García, Angel; Campelo, José Carlos; Blanc, Sara; Serrano, Juan José; García-Sánchez, Tania; Bueso, María C

2015-07-29

This paper proposes and assesses an integrated solution to monitor and diagnose photovoltaic (PV) solar modules based on a decentralized wireless sensor acquisition system. Both DC electrical variables and environmental data are collected at PV module level using low-cost and high-energy efficiency node sensors. Data is real-time processed locally and compared with expected PV module performances obtained by a PV module model based on symmetrized-shifted Gompertz functions (as previously developed and assessed by the authors). Sensor nodes send data to a centralized sink-computing module using a multi-hop wireless sensor network architecture. Such integration thus provides extensive analysis of PV installations, and avoids off-line tests or post-processing processes. In comparison with previous approaches, this solution is enhanced with a low-cost system and non-critical performance constraints, and it is suitable for extensive deployment in PV power plants. Moreover, it is easily implemented in existing PV installations, since no additional wiring is required. The system has been implemented and assessed in a Spanish PV power plant connected to the grid. Results and estimations of PV module performances are also included in the paper.

Segment-interaction in sprint start: Analysis of 3D angular velocity and kinetic energy in elite sprinters.

PubMed

Slawinski, J; Bonnefoy, A; Ontanon, G; Leveque, J M; Miller, C; Riquet, A; Chèze, L; Dumas, R

2010-05-28

The aim of the present study was to measure during a sprint start the joint angular velocity and the kinetic energy of the different segments in elite sprinters. This was performed using a 3D kinematic analysis of the whole body. Eight elite sprinters (10.30+/-0.14s 100 m time), equipped with 63 passive reflective markers, realised four maximal 10 m sprints start on an indoor track. An opto-electronic Motion Analysis system consisting of 12 digital cameras (250 Hz) was used to collect the 3D marker trajectories. During the pushing phase on the blocks, the 3D angular velocity vector and its norm were calculated for each joint. The kinetic energy of 16 segments of the lower and upper limbs and of the total body was calculated. The 3D kinematic analysis of the whole body demonstrated that joints such as shoulders, thoracic or hips did not reach their maximal angular velocity with a movement of flexion-extension, but with a combination of flexion-extension, abduction-adduction and internal-external rotation. The maximal kinetic energy of the total body was reached before clearing block (respectively, 537+/-59.3 J vs. 514.9+/-66.0 J; p< or =0.01). These results suggested that a better synchronization between the upper and lower limbs could increase the efficiency of pushing phase on the blocks. Besides, to understand low interindividual variances in the sprint start performance in elite athletes, a 3D complete body kinematic analysis shall be used. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Oligonucleotide arrays vs. metaphase-comparative genomic hybridisation and BAC arrays for single-cell analysis: first applications to preimplantation genetic diagnosis for Robertsonian translocation carriers.

PubMed

Ramos, Laia; del Rey, Javier; Daina, Gemma; García-Aragonés, Manel; Armengol, Lluís; Fernandez-Encinas, Alba; Parriego, Mònica; Boada, Montserrat; Martinez-Passarell, Olga; Martorell, Maria Rosa; Casagran, Oriol; Benet, Jordi; Navarro, Joaquima

2014-01-01

Comprehensive chromosome analysis techniques such as metaphase-Comparative Genomic Hybridisation (CGH) and array-CGH are available for single-cell analysis. However, while metaphase-CGH and BAC array-CGH have been widely used for Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis, oligonucleotide array-CGH has not been used in an extensive way. A comparison between oligonucleotide array-CGH and metaphase-CGH has been performed analysing 15 single fibroblasts from aneuploid cell-lines and 18 single blastomeres from human cleavage-stage embryos. Afterwards, oligonucleotide array-CGH and BAC array-CGH were also compared analysing 16 single blastomeres from human cleavage-stage embryos. All three comprehensive analysis techniques provided broadly similar cytogenetic profiles; however, non-identical profiles appeared when extensive aneuploidies were present in a cell. Both array techniques provided an optimised analysis procedure and a higher resolution than metaphase-CGH. Moreover, oligonucleotide array-CGH was able to define extra segmental imbalances in 14.7% of the blastomeres and it better determined the specific unbalanced chromosome regions due to a higher resolution of the technique (≈ 20 kb). Applicability of oligonucleotide array-CGH for Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis has been demonstrated in two cases of Robertsonian translocation carriers 45,XY,der(13;14)(q10;q10). Transfer of euploid embryos was performed in both cases and pregnancy was achieved by one of the couples. This is the first time that an oligonucleotide array-CGH approach has been successfully applied to Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis for balanced chromosome rearrangement carriers.

Oligonucleotide Arrays vs. Metaphase-Comparative Genomic Hybridisation and BAC Arrays for Single-Cell Analysis: First Applications to Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis for Robertsonian Translocation Carriers

PubMed Central

Ramos, Laia; del Rey, Javier; Daina, Gemma; García-Aragonés, Manel; Armengol, Lluís; Fernandez-Encinas, Alba; Parriego, Mònica; Boada, Montserrat; Martinez-Passarell, Olga; Martorell, Maria Rosa; Casagran, Oriol; Benet, Jordi; Navarro, Joaquima

2014-01-01

Comprehensive chromosome analysis techniques such as metaphase-Comparative Genomic Hybridisation (CGH) and array-CGH are available for single-cell analysis. However, while metaphase-CGH and BAC array-CGH have been widely used for Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis, oligonucleotide array-CGH has not been used in an extensive way. A comparison between oligonucleotide array-CGH and metaphase-CGH has been performed analysing 15 single fibroblasts from aneuploid cell-lines and 18 single blastomeres from human cleavage-stage embryos. Afterwards, oligonucleotide array-CGH and BAC array-CGH were also compared analysing 16 single blastomeres from human cleavage-stage embryos. All three comprehensive analysis techniques provided broadly similar cytogenetic profiles; however, non-identical profiles appeared when extensive aneuploidies were present in a cell. Both array techniques provided an optimised analysis procedure and a higher resolution than metaphase-CGH. Moreover, oligonucleotide array-CGH was able to define extra segmental imbalances in 14.7% of the blastomeres and it better determined the specific unbalanced chromosome regions due to a higher resolution of the technique (≈20 kb). Applicability of oligonucleotide array-CGH for Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis has been demonstrated in two cases of Robertsonian translocation carriers 45,XY,der(13;14)(q10;q10). Transfer of euploid embryos was performed in both cases and pregnancy was achieved by one of the couples. This is the first time that an oligonucleotide array-CGH approach has been successfully applied to Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis for balanced chromosome rearrangement carriers. PMID:25415307

permGPU: Using graphics processing units in RNA microarray association studies.

PubMed

Shterev, Ivo D; Jung, Sin-Ho; George, Stephen L; Owzar, Kouros

2010-06-16

Many analyses of microarray association studies involve permutation, bootstrap resampling and cross-validation, that are ideally formulated as embarrassingly parallel computing problems. Given that these analyses are computationally intensive, scalable approaches that can take advantage of multi-core processor systems need to be developed. We have developed a CUDA based implementation, permGPU, that employs graphics processing units in microarray association studies. We illustrate the performance and applicability of permGPU within the context of permutation resampling for a number of test statistics. An extensive simulation study demonstrates a dramatic increase in performance when using permGPU on an NVIDIA GTX 280 card compared to an optimized C/C++ solution running on a conventional Linux server. permGPU is available as an open-source stand-alone application and as an extension package for the R statistical environment. It provides a dramatic increase in performance for permutation resampling analysis in the context of microarray association studies. The current version offers six test statistics for carrying out permutation resampling analyses for binary, quantitative and censored time-to-event traits.

Structurally Integrated, Damage-Tolerant, Thermal Spray Coatings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vackel, Andrew; Dwivedi, Gopal; Sampath, Sanjay

2015-07-01

Thermal spray coatings are used extensively for the protection and life extension of engineering components exposed to harsh wear and/or corrosion during service in aerospace, energy, and heavy machinery sectors. Cermet coatings applied via high-velocity thermal spray are used in aggressive wear situations almost always coupled with corrosive environments. In several instances (e.g., landing gear), coatings are considered as part of the structure requiring system-level considerations. Despite their widespread use, the technology has lacked generalized scientific principles for robust coating design, manufacturing, and performance analysis. Advances in process and in situ diagnostics have provided significant insights into the process-structure-property-performance correlations providing a framework-enhanced design. In this overview, critical aspects of materials, process, parametrics, and performance are discussed through exemplary studies on relevant compositions. The underlying connective theme is understanding and controlling residual stresses generation, which not only addresses process dynamics but also provides linkage for process-property relationship for both the system (e.g., fatigue) and the surface (wear and corrosion). The anisotropic microstructure also invokes the need for damage-tolerant material design to meet future goals.

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

Bonachea, D.; Dickens, P.; Thakur, R.

There is a growing interest in using Java as the language for developing high-performance computing applications. To be successful in the high-performance computing domain, however, Java must not only be able to provide high computational performance, but also high-performance I/O. In this paper, we first examine several approaches that attempt to provide high-performance I/O in Java - many of which are not obvious at first glance - and evaluate their performance on two parallel machines, the IBM SP and the SGI Origin2000. We then propose extensions to the Java I/O library that address the deficiencies in the Java I/O APImore » and improve performance dramatically. The extensions add bulk (array) I/O operations to Java, thereby removing much of the overhead currently associated with array I/O in Java. We have implemented the extensions in two ways: in a standard JVM using the Java Native Interface (JNI) and in a high-performance parallel dialect of Java called Titanium. We describe the two implementations and present performance results that demonstrate the benefits of the proposed extensions.« less

What reassurances do the community need regarding life extension? Evidence from studies of community attitudes and an analysis of film portrayals.

PubMed

Underwood, Mair

2014-04-01

It is increasingly recognized that community attitudes impact on the research trajectory, entry, and reception of new biotechnologies. Yet biogerontologists have generally been dismissive of public concerns about life extension. There is some evidence that biogerontological research agendas have not been communicated effectively, with studies finding that most community members have little or no knowledge of life extension research. In the absence of knowledge, community members' attitudes may well be shaped by issues raised in popular portrayals of life extension (e.g., in movies). To investigate how popular portrayals of life extension may influence community attitudes, I conducted an analysis of 19 films depicting human life extension across different genres. I focussed on how the pursuit of life extension was depicted, how life extension was achieved, the levels of interest in life extension shown by characters in the films, and the experiences of extended life depicted both at an individual and societal level. This paper compares the results of this analysis with the literature on community attitudes to life extension and makes recommendations about the issues in which the public may require reassurance if they are to support and accept life extension technologies.

MtDNA mutations are a common cause of severe disease phenotypes in children with Leigh syndrome.

PubMed

Naess, Karin; Freyer, Christoph; Bruhn, Helene; Wibom, Rolf; Malm, Gunilla; Nennesmo, Inger; von Döbeln, Ulrika; Larsson, Nils-Göran

2009-05-01

Leigh syndrome is a common clinical manifestation in children with mitochondrial disease and other types of inborn errors of metabolism. We characterised clinical symptoms, prognosis, respiratory chain function and performed extensive genetic analysis of 25 Swedish children suffering from Leigh syndrome with the aim to obtain insights into the molecular pathophysiology and to provide a rationale for genetic counselling. We reviewed the clinical history of all patients and used muscle biopsies in order to perform molecular, biochemical and genetic investigations, including sequencing the entire mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), the mitochondrial DNA polymerase (POLGA) gene and the surfeit locus protein 1 (SURF1) gene. Respiratory chain enzyme activity measurements identified five patients with isolated complex I deficiency and five with combined enzyme deficiencies. No patient presented with isolated complex IV deficiency. Seven patients had a decreased ATP production rate. Extensive sequence analysis identified eight patients with pathogenic mtDNA mutations and one patient with mutations in POLGA. Mutations of mtDNA are a common cause of LS and mtDNA analysis should always be included in the diagnosis of LS patients, whereas SURF1 mutations are not a common cause of LS in Sweden. Unexpectedly, age of onset, clinical symptoms and prognosis did not reveal any clear differences in LS patients with mtDNA or nuclear DNA mutations.

Combined pituitary hormone deficiency (CPHD) due to a complete PROP1 deletion.

PubMed

Abrão, M G; Leite, M V; Carvalho, L R; Billerbeck, A E C; Nishi, M Y; Barbosa, A S; Martin, R M; Arnhold, I J P; Mendonca, B B

2006-09-01

PROP1 mutations are the most common cause of genetic combined pituitary hormone deficiency (CPHD). The aim of this study was to investigate the PROP1 gene in two siblings with CPHD. Pituitary function and imaging assessment and molecular analysis of PROP1. Two siblings, born to consanguineous parents, presented with GH deficiency associated with other pituitary hormone deficiencies (TSH, PRL and gonadotrophins). The male sibling also had an evolving cortisol deficiency. Pituitary size was evaluated by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). PROP1 gene analysis was performed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), automatic sequencing and Southern blotting. Amplification of sequence tag sites (STS) and the Q8N6H0 gene flanking PROP1 were performed to define the extension of PROP1 deletion. MRI revealed a hypoplastic anterior pituitary in the girl at 14 years and pituitary enlargement in the boy at 18 years. The PROP1 gene failed to amplify in both siblings, whereas other genes were amplified. Southern blotting analysis revealed the PROP1 band in the controls and confirmed complete PROP1 deletion in both siblings. The extension of the deletion was 18.4 kb. The region flanking PROP1 contains several Alu core sequences that might have facilitated stem-loop-mediated excision of PROP1. We report here a complete deletion of PROP1 in two siblings with CPHD phenotype.

Diagnostic fragment-ion-based and extension strategy coupled to DFIs intensity analysis for identification of chlorogenic acids isomers in Flos Lonicerae Japonicae by HPLC-ESI-MS(n).

PubMed

Zhang, Jia-Yu; Zhang, Qian; Li, Ning; Wang, Zi-Jian; Lu, Jian-Qiu; Qiao, Yan-Jiang

2013-01-30

A method of modified diagnostic fragment-ion-based extension strategy (DFIBES) coupled to DFIs (diagnostic fragmentation ions) intensity analysis was successfully established to simultaneously screen and identify the chlorogenic acids (CGAs) in Flos Lonicerae Japonicae (FLJ) by HPLC-ESI-MS(n). DFIs, such as m/z 191 [quinic acid-H](-), m/z 179 [caffeic acid-H](-) and m/z 173 [quinic acid-H-H2O](-) were determined or proposed from the fragmentation patterns analysis of corresponding reference substances for every chemical family of CGAs. A "structure extension" method was then proposed based on the well-demonstrated fragmentation patterns and was successively applied into the rapid screening of CGAs in FLJ. Considering that substitution isomerism is a common phenomenon, a full ESI-MS(n) fragmentation analysis according to the intensity of DFIs has been performed to identify the CGA isomers. Based on the DFIs and intensity analysis, 41 peaks attributed to CGAs including 4 caffeoylquinic acids (CQA), 7 CQA glycosides, 6 dicaffeoylquinic acids (DiCQA), 10 DiCQA glycosides, 1 tricaffeoylquinic acids (TriCQA), 4p-coumaroylquinic acids (pCoQA), 3 feruloylquinic acids (FQA) and 6 caffeoylferuloylquinic acids (CFQA) were identified preliminarily in a 65-min chromatographic run. It was the first time to systematically report the presence of CGAs in FLJ, especially for CQA glycosides, DiCQA glycosides, TriCQA, pCoQA and CFQA. All the results indicated that the method of developed DFIBES coupled to DFIs analysis was feasible, reliable and universal for screening and identifying the constituents with the same carbon skeletons especially the isomeric compounds from the complex extract of TCMs. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Research in computer science

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ortega, J. M.

1984-01-01

Several short summaries of the work performed during this reporting period are presented. Topics discussed in this document include: (1) resilient seeded errors via simple techniques; (2) knowledge representation for engineering design; (3) analysis of faults in a multiversion software experiment; (4) implementation of parallel programming environment; (5) symbolic execution of concurrent programs; (6) two computer graphics systems for visualization of pressure distribution and convective density particles; (7) design of a source code management system; (8) vectorizing incomplete conjugate gradient on the Cyber 203/205; (9) extensions of domain testing theory and; (10) performance analyzer for the pisces system.

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

Binotti, M.; Zhu, G.; Gray, A.

An analytical approach, as an extension of one newly developed method -- First-principle OPTical Intercept Calculation (FirstOPTIC) -- is proposed to treat the geometrical impact of three-dimensional (3-D) effects on parabolic trough optical performance. The mathematical steps of this analytical approach are presented and implemented numerically as part of the suite of FirstOPTIC code. In addition, the new code has been carefully validated against ray-tracing simulation results and available numerical solutions. This new analytical approach to treating 3-D effects will facilitate further understanding and analysis of the optical performance of trough collectors as a function of incidence angle.

Time-varying surface electromyography topography as a prognostic tool for chronic low back pain rehabilitation.

PubMed

Hu, Yong; Kwok, Jerry Weilun; Tse, Jessica Yuk-Hang; Luk, Keith Dip-Kei

2014-06-01

Nonsurgical rehabilitation therapy is a commonly used strategy to treat chronic low back pain (LBP). The selection of the most appropriate therapeutic options is still a big challenge in clinical practices. Surface electromyography (sEMG) topography has been proposed to be an objective assessment of LBP rehabilitation. The quantitative analysis of dynamic sEMG would provide an objective tool of prognosis for LBP rehabilitation. To evaluate the prognostic value of quantitative sEMG topographic analysis and to verify the accuracy of the performance of proposed time-varying topographic parameters for identifying the patients who have better response toward the rehabilitation program. A retrospective study of consecutive patients. Thirty-eight patients with chronic nonspecific LBP and 43 healthy subjects. The accuracy of the time-varying quantitative sEMG topographic analysis for monitoring LBP rehabilitation progress was determined by calculating the corresponding receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Physiologic measure was the sEMG during lumbar flexion and extension. Patients who suffered from chronic nonspecific LBP without the history of back surgery and any medical conditions causing acute exacerbation of LBP during the clinical test were enlisted to perform the clinical test during the 12-week physiotherapy (PT) treatment. Low back pain patients were classified into two groups: "responding" and "nonresponding" based on the clinical assessment. The responding group referred to the LBP patients who began to recover after the PT treatment, whereas the nonresponding group referred to some LBP patients who did not recover or got worse after the treatment. The results of the time-varying analysis in the responding group were compared with those in the nonresponding group. In addition, the accuracy of the analysis was analyzed through ROC curves. The time-varying analysis showed discrepancies in the root-mean-square difference (RMSD) parameters between the responding and nonresponding groups. The relative area (RA) and relative width (RW) of RMSD at flexion and extension in the responding group were significantly lower than those in the nonresponding group (p<.05). The areas under the ROC curve of RA and RW of RMSD at flexion and extension were greater than 0.7 and were statistically significant. The quantitative time-varying analysis of sEMG topography showed significant difference between the healthy and LBP groups. The discrepancies in quantitative dynamic sEMG topography of LBP group from normal group, in terms of RA and RW of RMSD at flexion and extension, were able to identify those LBP subjects who would respond to a conservative rehabilitation program focused on functional restoration of lumbar muscle. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Orbital exenteration: Institutional review of evolving trends in indications and rehabilitation techniques.

PubMed

Kiratli, Hayyam; Koç, İrem

2018-06-01

To determine the changes in indications for orbital exenteration over 20 years and to assess its impact on patient survival. Evolving techniques of rehabilitation of the orbit in our institution were also evaluated. This was a retrospective review of hospital records of patients who underwent orbital exenteration from 1995 to 2015 in a tertiary care center. Data extracted included primary location of the tumor, preoperative treatments, interval between initial diagnosis and exenteration, status of surgical margins, presence of metastatic disease, and postoperative survival. The types of prosthesis utilized over the years were also reviewed. Cox regression analysis was performed for categorical variables. Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to estimate post-exenteration survival. Over a 20-year period, orbital exenteration was performed on 100 orbits of 100 patients. The mean age was 39.4 years (range: 2 months to 90 years). The most common indications among 98 malignant causes were retinoblastoma, squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma, extraocular extension of uveal melanoma, and conjunctival melanoma. Postoperative survival was significantly related to age and tumor location but independent from gender, surgical margin, histopathological diagnosis, previous treatment modality, and preoperative interval. In the whole cohort, 1-year and 5-year survival rates were 97% and 84%, respectively. Exenteration appears to be life-saving in children with orbital extension of retinoblastoma. While patients exenterated for malignant eyelid tumors have the best chance of survival, those with orbital extension of uveal melanoma and adenoid cystic carcinoma of the lacrimal gland have the worst prognosis.

Do functional tests predict low back pain?

PubMed

Takala, E P; Viikari-Juntura, E

2000-08-15

A cohort of 307 nonsymptomatic workers and another cohort of 123 workers with previous episodes of low back pain were followed up for 2 years. The outcomes were measured by symptoms, medical consultations, and sick leaves due to low back disorders. To study the predictive value of a set of tests measuring the physical performance of the back in a working population. The hypothesis was that subjects with poor functional capacity are liable to back disorders. Reduced functional performance has been associated with back pain. There are few data to show whether reduced functional capacity is a cause or a consequence of pain. Mobility of the trunk in forward and side bending, maximal isokinetic trunk extension, flexion and lifting strength, and static endurance of back extension were measured. Standing balance and foot reaction time were recorded with a force plate. Clinical tests for the provocation of back or leg pain were performed. Gender, workload, age, and anthropometrics were managed as potential confounders in the analysis. Marked overlapping was seen in the measures of the subjects with different outcomes. Among the nonsymptomatic subjects, low performance in tests of mobility and standing balance was associated with future back disorders. Among workers with previous episodes of back pain, low isokinetic extension strength, poor standing balance, and positive clinical signs predicted future pain. Some associations were found between the functional tests and future low back pain. The wide variation in the results questions the value of the tests in health examinations (e.g., in screening or surveillance of low back disorders).

Rehabilitation of the elbow extension with motor imagery in a patient with quadriplegia after tendon transfer.

PubMed

Grangeon, Murielle; Guillot, Aymeric; Sancho, Pierre-Olivier; Picot, Marion; Revol, Patrice; Rode, Gilles; Collet, Christian

2010-07-01

To test the effect of a postsurgical motor imagery program in the rehabilitation of a patient with quadriplegia. Crossover design with kinematic analysis. Rehabilitation Hospital of Lyon. Study approved by the local Human Research Ethics Committee. C6-level injured patient (American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale grade A) with no voluntary elbow extension (triceps brachialis score 1). The surgical procedure was to transfer the distal insertion of the biceps brachii onto the triceps tendon of both arms. The postsurgical intervention on the left arm included 10 sessions of physical rehabilitation followed by 10 motor imagery sessions of 30 minutes each. The patient underwent 5 sessions a week during 2 consecutive weeks. The motor imagery content included mental representations based on elbow extension involved in goal-directed movements. The rehabilitation period of the right arm was reversed, with motor imagery performed first, followed by physical therapy. The kinematics of upper-limb movements was recorded (movement time and variability) before and after each type of rehabilitation period. A long-term retention test was performed 1 month later. Motor imagery training enhanced motor recovery by reducing hand trajectory variability-that is, improving smoothness. Motor performance then remained stable over 1 month. Motor imagery improved motor recovery when associated with physical therapy, with motor performance remaining stable over the 1-month period. We concluded that motor imagery should be successfully associated with classic rehabilitation procedure after tendon transfer. Physical sessions may thus be shortened if too stressful or painful. Copyright 2010 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Effects of Sleep Extension on the Athletic Performance of Collegiate Basketball Players

PubMed Central

Mah, Cheri D.; Mah, Kenneth E.; Kezirian, Eric J.; Dement, William C.

2011-01-01

Study Objectives: To investigate the effects of sleep extension over multiple weeks on specific measures of athletic performance as well as reaction time, mood, and daytime sleepiness. Setting: Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic and Research Laboratory and Maples Pavilion, Stanford University, Stanford, CA. Participants: Eleven healthy students on the Stanford University men's varsity basketball team (mean age 19.4 ± 1.4 years). Interventions: Subjects maintained their habitual sleep-wake schedule for a 2–4 week baseline followed by a 5–7 week sleep extension period. Subjects obtained as much nocturnal sleep as possible during sleep extension with a minimum goal of 10 h in bed each night. Measures of athletic performance specific to basketball were recorded after every practice including a timed sprint and shooting accuracy. Reaction time, levels of daytime sleepiness, and mood were monitored via the Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT), Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), and Profile of Mood States (POMS), respectively. Results: Total objective nightly sleep time increased during sleep extension compared to baseline by 110.9 ± 79.7 min (P < 0.001). Subjects demonstrated a faster timed sprint following sleep extension (16.2 ± 0.61 sec at baseline vs. 15.5 ± 0.54 sec at end of sleep extension, P < 0.001). Shooting accuracy improved, with free throw percentage increasing by 9% and 3-point field goal percentage increasing by 9.2% (P < 0.001). Mean PVT reaction time and Epworth Sleepiness Scale scores decreased following sleep extension (P < 0.01). POMS scores improved with increased vigor and decreased fatigue subscales (P < 0.001). Subjects also reported improved overall ratings of physical and mental well-being during practices and games. Conclusions: Improvements in specific measures of basketball performance after sleep extension indicate that optimal sleep is likely beneficial in reaching peak athletic performance. Citation: Mah CD; Mah KE; Kezirian EJ; Dement WC. The effects of sleep extension on the athletic performance of collegiate basketball players. SLEEP 2011;34(7):943-950. PMID:21731144

Status of Job Motivation and Job Performance of Field Level Extension Agents in Ogun State: Implications for Agricultural Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fabusoro, E.; Awotunde, J. A.; Sodiya, C. I.; Alarima, C. I.

2008-01-01

The field level extension agents (FLEAs) are the lifeline of the agricultural extension system in Nigeria. Their motivation and job performance are therefore important to achieving faster agricultural development in Nigeria. The study identified the factors motivating the FLEAs working with Ogun State Agricultural development programme (OGADEP)…

76 FR 18964 - Airworthiness Directives; Costruzioni Aeronautiche Tecnam srl Model P2006T Airplanes

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-04-06

... Landing Gear retraction/extension ground checks performed on the P2006T, a loose Seeger ring was found on... condition for the specified products. The MCAI states: During Landing Gear retraction/extension ground... retraction/extension ground checks performed on the P2006T, a loose Seeger ring was found on the nose landing...

Factors Affecting Performance of Agricultural Extension: Evidence from Democratic Republic of Congo

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ragasa, Catherine; Ulimwengu, John; Randriamamonjy, Josee; Badibanga, Thaddee

2016-01-01

Purpose: As part of the institutional reforms and agricultural restructuring in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), this paper provides an assessment of the performance of the agricultural extension system as well as factors explaining it. Method: This paper involves key informants' interviews and surveys of 107 extension organizations and 162…

Charge plasma based source/drain engineered Schottky Barrier MOSFET: Ambipolar suppression and improvement of the RF performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kale, Sumit; Kondekar, Pravin N.

2018-01-01

This paper reports a novel device structure for charge plasma based Schottky Barrier (SB) MOSFET on ultrathin SOI to suppress the ambipolar leakage current and improvement of the radio frequency (RF) performance. In the proposed device, we employ dual material for the source and drain formation. Therefore, source/drain is divided into two parts as main source/drain and source/drain extension. Erbium silicide (ErSi1.7) is used as main source/drain material and Hafnium metal is used as source/drain extension material. The source extension induces the electron plasma in the ultrathin SOI body resulting reduction of SB width at the source side. Similarly, drain extension also induces the electron plasma at the drain side. This significantly increases the SB width due to increased depletion at the drain end. As a result, the ambipolar leakage current can be suppressed. In addition, drain extension also reduces the parasitic capacitances of the proposed device to improve the RF performance. The optimization of length and work function of metal used in the drain extension is performed to achieve improvement in device performance. Moreover, the proposed device makes fabrication simpler, requires low thermal budget and free from random dopant fluctuations.

Study design and statistical analysis of data in human population studies with the micronucleus assay.

PubMed

Ceppi, Marcello; Gallo, Fabio; Bonassi, Stefano

2011-01-01

The most common study design performed in population studies based on the micronucleus (MN) assay, is the cross-sectional study, which is largely performed to evaluate the DNA damaging effects of exposure to genotoxic agents in the workplace, in the environment, as well as from diet or lifestyle factors. Sample size is still a critical issue in the design of MN studies since most recent studies considering gene-environment interaction, often require a sample size of several hundred subjects, which is in many cases difficult to achieve. The control of confounding is another major threat to the validity of causal inference. The most popular confounders considered in population studies using MN are age, gender and smoking habit. Extensive attention is given to the assessment of effect modification, given the increasing inclusion of biomarkers of genetic susceptibility in the study design. Selected issues concerning the statistical treatment of data have been addressed in this mini-review, starting from data description, which is a critical step of statistical analysis, since it allows to detect possible errors in the dataset to be analysed and to check the validity of assumptions required for more complex analyses. Basic issues dealing with statistical analysis of biomarkers are extensively evaluated, including methods to explore the dose-response relationship among two continuous variables and inferential analysis. A critical approach to the use of parametric and non-parametric methods is presented, before addressing the issue of most suitable multivariate models to fit MN data. In the last decade, the quality of statistical analysis of MN data has certainly evolved, although even nowadays only a small number of studies apply the Poisson model, which is the most suitable method for the analysis of MN data.

Describing three-class task performance: three-class linear discriminant analysis and three-class ROC analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Xin; Frey, Eric C.

2007-03-01

Binary ROC analysis has solid decision-theoretic foundations and a close relationship to linear discriminant analysis (LDA). In particular, for the case of Gaussian equal covariance input data, the area under the ROC curve (AUC) value has a direct relationship to the Hotelling trace. Many attempts have been made to extend binary classification methods to multi-class. For example, Fukunaga extended binary LDA to obtain multi-class LDA, which uses the multi-class Hotelling trace as a figure-of-merit, and we have previously developed a three-class ROC analysis method. This work explores the relationship between conventional multi-class LDA and three-class ROC analysis. First, we developed a linear observer, the three-class Hotelling observer (3-HO). For Gaussian equal covariance data, the 3- HO provides equivalent performance to the three-class ideal observer and, under less strict conditions, maximizes the signal to noise ratio for classification of all pairs of the three classes simultaneously. The 3-HO templates are not the eigenvectors obtained from multi-class LDA. Second, we show that the three-class Hotelling trace, which is the figureof- merit in the conventional three-class extension of LDA, has significant limitations. Third, we demonstrate that, under certain conditions, there is a linear relationship between the eigenvectors obtained from multi-class LDA and 3-HO templates. We conclude that the 3-HO based on decision theory has advantages both in its decision theoretic background and in the usefulness of its figure-of-merit. Additionally, there exists the possibility of interpreting the two linear features extracted by the conventional extension of LDA from a decision theoretic point of view.

PDC cutters improve drilling in harsh environments

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

Mensa-Wilmot, G.

2000-02-01

Improvements in polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) cutter technology have contributed immensely to the industry's acceptance of PDC bits as effective drilling tools. These cutters are being engineered to address the needs and requirements of different drilling programs. Extensive research and developments efforts have been dedicated to the analysis of the diamond table/tungsten carbide interface. The paper describes PDC cutter development, operational challenges, offset performance, and field experiences.

An Interactive Geometry Program and Its Effect on Elementary Students' Achievement and Understanding of Geometry: A Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeMarinis, Matthew David

2011-01-01

While many studies examining the effectiveness of using dynamic geometry software exist, few studies exist at the elementary school level. An extensive data analysis of student performance on New York State Math Assessments revealed that students in the fifth grade may not have had a clear understanding of interior angles sums of polygons, more…

A non-axisymmetric linearized supersonic wave drag analysis: Mathematical theory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barnhart, Paul J.

1996-01-01

A Mathematical theory is developed to perform the calculations necessary to determine the wave drag for slender bodies of non-circular cross section. The derivations presented in this report are based on extensions to supersonic linearized small perturbation theory. A numerical scheme is presented utilizing Fourier decomposition to compute the pressure coefficient on and about a slender body of arbitrary cross section.

An Integrated Architecture for Engineering Problem Solving

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-12-01

mentioned in the problem statement In the next section, we describe the definition of qualitative state and our extension to Gizmo (Forbus & de Kleer...possible qualitative transitions Figure 28: Mapping from problem specification to qualitative states We use Gizmo (Forbus, 1984b), developed by Ken...Forbus, to perform the necessary qualitative analysis. The initial partial problem specification becomes the scenario for Gizmo . The domain knowledge

Analysis of Satellite Communications Antenna Patterns

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rahmat-Samii, Y.

1985-01-01

Computer program accurately and efficiently predicts far-field patterns of offset, or symmetric, parabolic reflector antennas. Antenna designer uses program to study effects of varying geometrical and electrical (RF) parameters of parabolic reflector and its feed system. Accurate predictions of far-field patterns help designer predict overall performance of antenna. These reflectors used extensively in modern communications satellites and in multiple-beam and low side-lobe antenna systems.

Local-Area-Network Simulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gibson, Jim; Jordan, Joe; Grant, Terry

1990-01-01

Local Area Network Extensible Simulator (LANES) computer program provides method for simulating performance of high-speed local-area-network (LAN) technology. Developed as design and analysis software tool for networking computers on board proposed Space Station. Load, network, link, and physical layers of layered network architecture all modeled. Mathematically models according to different lower-layer protocols: Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) and Star*Bus. Written in FORTRAN 77.

The DOE ETV-1 Electric Test Vehicle. Phase 3: Performance Testing and system evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kurtz, D.

1981-01-01

Engineering tests were conducted in order to characterize overall system performance and component efficiencies within the system environment. A dynamometer was used in order to minimize the ambient effects and large uncertainties present in track testing. Extensive test requirements were defined and procedures were carefully controlled in order to maintain a high degree of credibility. Limited track testing was performed in order to corroborate the dynamometer results. Test results include an energy flow analysis through the major subsystems and incorporate the aerodynamic and rolling losses under cyclic and various steady speed conditions. The major output from all relevant dynamometer and track tests is also included.

Value Driven Outcomes (VDO): a pragmatic, modular, and extensible software framework for understanding and improving health care costs and outcomes.

PubMed

Kawamoto, Kensaku; Martin, Cary J; Williams, Kip; Tu, Ming-Chieh; Park, Charlton G; Hunter, Cheri; Staes, Catherine J; Bray, Bruce E; Deshmukh, Vikrant G; Holbrook, Reid A; Morris, Scott J; Fedderson, Matthew B; Sletta, Amy; Turnbull, James; Mulvihill, Sean J; Crabtree, Gordon L; Entwistle, David E; McKenna, Quinn L; Strong, Michael B; Pendleton, Robert C; Lee, Vivian S

2015-01-01

To develop expeditiously a pragmatic, modular, and extensible software framework for understanding and improving healthcare value (costs relative to outcomes). In 2012, a multidisciplinary team was assembled by the leadership of the University of Utah Health Sciences Center and charged with rapidly developing a pragmatic and actionable analytics framework for understanding and enhancing healthcare value. Based on an analysis of relevant prior work, a value analytics framework known as Value Driven Outcomes (VDO) was developed using an agile methodology. Evaluation consisted of measurement against project objectives, including implementation timeliness, system performance, completeness, accuracy, extensibility, adoption, satisfaction, and the ability to support value improvement. A modular, extensible framework was developed to allocate clinical care costs to individual patient encounters. For example, labor costs in a hospital unit are allocated to patients based on the hours they spent in the unit; actual medication acquisition costs are allocated to patients based on utilization; and radiology costs are allocated based on the minutes required for study performance. Relevant process and outcome measures are also available. A visualization layer facilitates the identification of value improvement opportunities, such as high-volume, high-cost case types with high variability in costs across providers. Initial implementation was completed within 6 months, and all project objectives were fulfilled. The framework has been improved iteratively and is now a foundational tool for delivering high-value care. The framework described can be expeditiously implemented to provide a pragmatic, modular, and extensible approach to understanding and improving healthcare value. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association.

Meta-analysis of gene expression patterns in animal models of prenatal alcohol exposure suggests role for protein synthesis inhibition and chromatin remodeling

PubMed Central

Rogic, Sanja; Wong, Albertina; Pavlidis, Paul

2017-01-01

Background Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) can result in an array of morphological, behavioural and neurobiological deficits that can range in their severity. Despite extensive research in the field and a significant progress made, especially in understanding the range of possible malformations and neurobehavioral abnormalities, the molecular mechanisms of alcohol responses in development are still not well understood. There have been multiple transcriptomic studies looking at the changes in gene expression after PAE in animal models, however there is a limited apparent consensus among the reported findings. In an effort to address this issue, we performed a comprehensive re-analysis and meta-analysis of all suitable, publically available expression data sets. Methods We assembled ten microarray data sets of gene expression after PAE in mouse and rat models consisting of samples from a total of 63 ethanol-exposed and 80 control animals. We re-analyzed each data set for differential expression and then used the results to perform meta-analyses considering all data sets together or grouping them by time or duration of exposure (pre- and post-natal, acute and chronic, respectively). We performed network and Gene Ontology enrichment analysis to further characterize the identified signatures. Results For each sub-analysis we identified signatures of differential expressed genes that show support from multiple studies. Overall, the changes in gene expression were more extensive after acute ethanol treatment during prenatal development than in other models. Considering the analysis of all the data together, we identified a robust core signature of 104 genes down-regulated after PAE, with no up-regulated genes. Functional analysis reveals over-representation of genes involved in protein synthesis, mRNA splicing and chromatin organization. Conclusions Our meta-analysis shows that existing studies, despite superficial dissimilarity in findings, share features that allow us to identify a common core signature set of transcriptome changes in PAE. This is an important step to identifying the biological processes that underlie the etiology of FASD. PMID:26996386

Structured analysis and modeling of complex systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Strome, David R.; Dalrymple, Mathieu A.

1992-01-01

The Aircrew Evaluation Sustained Operations Performance (AESOP) facility at Brooks AFB, Texas, combines the realism of an operational environment with the control of a research laboratory. In recent studies we collected extensive data from the Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS) Weapons Directors subjected to high and low workload Defensive Counter Air Scenarios. A critical and complex task in this environment involves committing a friendly fighter against a hostile fighter. Structured Analysis and Design techniques and computer modeling systems were applied to this task as tools for analyzing subject performance and workload. This technology is being transferred to the Man-Systems Division of NASA Johnson Space Center for application to complex mission related tasks, such as manipulating the Shuttle grappler arm.

New space sensor and mesoscale data analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hickey, John S.

1987-01-01

The developed Earth Science and Application Division (ESAD) system/software provides the research scientist with the following capabilities: an extensive data base management capibility to convert various experiment data types into a standard format; and interactive analysis and display package (AVE80); an interactive imaging/color graphics capability utilizing the Apple III and IBM PC workstations integrated into the ESAD computer system; and local and remote smart-terminal capability which provides color video, graphics, and Laserjet output. Recommendations for updating and enhancing the performance of the ESAD computer system are listed.

Signature analysis of acoustic emission from graphite/epoxy composites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Russell, S. S.; Henneke, E. G., II

1977-01-01

Acoustic emissions were monitored for crack extension across and parallel to the fibers in a single ply and multiply laminates of graphite epoxy composites. Spectrum analysis was performed on the transient signal to ascertain if the fracture mode can be characterized by a particular spectral pattern. The specimens were loaded to failure quasistatically in a tensile machine. Visual observations were made via either an optical microscope or a television camera. The results indicate that several types of characteristics in the time and frequency domain correspond to different types of failure.

Relationship between antigravity control and postural control in young children.

PubMed

Sellers, J S

1988-04-01

The purposes of this study were 1) to determine the relationship between antigravity control (supine flexion and prone extension) and postural control (static and dynamic balance), 2) to determine the quality of antigravity and postural control, and 3) to determine whether sex and ethnic group differences correlate with differences in antigravity control and postural control in young children. I tested 107 black, Hispanic, and Caucasian children in a Head Start program, with a mean age of 61 months. The study results showed significant relationships between antigravity control and postural control. Subjects' supine flexion performance was significantly related to the quantity and quality of their static and dynamic balance performance, whereas prone extension performance was related only to the quality of dynamic balance performance. Quality scale measurements (r = .90) indicated that the children in this study had not yet developed full antigravity or postural control. The study results revealed differences between sexes in the quality of static balance and prone extension performance and ethnic differences in static balance, dynamic balance, and prone extension performance.

Association of lower extremity range of motion and muscle strength with physical performance of community-dwelling older women.

PubMed

Jung, Hungu; Yamasaki, Masahiro

2016-12-08

Reduced lower extremity range of motion (ROM) and muscle strength are related to functional disability in older adults who cannot perform one or more activities of daily living (ADL) independently. The purpose of this study was to determine which factors of seven lower extremity ROMs and two muscle strengths play dominant roles in the physical performance of community-dwelling older women. Ninety-five community-dwelling older women (mean age ± SD, 70.7 ± 4.7 years; age range, 65-83 years) were enrolled in this study. Seven lower extremity ROMs (hip flexion, hip extension, knee flexion, internal and external hip rotation, ankle dorsiflexion, and ankle plantar flexion) and two muscle strengths (knee extension and flexion) were measured. Physical performance tests, including functional reach test (FRT), 5 m gait test, four square step test (FSST), timed up and go test (TUGT), and five times sit-to-stand test (FTSST) were performed. Stepwise regression models for each of the physical performance tests revealed that hip extension ROM and knee flexion strength were important explanatory variables for FRT, FSST, and FTSST. Furthermore, ankle plantar flexion ROM and knee extension strength were significant explanatory variables for the 5 m gait test and TUGT. However, ankle dorsiflexion ROM was a significant explanatory variable for FRT alone. The amount of variance on stepwise multiple regression for the five physical performance tests ranged from 25 (FSST) to 47% (TUGT). Hip extension, ankle dorsiflexion, and ankle plantar flexion ROMs, as well as knee extension and flexion strengths may play primary roles in the physical performance of community-dwelling older women. Further studies should assess whether specific intervention programs targeting older women may achieve improvements in lower extremity ROM and muscle strength, and thereby play an important role in the prevention of dependence on daily activities and loss of physical function, particularly focusing on hip extension, ankle dorsiflexion, and ankle plantar flexion ROMs as well as knee extension and flexion strength.

Performance Test Data Analysis of Scintillation Cameras

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Demirkaya, Omer; Mazrou, Refaat Al

2007-10-01

In this paper, we present a set of image analysis tools to calculate the performance parameters of gamma camera systems from test data acquired according to the National Electrical Manufacturers Association NU 1-2001 guidelines. The calculation methods are either completely automated or require minimal user interaction; minimizing potential human errors. The developed methods are robust with respect to varying conditions under which these tests may be performed. The core algorithms have been validated for accuracy. They have been extensively tested on images acquired by the gamma cameras from different vendors. All the algorithms are incorporated into a graphical user interface that provides a convenient way to process the data and report the results. The entire application has been developed in MATLAB programming environment and is compiled to run as a stand-alone program. The developed image analysis tools provide an automated, convenient and accurate means to calculate the performance parameters of gamma cameras and SPECT systems. The developed application is available upon request for personal or non-commercial uses. The results of this study have been partially presented in Society of Nuclear Medicine Annual meeting as an InfoSNM presentation.

Power Extension Package (PEP) system definition extension, orbital service module systems analysis study. Volume 3: PEP analysis and tradeoffs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1979-01-01

The objectives, conclusions, and approaches for accomplishing 19 specific design and analysis activities related to the installation of the power extension package (PEP) into the Orbiter cargo bay are described as well as those related to its deployment, extension, and retraction. The proposed cable handling system designed to transmit power from PEP to the Orbiter by way of the shuttle remote manipulator system is described and a preliminary specification for the gimbal assembly, solar array drive is included.

Java Source Code Analysis for API Migration to Embedded Systems

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

Winter, Victor; McCoy, James A.; Guerrero, Jonathan

Embedded systems form an integral part of our technological infrastructure and oftentimes play a complex and critical role within larger systems. From the perspective of reliability, security, and safety, strong arguments can be made favoring the use of Java over C in such systems. In part, this argument is based on the assumption that suitable subsets of Java’s APIs and extension libraries are available to embedded software developers. In practice, a number of Java-based embedded processors do not support the full features of the JVM. For such processors, source code migration is a mechanism by which key abstractions offered bymore » APIs and extension libraries can made available to embedded software developers. The analysis required for Java source code-level library migration is based on the ability to correctly resolve element references to their corresponding element declarations. A key challenge in this setting is how to perform analysis for incomplete source-code bases (e.g., subsets of libraries) from which types and packages have been omitted. This article formalizes an approach that can be used to extend code bases targeted for migration in such a manner that the threats associated the analysis of incomplete code bases are eliminated.« less

Evidence that αC region is origin of low modulus, high extensibility, and strain stiffening in fibrin fibers.

PubMed

Houser, John R; Hudson, Nathan E; Ping, Lifang; O'Brien, E Timothy; Superfine, Richard; Lord, Susan T; Falvo, Michael R

2010-11-03

Fibrin fibers form the structural scaffold of blood clots and perform the mechanical task of stemming blood flow. Several decades of investigation of fibrin fiber networks using macroscopic techniques have revealed remarkable mechanical properties. More recently, the microscopic origins of fibrin's mechanics have been probed through direct measurements on single fibrin fibers and individual fibrinogen molecules. Using a nanomanipulation system, we investigated the mechanical properties of individual fibrin fibers. The fibers were stretched with the atomic force microscope, and stress-versus-strain data was collected for fibers formed with and without ligation by the activated transglutaminase factor XIII (FXIIIa). We observed that ligation with FXIIIa nearly doubled the stiffness of the fibers. The stress-versus-strain behavior indicates that fibrin fibers exhibit properties similar to other elastomeric biopolymers. We propose a mechanical model that fits our observed force extension data, is consistent with the results of the ligation data, and suggests that the large observed extensibility in fibrin fibers is mediated by the natively unfolded regions of the molecule. Although some models attribute fibrin's force-versus-extension behavior to unfolding of structured regions within the monomer, our analysis argues that these models are inconsistent with the measured extensibility and elastic modulus. Copyright © 2010 Biophysical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Robust demarcation of basal cell carcinoma by dependent component analysis-based segmentation of multi-spectral fluorescence images.

PubMed

Kopriva, Ivica; Persin, Antun; Puizina-Ivić, Neira; Mirić, Lina

2010-07-02

This study was designed to demonstrate robust performance of the novel dependent component analysis (DCA)-based approach to demarcation of the basal cell carcinoma (BCC) through unsupervised decomposition of the red-green-blue (RGB) fluorescent image of the BCC. Robustness to intensity fluctuation is due to the scale invariance property of DCA algorithms, which exploit spectral and spatial diversities between the BCC and the surrounding tissue. Used filtering-based DCA approach represents an extension of the independent component analysis (ICA) and is necessary in order to account for statistical dependence that is induced by spectral similarity between the BCC and surrounding tissue. This generates weak edges what represents a challenge for other segmentation methods as well. By comparative performance analysis with state-of-the-art image segmentation methods such as active contours (level set), K-means clustering, non-negative matrix factorization, ICA and ratio imaging we experimentally demonstrate good performance of DCA-based BCC demarcation in two demanding scenarios where intensity of the fluorescent image has been varied almost two orders of magnitude. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sagittal back motion of college football athletes and nonathletes.

PubMed

Strong, L R; Titlow, L

1997-08-01

The study was designed as an ex post facto study using volunteers. To compare sagittal back motion of male college athletes with that of nonathletes and to compare data from both groups with normative data. Few studies have evaluated athletic demands on the spine. Much of the information on athletic demands comes from electromyographic studies, flexibility comparisons, and lift task studies. Although these studies provide a basis for back testing and evaluation, they do not present direct evidence of athletic low back performance. Fifteen male college football athletes and 15 male college nonathletes volunteered for testing using the IsoStation B-200 BSCAN 2.0 protocol (Isotechnologies, Inc., Hillsborough, NC). Measures were recorded for range of motion, isometric flexion and extension, and moderate and high dynamic flexion and extension. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance. The results of Hotelling's multivariate test were significant. Univariate follow-up analysis showed that athletes had significantly better isometric flexion, isometric extension, moderate dynamic flexion, high dynamic flexion, and high dynamic extension. Athletic data were compared with the BSCAN population data at the 50th and 80th percentile. Athletes were significantly better (P < 0.007) for all variables at the 50th percentile and for all dynamic variables at the 80th percentile. Within the limitations of the study, college football athletes had better sagittal back motion strength and speed as tested with the B-200 than nonathletes. Population data for the B-200 were representative for nonathletes but nonrepresentative for football players.

Variability of Plyometric and Ballistic Exercise Technique Maintains Jump Performance.

PubMed

Chandler, Phillip T; Greig, Matthew; Comfort, Paul; McMahon, John J

2018-06-01

Chandler, PT, Greig, M, Comfort, P, and McMahon, JJ. Variability of plyometric and ballistic exercise technique maintains jump performance. J Strength Cond Res 32(6): 1571-1582, 2018-The aim of this study was to investigate changes in vertical jump technique over the course of a training session. Twelve plyometric and ballistic exercise-trained male athletes (age = 23.4 ± 4.6 years, body mass = 78.7 ± 18.8 kg, height = 177.1 ± 9.0 cm) performed 3 sets of 10 repetitions of drop jump (DJ), rebound jump (RJ) and squat jump (SJ). Each exercise was analyzed from touchdown to peak joint flexion and peak joint flexion to take-off. Squat jump was analyzed from peak joint flexion to take-off only. Jump height, flexion and extension time and range of motion, and instantaneous angles of the ankle, knee, and hip joints were measured. Separate 1-way repeated analyses of variance compared vertical jump technique across exercise sets and repetitions. Exercise set analysis found that SJ had lower results than DJ and RJ for the angle at peak joint flexion for the hip, knee, and ankle joints and take-off angle of the hip joint. Exercise repetition analysis found that the ankle joint had variable differences for the angle at take-off, flexion, and extension time for RJ. The knee joint had variable differences for flexion time for DJ and angle at take-off and touchdown for RJ. There was no difference in jump height. Variation in measured parameters across repetitions highlights variable technique across plyometric and ballistic exercises. This did not affect jump performance, but likely maintained jump performance by overcoming constraints (e.g., level of rate coding).

Three-dimensional motion analysis of the lumbar spine during "free squat" weight lift training.

PubMed

Walsh, James C; Quinlan, John F; Stapleton, Robert; FitzPatrick, David P; McCormack, Damian

2007-06-01

Heavy weight lifting using a squat bar is a commonly used athletic training exercise. Previous in vivo motion studies have concentrated on lifting of everyday objects and not on the vastly increased loads that athletes subject themselves to when performing this exercise. Athletes significantly alter their lumbar spinal motion when performing squat lifting at heavy weights. Controlled laboratory study. Forty-eight athletes (28 men, 20 women) performed 6 lifts at 40% maximum, 4 lifts at 60% maximum, and 2 lifts at 80% maximum. The Zebris 3D motion analysis system was used to measure lumbar spine motion. Exercise was performed as a "free" squat and repeated with a weight lifting support belt. Data obtained were analyzed using SAS. A significant decrease (P < .05) was seen in flexion in all groups studied when lifting at 40% maximum compared with lifting at 60% and 80% of maximum lift. Flexion from calibrated 0 point ranged from 24.7 degrees (40% group) to 6.8 degrees (80% group). A significant increase (P < .05) was seen in extension when lifting at 40% maximum was compared with lifting at 60% and 80% maximum lift. Extension from calibrated 0 point ranged from -1.5 degrees (40% group) to -20.3 degrees (80% group). No statistically significant difference was found between motion seen when exercise was performed as a free squat or when lifting using a support belt in any of the groups studied. Weight lifting using a squat bar causes athletes to significantly hyperextend their lumbar spines at heavier weights. The use of a weight lifting support belt does not significantly alter spinal motion during lifting.

Analysis of commercial equipment and instrumentation for Spacelab payloads. Volume 3: Design analysis and trade studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1974-01-01

A detailed analysis is presented of each selected equipment item, and suitability and cost analyses were documented by equipment item. Tradeoffs of alternative specification requirements are presented which include possible relaxation of vibration, material control, fungus and corrosion requirements for experiment equipment. An additional tradeoff was performed to determine whether it is cost effective to modify experiment equipment to be compatible with a 28-volt dc power source rather than the conventional 110-volt ac source. Programmatic analysis data are given which were used as the basis for the extension of results from the analyses of specific equipment items to the entire spacelab experiment program.

A comparison of the views of extension agents and farmers regarding extension education courses in Dezful, Iran

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nazarzadeh Zare, Mohsen; Dorrani, Kamal; Gholamali Lavasani, Masoud

2012-11-01

Background and purpose : This study examines the views of farmers and extension agents participating in extension education courses in Dezful, Iran, with regard to problems with these courses. It relies upon a descriptive methodology, using a survey as its instrument. Sample : The statistical population consisted of 5060 farmers and 50 extension agents; all extension agents were studied owing to their small population and a sample of 466 farmers was selected based on the stratified ratio sampling method. For the data analysis, statistical procedures including the t-test and factor analysis were used. Results : The results of factor analysis on the views of farmers indicated that these courses have problems such as inadequate use of instructional materials by extension agents, insufficient employment of knowledgeable and experienced extension agents, bad and inconvenient timing of courses for farmers, lack of logical connection between one curriculum and prior ones, negligence in considering the opinions of farmers in arranging the courses, and lack of information about the time of courses. The findings of factor analysis on the views of extension agents indicated that these courses suffer from problems such as use of consistent methods of instruction for teaching curricula, and lack of continuity between courses and their levels and content. Conclusions : Recommendations include: listening to the views of farmers when planning extension courses; providing audiovisual aids, pamphlets and CDs; arranging courses based on convenient timing for farmers; using incentives to encourage participation; and employing extension agents with knowledge of the latest agricultural issues.

Burbank performs the scheduled extensive cleanup of ventilation systems

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-02-22

ISS030-E-093414 (22 Feb. 2012) --- NASA astronaut Dan Burbank, Expedition 30 commander, performs the scheduled extensive cleanup of ventilation systems in the Columbus laboratory of the International Space Station.

Recent Results from KASCADE-Grande and LOPES

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kascade-Grande; Lopes Collaboration; Kampert, K.-H.; Apel, W. D.; Arteaga, J. C.; Asch, T.; Badea, F.; Bähren, L.; Bekk, K.; Bertaina, M.; Biermann, P. L.; Blümer, J.; Bozdog, H.; Brancus, I. M.; Brüggemann, M.; Buchholz, P.; Buitink, S.; Cantoni, E.; Chiavassa, A.; Cossavella, F.; Daumiller, K.; de Souza, V.; di Pierro, F.; Doll, P.; Ender, M.; Engel, R.; Engler, J.; Falcke, H.; Finger, M.; Fuhrmann, D.; Gemmeke, H.; Ghia, P. L.; Gils, H. J.; Glasstetter, R.; Grupen, C.; Haungs, A.; Heck, D.; Hörandel, J. R.; Horneffer, A.; Huege, T.; Isar, P. G.; Kang, D.; Kickelbick, D.; Klages, H. O.; Kolotaev, Y.; Krömer, O.; Kuijpers, J.; Lafebre, S.; Link, K.; Łuczak, P.; Ludwig, M.; Mathes, H. J.; Mayer, H. J.; Milke, J.; Melissas, M.; Mitrica, B.; Morello, C.; Navarra, G.; Nehls, S.; Nigl, A.; Oehlschläger, J.; Ostapchenko, S.; Over, S.; Palmieri, N.; Petcu, M.; Pierog, T.; Rautenberg, J.; Rebel, H.; Roth, M.; Saftoiu, A.; Schieler, H.; Schmidt, A.; Schröder, F.; Sima, O.; Singh, K.; Stümpert, M.; Toma, G.; Trinchero, G.; Ulrich, H.; Walkowiak, W.; Weindl, A.; Wochele, J.; Wommer, M.; Zabierowski, J.; Zensus, J. A.; KASCADE-Grande and LOPES Collaboration

2009-05-01

KASCADE-Grande is an extensive air-shower experiment located at Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe, Germany. Main parts of the experiment are the Grande array spread over an area of 700×700 m, the original KASCADE array covering 200×200 m with unshielded and shielded detectors, and additional muon tracking devices. This multi-detector system allows to investigate the energy spectrum, composition, and anisotropies of cosmic rays in the energy range up to 1 EeV. LOPES is co-located at the same site to measure radio pulses from extensive air showers in coincidence with KASCADE-Grande. It consists of 30 digital antennas operated in different geometrical configurations. Read out is performed at high bandwidths and rate data processing with the aim to calibrate the emitted signal in the primary energy range of 10-10 eV by making use of reconstructed air-shower observables of KASCADE-Grande. An overview on the performance of both experiments will be given and recent analysis results be reported.

Intelligent Engine Systems: Acoustics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wojno, John; Martens, Steve; Simpson, Benjamin

2008-01-01

An extensive study of new fan exhaust nozzle technologies was performed. Three new uniform chevron nozzles were designed, based on extensive CFD analysis. Two new azimuthally varying variants were defined. All five were tested, along with two existing nozzles, on a representative model-scale, medium BPR exhaust nozzle. Substantial acoustic benefits were obtained from the uniform chevron nozzle designs, the best benefit being provided by an existing design. However, one of the azimuthally varying nozzle designs exhibited even better performance than any of the uniform chevron nozzles. In addition to the fan chevron nozzles, a new technology was demonstrated, using devices that enhance mixing when applied to an exhaust nozzle. The acoustic benefits from these devices applied to medium BPR nozzles were similar, and in some cases superior to, those obtained from conventional uniform chevron nozzles. However, none of the low noise technologies provided equivalent acoustic benefits on a model-scale high BPR exhaust nozzle, similar to current large commercial applications. New technologies must be identified to improve the acoustics of state-of-the-art high BPR jet engines.

Optimal space communications techniques. [all digital phase locked loop for FM demodulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schilling, D. L.

1973-01-01

The design, development, and analysis are reported of a digital phase-locked loop (DPLL) for FM demodulation and threshold extension. One of the features of the developed DPLL is its synchronous, real time operation. The sampling frequency is constant and all the required arithmetic and logic operations are performed within one sampling period, generating an output sequence which is converted to analog form and filtered. An equation relating the sampling frequency to the carrier frequency must be satisfied to guarantee proper DPLL operation. The synchronous operation enables a time-shared operation of one DPLL to demodulate several FM signals simultaneously. In order to obtain information about the DPLL performance at low input signal-to-noise ratios, a model of an input noise spike was introduced, and the DPLL equation was solved using a digital computer. The spike model was successful in finding a second order DPLL which yielded a five db threshold extension beyond that of a first order DPLL.

Normalized knee-extension strength or leg-press power after fast-track total knee arthroplasty: which measure is most closely associated with performance-based and self-reported function?

PubMed

Aalund, Peter K; Larsen, Kristian; Hansen, Torben B; Bandholm, Thomas

2013-02-01

To investigate which of the 2 muscle-impairment measures for the operated leg, normalized knee extension strength or leg press power, was most closely associated with performance-based and self-reported measures of function shortly after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Cross-sectional, exploratory study. Laboratory at a regional hospital. Individuals (N=39) with an average age ± SD of 65.5±10.3 years, who all had unilateral TKA 28 days prior. None. The patients performed maximal isometric knee extensions and dynamic leg presses to determine their body-mass normalized knee extension strength and leg press power, respectively. The 10-meter fast speed walking- and 30-second chair stand tests were used to determine performance-based function, while the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index and Oxford Knee Scores were used to determine self-reported function. Normalized leg press power was more closely associated with both performance-based (r=.82, P<.001) and self-reported (r=.48, P=.002) measures of function compared with normalized knee extension strength (r=.51, P=.001 and r=.39, P=.015, respectively). Normalized leg press power was more closely associated with both performance-based and self-reported function early after TKA than normalized knee extension strength. It may be explained by the fact that performance-based measures of function are typically closed kinetic chain tasks, such as walking or rising from a chair, and self-reported measures of function typically include questions that address perceived difficulty with performing these same tasks. Copyright © 2013 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Gaia mission status

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prusti, T.

2018-04-01

Gaia is an ESA cornerstone mission conducting a full sky survey over its 5 year operational period. Gaia performs astrometric, photometric and spectroscopic measurements. The data processing is entrusted to scientists and engineers who have formed the Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium (DPAC). The photometric science alerts started in 2014. The first intermediate data release (Gaia DR1) took place 14 September 2016 and it has been extensively used by the community. Gaia DR2 is scheduled for April 2018. Gaia is expected to be able to continue observations roughly for another 5 years after the nominal phase. The procedure to grant funding for the extension period has been initiated. In case funding is granted, the total operational time of Gaia may be 10 years.

Quasi-static analysis of foil journal bearings for a Brayton cycle turboalternator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eshel, A.

1974-01-01

A quasi-static analysis is presented for foil journal bearings designed for a NASA Brayton Cycle Turboalternator. Included in the analysis are effects of 'slack' (due to flexural rigidity of the foil), of frictionally restrained extension of the foil-length in contact with cylindrical guides, of fluid inertia and compressibility, and of thermal expansion of rotor, foil and supporting structure. Comparisons are made with results of early experiments performed by Licht (1968, 1969) and recent data of Licht and Branger (1973). Variatons of film thickness, foil tension and bearing stiffness are presented graphically as functions of pertinent parameters for the case of operation in zero-gravity environment.

Criterion-Related Validity of Sit-and-Reach Tests for Estimating Hamstring and Lumbar Extensibility: a Meta-Analysis

PubMed Central

Mayorga-Vega, Daniel; Merino-Marban, Rafael; Viciana, Jesús

2014-01-01

The main purpose of the present meta-analysis was to examine the scientific literature on the criterion-related validity of sit-and-reach tests for estimating hamstring and lumbar extensibility. For this purpose relevant studies were searched from seven electronic databases dated up through December 2012. Primary outcomes of criterion-related validity were Pearson´s zero-order correlation coefficients (r) between sit-and-reach tests and hamstrings and/or lumbar extensibility criterion measures. Then, from the included studies, the Hunter- Schmidt´s psychometric meta-analysis approach was conducted to estimate population criterion- related validity of sit-and-reach tests. Firstly, the corrected correlation mean (rp), unaffected by statistical artefacts (i.e., sampling error and measurement error), was calculated separately for each sit-and-reach test. Subsequently, the three potential moderator variables (sex of participants, age of participants, and level of hamstring extensibility) were examined by a partially hierarchical analysis. Of the 34 studies included in the present meta-analysis, 99 correlations values across eight sit-and-reach tests and 51 across seven sit-and-reach tests were retrieved for hamstring and lumbar extensibility, respectively. The overall results showed that all sit-and-reach tests had a moderate mean criterion-related validity for estimating hamstring extensibility (rp = 0.46-0.67), but they had a low mean for estimating lumbar extensibility (rp = 0. 16-0.35). Generally, females, adults and participants with high levels of hamstring extensibility tended to have greater mean values of criterion-related validity for estimating hamstring extensibility. When the use of angular tests is limited such as in a school setting or in large scale studies, scientists and practitioners could use the sit-and-reach tests as a useful alternative for hamstring extensibility estimation, but not for estimating lumbar extensibility. Key Points Overall sit-and-reach tests have a moderate mean criterion-related validity for estimating hamstring extensibility, but they have a low mean validity for estimating lumbar extensibility. Among all the sit-and-reach test protocols, the Classic sit-and-reach test seems to be the best option to estimate hamstring extensibility. End scores (e.g., the Classic sit-and-reach test) are a better indicator of hamstring extensibility than the modifications that incorporate fingers-to-box distance (e.g., the Modified sit-and-reach test). When angular tests such as straight leg raise or knee extension tests cannot be used, sit-and-reach tests seem to be a useful field test alternative to estimate hamstring extensibility, but not to estimate lumbar extensibility. PMID:24570599

Kinematic analysis of the snatch lift with elite female weightlifters during the 2010 World Weightlifting Championship.

PubMed

Akkuş, Hasan

2012-04-01

The objectives of this study were to determine the mechanical work, the power output, and the angular kinematics of the lower limb and the linear kinematics of the barbell during the first and second pulls in the snatch lift event of the 2010 Women's World Weightlifting Championship, an Olympic qualifying competition, and to compare the snatch performances of the women weightlifters to those reported in the literature. The heaviest successful snatch lifts of 7 female weightlifters who won gold medals were analyzed. The snatch lifts were recorded using 2 Super-Video Home System cameras (50 fields·s), and points on the body and the barbell were manually digitized using the Ariel Performance Analysis System. The results revealed that the duration of the first pull was significantly greater than the duration of the transition phase, the second pull, and the turnover under the barbell (p < 0.05). The maximum extension velocities of the lower limb in the second pull were significantly greater than the maximum extension velocities in the first pull. The fastest extensions were observed at the knee joint during the first pull and at the hip joint during the second pull (p < 0.05). The barbell trajectories for the heaviest snatch lifts of these elite female weightlifters were similar to those of men. The maximum vertical velocity of the barbell was greater during the second pull than in the first pull (p < 0.05). The mechanical work performed in the first pull was greater than the second pull, and the power output during the second pull was greater than that of the first pull (p < 0.05). Although the magnitudes of the barbell's linear kinematics, the angular kinematics of the lower limb, and other energy characteristics did not exactly reflect those reported in the literature, the snatch lift patterns of the elite women weightlifters were similar to those of male weightlifters.

77 FR 3287 - Proposed Information Collection of the Tax Performance System Handbook ETA 407; Extension Without...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-01-23

... Tax Performance System Handbook ETA 407; Extension Without Change AGENCY: Employment and Training..., reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood... Tax Performance System (TPS). A copy of the proposed information collection request can be obtained by...

Analysis of hydrological processes across the Northern Eurasia with recently re-developed online informational system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shiklomanov, A. I.; Proussevitch, A. A.; Gordov, E. P.; Okladnikov, I.; Titov, A. G.

2016-12-01

The volume of georeferenced datasets used for hydrology and climate research is growing immensely due to recent advances in modeling, high performance computers, and sensor networks, as well as initiation of a set of large scale complex global and regional monitoring experiments. To facilitate the management and analysis of these extensive data pools we developed Web-based data management, visualization, and analysis system - RIMS - http://earthatlas.sr.unh.edu/ (Rapid Integrated Mapping and Analysis System) with a focus on hydrological applications. Recently, under collaboration with Russian colleagues from the Institute of Monitoring of Climatic and Ecological Systems SB RAS, Russia, we significantly re-designed the RIMS to include the latest Web and GIS technologies in compliance with the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) standards. An upgraded RIMS can be successfully applied to address multiple research problems using an extensive data archive and embedded tools for data computations, visualizations and distributions. We will demonstrate current possibility of the system providing several results of applied data analysis fulfilled for territory of the Northern Eurasia. These results will include the analysis of historical, contemporary and future changes in climate and hydrology based on station and gridded data, investigations of recent extreme hydrological events, their anomalies, causes and potential impacts, and creation and analysis of new data sets through integration of social and geophysical data.

An expert system for integrated structural analysis and design optimization for aerospace structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

The results of a research study on the development of an expert system for integrated structural analysis and design optimization is presented. An Object Representation Language (ORL) was developed first in conjunction with a rule-based system. This ORL/AI shell was then used to develop expert systems to provide assistance with a variety of structural analysis and design optimization tasks, in conjunction with procedural modules for finite element structural analysis and design optimization. The main goal of the research study was to provide expertise, judgment, and reasoning capabilities in the aerospace structural design process. This will allow engineers performing structural analysis and design, even without extensive experience in the field, to develop error-free, efficient and reliable structural designs very rapidly and cost-effectively. This would not only improve the productivity of design engineers and analysts, but also significantly reduce time to completion of structural design. An extensive literature survey in the field of structural analysis, design optimization, artificial intelligence, and database management systems and their application to the structural design process was first performed. A feasibility study was then performed, and the architecture and the conceptual design for the integrated 'intelligent' structural analysis and design optimization software was then developed. An Object Representation Language (ORL), in conjunction with a rule-based system, was then developed using C++. Such an approach would improve the expressiveness for knowledge representation (especially for structural analysis and design applications), provide ability to build very large and practical expert systems, and provide an efficient way for storing knowledge. Functional specifications for the expert systems were then developed. The ORL/AI shell was then used to develop a variety of modules of expert systems for a variety of modeling, finite element analysis, and design optimization tasks in the integrated aerospace structural design process. These expert systems were developed to work in conjunction with procedural finite element structural analysis and design optimization modules (developed in-house at SAT, Inc.). The complete software, AutoDesign, so developed, can be used for integrated 'intelligent' structural analysis and design optimization. The software was beta-tested at a variety of companies, used by a range of engineers with different levels of background and expertise. Based on the feedback obtained by such users, conclusions were developed and are provided.

An expert system for integrated structural analysis and design optimization for aerospace structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1992-04-01

The results of a research study on the development of an expert system for integrated structural analysis and design optimization is presented. An Object Representation Language (ORL) was developed first in conjunction with a rule-based system. This ORL/AI shell was then used to develop expert systems to provide assistance with a variety of structural analysis and design optimization tasks, in conjunction with procedural modules for finite element structural analysis and design optimization. The main goal of the research study was to provide expertise, judgment, and reasoning capabilities in the aerospace structural design process. This will allow engineers performing structural analysis and design, even without extensive experience in the field, to develop error-free, efficient and reliable structural designs very rapidly and cost-effectively. This would not only improve the productivity of design engineers and analysts, but also significantly reduce time to completion of structural design. An extensive literature survey in the field of structural analysis, design optimization, artificial intelligence, and database management systems and their application to the structural design process was first performed. A feasibility study was then performed, and the architecture and the conceptual design for the integrated 'intelligent' structural analysis and design optimization software was then developed. An Object Representation Language (ORL), in conjunction with a rule-based system, was then developed using C++. Such an approach would improve the expressiveness for knowledge representation (especially for structural analysis and design applications), provide ability to build very large and practical expert systems, and provide an efficient way for storing knowledge. Functional specifications for the expert systems were then developed. The ORL/AI shell was then used to develop a variety of modules of expert systems for a variety of modeling, finite element analysis, and design optimization tasks in the integrated aerospace structural design process. These expert systems were developed to work in conjunction with procedural finite element structural analysis and design optimization modules (developed in-house at SAT, Inc.). The complete software, AutoDesign, so developed, can be used for integrated 'intelligent' structural analysis and design optimization. The software was beta-tested at a variety of companies, used by a range of engineers with different levels of background and expertise. Based on the feedback obtained by such users, conclusions were developed and are provided.

Probabilistic structural analysis methods for select space propulsion system components

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Millwater, H. R.; Cruse, T. A.

1989-01-01

The Probabilistic Structural Analysis Methods (PSAM) project developed at the Southwest Research Institute integrates state-of-the-art structural analysis techniques with probability theory for the design and analysis of complex large-scale engineering structures. An advanced efficient software system (NESSUS) capable of performing complex probabilistic analysis has been developed. NESSUS contains a number of software components to perform probabilistic analysis of structures. These components include: an expert system, a probabilistic finite element code, a probabilistic boundary element code and a fast probability integrator. The NESSUS software system is shown. An expert system is included to capture and utilize PSAM knowledge and experience. NESSUS/EXPERT is an interactive menu-driven expert system that provides information to assist in the use of the probabilistic finite element code NESSUS/FEM and the fast probability integrator (FPI). The expert system menu structure is summarized. The NESSUS system contains a state-of-the-art nonlinear probabilistic finite element code, NESSUS/FEM, to determine the structural response and sensitivities. A broad range of analysis capabilities and an extensive element library is present.

Extensive sequence analysis of CFTR, SCNN1A, SCNN1B, SCNN1G and SERPINA1 suggests an oligogenic basis for cystic fibrosis-like phenotypes.

PubMed

Ramos, M D; Trujillano, D; Olivar, R; Sotillo, F; Ossowski, S; Manzanares, J; Costa, J; Gartner, S; Oliva, C; Quintana, E; Gonzalez, M I; Vazquez, C; Estivill, X; Casals, T

2014-07-01

The term cystic fibrosis (CF)-like disease is used to describe patients with a borderline sweat test and suggestive CF clinical features but without two CFTR(cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator) mutations. We have performed the extensive molecular analysis of four candidate genes (SCNN1A, SCNN1B, SCNN1G and SERPINA1) in a cohort of 10 uncharacterized patients with CF and CF-like disease. We have used whole-exome sequencing to characterize mutations in the CFTR gene and these four candidate genes. CFTR molecular analysis allowed a complete characterization of three of four CF patients. Candidate variants in SCNN1A, SCNN1B, SCNN1G and SERPINA1 in six patients with CF-like phenotypes were confirmed by Sanger sequencing and were further supported by in silico predictive analysis, pedigree studies, sweat test in other family members, and analysis in CF patients and healthy subjects. Our results suggest that CF-like disease probably results from complex genotypes in several genes in an oligogenic form, with rare variants interacting with environmental factors. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Computational analysis of Variable Thrust Engine (VTE) performance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giridharan, M. G.; Krishnan, A.; Przekwas, A. J.

1993-01-01

The Variable Thrust Engine (VTE) of the Orbital Maneuvering Vehicle (OMV) uses a hypergolic propellant combination of Monomethyl Hydrazine (MMH) and Nitrogen Tetroxide (NTO) as fuel and oxidizer, respectively. The performance of the VTE depends on a number of complex interacting phenomena such as atomization, spray dynamics, vaporization, turbulent mixing, convective/radiative heat transfer, and hypergolic combustion. This study involved the development of a comprehensive numerical methodology to facilitate detailed analysis of the VTE. An existing Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code was extensively modified to include the following models: a two-liquid, two-phase Eulerian-Lagrangian spray model; a chemical equilibrium model; and a discrete ordinate radiation heat transfer model. The modified code was used to conduct a series of simulations to assess the effects of various physical phenomena and boundary conditions on the VTE performance. The details of the models and the results of the simulations are presented.

Experimental Performance Evaluation of a Supersonic Turbine for Rocket Engine Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Snellgrove, Lauren M.; Griffin, Lisa W.; Sieja, James P.; Huber, Frank W.

2003-01-01

In order to mitigate the risk of rocket propulsion development, efficient, accurate, detailed fluid dynamics analysis and testing of the turbomachinery is necessary. To support this requirement, a task was developed at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) to improve turbine aerodynamic performance through the application of advanced design and analysis tools. These tools were applied to optimize a supersonic turbine design suitable for a reusable launch vehicle (RLV). The hot gas path and blading were redesigned-to obtain an increased efficiency. The goal of the demonstration was to increase the total-to- static efficiency of the turbine by eight points over the baseline design. A sub-scale, cold flow test article modeling the final optimized turbine was designed, manufactured, and tested in air at MSFC s Turbine Airflow Facility. Extensive on- and off- design point performance data, steady-state data, and unsteady blade loading data were collected during testing.

Electrochemical performance investigations on the hydrogen depolarized CO2 concentrator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aylward, J. R.

1976-01-01

An extensive investigation of anode and cathode polarization in complete cells and half cells was conducted to determine the factors affecting HDC electrode polarization and the nature of this polarization. Matrix-electrolyte-electrode interactions and cell electrolyte composition were also investigated. The electrodes were found to have normal performance capabilities. The HDC anode polarization characteristics were correlated with a theoretical kinetic analysis; and, except for some quantitative details, a rather complete understanding of the causes for HDC electrode polarization was formulated. One of the important finding resulting from the kinetic analysis was that platinum appears to catalyze the decomposition of carbonic acid to carbon dioxide and water. It was concluded that the abnormal voltage performance of the One Man ARS HDC cells was caused by insufficient cell electrolyte volume under normal operating conditions due to deficiencies in the reservoir to cell interfacing.

CrossTalk: The Journal of Defense Software Engineering. Volume 21, Number 4

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-04-01

stability characteristics to those extensively reported for the Cost Performance Index in Earned Value Management . by Kym Henderson and Dr. Ofer...Zwikael Schedule Adherence:A Useful Measure for Project Management This article utilizes the new practice of Earned Schedule to discuss a proposed...measure for further enhancing the practice of Earned Value Management . by Walt Lipke A Review of Boundary Value Analysis Techniques This article reviews

Thermal boundaries analysis program document

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Evans, M. E.

1975-01-01

The digital program TBAP has been developed to provide thermal boundaries in the DD/M-relative velocity (D-V), dynamic pressure-relative velocity (q-V), and altitude-relative velocity (h-V) planes. These thermal boundaries are used to design and/or analyze shuttle orbiter entry trajectories. The TBAP has been used extensively in supporting the Flight Performance Branch of NASA in evaluating candidate trajectories for the thermal protection system design trajectory.

A study of multiplex data bus techniques for the space shuttle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kearney, R. J.; Kalange, M. A.

1972-01-01

A comprehensive technology base for the design of a multiplexed data bus subsystem is provided. Extensive analyses, both analytical and empirical, were performed. Subjects covered are classified under the following headings: requirements identification and analysis; transmission media studies; signal design and detection studies; synchronization, timing, and control studies; user-subsystem interface studies; operational reliability analyses; design of candidate data bus configurations; and evaluation of candidate data bus designs.

Introduction on performance analysis and profiling methodologies for KVM on ARM virtualization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Motakis, Antonios; Spyridakis, Alexander; Raho, Daniel

2013-05-01

The introduction of hardware virtualization extensions on ARM Cortex-A15 processors has enabled the implementation of full virtualization solutions for this architecture, such as KVM on ARM. This trend motivates the need to quantify and understand the performance impact, emerged by the application of this technology. In this work we start looking into some interesting performance metrics on KVM for ARM processors, which can provide us with useful insight that may lead to potential improvements in the future. This includes measurements such as interrupt latency and guest exit cost, performed on ARM Versatile Express and Samsung Exynos 5250 hardware platforms. Furthermore, we discuss additional methodologies that can provide us with a deeper understanding in the future of the performance footprint of KVM. We identify some of the most interesting approaches in this field, and perform a tentative analysis on how these may be implemented in the KVM on ARM port. These take into consideration hardware and software based counters for profiling, and issues related to the limitations of the simulators which are often used, such as the ARM Fast Models platform.

A Meta-Analysis of Extensive Reading Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nakanishi, Takayuki

2015-01-01

The purposes of this study were to investigate the overall effectiveness of extensive reading, whether learners' age impacts learning, and whether the length of time second language learners engage in extensive reading influences test scores. The author conducted a meta-analysis to answer research questions and to identify future research…

Special Analysis: Disposal Plan for Pit 38 at Technical Area 54, Area G

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

French, Sean B.; Shuman, Rob

2012-06-26

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) generates radioactive waste as a result of various activities. Operational waste is generated from a wide variety of research and development activities including nuclear weapons development, energy production, and medical research; environmental restoration (ER), and decontamination and decommissioning (D&D) waste is generated as contaminated sites and facilities at LANL undergo cleanup or remediation. The majority of this waste is low-level radioactive waste (LLW) and is disposed of at the Technical Area 54 (TA-54), Area G disposal facility. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 435.1 (DOE, 2001) requires that radioactive waste be managed in a mannermore » that protects public health and safety, and the environment. To comply with this order, DOE field sites must prepare site-specific radiological performance assessments for LLW disposal facilities that accept waste after September 26, 1988. Furthermore, sites are required to conduct composite analyses that account for the cumulative impacts of all waste that has been (or will be) disposed of at the facilities and other sources of radioactive material that may interact with the facilities. Revision 4 of the Area G performance assessment and composite analysis was issued in 2008 (LANL, 2008). These analyses estimate rates of radionuclide release from the waste disposed of at the facility, simulate the movement of radionuclides through the environment, and project potential radiation doses to humans for several on- and off-site exposure scenarios. The assessments are based on existing site and disposal facility data, and on assumptions about future rates and methods of waste disposal. The Area G disposal facility consists of Material Disposal Area (MDA) G and the Zone 4 expansion area. To date, disposal operations have been confined to MDA G and are scheduled to continue in that region until MDA G undergoes final closure at the end of 2013. Given its impending closure, efforts have been made to utilize the remaining disposal capacity within MDA G to the greatest extent possible. One approach for doing this has been to dispose of low-activity waste from cleanup operations at LANL in the headspace of selected disposal pits. Waste acceptance criteria (WAC) for the material placed in the headspace of pits 15, 37, and 38 have been developed (LANL, 2010) and the impacts of placing waste in the headspace of these units has been evaluated (LANL, 2012a). The efforts to maximize disposal efficiency have taken on renewed importance because of the disposal demands placed on MDA G by the large volumes of waste that are being generated at LANL by cleanup efforts. For example, large quantities of waste were recently generated by the retrieval of waste formerly disposed of at TA-21, MDA B. A portion of this material has been disposed of in the headspace of pit 38 in compliance with the WAC developed for that disposal strategy; a large amount of waste has also been sent to off-site facilities for disposal. Nevertheless, large quantities of MDA B waste remain that require disposal. An extension of pit 38 was proposed to provide the disposal capacity that will be needed to dispose of institutional waste and MDA B waste through 2013. A special analysis was prepared to evaluate the impacts of the pit extension (LANL, 2012b). The analysis concluded that the disposal unit could be extended with modest increases in the exposures projected for the Area G performance assessment and composite analysis, as long as limits were placed on the radionuclide concentrations in the waste that is placed in the headspace of the pit. Based, in part, on the results of the special analysis, the extension of pit 38 was approved and excavation of the additional disposal capacity was started in May 2012. The special analysis presented here uses performance modeling to identify a disposal plan for the placement of waste in pit 38. The modeling uses a refined design of the disposal unit and updated radionuclide inventories to identify a disposal configuration that promotes efficient utilization of the pit and ensures continued compliance with DOE Order 435.1 performance objectives. Section 2 describes the methods used to conduct the analysis; the results of the evaluation are provided in Section 3. The disposal plan for pit 38 is provided in Section 4 and the conclusions of the investigation are provided in Section 5. Throughout the report, pit 38 is used to refer to the entire disposal unit, including the existing pit and the extension that is currently under construction. Where a distinction between the two portions of the pit is necessary, the existing unit is referred to as pit 38 proper and the new portion of the pit as the pit 38 extension or, more simply, the extension.« less

Nonlinear transient analysis of multi-mass flexible rotors - theory and applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kirk, R. G.; Gunter, E. J.

1973-01-01

The equations of motion necessary to compute the transient response of multi-mass flexible rotors are formulated to include unbalance, rotor acceleration, and flexible damped nonlinear bearing stations. A method of calculating the unbalance response of flexible rotors from a modified Myklestad-Prohl technique is discussed in connection with the method of solution for the transient response. Several special cases of simplified rotor-bearing systems are presented and analyzed for steady-state response, stability, and transient behavior. These simplified rotor models produce extensive design information necessary to insure stable performance to elastic mounted rotor-bearing systems under varying levels and forms of excitation. The nonlinear journal bearing force expressions derived from the short bearing approximation are utilized in the study of the stability and transient response of the floating bush squeeze damper support system. Both rigid and flexible rotor models are studied, and results indicate that the stability of flexible rotors supported by journal bearings can be greatly improved by the use of squeeze damper supports. Results from linearized stability studies of flexible rotors indicate that a tuned support system can greatly improve the performance of the units from the standpoint of unbalanced response and impact loading. Extensive stability and design charts may be readily produced for given rotor specifications by the computer codes presented in this analysis.

Intracerebral hemorrhage with intraventricular extension and no hydrocephalus may not increase mortality or severe disability.

PubMed

Mahta, Ali; Katz, Paul M; Kamel, Hooman; Azizi, S Ausim

2016-08-01

This paper aimed to test the hypothesis that intraventricular extension of spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) in the absence of hydrocephalus is not associated with increased mortality or severe disability. We performed a retrospective consecutive cohort study of patients with primary spontaneous ICH who were admitted to a single institution. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to assess the association of each variable with functional outcome as measured by the modified Rankin Scale (mRS). A total of 164 patients met our inclusion criteria and were included in the study. Only hydrocephalus (p=0.002) and hematoma volume (p=0.006) were significantly associated with mortality or poor functional outcome (mRS of 3 to 6). In contrast, the presence of intraventricular hematoma was not independently associated with poor functional outcome. The presence of intraventricular extension of ICH in the absence of hydrocephalus may not increase mortality or disability. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Job Superscheduler Architecture and Performance in Computational Grid Environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shan, Hongzhang; Oliker, Leonid; Biswas, Rupak

2003-01-01

Computational grids hold great promise in utilizing geographically separated heterogeneous resources to solve large-scale complex scientific problems. However, a number of major technical hurdles, including distributed resource management and effective job scheduling, stand in the way of realizing these gains. In this paper, we propose a novel grid superscheduler architecture and three distributed job migration algorithms. We also model the critical interaction between the superscheduler and autonomous local schedulers. Extensive performance comparisons with ideal, central, and local schemes using real workloads from leading computational centers are conducted in a simulation environment. Additionally, synthetic workloads are used to perform a detailed sensitivity analysis of our superscheduler. Several key metrics demonstrate that substantial performance gains can be achieved via smart superscheduling in distributed computational grids.

Risk of colorectal cancer in patients with ulcerative colitis: a meta-analysis of population-based cohort studies.

PubMed

Jess, Tine; Rungoe, Christine; Peyrin-Biroulet, Laurent

2012-06-01

Patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) have an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer (CRC). Studies examining the magnitude of this association have yielded conflicting results. We performed a meta-analysis of population-based cohort studies to determine the risk of CRC in patients with UC. We used MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane, and CINAHL to perform a systematic literature search. We included 8 studies in the meta-analysis on the basis of strict inclusion and exclusion criteria. We calculated pooled standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for risk of CRC in patients with UC and performed meta-regression analyses of the effect of cohort size, calendar period, observation time, percentage with proctitis, and rates of colectomy on the risk of CRC. An average of 1.6% of patients with UC was diagnosed with CRC during 14 years of follow-up. SIRs ranged from 1.05 to 3.1, with a pooled SIR of 2.4 (95% CI, 2.1-2.7). Men with UC had a greater risk of CRC (SIR, 2.6; 95% CI, 2.2-3.0) than women (SIR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.5-2.3). Young age was a risk factor for CRC (SIR, 8.6; 95% CI, 3.8-19.5; although this might have resulted from small numbers), as was extensive colitis (SIR, 4.8; 95% CI, 3.9-5.9). In meta-regression analyses, only cohort size was associated with risk of CRC. In population-based cohorts, UC increases the risk of CRC 2.4-fold. Male sex, young age at diagnosis with UC, and extensive colitis increase the risk. Copyright © 2012 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Compartmentalized microchannel array for high-throughput analysis of single cell polarized growth and dynamics

DOE PAGES

Geng, Tao; Bredeweg, Erin L.; Szymanski, Craig J.; ...

2015-11-04

Here, interrogating polarized growth is technologically challenging due to extensive cellular branching and uncontrollable environmental conditions in conventional assays. Here we present a robust and high-performance microfluidic system that enables observations of polarized growth with enhanced temporal and spatial control over prolonged periods. The system has built-in tunability and versatility to accommodate a variety of science applications requiring precisely controlled environments. Using the model filamentous fungus, Neurospora crassa, this microfluidic system enabled direct visualization and analysis of cellular heterogeneity in a clonal fungal cell population, nuclear distribution and dynamics at the subhyphal level, and quantitative dynamics of gene expression withmore » single hyphal compartment resolution in response to carbon source starvation and exchange experiments. Although the microfluidic device is demonstrated on filamentous fungi, our technology is immediately extensible to a wide array of other biosystems that exhibit similar polarized cell growth with applications ranging from bioenergy production to human health.« less

The prepatellar bursa: cadaveric investigation of regional anatomy with MRI after sonographically guided bursography.

PubMed

Aguiar, Rodrigo O; Viegas, Flavio C; Fernandez, Rodrigo Y; Trudell, Debra; Haghighi, Parviz; Resnick, Donald

2007-04-01

The purpose of this study was to use MRI and anatomic correlation in cadavers to show the macroscopic anatomic configuration of the prepatellar bursa. MRI of the prepatellar bursa of nine cadaveric knees was performed after sonographically guided bursography. The images were compared with those seen on anatomic sectioning. Histologic analysis was obtained in two specimens. Mean dimensions of the prepatellar bursa in the craniocaudal, lateromedial, and anteroposterior planes were 39.7, 40.5, and 3.2 mm, respectively. A trilaminar aspect of the bursa was shown in seven of the nine knees (78%) and a bilaminar appearance in two of the nine knees (22%). Lateral extension of the bursa over the patella was observed in three knees (33%) and medial extension in one knee (11%). On histopathologic analysis, three potential bursal spaces were found. The prepatellar bursa is most commonly a trilaminar structure, and variation in its relation to the patella can occur.

Extensive Radiation Shielding Analysis for Different Spacecraft Orbits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Çay, Yiǧit; Kaymaz, Zerefsan

2016-07-01

Radiation environment around Earth poses a great danger for spacecraft and causes immature de-orbiting or loss of the spacecraft in near Earth space environment. In this study, a student project has been designed to build a CubeSat, PolarBeeSail (PBS), with an orbit having inclination of 80°, 4 Re in perigee and 20 Re in apogee to study the polar magnetospheric environment. An extensive radiation dose analyses were carried out for PBS orbit, and integral and differential fluxes were calculated using SPENVIS tools. A shielding analysis was performed and an optimum Aluminum thickness, 3 mm, was obtained. These results for PBS were then compared for other orbits at different altitudes both for polar and equatorial orbits. For this purpose, orbital characteristics of POES-19 and GOES-15 were used. The resulting proton flux analyses, TID analyses, and further shielding studies were conducted; comparisons and recommendations were made for future design of spacecraft that will use these environments.

Analysis of ballistic transport in nanoscale devices by using an accelerated finite element contact block reduction approach

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

Li, H.; Li, G., E-mail: gli@clemson.edu

2014-08-28

An accelerated Finite Element Contact Block Reduction (FECBR) approach is presented for computational analysis of ballistic transport in nanoscale electronic devices with arbitrary geometry and unstructured mesh. Finite element formulation is developed for the theoretical CBR/Poisson model. The FECBR approach is accelerated through eigen-pair reduction, lead mode space projection, and component mode synthesis techniques. The accelerated FECBR is applied to perform quantum mechanical ballistic transport analysis of a DG-MOSFET with taper-shaped extensions and a DG-MOSFET with Si/SiO{sub 2} interface roughness. The computed electrical transport properties of the devices obtained from the accelerated FECBR approach and associated computational cost as amore » function of system degrees of freedom are compared with those obtained from the original CBR and direct inversion methods. The performance of the accelerated FECBR in both its accuracy and efficiency is demonstrated.« less

Transient Side Load Analysis of Out-of-Round Film-Cooled Nozzle Extensions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, Ten-See; Lin, Jeff; Ruf, Joe; Guidos, Mike

2012-01-01

There was interest in understanding the impact of out-of-round nozzle extension on the nozzle side load during transient startup operations. The out-of-round nozzle extension could be the result of asymmetric internal stresses, deformation induced by previous tests, and asymmetric loads induced by hardware attached to the nozzle. The objective of this study was therefore to computationally investigate the effect of out-of-round nozzle extension on the nozzle side loads during an engine startup transient. The rocket engine studied encompasses a regeneratively cooled chamber and nozzle, along with a film cooled nozzle extension. The computational methodology is based on an unstructured-grid, pressure-based computational fluid dynamics formulation, and transient inlet boundary flow properties derived from an engine system simulation. Six three-dimensional cases were performed with the out-of-roundness achieved by three different degrees of ovalization, elongated on lateral y and z axes: one slightly out-of-round, one more out-of-round, and one significantly out-of-round. The results show that the separation line jump was the primary source of the peak side loads. Comparing to the peak side load of the perfectly round nozzle, the peak side loads increased for the slightly and more ovalized nozzle extensions, and either increased or decreased for the two significantly ovalized nozzle extensions. A theory based on the counteraction of the flow destabilizing effect of an exacerbated asymmetrical flow caused by a lower degree of ovalization, and the flow stabilizing effect of a more symmetrical flow, created also by ovalization, is presented to explain the observations obtained in this effort.

Extended performance solar electric propulsion thrust system study. Volume 1: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poeschel, R. L.; Hawthorne, E. I.

1977-01-01

Several thrust system design concepts were evaluated and compared using the specifications of the most advanced 30 cm engineering model thruster as the technology base. The extensions in thruster performance required for the Halley's comet mission were defined and alternative thrust system concepts were designed. Confirmation testing and analysis of thruster and power-processing components were performed, and the feasibility of satisfying extended performance requirements was verified. A baseline design was selected from the alternatives considered, and the design analysis and documentation were refined. A program development plan was formulated that outlines the work structure considered necessary for developing, qualifying, and fabricating the flight hardware for the baseline thrust system within the time frame of a project to rendezvous with Halley's comet. An assessment was made of the costs and risks associated with a baseline thrust system as provided to the mission project under this plan. Critical procurements and interfaces were identified and defined. Results are presented.

Calculation of the Aerodynamic Behavior of the Tilt Rotor Aeroacoustic Model (TRAM) in the DNW

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Wayne

2001-01-01

Comparisons of measured and calculated aerodynamic behavior of a tiltrotor model are presented. The test of the Tilt Rotor Aeroacoustic Model (TRAM) with a single, 1/4-scale V- 22 rotor in the German-Dutch Wind Tunnel (DNW) provides an extensive set of aeroacoustic, performance, and structural loads data. The calculations were performed using the rotorcraft comprehensive analysis CAMRAD II. Presented are comparisons of measured and calculated performance and airloads for helicopter mode operation, as well as calculated induced and profile power. An aerodynamic and wake model and calculation procedure that reflects the unique geometry and phenomena of tiltrotors has been developed. There are major differences between this model and the corresponding aerodynamic and wake model that has been established for helicopter rotors. In general, good correlation between measured and calculated performance and airloads behavior has been shown. Two aspects of the analysis that clearly need improvement are the stall delay model and the trailed vortex formation model.

Simultaneous Aerodynamic and Structural Design Optimization (SASDO) for a 3-D Wing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gumbert, Clyde R.; Hou, Gene J.-W.; Newman, Perry A.

2001-01-01

The formulation and implementation of an optimization method called Simultaneous Aerodynamic and Structural Design Optimization (SASDO) is shown as an extension of the Simultaneous Aerodynamic Analysis and Design Optimization (SAADO) method. It is extended by the inclusion of structure element sizing parameters as design variables and Finite Element Method (FEM) analysis responses as constraints. The method aims to reduce the computational expense. incurred in performing shape and sizing optimization using state-of-the-art Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) flow analysis, FEM structural analysis and sensitivity analysis tools. SASDO is applied to a simple. isolated, 3-D wing in inviscid flow. Results show that the method finds the saine local optimum as a conventional optimization method with some reduction in the computational cost and without significant modifications; to the analysis tools.

Conditional withholding of proboscis extension in honeybees (Apis mellifera) during discriminative punishment.

PubMed

Smith, B H; Abramson, C I; Tobin, T R

1991-12-01

Proboscis extension conditioning of honeybee workers was used to test the ability of bees to respond to appetitive and aversive stimuli while restrained in a harness that allows subjects to move their antennae and mouthparts (Kuwabara, 1957; Menzel, Erber, & Masuhr, 1974). Subjects were conditioned to discriminate between two odors, one associated with sucrose feeding and the other associated with a 10 V AC shock if they responded to the sucrose unconditioned stimulus (US) in the context of that odor. Most Ss readily learned to respond to the odor followed by sucrose feeding and not to the odor associated with sucrose stimulation plus shock. Furthermore, in the context of the odor associated with shock, significantly more subjects withheld or delayed proboscis extension on stimulation with the sucrose US than they did in the context of the odor associated with feeding. Thus, restrained honeybees can readily learn to avoid shock according to an odor context by withholding proboscis extension to a normally powerful releaser. Analysis of individual learning curves revealed that subjects differed markedly in performance on this task. Some learn the discrimination quickly, whereas others show different kinds of response patterns.

A computer program for detailed analysis of the takeoff and approach performance capabilities of transport category aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Foss, W. E., Jr.

1979-01-01

The takeoff and approach performance of an aircraft is calculated in accordance with the airworthiness standards of the Federal Aviation Regulations. The aircraft and flight constraints are represented in sufficient detail to permit realistic sensitivity studies in terms of either configuration modifications or changes in operational procedures. The program may be used to investigate advanced operational procedures for noise alleviation such as programmed throttle and flap controls. Extensive profile time history data are generated and are placed on an interface file which can be input directly to the NASA aircraft noise prediction program (ANOPP).

A computer technique for detailed analysis of mission radius and maneuverability characteristics of fighter aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Foss, W. E., Jr.

1981-01-01

A computer technique to determine the mission radius and maneuverability characteristics of combat aircraft was developed. The technique was used to determine critical operational requirements and the areas in which research programs would be expected to yield the most beneficial results. In turn, the results of research efforts were evaluated in terms of aircraft performance on selected mission segments and for complete mission profiles. Extensive use of the technique in evaluation studies indicates that the calculated performance is essentially the same as that obtained by the proprietary programs in use throughout the aircraft industry.

A Study of the Congruency of Competencies and Criterion-Referenced Measures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, John Wilbur, Jr.

The job of the 4-H extension agent involves fairly complex levels of performance. The curriculum for the extension agent program should produce youth workers who have the ability to perform competently and who possess the basic concepts and values required to function effectively. Performance objectives were written for each competency considered…

Anthropometric, biomechanical, and isokinetic strength predictors of ball release speed in high-performance cricket fast bowlers.

PubMed

Wormgoor, Shohn; Harden, Lois; Mckinon, Warrick

2010-07-01

Fast bowling is fundamental to all forms of cricket. The purpose of this study was to identify parameters that contribute to high ball release speeds in cricket fast bowlers. We assessed anthropometric dimensions, concentric and eccentric isokinetic strength of selected knee and shoulder muscle groups, and specific aspects of technique from a single delivery in 28 high-performance fast bowlers (age 22.0 +/- 3.0 years, ball release speed 34.0 +/- 1.3 m s(-1)). Six 50-Hz cameras and the Ariel Performance Analysis System software were used to analyse the fast and accurate deliveries. Using Pearson's correlation, parameters that showed significant associations with ball release speed were identified. The findings suggest that greater front leg knee extension at ball release (r=0.52), shoulder alignment in the transverse plane rotated further away from the batsman at front foot strike (r=0.47), greater ankle height during the delivery stride (r=0.44), and greater shoulder extension strength (r=0.39) contribute significantly to higher ball release speeds. Predictor variables failed to allow their incorporation into a multivariate model, which is known to exist in less accomplished bowlers, suggesting that factors that determine ball release speed found in other groups may not apply to high-performance fast bowlers.

Designs and performance of three new microprocessor-controlled knee joints.

PubMed

Thiele, Julius; Schöllig, Christina; Bellmann, Malte; Kraft, Marc

2018-02-09

A crossover design study with a small group of subjects was used to evaluate the performance of three microprocessor-controlled exoprosthetic knee joints (MPKs): C-Leg 4, Plié 3 and Rheo Knee 3. Given that the mechanical designs and control algorithms of the joints determine the user outcome, the influence of these inherent differences on the functional characteristics was investigated in this study. The knee joints were evaluated during level-ground walking at different velocities in a motion analysis laboratory. Additionally, technical analyses using patents, technical documentations and X-ray computed tomography (CT) for each knee joint were performed. The technical analyses showed that only C-Leg 4 and Rheo Knee 3 allow microprocessor-controlled adaptation of the joint resistances for different gait velocities. Furthermore, Plié 3 is not able to provide stance extension damping. The biomechanical results showed that only if a knee joint adapts flexion and extension resistances by the microprocessor all known advantages of MPKs can become apparent. But not all users may benefit from the examined functions: e.g. a good accommodation to fast walking speeds or comfortable stance phase flexion. Hence, a detailed comparison of user demands and performance of the designated knee joint is mandatory to ensure a maximum in user outcome.

Coupled Aerodynamic and Structural Sensitivity Analysis of a High-Speed Civil Transport

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mason, B. H.; Walsh, J. L.

2001-01-01

An objective of the High Performance Computing and Communication Program at the NASA Langley Research Center is to demonstrate multidisciplinary shape and sizing optimization of a complete aerospace vehicle configuration by using high-fidelity, finite-element structural analysis and computational fluid dynamics aerodynamic analysis. In a previous study, a multi-disciplinary analysis system for a high-speed civil transport was formulated to integrate a set of existing discipline analysis codes, some of them computationally intensive, This paper is an extension of the previous study, in which the sensitivity analysis for the coupled aerodynamic and structural analysis problem is formulated and implemented. Uncoupled stress sensitivities computed with a constant load vector in a commercial finite element analysis code are compared to coupled aeroelastic sensitivities computed by finite differences. The computational expense of these sensitivity calculation methods is discussed.

The effects of a 28-Hz vibration on arm muscle activity during isometric exercise.

PubMed

Mischi, Massimo; Cardinale, Marco

2009-03-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate activation and coactivation of biceps and triceps muscles during isometric exercise performed with and without superimposing a vibration stimulation. Twelve healthy volunteers (age = 22.7 +/- 2.6 yr) participated in this study. The subjects performed five trials of isometric elbow flexion and five trials of elbow extension with increasing levels of force in two conditions: vibration (V) and normal loading (C). V stimulation was characterized by a frequency of 28 Hz. Surface EMG activity of biceps and triceps muscles was simultaneously measured by bipolar surface electromyography and assessed by the estimation of the root mean square (RMS) of the electrical recordings over a fixed 5-s interval. Frequency analysis was adopted to estimate the RMS related to muscle activation and to exclude the harmonics generated by movement artifacts due to V. The analysis of the recordings revealed a significant EMG RMS increase when V was applied. On average, the EMG RMS of biceps and triceps during elbow flexion was, respectively, 26.1% (P < 0.05) and 18.2% (P = 0.15) higher than C. During elbow extension, the EMG RMS of biceps and triceps was 77.2% and 45.2% (P < 0.05) higher than C, respectively. The coactivation was assessed as the ratio between the activation of antagonist and agonist muscles during arm flexion and extension tasks. The results revealed an increase of coactivation during V exercise, especially for lighter loads. This study shows that V exercise at 28 Hz produces an increase of the activation and the coactivation of biceps and triceps. This exercise modality seems therefore suitable for various applications.

Extensive Evaluation of the Conductor-like Screening Model for Real Solvents Method in Predicting Liquid-Liquid Equilibria in Ternary Systems of Ionic Liquids with Molecular Compounds.

PubMed

Paduszyński, Kamil

2018-04-12

A conductor-like screening model for real solvents (COSMO-RS) is nowadays one of the most popular and commonly applied tools for the estimation of thermodynamic properties of complex fluids. The goal of this work is to provide a comprehensive review and analysis of the performance of this approach in calculating liquid-liquid equilibrium (LLE) phase diagrams in ternary systems composed of ionic liquid and two molecular compounds belonging to diverse families of chemicals (alkanes, aromatics, S/N-compounds, alcohols, ketones, ethers, carboxylic acid, esters, and water). The predictions are presented for extensive experimental database, including 930 LLE data sets and more than 9000 data points (LLE tie lines) reported for 779 unique ternary mixtures. An impact of the type of molecular binary subsystem on the accuracy of predictions is demonstrated and discussed on the basis of representative examples. The model's capability of capturing qualitative trends in the LLE distribution ratio and selectivity is also checked for a number of structural effects. Comparative analysis of two levels of quantum chemical theory (BP-TZVP-COSMO vs BP-TZVPD-FINE) for the input molecular data for COSMO-RS is presented. Finally, some general recommendations for the applicability of the model are indicated based on the analysis of the global performance as well as on the results obtained for systems relevant from the point of view of important separation problems.

Verification of Space Station Secondary Power System Stability Using Design of Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Karimi, Kamiar J.; Booker, Andrew J.; Mong, Alvin C.; Manners, Bruce

1998-01-01

This paper describes analytical methods used in verification of large DC power systems with applications to the International Space Station (ISS). Large DC power systems contain many switching power converters with negative resistor characteristics. The ISS power system presents numerous challenges with respect to system stability such as complex sources and undefined loads. The Space Station program has developed impedance specifications for sources and loads. The overall approach to system stability consists of specific hardware requirements coupled with extensive system analysis and testing. Testing of large complex distributed power systems is not practical due to size and complexity of the system. Computer modeling has been extensively used to develop hardware specifications as well as to identify system configurations for lab testing. The statistical method of Design of Experiments (DoE) is used as an analysis tool for verification of these large systems. DOE reduces the number of computer runs which are necessary to analyze the performance of a complex power system consisting of hundreds of DC/DC converters. DoE also provides valuable information about the effect of changes in system parameters on the performance of the system. DoE provides information about various operating scenarios and identification of the ones with potential for instability. In this paper we will describe how we have used computer modeling to analyze a large DC power system. A brief description of DoE is given. Examples using applications of DoE to analysis and verification of the ISS power system are provided.

Numerical aerodynamic simulation facility. Preliminary study extension

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1978-01-01

The production of an optimized design of key elements of the candidate facility was the primary objective of this report. This was accomplished by effort in the following tasks: (1) to further develop, optimize and describe the function description of the custom hardware; (2) to delineate trade off areas between performance, reliability, availability, serviceability, and programmability; (3) to develop metrics and models for validation of the candidate systems performance; (4) to conduct a functional simulation of the system design; (5) to perform a reliability analysis of the system design; and (6) to develop the software specifications to include a user level high level programming language, a correspondence between the programming language and instruction set and outline the operation system requirements.

Analysis of the packet formation process in packet-switched networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meditch, J. S.

Two new queueing system models for the packet formation process in packet-switched telecommunication networks are developed, and their applications in process stability, performance analysis, and optimization studies are illustrated. The first, an M/M/1 queueing system characterization of the process, is a highly aggregated model which is useful for preliminary studies. The second, a marked extension of an earlier M/G/1 model, permits one to investigate stability, performance characteristics, and design of the packet formation process in terms of the details of processor architecture, and hardware and software implementations with processor structure and as many parameters as desired as variables. The two new models together with the earlier M/G/1 characterization span the spectrum of modeling complexity for the packet formation process from basic to advanced.

Boundary-Layer Stability Analysis of the Mean Flows Obtained Using Unstructured Grids

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liao, Wei; Malik, Mujeeb R.; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Li, Fei; Nielsen, Eric J.; Buning, Pieter G.; Chang, Chau-Lyan; Choudhari, Meelan M.

2012-01-01

Boundary-layer stability analyses of mean flows extracted from unstructured-grid Navier- Stokes solutions have been performed. A procedure has been developed to extract mean flow profiles from the FUN3D unstructured-grid solutions. Extensive code-to-code validations have been performed by comparing the extracted mean ows as well as the corresponding stability characteristics to the predictions based on structured-grid solutions. Comparisons are made on a range of problems from a simple at plate to a full aircraft configuration-a modified Gulfstream-III with a natural laminar flow glove. The future aim of the project is to extend the adjoint-based design capability in FUN3D to include natural laminar flow and laminar flow control by integrating it with boundary-layer stability analysis codes, such as LASTRAC.

Extension of an Object-Oriented Optimization Tool: User's Reference Manual

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pak, Chan-Gi; Truong, Samson S.

2015-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration Armstrong Flight Research Center has developed a cost-effective and flexible object-oriented optimization (O (sup 3)) tool that leverages existing tools and practices and allows easy integration and adoption of new state-of-the-art software. This object-oriented framework can integrate the analysis codes for multiple disciplines, as opposed to relying on one code to perform analysis for all disciplines. Optimization can thus take place within each discipline module, or in a loop between the O (sup 3) tool and the discipline modules, or both. Six different sample mathematical problems are presented to demonstrate the performance of the O (sup 3) tool. Instructions for preparing input data for the O (sup 3) tool are detailed in this user's manual.

Development of on-line monitoring system for Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) using neuro-expert, noise analysis, and modified neural networks

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

Subekti, M.; Center for Development of Reactor Safety Technology, National Nuclear Energy Agency of Indonesia, Puspiptek Complex BO.80, Serpong-Tangerang, 15340; Ohno, T.

2006-07-01

The neuro-expert has been utilized in previous monitoring-system research of Pressure Water Reactor (PWR). The research improved the monitoring system by utilizing neuro-expert, conventional noise analysis and modified neural networks for capability extension. The parallel method applications required distributed architecture of computer-network for performing real-time tasks. The research aimed to improve the previous monitoring system, which could detect sensor degradation, and to perform the monitoring demonstration in High Temperature Engineering Tested Reactor (HTTR). The developing monitoring system based on some methods that have been tested using the data from online PWR simulator, as well as RSG-GAS (30 MW research reactormore » in Indonesia), will be applied in HTTR for more complex monitoring. (authors)« less

Performance of the Wavelet Decomposition on Massively Parallel Architectures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

El-Ghazawi, Tarek A.; LeMoigne, Jacqueline; Zukor, Dorothy (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Traditionally, Fourier Transforms have been utilized for performing signal analysis and representation. But although it is straightforward to reconstruct a signal from its Fourier transform, no local description of the signal is included in its Fourier representation. To alleviate this problem, Windowed Fourier transforms and then wavelet transforms have been introduced, and it has been proven that wavelets give a better localization than traditional Fourier transforms, as well as a better division of the time- or space-frequency plane than Windowed Fourier transforms. Because of these properties and after the development of several fast algorithms for computing the wavelet representation of any signal, in particular the Multi-Resolution Analysis (MRA) developed by Mallat, wavelet transforms have increasingly been applied to signal analysis problems, especially real-life problems, in which speed is critical. In this paper we present and compare efficient wavelet decomposition algorithms on different parallel architectures. We report and analyze experimental measurements, using NASA remotely sensed images. Results show that our algorithms achieve significant performance gains on current high performance parallel systems, and meet scientific applications and multimedia requirements. The extensive performance measurements collected over a number of high-performance computer systems have revealed important architectural characteristics of these systems, in relation to the processing demands of the wavelet decomposition of digital images.

The impact of dynamic balance measures on walking performance in multiple sclerosis.

PubMed

Fritz, Nora E; Marasigan, Rhul Evans R; Calabresi, Peter A; Newsome, Scott D; Zackowski, Kathleen M

2015-01-01

Static posture imbalance and gait dysfunction are common in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS). Although the impact of strength and static balance on walking has been examined, the impact of dynamic standing balance on walking in MS remains unclear. To determine the impact of dynamic balance, static balance, sensation, and strength measures on walking in individuals with MS. Fifty-two individuals with MS (27 women; 26 relapsing-remitting; mean age = 45.6 ± 10.3 years; median Expanded Disability Status Scale score = 3.5) participated in posturography testing (Kistler-9281 force plate), hip flexion, hip extension, ankle dorsiflexion strength (Microfet2 hand-held dynamometer), sensation (Vibratron II), and walk velocity (Optotrak Motion Analysis System). Analyses included, Mann-Whitney, Spearman correlation coefficients, and multiple regression. All measures were abnormal in individuals with MS when compared with norms (P < .05). Static balance (eyes open, feet together [EOFT]), anterior-posterior (AP) dynamic sway, and hip extension strength were strongly correlated with walking velocity (AP sway r = 0.68; hip extension strength r = 0.73; EOFT r = -0.40). Together, AP dynamic sway (ρr = 0.71; P < .001), hip extension strength (ρr = 0.54; P < .001), and EOFT static balance (ρr = -0.41; P = .01) explained more than 70% of the variance in walking velocity (P < .001). AP dynamic sway affects walking performance in MS. A combined evaluation of dynamic balance, static balance, and strength may lead to a better understanding of walking mechanisms and the development of strategies to improve walking. © The Author(s) 2014.

In Vivo Patellofemoral Contact Mechanics During Active Extension Using a Novel Dynamic MRI-based Methodology

PubMed Central

Borotikar, Bhushan S.; Sheehan, Frances T.

2017-01-01

Objectives To establish an in vivo, normative patellofemoral cartilage contact mechanics database acquired during voluntary muscle control using a novel dynamic magnetic resonance (MR) imaging-based computational methodology and validate the contact mechanics sensitivity to the known sub-millimeter methodological inaccuracies. Design Dynamic cine phase-contrast and multi-plane cine images were acquired while female subjects (n=20, sample of convenience) performed an open kinetic chain (knee flexion-extension) exercise inside a 3-Tesla MR scanner. Static cartilage models were created from high resolution three-dimensional static MR data and accurately placed in their dynamic pose at each time frame based on the cine-PC data. Cartilage contact parameters were calculated based on the surface overlap. Statistical analysis was performed using paired t-test and a one-sample repeated measures ANOVA. The sensitivity of the contact parameters to the known errors in the patellofemoral kinematics was determined. Results Peak mean patellofemoral contact area was 228.7±173.6mm2 at 40° knee angle. During extension, contact centroid and peak strain locations tracked medially on the femoral and patellar cartilage and were not significantly different from each other. At 30°, 35°, and 40° of knee extension, contact area was significantly different. Contact area and centroid locations were insensitive to rotational and translational perturbations. Conclusion This study is a first step towards unfolding the biomechanical pathways to anterior patellofemoral pain and OA using dynamic, in vivo, and accurate methodologies. The database provides crucial data for future studies and for validation of, or as an input to, computational models. PMID:24012620

48 CFR 17.605 - Award, renewal, and extension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Award, renewal, and extension. (a) Effective work performance under management and operating contracts... prospective contractor's technical and managerial capacity are sufficient, that organizational conflicts of... rights to involve itself, if necessary, in technical and managerial decisionmaking concerning performance...

Illumina whole-genome complementary DNA-mediated annealing, selection, extension and ligation platform: assessing its performance in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples and identifying invasion pattern-related genes in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

PubMed

Loudig, Olivier; Brandwein-Gensler, Margaret; Kim, Ryung S; Lin, Juan; Isayeva, Tatyana; Liu, Christina; Segall, Jeffrey E; Kenny, Paraic A; Prystowsky, Michael B

2011-12-01

High-throughput gene expression profiling from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues has become a reality, and several methods are now commercially available. The Illumina whole-genome complementary DNA-mediated annealing, selection, extension and ligation assay (Illumina, Inc) is a full-transcriptome version of the original 512-gene complementary DNA-mediated annealing, selection, extension and ligation assay, allowing high-throughput profiling of 24,526 annotated genes from degraded and formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded RNA. This assay has the potential to allow identification of novel gene signatures associated with clinical outcome using banked archival pathology specimen resources. We tested the reproducibility of the whole-genome complementary DNA-mediated annealing, selection, extension and ligation assay and its sensitivity for detecting differentially expressed genes in RNA extracted from matched fresh and formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded cells, after 1 and 13 months of storage, using the human breast cell lines MCF7 and MCF10A. Then, using tumor worst pattern of invasion as a classifier, 1 component of the "risk model," we selected 12 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded oral squamous cell carcinomas for whole-genome complementary DNA-mediated annealing, selection, extension and ligation assay analysis. We profiled 5 tumors with nonaggressive, nondispersed pattern of invasion, and 7 tumors with aggressive dispersed pattern of invasion and satellites scattered at least 1 mm apart. To minimize variability, the formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded specimens were prepared from snap-frozen tissues, and RNA was obtained within 24 hours of fixation. One hundred four down-regulated genes and 72 up-regulated genes in tumors with aggressive dispersed pattern of invasion were identified. We performed quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction validation of 4 genes using Taqman assays and in situ protein detection of 1 gene by immunohistochemistry. Functional cluster analysis of genes up-regulated in tumors with aggressive pattern of invasion suggests presence of genes involved in cellular cytoarchitecture, some of which already associated with tumor invasion. Identification of these genes provides biologic rationale for our histologic classification, with regard to tumor invasion, and demonstrates that the whole-genome complementary DNA-mediated annealing, selection, extension and ligation assay is a powerful assay for profiling degraded RNA from archived specimens when combined with quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction validation. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Skating start propulsion: three-dimensional kinematic analysis of elite male and female ice hockey players.

PubMed

Shell, Jaymee R; Robbins, Shawn M K; Dixon, Philippe C; Renaud, Philippe J; Turcotte, René A; Wu, Tom; Pearsall, David J

2017-09-01

The forward skating start is a fundamental skill for male and female ice hockey players. However, performance differences by athlete's sex cannot be fully explained by physiological variables; hence, other factors such as skating technique warrant examination. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the body movement kinematics of ice hockey skating starts between elite male and female ice hockey participants. Male (n = 9) and female (n = 10) elite ice hockey players performed five forward skating start accelerations. An 18-camera motion capture system placed on the arena ice surface captured full-body kinematics during the first seven skating start steps within 15 meters. Males' maximum skating speeds were greater than females. Skating technique sex differences were noted: in particular, females presented ~10° lower hip abduction throughout skating stance as well as ~10° greater knee extension at initial ice stance contact, conspicuously followed by a brief cessation in knee extension at the moment of ice contact, not evident in male skaters. Further study is warranted to explain why these skating technique differences exist in relation to factors such as differences in training, equipment, performance level, and anthropometrics.

Behavior coordination of mobile robotics using supervisory control of fuzzy discrete event systems.

PubMed

Jayasiri, Awantha; Mann, George K I; Gosine, Raymond G

2011-10-01

In order to incorporate the uncertainty and impreciseness present in real-world event-driven asynchronous systems, fuzzy discrete event systems (DESs) (FDESs) have been proposed as an extension to crisp DESs. In this paper, first, we propose an extension to the supervisory control theory of FDES by redefining fuzzy controllable and uncontrollable events. The proposed supervisor is capable of enabling feasible uncontrollable and controllable events with different possibilities. Then, the extended supervisory control framework of FDES is employed to model and control several navigational tasks of a mobile robot using the behavior-based approach. The robot has limited sensory capabilities, and the navigations have been performed in several unmodeled environments. The reactive and deliberative behaviors of the mobile robotic system are weighted through fuzzy uncontrollable and controllable events, respectively. By employing the proposed supervisory controller, a command-fusion-type behavior coordination is achieved. The observability of fuzzy events is incorporated to represent the sensory imprecision. As a systematic analysis of the system, a fuzzy-state-based controllability measure is introduced. The approach is implemented in both simulation and real time. A performance evaluation is performed to quantitatively estimate the validity of the proposed approach over its counterparts.

Develop Advanced Nonlinear Signal Analysis Topographical Mapping System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jong, Jen-Yi

1997-01-01

During the development of the SSME, a hierarchy of advanced signal analysis techniques for mechanical signature analysis has been developed by NASA and AI Signal Research Inc. (ASRI) to improve the safety and reliability for Space Shuttle operations. These techniques can process and identify intelligent information hidden in a measured signal which is often unidentifiable using conventional signal analysis methods. Currently, due to the highly interactive processing requirements and the volume of dynamic data involved, detailed diagnostic analysis is being performed manually which requires immense man-hours with extensive human interface. To overcome this manual process, NASA implemented this program to develop an Advanced nonlinear signal Analysis Topographical Mapping System (ATMS) to provide automatic/unsupervised engine diagnostic capabilities. The ATMS will utilize a rule-based Clips expert system to supervise a hierarchy of diagnostic signature analysis techniques in the Advanced Signal Analysis Library (ASAL). ASAL will perform automatic signal processing, archiving, and anomaly detection/identification tasks in order to provide an intelligent and fully automated engine diagnostic capability. The ATMS has been successfully developed under this contract. In summary, the program objectives to design, develop, test and conduct performance evaluation for an automated engine diagnostic system have been successfully achieved. Software implementation of the entire ATMS system on MSFC's OISPS computer has been completed. The significance of the ATMS developed under this program is attributed to the fully automated coherence analysis capability for anomaly detection and identification which can greatly enhance the power and reliability of engine diagnostic evaluation. The results have demonstrated that ATMS can significantly save time and man-hours in performing engine test/flight data analysis and performance evaluation of large volumes of dynamic test data.

Modified Distribution-Free Goodness-of-Fit Test Statistic.

PubMed

Chun, So Yeon; Browne, Michael W; Shapiro, Alexander

2018-03-01

Covariance structure analysis and its structural equation modeling extensions have become one of the most widely used methodologies in social sciences such as psychology, education, and economics. An important issue in such analysis is to assess the goodness of fit of a model under analysis. One of the most popular test statistics used in covariance structure analysis is the asymptotically distribution-free (ADF) test statistic introduced by Browne (Br J Math Stat Psychol 37:62-83, 1984). The ADF statistic can be used to test models without any specific distribution assumption (e.g., multivariate normal distribution) of the observed data. Despite its advantage, it has been shown in various empirical studies that unless sample sizes are extremely large, this ADF statistic could perform very poorly in practice. In this paper, we provide a theoretical explanation for this phenomenon and further propose a modified test statistic that improves the performance in samples of realistic size. The proposed statistic deals with the possible ill-conditioning of the involved large-scale covariance matrices.

Cognition and procedure representational requirements for predictive human performance models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Corker, K.

1992-01-01

Models and modeling environments for human performance are becoming significant contributors to early system design and analysis procedures. Issues of levels of automation, physical environment, informational environment, and manning requirements are being addressed by such man/machine analysis systems. The research reported here investigates the close interaction between models of human cognition and models that described procedural performance. We describe a methodology for the decomposition of aircrew procedures that supports interaction with models of cognition on the basis of procedures observed; that serves to identify cockpit/avionics information sources and crew information requirements; and that provides the structure to support methods for function allocation among crew and aiding systems. Our approach is to develop an object-oriented, modular, executable software representation of the aircrew, the aircraft, and the procedures necessary to satisfy flight-phase goals. We then encode in a time-based language, taxonomies of the conceptual, relational, and procedural constraints among the cockpit avionics and control system and the aircrew. We have designed and implemented a goals/procedures hierarchic representation sufficient to describe procedural flow in the cockpit. We then execute the procedural representation in simulation software and calculate the values of the flight instruments, aircraft state variables and crew resources using the constraints available from the relationship taxonomies. The system provides a flexible, extensible, manipulative and executable representation of aircrew and procedures that is generally applicable to crew/procedure task-analysis. The representation supports developed methods of intent inference, and is extensible to include issues of information requirements and functional allocation. We are attempting to link the procedural representation to models of cognitive functions to establish several intent inference methods including procedural backtracking with concurrent search, temporal reasoning, and constraint checking for partial ordering of procedures. Finally, the representation is being linked to models of human decision making processes that include heuristic, propositional and prescriptive judgement models that are sensitive to the procedural content in which the valuative functions are being performed.

Rural Extension Services. Policy Research Working Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Jock R.; Feder, Gershon

This paper analyzes the considerations that lead policy makers to undertake extension investments as a key public responsibility, as well as the complex set of factors and intra-agency incentives that explain variations in performance between different extension systems. The goals of extension include transferring knowledge from researchers to…

A Strategic Plan for Introducing, Implementing, Managing, and Monitoring an Urban Extension Platform

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Warner, Laura A.; Vavrina, Charlie S.; Campbell, Mary L.; Elliott, Monica L.; Northrop, Robert J.; Place, Nick T.

2017-01-01

Florida's Strategic Plan for Extension in Metropolitan Regions reflects an adaptive management approach to the state's urban Extension mission within the context of establishing essential elements, performance indicators, key outcomes, and suggested alternatives for action. Extension leadership has adopted the strategic plan, and implementation…

Extension of a simplified computer program for analysis of solid-propellant rocket motors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sforzini, R. H.

1973-01-01

A research project to develop a computer program for the preliminary design and performance analysis of solid propellant rocket engines is discussed. The following capabilities are included as computer program options: (1) treatment of wagon wheel cross sectional propellant configurations alone or in combination with circular perforated grains, (2) calculation of ignition transients with the igniter treated as a small rocket engine, (3) representation of spherical circular perforated grain ends as an alternative to the conical end surface approximation used in the original program, and (4) graphical presentation of program results using a digital plotter.

Model reference tracking control of an aircraft: a robust adaptive approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanyer, Ilker; Tatlicioglu, Enver; Zergeroglu, Erkan

2017-05-01

This work presents the design and the corresponding analysis of a nonlinear robust adaptive controller for model reference tracking of an aircraft that has parametric uncertainties in its system matrices and additive state- and/or time-dependent nonlinear disturbance-like terms in its dynamics. Specifically, robust integral of the sign of the error feedback term and an adaptive term is fused with a proportional integral controller. Lyapunov-based stability analysis techniques are utilised to prove global asymptotic convergence of the output tracking error. Extensive numerical simulations are presented to illustrate the performance of the proposed robust adaptive controller.

Implementation of an experimental program to investigate the performance characteristics of OMEGA navigation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baxa, E. G., Jr.

1974-01-01

A theoretical formulation of differential and composite OMEGA error is presented to establish hypotheses about the functional relationships between various parameters and OMEGA navigational errors. Computer software developed to provide for extensive statistical analysis of the phase data is described. Results from the regression analysis used to conduct parameter sensitivity studies on differential OMEGA error tend to validate the theoretically based hypothesis concerning the relationship between uncorrected differential OMEGA error and receiver separation range and azimuth. Limited results of measurement of receiver repeatability error and line of position measurement error are also presented.

Program Helps To Determine Chemical-Reaction Mechanisms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bittker, D. A.; Radhakrishnan, K.

1995-01-01

General Chemical Kinetics and Sensitivity Analysis (LSENS) computer code developed for use in solving complex, homogeneous, gas-phase, chemical-kinetics problems. Provides for efficient and accurate chemical-kinetics computations and provides for sensitivity analysis for variety of problems, including problems involving honisothermal conditions. Incorporates mathematical models for static system, steady one-dimensional inviscid flow, reaction behind incident shock wave (with boundary-layer correction), and perfectly stirred reactor. Computations of equilibrium properties performed for following assigned states: enthalpy and pressure, temperature and pressure, internal energy and volume, and temperature and volume. Written in FORTRAN 77 with exception of NAMELIST extensions used for input.

LaRC design analysis report for National Transonic Facility for 304 stainless steel tunnel shell. Volume 1S: Finite difference analysis of cone/cylinder junction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ramsey, J. W., Jr.; Taylor, J. T.; Wilson, J. F.; Gray, C. E., Jr.; Leatherman, A. D.; Rooker, J. R.; Allred, J. W.

1976-01-01

The results of extensive computer (finite element, finite difference and numerical integration), thermal, fatigue, and special analyses of critical portions of a large pressurized, cryogenic wind tunnel (National Transonic Facility) are presented. The computer models, loading and boundary conditions are described. Graphic capability was used to display model geometry, section properties, and stress results. A stress criteria is presented for evaluation of the results of the analyses. Thermal analyses were performed for major critical and typical areas. Fatigue analyses of the entire tunnel circuit are presented.

Anniversary Paper: History and status of CAD and quantitative image analysis: The role of Medical Physics and AAPM

PubMed Central

Giger, Maryellen L.; Chan, Heang-Ping; Boone, John

2008-01-01

The roles of physicists in medical imaging have expanded over the years, from the study of imaging systems (sources and detectors) and dose to the assessment of image quality and perception, the development of image processing techniques, and the development of image analysis methods to assist in detection and diagnosis. The latter is a natural extension of medical physicists’ goals in developing imaging techniques to help physicians acquire diagnostic information and improve clinical decisions. Studies indicate that radiologists do not detect all abnormalities on images that are visible on retrospective review, and they do not always correctly characterize abnormalities that are found. Since the 1950s, the potential use of computers had been considered for analysis of radiographic abnormalities. In the mid-1980s, however, medical physicists and radiologists began major research efforts for computer-aided detection or computer-aided diagnosis (CAD), that is, using the computer output as an aid to radiologists—as opposed to a completely automatic computer interpretation—focusing initially on methods for the detection of lesions on chest radiographs and mammograms. Since then, extensive investigations of computerized image analysis for detection or diagnosis of abnormalities in a variety of 2D and 3D medical images have been conducted. The growth of CAD over the past 20 years has been tremendous—from the early days of time-consuming film digitization and CPU-intensive computations on a limited number of cases to its current status in which developed CAD approaches are evaluated rigorously on large clinically relevant databases. CAD research by medical physicists includes many aspects—collecting relevant normal and pathological cases; developing computer algorithms appropriate for the medical interpretation task including those for segmentation, feature extraction, and classifier design; developing methodology for assessing CAD performance; validating the algorithms using appropriate cases to measure performance and robustness; conducting observer studies with which to evaluate radiologists in the diagnostic task without and with the use of the computer aid; and ultimately assessing performance with a clinical trial. Medical physicists also have an important role in quantitative imaging, by validating the quantitative integrity of scanners and developing imaging techniques, and image analysis tools that extract quantitative data in a more accurate and automated fashion. As imaging systems become more complex and the need for better quantitative information from images grows, the future includes the combined research efforts from physicists working in CAD with those working on quantitative imaging systems to readily yield information on morphology, function, molecular structure, and more—from animal imaging research to clinical patient care. A historical review of CAD and a discussion of challenges for the future are presented here, along with the extension to quantitative image analysis. PMID:19175137

Anniversary Paper: History and status of CAD and quantitative image analysis: The role of Medical Physics and AAPM

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

Giger, Maryellen L.; Chan, Heang-Ping; Boone, John

2008-12-15

The roles of physicists in medical imaging have expanded over the years, from the study of imaging systems (sources and detectors) and dose to the assessment of image quality and perception, the development of image processing techniques, and the development of image analysis methods to assist in detection and diagnosis. The latter is a natural extension of medical physicists' goals in developing imaging techniques to help physicians acquire diagnostic information and improve clinical decisions. Studies indicate that radiologists do not detect all abnormalities on images that are visible on retrospective review, and they do not always correctly characterize abnormalities thatmore » are found. Since the 1950s, the potential use of computers had been considered for analysis of radiographic abnormalities. In the mid-1980s, however, medical physicists and radiologists began major research efforts for computer-aided detection or computer-aided diagnosis (CAD), that is, using the computer output as an aid to radiologists--as opposed to a completely automatic computer interpretation--focusing initially on methods for the detection of lesions on chest radiographs and mammograms. Since then, extensive investigations of computerized image analysis for detection or diagnosis of abnormalities in a variety of 2D and 3D medical images have been conducted. The growth of CAD over the past 20 years has been tremendous--from the early days of time-consuming film digitization and CPU-intensive computations on a limited number of cases to its current status in which developed CAD approaches are evaluated rigorously on large clinically relevant databases. CAD research by medical physicists includes many aspects--collecting relevant normal and pathological cases; developing computer algorithms appropriate for the medical interpretation task including those for segmentation, feature extraction, and classifier design; developing methodology for assessing CAD performance; validating the algorithms using appropriate cases to measure performance and robustness; conducting observer studies with which to evaluate radiologists in the diagnostic task without and with the use of the computer aid; and ultimately assessing performance with a clinical trial. Medical physicists also have an important role in quantitative imaging, by validating the quantitative integrity of scanners and developing imaging techniques, and image analysis tools that extract quantitative data in a more accurate and automated fashion. As imaging systems become more complex and the need for better quantitative information from images grows, the future includes the combined research efforts from physicists working in CAD with those working on quantitative imaging systems to readily yield information on morphology, function, molecular structure, and more--from animal imaging research to clinical patient care. A historical review of CAD and a discussion of challenges for the future are presented here, along with the extension to quantitative image analysis.« less

Advanced Power System Analysis Capabilities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1997-01-01

As a continuing effort to assist in the design and characterization of space power systems, the NASA Lewis Research Center's Power and Propulsion Office developed a powerful computerized analysis tool called System Power Analysis for Capability Evaluation (SPACE). This year, SPACE was used extensively in analyzing detailed operational timelines for the International Space Station (ISS) program. SPACE was developed to analyze the performance of space-based photovoltaic power systems such as that being developed for the ISS. It is a highly integrated tool that combines numerous factors in a single analysis, providing a comprehensive assessment of the power system's capability. Factors particularly critical to the ISS include the orientation of the solar arrays toward the Sun and the shadowing of the arrays by other portions of the station.

Ethical objections against including life-extension costs in cost-effectiveness analysis: a consistent approach.

PubMed

Gandjour, Afschin; Müller, Dirk

2014-10-01

One of the major ethical concerns regarding cost-effectiveness analysis in health care has been the inclusion of life-extension costs ("it is cheaper to let people die"). For this reason, many analysts have opted to rule out life-extension costs from the analysis. However, surprisingly little has been written in the health economics literature regarding this ethical concern and the resulting practice. The purpose of this work was to present a framework and potential solution for ethical objections against life-extension costs. This work found three levels of ethical concern: (i) with respect to all life-extension costs (disease-related and -unrelated); (ii) with respect to disease-unrelated costs only; and (iii) regarding disease-unrelated costs plus disease-related costs not influenced by the intervention. Excluding all life-extension costs for ethical reasons would require-for reasons of consistency-a simultaneous exclusion of savings from reducing morbidity. At the other extreme, excluding only disease-unrelated life-extension costs for ethical reasons would require-again for reasons of consistency-the exclusion of health gains due to treatment of unrelated diseases. Therefore, addressing ethical concerns regarding the inclusion of life-extension costs necessitates fundamental changes in the calculation of cost effectiveness.

32 CFR 644.462 - Performance of restoration work by district engineer-extension of time.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Performance of restoration work by district... Leasehold Improvements § 644.462 Performance of restoration work by district engineer—extension of time. Where the lessor will not accept a cash settlement in lieu of restoration, or desires the work to be...

Algorithm For Solution Of Subset-Regression Problems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Verhaegen, Michel

1991-01-01

Reliable and flexible algorithm for solution of subset-regression problem performs QR decomposition with new column-pivoting strategy, enables selection of subset directly from originally defined regression parameters. This feature, in combination with number of extensions, makes algorithm very flexible for use in analysis of subset-regression problems in which parameters have physical meanings. Also extended to enable joint processing of columns contaminated by noise with those free of noise, without using scaling techniques.

Atmosphere Explorer control system software (version 1.0)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Villasenor, A.

1972-01-01

The basic design is described of the Atmosphere Explorer Control System (AECS) software used in the testing, integration, and flight contol of the AE spacecraft and experiments. The software performs several vital functions, such as issuing commands to the spacecraft and experiments, receiving and processing telemetry data, and allowing for extensive data processing by experiment analysis programs. The major processing sections are: executive control section, telemetry decommutation section, command generation section, and utility section.

Optimizing Soft Tissue Management and Spacer Design in Segmental Bone Defects

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-10-01

the time of the “Pre-Procedure”. Autogenous Cancellous Bone Graft (ACBG harvested from the sternum at the time of the treatment surgery is used as...will receive more specialized training and orientation to microCT analysis, both on a theoretical and practical level. He will work with raw CT...adjacent to the PMMA) composed of mononuclear cells and exhibited extensive, diffuse fibrous connective tissue.  Performed histology on goat autogenous

Classification of small lesions on dynamic breast MRI: Integrating dimension reduction and out-of-sample extension into CADx methodology

PubMed Central

Nagarajan, Mahesh B.; Huber, Markus B.; Schlossbauer, Thomas; Leinsinger, Gerda; Krol, Andrzej; Wismüller, Axel

2014-01-01

Objective While dimension reduction has been previously explored in computer aided diagnosis (CADx) as an alternative to feature selection, previous implementations of its integration into CADx do not ensure strict separation between training and test data required for the machine learning task. This compromises the integrity of the independent test set, which serves as the basis for evaluating classifier performance. Methods and Materials We propose, implement and evaluate an improved CADx methodology where strict separation is maintained. This is achieved by subjecting the training data alone to dimension reduction; the test data is subsequently processed with out-of-sample extension methods. Our approach is demonstrated in the research context of classifying small diagnostically challenging lesions annotated on dynamic breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies. The lesions were dynamically characterized through topological feature vectors derived from Minkowski functionals. These feature vectors were then subject to dimension reduction with different linear and non-linear algorithms applied in conjunction with out-of-sample extension techniques. This was followed by classification through supervised learning with support vector regression. Area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve (AUC) was evaluated as the metric of classifier performance. Results Of the feature vectors investigated, the best performance was observed with Minkowski functional ’perimeter’ while comparable performance was observed with ’area’. Of the dimension reduction algorithms tested with ’perimeter’, the best performance was observed with Sammon’s mapping (0.84 ± 0.10) while comparable performance was achieved with exploratory observation machine (0.82 ± 0.09) and principal component analysis (0.80 ± 0.10). Conclusions The results reported in this study with the proposed CADx methodology present a significant improvement over previous results reported with such small lesions on dynamic breast MRI. In particular, non-linear algorithms for dimension reduction exhibited better classification performance than linear approaches, when integrated into our CADx methodology. We also note that while dimension reduction techniques may not necessarily provide an improvement in classification performance over feature selection, they do allow for a higher degree of feature compaction. PMID:24355697

Survey of visualization and analysis tools

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meyer, P. J.

1994-01-01

A large number of commercially available visualization and analysis tools are available to the researcher. Some of the strengths and limitations of some of these tools, from the viewpoint of the earth sciences discipline, are discussed. Visualization and analysis tools fall into one of two categories: those that are designed to a specific purpose and are non-extensive and those that are generic visual programming tools that are extensible. Most of the extensible packages examined incorporate a data flow paradigm.

Mapping Extension's Networks: Using Social Network Analysis to Explore Extension's Outreach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bartholomay, Tom; Chazdon, Scott; Marczak, Mary S.; Walker, Kathrin C.

2011-01-01

The University of Minnesota Extension conducted a social network analysis (SNA) to examine its outreach to organizations external to the University of Minnesota. The study found that its outreach network was both broad in its reach and strong in its connections. The study found that SNA offers a unique method for describing and measuring Extension…

Quantifying patterns of research interest evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jia, Tao; Wang, Dashun; Szymanski, Boleslaw

Changing and shifting research interest is an integral part of a scientific career. Despite extensive investigations of various factors that influence a scientist's choice of research topics, quantitative assessments of mechanisms that give rise to macroscopic patterns characterizing research interest evolution of individual scientists remain limited. Here we perform a large-scale analysis of extensive publication records, finding that research interest change follows a reproducible pattern characterized by an exponential distribution. We identify three fundamental features responsible for the observed exponential distribution, which arise from a subtle interplay between exploitation and exploration in research interest evolution. We develop a random walk based model, which adequately reproduces our empirical observations. Our study presents one of the first quantitative analyses of macroscopic patterns governing research interest change, documenting a high degree of regularity underlying scientific research and individual careers.

Heat-mediated activation of affinity-immobilized Taq DNA polymerase.

PubMed

Nilsson, J; Bosnes, M; Larsen, F; Nygren, P A; Uhlén, M; Lundeberg, J

1997-04-01

A novel strategy for heat-mediated activation of recombinant Taq DNA polymerase is described. A serum albumin binding protein tag is used to affinity-immobilize an E. coli-expressed Taq DNA polymerase fusion protein onto a solid support coated with human serum albumin (HSA). Analysis of heat-mediated elution showed that elevated temperatures (> 70 degrees C) were required to significantly release the fusion protein from the solid support. A primer-extension assay showed that immobilization of the fusion protein resulted in little or no extension product. In contrast, fusion protein released from the HSA ligand by heat showed high polymerase activity. Thus, a heat-mediated release and reactivation of the Taq DNA polymerase fusion protein from the solid support can be obtained to allow for hot-start PCR with improved amplification performance.

Some parameters relevant to affinity chromatography on immobilized nucleotides

PubMed Central

Lowe, C. R.; Harvey, M. J.; Craven, D. B.; Dean, P. D. G.

1973-01-01

1. The suitability of cellulose and Sepharose as supports for affinity chromatography of two groups of cofactor-linked enzymes, dehydrogenases and kinases, was examined. Sepharose was found to be superior. 2. The selective capacities of the columns were measured by frontal analysis and are discussed in relation to the nucleotide contents. 3. The effect of various concentrations of enzyme and of non-specific protein on the performance of the affinity columns, and the effects of equilibration time, flow rate, sample volume and dilution of the nucleotide were examined. 4. The effect of interposing polymethylene and polyglycine extension arms between the matrix backbone and the nucleotide was investigated for several cofactor-dependent enzymes. Maximum binding was observed with an extension arm 0.8–1nm long. PMID:4354739

Extensive retroviral diversity in shark.

PubMed

Han, Guan-Zhu

2015-04-28

Retroviruses infect a wide range of vertebrates. However, little is known about the diversity of retroviruses in basal vertebrates. Endogenous retrovirus (ERV) provides a valuable resource to study the ecology and evolution of retrovirus. I performed a genome-scale screening for ERVs in the elephant shark (Callorhinchus milii) and identified three complete or nearly complete ERVs and many short ERV fragments. I designate these retroviral elements "C. milli ERVs" (CmiERVs). Phylogenetic analysis shows that the CmiERVs form three distinct lineages. The genome invasions by these retroviruses are estimated to take place more than 50 million years ago. My results reveal the extensive retroviral diversity in the elephant shark. Diverse retroviruses appear to have been associated with cartilaginous fishes for millions of years. These findings have important implications in understanding the diversity and evolution of retroviruses.

The impact of reference pricing and extension of generic substitution on the daily cost of antipsychotic medication in Finland.

PubMed

Koskinen, Hanna; Ahola, Elina; Saastamoinen, Leena K; Mikkola, Hennamari; Martikainen, Jaana E

2014-12-01

To assess the impact of reference pricing and extension of generic substitution on the daily cost of antipsychotic drugs in Finland during the first year after its launch. Furthermore, the additional impact of reference pricing on prior implemented generic substitution is assessed. A retrospective analysis was performed between 2006 and 2010. A segmented linear regression analysis of interrupted time series was used to estimate changes in the levels and trends in the cost of one day of treatment. Of the study drugs, clozapine belonged to generic substitution already at the start of the study period while olanzapine and quetiapine were included in generic substitution alongside with reference pricing in 2009. Risperidone was included in generic substitution in 2008, before reference pricing. A substantial decrease in the daily cost of all four antipsychotic substances was seen after one year of the implementation of reference pricing and the extension of generic substitution. The impact ranged from -29.9% to -66.3%, and it was most substantial on the daily cost of olanzapine. Also in the daily cost of risperidone a substantial decrease of -43.3% was observed. However, most of these savings, -32.6%, were generated by generic substitution which had been adopted prior. Reference pricing and the extension of generic substitution produced substantial savings on antipsychotic medication costs during the first year after its launch, but the intensity of the impact differed between active substances. Furthermore, our results suggest that the additional cost savings from reference pricing after prior implemented generic substitution, are comparatively low.

Search for gauge extensions of the MSSM at the LHC

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

Ali, Ahmed; Demir, Durmus A.; Department of Physics, Izmir Institute of Technology, IZTECH, TR35430 Izmir

2009-05-01

The extensions of the minimal supersymmetric model (MSSM), driving mainly from the need to solve the {mu} problem, involve novel matter species and gauge groups. These extended MSSM models can be searched for at the LHC via the effects of the gauge and Higgs bosons or their fermionic partners. Traditionally, the focus has been on the study of the extra forces induced by the new gauge and Higgs bosons present in such models. An alternative way of studying such effects is through the superpartners of matter species and the gauge forces. We thus consider a U(1)' gauge extension of themore » MSSM, and perform an extensive study of the signatures of the model through the production and decays of the scalar quarks and gluino, which are expected to be produced copiously at the LHC. After a detailed study of the distinctive features of such models with regard to the signatures at the LHC, we carry out a detailed Monte Carlo analysis of the signals from the process pp{yields}n leptons+m jets+Ee{sub T}, and compare the resulting distributions with those predicted by the MSSM. Our results show that the searches for the extra gauge interactions in the supersymmetric framework can proceed not only through the forces mediated by the gauge and Higgs bosons but also through the superpartner forces mediated by the gauge and Higgs fermions. Analysis of the events induced by the squark/gluino decays presented here is complementary to the direct Z' searches at the LHC.« less

PSI/TM-Coffee: a web server for fast and accurate multiple sequence alignments of regular and transmembrane proteins using homology extension on reduced databases.

PubMed

Floden, Evan W; Tommaso, Paolo D; Chatzou, Maria; Magis, Cedrik; Notredame, Cedric; Chang, Jia-Ming

2016-07-08

The PSI/TM-Coffee web server performs multiple sequence alignment (MSA) of proteins by combining homology extension with a consistency based alignment approach. Homology extension is performed with Position Specific Iterative (PSI) BLAST searches against a choice of redundant and non-redundant databases. The main novelty of this server is to allow databases of reduced complexity to rapidly perform homology extension. This server also gives the possibility to use transmembrane proteins (TMPs) reference databases to allow even faster homology extension on this important category of proteins. Aside from an MSA, the server also outputs topological prediction of TMPs using the HMMTOP algorithm. Previous benchmarking of the method has shown this approach outperforms the most accurate alignment methods such as MSAProbs, Kalign, PROMALS, MAFFT, ProbCons and PRALINE™. The web server is available at http://tcoffee.crg.cat/tmcoffee. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Interlaboratory Study Characterizing a Yeast Performance Standard for Benchmarking LC-MS Platform Performance*

PubMed Central

Paulovich, Amanda G.; Billheimer, Dean; Ham, Amy-Joan L.; Vega-Montoto, Lorenzo; Rudnick, Paul A.; Tabb, David L.; Wang, Pei; Blackman, Ronald K.; Bunk, David M.; Cardasis, Helene L.; Clauser, Karl R.; Kinsinger, Christopher R.; Schilling, Birgit; Tegeler, Tony J.; Variyath, Asokan Mulayath; Wang, Mu; Whiteaker, Jeffrey R.; Zimmerman, Lisa J.; Fenyo, David; Carr, Steven A.; Fisher, Susan J.; Gibson, Bradford W.; Mesri, Mehdi; Neubert, Thomas A.; Regnier, Fred E.; Rodriguez, Henry; Spiegelman, Cliff; Stein, Stephen E.; Tempst, Paul; Liebler, Daniel C.

2010-01-01

Optimal performance of LC-MS/MS platforms is critical to generating high quality proteomics data. Although individual laboratories have developed quality control samples, there is no widely available performance standard of biological complexity (and associated reference data sets) for benchmarking of platform performance for analysis of complex biological proteomes across different laboratories in the community. Individual preparations of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae proteome have been used extensively by laboratories in the proteomics community to characterize LC-MS platform performance. The yeast proteome is uniquely attractive as a performance standard because it is the most extensively characterized complex biological proteome and the only one associated with several large scale studies estimating the abundance of all detectable proteins. In this study, we describe a standard operating protocol for large scale production of the yeast performance standard and offer aliquots to the community through the National Institute of Standards and Technology where the yeast proteome is under development as a certified reference material to meet the long term needs of the community. Using a series of metrics that characterize LC-MS performance, we provide a reference data set demonstrating typical performance of commonly used ion trap instrument platforms in expert laboratories; the results provide a basis for laboratories to benchmark their own performance, to improve upon current methods, and to evaluate new technologies. Additionally, we demonstrate how the yeast reference, spiked with human proteins, can be used to benchmark the power of proteomics platforms for detection of differentially expressed proteins at different levels of concentration in a complex matrix, thereby providing a metric to evaluate and minimize preanalytical and analytical variation in comparative proteomics experiments. PMID:19858499

A correlational analysis of the effects of changing environmental conditions on the NR atomic hydrogen maser

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dragonette, Richard A.; Suter, Joseph J.

1992-01-01

An extensive statistical analysis has been undertaken to determine if a correlation exists between changes in an NR atomic hydrogen maser's frequency offset and changes in environmental conditions. Correlation analyses have been performed comparing barometric pressure, humidity, and temperature with maser frequency offset as a function of time for periods ranging from 5.5 to 17 days. Semipartial correlation coefficients as large as -0.9 have been found between barometric pressure and maser frequency offset. Correlation between maser frequency offset and humidity was small compared to barometric pressure and unpredictable. Analysis of temperature data indicates that in the most current design, temperature does not significantly affect maser frequency offset.

Indicators of sailing performance in youth dinghy sailing.

PubMed

Callewaert, Margot; Boone, Jan; Celie, Bert; De Clercq, Dirk; Bourgois, Jan G

2015-01-01

This study aimed to determine indicators of sailing performance in 2 (age) groups of youth sailors by investigating the anthropometric, physical and motor coordination differences and factors discriminating between elite and non-elite male optimist sailors and young dynamic hikers. Anthropometric measurements from 23 optimist sailors (mean ± SD age = 12.3 ± 1.4 years) and 24 dynamic youth hikers (i.e. Laser 4.7, Laser radial and Europe sailors <18 years who have to sail the boat in a very dynamic manner, due to a high sailor to yacht weight ratio) (mean ± SD age = 16.5 ± 1.6 years) were conducted. They performed a physical fitness test battery (EUROFIT), motor coordination test battery (Körperkoordinationstest für Kinder) and the Bucket test. Both groups of sailors were divided into two subgroups (i.e. elites and non-elites) based on sailing expertise. The significant differences, taking biological maturation into account and factors discriminating between elite and non-elite optimist sailors and dynamic hikers were explored by means of multivariate analysis of covariance and discriminant analysis, respectively. The main results indicated that 100.0% of elite optimist sailors and 88.9% of elite dynamic hikers could be correctly classified by means of two motor coordination tests (i.e. side step and side jump) and Bucket test, respectively. As such, strength- and speed-oriented motor coordination and isometric knee-extension strength endurance can be identified as indicators of sailing performance in young optimist and dynamic youth sailors, respectively. Therefore, we emphasise the importance of motor coordination skill training in optimist sailors (<15 years) and maximum strength training later on (>15 years) in order to increase their isometric knee-extension strength endurance.

Correlation between extension-block K-wire insertion angle and postoperative extension loss in mallet finger fracture.

PubMed

Lee, S K; Kim, Y H; Moon, K H; Choy, W S

2018-02-01

Extension-block pinning represents a simple and reliable surgical technique. Although this procedure is commonly performed successfully, some patients develop postoperative extension loss. To date, the relationship between extension-block Kirschner wire (K-wire) insertion angle and postoperative extension loss in mallet finger fracture remains unclear. We aimed to clarify this relationship and further evaluate how various operative and non-operative factors affect postoperative extension loss after extension-block pinning for mallet finger fracture. A retrospective study was conducted to investigate a relationship between extension block K-wire insertion angle and postoperative extension loss. The inclusion criteria were: (1) a dorsal intra-articular fracture fragment involving 30% of the base of the distal phalanx with or without volar subluxation of the distal phalanx; and (2) <3 weeks delay from the injury without treatment. Extension-block K-wire insertion angle and fixation angle of the distal interphalangeal (DIP) joint were assessed using lateral radiograph at immediate postoperative time. Postoperative extension loss was assessed by using lateral radiograph at latest follow-up. Extension-block K-wire insertion angle was defined as the acute angle between extension block K-wire and longitudinal axis of middle phalangeal head. DIP joint fixation angle was defined as the acute angle between the distal phalanx and middle phalanx longitudinal axes. Seventy-five patients were included. The correlation analysis revealed that extension-block K-wire insertion angle had a negative correlation with postoperative extension loss, whereas fracture size and time to operation had a positive correlation (correlation coefficient for extension block K-wire angle: -0.66, facture size: +0.67, time to operation: +0.60). When stratifying patients in terms of negative and positive fixation angle of the DIP joint, the independent t-test showed that mean postoperative extension loss is -3.67° and +4.54° (DIP joint fixation angles of <0° and ≥0°, respectively, P=0.024). When stratifying patients in terms of extension-block K-wire insertion angle (30°, 30°-40°, >40°), ANOVA showed significantly less postoperative extension loss for higher insertion angles (>40°) than for medium insertion angles (30°-40°). Mean postoperative extension loss difference between higher insertion angle (>40°) and medium insertion angle (30°-40°) was 11° (P=0.002). Using an insertion angle of the extension-block K-wire of 40°-45° and a slightly hyperextended position of the DIP joint may help reducing postoperative extension loss. Therapeutic level III. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Exploring the single-cell RNA-seq analysis landscape with the scRNA-tools database.

PubMed

Zappia, Luke; Phipson, Belinda; Oshlack, Alicia

2018-06-25

As single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) datasets have become more widespread the number of tools designed to analyse these data has dramatically increased. Navigating the vast sea of tools now available is becoming increasingly challenging for researchers. In order to better facilitate selection of appropriate analysis tools we have created the scRNA-tools database (www.scRNA-tools.org) to catalogue and curate analysis tools as they become available. Our database collects a range of information on each scRNA-seq analysis tool and categorises them according to the analysis tasks they perform. Exploration of this database gives insights into the areas of rapid development of analysis methods for scRNA-seq data. We see that many tools perform tasks specific to scRNA-seq analysis, particularly clustering and ordering of cells. We also find that the scRNA-seq community embraces an open-source and open-science approach, with most tools available under open-source licenses and preprints being extensively used as a means to describe methods. The scRNA-tools database provides a valuable resource for researchers embarking on scRNA-seq analysis and records the growth of the field over time.

Impact of random discrete dopant in extension induced fluctuation in gate-source/drain underlap FinFET

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yijiao; Huang, Peng; Xin, Zheng; Zeng, Lang; Liu, Xiaoyan; Du, Gang; Kang, Jinfeng

2014-01-01

In this work, three dimensional technology computer-aided design (TCAD) simulations are performed to investigate the impact of random discrete dopant (RDD) including extension induced fluctuation in 14 nm silicon-on-insulator (SOI) gate-source/drain (G-S/D) underlap fin field effect transistor (FinFET). To fully understand the RDD impact in extension, RDD effect is evaluated in channel and extension separately and together. The statistical variability of FinFET performance parameters including threshold voltage (Vth), subthreshold slope (SS), drain induced barrier lowering (DIBL), drive current (Ion), and leakage current (Ioff) are analyzed. The results indicate that RDD in extension can lead to substantial variability, especially for SS, DIBL, and Ion and should be taken into account together with that in channel to get an accurate estimation on RDF. Meanwhile, higher doping concentration of extension region is suggested from the perspective of overall variability control.

Revalidation of the Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology in the Vermont Oxford Network.

PubMed

Zupancic, John A F; Richardson, Douglas K; Horbar, Jeffrey D; Carpenter, Joseph H; Lee, Shoo K; Escobar, Gabriel J

2007-01-01

Our specific objectives were (1) to document the performance of the revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology and the revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology Perinatal Extension in predicting death in the Vermont Oxford Network, compared with published normative values; (2) to determine whether this performance could be improved through recalibration of the weights for individual score items; (3) to determine the impact of including congenital anomalies in the predictive model; and (4) to compare performance against that of the Vermont Oxford Network risk adjustment, separately and in combination. Fifty-eight Vermont Oxford Network centers collected data prospectively for the revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology in the first 12 hours after admission of infants in 2002. Data were collected for 10,469 infants, and analyses were undertaken for 9897 who met inclusion criteria. The median revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology was 5, and the mean birth weight was 1951 g. Recalibration of the revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology and revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology Perinatal Extension resulted in minimal changes in their discriminatory abilities. The Vermont Oxford Network risk adjustment performed similarly, compared with the revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology Perinatal Extension. Current score performance was similar to that observed previously, which suggests that the revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology and revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology Perinatal Extension have not decalibrated over the 7 years since the first cohort was assembled, despite advances in neonatal care during that period. Addition of congenital anomalies to the revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology Perinatal Extension improved discrimination significantly, particularly for infants with birth weights of >1500 g. The Vermont Oxford Network risk adjustment performed similarly, compared with the revised Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology Perinatal Extension.

Quantitative analysis on the urban flood mitigation effect by the extensive green roof system.

PubMed

Lee, J Y; Moon, H J; Kim, T I; Kim, H W; Han, M Y

2013-10-01

Extensive green-roof systems are expected to have a synergetic effect in mitigating urban runoff, decreasing temperature and supplying water to a building. Mitigation of runoff through rainwater retention requires the effective design of a green-roof catchment. This study identified how to improve building runoff mitigation through quantitative analysis of an extensive green-roof system. Quantitative analysis of green-roof runoff characteristics indicated that the extensive green roof has a high water-retaining capacity response to rainfall of less than 20 mm/h. As the rainfall intensity increased, the water-retaining capacity decreased. The catchment efficiency of an extensive green roof ranged from 0.44 to 0.52, indicating reduced runoff comparing with efficiency of 0.9 for a concrete roof. Therefore, extensive green roofs are an effective storm water best-management practice and the proposed parameters can be applied to an algorithm for rainwater-harvesting tank design. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Measuring farm sustainability using data envelope analysis with principal components: the case of Wisconsin cranberry.

PubMed

Dong, Fengxia; Mitchell, Paul D; Colquhoun, Jed

2015-01-01

Measuring farm sustainability performance is a crucial component for improving agricultural sustainability. While extensive assessments and indicators exist that reflect the different facets of agricultural sustainability, because of the relatively large number of measures and interactions among them, a composite indicator that integrates and aggregates over all variables is particularly useful. This paper describes and empirically evaluates a method for constructing a composite sustainability indicator that individually scores and ranks farm sustainability performance. The method first uses non-negative polychoric principal component analysis to reduce the number of variables, to remove correlation among variables and to transform categorical variables to continuous variables. Next the method applies common-weight data envelope analysis to these principal components to individually score each farm. The method solves weights endogenously and allows identifying important practices in sustainability evaluation. An empirical application to Wisconsin cranberry farms finds heterogeneity in sustainability practice adoption, implying that some farms could adopt relevant practices to improve the overall sustainability performance of the industry. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Estimation of 1RM for knee extension based on the maximal isometric muscle strength and body composition.

PubMed

Kanada, Yoshikiyo; Sakurai, Hiroaki; Sugiura, Yoshito; Arai, Tomoaki; Koyama, Soichiro; Tanabe, Shigeo

2017-11-01

[Purpose] To create a regression formula in order to estimate 1RM for knee extensors, based on the maximal isometric muscle strength measured using a hand-held dynamometer and data regarding the body composition. [Subjects and Methods] Measurement was performed in 21 healthy males in their twenties to thirties. Single regression analysis was performed, with measurement values representing 1RM and the maximal isometric muscle strength as dependent and independent variables, respectively. Furthermore, multiple regression analysis was performed, with data regarding the body composition incorporated as another independent variable, in addition to the maximal isometric muscle strength. [Results] Through single regression analysis with the maximal isometric muscle strength as an independent variable, the following regression formula was created: 1RM (kg)=0.714 + 0.783 × maximal isometric muscle strength (kgf). On multiple regression analysis, only the total muscle mass was extracted. [Conclusion] A highly accurate regression formula to estimate 1RM was created based on both the maximal isometric muscle strength and body composition. Using a hand-held dynamometer and body composition analyzer, it was possible to measure these items in a short time, and obtain clinically useful results.

Advanced transportation system studies technical area 2 (TA-2): Heavy lift launch vehicle development. volume 3; Program Cost estimates

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McCurry, J. B.

1995-01-01

The purpose of the TA-2 contract was to provide advanced launch vehicle concept definition and analysis to assist NASA in the identification of future launch vehicle requirements. Contracted analysis activities included vehicle sizing and performance analysis, subsystem concept definition, propulsion subsystem definition (foreign and domestic), ground operations and facilities analysis, and life cycle cost estimation. The basic period of performance of the TA-2 contract was from May 1992 through May 1993. No-cost extensions were exercised on the contract from June 1993 through July 1995. This document is part of the final report for the TA-2 contract. The final report consists of three volumes: Volume 1 is the Executive Summary, Volume 2 is Technical Results, and Volume 3 is Program Cost Estimates. The document-at-hand, Volume 3, provides a work breakdown structure dictionary, user's guide for the parametric life cycle cost estimation tool, and final report developed by ECON, Inc., under subcontract to Lockheed Martin on TA-2 for the analysis of heavy lift launch vehicle concepts.

48 CFR 17.605 - Award, renewal, and extension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... Award, renewal, and extension. (a) Effective work performance under management and operating contracts... requirements and the unusual (sometimes unique) nature of the work performed under management and operating contracts, the Government is often limited in its ability to effect competition or to replace a contractor...

Societal costs versus savings from wild-card patent extension legislation to spur critically needed antibiotic development.

PubMed

Spellberg, B; Miller, L G; Kuo, M N; Bradley, J; Scheld, W M; Edwards, J E

2007-06-01

Over the last two decades, an alarming rise in infections caused by antibiotic-resistant microbes has been paralleled by an equally alarming decline in the development of new antibiotics to deal with the threat. In response to this brewing "perfect storm" of infectious diseases, the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) has released a white paper that proposes incentives to stimulate critically needed antibiotic development by pharmaceutical companies. A cornerstone of the recommendations is establishment of a "wild-card patent extension" program. This program would allow a company receiving United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for a new anti-infective agent targeting a drug-resistant pathogen to extend the patent on a drug within their active portfolio. However, wild-card patent extension legislation is highly controversial due to concerns regarding its societal cost. We performed a systematic literature review to estimate the societal cost of wild-card patent extension compared to the savings resulting from the availability of one new antibiotic to treat multi-drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa. We conservatively estimate that wild-card patent extension applied to one new antibiotic would cost $7.7 billion over the first 2 years, and $3.9 billion over the next 18 years. Thus, even if the new antibiotic abrogated only 50% of the annual societal cost of multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa (estimated $2.7 billion), wild-card patent extension would be cost neutral by 10 years after approval of the new antibiotic, and would save society approximately $4.6 billion by 20 years after approval. Wild-card patent extension appears to be a cost-effective strategy to spur anti-infective development. Although our analysis is limited by the precision of published data, our model employed conservative assumptions.

Multiple Neuropeptide-Coding Genes Involved in Planarian Pharynx Extension.

PubMed

Shimoyama, Seira; Inoue, Takeshi; Kashima, Makoto; Agata, Kiyokazu

2016-06-01

Planarian feeding behavior involves three steps: moving toward food, extending the pharynx from their planarian's ventral side after arriving at the food, and ingesting the food through the pharynx. Although pharynx extension is a remarkable behavior, it remains unknown what neuronal cell types are involved in its regulation. To identify neurons involved in regulating pharynx extension, we quantitatively analyzed pharynx extension and sought to identify these neurons by RNA interference (RNAi) and in situ hybridization. This assay, when performed using planarians with amputation of various body parts, clearly showed that the head portion is indispensable for inducing pharynx extension. We thus tested the effects of knockdown of brain neurons such as serotonergic, GABAergic, and dopaminergic neurons by RNAi, but did not observe any effects on pharynx extension behavior. However, animals with RNAi of the Prohormone Convertase 2 (PC2, a neuropeptide processing enzyme) gene did not perform the pharynx extension behavior, suggesting the possible involvement of neuropeptide(s in the regulation of pharynx extension. We screened 24 neuropeptide-coding genes, analyzed their functions by RNAi using the pharynx extension assay system, and identified at least five neuropeptide genes involved in pharynx extension. These was expressed in different cells or neurons, and some of them were expressed in the brain, suggesting complex regulation of planarian feeding behavior by the nervous system.

QPROT: Statistical method for testing differential expression using protein-level intensity data in label-free quantitative proteomics.

PubMed

Choi, Hyungwon; Kim, Sinae; Fermin, Damian; Tsou, Chih-Chiang; Nesvizhskii, Alexey I

2015-11-03

We introduce QPROT, a statistical framework and computational tool for differential protein expression analysis using protein intensity data. QPROT is an extension of the QSPEC suite, originally developed for spectral count data, adapted for the analysis using continuously measured protein-level intensity data. QPROT offers a new intensity normalization procedure and model-based differential expression analysis, both of which account for missing data. Determination of differential expression of each protein is based on the standardized Z-statistic based on the posterior distribution of the log fold change parameter, guided by the false discovery rate estimated by a well-known Empirical Bayes method. We evaluated the classification performance of QPROT using the quantification calibration data from the clinical proteomic technology assessment for cancer (CPTAC) study and a recently published Escherichia coli benchmark dataset, with evaluation of FDR accuracy in the latter. QPROT is a statistical framework with computational software tool for comparative quantitative proteomics analysis. It features various extensions of QSPEC method originally built for spectral count data analysis, including probabilistic treatment of missing values in protein intensity data. With the increasing popularity of label-free quantitative proteomics data, the proposed method and accompanying software suite will be immediately useful for many proteomics laboratories. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Computational Proteomics. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The effects of motion and g-seat cues on pilot simulator performance of three piloting tasks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Showalter, T. W.; Parris, B. L.

1980-01-01

Data are presented that show the effects of motion system cues, g-seat cues, and pilot experience on pilot performance during takeoffs with engine failures, during in-flight precision turns, and during landings with wind shear. Eight groups of USAF pilots flew a simulated KC-135 using four different cueing systems. The basic cueing system was a fixed-base type (no-motion cueing) with visual cueing. The other three systems were produced by the presence of either a motion system or a g-seat, or both. Extensive statistical analysis of the data was performed and representative performance means were examined. These data show that the addition of motion system cueing results in significant improvement in pilot performance for all three tasks; however, the use of g-seat cueing, either alone or in conjunction with the motion system, provides little if any performance improvement for these tasks and for this aircraft type.

Effect of Auditory Constraints on Motor Performance Depends on Stage of Recovery Post-Stroke

PubMed Central

Aluru, Viswanath; Lu, Ying; Leung, Alan; Verghese, Joe; Raghavan, Preeti

2014-01-01

In order to develop evidence-based rehabilitation protocols post-stroke, one must first reconcile the vast heterogeneity in the post-stroke population and develop protocols to facilitate motor learning in the various subgroups. The main purpose of this study is to show that auditory constraints interact with the stage of recovery post-stroke to influence motor learning. We characterized the stages of upper limb recovery using task-based kinematic measures in 20 subjects with chronic hemiparesis. We used a bimanual wrist extension task, performed with a custom-made wrist trainer, to facilitate learning of wrist extension in the paretic hand under four auditory conditions: (1) without auditory cueing; (2) to non-musical happy sounds; (3) to self-selected music; and (4) to a metronome beat set at a comfortable tempo. Two bimanual trials (15 s each) were followed by one unimanual trial with the paretic hand over six cycles under each condition. Clinical metrics, wrist and arm kinematics, and electromyographic activity were recorded. Hierarchical cluster analysis with the Mahalanobis metric based on baseline speed and extent of wrist movement stratified subjects into three distinct groups, which reflected their stage of recovery: spastic paresis, spastic co-contraction, and minimal paresis. In spastic paresis, the metronome beat increased wrist extension, but also increased muscle co-activation across the wrist. In contrast, in spastic co-contraction, no auditory stimulation increased wrist extension and reduced co-activation. In minimal paresis, wrist extension did not improve under any condition. The results suggest that auditory task constraints interact with stage of recovery during motor learning after stroke, perhaps due to recruitment of distinct neural substrates over the course of recovery. The findings advance our understanding of the mechanisms of progression of motor recovery and lay the foundation for personalized treatment algorithms post-stroke. PMID:25002859

Multivariate meta-analysis with an increasing number of parameters

PubMed Central

Boca, Simina M.; Pfeiffer, Ruth M.; Sampson, Joshua N.

2017-01-01

Summary Meta-analysis can average estimates of multiple parameters, such as a treatment’s effect on multiple outcomes, across studies. Univariate meta-analysis (UVMA) considers each parameter individually, while multivariate meta-analysis (MVMA) considers the parameters jointly and accounts for the correlation between their estimates. The performance of MVMA and UVMA has been extensively compared in scenarios with two parameters. Our objective is to compare the performance of MVMA and UVMA as the number of parameters, p, increases. Specifically, we show that (i) for fixed-effect meta-analysis, the benefit from using MVMA can substantially increase as p increases; (ii) for random effects meta-analysis, the benefit from MVMA can increase as p increases, but the potential improvement is modest in the presence of high between-study variability and the actual improvement is further reduced by the need to estimate an increasingly large between study covariance matrix; and (iii) when there is little to no between study variability, the loss of efficiency due to choosing random effects MVMA over fixed-effect MVMA increases as p increases. We demonstrate these three features through theory, simulation, and a meta-analysis of risk factors for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. PMID:28195655

Use of Generalized Fluid System Simulation Program (GFSSP) for Teaching and Performing Senior Design Projects at the Educational Institutions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Majumdar, A. K.; Hedayat, A.

2015-01-01

This paper describes the experience of the authors in using the Generalized Fluid System Simulation Program (GFSSP) in teaching Design of Thermal Systems class at University of Alabama in Huntsville. GFSSP is a finite volume based thermo-fluid system network analysis code, developed at NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center, and is extensively used in NASA, Department of Defense, and aerospace industries for propulsion system design, analysis, and performance evaluation. The educational version of GFSSP is freely available to all US higher education institutions. The main purpose of the paper is to illustrate the utilization of this user-friendly code for the thermal systems design and fluid engineering courses and to encourage the instructors to utilize the code for the class assignments as well as senior design projects.

Using the Arts to Raise Awareness and Communicate Environmental Information in the Extension Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Curtis, David J.

2011-01-01

Extension services face an increasing challenge as the state of Australia's environment declines. It is, therefore, opportune to explore some innovations in the way extension is traditionally delivered. This paper introduces the concept of the visual and performing arts being useful in extension of natural resources management issues such as land…

A Theory of Control for a Class of Electronic Power Processing Systems: Energy-Storage DC-To-DC Converters. Ph.D. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burns, W. W., III

1977-01-01

An analytically derived approach to the control of energy-storage dc-to-dc converters, which enables improved system performance and an extensive understanding of the manner in which this improved performance is accomplished, is presented. The control approach is derived from a state-plane analysis of dc-to-dc converter power stages which enables a graphical visualization of the movement of the system state during both steady state and transient operation. This graphical representation of the behavior of dc-to-dc converter systems yields considerable qualitative insight into the cause and effect relationships which exist between various commonly used converter control functions and the system performance which results from them.

Intelligence, personality, and interests: evidence for overlapping traits.

PubMed

Ackerman, P L; Heggestad, E D

1997-03-01

The authors review the development of the modern paradigm for intelligence assessment and application and consider the differentiation between intelligence-as-maximal performance and intelligence-as-typical performance. They review theories of intelligence, personality, and interest as a means to establish potential overlap. Consideration of intelligence-as-typical performance provides a basis for evaluation of intelligence-personality and intelligence-interest relations. Evaluation of relations among personality constructs, vocational interests, and intellectual abilities provides evidence for communality across the domains of personality of J. L. Holland's (1959) model of vocational interests. The authors provide an extensive meta-analysis of personality-intellectual ability correlations, and a review of interest-intellectual ability associations. They identify 4 trait complexes: social, clerical/conventional, science/math, and intellectual/cultural.

Manned geosynchronous mission requirements and systems analysis study extension. Volume 1: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1981-01-01

A study was performed to determine the types of manned missions that will likely be performed in the late 1980's or early 1990's timeframe, to define MOTV configurations which satisfy these missions requirements, and to develop a program plan for its development. Twenty generic missions were originally defined for MOTV but, to simplify the selection process, five of these missions were selected as typical and used as Design Reference Missions. Systems and subsystems requirements were re-examined and sensitivity analyses performed to determine optimum point designs. Turnaround modes were considered to determine the most effective combination of ground based and spaced based activities. A preferred concept for the crew capsule and for the mission mode was developed.

High energy PIXE: A tool to characterize multi-layer thick samples

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Subercaze, A.; Koumeir, C.; Métivier, V.; Servagent, N.; Guertin, A.; Haddad, F.

2018-02-01

High energy PIXE is a useful and non-destructive tool to characterize multi-layer thick samples such as cultural heritage objects. In a previous work, we demonstrated the possibility to perform quantitative analysis of simple multi-layer samples using high energy PIXE, without any assumption on their composition. In this work an in-depth study of the parameters involved in the method previously published is proposed. Its extension to more complex samples with a repeated layer is also presented. Experiments have been performed at the ARRONAX cyclotron using 68 MeV protons. The thicknesses and sequences of a multi-layer sample including two different layers of the same element have been determined. Performances and limits of this method are presented and discussed.

Automation literature: A brief review and analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, D.; Dieterly, D. L.

1980-01-01

Current thought and research positions which may allow for an improved capability to understand the impact of introducing automation to an existing system are established. The orientation was toward the type of studies which may provide some general insight into automation; specifically, the impact of automation in human performance and the resulting system performance. While an extensive number of articles were reviewed, only those that addressed the issue of automation and human performance were selected to be discussed. The literature is organized along two dimensions: time, Pre-1970, Post-1970; and type of approach, Engineering or Behavioral Science. The conclusions reached are not definitive, but do provide the initial stepping stones in an attempt to begin to bridge the concept of automation in a systematic progression.

Optimization of MLS receivers for multipath environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mcalpine, G. A.; Irwin, S. H.; NELSON; Roleyni, G.

1977-01-01

Optimal design studies of MLS angle-receivers and a theoretical design-study of MLS DME-receivers are reported. The angle-receiver results include an integration of the scan data processor and tracking filter components of the optimal receiver into a unified structure. An extensive simulation study comparing the performance of the optimal and threshold receivers in a wide variety of representative dynamical interference environments was made. The optimal receiver was generally superior. A simulation of the performance of the threshold and delay-and-compare receivers in various signal environments was performed. An analysis of combined errors due to lateral reflections from vertical structures with small differential path delays, specular ground reflections with neglible differential path delays, and thermal noise in the receivers is provided.

Faces are special but not too special: Spared face recognition in amnesia is based on familiarity

PubMed Central

Aly, Mariam; Knight, Robert T.; Yonelinas, Andrew P.

2014-01-01

Most current theories of human memory are material-general in the sense that they assume that the medial temporal lobe (MTL) is important for retrieving the details of prior events, regardless of the specific type of materials. Recent studies of amnesia have challenged the material-general assumption by suggesting that the MTL may be necessary for remembering words, but is not involved in remembering faces. We examined recognition memory for faces and words in a group of amnesic patients, which included hypoxic patients and patients with extensive left or right MTL lesions. Recognition confidence judgments were used to plot receiver operating characteristics (ROCs) in order to more fully quantify recognition performance and to estimate the contributions of recollection and familiarity. Consistent with the extant literature, an analysis of overall recognition accuracy showed that the patients were impaired at word memory but had spared face memory. However, the ROC analysis indicated that the patients were generally impaired at high confidence recognition responses for faces and words, and they exhibited significant recollection impairments for both types of materials. Familiarity for faces was preserved in all patients, but extensive left MTL damage impaired familiarity for words. These results suggest that face recognition may appear to be spared because performance tends to rely heavily on familiarity, a process that is relatively well preserved in amnesia. The findings challenge material-general theories of memory, and suggest that both material and process are important determinants of memory performance in amnesia, and different types of materials may depend more or less on recollection and familiarity. PMID:20833190

Extension Procedures for Confirmatory Factor Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nagy, Gabriel; Brunner, Martin; Lüdtke, Oliver; Greiff, Samuel

2017-01-01

We present factor extension procedures for confirmatory factor analysis that provide estimates of the relations of common and unique factors with external variables that do not undergo factor analysis. We present identification strategies that build upon restrictions of the pattern of correlations between unique factors and external variables. The…

Variability Analysis of Therapeutic Movements using Wearable Inertial Sensors.

PubMed

López-Nava, Irvin Hussein; Arnrich, Bert; Muñoz-Meléndez, Angélica; Güneysu, Arzu

2017-01-01

A variability analysis of upper limb therapeutic movements using wearable inertial sensors is presented. Five healthy young adults were asked to perform a set of movements using two sensors placed on the upper arm and forearm. Reference data were obtained from three therapists. The goal of the study is to determine an intra and inter-group difference between a number of given movements performed by young people with respect to the movements of therapists. This effort is directed toward studying other groups characterized by motion impairments, and it is relevant to obtain a quantified measure of the quality of movement of a patient to follow his/her recovery. The sensor signals were processed by applying two approaches, time-domain features and similarity distance between each pair of signals. The data analysis was divided into classification and variability using features and distances calculated previously. The classification analysis was made to determine if the movements performed by the test subjects of both groups are distinguishable among them. The variability analysis was conducted to measure the similarity of the movements. According to the results, the flexion/extension movement had a high intra-group variability. In addition, meaningful information were provided in terms of change of velocity and rotational motions for each individual.

Extension lifetime for dye-sensitized solar cells through multiple dye adsorption/desorption process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiang, Yi-Fang; Chen, Ruei-Tang; Shen, Po-Shen; Chen, Peter; Guo, Tzung-Fang

2013-03-01

In this study, we propose a novel concept of extending the lifetime of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) and reducing the costs of re-conditioning DSCs by recycling the FTO/TiO2 substrates. The photovoltaic performances of DSCs using substrates with various cycles of dye uptake and rinse off history are tested. The results show that dye adsorption and Voc are significantly increased under multiple dye adsorption/desorption process and resulted in the improvement of power conversion efficiency. Moreover, the dyeing kinetics is faster after multiple recycling processes, which is favorable for the industrial application. With surface analysis and charge transport characteristics, we also demonstrate the optimal functionality of TiO2/dye interface for the improved Voc and efficiency. The results confirm that the improved performances are due to increased dye loading and dense packing of dye molecules. Our results are beneficial for the understanding on the extension of DSCs lifetime after long-term operation in the application of DSC modules. This approach may also be applied in the replacement of newly synthesized photosensitizes to the active cells.

Design of AC - 25 asphalt mixture proportioning on the taxiway of Shenzhen Baoan International Airport

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Shuaituan; Ye, Song; Luo, Min

2017-12-01

According to the growing demand for air transport industry, an extension of the associated taxiway is required, so the Shenzhen Airport runway west of the taxiway expansion is imperative. Combined with the taxiway of Shenzhen Baoan International Airport, we design the lower layer type of AC-25 modified asphalt mixture ratio. We analysis from raw material selection, mixture gradation design and admixture added, and finally choose the excellent performance of asphalt mixture.

Space shuttle propulsion systems on-board checkout and monitoring system development study (extension). Volume 1: Summary and technical results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

An analysis was conducted of the space shuttle propulsion systems to define the onboard checkout and monitoring function. A baseline space shuttle vehicle and mission were used to establish the techniques and approach for defining the requirements. The requirements were analyzed to formulate criteria for implementing the functions of preflight checkout, performance monitoring, fault isolation, emergency detection, display, data storage, postflight evaluation, and maintenance retest.

An optimal control model approach to the design of compensators for simulator delay

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baron, S.; Lancraft, R.; Caglayan, A.

1982-01-01

The effects of display delay on pilot performance and workload and of the design of the filters to ameliorate these effects were investigated. The optimal control model for pilot/vehicle analysis was used both to determine the potential delay effects and to design the compensators. The model was applied to a simple roll tracking task and to a complex hover task. The results confirm that even small delays can degrade performance and impose a workload penalty. A time-domain compensator designed by using the optimal control model directly appears capable of providing extensive compensation for these effects even in multi-input, multi-output problems.

Analysis of latency performance of bluetooth low energy (BLE) networks.

PubMed

Cho, Keuchul; Park, Woojin; Hong, Moonki; Park, Gisu; Cho, Wooseong; Seo, Jihoon; Han, Kijun

2014-12-23

Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is a short-range wireless communication technology aiming at low-cost and low-power communication. The performance evaluation of classical Bluetooth device discovery have been intensively studied using analytical modeling and simulative methods, but these techniques are not applicable to BLE, since BLE has a fundamental change in the design of the discovery mechanism, including the usage of three advertising channels. Recently, there several works have analyzed the topic of BLE device discovery, but these studies are still far from thorough. It is thus necessary to develop a new, accurate model for the BLE discovery process. In particular, the wide range settings of the parameters introduce lots of potential for BLE devices to customize their discovery performance. This motivates our study of modeling the BLE discovery process and performing intensive simulation. This paper is focused on building an analytical model to investigate the discovery probability, as well as the expected discovery latency, which are then validated via extensive experiments. Our analysis considers both continuous and discontinuous scanning modes. We analyze the sensitivity of these performance metrics to parameter settings to quantitatively examine to what extent parameters influence the performance metric of the discovery processes.

Analysis of Latency Performance of Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) Networks

PubMed Central

Cho, Keuchul; Park, Woojin; Hong, Moonki; Park, Gisu; Cho, Wooseong; Seo, Jihoon; Han, Kijun

2015-01-01

Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is a short-range wireless communication technology aiming at low-cost and low-power communication. The performance evaluation of classical Bluetooth device discovery have been intensively studied using analytical modeling and simulative methods, but these techniques are not applicable to BLE, since BLE has a fundamental change in the design of the discovery mechanism, including the usage of three advertising channels. Recently, there several works have analyzed the topic of BLE device discovery, but these studies are still far from thorough. It is thus necessary to develop a new, accurate model for the BLE discovery process. In particular, the wide range settings of the parameters introduce lots of potential for BLE devices to customize their discovery performance. This motivates our study of modeling the BLE discovery process and performing intensive simulation. This paper is focused on building an analytical model to investigate the discovery probability, as well as the expected discovery latency, which are then validated via extensive experiments. Our analysis considers both continuous and discontinuous scanning modes. We analyze the sensitivity of these performance metrics to parameter settings to quantitatively examine to what extent parameters influence the performance metric of the discovery processes. PMID:25545266

Development of a finite element based delamination analysis for laminates subject to extension, bending, and torsion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hooper, Steven J.

1989-01-01

Delamination is a common failure mode of laminated composite materials. This type of failure frequently occurs at the free edges of laminates where singular interlaminar stresses are developed due to the difference in Poisson's ratios between adjacent plies. Typically the delaminations develop between 90 degree plies and adjacent angle plies. Edge delamination has been studied by several investigators using a variety of techniques. Recently, Chan and Ochoa applied the quasi-three-dimensional finite element model to the analysis of a laminate subject to bending, extension, and torsion. This problem is of particular significance relative to the structural integrity of composite helicopter rotors. The task undertaken was to incorporate Chan and Ochoa's formulation into a Raju Q3DG program. The resulting program is capable of modeling extension, bending, and torsional mechanical loadings as well as thermal and hygroscopic loadings. The addition of the torsional and bending loading capability will provide the capability to perform a delamination analysis of a general unsymmetric laminate containing four cracks, each of a different length. The solutions obtained using this program are evaluated by comparing them with solutions from a full three-dimensional finite element solution. This comparison facilitates the assessment of three dimensional affects such as the warping constraint imposed by the load frame grips. It wlso facilitates the evaluation of the external load representation employed in the Q3D formulation. Finally, strain energy release rates computed from the three-dimensional results are compared with those predicted using the quasi-three-dimensional formulation.

The impact of dynamic balance measures on walking performance in multiple sclerosis

PubMed Central

Fritz, Nora E.; Marasigan, Rhul Evans R.; Calabresi, Peter A.; Newsome, Scott D.; Zackowski, Kathleen M.

2014-01-01

Background Static posture imbalance and gait dysfunction are common in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS). Although the impact of strength and static balance on walking has been examined, little is known about the impact of dynamic standing balance on walking in MS. Objective To determine the impact of dynamic balance, static balance, sensation, and strength measures to walking in individuals with MS. Methods 52 individuals with MS (27 females; 26 relapsing-remitting; mean age 45.6±10.3 years; median EDSS 3.5 (range 0-7) participated in testing for dynamic and static posturography (Kistler 9281 force plate), hip flexion, hip extension, and ankle dorsiflexion strength (Microfet2 hand-held dynamometer), sensation (Vibratron II) and walk velocity (Optotrak Motion Analysis System). Mann-Whitney tests, Spearman correlation coefficients, and forward stepwise multiple regression were used to assess statistical significance. Results All measures were significantly abnormal in MS subjects when compared to age and sex-matched norms (p<0.05 for all). Static balance (eyes open, feet together [EOFT]), anterior- posterior (AP) dynamic sway, and hip extension strength were strongly correlated with fast walking velocity (AP sway r=0.68; hip extension strength r=0.73; EOFT r=-0.40). Together, AP dynamic sway (ρr=0.71, p<0.001), hip extension strength (ρr=0.54, p<0.001), and EOFT static balance (ρr=-0.41, p=0.01) explained more than 70% of the variance in fast walking velocity (p<0.001). Conclusions These data suggest that AP dynamic sway impacts walking performance in MS. A combined evaluation of dynamic balance, static balance and strength may lead to a better understanding of walking mechanisms as well as the development of strategies to improve walking. PMID:24795162

Sleep extension normalizes ERP of waking auditory sensory gating in healthy habitually short sleeping individuals.

PubMed

Gumenyuk, Valentina; Korzyukov, Oleg; Roth, Thomas; Bowyer, Susan M; Drake, Christopher L

2013-01-01

Chronic sleep loss has been associated with increased daytime sleepiness, as well as impairments in memory and attentional processes. In the present study, we evaluated the neuronal changes of a pre-attentive process of wake auditory sensory gating, measured by brain event-related potential (ERP)--P50 in eight normal sleepers (NS) (habitual total sleep time (TST) 7 h 32 m) vs. eight chronic short sleeping individuals (SS) (habitual TST ≤6 h). To evaluate the effect of sleep extension on sensory gating, the extended sleep condition was performed in chronic short sleeping individuals. Thus, one week of time in bed (6 h 11 m) corresponding to habitual short sleep (hSS), and one week of extended time (∼ 8 h 25 m) in bed corresponding to extended sleep (eSS), were counterbalanced in the SS group. The gating ERP assessment was performed on the last day after each sleep condition week (normal sleep and habitual short and extended sleep), and was separated by one week with habitual total sleep time and monitored by a sleep diary. We found that amplitude of gating was lower in SS group compared to that in NS group (0.3 µV vs. 1.2 µV, at Cz electrode respectively). The results of the group × laterality interaction showed that the reduction of gating amplitude in the SS group was due to lower amplitude over the left hemisphere and central-midline sites relative to that in the NS group. After sleep extension the amplitude of gating increased in chronic short sleeping individuals relative to their habitual short sleep condition. The sleep condition × frontality interaction analysis confirmed that sleep extension significantly increased the amplitude of gating over frontal and central brain areas compared to parietal brain areas.

Life-cycle cost-benefit analysis of extensive vegetated roof systems.

PubMed

Carter, Timothy; Keeler, Andrew

2008-05-01

The built environment has been a significant cause of environmental degradation in the previously undeveloped landscape. As public and private interest in restoring the environmental integrity of urban areas continues to increase, new construction practices are being developed that explicitly value beneficial environmental characteristics. The use of vegetation on a rooftop--commonly called a green roof--as an alternative to traditional roofing materials is an increasingly utilized example of such practices. The vegetation and growing media perform a number of functions that improve environmental performance, including: absorption of rainfall, reduction of roof temperatures, improvement in ambient air quality, and provision of urban habitat. A better accounting of the green roof's total costs and benefits to society and to the private sector will aid in the design of policy instruments and educational materials that affect individual decisions about green roof construction. This study uses data collected from an experimental green roof plot to develop a benefit cost analysis (BCA) for the life cycle of extensive (thin layer) green roof systems in an urban watershed. The results from this analysis are compared with a traditional roofing scenario. The net present value (NPV) of this type of green roof currently ranges from 10% to 14% more expensive than its conventional counterpart. A reduction of 20% in green roof construction cost would make the social NPV of the practice less than traditional roof NPV. Considering the positive social benefits and relatively novel nature of the practice, incentives encouraging the use of this practice in highly urbanized watersheds are strongly recommended.

An Extension of Multiple Correspondence Analysis for Identifying Heterogeneous Subgroups of Respondents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hwang, Heungsun; Montreal, Hec; Dillon, William R.; Takane, Yoshio

2006-01-01

An extension of multiple correspondence analysis is proposed that takes into account cluster-level heterogeneity in respondents' preferences/choices. The method involves combining multiple correspondence analysis and k-means in a unified framework. The former is used for uncovering a low-dimensional space of multivariate categorical variables…

Three-dimensional kinematic correlates of ball velocity during maximal instep soccer kicking in males.

PubMed

Sinclair, Jonathan; Fewtrell, David; Taylor, Paul John; Bottoms, Lindsay; Atkins, Stephen; Hobbs, Sarah Jane

2014-01-01

Achieving a high ball velocity is important during soccer shooting, as it gives the goalkeeper less time to react, thus improving a player's chance of scoring. This study aimed to identify important technical aspects of kicking linked to the generation of ball velocity using regression analyses. Maximal instep kicks were obtained from 22 academy-level soccer players using a 10-camera motion capture system sampling at 500 Hz. Three-dimensional kinematics of the lower extremity segments were obtained. Regression analysis was used to identify the kinematic parameters associated with the development of ball velocity. A single biomechanical parameter; knee extension velocity of the kicking limb at ball contact Adjusted R(2) = 0.39, p ≤ 0.01 was obtained as a significant predictor of ball-velocity. This study suggests that sagittal plane knee extension velocity is the strongest contributor to ball velocity and potentially overall kicking performance. It is conceivable therefore that players may benefit from exposure to coaching and strength techniques geared towards the improvement of knee extension angular velocity as highlighted in this study.

Hierarchic Extensions in the Static and Dynamic Analysis of Elastic Beams. Ph.D. Thesis, 1990 Final Report, May 1990

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Watson, Robert A.

1991-01-01

Approximate solutions of static and dynamic beam problems by the p-version of the finite element method are investigated. Within a hierarchy of engineering beam idealizations, rigorous formulations of the strain and kinetic energies for straight and circular beam elements are presented. These formulations include rotating coordinate system effects and geometric nonlinearities to allow for the evaluation of vertical axis wind turbines, the motivating problem for this research. Hierarchic finite element spaces, based on extensions of the polynomial orders used to approximate the displacement variables, are constructed. The developed models are implemented into a general purpose computer program for evaluation. Quality control procedures are examined for a diverse set of sample problems. These procedures include estimating discretization errors in energy norm and natural frequencies, performing static and dynamic equilibrium checks, observing convergence for qualities of interest, and comparison with more exacting theories and experimental data. It is demonstrated that p-extensions produce exponential rates of convergence in the approximation of strain energy and natural frequencies for the class of problems investigated.

Evaluation of long term health-related quality of life in extensive burns: a 12-year experience in a burn center.

PubMed

Xie, Bing; Xiao, Shi-chu; Zhu, Shi-hui; Xia, Zhao-fan

2012-05-01

We sought to evaluate the long term health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients survived severely extensive burn and identify their clinical predicting factors correlated with HRQOL. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 20 patients survived more than 2 years with extensive burn involving ≥70% total body surface area (TBSA) between 1997 and 2009 in a burn center in Shanghai. Short Form-36 Medical Outcomes Survey (SF-36), Brief Version of Burn Specific Health Scale (BSHS-B) and Michigan Hand Outcome Questionnaire (MHQ) were used for the present evaluation. SF-36 scores were compared with a healthy Chinese population, and linear correlation analysis was performed to screen the clinical relating factors predicting physical and mental component summary (PCS and MCS) scores from SF-36. HRQOL scores from SF-36 were significantly lower in the domains of physical functioning, role limitations due to physical problems, pain, social functioning and role limitations due to emotional problems compared with population norms. Multiple linear regression analysis demonstrated that only return to work (RTW) predicted improved PCS. While age at injury, facial burns, skin grafting and length of hospital stay were correlated with MCS. Work, body image and heat sensitivity obtained the lowest BSHS-B scores in all 9 domains. Improvements of HRQOL could still be seen in BSHS-B scores in domains of simple abilities, hand function, work and affect even after a quite long interval between burns and testing. Hand function of extensive burn patients obtained relatively poor MHQ scores, especially in those without RTW. Patients with extensive burns have a poorer quality of life compared with that of general population. Relatively poor physical and psychological problems still exist even after a long period. Meanwhile, a trend of gradual improvements was noted. This information will aid clinicians in decision-making of comprehensive systematic regimens for long term rehabilitation and psychosocial treatment. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved.

Analyzing large-scale spiking neural data with HRLAnalysis™

PubMed Central

Thibeault, Corey M.; O'Brien, Michael J.; Srinivasa, Narayan

2014-01-01

The additional capabilities provided by high-performance neural simulation environments and modern computing hardware has allowed for the modeling of increasingly larger spiking neural networks. This is important for exploring more anatomically detailed networks but the corresponding accumulation in data can make analyzing the results of these simulations difficult. This is further compounded by the fact that many existing analysis packages were not developed with large spiking data sets in mind. Presented here is a software suite developed to not only process the increased amount of spike-train data in a reasonable amount of time, but also provide a user friendly Python interface. We describe the design considerations, implementation and features of the HRLAnalysis™ suite. In addition, performance benchmarks demonstrating the speedup of this design compared to a published Python implementation are also presented. The result is a high-performance analysis toolkit that is not only usable and readily extensible, but also straightforward to interface with existing Python modules. PMID:24634655

Extended performance solar electric propulsion thrust system study. Volume 3: Tradeoff studies of alternate thrust system configurations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hawthorne, E. I.

1977-01-01

Several thrust system design concepts were evaluated and compared using the specifications of the most advanced 30 cm engineering model thruster as the technology base. Emphasis was placed on relatively high power missions. The extensions in thruster performance required for the Halley's comet mission were defined and alternative thrust system concepts were designed in sufficient detail for comparing mass, efficiency, reliability, structure, and thermal characteristics. Confirmation testing and analysis of thruster and power-processing components were performed. A baseline design was selected from the alternatives considered, and the design analysis and documentation were refined. A program development plan was formulated that outlines the work structure considered necessary for developing, qualifying, and fabricating the flight hardware for the baseline thrust system within the time frame of a project to rendezvous with Halley's comet. An assessment was made of the costs and risks associated with a baseline thrust system as provided to the mission project under this plan. Critical procurements and interfaces were identified and defined.

Electrification Futures Study: End-Use Electric Technology Cost and Performance Projections through 2050

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

Vimmerstedt, Laura J.; Jadun, Paige; McMillan, Colin A.

This report provides projected cost and performance assumptions for electric technologies considered in the Electrification Futures Study, a detailed and comprehensive analysis of the effects of widespread electrification of end-use service demands in all major economic sectors - transportation, residential and commercial buildings, and industry - for the contiguous United States through 2050. Using extensive literature searches and expert assessment, the authors identify slow, moderate, and rapid technology advancement sensitivities on technology cost and performance, and they offer a comparative analysis of levelized cost metrics as a reference indicator of total costs. The identification and characterization of these end-use servicemore » demand technologies is fundamental to the Electrification Futures Study. This report, the larger Electrification Futures Study, and the associated data and methodologies may be useful to planners and analysts in evaluating the potential role of electrification in an uncertain future. The report could be broadly applicable for other analysts and researchers who wish to assess electrification and electric technologies.« less

Design and Experimental Verification of Deployable/Inflatable Ultra-Lightweight Structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pai, P. Frank

2004-01-01

Because launch cost of a space structural system is often proportional to the launch volume and mass and there is no significant gravity in space, NASA's space exploration programs and various science missions have stimulated extensive use of ultra-lightweight deployable/inflatable structures. These structures are named here as Highly Flexible Structures (HFSs) because they are designed to undergo large displacements, rotations, and/or buckling without plastic deformation under normal operation conditions. Except recent applications to space structural systems, HFSs have been used in many mechanical systems, civil structures, aerospace vehicles, home appliances, and medical devices to satisfy space limitations, provide special mechanisms, and/or reduce structural weight. The extensive use of HFSs in today's structural engineering reveals the need of a design and analysis software and a database system with design guidelines for practicing engineers to perform computer-aided design and rapid prototyping of HFSs. Also to prepare engineering students for future structural engineering requires a new and easy-to- understand method of presenting the complex mathematics of the modeling and analysis of HFSs. However, because of the high flexibility of HFSs, many unique challenging problems in the modeling, design and analysis of HFSs need to be studied. The current state of research on HFSs needs advances in the following areas: (1) modeling of large rotations using appropriate strain measures, (2) modeling of cross-section warpings of structures, (3) how to account for both large rotations and cross- section warpings in 2D (two-dimensional) and 1D structural theories, (4) modeling of thickness thinning of membranes due to inflation pressure, pretension, and temperature change, (5) prediction of inflated shapes and wrinkles of inflatable structures, (6) development of efficient numerical methods for nonlinear static and dynamic analyses, and (7) filling the gap between geometrically exact elastic analysis and elastoplastic analysis. The objectives of this research project were: (1) to study the modeling, design, and analysis of deployable/inflatable ultra-lightweight structures, (2) to perform numerical and experimental studies on the static and dynamic characteristics and deployability of HFSs, (3) to derive guidelines for designing HFSs, (4) to develop a MATLAB toolbox for the design, analysis, and dynamic animation of HFSs, and (5) to perform experiments and establish an adequate database of post-buckling characteristics of HFSs.

Role of intensive and extensive variables in a soup of firms in economy to address long run prices and aggregate data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hosseiny, Ali; Gallegati, Mauro

2017-03-01

We review the production function and the hypothesis of equilibrium in the neoclassical framework. We notify that in a soup of sectors in economy, while capital and labor resemble extensive variables, wage and rate of return on capital act as intensive variables. As a result, Baumol and Bowen's statement of equal wages is inevitable from the thermodynamics point of view. We try to see how aggregation can be performed concerning the extensive variables in a soup of firms. We provide a toy model to perform aggregation for production and the labor income as extensive quantities in a neoclassical framework.

Cost-effectiveness analysis: adding value to assessment of animal health welfare and production.

PubMed

Babo Martins, S; Rushton, J

2014-12-01

Cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) has been extensively used in economic assessments in fields related to animal health, namely in human health where it provides a decision-making framework for choices about the allocation of healthcare resources. Conversely, in animal health, cost-benefit analysis has been the preferred tool for economic analysis. In this paper, the use of CEA in related areas and the role of this technique in assessments of animal health, welfare and production are reviewed. Cost-effectiveness analysis can add further value to these assessments, particularly in programmes targeting animal welfare or animal diseases with an impact on human health, where outcomes are best valued in natural effects rather than in monetary units. Importantly, CEA can be performed during programme implementation stages to assess alternative courses of action in real time.

Integrated Composite Analyzer (ICAN): Users and programmers manual

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Murthy, P. L. N.; Chamis, C. C.

1986-01-01

The use of and relevant equations programmed in a computer code designed to carry out a comprehensive linear analysis of multilayered fiber composites is described. The analysis contains the essential features required to effectively design structural components made from fiber composites. The inputs to the code are constituent material properties, factors reflecting the fabrication process, and composite geometry. The code performs micromechanics, macromechanics, and laminate analysis, including the hygrothermal response of fiber composites. The code outputs are the various ply and composite properties, composite structural response, and composite stress analysis results with details on failure. The code is in Fortran IV and can be used efficiently as a package in complex structural analysis programs. The input-output format is described extensively through the use of a sample problem. The program listing is also included. The code manual consists of two parts.

SPARX, a new environment for Cryo-EM image processing.

PubMed

Hohn, Michael; Tang, Grant; Goodyear, Grant; Baldwin, P R; Huang, Zhong; Penczek, Pawel A; Yang, Chao; Glaeser, Robert M; Adams, Paul D; Ludtke, Steven J

2007-01-01

SPARX (single particle analysis for resolution extension) is a new image processing environment with a particular emphasis on transmission electron microscopy (TEM) structure determination. It includes a graphical user interface that provides a complete graphical programming environment with a novel data/process-flow infrastructure, an extensive library of Python scripts that perform specific TEM-related computational tasks, and a core library of fundamental C++ image processing functions. In addition, SPARX relies on the EMAN2 library and cctbx, the open-source computational crystallography library from PHENIX. The design of the system is such that future inclusion of other image processing libraries is a straightforward task. The SPARX infrastructure intelligently handles retention of intermediate values, even those inside programming structures such as loops and function calls. SPARX and all dependencies are free for academic use and available with complete source.

Extension of echinococcal spinal infestation extra- and intradurally after a decade of extinction.

PubMed

Samadian, M; Alavi, E; Sharifi, G; Rezaee, O; Faramarzi, F

2010-12-01

Simultaneous intradural, extradural, vertebral and paravetebral invasion of hydatid cyst, pathologic fracture, and multiple vertebral involvement are all rare encountered conditions in echinococcal infestation. A 48-year-old man who had experienced a falling down trauma, 10 years ago, and at that time, because of L1 burst fracture, undergone on Harrington rod placement, admitted in our ward for newly started urinary retention and mild paresis of lower extremities. With imaging analysis and during surgery, we discovered the extension of echinococcal spinal infestation extra- and intradurally after a decade of extinction. We performed a double stage circumferential reconstruction and adjuvant long term chemotherapy. We closely monitor our patient neurologically and radiologically and believe that aggressive surgical treatment and sustained cyclical albendazole therapy can increase the quality of life and life expectancy.

Effectiveness of Rotation-free Triangular and Quadrilateral Shell Elements in Sheet-metal Forming Simulations

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

Brunet, M.; Sabourin, F.

2005-08-05

This paper is concerned with the effectiveness of triangular 3-node shell element without rotational d.o.f. and the extension to a new 4-node quadrilateral shell element called S4 with only 3 translational degrees of freedom per node and one-point integration. The curvatures are computed resorting to the surrounding elements. Extension from rotation-free triangular element to a quadrilateral element requires internal curvatures in order to avoid singular bending stiffness. Two numerical examples with regular and irregular meshes are performed to show the convergence and accuracy. Deep-drawing of a box, spring-back analysis of a U-shape strip sheet and the crash simulation of amore » beam-box complete the demonstration of the bending capabilities of the proposed rotation-free triangular and quadrilateral elements.« less

JPL Contamination Control Engineering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blakkolb, Brian

2013-01-01

JPL has extensive expertise fielding contamination sensitive missions-in house and with our NASA/industry/academic partners.t Development and implementation of performance-driven cleanliness requirements for a wide range missions and payloads - UV-Vis-IR: GALEX, Dawn, Juno, WFPC-II, AIRS, TES, et al - Propulsion, thermal control, robotic sample acquisition systems. Contamination control engineering across the mission life cycle: - System and payload requirements derivation, analysis, and contamination control implementation plans - Hardware Design, Risk trades, Requirements V-V - Assembly, Integration & Test planning and implementation - Launch site operations and launch vehicle/payload integration - Flight ops center dot Personnel on staff have expertise with space materials development and flight experiments. JPL has capabilities and expertise to successfully address contamination issues presented by space and habitable environments. JPL has extensive experience fielding and managing contamination sensitive missions. Excellent working relationship with the aerospace contamination control engineering community/.

Cortical and subcortical gray matter bases of cognitive deficits in REM sleep behavior disorder.

PubMed

Rahayel, Shady; Postuma, Ronald B; Montplaisir, Jacques; Génier Marchand, Daphné; Escudier, Frédérique; Gaubert, Malo; Bourgouin, Pierre-Alexandre; Carrier, Julie; Monchi, Oury; Joubert, Sven; Blanc, Frédéric; Gagnon, Jean-François

2018-05-15

To investigate cortical and subcortical gray matter abnormalities underlying cognitive impairment in patients with REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) with or without mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Fifty-two patients with RBD, including 17 patients with MCI, were recruited and compared to 41 controls. All participants underwent extensive clinical assessments, neuropsychological examination, and 3-tesla MRI acquisition of T1 anatomical images. Vertex-based cortical analyses of volume, thickness, and surface area were performed to investigate cortical abnormalities between groups, whereas vertex-based shape analysis was performed to investigate subcortical structure surfaces. Correlations were performed to investigate associations between cortical and subcortical metrics, cognitive domains, and other markers of neurodegeneration (color discrimination, olfaction, and autonomic measures). Patients with MCI had cortical thinning in the frontal, cingulate, temporal, and occipital cortices, and abnormal surface contraction in the lenticular nucleus and thalamus. Patients without MCI had cortical thinning restricted to the frontal cortex. Lower patient performance in cognitive domains was associated with cortical and subcortical abnormalities. Moreover, impaired performance on olfaction, color discrimination, and autonomic measures was associated with thinning in the occipital lobe. Cortical and subcortical gray matter abnormalities are associated with cognitive status in patients with RBD, with more extensive patterns in patients with MCI. Our results highlight the importance of distinguishing between subgroups of patients with RBD according to cognitive status in order to better understand the neurodegenerative process in this population. © 2018 American Academy of Neurology.

A randomised clinical trial of the efficacy of drop squats or leg extension/leg curl exercises to treat clinically diagnosed jumper's knee in athletes: pilot study

PubMed Central

Cannell, L; Taunton, J; Clement, D; Smith, C; Khan, K

2001-01-01

Objectives—To compare the therapeutic effect of two different exercise protocols in athletes with jumper's knee. Methods—Randomised clinical trial comparing a 12 week programme of either drop squat exercises or leg extension/leg curl exercises. Measurement was performed at baseline and after six and 12 weeks. Primary outcome measures were pain (visual analogue scale 1–10) and return to sport. Secondary outcome measures included quadriceps and hamstring moment of force using a Cybex II isokinetic dynamometer at 30°/second. Differences in pain response between the drop squat and leg extension/curl treatment groups were assessed by 2 (group) x 3 (time) analysis of variance. Two by two contingency tables were used to test differences in rates of return to sport. Analysis of variance (2 (injured versus non-injured leg) x 2 (group) x 3 (time)) was also used to determine differences for secondary outcome measures. Results—Over the 12 week intervention, pain diminished by 2.3 points (36%) in the leg extension/curl group and 3.2 points (57%) in the squat group. There was a significant main effect of both exercise protocols on pain (p<0.01) with no interaction effect. Nine of 10 subjects in the drop squat group returned to sporting activity by 12 weeks, but five of those subjects still had low level pain. Six of nine of the leg extension/curl group returned to sporting activity by 12 weeks and four patients had low level pain. There was no significant difference between groups in numbers returning to sporting activity. There were no differences in the change in quadriceps or hamstring muscle moment of force between groups. Conclusions—Progressive drop squats and leg extension/curl exercises can reduce the pain of jumper's knee in a 12 week period and permit a high proportion of patients to return to sport. Not all patients, however, return to sport by that time. Key Words: knee; patellar tendon; tendinopathy; tendinosis; eccentric strengthening; strength training PMID:11157465

RIBAVIRIN: The analysis of a polymorphic substance by LC-MS and FTIR spectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Machal, A. C.; Flurer, R. A.; Brueggemeyer, T. W.; Ellis, L. E.; Satzger, R. D.; Stewart, K. R.

1998-06-01

The FTIR laboratory often has the task of identifying unknown pharmaceuticals. This case involves unknown capsules received at the Forensic Chemistry Center. Through extensive searching of pharmaceutical data bases, it was concluded that the capsules might contain ribavirin, which is classified as an anti-viral agent. Mass spectral analysis (LC-MS) concluded that the capsules contained ribavirin; however, the FTIR results did not agree with the mass spectral results. Additional experiments were performed and the results demonstrate the capabilities of FTIR to discern differences between polymorphic forms of a substance, such as ribavirin, when other techniques are unable to provide this information.

Design and Prototype of an Automated Column-Switching HPLC System for Radiometabolite Analysis.

PubMed

Vasdev, Neil; Collier, Thomas Lee

2016-08-17

Column-switching high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is extensively used for the critical analysis of radiolabeled ligands and their metabolites in plasma. However, the lack of streamlined apparatus and consequently varying protocols remain as a challenge among positron emission tomography laboratories. We report here the prototype apparatus and implementation of a fully automated and simplified column-switching procedure to allow for the easy and automated determination of radioligands and their metabolites in up to 5 mL of plasma. The system has been used with conventional UV and coincidence radiation detectors, as well as with a single quadrupole mass spectrometer.

Linear regression analysis of survival data with missing censoring indicators.

PubMed

Wang, Qihua; Dinse, Gregg E

2011-04-01

Linear regression analysis has been studied extensively in a random censorship setting, but typically all of the censoring indicators are assumed to be observed. In this paper, we develop synthetic data methods for estimating regression parameters in a linear model when some censoring indicators are missing. We define estimators based on regression calibration, imputation, and inverse probability weighting techniques, and we prove all three estimators are asymptotically normal. The finite-sample performance of each estimator is evaluated via simulation. We illustrate our methods by assessing the effects of sex and age on the time to non-ambulatory progression for patients in a brain cancer clinical trial.

Dictionaries and distributions: Combining expert knowledge and large scale textual data content analysis : Distributed dictionary representation.

PubMed

Garten, Justin; Hoover, Joe; Johnson, Kate M; Boghrati, Reihane; Iskiwitch, Carol; Dehghani, Morteza

2018-02-01

Theory-driven text analysis has made extensive use of psychological concept dictionaries, leading to a wide range of important results. These dictionaries have generally been applied through word count methods which have proven to be both simple and effective. In this paper, we introduce Distributed Dictionary Representations (DDR), a method that applies psychological dictionaries using semantic similarity rather than word counts. This allows for the measurement of the similarity between dictionaries and spans of text ranging from complete documents to individual words. We show how DDR enables dictionary authors to place greater emphasis on construct validity without sacrificing linguistic coverage. We further demonstrate the benefits of DDR on two real-world tasks and finally conduct an extensive study of the interaction between dictionary size and task performance. These studies allow us to examine how DDR and word count methods complement one another as tools for applying concept dictionaries and where each is best applied. Finally, we provide references to tools and resources to make this method both available and accessible to a broad psychological audience.

Subscale Carbon-Carbon Nozzle Extension Development and Hot Fire Testing in Support of Upper Stage Liquid Rocket Engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gradl, Paul; Valentine, Peter; Crisanti, Matthew; Greene, Sandy Elam

2016-01-01

Upper stage and in-space liquid rocket engines are optimized for performance through the use of high area ratio nozzles to fully expand combustion gases to low exit pressures increasing exhaust velocities. Due to the large size of such nozzles and the related engine performance requirements, carbon-carbon (C/C) composite nozzle extensions are being considered for use in order to reduce weight impacts. NASA and industry partner Carbon-Carbon Advanced Technologies (C-CAT) are working towards advancing the technology readiness level of large-scale, domestically-fabricated, C/C nozzle extensions. These C/C extensions have the ability to reduce the overall costs of extensions relative to heritage metallic and composite extensions and to decrease weight by 50%. Material process and coating developments have advanced over the last several years, but hot fire testing to fully evaluate C/C nozzle extensions in relevant environments has been very limited. NASA and C-CAT have designed, fabricated and hot fire tested multiple subscale nozzle extension test articles of various C/C material systems, with the goal of assessing and advancing the manufacturability of these domestically producible materials as well as characterizing their performance when subjected to the typical environments found in a variety of liquid rocket and scramjet engines. Testing at the MSFC Test Stand 115 evaluated heritage and state-of-the-art C/C materials and coatings, demonstrating the capabilities of the high temperature materials and their fabrication methods. This paper discusses the design and fabrication of the 1.2k-lbf sized carbon-carbon nozzle extensions, provides an overview of the test campaign, presents results of the hot fire testing, and discusses potential follow-on development work.

A Biosequence-based Approach to Software Characterization

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

Oehmen, Christopher S.; Peterson, Elena S.; Phillips, Aaron R.

For many applications, it is desirable to have some process for recognizing when software binaries are closely related without relying on them to be identical or have identical segments. Some examples include monitoring utilization of high performance computing centers or service clouds, detecting freeware in licensed code, and enforcing application whitelists. But doing so in a dynamic environment is a nontrivial task because most approaches to software similarity require extensive and time-consuming analysis of a binary, or they fail to recognize executables that are similar but nonidentical. Presented herein is a novel biosequence-based method for quantifying similarity of executable binaries.more » Using this method, it is shown in an example application on large-scale multi-author codes that 1) the biosequence-based method has a statistical performance in recognizing and distinguishing between a collection of real-world high performance computing applications better than 90% of ideal; and 2) an example of using family tree analysis to tune identification for a code subfamily can achieve better than 99% of ideal performance.« less

Thermal Characterization for a Modular 3-D Multichip Module

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fan, Mark S.; Plante, Jeannette; Shaw, Harry

2000-01-01

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center has designed a high-density modular 3-D multichip module (MCM) for future spaceflight use. This MCM features a complete modular structure, i.e., each stack can be removed from the package without damaging the structure. The interconnection to the PCB is through the Column Grid Array (CGA) technology. Because of its high-density nature, large power dissipation from multiple layers of circuitry is anticipated and CVD diamond films are used in the assembly for heat conduction enhancement. Since each stacked layer dissipates certain amount of heat, designing effective heat conduction paths through each stack and balancing the heat dissipation within each stack for optimal thermal performance become a challenging task. To effectively remove the dissipated heat from the package, extensive thermal analysis has been performed with finite element methods. Through these analyses, we are able to improve the thermal design and increase the total wattage of the package for maximum electrical performance. This paper provides details on the design-oriented thermal analysis and performance enhancement. It also addresses issues relating to contact thermal resistance between the diamond film and the metallic heat conduction paths.

Airloads and Wake Geometry Calculations for an Isolated Tiltrotor Model in a Wind Tunnel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Wayne

2001-01-01

Comparisons of measured and calculated aerodynamic behavior of a tiltrotor model are presented. The test of the Tilt Rotor Aeroacoustic Model (TRAM) with a single, 0.25-scale V-22 rotor in the German-Dutch Wind Tunnel (DNW) provides an extensive set of aeroacoustic, performance, and structural loads data. The calculations were performed using the rotorcraft comprehensive analysis CAMRAD II. Presented are comparisons of measured and calculated performance for hover and helicopter mode operation, and airloads for helicopter mode. Calculated induced power, profile power, and wake geometry provide additional information about the aerodynamic behavior. An aerodynamic and wake model and calculation procedure that reflects the unique geometry and phenomena of tiltrotors has been developed. There are major differences between this model and the corresponding aerodynamic and wake model that has been established for helicopter rotors. In general, good correlation between measured and calculated performance and airloads behavior has been shown. Two aspects of the analysis that clearly need improvement are the stall delay model and the trailed vortex formation model.

A Divergence Statistics Extension to VTK for Performance Analysis

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

Pebay, Philippe Pierre; Bennett, Janine Camille

This report follows the series of previous documents ([PT08, BPRT09b, PT09, BPT09, PT10, PB13], where we presented the parallel descriptive, correlative, multi-correlative, principal component analysis, contingency, k -means, order and auto-correlative statistics engines which we developed within the Visualization Tool Kit ( VTK ) as a scalable, parallel and versatile statistics package. We now report on a new engine which we developed for the calculation of divergence statistics, a concept which we hereafter explain and whose main goal is to quantify the discrepancy, in a stasticial manner akin to measuring a distance, between an observed empirical distribution and a theoretical,more » "ideal" one. The ease of use of the new diverence statistics engine is illustrated by the means of C++ code snippets. Although this new engine does not yet have a parallel implementation, it has already been applied to HPC performance analysis, of which we provide an example.« less

Multifractal Cross Wavelet Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jiang, Zhi-Qiang; Gao, Xing-Lu; Zhou, Wei-Xing; Stanley, H. Eugene

Complex systems are composed of mutually interacting components and the output values of these components usually exhibit long-range cross-correlations. Using wavelet analysis, we propose a method of characterizing the joint multifractal nature of these long-range cross correlations, a method we call multifractal cross wavelet analysis (MFXWT). We assess the performance of the MFXWT method by performing extensive numerical experiments on the dual binomial measures with multifractal cross correlations and the bivariate fractional Brownian motions (bFBMs) with monofractal cross correlations. For binomial multifractal measures, we find the empirical joint multifractality of MFXWT to be in approximate agreement with the theoretical formula. For bFBMs, MFXWT may provide spurious multifractality because of the wide spanning range of the multifractal spectrum. We also apply the MFXWT method to stock market indices, and in pairs of index returns and volatilities we find an intriguing joint multifractal behavior. The tests on surrogate series also reveal that the cross correlation behavior, particularly the cross correlation with zero lag, is the main origin of cross multifractality.

Past Performance analysis of HPOTP bearings

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bhat, B. N.; Dolan, F. J.

1982-01-01

The past performance analysis conducted on three High Pressure Oxygen Turbopump (HPOTP) bearings from the Space Shuttle Main Engine is presented. Metallurgical analysis of failed bearing balls and races, and wear track and crack configuration analyses were carried out. In addition, one bearing was tested in laboratory at very high axial loads. The results showed that the cracks were surface initiated and propagated into subsurface locations at relatively small angles. Subsurface cracks were much more extensive than was appeared on the surface. The location of major cracks in the races corresponded to high radial loads rather than high axial loads. There was evidence to suggest that the inner races were heated to elevated temperatures. A failure scenario was developed based on the above findings. According to this scenario the HPOTP bearings are heated by a combination of high loads and high coefficient of friction (poor lubrication). Different methods of extending the HPOTP bearing life are also discussed. These include reduction of axial loads, improvements in bearing design, lubrication and cooling, and use of improved bearing materials.

Biotic and abiotic dynamics of a high solid-state anaerobic digestion box-type container system.

PubMed

Walter, Andreas; Probst, Maraike; Hinterberger, Stephan; Müller, Horst; Insam, Heribert

2016-03-01

A solid-state anaerobic digestion box-type container system for biomethane production was observed in 12 three-week batch fermentations. Reactor performance was monitored using physico-chemical analysis and the methanogenic community was identified using ANAEROCHIP-microarrays and quantitative PCR. A resilient community was found in all batches, despite variations in inoculum to substrate ratio, feedstock quality, and fluctuating reactor conditions. The consortia were dominated by mixotrophic Methanosarcina that were accompanied by hydrogenotrophic Methanobacterium, Methanoculleus, and Methanocorpusculum. The relationship between biotic and abiotic variables was investigated using bivariate correlation analysis and univariate analysis of variance. High amounts of biogas were produced in batches with high copy numbers of Methanosarcina. High copy numbers of Methanocorpusculum and extensive percolation, however, were found to negatively correlate with biogas production. Supporting these findings, a negative correlation was detected between Methanocorpusculum and Methanosarcina. Based on these results, this study suggests Methanosarcina as an indicator for well-functioning reactor performance. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Orthogonal sparse linear discriminant analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Zhonghua; Liu, Gang; Pu, Jiexin; Wang, Xiaohong; Wang, Haijun

2018-03-01

Linear discriminant analysis (LDA) is a linear feature extraction approach, and it has received much attention. On the basis of LDA, researchers have done a lot of research work on it, and many variant versions of LDA were proposed. However, the inherent problem of LDA cannot be solved very well by the variant methods. The major disadvantages of the classical LDA are as follows. First, it is sensitive to outliers and noises. Second, only the global discriminant structure is preserved, while the local discriminant information is ignored. In this paper, we present a new orthogonal sparse linear discriminant analysis (OSLDA) algorithm. The k nearest neighbour graph is first constructed to preserve the locality discriminant information of sample points. Then, L2,1-norm constraint on the projection matrix is used to act as loss function, which can make the proposed method robust to outliers in data points. Extensive experiments have been performed on several standard public image databases, and the experiment results demonstrate the performance of the proposed OSLDA algorithm.

Rotor systems research aircraft risk-reduction shake test

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wellman, J. Brent

1990-01-01

A shake test and an extensive analysis of results were performed to evaluate the possibility of and the method for dynamically calibrating the Rotor Systems Research Aircraft (RSRA). The RSRA airframe was subjected to known vibratory loads in several degrees of freedom and the responses of many aircraft transducers were recorded. Analysis of the transducer responses using the technique of dynamic force determination showed that the RSRA, when used as a dynamic measurement system, could predict, a posteriori, an excitation force in a single axis to an accuracy of about 5 percent and sometimes better. As the analysis was broadened to include multiple degrees of freedom for the excitation force, the predictive ability of the measurement system degraded to about 20 percent, with the error occasionally reaching 100 percent. The poor performance of the measurement system is explained by the nonlinear response of the RSRA to vibratory forces and the inadequacy of the particular method used in accounting for this nonlinearity.

ANALYSIS OF "IN-DEPTH" SCHOOLS CONDUCTED BY AREA EXTENSION AGENTS.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MCCORMICK, ROBERT W.

FIVE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS WERE CONDUCTED DURING THE FALL AND WINTER OF 1965-66 AT AREA EXTENSION CENTERS ESTABLISHED BY THE OHIO COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE IN JANUARY 1965. AIMING MAINLY AT THE COMMERCIAL AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY, SPECIALIZED EXTENSION AGENTS FOCUSED ON EDUCATIONAL PROBLEMS OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION AND OF SUCH AGRIBUSINESS…

A National Perspective on the Current Evaluation Activities in Extension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lamm, Alexa J.; Israel, Glenn D.; Diehl, David

2013-01-01

In order to enhance Extension evaluation efforts it is important to understand current practices. The study reported here researched the evaluation behaviors of county-based Extension professionals. Extension professionals from eight states (n = 1,173) responded to a survey regarding their evaluation data collection, analysis, and reporting…

Temporal variations in the potential hydrological performance of extensive green roof systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De-Ville, Simon; Menon, Manoj; Stovin, Virginia

2018-03-01

Existing literature provides contradictory information about variation in potential green roof hydrological performance over time. This study has evaluated a long-term hydrological monitoring record from a series of extensive green roof test beds to identify long-term evolutions and sub-annual (seasonal) variations in potential hydrological performance. Monitoring of nine differently-configured extensive green roof test beds took place over a period of 6 years in Sheffield, UK. Long-term evolutions and sub-annual trends in maximum potential retention performance were identified through physical monitoring of substrate field capacity over time. An independent evaluation of temporal variations in detention performance was undertaken through the fitting of reservoir-routing model parameters. Aggregation of the resulting retention and detention variations permitted the prediction of extensive green roof hydrological performance in response to a 1-in-30-year 1-h summer design storm for Sheffield, UK, which facilitated the comparison of multi and sub-annual hydrological performance variations. Sub-annual (seasonal) variation was found to be significantly greater than long-term evolution. Potential retention performance increased by up to 12% after 5-years, whilst the maximum sub-annual variation in potential retention was 27%. For vegetated roof configurations, a 4% long-term improvement was observed for detention performance, compared to a maximum 63% sub-annual variation. Consistent long-term reductions in detention performance were observed in unvegetated roof configurations, with a non-standard expanded-clay substrate experiencing a 45% reduction in peak attenuation over 5-years. Conventional roof configurations exhibit stable long-term hydrological performance, but are nonetheless subject to sub-annual variation.

Sub-pattern based multi-manifold discriminant analysis for face recognition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dai, Jiangyan; Guo, Changlu; Zhou, Wei; Shi, Yanjiao; Cong, Lin; Yi, Yugen

2018-04-01

In this paper, we present a Sub-pattern based Multi-manifold Discriminant Analysis (SpMMDA) algorithm for face recognition. Unlike existing Multi-manifold Discriminant Analysis (MMDA) approach which is based on holistic information of face image for recognition, SpMMDA operates on sub-images partitioned from the original face image and then extracts the discriminative local feature from the sub-images separately. Moreover, the structure information of different sub-images from the same face image is considered in the proposed method with the aim of further improve the recognition performance. Extensive experiments on three standard face databases (Extended YaleB, CMU PIE and AR) demonstrate that the proposed method is effective and outperforms some other sub-pattern based face recognition methods.

Purification and Characterization of Four β-Expansins (Zea m 1 Isoforms) from Maize Pollen1[w

PubMed Central

Li, Lian-Chao; Bedinger, Patricia A.; Volk, Carol; Jones, A. Daniel; Cosgrove, Daniel J.

2003-01-01

Four proteins with wall extension activity on grass cell walls were purified from maize (Zea mays) pollen by conventional column chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography. Each is a basic glycoprotein (isoelectric point = 9.1–9.5) of approximately 28 kD and was identified by immunoblot analysis as an isoform of Zea m 1, the major group 1 allergen of maize pollen and member of the β-expansin family. Four distinctive cDNAs for Zea m 1 were identified by cDNA library screening and by GenBank analysis. One pair (GenBank accession nos. AY104999 and AY104125) was much closer in sequence to well-characterized allergens such as Lol p 1 and Phl p 1 from ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and Phleum pretense, whereas a second pair was much more divergent. The N-terminal sequence and mass spectrometry fingerprint of the most abundant isoform (Zea m 1d) matched that predicted for AY197353, whereas N-terminal sequences of the other isoforms matched or nearly matched AY104999 and AY104125. Highly purified Zea m 1d induced extension of a variety of grass walls but not dicot walls. Wall extension activity of Zea m 1d was biphasic with respect to protein concentration, had a broad pH optimum between 5 and 6, required more than 50 μg mL-1 for high activity, and led to cell wall breakage after only approximately 10% extension. These characteristics differ from those of α-expansins. Some of the distinctive properties of Zea m 1 may not be typical of β-expansins as a class but may relate to the specialized function of this β-expansin in pollen function. PMID:12913162

Effective Connectivity Reveals Strategy Differences in an Expert Calculator

PubMed Central

Minati, Ludovico; Sigala, Natasha

2013-01-01

Mathematical reasoning is a core component of cognition and the study of experts defines the upper limits of human cognitive abilities, which is why we are fascinated by peak performers, such as chess masters and mental calculators. Here, we investigated the neural bases of calendrical skills, i.e. the ability to rapidly identify the weekday of a particular date, in a gifted mental calculator who does not fall in the autistic spectrum, using functional MRI. Graph-based mapping of effective connectivity, but not univariate analysis, revealed distinct anatomical location of “cortical hubs” supporting the processing of well-practiced close dates and less-practiced remote dates: the former engaged predominantly occipital and medial temporal areas, whereas the latter were associated mainly with prefrontal, orbitofrontal and anterior cingulate connectivity. These results point to the effect of extensive practice on the development of expertise and long term working memory, and demonstrate the role of frontal networks in supporting performance on less practiced calculations, which incur additional processing demands. Through the example of calendrical skills, our results demonstrate that the ability to perform complex calculations is initially supported by extensive attentional and strategic resources, which, as expertise develops, are gradually replaced by access to long term working memory for familiar material. PMID:24086291

The Behavior of TCP and Its Extensions in Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, Ruhai; Horan, Stephen

2001-01-01

The performance of Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) in space has been examined from the observations of simulation and experimental tests for several years at National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Department of Defense (DoD) and universities. At New Mexico State University (NMSU), we have been concentrating on studying the performance of two protocol suites: the file transfer protocol (ftp) running over Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) stack and the file protocol (fp) running over the Space Communications Protocol Standards (SCPS)-Transport Protocol (TP) developed under the Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS) standards process. SCPS-TP is considered to be TCP's extensions for space communications. This dissertation experimentally studies the behavior of TCP and SCPS-TP by running the protocol suites over both the Space-to-Ground Link Simulator (SGLS) test-bed and realistic satellite link. The study concentrates on comparing protocol behavior by plotting the averaged file transfer times for different experimental configurations and analyzing them using Statistical Analysis System (SAS) based procedures. The effects of different link delays and various Bit-Error-Rates (BERS) on each protocol performance are also studied and linear regression models are built for experiments over SGLS test-bed to reflect the relationships between the file transfer time and various transmission conditions.

Effects of leg dominance on performance of ballet turns (pirouettes) by experienced and novice dancers.

PubMed

Lin, Chia-Wei; Su, Fong-Chin; Wu, Hong-Wen; Lin, Cheng-Feng

2013-01-01

Turns (pirouettes) are an important movement in ballet and may be affected by "lateral bias". This study investigated physiological differences exhibited by experienced and novice dancers, respectively, when performing pirouette with dominant and non-dominant leg supports, respectively. Thirteen novice and 13 experienced dancers performed turns on dominant or non-dominant legs. The maximum ankle plantarflexion, knee extension and hip extension were measured during the single-leg support phase. The inclination angle of rotation axis is the angle between instantaneous rotation axis and global vertical axis in the early single-leg support phase. Both groups exhibited a greater hip extension, knee extension, and ankle plantarflexion when performing a turn on the non-dominant leg. For experienced dancers, the inclination angle of rotation axis during the pre-swing phase was generally smaller for dominant leg support than non-dominant leg. However, no significant difference was found in inclination angle of rotation axis of novice dancers. For experienced dancers, an improved performance is obtained when using the dominant leg for support. By contrast, for novice dancers, the performance is independent of choice of support leg. The significant lateral bias in experienced dancers indicates the possible influence of training. That is, repetitive rehearsal on the preferred leg strengthens the impact of side dominance in experienced dancers.

Algorithm optimization for multitined radiofrequency ablation: comparative study in ex vivo and in vivo bovine liver.

PubMed

Appelbaum, Liat; Sosna, Jacob; Pearson, Robert; Perez, Sarah; Nissenbaum, Yizhak; Mertyna, Pawel; Libson, Eugene; Goldberg, S Nahum

2010-02-01

To prospectively optimize multistep algorithms for largest available multitined radiofrequency (RF) electrode system in ex vivo and in vivo tissues, to determine best energy parameters to achieve large predictable target sizes of coagulation, and to compare these algorithms with manufacturer's recommended algorithms. Institutional animal care and use committee approval was obtained for the in vivo portion of this study. Ablation (n = 473) was performed in ex vivo bovine liver; final tine extension was 5-7 cm. Variables in stepped-deployment RF algorithm were interrogated and included initial current ramping to 105 degrees C (1 degrees C/0.5-5.0 sec), the number of sequential tine extensions (2-7 cm), and duration of application (4-12 minutes) for final two to three tine extensions. Optimal parameters to achieve 5-7 cm of coagulation were compared with recommended algorithms. Optimal settings for 5- and 6-cm final tine extensions were confirmed in in vivo perfused bovine liver (n = 14). Multivariate analysis of variance and/or paired t tests were used. Mean RF ablation zones of 5.1 cm +/- 0.2 (standard deviation), 6.3 cm +/- 0.4, and 7 cm +/- 0.3 were achieved with 5-, 6-, and 7-cm final tine extensions in a mean of 19.5 min +/- 0.5, 27.9 min +/- 6, and 37.1 min +/- 2.3, respectively, at optimal settings. With these algorithms, size of ablation at 6- and 7-cm tine extension significantly increased from mean of 5.4 cm +/- 0.4 and 6.1 cm +/- 0.6 (manufacturer's algorithms) (P <.05, both comparisons); two recommended tine extensions were eliminated. In vivo confirmation produced mean diameter in specified time: 5.5 cm +/- 0.4 in 18.5 min +/- 0.5 (5-cm extensions) and 5.7 cm +/- 0.2 in 21.2 min +/- 0.6 (6-cm extensions). Large zones of coagulation of 5-7 cm can be created with optimized RF algorithms that help reduce number of tine extensions compared with manufacturer's recommendations. Such algorithms are likely to facilitate the utility of these devices for RF ablation of focal tumors in clinical practice. (c) RSNA, 2010.

Recovery from Unrecognized Sleep Loss Accumulated in Daily Life Improved Mood Regulation via Prefrontal Suppression of Amygdala Activity

PubMed Central

Motomura, Yuki; Kitamura, Shingo; Nakazaki, Kyoko; Oba, Kentaro; Katsunuma, Ruri; Terasawa, Yuri; Hida, Akiko; Moriguchi, Yoshiya; Mishima, Kazuo

2017-01-01

Many modern people suffer from sleep debt that has accumulated in everyday life but is not subjectively noticed [potential sleep debt (PSD)]. Our hypothesis for this study was that resolution of PSD through sleep extension optimizes mood regulation by altering the functional connectivity between the amygdala and prefrontal cortex. Fifteen healthy male participants underwent an experiment consisting of a baseline (BL) evaluation followed by two successive interventions, namely, a 9-day sleep extension followed by one night of total sleep deprivation (TSD). Tests performed before and after the interventions included a questionnaire on negative mood and neuroimaging with arterial spin labeling MRI for evaluating regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and functional connectivity. Negative mood and amygdala rCBF were significantly reduced after sleep extension compared with BL. The amygdala had a significant negative functional connectivity with the medial prefrontal cortex (FCamg–MPFC), and this negative connectivity was greater after sleep extension than at BL. After TSD, these indices reverted to the same level as at BL. An additional path analysis with structural equation modeling showed that the FCamg–MPFC significantly explained the amygdala rCBF and that the amygdala rCBF significantly explained the negative mood. These findings suggest that the use of our sleep extension protocol normalized amygdala activity via negative amygdala–MPFC functional connectivity. The resolution of unnoticed PSD may improve mood by enhancing frontal suppression of hyperactivity in the amygdala caused by PSD accumulating in everyday life. PMID:28713328

Shelf life extension as solution for environmental impact mitigation: A case study for bakery products.

PubMed

Bacenetti, Jacopo; Cavaliere, Alessia; Falcone, Giacomo; Giovenzana, Valentina; Banterle, Alessandro; Guidetti, Riccardo

2018-06-15

Over the last years, increasing attention has been paid to environmental concerns related to food production and potential solutions to this issue. Among the different strategies being considered to reduce the impact food production has on the environment, only moderate has been paid to the extension of shelf life; a longer shelf life can reduce food losses as well as the economic and environmental impacts of the distribution logistics. The aim of this study is to assess the environmental performance of whole-wheat breadsticks with extended shelf lives and to evaluate whether the shelf-life extension is an effective mitigation solution from an environmental point of view. To this purpose, the life cycle assessment (LCA) approach was applied from a "cradle-to-grave" perspective. Rosmarinic acid was used as an antioxidant to extend the shelf life. To test the robustness of the results and to investigate the influence of the choices made in the modelling phase, a sensitivity and uncertainty analysis were carried out. The achieved results highlighted how, for 10 of the 12 evaluated impact categories, the shelf-life extension is a proper mitigation solution, and its effectiveness depends on the magnitude of product loss reduction that is achieved. The shelf-life extension doesn't allow for the reduction of environmental impact in the categories of human toxicity, cancer effects and freshwater eutrophication. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Beyond upgrading typologies - In search of a better deal for honey value chains in Brazil.

PubMed

Figueiredo Junior, Hugo S de; Meuwissen, Miranda P M; van der Lans, Ivo A; Oude Lansink, Alfons G J M

2017-01-01

Selection of value chain strategies by development practitioners and value chain participants themselves has been restricted to preset types of upgrading. This paper argues for an extension of the range of strategy solutions to value chains. An empirical application identifies successful strategies for honey value chains in Brazil for 2015-2020. Strategy and performance indicators were selected using the value chain Structure-Conduct-Performance (SCP) framework. Experts' opinion was elicited in a Delphi for business scenarios, and adaptive conjoint analysis was used to identify strategies for increasing production growth and local value-added. This study identifies important strategies beyond upgrading typologies, and finds that important strategies differ by performance goal and scenario. The value chain SCP allows searching for promising strategies towards performance-the "better deal"-in an integrated way.

Slow crack growth test method for polyethylene gas pipes. Volume 1. Topical report, December 1992

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

Leis, B.; Ahmad, J.; Forte, T.

1992-12-01

In spite of the excellent performance record of polyethylene (PE) pipes used for gas distribution, a small number of leaks occur in distribution systems each year because of slow growth of cracks through pipe walls. The Slow Crack Growth Test (SCG) has been developed as a key element in a methodology for the assessment of the performance of polyethylene gas distribution systems to resist such leaks. This tropical report describes work conducted in the first part of the research directed at the initial development of the SCG test, including a critical evaluation of the applicability of the SCG test asmore » an element in PE gas pipe system performance methodology. Results of extensive experiments and analysis are reported. The results show that the SCG test should be very useful in performance assessment.« less

Tool for Rapid Analysis of Monte Carlo Simulations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Restrepo, Carolina; McCall, Kurt E.; Hurtado, John E.

2011-01-01

Designing a spacecraft, or any other complex engineering system, requires extensive simulation and analysis work. Oftentimes, the large amounts of simulation data generated are very di cult and time consuming to analyze, with the added risk of overlooking potentially critical problems in the design. The authors have developed a generic data analysis tool that can quickly sort through large data sets and point an analyst to the areas in the data set that cause specific types of failures. The Tool for Rapid Analysis of Monte Carlo simulations (TRAM) has been used in recent design and analysis work for the Orion vehicle, greatly decreasing the time it takes to evaluate performance requirements. A previous version of this tool was developed to automatically identify driving design variables in Monte Carlo data sets. This paper describes a new, parallel version, of TRAM implemented on a graphical processing unit, and presents analysis results for NASA's Orion Monte Carlo data to demonstrate its capabilities.

Strengthening Software Authentication with the ROSE Software Suite

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

White, G

2006-06-15

Many recent nonproliferation and arms control software projects include a software authentication regime. These include U.S. Government-sponsored projects both in the United States and in the Russian Federation (RF). This trend toward requiring software authentication is only accelerating. Demonstrating assurance that software performs as expected without hidden ''backdoors'' is crucial to a project's success. In this context, ''authentication'' is defined as determining that a software package performs only its intended purpose and performs said purpose correctly and reliably over the planned duration of an agreement. In addition to visual inspections by knowledgeable computer scientists, automated tools are needed to highlightmore » suspicious code constructs, both to aid visual inspection and to guide program development. While many commercial tools are available for portions of the authentication task, they are proprietary and not extensible. An open-source, extensible tool can be customized to the unique needs of each project (projects can have both common and custom rules to detect flaws and security holes). Any such extensible tool has to be based on a complete language compiler. ROSE is precisely such a compiler infrastructure developed within the Department of Energy (DOE) and targeted at the optimization of scientific applications and user-defined libraries within large-scale applications (typically applications of a million lines of code). ROSE is a robust, source-to-source analysis and optimization infrastructure currently addressing large, million-line DOE applications in C and C++ (handling the full C, C99, C++ languages and with current collaborations to support Fortran90). We propose to extend ROSE to address a number of security-specific requirements, and apply it to software authentication for nonproliferation and arms control projects.« less

Strokectomy and Extensive Cerebrospinal Fluid Drainage for the Treatment of Space-Occupying Cerebellar Ischemic Stroke.

PubMed

Tartara, Fulvio; Bongetta, Daniele; Colombo, Elena Virginia; Bortolotti, Carlo; Cenzato, Marco; Giombelli, Ermanno; Gaetani, Paolo; Zenga, Francesco; Pilloni, Giulia; Ciccone, Alfonso; Sessa, Maria

2018-04-03

Cerebellar ischemia may lead to space-occupying edema, resulting in potentially fatal complications. Different surgical procedures are available to create space for the swollen ischemic brain; however, the type and timing of surgical treatments remain topics of debate in the literature. Here we report a case series of patients treated with a unilateral craniotomy to perform a cerebellar strokectomy and extensive cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) drainage without osteodural posterior fossa decompression. We retrospectively analyzed the clinical and radiographic data of 11 patients with posterior fossa ischemia who underwent surgery at one of our institutions. A statistical analysis was performed to identify potential predictive factors for functional outcome. The mean patient age was 64.7 years. The involved vascular territory was the Posterior inferior cerebellar artery in 9 patients (82%) and the anterior inferior cerebellar artery/superior cerebellar artery in 2 patients (18%). The mean Glasgow Coma Scale score was 13.6 on admission, but 9.3 immediately before surgery. The surgical procedure was performed in a mean of 36.8 minutes after the radiologic diagnosis of space-occupying edema. Clinical outcome at 6 months was good (modified Rankin Scale [mRS] score ≤2) in 9 patients (82%). Surgery-related complications occurred in 2 patients (18%), and these was a single death (9%) not related to the procedure or posterior fossa compression. Matching patients with their mRS outcome evaluation, the sole variable significantly associated with good outcome was age at admission (62.1 vs. 76.5 years; P < 0.05). Unilateral suboccipital craniotomy with strokectomy and extensive CSF drainage may allow for satisfactory decompression of the ischemic posterior fossa with acceptable morbidity and mortality rates, especially in younger patients. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Liquid rocket engine nozzles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1976-01-01

The nozzle is a major component of a rocket engine, having a significant influence on the overall engine performance and representing a large fraction of the engine structure. The design of the nozzle consists of solving simultaneously two different problems: the definition of the shape of the wall that forms the expansion surface, and the delineation of the nozzle structure and hydraulic system. This monography addresses both of these problems. The shape of the wall is considered from immediately upstream of the throat to the nozzle exit for both bell and annular (or plug) nozzles. Important aspects of the methods used to generate nozzle wall shapes are covered for maximum-performance shapes and for nozzle contours based on criteria other than performance. The discussion of structure and hydraulics covers problem areas of regeneratively cooled tube-wall nozzles and extensions; it treats also nozzle extensions cooled by turbine exhaust gas, ablation-cooled extensions, and radiation-cooled extensions. The techniques that best enable the designer to develop the nozzle structure with as little difficulty as possible and at the lowest cost consistent with minimum weight and specified performance are described.

Performance analysis and an assessment of operational issues of Ya-21U

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

Paramonov, D.V.; El-Genk, M.S.

1996-03-01

Extensive testing of the Soviet made TOPAZ-II space nuclear power system unit designated {open_quote}{open_quote}Ya-21U{close_quote}{close_quote} was conducted both in the USSR (1989{endash}1990) and in the US (August 1993 to March 1995). The unit underwent a total of 15 tests for a cumulative test/operation time of almost 8000 hours. These tests included steady-state operation at different power levels, fast startups and power optimizations. Leaks were detected in some of the Thermionic Fuel Elements (TFEs) after the first test in the US. These leaks that facilitated air incursion into the interelectrode gap caused operational changes in both electric power and conversion efficiency andmore » changed the optimum cesium pressure and load voltage. Additional changes in operational performance were detected following shock and vibration tests performed in August 1994. Test data was examined and analyzed to assess the performance of not only individual TFEs, and also the whole Ya-21U unit, and identify causes for measured operational performance changes; most probable causes were identified and discussed. The Ya-21U unit remained operational throughout extensive testing for 8000 hours at conditions far exceeding the design limits of the TOPAZ-II system. No single TFE was damaged during testing and measured operational performance changes were uniform among working section TFEs. In addition to providing a unique knowledge base for future development and operation of thermionic power systems, the test results testify to the reliability and ruggedness of the TOPAZ-II system design. {copyright} {ital 1996 American Institute of Physics.}« less

STANLEY (Sandia Text ANaLysis Extensible librarY) Ver. 1.1

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

BENZ, ZACHARY; APODACA, VINCENT; BASILICO, JUSTIN

2009-11-10

Reusable, extensible text analysis library. This library forms the basis for the automated generation of cognitive models from text for Sandia's Cognition program. It also is the basis for the suite of underlying, related applications.

Propfan experimental data analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vernon, David F.; Page, Gregory S.; Welge, H. Robert

1984-01-01

A data reduction method, which is consistent with the performance prediction methods used for analysis of new aircraft designs, is defined and compared to the method currently used by NASA using data obtained from an Ames Res. Center 11 foot transonic wind tunnel test. Pressure and flow visualization data from the Ames test for both the powered straight underwing nacelle, and an unpowered contoured overwing nacelle installation is used to determine the flow phenomena present for a wind mounted turboprop installation. The test data is compared to analytic methods, showing the analytic methods to be suitable for design and analysis of new configurations. The data analysis indicated that designs with zero interference drag levels are achieveable with proper wind and nacelle tailoring. A new overwing contoured nacelle design and a modification to the wing leading edge extension for the current wind tunnel model design are evaluated. Hardware constraints of the current model parts prevent obtaining any significant performance improvement due to a modified nacelle contouring. A new aspect ratio wing design for an up outboard rotation turboprop installation is defined, and an advanced contoured nacelle is provided.

Estimating technical efficiency in the hospital sector with panel data: a comparison of parametric and non-parametric techniques.

PubMed

Siciliani, Luigi

2006-01-01

Policy makers are increasingly interested in developing performance indicators that measure hospital efficiency. These indicators may give the purchasers of health services an additional regulatory tool to contain health expenditure. Using panel data, this study compares different parametric (econometric) and non-parametric (linear programming) techniques for the measurement of a hospital's technical efficiency. This comparison was made using a sample of 17 Italian hospitals in the years 1996-9. Highest correlations are found in the efficiency scores between the non-parametric data envelopment analysis under the constant returns to scale assumption (DEA-CRS) and several parametric models. Correlation reduces markedly when using more flexible non-parametric specifications such as data envelopment analysis under the variable returns to scale assumption (DEA-VRS) and the free disposal hull (FDH) model. Correlation also generally reduces when moving from one output to two-output specifications. This analysis suggests that there is scope for developing performance indicators at hospital level using panel data, but it is important that extensive sensitivity analysis is carried out if purchasers wish to make use of these indicators in practice.

The conception, birth, and growth of a missile umbilical system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nordman, G. W.

1977-01-01

The design development was traced for the sprint 2 and improved sprint 2 missile system (ISMS) umbilical system. The unique system requirements, umbilical designs considered to meet the requirements, and the problems encountered and solutions derived during the design, and development testing of the selected systems are described. The sprint 2 development effort consisted of design, analysis, and testing activities. The ISMS effort involved the performance of an extensive trade study to determine the optimum design to meet the ISMS conditions.

Restoring a smooth function from its noisy integrals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goulko, Olga; Prokof'ev, Nikolay; Svistunov, Boris

2018-05-01

Numerical (and experimental) data analysis often requires the restoration of a smooth function from a set of sampled integrals over finite bins. We present the bin hierarchy method that efficiently computes the maximally smooth function from the sampled integrals using essentially all the information contained in the data. We perform extensive tests with different classes of functions and levels of data quality, including Monte Carlo data suffering from a severe sign problem and physical data for the Green's function of the Fröhlich polaron.

Field and Laboratory Application of a Gas Chromatograph Low Thermal Mass Resistively Heated Column System in Detecting Traditional and Non-Traditional Chemical Warfare Agents Using Solid Phase Micro-Extraction

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-02-01

followed by extensive sample preparation procedures that are performed in a laboratory. Analysis is typically conducted by injecting a liquid or gas sample...Alfentanil, Remifentanil , Sufentanil, and Carfentanil) in a laboratory. (5) Quantitatively determine a maximum temperature ramping rate at which the LTM...RHT Column combined with a GC-MS can separate and analyze a mixture of non- traditional CWAs (i.e. Fentanyl, Alfentanil, Remifentanil , Sufentanil

On application of the Floquet theory for radially periodic membranes and plates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hvatov, Alexander; Sorokin, Sergey

2018-02-01

The paper is concerned with the vibro-isolation effects in radially periodic membranes and plates. Alternative formulations of the canonical Floquet theory for analysis of wave propagation in these elastic structures are compared with each other. An extension of this theory beyond the applicability limits of the well-known theory of Bragg fiber is proposed. The similarities and differences in performance of infinite and finite structures periodic in Cartesian and polar coordinates are highlighted and explained.

An experimental investigation of the separating/reattaching flow over a backstep

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jovic, Srboljub

1993-01-01

This progress report covers the grant period from March until the end of January 1993. Extensive data reduction and analysis of single and two-point measurements for a backward-facing experiment were performed. Pertinent results are presented in two conference papers which are appended to this report. The titles of the papers are as follows: (1) 'Two-point correlation measurements in a recovering turbulent boundary layer'; and (2) 'An experimental study on the recovery of a turbulent boundary layer downstream of the reattachment'.

Use of the CSA to Calculate Phase Diagrams and Coherent Inter-Phase Boundary Energies of Multi-Component Nickel-Based Alloys

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-03-02

desirable performance such as their mechanical properties and oxidation-resistance. In this report, we obtain a thermodynamic description of Ni-AI...quaternary system for nickel-based superalloys since the addition of Re improves the mechanical properties of Ni-based superalloys [93Qui], (ii) extensive...well as in solidified samples. 7. Mechanical property Analysis A Micromet II and Macromet II units from Buehler Co. are capable of micro-hardness

Extension of the Schmidt and Hunter Validity Generalization Procedure to the Prediction of Absenteeism Behavior from Knowledge of Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment,

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-08-01

Absenteeism Behavior from Knowledge of Job Sat- isfaction and Organizational Commitment James R. Terborg Thomas W. Lee Frank J. Smith Gregory A. Davis Mark...GRANT NUMBER() James R. Terborg, Thomas W. Lee, Frank J. Smith, Gregory A. Davis, and Mark S. Turbin. No. 00014-81-K-0406 /1 S. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION...Organizational Commitment Situational Specificity Absenteeism Meta-Analysis •Research would suggest that the relationship between job satisfaction and ab

Optimization of Soft Tissue Management, Spacer Design, and Grafting Strategies For Large Segmental Bone Defects Using The Chronic Caprine Tibial Defect Model

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-10-01

spacer placed at the time of the “Pre-Procedure”. Autogenous Cancellous Bone Graft (ACBG harvested from the sternum at the time of the treatment...will receive more specialized training and orientation to microCT analysis, both on a theoretical and practical level. He will work with raw CT...adjacent to the PMMA) composed of mononuclear cells and exhibited extensive, diffuse fibrous connective tissue.  Performed histology on goat autogenous

From Pacemaker to Wearable: Techniques for ECG Detection Systems.

PubMed

Kumar, Ashish; Komaragiri, Rama; Kumar, Manjeet

2018-01-11

With the alarming rise in the deaths due to cardiovascular diseases (CVD), present medical research scenario places notable importance on techniques and methods to detect CVDs. As adduced by world health organization, technological proceeds in the field of cardiac function assessment have become the nucleus and heart of all leading research studies in CVDs in which electrocardiogram (ECG) analysis is the most functional and convenient tool used to test the range of heart-related irregularities. Most of the approaches present in the literature of ECG signal analysis consider noise removal, rhythm-based analysis, and heartbeat detection to improve the performance of a cardiac pacemaker. Advancements achieved in the field of ECG segments detection and beat classification have a limited evaluation and still require clinical approvals. In this paper, approaches on techniques to implement on-chip ECG detector for a cardiac pacemaker system are discussed. Moreover, different challenges regarding the ECG signal morphology analysis deriving from medical literature is extensively reviewed. It is found that robustness to noise, wavelet parameter choice, numerical efficiency, and detection performance are essential performance indicators required by a state-of-the-art ECG detector. Furthermore, many algorithms described in the existing literature are not verified using ECG data from the standard databases. Some ECG detection algorithms show very high detection performance with the total number of detected QRS complexes. However, the high detection performance of the algorithm is verified using only a few datasets. Finally, gaps in current advancements and testing are identified, and the primary challenge remains to be implementing bullseye test for morphology analysis evaluation.

The effect of hip abduction on the EMG activity of vastus medialis obliquus, vastus lateralis longus and vastus lateralis obliquus in healthy subjects

PubMed Central

Bevilaqua-Grossi, Débora; Monteiro-Pedro, Vanessa; de Vasconcelos, Rodrigo Antunes; Arakaki, Juliano Coelho; Bérzin, Fausto

2006-01-01

Study design Controlled laboratory study. Objectives The purposes of this paper were to investigate (d) whether vastus medialis obliquus (VMO), vastus lateralis longus (VLL) and vastus lateralis obliquus (VLO) EMG activity can be influenced by hip abduction performed by healthy subjects. Background Some clinicians contraindicate hip abduction for patellofemoral patients (with) based on the premise that hip abduction could facilitate the VLL muscle activation leading to a VLL and VMO imbalance Methods and measures Twenty-one clinically healthy subjects were involved in the study, 10 women and 11 men (aged X = 23.3 ± 2.9). The EMG signals were collected using a computerized EMG VIKING II, with 8 channels and three pairs of surface electrodes. EMG activity was obtained from MVIC knee extension at 90° of flexion in a seated position and MVIC hip abduction at 0° and 30° with patients in side-lying position with the knee in full extension. The data were normalized in the MVIC knee extension at 50° of flexion in a seated position, and were submitted to ANOVA test with subsequent application of the Bonferroni multiple comparisons analysis test. The level of significance was defined as p ≤ 0.05. Results The VLO muscle demonstrated a similar pattern to the VMO muscle showing higher EMG activity in MVIC knee extension at 90° of flexion compared with MVIC hip abduction at 0° and 30° of abduction for male (p < 0.0007) and MVIC hip abduction at 0° of abduction for female subjects (p < 0.02196). There were no statistically significant differences in the VLL EMG activity among the three sets of exercises tested. Conclusion The results showed that no selective EMG activation was observed when comparison was made between the VMO, VLL and VLO muscles while performing MVIC hip abduction at 0° and 30° of abduction and MVIC knee extension at 90° of flexion in both male and female subjects. Our findings demonstrate that hip abduction do not facilitated VLL and VLO activity in relation to the VMO, however, this study included only healthy subjects performing maximum voluntary isometric contraction contractions, therefore much remains to be discovered by future research PMID:16817971

Designing and application of SAN extension interface based on CWDM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qin, Leihua; Yu, Shengsheng; Zhou, Jingli

2005-11-01

As Fibre Channel (FC) becomes the protocol of choice within corporate data centers, enterprises are increasingly deploying SANs in their data central. In order to mitigate the risk of losing data and improve the availability of data, more and more enterprises are increasingly adopting storage extension technologies to replicate their business critical data to a secondary site. Transmitting this information over distance requires a carrier grade environment with zero data loss, scalable throughput, low jitter, high security and ability to travel long distance. To address this business requirements, there are three basic architectures for storage extension, they are Storage over Internet Protocol, Storage over Synchronous Optical Network/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SONET/SDH) and Storage over Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM). Each approach varies in functionality, complexity, cost, scalability, security, availability , predictable behavior (bandwidth, jitter, latency) and multiple carrier limitations. Compared with these connectiviy technologies,Coarse Wavelength Division Multiplexing (CWDM) is a Simplified, Low Cost and High Performance connectivity solutions for enterprises to deploy their storage extension. In this paper, we design a storage extension connectivity over CWDM and test it's electrical characteristic and random read and write performance of disk array through the CWDM connectivity, testing result show us that the performance of the connectivity over CWDM is acceptable. Furthermore, we propose three kinds of network architecture of SAN extension based on CWDM interface. Finally the credit-Based flow control mechanism of FC, and the relationship between credits and extension distance is analyzed.

Develop advanced nonlinear signal analysis topographical mapping system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

The Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) has been undergoing extensive flight certification and developmental testing, which involves some 250 health monitoring measurements. Under the severe temperature, pressure, and dynamic environments sustained during operation, numerous major component failures have occurred, resulting in extensive engine hardware damage and scheduling losses. To enhance SSME safety and reliability, detailed analysis and evaluation of the measurements signal are mandatory to assess its dynamic characteristics and operational condition. Efficient and reliable signal detection techniques will reduce catastrophic system failure risks and expedite the evaluation of both flight and ground test data, and thereby reduce launch turn-around time. The basic objective of this contract are threefold: (1) develop and validate a hierarchy of innovative signal analysis techniques for nonlinear and nonstationary time-frequency analysis. Performance evaluation will be carried out through detailed analysis of extensive SSME static firing and flight data. These techniques will be incorporated into a fully automated system; (2) develop an advanced nonlinear signal analysis topographical mapping system (ATMS) to generate a Compressed SSME TOPO Data Base (CSTDB). This ATMS system will convert tremendous amount of complex vibration signals from the entire SSME test history into a bank of succinct image-like patterns while retaining all respective phase information. High compression ratio can be achieved to allow minimal storage requirement, while providing fast signature retrieval, pattern comparison, and identification capabilities; and (3) integrate the nonlinear correlation techniques into the CSTDB data base with compatible TOPO input data format. Such integrated ATMS system will provide the large test archives necessary for quick signature comparison. This study will provide timely assessment of SSME component operational status, identify probable causes of malfunction, and indicate feasible engineering solutions. The final result of this program will yield an ATMS system of nonlinear and nonstationary spectral analysis software package integrated with the Compressed SSME TOPO Data Base (CSTDB) on the same platform. This system will allow NASA engineers to retrieve any unique defect signatures and trends associated with different failure modes and anomalous phenomena over the entire SSME test history across turbo pump families.

Develop advanced nonlinear signal analysis topographical mapping system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jong, Jen-Yi

1993-01-01

The SSME has been undergoing extensive flight certification and developmental testing, which involves some 250 health monitoring measurements. Under the severe temperature pressure, and dynamic environments sustained during operation, numerous major component failures have occurred, resulting in extensive engine hardware damage and scheduling losses. To enhance SSME safety and reliability, detailed analysis and evaluation of the measurements signal are mandatory to assess its dynamic characteristics and operational condition. Efficient and reliable signal detection techniques will reduce catastrophic system failure risks and expedite the evaluation of both flight and ground test data, and thereby reduce launch turn-around time. The basic objective of this contract are threefold: (1) Develop and validate a hierarchy of innovative signal analysis techniques for nonlinear and nonstationary time-frequency analysis. Performance evaluation will be carried out through detailed analysis of extensive SSME static firing and flight data. These techniques will be incorporated into a fully automated system. (2) Develop an advanced nonlinear signal analysis topographical mapping system (ATMS) to generate a Compressed SSME TOPO Data Base (CSTDB). This ATMS system will convert tremendous amounts of complex vibration signals from the entire SSME test history into a bank of succinct image-like patterns while retaining all respective phase information. A high compression ratio can be achieved to allow the minimal storage requirement, while providing fast signature retrieval, pattern comparison, and identification capabilities. (3) Integrate the nonlinear correlation techniques into the CSTDB data base with compatible TOPO input data format. Such integrated ATMS system will provide the large test archives necessary for a quick signature comparison. This study will provide timely assessment of SSME component operational status, identify probable causes of malfunction, and indicate feasible engineering solutions. The final result of this program will yield an ATMS system of nonlinear and nonstationary spectral analysis software package integrated with the Compressed SSME TOPO Data Base (CSTDB) on the same platform. This system will allow NASA engineers to retrieve any unique defect signatures and trends associated with different failure modes and anomalous phenomena over the entire SSME test history across turbo pump families.

libRoadRunner: a high performance SBML simulation and analysis library

PubMed Central

Somogyi, Endre T.; Bouteiller, Jean-Marie; Glazier, James A.; König, Matthias; Medley, J. Kyle; Swat, Maciej H.; Sauro, Herbert M.

2015-01-01

Motivation: This article presents libRoadRunner, an extensible, high-performance, cross-platform, open-source software library for the simulation and analysis of models expressed using Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML). SBML is the most widely used standard for representing dynamic networks, especially biochemical networks. libRoadRunner is fast enough to support large-scale problems such as tissue models, studies that require large numbers of repeated runs and interactive simulations. Results: libRoadRunner is a self-contained library, able to run both as a component inside other tools via its C++ and C bindings, and interactively through its Python interface. Its Python Application Programming Interface (API) is similar to the APIs of MATLAB (www.mathworks.com) and SciPy (http://www.scipy.org/), making it fast and easy to learn. libRoadRunner uses a custom Just-In-Time (JIT) compiler built on the widely used LLVM JIT compiler framework. It compiles SBML-specified models directly into native machine code for a variety of processors, making it appropriate for solving extremely large models or repeated runs. libRoadRunner is flexible, supporting the bulk of the SBML specification (except for delay and non-linear algebraic equations) including several SBML extensions (composition and distributions). It offers multiple deterministic and stochastic integrators, as well as tools for steady-state analysis, stability analysis and structural analysis of the stoichiometric matrix. Availability and implementation: libRoadRunner binary distributions are available for Mac OS X, Linux and Windows. The library is licensed under Apache License Version 2.0. libRoadRunner is also available for ARM-based computers such as the Raspberry Pi. http://www.libroadrunner.org provides online documentation, full build instructions, binaries and a git source repository. Contacts: hsauro@u.washington.edu or somogyie@indiana.edu Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. PMID:26085503

Comparative study on gene set and pathway topology-based enrichment methods.

PubMed

Bayerlová, Michaela; Jung, Klaus; Kramer, Frank; Klemm, Florian; Bleckmann, Annalen; Beißbarth, Tim

2015-10-22

Enrichment analysis is a popular approach to identify pathways or sets of genes which are significantly enriched in the context of differentially expressed genes. The traditional gene set enrichment approach considers a pathway as a simple gene list disregarding any knowledge of gene or protein interactions. In contrast, the new group of so called pathway topology-based methods integrates the topological structure of a pathway into the analysis. We comparatively investigated gene set and pathway topology-based enrichment approaches, considering three gene set and four topological methods. These methods were compared in two extensive simulation studies and on a benchmark of 36 real datasets, providing the same pathway input data for all methods. In the benchmark data analysis both types of methods showed a comparable ability to detect enriched pathways. The first simulation study was conducted with KEGG pathways, which showed considerable gene overlaps between each other. In this study with original KEGG pathways, none of the topology-based methods outperformed the gene set approach. Therefore, a second simulation study was performed on non-overlapping pathways created by unique gene IDs. Here, methods accounting for pathway topology reached higher accuracy than the gene set methods, however their sensitivity was lower. We conducted one of the first comprehensive comparative works on evaluating gene set against pathway topology-based enrichment methods. The topological methods showed better performance in the simulation scenarios with non-overlapping pathways, however, they were not conclusively better in the other scenarios. This suggests that simple gene set approach might be sufficient to detect an enriched pathway under realistic circumstances. Nevertheless, more extensive studies and further benchmark data are needed to systematically evaluate these methods and to assess what gain and cost pathway topology information introduces into enrichment analysis. Both types of methods for enrichment analysis require further improvements in order to deal with the problem of pathway overlaps.

libRoadRunner: a high performance SBML simulation and analysis library.

PubMed

Somogyi, Endre T; Bouteiller, Jean-Marie; Glazier, James A; König, Matthias; Medley, J Kyle; Swat, Maciej H; Sauro, Herbert M

2015-10-15

This article presents libRoadRunner, an extensible, high-performance, cross-platform, open-source software library for the simulation and analysis of models expressed using Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML). SBML is the most widely used standard for representing dynamic networks, especially biochemical networks. libRoadRunner is fast enough to support large-scale problems such as tissue models, studies that require large numbers of repeated runs and interactive simulations. libRoadRunner is a self-contained library, able to run both as a component inside other tools via its C++ and C bindings, and interactively through its Python interface. Its Python Application Programming Interface (API) is similar to the APIs of MATLAB ( WWWMATHWORKSCOM: ) and SciPy ( HTTP//WWWSCIPYORG/: ), making it fast and easy to learn. libRoadRunner uses a custom Just-In-Time (JIT) compiler built on the widely used LLVM JIT compiler framework. It compiles SBML-specified models directly into native machine code for a variety of processors, making it appropriate for solving extremely large models or repeated runs. libRoadRunner is flexible, supporting the bulk of the SBML specification (except for delay and non-linear algebraic equations) including several SBML extensions (composition and distributions). It offers multiple deterministic and stochastic integrators, as well as tools for steady-state analysis, stability analysis and structural analysis of the stoichiometric matrix. libRoadRunner binary distributions are available for Mac OS X, Linux and Windows. The library is licensed under Apache License Version 2.0. libRoadRunner is also available for ARM-based computers such as the Raspberry Pi. http://www.libroadrunner.org provides online documentation, full build instructions, binaries and a git source repository. hsauro@u.washington.edu or somogyie@indiana.edu Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. Published by Oxford University Press 2015. This work is written by US Government employees and is in the public domain in the US.

An Analysis of the Priority Needs of Cooperative Extension at the County Level

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harder, Amy; Lamm, Alexa; Strong, Robert

2009-01-01

Cooperative Extension's role as a relevant provider of nonformal education is dependent upon its ability to improve and adjust in response to internal and external pressures. Periodically conducting needs assessments focused on the Extension organization can aid in Extension's efforts to deliver quality educational programs by pinpointing priority…

Thermal Analysis of the European XFEL Intersection Control Rack

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Concha, P.; Vazquez, C.

2014-04-01

The three undulator segments of the European X-ray Free Electron Laser contain a total of 88 intersections cells. Each intersection accommodates a quadrupole magnet on top of a high precision X-Y positioning table, a beam position monitor, four air coil correctors and a phase shifter. The Intersection Control Rack is an electrical cabinet containing the necessary electronics to control both the quadrupole and the phase shifter movements (which are stepper motor based) with a repeatability of less than 1 um and 10 um, respectively. Four different cabinets have been extensively tested to ensure that they meet specifications. These tests include a thermal analysis to study position measurements dependence on the temperature. This paper introduces a description of the thermal issue, analyses the causes and consequences of heating, presents the results of the different tests performed, and concludes the best design and operating conditions to achieve a good performance.

Analysis, tuning and comparison of two general sparse solvers for distributed memory computers

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

Amestoy, P.R.; Duff, I.S.; L'Excellent, J.-Y.

2000-06-30

We describe the work performed in the context of a Franco-Berkeley funded project between NERSC-LBNL located in Berkeley (USA) and CERFACS-ENSEEIHT located in Toulouse (France). We discuss both the tuning and performance analysis of two distributed memory sparse solvers (superlu from Berkeley and mumps from Toulouse) on the 512 processor Cray T3E from NERSC (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory). This project gave us the opportunity to improve the algorithms and add new features to the codes. We then quite extensively analyze and compare the two approaches on a set of large problems from real applications. We further explain the main differencesmore » in the behavior of the approaches on artificial regular grid problems. As a conclusion to this activity report, we mention a set of parallel sparse solvers on which this type of study should be extended.« less

The discovery of [Ni(NHC)RCN]2 species and their role as cycloaddition catalysts for the formation of pyridines.

PubMed

Stolley, Ryan M; Duong, Hung A; Thomas, David R; Louie, Janis

2012-09-12

The reaction of Ni(COD)(2), IPr, and nitrile affords dimeric [Ni(IPr)RCN](2) in high yields. X-ray analysis revealed these species display simultaneous η(1)- and η(2)-nitrile binding modes. These dimers are catalytically competent in the formation of pyridines from the cycloaddition of diynes and nitriles. Kinetic analysis showed the reaction to be first order in [Ni(IPr)RCN](2), zeroth order in added IPr, zeroth order in nitrile, and zeroth order in diyne. Extensive stoichiometric competition studies were performed, and selective incorporation of the exogenous, not dimer bound, nitrile was observed. Post cycloaddition, the dimeric state was found to be largely preserved. Nitrile and ligand exchange experiments were performed and found to be inoperative in the catalytic cycle. These observations suggest a mechanism whereby the catalyst is activated by partial dimer-opening followed by binding of exogenous nitrile and subsequent oxidative heterocoupling.

Adaptive-projection intrinsically transformed multivariate empirical mode decomposition in cooperative brain-computer interface applications.

PubMed

Hemakom, Apit; Goverdovsky, Valentin; Looney, David; Mandic, Danilo P

2016-04-13

An extension to multivariate empirical mode decomposition (MEMD), termed adaptive-projection intrinsically transformed MEMD (APIT-MEMD), is proposed to cater for power imbalances and inter-channel correlations in real-world multichannel data. It is shown that the APIT-MEMD exhibits similar or better performance than MEMD for a large number of projection vectors, whereas it outperforms MEMD for the critical case of a small number of projection vectors within the sifting algorithm. We also employ the noise-assisted APIT-MEMD within our proposed intrinsic multiscale analysis framework and illustrate the advantages of such an approach in notoriously noise-dominated cooperative brain-computer interface (BCI) based on the steady-state visual evoked potentials and the P300 responses. Finally, we show that for a joint cognitive BCI task, the proposed intrinsic multiscale analysis framework improves system performance in terms of the information transfer rate. © 2016 The Author(s).

A biomechanical analysis of the roundhouse kicking technique of expert practitioners: A comparison between the martial arts disciplines of Muay Thai, Karate, and Taekwondo

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was first, to determine whether there were differences in the roundhouse kicking leg kinematics performed by highly skilled Muay Thai, Karate and Taekwondo practitioners (n = 8 per group). Next, analysis aimed to identify the kinematic determinants of effective roundhouse kicking performance. Three-dimensional (3D) lower limb kinematics were recorded using a nine camera infra-red motion capture system (500 Hz) during three maximal roundhouse kicks. Impact forces were recorded using a strain gauge (1000 Hz) attached to a kicking pad positioned at the height of each participant’s mastoid process. Results showed that linear foot velocity at impact was moderately correlated with relative impact force (r = 0.66, P = 0.001). Discipline specific analyses of the temporal data indicated that the Muay Thai group had a shorter execution time (1.02 ± 0.15 s) than Taekwondo (1.54 ± 0.52 s, P = 0.028). Analysis of lower limb kinematic data indicated that both Karate (-947 ± 94 deg/s, P = 0.010) and Taekwondo (-943 ± 106 deg/s, P = 0.011) practitioners had faster knee extension velocities than the Muay Thai group (-706 ± 200 deg/s). Conversely, the Muay Thai practitioners (1.24 ± 0.15 m/s) had greater vertical centre of mass movement than both Karate (0.78 ± 0.24 m/s, P = 0.001) and Taekwondo groups (0.93 ± 0.19 m/s, P = 0.02). Our findings show that several fundamental movement patterns were common to the roundhouse kicking techniques across the Muay Thai, Karate, and Taekwondo disciplines. Effective roundhouse kicking performance was characterized by rapid pelvic axial rotation, hip abduction, hip flexion and knee extension velocities, combined with rapid movements of the COM towards the target. PMID:28841670

A biomechanical analysis of the roundhouse kicking technique of expert practitioners: A comparison between the martial arts disciplines of Muay Thai, Karate, and Taekwondo.

PubMed

Gavagan, Colin J; Sayers, Mark G L

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was first, to determine whether there were differences in the roundhouse kicking leg kinematics performed by highly skilled Muay Thai, Karate and Taekwondo practitioners (n = 8 per group). Next, analysis aimed to identify the kinematic determinants of effective roundhouse kicking performance. Three-dimensional (3D) lower limb kinematics were recorded using a nine camera infra-red motion capture system (500 Hz) during three maximal roundhouse kicks. Impact forces were recorded using a strain gauge (1000 Hz) attached to a kicking pad positioned at the height of each participant's mastoid process. Results showed that linear foot velocity at impact was moderately correlated with relative impact force (r = 0.66, P = 0.001). Discipline specific analyses of the temporal data indicated that the Muay Thai group had a shorter execution time (1.02 ± 0.15 s) than Taekwondo (1.54 ± 0.52 s, P = 0.028). Analysis of lower limb kinematic data indicated that both Karate (-947 ± 94 deg/s, P = 0.010) and Taekwondo (-943 ± 106 deg/s, P = 0.011) practitioners had faster knee extension velocities than the Muay Thai group (-706 ± 200 deg/s). Conversely, the Muay Thai practitioners (1.24 ± 0.15 m/s) had greater vertical centre of mass movement than both Karate (0.78 ± 0.24 m/s, P = 0.001) and Taekwondo groups (0.93 ± 0.19 m/s, P = 0.02). Our findings show that several fundamental movement patterns were common to the roundhouse kicking techniques across the Muay Thai, Karate, and Taekwondo disciplines. Effective roundhouse kicking performance was characterized by rapid pelvic axial rotation, hip abduction, hip flexion and knee extension velocities, combined with rapid movements of the COM towards the target.

Repeated Kicking Actions in Karate: Effect on Technical Execution in Elite Practitioners.

PubMed

Quinzi, Federico; Camomilla, Valentina; Di Mario, Alberto; Felici, Francesco; Sbriccoli, Paola

2016-04-01

Training in martial arts is commonly performed by repeating a technical action continuously for a given number of times. This study aimed to investigate if the repetition of the task alters the proper technical execution, limiting the training efficacy for the technical evaluation during competition. This aim was pursued analyzing lower-limb kinematics and muscle activation during repeated roundhouse kicks. Six junior karate practitioners performed continuously 20 repetitions of the kick. Hip and knee kinematics and sEMG of vastus lateralis, biceps (BF), and rectus femoris were recorded. For each repetition, hip abduction-adduction and flexion-extension and knee flexion-extension peak angular displacements and velocities, agonist and antagonist muscle activation were computed. Moreover, to monitor for the presence of myoelectric fatigue, if any, the median frequency of the sEMG was computed. All variables were normalized with respect to their individual maximum observed during the sequence of kicks. Linear regressions were fitted to each normalized parameter to test its relationship with the repetition number. Linear-regression analysis showed that, during the sequence, the athletes modified their technique: Knee flexion, BF median frequency, hip abduction, knee-extension angular velocity, and BF antagonist activation significantly decreased. Conversely, hip flexion increased significantly. Since karate combat competitions require proper technical execution, training protocols combining severe fatigue and technical actions should be carefully proposed because of technique adaptations. Moreover, trainers and karate masters should consider including specific strength exercises for the BF and more generally for knee flexors.

Extended performance electric propulsion power processor design study. Volume 1: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biess, J. J.; Inouye, L. Y.; Schoenfeld, A. D.

1977-01-01

Several power processor design concepts were evaluated and compared. Emphasis was placed on a 30cm ion thruster power processor with a beam supply rating of 2.2kW to 10kW. Extensions in power processor performance were defined and were designed in sufficient detail to determine efficiency, component weight, part count, reliability and thermal control. Preliminary electrical design, mechanical design, and thermal analysis were performed on a 6kW power transformer for the beam supply. Bi-Mod mechanical, structural, and thermal control configurations were evaluated for the power processor, and preliminary estimates of mechanical weight were determined. A program development plan was formulated that outlines the work breakdown structure for the development, qualification and fabrication of the power processor flight hardware.

Airloads and Wake Geometry Calculations for an Isolated Tiltrotor Model in a Wind Tunnel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Wayne

2003-01-01

Th tiltrotor aircraft configuration has the potential to revolutionize air transportation by providing an economical combination of vertical take-off and landing capability with efficient, high-speed cruise flight. To achieve this potential it is necessary to have validated analytical tools that will support future tiltrotor aircraft development. These analytical tools must calculate tiltrotor aeromechanical behavior, including performance, structural loads, vibration, and aeroelastic stability, with an accuracy established by correlation with measured tiltrotor data. For many years such correlation has been performed for helicopter rotors (rotors designed for edgewise flight), but correlation activities for tiltrotors have been limited, in part by the absence of appropriate measured data. The recent test of the Tilt Rotor Aeroacoustic Model (TRAM) with a single, U4-scale V-22 rotor in the German-Dutch Wind Tunnel (DNW) now provides an extensive set of aeroacoustic, performance, and structural loads data. This paper will present calculations of airloads, wake geometry, and performance, including correlation with TRAM DNW measurements. The calculations were obtained using CAMRAD II, which is a modern rotorcraft comprehensive analysis, with advanced models intended for application to tiltrotor aircraft as well as helicopters. Comprehensive analyses have received extensive correlation with performance and loads measurements on helicopter rotors. The proposed paper is part of an initial effort to perform an equally extensive correlation with tiltrotor data. The correlation will establish the level of predictive capability achievable with current technology; identify the limitations of the current aerodynamic, wake, and structural models of tiltrotors; and lead to recommendations for research to extend tiltrotor aeromechanics analysis capability. The purpose of the Tilt Rotor Aeroacoustic Model (TRAM) experimental project is to provide data necessary to validate tiltrotor performance and aeroacoustic prediction methodologies and to investigate and demonstrate advanced civil tiltrotor technologies. The TRAM project is a key part of the NASA Short Haul Civil Tiltrotor (SHCT) project. The SHCT project is an element of the Aviation Systems Capacity Initiative within NASA. In April-May 1998 the TRAM was tested in the isolated rotor configuration at the Large Low-speed Facility of the German-Dutch Wind Tunnels (DNW). A preparatory test was conducted in December 1997. These tests were the first comprehensive aeroacoustic test for a tiltrotor, including not only noise and performance data, but airload and wake measurements as well. The TRAM can also be tested in a fill-span configuration, incorporating both rotors Lnd a fuselage model. The wind tunnel installation of the TRAM isolated rotor is shown. The rotor tested in the DNW was a 1/4-scale (9.5 ft diameter) model of the right-hand V-22 proprotor. The rotor and nacelle assembly was attached to an acoustically-treated, isolated rotor test stand through a mechanical pivot (the nacelle conversion axis). The TRAM was analyzed using the rotorcraft comprehensive analysis CAMRAD II. CAMRAD II is an aeromechanical analysis of helicopters and rotorcraft that incorporates a combination of advanced technologies, including multibody dynamics, nonlinear finite elements, and rotorcraft aerodynamics. The trim task finds the equilibrium solution (constant or periodic) for a steady state operating condition, in this case a rotor operating in a wind tunnel. For wind tunnel operation, the thrust and flapping are trimmed to target values. The aerodynamic model includes a wake analysis to calculate the rotor nonuniform induced-velocities, using a free wake geometry. The paper will present the results of CAMRAD II calculations compared to the TRAM DNW measurements for hover performance, helicopter mode performance, and helicopter mode airloads. An example of the hover performance results, comparing both mearements and calculations for the JVX (large scale) and TRAM (small scale) rotors, is shown. An example of the helicopter mode performance, showing the influence of the aerodynamic model (particularly the stall delay model) on the calculated power, induced power, and profile power is also shown. An example of the helicopter mode airloads, showing the influence of various wake and aerodynamic models on the calculations, is shown. Good correlation with measured airloads is obtained using the multiple-trailer wake model. The paper will present additional results, and describe and discuss the aerodynamic behavior in detail.

3Drefine: an interactive web server for efficient protein structure refinement

PubMed Central

Bhattacharya, Debswapna; Nowotny, Jackson; Cao, Renzhi; Cheng, Jianlin

2016-01-01

3Drefine is an interactive web server for consistent and computationally efficient protein structure refinement with the capability to perform web-based statistical and visual analysis. The 3Drefine refinement protocol utilizes iterative optimization of hydrogen bonding network combined with atomic-level energy minimization on the optimized model using a composite physics and knowledge-based force fields for efficient protein structure refinement. The method has been extensively evaluated on blind CASP experiments as well as on large-scale and diverse benchmark datasets and exhibits consistent improvement over the initial structure in both global and local structural quality measures. The 3Drefine web server allows for convenient protein structure refinement through a text or file input submission, email notification, provided example submission and is freely available without any registration requirement. The server also provides comprehensive analysis of submissions through various energy and statistical feedback and interactive visualization of multiple refined models through the JSmol applet that is equipped with numerous protein model analysis tools. The web server has been extensively tested and used by many users. As a result, the 3Drefine web server conveniently provides a useful tool easily accessible to the community. The 3Drefine web server has been made publicly available at the URL: http://sysbio.rnet.missouri.edu/3Drefine/. PMID:27131371

Local Refinement of Analysis-Suitable T-splines

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-03-01

3.2. The extension graph Intersecting T-junction extensions in an extended T-mesh Text can be visualized using an undirected graph . We call this graph ...the extension graph and denote it by E(Text). Each node in E corresponds to a single T-junction extension in Text. If two extensions in Text...intersect then an edge is drawn between the corresponding nodes in E. The extension graph for the extended T-mesh in Figure 7b is shown in Figure 8a. In this

Analysis of Advanced Rotorcraft Configurations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Wayne

2000-01-01

Advanced rotorcraft configurations are being investigated with the objectives of identifying vehicles that are larger, quieter, and faster than current-generation rotorcraft. A large rotorcraft, carrying perhaps 150 passengers, could do much to alleviate airport capacity limitations, and a quiet rotorcraft is essential for community acceptance of the benefits of VTOL operations. A fast, long-range, long-endurance rotorcraft, notably the tilt-rotor configuration, will improve rotorcraft economics through productivity increases. A major part of the investigation of advanced rotorcraft configurations consists of conducting comprehensive analyses of vehicle behavior for the purpose of assessing vehicle potential and feasibility, as well as to establish the analytical models required to support the vehicle development. The analytical work of FY99 included applications to tilt-rotor aircraft. Tilt Rotor Aeroacoustic Model (TRAM) wind tunnel measurements are being compared with calculations performed by using the comprehensive analysis tool (Comprehensive Analytical Model of Rotorcraft Aerodynamics and Dynamics (CAMRAD 11)). The objective is to establish the wing and wake aerodynamic models that are required for tilt-rotor analysis and design. The TRAM test in the German-Dutch Wind Tunnel (DNW) produced extensive measurements. This is the first test to encompass air loads, performance, and structural load measurements on tilt rotors, as well as acoustic and flow visualization data. The correlation of measurements and calculations includes helicopter-mode operation (performance, air loads, and blade structural loads), hover (performance and air loads), and airplane-mode operation (performance).

Microswitch and Keyboard-Emulator Technology to Facilitate the Writing Performance of Persons with Extensive Motor Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lancioni, Giulio E.; Singh, Nirbhay N.; O'Reilly, Mark F.; Sigafoos, Jeff; Green, Vanessa; Oliva, Doretta; Lang, Russell

2011-01-01

This study assessed the effectiveness of microswitches for simple responses (i.e., partial hand closure, vocalization, and hand stroking) and a keyboard emulator to facilitate the writing performance of three participants with extensive motor disabilities. The study was carried out according to an ABAB design. During the A phases, the participants…

Motor current signature analysis for gearbox condition monitoring under transient speeds using wavelet analysis and dual-level time synchronous averaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bravo-Imaz, Inaki; Davari Ardakani, Hossein; Liu, Zongchang; García-Arribas, Alfredo; Arnaiz, Aitor; Lee, Jay

2017-09-01

This paper focuses on analyzing motor current signature for fault diagnosis of gearboxes operating under transient speed regimes. Two different strategies are evaluated, extensively tested and compared to analyze the motor current signature in order to implement a condition monitoring system for gearboxes in industrial machinery. A specially designed test bench is used, thoroughly monitored to fully characterize the experiments, in which gears in different health status are tested. The measured signals are analyzed using discrete wavelet decomposition, in different decomposition levels using a range of mother wavelets. Moreover, a dual-level time synchronous averaging analysis is performed on the same signal to compare the performance of the two methods. From both analyses, the relevant features of the signals are extracted and cataloged using a self-organizing map, which allows for an easy detection and classification of the diverse health states of the gears. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of both methods for diagnosing gearbox faults. A slightly better performance was observed for dual-level time synchronous averaging method. Based on the obtained results, the proposed methods can used as effective and reliable condition monitoring procedures for gearbox condition monitoring using only motor current signature.

Tubularized incised plate urethroplasty for hypospadias reoperation: a review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Mousavi, Seyed A; Aarabi, Mohsen

2014-01-01

Tubularized Incised Plate (TIP) urethroplasty is a technique for urethral reconstruction of hypospadias although there are some controversies for its use in recurrent cases. The aim of this study was to review the results of TIP technique in various studies and the usage of different flaps for covering the repair site. Extensive Search was performed for articles published between 1994 and 2013 in common electronic databases. The overall TIP complication rates were estimated by a fixed effects model meta-analysis. 17 articles of hypospadia repair using the TIP method were reviewed. All studies performed surgery and repair on the basis of the Snodgrass's method; however, some introduced modifications to the method. The prevalence of complications in repeated TIP surgery was 11.1 to 33.3% and the most prevalent complication in different studies was fistula. Based on the meta-analysis, the overall estimation of complications was 21.8% (95% CI: 18.3 to 25.5). Most studies performed the incision of the urethral plate to create a supportive coverage upon neourethra, and confirmed its success. We recommend further investigation on using different flaps in well-designed randomized controlled trials to choose the best surgical method for repairing recurrent hypospadias.

Sparse PLS discriminant analysis: biologically relevant feature selection and graphical displays for multiclass problems.

PubMed

Lê Cao, Kim-Anh; Boitard, Simon; Besse, Philippe

2011-06-22

Variable selection on high throughput biological data, such as gene expression or single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), becomes inevitable to select relevant information and, therefore, to better characterize diseases or assess genetic structure. There are different ways to perform variable selection in large data sets. Statistical tests are commonly used to identify differentially expressed features for explanatory purposes, whereas Machine Learning wrapper approaches can be used for predictive purposes. In the case of multiple highly correlated variables, another option is to use multivariate exploratory approaches to give more insight into cell biology, biological pathways or complex traits. A simple extension of a sparse PLS exploratory approach is proposed to perform variable selection in a multiclass classification framework. sPLS-DA has a classification performance similar to other wrapper or sparse discriminant analysis approaches on public microarray and SNP data sets. More importantly, sPLS-DA is clearly competitive in terms of computational efficiency and superior in terms of interpretability of the results via valuable graphical outputs. sPLS-DA is available in the R package mixOmics, which is dedicated to the analysis of large biological data sets.

A Navigation Analysis Tool (NAT) to assess spatial behavior in open-field and structured mazes.

PubMed

Jarlier, Frédéric; Arleo, Angelo; Petit, Géraldine H; Lefort, Julie M; Fouquet, Céline; Burguière, Eric; Rondi-Reig, Laure

2013-05-15

Spatial navigation calls upon mnemonic capabilities (e.g. remembering the location of a rewarding site) as well as adaptive motor control (e.g. fine tuning of the trajectory according to the ongoing sensory context). To study this complex process by means of behavioral measurements it is necessary to quantify a large set of meaningful parameters on multiple time scales (from milliseconds to several minutes), and to compare them across different paradigms. Moreover, the issue of automating the behavioral analysis is critical to cope with the consequent computational load and the sophistication of the measurements. We developed a general purpose Navigation Analysis Tool (NAT) that provides an integrated architecture consisting of a data management system (implemented in MySQL), a core analysis toolbox (in MATLAB), and a graphical user interface (in JAVA). Its extensive characterization of trajectories over time, from exploratory behavior to goal-oriented navigation with decision points using a wide range of parameters, makes NAT a powerful analysis tool. In particular, NAT supplies a new set of specific measurements assessing performances in multiple intersection mazes and allowing navigation strategies to be discriminated (e.g. in the starmaze). Its user interface enables easy use while its modular organization provides many opportunities of extension and customization. Importantly, the portability of NAT to any type of maze and environment extends its exploitation far beyond the field of spatial navigation. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Integrated software environment based on COMKAT for analyzing tracer pharmacokinetics with molecular imaging.

PubMed

Fang, Yu-Hua Dean; Asthana, Pravesh; Salinas, Cristian; Huang, Hsuan-Ming; Muzic, Raymond F

2010-01-01

An integrated software package, Compartment Model Kinetic Analysis Tool (COMKAT), is presented in this report. COMKAT is an open-source software package with many functions for incorporating pharmacokinetic analysis in molecular imaging research and has both command-line and graphical user interfaces. With COMKAT, users may load and display images, draw regions of interest, load input functions, select kinetic models from a predefined list, or create a novel model and perform parameter estimation, all without having to write any computer code. For image analysis, COMKAT image tool supports multiple image file formats, including the Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard. Image contrast, zoom, reslicing, display color table, and frame summation can be adjusted in COMKAT image tool. It also displays and automatically registers images from 2 modalities. Parametric imaging capability is provided and can be combined with the distributed computing support to enhance computation speeds. For users without MATLAB licenses, a compiled, executable version of COMKAT is available, although it currently has only a subset of the full COMKAT capability. Both the compiled and the noncompiled versions of COMKAT are free for academic research use. Extensive documentation, examples, and COMKAT itself are available on its wiki-based Web site, http://comkat.case.edu. Users are encouraged to contribute, sharing their experience, examples, and extensions of COMKAT. With integrated functionality specifically designed for imaging and kinetic modeling analysis, COMKAT can be used as a software environment for molecular imaging and pharmacokinetic analysis.

Solar cell array design handbook, volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rauschenbach, H. S.

1976-01-01

Twelve chapters discuss the following: historical developments, the environment and its effects, solar cells, solar cell filters and covers, solar cell and other electrical interconnections, blocking and shunt diodes, substrates and deployment mechanisms, material properties, design synthesis and optimization, design analysis, procurement, production and cost aspects, evaluation and test, orbital performance, and illustrative design examples. A comprehensive index permits rapid locating of desired topics. The handbook consists of two volumes: Volume 1 is of an expository nature while Volume 2 contains detailed design data in an appendix-like fashion. Volume 2 includes solar cell performance data, applicable unit conversion factors and physical constants, and mechanical, electrical, thermal optical, magnetic, and outgassing material properties. Extensive references are provided.

MEGADOCK 4.0: an ultra-high-performance protein-protein docking software for heterogeneous supercomputers.

PubMed

Ohue, Masahito; Shimoda, Takehiro; Suzuki, Shuji; Matsuzaki, Yuri; Ishida, Takashi; Akiyama, Yutaka

2014-11-15

The application of protein-protein docking in large-scale interactome analysis is a major challenge in structural bioinformatics and requires huge computing resources. In this work, we present MEGADOCK 4.0, an FFT-based docking software that makes extensive use of recent heterogeneous supercomputers and shows powerful, scalable performance of >97% strong scaling. MEGADOCK 4.0 is written in C++ with OpenMPI and NVIDIA CUDA 5.0 (or later) and is freely available to all academic and non-profit users at: http://www.bi.cs.titech.ac.jp/megadock. akiyama@cs.titech.ac.jp Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press.

Emergency Response Capability Baseline Needs Assessment Compliance Assessment

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

Sharry, John A.

2013-09-16

This document is the second of a two-part analysis of Emergency Response Capabilities of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The first part, 2013 Baseline Needs Assessment Requirements Document established the minimum performance criteria necessary to meet mandatory requirements. This second part analyses the performance of Lawrence Livermore Laboratory Emergency Management Department to the contents of the Requirements Document. The document was prepared based on an extensive review of information contained in the 2009 BNA, the 2012 BNA document, a review of Emergency Planning Hazards Assessments, a review of building construction, occupancy, fire protection features, dispatch records, LLNL alarm system records, firemore » department training records, and fire department policies and procedures.« less

Increased structure and active learning reduce the achievement gap in introductory biology.

PubMed

Haak, David C; HilleRisLambers, Janneke; Pitre, Emile; Freeman, Scott

2011-06-03

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics instructors have been charged with improving the performance and retention of students from diverse backgrounds. To date, programs that close the achievement gap between students from disadvantaged versus nondisadvantaged educational backgrounds have required extensive extramural funding. We show that a highly structured course design, based on daily and weekly practice with problem-solving, data analysis, and other higher-order cognitive skills, improved the performance of all students in a college-level introductory biology class and reduced the achievement gap between disadvantaged and nondisadvantaged students--without increased expenditures. These results support the Carnegie Hall hypothesis: Intensive practice, via active-learning exercises, has a disproportionate benefit for capable but poorly prepared students.

Performance of the New Los Alamos UCN Source and Implications for Future Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Makela, Mark; LANL UCN Team

2017-01-01

The Los Alamos Ultracold Neutron (UCN) source was replaced during this past summer and has been commissioned during the last few months. The new source is the result of lessons learned during the 10 year operation of the first UCN source and extensive Monte Carlo analysis. The new source is a spallation driven source based on a solid deuterium UCN moderator similar the previous one. This talk will present an overview of the new source design and the results of commissioning tests. The talk will conclude with a brief overview of the implications of source performance on the neutron lifetime and LANL nEDM experiments. This work was funded by LANL LDRD.

Network centrality measures and systemic risk: An application to the Turkish financial crisis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuzubaş, Tolga Umut; Ömercikoğlu, Inci; Saltoğlu, Burak

2014-07-01

In this paper, we analyze the performance of several network centrality measures in detecting systemically important financial institutions (SIFI) using data from the Turkish Interbank market during the financial crisis in 2000. We employ various network investigation tools such as volume, transactions, links, connectivity and reciprocity to gain a clearer picture of the network topology of the interbank market. We study the main borrower role of Demirbank in the crash of the banking system with network centrality measures which are extensively used in the network theory. This ex-post analysis of the crisis shows that centrality measures perform well in identifying and monitoring systemically important financial institutions which provide useful insights for financial regulations.

Benchmarking and performance analysis of the CM-2. [SIMD computer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Myers, David W.; Adams, George B., II

1988-01-01

A suite of benchmarking routines testing communication, basic arithmetic operations, and selected kernel algorithms written in LISP and PARIS was developed for the CM-2. Experiment runs are automated via a software framework that sequences individual tests, allowing for unattended overnight operation. Multiple measurements are made and treated statistically to generate well-characterized results from the noisy values given by cm:time. The results obtained provide a comparison with similar, but less extensive, testing done on a CM-1. Tests were chosen to aid the algorithmist in constructing fast, efficient, and correct code on the CM-2, as well as gain insight into what performance criteria are needed when evaluating parallel processing machines.

An application of the suction analog for the analysis of asymmetric flow situations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luckring, J. M.

1976-01-01

A recent extension of the suction analogy for estimation of vortex loads on asymmetric configurations is reviewed. This extension includes asymmetric augmented vortex lift and the forward sweep effect on side edge suction. Application of this extension to a series of skewed wings has resulted in an improved estimating capability for a wide range of asymmetric flow situations. Hence, the suction analogy concept now has more general applicability for subsonic lifting surface analysis.

Atypical aetiology in patients hospitalised with community-acquired pneumonia is associated with age, gender and season; a data-analysis on four Dutch cohorts.

PubMed

Raeven, Vivian M; Spoorenberg, Simone M C; Boersma, Wim G; van de Garde, Ewoudt M W; Cannegieter, Suzanne C; Voorn, G P Paul; Bos, Willem Jan W; van Steenbergen, Jim E

2016-06-17

Microorganisms causing community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) can be categorised into viral, typical and atypical (Legionella species, Coxiella burnetii, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, and Chlamydia species). Extensive microbiological testing to identify the causative microorganism is not standardly recommended, and empiric treatment does not always cover atypical pathogens. In order to optimize epidemiologic knowledge of CAP and to improve empiric antibiotic choice, we investigated whether atypical microorganisms are associated with a particular season or with the patient characteristics age, gender, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). A data-analysis was performed on databases from four prospective studies, which all included adult patients hospitalised with CAP in the Netherlands (N = 980). All studies performed extensive microbiological testing. A main causative agent was identified in 565/980 (57.7 %) patients. Of these, 117 (20.7 %) were atypical microorganisms. This percentage was 40.4 % (57/141) during the non-respiratory season (week 20 to week 39, early May to early October), and 67.2 % (41/61) for patients under the age of 60 during this season. Factors that were associated with atypical causative agents were: CAP acquired in the non-respiratory season (odds ratio (OR) 4.3, 95 % CI 2.68-6.84), age <60 year (OR 2.9, 95 % CI 1.83-4.66), male gender (OR 1.7, 95 % CI 1.06-2.71) and absence of COPD (OR 0.2, 95 % CI 0.12-0.52). Atypical causative agents in CAP are associated with respectively non-respiratory season, age <60 years, male gender and absence of COPD. Therefore, to maximise its yield, extensive microbiological testing should be considered in patients <60 years old who are admitted with CAP from early May to early October. NCT00471640 , NCT00170196 (numbers of original studies).