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Sample records for site index curves

  1. Development of site index curves for Pinus kesiya in the Philippines ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Development of site index curves for Pinus kesiya in the Philippines. RIC Lumbres, YJ Lee, YO Seo, FG Calora JR. Abstract. This study was conducted to develop a height–age growth model and site index curves for site quality evaluation of old secondary-growth stands of Pinus kesiya in the northern Philippines.

  2. Revised Site Index Curves for Balsam Fir and White Spruce in the Lake States

    Science.gov (United States)

    Willard H. Carmean; Jerold T. Hahn

    1981-01-01

    The original site index curves for balsam fir and white spruce are revised from a breast height age to a total age basis. Site index values from these revised curves are thus comparable to index values for other species that are based upon total tree age. This note also includes formulations for estimating site index by using computers or programmable, hand-...

  3. SITE INDEX CURVES AND HYPSOMETRIC RELATIONSHIP FOR Eucalyptus grandis PLANTATIONS FOR THE CAMPOS GERAIS REGION, PARANA STATE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fabiane Aparecida de Souza Retslaff

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available The study aimed to fit mathematical models for the construction of Site Index curves and to estimate heights at different ages for Eucalyptus grandis in the Campos Gerais region, Parana State. The data used to fit the models came from permanent, temporary plots and pre-harvesting inventory, covering ages from 2.5 to 26.5 years. Several models were tested to represent the sites and the hypsometric relationship. The Site Index curves were constructed by the guide-curve method. For the Site Index, the Chapman-Richards model showed the best fit and precision statistics, generating 5 Site Index curves (range of 5 m with the Chapman-Richards model. The four hypsometric models tested showed satisfactory performance and similar statistics and the inclusion of the variables dominant height or site index did not substantially improve the goodness of fit statistics, but the residues were more homogeneous and closer to zero.

  4. Height growth and site index curves for western white pine in the Cascade Range of Washington and Oregon.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robert O. Curtis; Nancy M. Diaz; Gary W. Clendenen

    1990-01-01

    Height growth and site index curves were constructed from stem analyses of mature western white pine (Pinus monticola Dougl. ex D. Don) growing in high-elevation forests of the Cascade Range in the Mount Hood and Gifford Pinchot National Forests of Oregon and Washington, respectively. Alternate systems using reference ages for site index of 50 and...

  5. Compact Hilbert Curve Index Algorithm Based on Gray Code

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    CAO Xuefeng

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Hilbert curve has best clustering in various kinds of space filling curves, and has been used as an important tools in discrete global grid spatial index design field. But there are lots of redundancies in the standard Hilbert curve index when the data set has large differences between dimensions. In this paper, the construction features of Hilbert curve is analyzed based on Gray code, and then the compact Hilbert curve index algorithm is put forward, in which the redundancy problem has been avoided while Hilbert curve clustering preserved. Finally, experiment results shows that the compact Hilbert curve index outperforms the standard Hilbert index, their 1 computational complexity is nearly equivalent, but the real data set test shows the coding time and storage space decrease 40%, the speedup ratio of sorting speed is nearly 4.3.

  6. Use of dominant tree heights in determining site index for Douglas-fir.

    Science.gov (United States)

    George R. Staebler

    1948-01-01

    Measuring heights of Douglas-fir trees for the determination of site index is a time-consuming job, especially in dense stands. Both dominant and codominant trees must be measured since site index curves represent the average height of dominants and codominants. It has been suggested that considerable time might be saved if only dominant trees were measured, since...

  7. Site Index Curves for Direct-Seeded Loblolly and Longleaf Pines in Louisiana

    Science.gov (United States)

    Quang V. Cao; V. Clark Baldwin; Richard E. Lohrey

    1995-01-01

    Site index equations were developed for direct-seeded loblollypine (Pinus taeda L.) and longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) based on data from 148 and 75 permanent plots, respectively. These plots varied from 0.053 to 0.119 ac in size, and were established in broadcast, row, and spot seeded stands throughout Louisiana. The Bailey and Clutter (1974) model was...

  8. An index formula for the self-linking number of a space curve

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Røgen, Peter

    2008-01-01

    Given an embedded closed space curve with non-vanishing curvature, its self-linking number is defined as the linking number between the original curve and a curve pushed slightly off in the direction of its principal normals. We present an index formula for the self-linking number in terms of the...

  9. Thinnings by site index in plantations of Pinus caribaea Morelet var caribaea Barrer and Golfari

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro Antonio Álvarez Olivera

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available A forest mensuration database from plantations of Pinus caribaea Morelet var caribae a Barret and Golfari was used. The species was planted in the western region of Cuba. Objective was determining the yield by site index, with the necessary clearings and thinning to maintain similar increments of diameter and of volume, with approach to the biological rotation of the species. The available literature was consulted on growth and production of the species. With the application of the software SPSS 15.0 and of Microsoft Excel the curves were obtained adjusted by the mathematical pattern of Schumacher formula to obtain yield tables, previously selected the intervals of indexes of sites. With the Stefan graph of diameters and width crowns was determined the thinning, application according to accumulated basal area, what was supplemented with the statistical models The objectives were completed expressed in the conclusions to the application of the results obtained by the means of consulted information. The site indexes go from 14 to 26 m for basic age of 30 years. The increments allow a valuation economic practice of application of logging by site index at rotation fixed.

  10. The refractive index of curved spacetime II: QED, Penrose limits and black holes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hollowood, Timothy J.; Shore, Graham M.; Stanley, Ross J.

    2009-01-01

    This work considers the way that quantum loop effects modify the propagation of light in curved space. The calculation of the refractive index for scalar QED is reviewed and then extended for the first time to QED with spinor particles in the loop. It is shown how, in both cases, the low frequency phase velocity can be greater than c, as found originally by Drummond and Hathrell, but causality is respected in the sense that retarded Green functions vanish outside the lightcone. A 'phenomenology' of the refractive index is then presented for black holes, FRW universes and gravitational waves. In some cases, some of the polarization states propagate with a refractive index having a negative imaginary part indicating a potential breakdown of the optical theorem in curved space and possible instabilities.

  11. Guidelines for using the Delphi Technique to develop habitat suitability index curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crance, Johnie H.

    1987-01-01

    Habitat Suitability Index (SI) curves are one method of presenting species habitat suitability criteria. The curves are often used with the Habitat Evaluation Procedures (HEP) and are necessary components of the Instream Flow Incremental Methodology (IFIM) (Armour et al. 1984). Bovee (1986) described three categories of SI curves or habitat suitability criteria based on the procedures and data used to develop the criteria. Category I curves are based on professional judgment, with 1ittle or no empirical data. Both Category II (utilization criteria) and Category III (preference criteria) curves have as their source data collected at locations where target species are observed or collected. Having Category II and Category III curves for all species of concern would be ideal. In reality, no SI curves are available for many species, and SI curves that require intensive field sampling often cannot be developed under prevailing constraints on time and costs. One alternative under these circumstances is the development and interim use of SI curves based on expert opinion. The Delphi technique (Pill 1971; Delbecq et al. 1975; Linstone and Turoff 1975) is one method used for combining the knowledge and opinions of a group of experts. The purpose of this report is to describe how the Delphi technique may be used to develop expert-opinion-based SI curves.

  12. Antimicrobial Pesticide Use Site Index

    Science.gov (United States)

    This Use Site Index provides guidance to assist applicants for antimicrobial pesticide registration by helping them identify the data requirements necessary to register a pesticide or support their product registrations.

  13. Estimation of Typhoon Wind Hazard Curves for Nuclear Sites

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Choun, Young-Sun; Kim, Min-Kyu [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-10-15

    The intensity of such typhoons, which can influence the Korean Peninsula, is on an increasing trend owing to a rapid change of climate of the Northwest Pacific Ocean. Therefore, nuclear facilities should be prepared against future super-typhoons. Currently, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission requires that a new NPP should be designed to endure the design-basis hurricane wind speeds corresponding to an annual exceedance frequency of 10{sup -7} (return period of 10 million years). A typical technique used to estimate typhoon wind speeds is based on a sampling of the key parameters of typhoon wind models from the distribution functions fitting statistical distributions to the observation data. Thus, the estimated wind speeds for long return periods include an unavoidable uncertainty owing to a limited observation. This study estimates the typhoon wind speeds for nuclear sites using a Monte Carlo simulation, and derives wind hazard curves using a logic-tree framework to reduce the epistemic uncertainty. Typhoon wind speeds were estimated for different return periods through a Monte-Carlo simulation using the typhoon observation data, and the wind hazard curves were derived using a logic-tree framework for three nuclear sites. The hazard curves for the simulated and probable maximum winds were obtained. The mean hazard curves for the simulated and probable maximum winds can be used for the design and risk assessment of an NPP.

  14. Utilization of multimode Love wave dispersion curve inversion for geotechnical site investigation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hamimu, La; Nawawi, Mohd; Safani, Jamhir

    2011-01-01

    Inversion codes based on a modified genetic algorithm (GA) have been developed to invert multimode Love wave dispersion curves. The multimode Love wave dispersion curves were synthesized from the profile representing shear-wave velocity reversal using a full SH (shear horizontal) waveform. In this study, we used a frequency–slowness transform to extract the dispersion curve from the full SH waveform. Dispersion curves overlain in dispersion images were picked manually. These curves were then inverted using the modified GA. To assess the accuracy of the inversion results, differences between the true and inverted shear-wave velocity profile were quantified in terms of shear-wave velocity and thickness errors, E S and E H . Our numerical modeling showed that the inversion of multimode dispersion curves can significantly provide the better assessment of a shear-wave velocity structure, especially with a velocity reversal profile at typical geotechnical site investigations. This approach has been applied on field data acquired at a site in Niigata prefecture, Japan. In these field data, our inversion results show good agreement between the calculated and experimental dispersion curves and accurately detect low velocity layer targets

  15. Site index determination techniques for southern bottomland hardwoods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brian Roy Lockhart

    2013-01-01

    Site index is a species-specific indirect measure of forest productivity expressed as the average height of dominant and codominant trees in a stand of a specified base age. It is widely used by forest managers to make informed decisions regarding forest management practices. Unfortunately, forest managers have difficulty in determining site index for southern US...

  16. Reference Curve for the Mean Uterine Artery Pulsatility Index in Singleton Pregnancies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weichert, Alexander; Hagen, Andreas; Tchirikov, Michael; Fuchs, Ilka B; Henrich, Wolfgang; Entezami, Michael

    2017-05-01

    Doppler sonography of the uterine artery (UA) is done to monitor pregnancies, because the detected flow patterns are useful to draw inferences about possible disorders of trophoblast invasion. Increased resistance in the UA is associated with an increased risk of preeclampsia and/or intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) and perinatal mortality. In the absence of standardized figures, the normal ranges of the various available reference curves sometimes differ quite substantially from one another. The causes for this are differences in the flow patterns of the UA depending on the position of the pulsed Doppler gates as well as branching of the UA. Because of the discrepancies between the different reference curves and the practical problems this poses for guideline recommendations, we thought it would be useful to create our own reference curves for Doppler measurements of the UA obtained from a singleton cohort under standardized conditions. This retrospective cohort study was carried out in the Department of Obstetrics of the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, the Department for Obstetrics and Prenatal Medicine of the University Hospital Halle (Saale) and the Center for Prenatal Diagnostics and Human Genetics Kurfürstendamm 199. Available datasets from the three study locations were identified and reference curves were generated using the LMS method. Measured values were correlated with age of gestation, and a cubic model and Box-Cox power transformation (L), the median (M) and the coefficient of variation (S) were used to smooth the curves. 103 720 Doppler examinations of the UA carried out in singleton pregnancies from the 11th week of gestation (10 + 1 GW) were analyzed. The mean pulsatility index (Mean PI) showed a continuous decline over the course of pregnancy, dropping to a plateau of around 0.84 between the 23rd and 27th GW, after which it decreased again. Age of gestation, placental position, position of pulsed Doppler gates and branching of

  17. Joint confidence region estimation for area under ROC curve and Youden index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yin, Jingjing; Tian, Lili

    2014-03-15

    In the field of diagnostic studies, the area under the ROC curve (AUC) serves as an overall measure of a biomarker/diagnostic test's accuracy. Youden index, defined as the overall correct classification rate minus one at the optimal cut-off point, is another popular index. For continuous biomarkers of binary disease status, although researchers mainly evaluate the diagnostic accuracy using AUC, for the purpose of making diagnosis, Youden index provides an important and direct measure of the diagnostic accuracy at the optimal threshold and hence should be taken into consideration in addition to AUC. Furthermore, AUC and Youden index are generally correlated. In this paper, we initiate the idea of evaluating diagnostic accuracy based on AUC and Youden index simultaneously. As the first step toward this direction, this paper only focuses on the confidence region estimation of AUC and Youden index for a single marker. We present both parametric and non-parametric approaches for estimating joint confidence region of AUC and Youden index. We carry out extensive simulation study to evaluate the performance of the proposed methods. In the end, we apply the proposed methods to a real data set. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  18. Discrete curved ray-tracing method for radiative transfer in an absorbing-emitting semitransparent slab with variable spatial refractive index

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, L.H.

    2004-01-01

    A discrete curved ray-tracing method is developed to analyze the radiative transfer in one-dimensional absorbing-emitting semitransparent slab with variable spatial refractive index. The curved ray trajectory is locally treated as straight line and the complicated and time-consuming computation of ray trajectory is cut down. A problem of radiative equilibrium with linear variable spatial refractive index is taken as an example to examine the accuracy of the proposed method. The temperature distributions are determined by the proposed method and compared with the data in references, which are obtained by other different methods. The results show that the discrete curved ray-tracing method has a good accuracy in solving the radiative transfer in one-dimensional semitransparent slab with variable spatial refractive index

  19. Broadband giant-refractive-index material based on mesoscopic space-filling curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Taeyong; Kim, Jong Uk; Kang, Seung Kyu; Kim, Hyowook; Kim, Do Kyung; Lee, Yong-Hee; Shin, Jonghwa

    2016-08-01

    The refractive index is the fundamental property of all optical materials and dictates Snell's law, propagation speed, wavelength, diffraction, energy density, absorption and emission of light in materials. Experimentally realized broadband refractive indices remain 1,800 resulting from a mesoscopic crystal with a dielectric constant greater than three million. This gigantic enhancement effect originates from the space-filling curve concept from mathematics. The principle is inherently very broad band, the enhancement being nearly constant from zero up to the frequency of interest. This broadband giant-refractive-index medium promises not only enhanced resolution in imaging and raised fundamental absorption limits in solar energy devices, but also compact, power-efficient components for optical communication and increased performance in many other applications.

  20. Development of Intensity-Duration-Frequency curves at ungauged sites: risk management under changing climate

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liew, San Chuin; Raghavan, Srivatsan V.; Liong, Shie-Yui

    2014-12-01

    The impact of a changing climate is already being felt on several hydrological systems both on a regional and sub-regional scale of the globe. Southeast Asia is one of the regions strongly affected by climate change. With climate change, one of the anticipated impacts is an increase in the intensity and frequency of extreme rainfall which further increase the region's flood catastrophes, human casualties and economic loss. Optimal mitigation measures can be undertaken only when stormwater systems are designed using rainfall Intensity-Duration-Frequency (IDF) curves derived from a long and good quality rainfall data. Developing IDF curves for the future climate can be even more challenging especially for ungauged sites. The current practice to derive current climate's IDF curves for ungauged sites is, for example, to `borrow' or `interpolate' data from regions of climatologically similar characteristics. Recent measures to derive IDF curves for present climate was performed by extracting rainfall data from a high spatial resolution Regional Climate Model driven by ERA-40 reanalysis dataset. This approach has been demonstrated on an ungauged site (Java, Indonesia) and the results were quite promising. In this paper, the authors extend the application of the approach to other ungauged sites particularly in Peninsular Malaysia. The results of the study undoubtedly have significance contribution in terms of local and regional hydrology (Malaysia and Southeast Asian countries). The anticipated impacts of climate change especially increase in rainfall intensity and its frequency appreciates the derivation of future IDF curves in this study. It also provides policy makers better information on the adequacy of storm drainage design, for the current climate at the ungauged sites, and the adequacy of the existing storm drainage to cope with the impacts of climate change.

  1. Sex- and Site-Specific Normative Data Curves for HR-pQCT.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burt, Lauren A; Liang, Zhiying; Sajobi, Tolulope T; Hanley, David A; Boyd, Steven K

    2016-11-01

    The purpose of this study was to develop age-, site-, and sex-specific centile curves for common high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) and finite-element (FE) parameters for males and females older than 16 years. Participants (n = 866) from the Calgary cohort of the Canadian Multicentre Osteoporosis Study (CaMos) between the ages of 16 and 98 years were included in this study. Participants' nondominant radius and left tibia were scanned using HR-pQCT. Standard and automated segmentation methods were performed and FE analysis estimated apparent bone strength. Centile curves were generated for males and females at the tibia and radius using the generalized additive models for location, scale, and shape (GAMLSS) package in R. After GAMLSS analysis, age-, sex-, and site-specific centiles (10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th) for total bone mineral density and trabecular number as well as failure load have been calculated. Clinicians and researchers can use these reference curves as a tool to assess bone health and changes in bone quality. © 2016 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research. © 2016 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

  2. Learning curve for laparoendoscopic single-site surgery for an experienced laparoscopic surgeon

    OpenAIRE

    Pao-Ling Torng; Kuan-Hung Lin; Jing-Shiang Hwang; Hui-Shan Liu; I-Hui Chen; Chi-Ling Chen; Su-Cheng Huang

    2013-01-01

    Objectives: To assess the learning curve and safety of laparoendoscopic single-site (LESS) surgery of gynecological surgeries. Materials and methods: Sixty-three women who underwent LESS surgery by a single experienced laparoscopic surgeon from February 2011 to August 2011 were included. Commercialized single-incision laparoscopic surgery homemade ports were used, along with conventional straight instruments. The learning curve has been defined as the additional surgical time with respect ...

  3. DETERMINATION OF ATTENUATION INDEX CURVE "Ri(f" FOR HOMOGENEOUS DOUBLE LOCKING ELEMENTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    BUZATU G. C.

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper is structured in three parts. In the first part of the paper, are presented some theoretical notions regarding the sound, noise, the sound insulations materials. Also in the first part of the paper are presented some characteristic regarding the insulation materials and there effects. In the second part it is described an calculation example for a homogeneous wall with double structure in order to determine the attenuation index curve "Ri(f". The example calculation contains 10 steps that must be followed and the final results are presented in table 7 and figure 3. The last part of the paper is represented by conclusions, where the authors tried to explain the importance of the curve "Ri(f" for reducing the noise in the buildings.

  4. Multi-binding site model-based curve-fitting program for the computation of RIA data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Malan, P.G.; Ekins, R.P.; Cox, M.G.; Long, E.M.R.

    1977-01-01

    In this paper, a comparison will be made of model-based and empirical curve-fitting procedures. The implementation of a multiple binding-site curve-fitting model which will successfully fit a wide range of assay data, and which can be run on a mini-computer is described. The latter sophisticated model also provides estimates of binding site concentrations and the values of the respective equilibrium constants present: the latter have been used for refining assay conditions using computer optimisation techniques. (orig./AJ) [de

  5. Dynamic airway pressure-time curve profile (Stress Index): a systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terragni, Pierpaolo; Bussone, Guido; Mascia, Luciana

    2016-01-01

    The assessment of respiratory mechanics at the bedside is necessary in order to identify the most protective ventilatory strategy. Indeed in the last 20 years, adverse effects of positive ventilation to the lung structures have led to a reappraisal of the objectives of mechanical ventilation. The ventilator setting requires repeated readjustment over the period of mechanical ventilation dependency and careful respiratory monitoring to minimize the risks, preventing further injury and permitting the lung and airways healing. Among the different methods that have been proposed and validated, the analysis of dynamic P-t curve (named Stress Index, SI) represents an adequate tool available at the bedside, repeatable and, therefore, able to identify the amount of overdistension occurring in the daily clinical practice, when modifying positive end-expiratory pressure. In this review we will analyze the evidence that supports respiratory mechanics assessment at the bedside and the application of the dynamic P/t curve profile (SI) to optimize protective ventilation in patients with acute respiratory failure.

  6. Environmental variability and its relationship to site index in Mediterranean maritine pine

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bravo-Oviedo, A.; Roig, S.; Bravo, F.; Montero, G.; Rio, M. del

    2011-07-01

    Environmental variability and site productivity relationships, estimated by means of soil-site equations, are considered a milestone in decision making of forest management. The adequacy of silviculture systems is related to tree response to environmental conditions. The objectives of this paper are to study climatic and edaphic variability in Mediterranean Maritime pine (Pinus pinaster) forests in Spain, and the practical use of such variability in determining forest productivity by means of site index estimation. Principal component analysis was used to describe environmental conditions and patterns. Site index predictive models were fitted using partial least squares and parsimoniously by ordinary least square. Climatic variables along with parent material defined an ecological regionalization from warm and humid to cold and dry sites. Results showed that temperature and precipitation in autumn and winter, along with longitudinal gradient define extreme site qualities. The best qualities are located in warm and humid sites whereas the poorest ones are found in cold and dry regions. Site index values are poorly explained by soil properties. However, clay content in the first mineral horizon improved the soil-site model considerably. Climate is the main driver of productivity of Mediterranean Maritime pine in a broad scale. Site index differences within a homogenous climatic region are associated to soil properties. (Author) 47 refs.

  7. Comparison of catchment grouping methods for flow duration curve estimation at ungauged sites in France

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    E. Sauquet

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available The study aims at estimating flow duration curves (FDC at ungauged sites in France and quantifying the associated uncertainties using a large dataset of 1080 FDCs. The interpolation procedure focuses here on 15 percentiles standardised by the mean annual flow, which is assumed to be known at each site. In particular, this paper discusses the impact of different catchment grouping procedures on the estimation of percentiles by regional regression models.

    In a first step, five parsimonious FDC parametric models are tested to approximate FDCs at gauged sites. The results show that the model based on the expansion of Empirical Orthogonal Functions (EOF outperforms the other tested models. In the EOF model, each FDC is interpreted as a linear combination of regional amplitude functions with spatially variable weighting factors corresponding to the parameters of the model. In this approach, only one amplitude function is required to obtain a satisfactory fit with most of the observed curves. Thus, the considered model requires only two parameters to be applicable at ungauged locations.

    Secondly, homogeneous regions are derived according to hydrological response, on the one hand, and geological, climatic and topographic characteristics on the other hand. Hydrological similarity is assessed through two simple indicators: the concavity index (IC representing the shape of the dimensionless FDC and the seasonality ratio (SR, which is the ratio of summer and winter median flows. These variables are used as homogeneity criteria in three different methods for grouping catchments: (i according to an a priori classification of French Hydro-EcoRegions (HERs, (ii by applying regression tree clustering and (iii by using neighbourhoods obtained by canonical correlation analysis.

    Finally, considering all the data, and subsequently for each group obtained through the tested grouping techniques, we derive regression models between

  8. A Risk Severity Index for industrial plants and sites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Planas, E.; Arnaldos, J.; Silvetti, B.; Vallee, Agnes; Casal, J.

    2006-01-01

    A risk index (Risk Severity Index, S) has been devised to allow the assessment of the risk level originated by a given installation or site over the affected zone. A set of threshold levels for thermal radiation, toxic concentration and overpressure, together with the probabilities and frequencies associated to critical events and their effects have been the basis for calculating the values of S. A computer tool has been designed to perform a quick calculation of the diverse Risk Severity Indexes (for a critical event, for a dangerous phenomenon, for a type of effect and for the whole installation) and to plot a map of the risk severity levels around the site. The methodology has been applied to diverse test cases and it has proved to be useful for risk assessment, for comparative studies and for land use planning

  9. Colombian reference growth curves for height, weight, body mass index and head circumference.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Durán, Paola; Merker, Andrea; Briceño, Germán; Colón, Eugenia; Line, Dionne; Abad, Verónica; Del Toro, Kenny; Chahín, Silvia; Matallana, Audrey Mary; Lema, Adriana; Llano, Mauricio; Céspedes, Jaime; Hagenäs, Lars

    2016-03-01

    Published Growth studies from Latin America are limited to growth references from Argentina and Venezuela. The aim of this study was to construct reference growth curves for height, weight, body mass index (BMI) and head circumference of Colombian children in a format that is useful for following the growth of the individual child and as a tool for public health. Prospective measurements from 27 209 Colombian children from middle and upper socio-economic level families were processed using the generalised additive models for location, scale and shape (GAMLSS). Descriptive statistics for length and height, weight, BMI and head circumference for age are given as raw and smoothed values. Final height was 172.3 cm for boys and 159.4 cm for girls. Weight at 18 years of age was 64.0 kg for boys and 54 kg for girls. Growth curves are presented in a ± 3 SD format using logarithmic axes. The constructed reference growth curves are a start for following secular trends in Colombia and are also in the presented layout an optimal clinical tool for health care. ©2015 Foundation Acta Paediatrica. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  10. Testing for Environmental Kuznets Curve in the EU Agricultural Sector through an Eco-(inEfficiency Index

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    George Vlontzos

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Studies on agricultural production practices advance within international literature and new methods are proposed in order to assess the agricultural sustainability, either at farm or macro level. The present paper builds on these advancements and develops a synthetic Eco-(inefficiency index by employing a directional distance function—data envelopment analysis (DEA model. This index is used in order to assess the sustainability of the EU agricultural sector for the period 1999–2012 on a country level. Furthermore, Eco-(inefficiency, together with the energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG emissions are regressed on the gross domestic product (GDP of EU countries, in order to check for any environmental Kuznets curve relationship existence. Results signify that efficiency improvements are possible, both towards output development and GHG emissions reduction. In addition, the potential of each country in adopting more sustainable production practices is not totally connected with its economic development, as Eco-(inefficiency and GDP levels of EU countries seem to be linked with an N-Shaped curve.

  11. Annotated Administrative Record Site-Specific Document Index, American Drum & Pallet Co. Removal Site, Memphis, Shelby County, Tennessee

    Science.gov (United States)

    Contains annotated index of site specific documents for the American Drum & Pallet Co. Removal Site in Memphis, Shelby County, Tennessee, January 9, 2008 Region ID: 04 DocID: 10517016, DocDate: 01-09-2008

  12. The Effectiveness of Web Search Engines to Index New Sites from Different Countries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pirkola, Ari

    2009-01-01

    Introduction: Investigates how effectively Web search engines index new sites from different countries. The primary interest is whether new sites are indexed equally or whether search engines are biased towards certain countries. If major search engines show biased coverage it can be considered a significant economic and political problem because…

  13. Use of structure-activity landscape index curves and curve integrals to evaluate the performance of multiple machine learning prediction models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ledonne, Norman C; Rissolo, Kevin; Bulgarelli, James; Tini, Leonard

    2011-02-07

    Standard approaches to address the performance of predictive models that used common statistical measurements for the entire data set provide an overview of the average performance of the models across the entire predictive space, but give little insight into applicability of the model across the prediction space. Guha and Van Drie recently proposed the use of structure-activity landscape index (SALI) curves via the SALI curve integral (SCI) as a means to map the predictive power of computational models within the predictive space. This approach evaluates model performance by assessing the accuracy of pairwise predictions, comparing compound pairs in a manner similar to that done by medicinal chemists. The SALI approach was used to evaluate the performance of continuous prediction models for MDR1-MDCK in vitro efflux potential. Efflux models were built with ADMET Predictor neural net, support vector machine, kernel partial least squares, and multiple linear regression engines, as well as SIMCA-P+ partial least squares, and random forest from Pipeline Pilot as implemented by AstraZeneca, using molecular descriptors from SimulationsPlus and AstraZeneca. The results indicate that the choice of training sets used to build the prediction models is of great importance in the resulting model quality and that the SCI values calculated for these models were very similar to their Kendall τ values, leading to our suggestion of an approach to use this SALI/SCI paradigm to evaluate predictive model performance that will allow more informed decisions regarding model utility. The use of SALI graphs and curves provides an additional level of quality assessment for predictive models.

  14. Use of structure-activity landscape index curves and curve integrals to evaluate the performance of multiple machine learning prediction models

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    LeDonne Norman C

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Standard approaches to address the performance of predictive models that used common statistical measurements for the entire data set provide an overview of the average performance of the models across the entire predictive space, but give little insight into applicability of the model across the prediction space. Guha and Van Drie recently proposed the use of structure-activity landscape index (SALI curves via the SALI curve integral (SCI as a means to map the predictive power of computational models within the predictive space. This approach evaluates model performance by assessing the accuracy of pairwise predictions, comparing compound pairs in a manner similar to that done by medicinal chemists. Results The SALI approach was used to evaluate the performance of continuous prediction models for MDR1-MDCK in vitro efflux potential. Efflux models were built with ADMET Predictor neural net, support vector machine, kernel partial least squares, and multiple linear regression engines, as well as SIMCA-P+ partial least squares, and random forest from Pipeline Pilot as implemented by AstraZeneca, using molecular descriptors from SimulationsPlus and AstraZeneca. Conclusion The results indicate that the choice of training sets used to build the prediction models is of great importance in the resulting model quality and that the SCI values calculated for these models were very similar to their Kendall τ values, leading to our suggestion of an approach to use this SALI/SCI paradigm to evaluate predictive model performance that will allow more informed decisions regarding model utility. The use of SALI graphs and curves provides an additional level of quality assessment for predictive models.

  15. Influence of pavement condition on horizontal curve safety.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buddhavarapu, Prasad; Banerjee, Ambarish; Prozzi, Jorge A

    2013-03-01

    Crash statistics suggest that horizontal curves are the most vulnerable sites for crash occurrence. These crashes are often severe and many involve at least some level of injury due to the nature of the collisions. Ensuring the desired pavement surface condition is one potentially effective strategy to reduce the occurrence of severe accidents on horizontal curves. This study sought to develop crash injury severity models by integrating crash and pavement surface condition databases. It focuses on developing a causal relationship between pavement condition indices and severity level of crashes occurring on two-lane horizontal curves in Texas. In addition, it examines the suitability of the existing Skid Index for safety maintenance of two-lane curves. Significant correlation is evident between pavement condition and crash injury severity on two-lane undivided horizontal curves in Texas. Probability of a crash becoming fatal is appreciably sensitive to certain pavement indices. Data suggested that road facilities providing a smoother and more comfortable ride are vulnerable to severe crashes on horizontal curves. In addition, the study found that longitudinal skid measurement barely correlates with injury severity of crashes occurring on curved portions. The study recommends exploring the option of incorporating lateral friction measurement into Pavement Management System (PMS) databases specifically at curved road segments. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Defining the learning curve of laparoendoscopic single-site Heller myotomy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ross, Sharona B; Luberice, Kenneth; Kurian, Tony J; Paul, Harold; Rosemurgy, Alexander S

    2013-08-01

    Initial outcomes suggest laparoendoscopic single-site (LESS) Heller myotomy with anterior fundoplication provides safe, efficacious, and cosmetically superior outcomes relative to conventional laparoscopy. This study was undertaken to define the learning curve of LESS Heller myotomy with anterior fundoplication. One hundred patients underwent LESS Heller myotomy with anterior fundoplication. Symptom frequency and severity were scored using a Likert scale (0 = never/not bothersome to 10 = always/very bothersome). Symptom resolution, additional trocars, and complications were compared among patient quartiles. Median data are presented. Preoperative frequency/severity scores were: dysphagia = 10/8 and regurgitation = 8/7. Additional trocars were placed in 12 patients (10%), of whom all were in the first two quartiles. Esophagotomy/gastrotomy occurred in three patients. Postoperative complications occurred in 9 per cent. No conversions to "open" operations occurred. Length of stay was 1 day. Postoperative frequency/severity scores were: dysphagia = 2/0 and regurgitation = 0/0; scores were less than before myotomy (P Heller myotomy with anterior fundoplication well palliates symptoms of achalasia with no apparent scar. Placement of additional trocars only occurred early in the experience. For surgeons proficient with the conventional laparoscopic approach, the learning curve of LESS Heller myotomy with anterior fundoplication is short and safe, because proficiency is quickly attained.

  17. Discussion of quantitative assessment index system of suitability of the site for geological disposal repository of high-level radioactive waste

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Su Rui; Wang Ju

    2014-01-01

    Site selection and suitability assessment of site are one of important tasks of research and development of geological disposal engineering for high-level radioactive waste (HLW). Quantitative assessment of suitability of the site is based on the scientific, reasonable and operational index system. The discussion of index screening of quantitative assessment of suitability of the site is conducted. Principle of index screening is presented and index systems are established for different stages of site selection, including planning stage of site selection, region or area investigation stage, site characterization and site confirmation stage. But the considerations are taken of the complexity of site selection of geological disposal engineering for HLW and itself development of quantitative assessment method, so improvement of the index systems presented above is needed in the further. (authors)

  18. BigFoot Leaf Area Index Surfaces for North and South American Sites, 2000-2003

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — ABSTRACT: The BigFoot project gathered leaf area index (LAI) data for nine EOS Land Validation Sites located from Alaska to Brazil from 2000 to 2003. Each site is...

  19. The Predicting Model of E-commerce Site Based on the Ideas of Curve Fitting

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tao, Zhang; Li, Zhang; Dingjun, Chen

    On the basis of the idea of the second multiplication curve fitting, the number and scale of Chinese E-commerce site is analyzed. A preventing increase model is introduced in this paper, and the model parameters are solved by the software of Matlab. The validity of the preventing increase model is confirmed though the numerical experiment. The experimental results show that the precision of preventing increase model is ideal.

  20. Calibration of the inertial consistency index to assess road safety on horizontal curves of two-lane rural roads.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Llopis-Castelló, David; Camacho-Torregrosa, Francisco Javier; García, Alfredo

    2018-05-26

    One of every four road fatalities occurs on horizontal curves of two-lane rural roads. To this regard, many studies have been undertaken to analyze the crash risk on this road element. Most of them were based on the concept of geometric design consistency, which can be defined as how drivers' expectancies and road behavior relate. However, none of these studies included a variable which represents and estimates drivers' expectancies. This research presents a new local consistency model based on the Inertial Consistency Index (ICI). This consistency parameter is defined as the difference between the inertial operating speed, which represents drivers' expectations, and the operating speed, which represents road behavior. The inertial operating speed was defined as the weighted average operating speed of the preceding road section. In this way, different lengths, periods of time, and weighting distributions were studied to identify how the inertial operating speed should be calculated. As a result, drivers' expectancies should be estimated considering 15 s along the segment and a linear weighting distribution. This was consistent with drivers' expectancies acquirement process, which is closely related to Short-Term Memory. A Safety Performance Function was proposed to predict the number of crashes on a horizontal curve and consistency thresholds were defined based on the ICI. To this regard, the crash rate increased as the ICI increased. Finally, the proposed consistency model was compared with previous models. As a conclusion, the new Inertial Consistency Index allowed a more accurate estimation of the number of crashes and a better assessment of the consistency level on horizontal curves. Therefore, highway engineers have a new tool to identify where road crashes are more likely to occur during the design stage of both new two-lane rural roads and improvements of existing highways. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Exploration of variations in positions of upper and lower incisors, overjet, overbite, and irregularity index in orthodontic patients with dissimilar depths of curve of spee

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumari, N.; Fida, M.; Shaikh, A.

    2017-01-01

    The position and arrangement of teeth as well as the entire scheme of occlusion differs from one individual to the other .The purpose of this study was to examine differences in position and inclination of incisors, overjet, overbite and lower arch crowding in subjects with different depths of curve of Spee and to determine correlations between depth of curve of Spee and these variables. Methods: The sample comprised of 114 patients (55 females and 59 males) with fully erupted permanent second molars (age 12-25 years), having no history of previous orthodontic treatment, no craniofacial anomalies, and no missing permanent teeth. Study parameters were assessed by using pretreatment lateral cephalograms and dental casts of orthodontic patients. The entire sample was divided into three groups according to depth of curve of Spee (mild Spee=38, moderate Spee=38, severe Spee=38). Descriptive statistics were calculated. Differences between the Spee groups were assessed by analysis of variance. In addition, correlation coefficients were calculated between curve of Spee and other parameters. Results: Statistically significant differences were found in upper incisor inclination (p=0.000), lower incisor inclination (p=0.003), Steiner's mandibular plane angle (p=0.000), overjet (p=0.001), overbite (p=0.000) and irregularity index (p=0.008) among the Spee groups. Moreover, statistically significant positive correlations were found between curve of Spee and overjet, overbite and irregularity index. Upper and lower incisor inclinations as well as mandibular plane angle were found to have statistically significant but negative correlations with curve of Spee. Conclusion: Overjet and overbite in severe Spee group are larger than in mild and moderate Spee groups. There is negative correlation between curve of Spee depth and inclinations of upper and lower incisors. There is positive correlation between curve of Spee depth and severity of lower anterior crowding and Steiner

  2. The learning curve of laparoendoscopic single-site (LESS) cholecystectomy: definable, short, and safe.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hernandez, Jonathan; Ross, Sharona; Morton, Connor; McFarlin, Kellie; Dahal, Sujat; Golkar, Farhaad; Albrink, Michael; Rosemurgy, Alexander

    2010-11-01

    The applications of laparoendoscopic single-site (LESS) surgery, including cholecystectomy, are occurring quickly, although little is generally known about issues associated with the learning curve of this new technique including operative time, conversion rates, and safety. We prospectively followed all patients undergoing LESS cholecystectomy, and compared operations undertaken at our institutions in cohorts of 25 patients with respect to operative times, conversion rates, and complications. One-hundred fifty patients of mean age 46 years underwent LESS cholecystectomy. No significant differences in operative times were demonstrable between any of the 25-patient cohorts operated on at our institution. A significant reduction in operative times (p < 0.001) after completion of 75 LESS procedures was, however, identified with the experience of a single surgeon. No significant reduction in the number of procedures requiring an additional trocar(s) or conversion to open operations was observed after completion of 25 LESS cholecystectomies. Complication rates were low, and not significantly different between any 25-patient cohorts. For surgeons proficient with multi-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy, the learning curve for LESS cholecystectomy begins near proficiency. Operative complications and conversions were infrequent and unchanged across successive 25-patient cohorts, and were similar to those reported for multi-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy after the learning curve. Copyright © 2010 American College of Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Regional flow duration curves for ungauged sites in Sicily

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    F. Viola

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Flow duration curves are simple and powerful tools to deal with many hydrological and environmental problems related to water quality assessment, water-use assessment and water allocation. Unfortunately the scarcity of streamflow data enables the use of these instruments only for gauged basins. A regional model is developed here for estimating flow duration curves at ungauged basins in Sicily, Italy. Due to the complex ephemeral behavior of the examined region, this study distinguishes dry periods, when flows are zero, from wet periods using a three parameters power law to describe the frequency distribution of flows. A large dataset of streamflows has been analyzed and the parameters of flow duration curves have been derived for about fifty basins. Regional regression equations have been developed to derive flow duration curves starting from morphological basin characteristics.

  4. Morse theory on timelike and causal curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Everson, J.; Talbot, C.J.

    1976-01-01

    It is shown that the set of timelike curves in a globally hyperbolic space-time manifold can be given the structure of a Hilbert manifold under a suitable definition of 'timelike.' The causal curves are the topological closure of this manifold. The Lorentzian energy (corresponding to Milnor's energy, except that the Lorentzian inner product is used) is shown to be a Morse function for the space of causal curves. A fixed end point index theorem is obtained in which a lower bound for the index of the Hessian of the Lorentzian energy is given in terms of the sum of the orders of the conjugate points between the end points. (author)

  5. Atlas of stress-strain curves

    CERN Document Server

    2002-01-01

    The Atlas of Stress-Strain Curves, Second Edition is substantially bigger in page dimensions, number of pages, and total number of curves than the previous edition. It contains over 1,400 curves, almost three times as many as in the 1987 edition. The curves are normalized in appearance to aid making comparisons among materials. All diagrams include metric (SI) units, and many also include U.S. customary units. All curves are captioned in a consistent format with valuable information including (as available) standard designation, the primary source of the curve, mechanical properties (including hardening exponent and strength coefficient), condition of sample, strain rate, test temperature, and alloy composition. Curve types include monotonic and cyclic stress-strain, isochronous stress-strain, and tangent modulus. Curves are logically arranged and indexed for fast retrieval of information. The book also includes an introduction that provides background information on methods of stress-strain determination, on...

  6. Simulating the effects of site index variation within loblolly pine plantations using an individual tree growth and yield model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ralph L. Amateis; Harold E. Burkhart

    2016-01-01

    Site index is the most common metric of site productivity in loblolly pine plantations. Generally applied as a constant for a particular stand, it provides an overall measure of a site’s ability to grow trees. It is well known, however, that even the most uniform stands can have considerable variation in site index due to soil factors that influence microsite,...

  7. SITE INDEX MODELS FOR CALABRIAN PINE (PinusbrutiaTen. IN THASOS ISLAND, GREECE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kyriaki Kitikidou

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available A site index model for Calabrian pine (Pinusbrutia Ten. in Thasos island (North Aegean sea, Greece is presented. The model was fitted and validated from 150 stem analyses, obtained from 75 fixed-area plots from five experimental sites. Four height growth equations of difference form were tested and the Bailey and Clutter (1974 function was considered appropriate due to its good performance with both fitting and validation data. The results show errors lower than 5% and little bias.

  8. Carbon Lorenz Curves

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Groot, L.F.M.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/073642398

    2008-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it exhibits that standard tools in the measurement of income inequality, such as the Lorenz curve and the Gini-index, can successfully be applied to the issues of inequality measurement of carbon emissions and the equity of abatement policies across

  9. Estimation of design floods in ungauged catchments using a regional index flood method. A case study of Lake Victoria Basin in Kenya

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nobert, Joel; Mugo, Margaret; Gadain, Hussein

    Reliable estimation of flood magnitudes corresponding to required return periods, vital for structural design purposes, is impacted by lack of hydrological data in the study area of Lake Victoria Basin in Kenya. Use of regional information, derived from data at gauged sites and regionalized for use at any location within a homogenous region, would improve the reliability of the design flood estimation. Therefore, the regional index flood method has been applied. Based on data from 14 gauged sites, a delineation of the basin into two homogenous regions was achieved using elevation variation (90-m DEM), spatial annual rainfall pattern and Principal Component Analysis of seasonal rainfall patterns (from 94 rainfall stations). At site annual maximum series were modelled using the Log normal (LN) (3P), Log Logistic Distribution (LLG), Generalized Extreme Value (GEV) and Log Pearson Type 3 (LP3) distributions. The parameters of the distributions were estimated using the method of probability weighted moments. Goodness of fit tests were applied and the GEV was identified as the most appropriate model for each site. Based on the GEV model, flood quantiles were estimated and regional frequency curves derived from the averaged at site growth curves. Using the least squares regression method, relationships were developed between the index flood, which is defined as the Mean Annual Flood (MAF) and catchment characteristics. The relationships indicated area, mean annual rainfall and altitude were the three significant variables that greatly influence the index flood. Thereafter, estimates of flood magnitudes in ungauged catchments within a homogenous region were estimated from the derived equations for index flood and quantiles from the regional curves. These estimates will improve flood risk estimation and to support water management and engineering decisions and actions.

  10. Standardized Percentile Curves of Body Mass Index of Northeast Iranian Children Aged 25 to 60 Months

    Science.gov (United States)

    Emdadi, Maryam; Safarian, Mohammad; Doosti, Hassan

    2011-01-01

    Objective Growth charts are widely used to assess children's growth status and can provide a trajectory of growth during early important months of life. Racial differences necessitate using local growth charts. This study aimed to provide standardized growth curves of body mass index (BMI) for children living in northeast Iran. Methods A total of 23730 apparently healthy boys and girls aged 25 to 60 months recruited for 20 days from those attending community clinics for routine health checks. Anthropometric measurements were done by trained health staff using WHO methodology. The LMSP method with maximum penalized likelihood, the Generalized Additive Models, the Box-Cox power exponential distribution distribution, Akaike Information Criteria and Generalized Akaike Criteria with penalty equal to 3 [GAIC(3)], and Worm plot and Q-tests as goodness of fit tests were used to construct the centile reference charts. Findings The BMI centile curves for boys and girls aged 25 to 60 months were drawn utilizing a population of children living in northeast Iran. Conclusion The results of the current study demonstrate the possibility of preparation of local growth charts and their importance in evaluating children's growth. Also their differences, relative to those prepared by global references, reflect the necessity of preparing local charts in future studies using longitudinal data. PMID:23056770

  11. A sensitivity analysis of hazardous waste disposal site climatic and soil design parameters using HELP3

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Adelman, D.D.; Stansbury, J.

    1997-01-01

    The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Subtitle C, Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, And Liability Act (CERCLA), and subsequent amendments have formed a comprehensive framework to deal with hazardous wastes on the national level. Key to this waste management is guidance on design (e.g., cover and bottom leachate control systems) of hazardous waste landfills. The objective of this research was to investigate the sensitivity of leachate volume at hazardous waste disposal sites to climatic, soil cover, and vegetative cover (Leaf Area Index) conditions. The computer model HELP3 which has the capability to simulate double bottom liner systems as called for in hazardous waste disposal sites was used in the analysis. HELP3 was used to model 54 combinations of climatic conditions, disposal site soil surface curve numbers, and leaf area index values to investigate how sensitive disposal site leachate volume was to these three variables. Results showed that leachate volume from the bottom double liner system was not sensitive to these parameters. However, the cover liner system leachate volume was quite sensitive to climatic conditions and less sensitive to Leaf Area Index and curve number values. Since humid locations had considerably more cover liner system leachate volume than and locations, different design standards may be appropriate for humid conditions than for and conditions

  12. The Maslov index in symplectic Banach spaces

    CERN Document Server

    Booss-Bavnbek, Bernhelm

    2018-01-01

    The authors consider a curve of Fredholm pairs of Lagrangian subspaces in a fixed Banach space with continuously varying weak symplectic structures. Assuming vanishing index, they obtain intrinsically a continuously varying splitting of the total Banach space into pairs of symplectic subspaces. Using such decompositions the authors define the Maslov index of the curve by symplectic reduction to the classical finite-dimensional case. The authors prove the transitivity of repeated symplectic reductions and obtain the invariance of the Maslov index under symplectic reduction while recovering all the standard properties of the Maslov index. As an application, the authors consider curves of elliptic operators which have varying principal symbol, varying maximal domain and are not necessarily of Dirac type. For this class of operator curves, the authors derive a desuspension spectral flow formula for varying well-posed boundary conditions on manifolds with boundary and obtain the splitting formula of the spectral f...

  13. New composite index based on midlatency auditory evoked potential and electroencephalographic parameters to optimize correlation with propofol effect site concentration - Comparison with bispectral index and solitary used fast extracting auditory evoked potential index

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vereecke, HEM; Vasquez, PM; Jensen, EW; Thas, O; Vandenbroecke, R; Mortier, EP; Struys, MMRF

    Background: This study investigates the accuracy of a composite index, the A-Line (R) auditory evoked potentials index version 1.6 (AAI(1.6); Danmeter A/S, Odense, Denmark), as a measure of cerebral anesthetic drug effect in a model for predicting a calculated effect site concentration of propofol

  14. Four-dimensional hilbert curves for R-trees

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Haverkort, Herman; Walderveen, Freek van

    2011-01-01

    Two-dimensional R-trees are a class of spatial index structures in which objects are arranged to enable fast window queries: report all objects that intersect a given query window. One of the most successful methods of arranging the objects in the index structure is based on sorting the objects...... according to the positions of their centers along a two-dimensional Hilbert space-filling curve. Alternatively, one may use the coordinates of the objects' bounding boxes to represent each object by a four-dimensional point, and sort these points along a four-dimensional Hilbert-type curve. In experiments...

  15. Site index models for calabrian pine (Pinus brutia Ten. in Thasos Island, Greece

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kyriaki Kitikidou

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available A site index model for Calabrian pine (Pinus brutia Ten. in Thasos island (North Aegean sea, Greece is presented. The model was fitted and validated from 150 stem analyses, obtained from 75 fixed-area plots from five experimental sites. Four height growth equations of difference form were tested and the BAILEY and CLUTTER (1974 function was considered appropriate due to its good performance with both fitting and validation data. The results show errors lower than 5% and little bias.

  16. Prognostic value of body mass index in transcatheter aortic valve implantation: A "J"-shaped curve.

    Science.gov (United States)

    González-Ferreiro, Rocío; Muñoz-García, Antonio J; López-Otero, Diego; Avanzas, Pablo; Pascual, Isaac; Alonso-Briales, Juan H; Trillo-Nouche, Ramiro; Pun, Federico; Jiménez-Navarro, Manuel F; Hernández-García, José M; Morís, César; González Juanatey, José R

    2017-04-01

    We aimed to determine whether body mass index (BMI) is a prognostic indicator for long-term, all-cause mortality in patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). Obesity in patients with established cardiovascular disease has previously been identified as an indicator of good prognosis, a phenomenon known as the "obesity paradox". The prognostic significance of BMI in patients with severe aortic stenosis (AoS) undergoing TAVI is a matter of current debate, as published studies are scarce and their results conflicting. This is an observational, retrospective study involving 770 patients who underwent TAVI for AoS. The cohort was divided into three groups based on their BMI: normal weight (≥18.5 to value=0.036]). After adjustment by logistic EuroSCORE, being overweight was found to be an independent protective factor against mortality (HR: 0.63 [95% CI: 0.42 to 0.94], p=0.024). This was not the case for obesity (HR: 0.92 [95% CI: 0.63 to 1.35], p=0.664). We therefore describe for the first time, a "J-shaped" regression curve describing the relationship between BMI and mortality. BMI is a predictive factor of all-cause mortality in AoS patients undergoing TAVI. This relationship takes the form of a "J-shaped" curve in which overweight patients are associated with the lowest mortality rate at follow-up. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. [Frail-VIG index: Design and evaluation of a new frailty index based on the Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amblàs-Novellas, Jordi; Martori, Joan Carles; Molist Brunet, Núria; Oller, Ramon; Gómez-Batiste, Xavier; Espaulella Panicot, Joan

    Frailty is closely linked to health results. Frailty indexes (FI) and the Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) are multidimensional tools. FI serve to quantitatively measure frailty levels. They have shown to have an excellent correlation with mortality. However, they are infrequently used in clinical practice. Given the need for new, more concise, and pragmatic FI, a new FI is proposed based on a CGA (Frail-VIG Index). A prospective, observational, longitudinal study was conducted, with cohort follow up at 12 months or death. Participants were patients admitted in the Geriatric Unit of the University Hospital of Vic (Barcelona, Spain) during 2014. Contrast of hypothesis log-rank for survival curves according to Frail-VIG index, and analysis of ROC curves were performed to assess prognostic capacity. A total of 590 patients were included (mean age=86.39). Mortality rate at 12 months was 46.4%. The comparative analysis showed statistically significant differences (P<.05) for almost all variables included in the Frail-VIG index. Survival curves also show significant differences (X 2 =445, P<.001) for the different Frail-VIG index scores. The area under the ROC curve at 12 months was 0.9 (0.88-0.92). An administration time of the Index is estimated at less than 10minutes. Results endorse the Frail-VIG index as a simple (as for contents), rapid (for administration time) tool, with discriminative (for situational diagnosis) and predictive capacity (high correlation with mortality). Copyright © 2016 SEGG. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  18. Perencanaan Site Layout Facilities Berdasarkan Traveling Distance Dan Safety Index Pada Proyek Pembangunan Hotel The Alimar Surabaya

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Angga Sukma Wijaya

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Proyek pembangunan hotel The Alimar Surabaya dengan 7 lantai , mempunyai luas tanah sebesar 900 m2 dengan KDB  650 m2 KLB 4550 m2. Permasalahan yang terjadi adalah bangunan tersebut mempunyai lahan yang tidak terlalu luas dan  berhimpitan langsung dengan rumah warga. Ruang gerak yang sempit akan sulit untuk menentukan penempatan site facilities. Dengan perencanaan site layout facilities yang dapat menghemat pemakaian ruang bangun. Semakin besar area yang digunakan dalam penempatan site facilities maka perjalanan antar fasilitas juga semakin banyak memakan waktu. Pembuatan alternatif site layout perlu dilakukan agar memperoleh site facilities yang optimal. Pada penelitian ini dilakukan perencanaan site layout facilities dengan traveling distance dan safety index  atau bisa disebut multi objectives function sebagai acuannya. Perencanaan site layout tersebut pada dasarnya dibagi dua tahap yaitu pada saat pekerjaan sub structure dan pekerjaan upper structure. Dari kedua tahap pekerjaan tersebut dapat menggunakan metode equal maupun unequal site layout. Pada perencanaan fasilitas juga diperhitungkan kebutuhan luas dan fasilitas material pada stock yard. Setelah melakukan iterasi dan membuat skenario-skenario bentuk site layout yang berbeda-beda kemudian terpilih salah satu yang mempunyai nilai multi objectives function paling minimum. Kemudian dengan menggunakan grafik pareto optima maka grafik tersebut mampu menunjukkan titik-titik objectives function yang paling minimum. Hasil yang di dapatkan adalah pada saat pekerjaan Sub Structure, site layout yang paling optimal adalah pada alternatif 665 yang mempunyai travelling distance dan safety index terendah dengan nilai TD sebesar 13246,18 m atau mengalami penurunan sebesar 3,30% dan nilai SI sebesar 1048 atau mengalami penurunan sebesar 5,76% dari kondisi perencanaan awal. Sedangkan Pada saat pekerjaan Upper Structure, site layout yang paling optimal adalah pada alternatif 122 yang mempunyai

  19. The possibility to increase the rated output as a result of index tests performed in Iron Gates II- Romania

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Novac, D; Pantelimon, D [Hidroelectrica - SH Portile de Fier, Str. I.G. Bibicescu Nr.2, Drobeta Turnu Severin, RO - 220103 (Romania); Popescu, E, E-mail: dragos.novac@hidroelectrica.r [Hidroelectrica Bucuresti, Str. C-tin Nacu Nr.3, Bucuresti, RO - 020995 (Romania)

    2010-08-15

    The Index Tests have been used for many years to obtain the optimized cam correlation between wicket gates and runner blades for double regulated turbines (Kaplan, bulb). The cam is based on homologous model tests and is verified by site measurements, as model tests generally do not reproduce the exact intake configuration. Index Tests have also a considerable importance for checking of the relative efficiency curve of all type of turbines and can demonstrate if the prototype efficiency curve at plant condition has the shape expected from the test of the homologues model. During the Index Tests measurements the influence of all losses at multiple points of turbine operation can be proved. This publication deals with an overview on the Index Tests made after modernization of large bulb units in Iron Gates II - Romania. These field tests, together with the comparative, fully homologous tests for the new hydraulic shape of the runner blades have confirmed the smooth operational behavior and the guaranteed performance. Over the whole 'guaranteed operating range' for H = 8m, the characteristic of the Kaplan curve (enveloping curve to the propeller curves), agreed very well to the predicted efficiency curve from the hydraulic prototype hill chart. The new cam correlation have been determined for different head and realised in the governor, normally based on model tests. The guaranteed, maximum turbine output for H = 7,8m is specified with 32, 5 MW. The maximum measured turbine output during the Index Tests on cam operation was 35,704 MW at the net head of 7,836 m. This corresponds to 35,458 MW for the specified head H= 7, 8 m. All these important improvements ensure a significant increase of annual energy production without any change of the civil construction and without increasing the runner diameter. Also the possibility to increase the turbine rated output is evident.

  20. The possibility to increase the rated output as a result of index tests performed in Iron Gates II- Romania

    Science.gov (United States)

    Novac, D.; Pantelimon, D.; Popescu, E.

    2010-08-01

    The Index Tests have been used for many years to obtain the optimized cam corellation between wicket gates and runner blades for double regulated turbines (Kaplan, bulb). The cam is based on homologous model tests and is verified by site measurements, as model tests generally do not reproduce the exact intake configuration. Index Tests have also a considerable importance for checking of the relative efficiency curve of all type of turbines and can demonstrate if the prototype efficiency curve at plant condition has the shape expected from the test of the homologues model. During the Index Tests measurements the influence of all losses at multiple points of turbine operation can be proved. This publication deals with an overview on the Index Tests made after modernization of large bulb units in Iron Gates II - Romania. These field tests, together with the comparative, fully homologous tests for the new hydraulic shape of the runner blades have confirmed the smooth operational behavior and the guaranteed performance. Over the whole "guaranteed operating range" for H = 8m, the characteristic of the Kaplan curve (enveloping curve to the proppeler curves), agreed very well to the predicted efficiency curve from the hydraulic prototype hill chart. The new cam correlation have been determined for different head and realised in the governor, normally based on model tests. The guaranteed, maximum turbine output for H = 7,8m is specified with 32, 5 MW. The maximum measured turbine output during the Index Tests on cam operation was 35,704 MW at the net head of 7,836 m. This coresponds to 35,458 MW for the specified head H= 7, 8 m. All these important improvements ensure a significant increase of annual energy production without any change of the civil construction and without increasing the runner diameter. Also the possibility to increase the turbine rated output is evident.

  1. The possibility to increase the rated output as a result of index tests performed in Iron Gates II- Romania

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Novac, D; Pantelimon, D; Popescu, E

    2010-01-01

    The Index Tests have been used for many years to obtain the optimized cam correlation between wicket gates and runner blades for double regulated turbines (Kaplan, bulb). The cam is based on homologous model tests and is verified by site measurements, as model tests generally do not reproduce the exact intake configuration. Index Tests have also a considerable importance for checking of the relative efficiency curve of all type of turbines and can demonstrate if the prototype efficiency curve at plant condition has the shape expected from the test of the homologues model. During the Index Tests measurements the influence of all losses at multiple points of turbine operation can be proved. This publication deals with an overview on the Index Tests made after modernization of large bulb units in Iron Gates II - Romania. These field tests, together with the comparative, fully homologous tests for the new hydraulic shape of the runner blades have confirmed the smooth operational behavior and the guaranteed performance. Over the whole 'guaranteed operating range' for H = 8m, the characteristic of the Kaplan curve (enveloping curve to the propeller curves), agreed very well to the predicted efficiency curve from the hydraulic prototype hill chart. The new cam correlation have been determined for different head and realised in the governor, normally based on model tests. The guaranteed, maximum turbine output for H = 7,8m is specified with 32, 5 MW. The maximum measured turbine output during the Index Tests on cam operation was 35,704 MW at the net head of 7,836 m. This corresponds to 35,458 MW for the specified head H= 7, 8 m. All these important improvements ensure a significant increase of annual energy production without any change of the civil construction and without increasing the runner diameter. Also the possibility to increase the turbine rated output is evident.

  2. Weight-for-length/height growth curves for children and adolescents in China in comparison with body mass index in prevalence estimates of malnutrition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zong, Xinnan; Li, Hui; Zhang, Yaqin; Wu, Huahong

    2017-05-01

    It is important to update weight-for-length/height growth curves in China and re-examine their performance in screening malnutrition. To develop weight-for-length/height growth curves for Chinese children and adolescents. A total of 94 302 children aged 0-19 years with complete sex, age, weight and length/height data were obtained from two cross-sectional large-scaled national surveys in China. Weight-for-length/height growth curves were constructed using the LMS method before and after average spermarcheal/menarcheal ages, respectively. Screening performance in prevalence estimates of wasting, overweight and obesity was compared between weight-for-height and body mass index (BMI) criteria based on a test population of 21 416 children aged 3-18. The smoothed weight-for-length percentiles and Z-scores growth curves with length 46-110 cm for both sexes and weight-for-height with height 70-180 cm for boys and 70-170 cm for girls were established. The weight-for-height and BMI-for-age had strong correlation in screening wasting, overweight and obesity in each age-sex group. There was no striking difference in prevalence estimates of wasting, overweight and obesity between two indicators except for obesity prevalence at ages 6-11. This set of smoothed weight-for-length/height growth curves may be useful in assessing nutritional status from infants to post-pubertal adolescents.

  3. Comparison of Paired ROC Curves through a Two-Stage Test.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Wenbao; Park, Eunsik; Chang, Yuan-Chin Ivan

    2015-01-01

    The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) is a popularly used index when comparing two ROC curves. Statistical tests based on it for analyzing the difference have been well developed. However, this index is less informative when two ROC curves cross and have similar AUCs. In order to detect differences between ROC curves in such situations, a two-stage nonparametric test that uses a shifted area under the ROC curve (sAUC), along with AUCs, is proposed for paired designs. The new procedure is shown, numerically, to be effective in terms of power under a wide range of scenarios; additionally, it outperforms two conventional ROC-type tests, especially when two ROC curves cross each other and have similar AUCs. Larger sAUC implies larger partial AUC at the range of low false-positive rates in this case. Because high specificity is important in many classification tasks, such as medical diagnosis, this is an appealing characteristic. The test also implicitly analyzes the equality of two commonly used binormal ROC curves at every operating point. We also apply the proposed method to synthesized data and two real examples to illustrate its usefulness in practice.

  4. LBA-ECO CD-04 Leaf Area Index, km 83 Tower Site, Tapajos National Forest, Brazil

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — ABSTRACT: Leaf area index was estimated in an 18 ha plot at the logged forest tower site, km 83, Tapajos National Forest, Para, Brazil. The plot was adjacent to the...

  5. Nuclear facility decommissioning and site remedial actions: A selected bibliography, Volume 13: Part 2, Indexes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Goins, L.F.; Webb, J.R.; Cravens, C.D.; Mallory, P.K.

    1992-09-01

    This is part 2 of a bibliography on nuclear facility decommissioning and site remedial action. This report contains indexes on the following: authors, corporate affiliation, title words, publication description, geographic location, subject category, and key word.

  6. Soil microbial biomass under pine forests in the north-western Spain: influence of stand age, site index and parent material

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mahia, J.; Perez-Ventura, L.; Cabaneiro, A.; Diaz-Ravina, M.

    2006-07-01

    The effects of stand age, site index and parent material on soil biochemical properties related to biomass (extractable C, microbial C and metabolic quotient) were examined in the 0-15 cm mineral soil layers of Pinus pinaster and Pinus sylvestris stand from NW Spain. Two productivity levels (low and high site index), two ages (young and old) and two parent soil materials (granite and acid schists) were considered. The data indicated that there were differences in microbial parameters in soils under different species. In general in P. pinaster forest higher values of biochemical parameters expressed on organic C basis, were observed in the stands of high site index as compared with the low ones; in contrast, in P. sylvestris no differences among stand site index were detected. In both species different results were also observed depending on parent material and a significant effect of stand age was detected for extractable C and microbial C in P. pinaster forest developed over granite. The data seem to indicate that measured parameters may have the potential to be used as indicators of the effect of forest management on soil organic matter quality. (Author) 25 refs.

  7. LBA-ECO CD-04 Leaf Area Index, km 83 Tower Site, Tapajos National Forest, Brazil

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Leaf area index was estimated in an 18 ha plot at the logged forest tower site, km 83, Tapajos National Forest, Para, Brazil. The plot was adjacent to the eddy flux...

  8. Calculation of the capnographic index based on expiratory molar mass-volume-curves--a suitable tool to screen for cystic fibrosis lung disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fuchs, Susanne I; Junge, Sibylle; Ellemunter, Helmut; Ballmann, Manfred; Gappa, Monika

    2013-05-01

    Volumetric capnography reflecting the course of CO2-exhalation is used to assess ventilation inhomogeneity. Calculation of the slope of expiratory phase 3 and the capnographic index (KPIv) from expirograms allows quantification of extent and severity of small airway impairment. However, technical limitations have hampered more widespread use of this technique. Using expiratory molar mass-volume-curves sampled with a handheld ultrasonic flow sensor during tidal breathing is a novel approach to extract similar information from expirograms in a simpler manner possibly qualifying as a screening tool for clinical routine. The aim of the present study was to evaluate calculation of the KPIv based on molar mass-volume-curves sampled with an ultrasonic flow sensor in patients with CF and controls by assessing feasibility, reproducibility and comparability with the Lung Clearance Index (LCI) derived from multiple breath washout (MBW) used as the reference method. Measurements were performed in patients with CF and healthy controls during a single test occasion using the EasyOne Pro, MBW Module (ndd Medical Technologies, Switzerland). Capnography and MBW were performed in 87/96 patients with CF and 38/42 controls, with a success rate of 90.6% for capnography. Mean age (range) was 12.1 (4-25) years. Mean (SD) KPIv was 6.94 (3.08) in CF and 5.10 (2.06) in controls (p=0.001). Mean LCI (SD) was 8.0 (1.4) in CF and 6.2 (0.4) in controls (p=molar mass-volume-curves is feasible. KPIv is significantly different between patients with CF and controls and correlates with the LCI. However, individual data revealed a relevant overlap between patients and controls requiring further evaluation, before this method can be recommended for clinical use. Copyright © 2012 European Cystic Fibrosis Society. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  9. Power curve report

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vesth, Allan; Kock, Carsten Weber

    The report describes power curve measurements carried out on a given wind turbine. The measurements are carried out in accordance to Ref. [1]. A site calibration has been carried out; see Ref. [2], and the measured flow correction factors for different wind directions are used in the present...

  10. A novel structural risk index for primary spontaneous pneumothorax: Ankara Numune Risk Index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akkas, Yucel; Peri, Neslihan Gulay; Kocer, Bulent; Kaplan, Tevfik; Alhan, Aslihan

    2017-07-01

    In this study, we aimed to reveal a novel risk index as a structural risk marker for primary spontanoeus pneumothorax using body mass index and chest height, structural risk factors for pneumothorax development. Records of 86 cases admitted between February 2014 and January 2015 with or without primary spontaneous pneumothorax were analysed retrospectively. The patients were allocated to two groups as Group I and Group II. The patients were evaluated with regard to age, gender, pneumothorax side, duration of hospital stay, treatment type, recurrence, chest height and transverse diameter on posteroanterior chest graphy and body mass index. Body mass index ratio per cm of chest height was calculated by dividing body mass index with chest height. We named this risk index ratio which is defined first as 'Ankara Numune Risk Index'. Diagnostic value of Ankara Numune Risk Index value for prediction of primary spontaneous pneumothorax development was analysed with Receiver Operating Characteristics curver. Of 86 patients, 69 (80.2%) were male and 17 (19.8%) were female. Each group was composed of 43 (50%) patients. When Receiver Operating Characteristics curve analysis was done for optimal limit value 0.74 of Ankara Numune Risk Index determined for prediction of pneumothorax development risk, area under the curve was 0.925 (95% Cl, 0.872-0.977, p pneumothorax development however it is insufficient for determining recurrence. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Taiwan.

  11. Reference curves of the body fat index in adolescents and their association with anthropometric variables

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Renata Rago Frignani

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: To develop reference curves for the body fat index (BFI in the pediatric population, in adolescents from the city of São Paulo, Brazil, and verify their association with body mass index and body fat percentage. Methods: The study is part of the research project “Nutritional Profile of Adolescents from Public and Private Schools of São Paulo” that was performed in 2004-2005. A total of 4,686 adolescents (2,130 boys and 2,556 girls aged 10-15 years were divided into two groups: 10-12 and 13-15 years of age. Body mass, height, body mass index, hip circumference, body fat percentage, body fat index, and sexual maturation performed by the self-assessment method (prepubertal, pubertal, and postpubertal were analyzed. ANOVA was performed, as well as percentile distribution, Pearson's correlation, and Bland-Altman plot. Results: In boys, there was an increase in body mass, height, body mass index, and hip circumference with advancing age and Tanner stage. In girls, there was an increase in body fat index and body fat percentage with advancing age and stage of sexual maturation. An association was found between body fat index and body mass index (r = 0.67 in boys and 0.80 in girls, p < 0.001 and body fat percentage (r = 0.71 in boys and 0.68 in girls, p < 0.001. Conclusion: The body fat index seems to reflect well the phenomena of sexual dimorphism in adolescence, is easy to perform, and represents a method that should be used in population samples. Resumo: Objetivos: Desenvolver curvas de referência do índice de adiposidade corporal para população pediátrica, em adolescentes da cidade de São Paulo, Brasil, e verificar a sua relação com o índice de massa corporal e percentual de gordura corporal. Métodos: O estudo faz parte do projeto de pesquisa “Perfil Nutricional de Adolescentes de escolas Públicas e Privadas de São Paulo” realizado em 2004/2005. 4.686 adolescentes (2.130 meninos e 2.556 meninas de 10-15 anos

  12. Power Curve Measurements

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Federici, Paolo; Vesth, Allan

    The report describes power curve measurements carried out on a given wind turbine. The measurements are carried out in accordance to Ref. [1]. A site calibration has been carried out; see Ref. [2], and the measured flow correction factors for different wind directions are used in the present...... analyze of power performance of the turbine....

  13. Power Curve Measurements

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Villanueva, Héctor; Gómez Arranz, Paula

    The report describes power curve measurements carried out on a given wind turbine. The measurements are carried out in accordance to Ref. [1]. A site calibration has been carried out; see Ref. [2], and the measured flow correction factors for different wind directions are used in the present...... analyze of power performance of the turbine...

  14. Benchmark numerical solutions for radiative heat transfer in two-dimensional medium with graded index distribution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu, L.H. [School of Energy Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, 92 West Dazhi Street, Harbin 150001 (China)]. E-mail: lhliu@hit.edu.cn

    2006-11-15

    In graded index media, the ray goes along a curved path determined by Fermat principle. Generally, the curved ray trajectory in graded index media is a complex implicit function, and the curved ray tracing is very difficult and complex. Only for some special refractive index distributions, the curved ray trajectory can be expressed as a simple explicit function. Two important examples are the layered and the radial graded index distributions. In this paper, the radiative heat transfer problems in two-dimensional square semitransparent with layered and radial graded index distributions are analyzed. After deduction of the ray trajectory, the radiative heat transfer problems are solved by using the Monte Carlo curved ray-tracing method. Some numerical solutions of dimensionless net radiative heat flux and medium temperature are tabulated as the benchmark solutions for the future development of approximation techniques for multi-dimensional radiative heat transfer in graded index media.

  15. Carbon Lorenz Curves

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Groot, L. [Utrecht University, Utrecht School of Economics, Janskerkhof 12, 3512 BL Utrecht (Netherlands)

    2008-11-15

    The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it exhibits that standard tools in the measurement of income inequality, such as the Lorenz curve and the Gini-index, can successfully be applied to the issues of inequality measurement of carbon emissions and the equity of abatement policies across countries. These tools allow policy-makers and the general public to grasp at a single glance the impact of conventional distribution rules such as equal caps or grandfathering, or more sophisticated ones, on the distribution of greenhouse gas emissions. Second, using the Samuelson rule for the optimal provision of a public good, the Pareto-optimal distribution of carbon emissions is compared with the distribution that follows if countries follow Nash-Cournot abatement strategies. It is shown that the Pareto-optimal distribution under the Samuelson rule can be approximated by the equal cap division, represented by the diagonal in the Lorenz curve diagram.

  16. Linking climate, gross primary productivity, and site index across forests of the western United States

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aaron R. Weiskittel; Nicholas L. Crookston; Philip J. Radtke

    2011-01-01

    Assessing forest productivity is important for developing effective management regimes and predicting future growth. Despite some important limitations, the most common means for quantifying forest stand-level potential productivity is site index (SI). Another measure of productivity is gross primary production (GPP). In this paper, SI is compared with GPP estimates...

  17. Seismic waves travel-time curve, basing on the results of signal detection from chemical explosions detonated at Semipalatinsk Test Site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mikhajlova, N.N.; Aristova, I.L.; Germanova, T.I.

    2001-01-01

    A large amount of digital seismic data from the permanent and temporary seismic stations was acquired in the result of detonation of large chemical explosions at Semipalatinsk Test Site. All the records were collected, systematized and processed, and databases were created. Travel-time curves for regional Pn, Pg, Sn and Lg waves were created and compared with the ones used in routine earthquake processing practice. (author)

  18. Radiative transfer equation for graded index medium in cylindrical and spherical coordinate systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, L.H.; Zhang, L.; Tan, H.P.

    2006-01-01

    In graded index medium, the ray goes along a curved path determined by Fermat principle, and the curved ray-tracing is very difficult and complex. To avoid the complicated and time-consuming computation of curved ray trajectory, the methods not based on ray-tracing technique need to be developed for the solution of radiative transfer in graded index medium. For this purpose, in this paper the streaming operator along a curved ray trajectory in original radiative transfer equation for graded index medium is transformed and expressed in spatial and angular ordinates and the radiative transfer equation for graded index medium in cylindrical and spherical coordinate systems are derived. The conservative and the non-conservative forms of radiative transfer equation for three-dimensional graded index medium are given, which can be used as base equations to develop the numerical simulation methods, such as finite volume method, discrete ordinates method, and finite element method, for radiative transfer in graded index medium in cylindrical and spherical coordinate systems

  19. Low-loss curved subwavelength grating waveguide based on index engineering

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Zheng; Xu, Xiaochuan; Fan, D. L.; Wang, Yaoguo; Chen, Ray T.

    2016-03-01

    Subwavelength grating (SWG) waveguide is an intriguing alternative to conventional optical waveguides due to its freedom to tune a few important waveguide properties such as dispersion and refractive index. Devices based on SWG waveguide have demonstrated impressive performances compared to those of conventional waveguides. However, the large loss of SWG waveguide bends jeopardizes their applications in integrated photonics circuits. In this work, we propose that a predistorted refractive index distribution in SWG waveguide bends can effectively decrease the mode mismatch noise and radiation loss simultaneously, and thus significantly reduce the bend loss. Here, we achieved the pre-distortion refractive index distribution by using trapezoidal silicon pillars. This geometry tuning approach is numerically optimized and experimentally demonstrated. The average insertion loss of a 5 μm SWG waveguide bend can be reduced drastically from 5.58 dB to 1.37 dB per 90° bend for quasi-TE polarization. In the future, the proposed approach can be readily adopted to enhance performance of an array of SWG waveguide-based photonics devices.

  20. The genus curve of the Abell clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rhoads, James E.; Gott, J. Richard, III; Postman, Marc

    1994-01-01

    We study the topology of large-scale structure through a genus curve measurement of the recent Abell catalog redshift survey of Postman, Huchra, and Geller (1992). The structure is found to be spongelike near median density and to exhibit isolated superclusters and voids at high and low densities, respectively. The genus curve shows a slight shift toward 'meatball' topology, but remains consistent with the hypothesis of Gaussian random phase initial conditions. The amplitude of the genus curve corresponds to a power-law spectrum with index n = 0.21-0.47+0.43 on scales of 48/h Mpc or to a cold dark matter power spectrum with omega h = 0.36-0.17+0.46.

  1. The genus curve of the Abell clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rhoads, James E.; Gott, J. Richard, III; Postman, Marc

    1994-01-01

    We study the topology of large-scale structure through a genus curve measurement of the recent Abell catalog redshift survey of Postman, Huchra, and Geller (1992). The structure is found to be spongelike near median density and to exhibit isolated superclusters and voids at high and low densities, respectively. The genus curve shows a slight shift toward 'meatball' topology, but remains consistent with the hypothesis of Gaussian random phase initial conditions. The amplitude of the genus curve corresponds to a power-law spectrum with index n = 0.21(sub -0.47 sup +0.43) on scales of 48/h Mpc or to a cold dark matter power spectrum with omega h = 0.36(sub -0.17 sup +0.46).

  2. Monte Carlo method for polarized radiative transfer in gradient-index media

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao, J.M.; Tan, J.Y.; Liu, L.H.

    2015-01-01

    Light transfer in gradient-index media generally follows curved ray trajectories, which will cause light beam to converge or diverge during transfer and induce the rotation of polarization ellipse even when the medium is transparent. Furthermore, the combined process of scattering and transfer along curved ray path makes the problem more complex. In this paper, a Monte Carlo method is presented to simulate polarized radiative transfer in gradient-index media that only support planar ray trajectories. The ray equation is solved to the second order to address the effect induced by curved ray trajectories. Three types of test cases are presented to verify the performance of the method, which include transparent medium, Mie scattering medium with assumed gradient index distribution, and Rayleigh scattering with realistic atmosphere refractive index profile. It is demonstrated that the atmospheric refraction has significant effect for long distance polarized light transfer. - Highlights: • A Monte Carlo method for polarized radiative transfer in gradient index media. • Effect of curved ray paths on polarized radiative transfer is considered. • Importance of atmospheric refraction for polarized light transfer is demonstrated

  3. Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve-Based Prediction Model for Periodontal Disease Updated With the Calibrated Community Periodontal Index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su, Chiu-Wen; Yen, Amy Ming-Fang; Lai, Hongmin; Chen, Hsiu-Hsi; Chen, Sam Li-Sheng

    2017-12-01

    The accuracy of a prediction model for periodontal disease using the community periodontal index (CPI) has been undertaken by using an area under a receiver operating characteristics (AUROC) curve. How the uncalibrated CPI, as measured by general dentists trained by periodontists in a large epidemiologic study, and affects the performance in a prediction model, has not been researched yet. A two-stage design was conducted by first proposing a validation study to calibrate CPI between a senior periodontal specialist and trained general dentists who measured CPIs in the main study of a nationwide survey. A Bayesian hierarchical logistic regression model was applied to estimate the non-updated and updated clinical weights used for building up risk scores. How the calibrated CPI affected performance of the updated prediction model was quantified by comparing AUROC curves between the original and updated models. Estimates regarding calibration of CPI obtained from the validation study were 66% and 85% for sensitivity and specificity, respectively. After updating, clinical weights of each predictor were inflated, and the risk score for the highest risk category was elevated from 434 to 630. Such an update improved the AUROC performance of the two corresponding prediction models from 62.6% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 61.7% to 63.6%) for the non-updated model to 68.9% (95% CI: 68.0% to 69.6%) for the updated one, reaching a statistically significant difference (P prediction model was demonstrated for periodontal disease as measured by the calibrated CPI derived from a large epidemiologic survey.

  4. Developing Novel Reservoir Rule Curves Using Seasonal Inflow Projections

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tseng, Hsin-yi; Tung, Ching-pin

    2015-04-01

    Due to significant seasonal rainfall variations, reservoirs and their flexible operational rules are indispensable to Taiwan. Furthermore, with the intensifying impacts of climate change on extreme climate, the frequency of droughts in Taiwan has been increasing in recent years. Drought is a creeping phenomenon, the slow onset character of drought makes it difficult to detect at an early stage, and causes delays on making the best decision of allocating water. For these reasons, novel reservoir rule curves using projected seasonal streamflow are proposed in this study, which can potentially reduce the adverse effects of drought. This study dedicated establishing new rule curves which consider both current available storage and anticipated monthly inflows with leading time of two months to reduce the risk of water shortage. The monthly inflows are projected based on the seasonal climate forecasts from Central Weather Bureau (CWB), which a weather generation model is used to produce daily weather data for the hydrological component of the GWLF. To incorporate future monthly inflow projections into rule curves, this study designs a decision flow index which is a linear combination of current available storage and inflow projections with leading time of 2 months. By optimizing linear relationship coefficients of decision flow index, the shape of rule curves and the percent of water supply in each zone, the best rule curves to decrease water shortage risk and impacts can be developed. The Shimen Reservoir in the northern Taiwan is used as a case study to demonstrate the proposed method. Existing rule curves (M5 curves) of Shimen Reservoir are compared with two cases of new rule curves, including hindcast simulations and historic seasonal forecasts. The results show new rule curves can decrease the total water shortage ratio, and in addition, it can also allocate shortage amount to preceding months to avoid extreme shortage events. Even though some uncertainties in

  5. Magneto-electro-elastic buckling analysis of nonlocal curved nanobeams

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ebrahimi, Farzad; Reza Barati, Mohammad

    2016-09-01

    In this work, a size-dependent curved beam model is developed to take into account the effects of nonlocal stresses on the buckling behavior of curved magneto-electro-elastic FG nanobeams for the first time. The governing differential equations are derived based on the principle of virtual work and Euler-Bernoulli beam theory. The power-law function is employed to describe the spatially graded magneto-electro-elastic properties. By extending the radius of the curved nanobeam to infinity, the results of straight nonlocal FG beams can be rendered. The effects of magnetic potential, electric voltage, opening angle, nonlocal parameter, power-law index and slenderness ratio on buckling loads of curved MEE-FG nanobeams are studied.

  6. Greater Activity in the Frontal Cortex on Left Curves: A Vector-Based fNIRS Study of Left and Right Curve Driving.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Noriyuki Oka

    Full Text Available In the brain, the mechanisms of attention to the left and the right are known to be different. It is possible that brain activity when driving also differs with different horizontal road alignments (left or right curves, but little is known about this. We found driver brain activity to be different when driving on left and right curves, in an experiment using a large-scale driving simulator and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS.The participants were fifteen healthy adults. We created a course simulating an expressway, comprising straight line driving and gentle left and right curves, and monitored the participants under driving conditions, in which they drove at a constant speed of 100 km/h, and under non-driving conditions, in which they simply watched the screen (visual task. Changes in hemoglobin concentrations were monitored at 48 channels including the prefrontal cortex, the premotor cortex, the primary motor cortex and the parietal cortex. From orthogonal vectors of changes in deoxyhemoglobin and changes in oxyhemoglobin, we calculated changes in cerebral oxygen exchange, reflecting neural activity, and statistically compared the resulting values from the right and left curve sections.Under driving conditions, there were no sites where cerebral oxygen exchange increased significantly more during right curves than during left curves (p > 0.05, but cerebral oxygen exchange increased significantly more during left curves (p < 0.05 in the right premotor cortex, the right frontal eye field and the bilateral prefrontal cortex. Under non-driving conditions, increases were significantly greater during left curves (p < 0.05 only in the right frontal eye field.Left curve driving was thus found to require more brain activity at multiple sites, suggesting that left curve driving may require more visual attention than right curve driving. The right frontal eye field was activated under both driving and non-driving conditions.

  7. Greater Activity in the Frontal Cortex on Left Curves: A Vector-Based fNIRS Study of Left and Right Curve Driving

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oka, Noriyuki; Yoshino, Kayoko; Yamamoto, Kouji; Takahashi, Hideki; Li, Shuguang; Sugimachi, Toshiyuki; Nakano, Kimihiko; Suda, Yoshihiro; Kato, Toshinori

    2015-01-01

    Objectives In the brain, the mechanisms of attention to the left and the right are known to be different. It is possible that brain activity when driving also differs with different horizontal road alignments (left or right curves), but little is known about this. We found driver brain activity to be different when driving on left and right curves, in an experiment using a large-scale driving simulator and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Research Design and Methods The participants were fifteen healthy adults. We created a course simulating an expressway, comprising straight line driving and gentle left and right curves, and monitored the participants under driving conditions, in which they drove at a constant speed of 100 km/h, and under non-driving conditions, in which they simply watched the screen (visual task). Changes in hemoglobin concentrations were monitored at 48 channels including the prefrontal cortex, the premotor cortex, the primary motor cortex and the parietal cortex. From orthogonal vectors of changes in deoxyhemoglobin and changes in oxyhemoglobin, we calculated changes in cerebral oxygen exchange, reflecting neural activity, and statistically compared the resulting values from the right and left curve sections. Results Under driving conditions, there were no sites where cerebral oxygen exchange increased significantly more during right curves than during left curves (p > 0.05), but cerebral oxygen exchange increased significantly more during left curves (p right premotor cortex, the right frontal eye field and the bilateral prefrontal cortex. Under non-driving conditions, increases were significantly greater during left curves (p right frontal eye field. Conclusions Left curve driving was thus found to require more brain activity at multiple sites, suggesting that left curve driving may require more visual attention than right curve driving. The right frontal eye field was activated under both driving and non-driving conditions

  8. Impact damage imaging in a curved composite panel with wavenumber index via Riesz transform

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Huan-Yu; Yuan, Fuh-Gwo

    2018-03-01

    The barely visible impact damages reduce the strength of composite structures significantly; however, they are difficult to be detected during regular visual inspection. A guided wave based damage imaging condition method is developed and applied on a curved composite panel, which is a part of an aileron from a retired Boeing C-17 Globemaster III. Ultrasonic guided waves are excited by a piezoelectric transducer (PZT) and then captured by a laser Doppler vibrometer (LDV). The wavefield images are constructed by measuring the out-of-plane velocity point by point within interrogation region, and the anomalies at the damage area can be observed with naked eye. The discontinuities of material properties leads to the change of wavenumber while the wave propagating through the damaged area. These differences in wavenumber can be observed by deriving instantaneous wave vector via Riesz transform (RT), and then be shown and highlighted with the proposed imaging condition named wavenumber index (WI). RT can be introduced as a two-dimensional (2-D) generalization of Hilbert transform (HT) to derive instantaneous phases, amplitudes, orientations of a guided-wave field. WI employs the instantaneous wave vector and weighted instantaneous wave energy computed from the instantaneous amplitudes, yielding high sensitivity and sharp damage image with computational efficiency. The BVID of the composite structure becomes therefore "visible" with the developed technique.

  9. A simplified early-warning system for imminent landslide prediction based on failure index fragility curves developed through numerical analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ugur Ozturk

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Early-warning systems (EWSs are crucial to reduce the risk of landslide, especially where the structural measures are not fully capable of preventing the devastating impact of such an event. Furthermore, designing and successfully implementing a complete landslide EWS is a highly complex task. The main technical challenges are linked to the definition of heterogeneous material properties (geotechnical and geomechanical parameters as well as a variety of the triggering factors. In addition, real-time data processing creates a significant complexity, since data collection and numerical models for risk assessment are time consuming tasks. Therefore, uncertainties in the physical properties of a landslide together with the data management represent the two crucial deficiencies in an efficient landslide EWS. Within this study the application is explored of the concept of fragility curves to landslides; fragility curves are widely used to simulate systems response to natural hazards, i.e. floods or earthquakes. The application of fragility curves to landslide risk assessment is believed to simplify emergency risk assessment; even though it cannot substitute detailed analysis during peace-time. A simplified risk assessment technique can remove some of the unclear features and decrease data processing time. The method is based on synthetic samples which are used to define the approximate failure thresholds for landslides, taking into account the materials and the piezometric levels. The results are presented in charts. The method presented in this paper, which is called failure index fragility curve (FIFC, allows assessment of the actual real-time risk in a case study that is based on the most appropriate FIFC. The application of an FIFC to a real case is presented as an example. This method to assess the landslide risk is another step towards a more integrated dynamic approach to a potential landslide prevention system. Even if it does not define

  10. Power Curve Measurements, FGW

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vesth, Allan; Kock, Carsten Weber

    The report describes power curve measurements carried out on a given wind turbine. The measurements are carried out in accordance to Ref. [1]. A site calibration has been carried out; see Ref. [2], and the measured flow correction factors for different wind directions are used in the present...... analyze of power performance of the turbine....

  11. Power Curve Measurements FGW

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Federici, Paolo; Kock, Carsten Weber

    The report describes power curve measurements carried out on a given wind turbine. The measurements are carried out in accordance to Ref. [1]. A site calibration has been carried out; see Ref. [2], and the measured flow correction factors for different wind directions are used in the present...... analyze of power performance of the turbine...

  12. Lodgepole pine site index in relation to synoptic measures of climate, soil moisture and soil nutrients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    G. Geoff Wang; Shongming Huang; Robert A. Monserud; Ryan J. Klos

    2004-01-01

    Lodgepole pine site index was examined in relation to synoptic measures of topography, soil moisture, and soil nutrients in Alberta. Data came from 214 lodgepole pine-dominated stands sampled as a part of the provincial permanent sample plot program. Spatial location (elevation, latitude, and longitude) and natural subregions (NSRs) were topographic variables that...

  13. Nuclear facility decommissioning and site remedial actions: A selected bibliography, Volume 13: Part 2, Indexes. Environmental Restoration Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Goins, L.F.; Webb, J.R.; Cravens, C.D.; Mallory, P.K.

    1992-09-01

    This is part 2 of a bibliography on nuclear facility decommissioning and site remedial action. This report contains indexes on the following: authors, corporate affiliation, title words, publication description, geographic location, subject category, and key word.

  14. A novel clinical index for the assessment of RVD in acute pulmonary embolism: Blood pressure index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ates, Hale; Ates, Ihsan; Kundi, Harun; Arikan, Mehmet Fettah; Yilmaz, Fatma Meric

    2017-10-01

    This study aims to investigate the role of the blood pressure index (BPI), which is a new index that we developed, in detection of right ventricular dysfunction (RVD) in acute pulmonary embolism (APE). A total of 539 patients, (253 males and 286 females), diagnosed with APE using computer tomography pulmonary angiography were included in the study. The BPI was obtained by dividing systolic blood pressure (SBP) by diastolic blood pressure (DBP). Mean DBP (75±11mmHg vs 63±15mmHg; p<0.001, respectively) was found to be higher in RVD patients compared to those without RVD, whereas BPI (1.5±0.1 vs 1.9±0.2; p<0.001, respectively) was lower. Examining the performance of BPI in prediction of RVD using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis (area under curve±SE=0.975±0.006; p<0.001), it was found that BPI could predict RVD with very high sensitivity (92.8%) and specificity (100%) and had a positive predictive value of 100% and a negative predictive value of 42.1%. According to the analysis, the highest youden index for the optimal prediction value was found to be 0.478 and the BPI≤1.4 was found to predict mortality 68.6% sensitivity and 80.8% specificity (Area under curve±SE=0.777±0.051; p<0.001). We found that BPI was an index with high positive predictive value and low negative predictive value in detection of RVD. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. Growth Curves for Girls with Turner Syndrome

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fabio Bertapelli

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this study was to review the growth curves for Turner syndrome, evaluate the methodological and statistical quality, and suggest potential growth curves for clinical practice guidelines. The search was carried out in the databases Medline and Embase. Of 1006 references identified, 15 were included. Studies constructed curves for weight, height, weight/height, body mass index, head circumference, height velocity, leg length, and sitting height. The sample ranged between 47 and 1,565 (total = 6,273 girls aged 0 to 24 y, born between 1950 and 2006. The number of measures ranged from 580 to 9,011 (total = 28,915. Most studies showed strengths such as sample size, exclusion of the use of growth hormone and androgen, and analysis of confounding variables. However, the growth curves were restricted to height, lack of information about selection bias, limited distributional properties, and smoothing aspects. In conclusion, we observe the need to construct an international growth reference for girls with Turner syndrome, in order to provide support for clinical practice guidelines.

  16. Sediment acoustic index method for computing continuous suspended-sediment concentrations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Landers, Mark N.; Straub, Timothy D.; Wood, Molly S.; Domanski, Marian M.

    2016-07-11

    Suspended-sediment characteristics can be computed using acoustic indices derived from acoustic Doppler velocity meter (ADVM) backscatter data. The sediment acoustic index method applied in these types of studies can be used to more accurately and cost-effectively provide time-series estimates of suspended-sediment concentration and load, which is essential for informed solutions to many sediment-related environmental, engineering, and agricultural concerns. Advantages of this approach over other sediment surrogate methods include: (1) better representation of cross-sectional conditions from large measurement volumes, compared to other surrogate instruments that measure data at a single point; (2) high temporal resolution of collected data; (3) data integrity when biofouling is present; and (4) less rating curve hysteresis compared to streamflow as a surrogate. An additional advantage of this technique is the potential expansion of monitoring suspended-sediment concentrations at sites with existing ADVMs used in streamflow velocity monitoring. This report provides much-needed standard techniques for sediment acoustic index methods to help ensure accurate and comparable documented results.

  17. Evaluating Variability and Uncertainty of Geological Strength Index at a Specific Site

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yu; Aladejare, Adeyemi Emman

    2016-09-01

    Geological Strength Index (GSI) is an important parameter for estimating rock mass properties. GSI can be estimated from quantitative GSI chart, as an alternative to the direct observational method which requires vast geological experience of rock. GSI chart was developed from past observations and engineering experience, with either empiricism or some theoretical simplifications. The GSI chart thereby contains model uncertainty which arises from its development. The presence of such model uncertainty affects the GSI estimated from GSI chart at a specific site; it is, therefore, imperative to quantify and incorporate the model uncertainty during GSI estimation from the GSI chart. A major challenge for quantifying the GSI chart model uncertainty is a lack of the original datasets that have been used to develop the GSI chart, since the GSI chart was developed from past experience without referring to specific datasets. This paper intends to tackle this problem by developing a Bayesian approach for quantifying the model uncertainty in GSI chart when using it to estimate GSI at a specific site. The model uncertainty in the GSI chart and the inherent spatial variability in GSI are modeled explicitly in the Bayesian approach. The Bayesian approach generates equivalent samples of GSI from the integrated knowledge of GSI chart, prior knowledge and observation data available from site investigation. Equations are derived for the Bayesian approach, and the proposed approach is illustrated using data from a drill and blast tunnel project. The proposed approach effectively tackles the problem of how to quantify the model uncertainty that arises from using GSI chart for characterization of site-specific GSI in a transparent manner.

  18. Logging and Agricultural Residue Supply Curves for the Pacific Northwest

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kerstetter, James D.; Lyons, John Kim

    2001-01-01

    This report quantified the volume of logging residues at the county level for current timber harvests. The cost of recovering logging residues was determined for skidding, yearding, loading, chipping and transporting the residues. Supply curves were developed for ten candidate conversion sites in the Pacific Northwest Region. Agricultural field residues were also quantified at the county level using five-year average crop yields. Agronomic constraints were applied to arrive at the volumes available for energy use. Collection costs and transportation costs were determined and supply curves generated for thirteen candidate conversion sites.

  19. Bayesian spatial prediction of the site index in the study of the Missouri Ozark Forest Ecosystem Project

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiaoqian Sun; Zhuoqiong He; John Kabrick

    2008-01-01

    This paper presents a Bayesian spatial method for analysing the site index data from the Missouri Ozark Forest Ecosystem Project (MOFEP). Based on ecological background and availability, we select three variables, the aspect class, the soil depth and the land type association as covariates for analysis. To allow great flexibility of the smoothness of the random field,...

  20. Research on cylindrical indexing cam’s unilateral machining

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Junhua Chen

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available The cylindrical cam ridge of the indexer is a spatial curved surface, which is difficult to design and machine. The cylindrical cam has some defects after machining because conventional machining methods have inaccuracies. This article aims at proposing a precise way to machine an indexing cam, using basic motion analysis and analytic geometry approach. Analytical methodology is first applied in the cam’s motion analysis, to obtain an error-free cam follower’s trajectory formula, and then separate the continuous trajectory curve by thousandth resolution, to create a three-dimensional discrete trajectory curve. Planar formulae and spherical formulae can be built on the loci. Based on the machine principle, the cutting cutter’s position and orientation will be taken into account. This article calculates the formula set as presented previously and obtains the ultimate cutter path coordinate value. The new error-free cutter path trajectory is called the unilateral machining trajectory. The earned results will compile into numerical control processing schedule. This processing methodology gives a convenient and precision way to manufacture a cylindrical indexing cam. Experimental results are also well supported.

  1. Consideration of uncertainties in CCDF risk curves in safety oriented decision making processes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stern, E.; Tadmor, J.

    1988-01-01

    In recent years, some of the results of Probabilistic Risk Assessment (i.e. the magnitudes of the various adverse health effects and other effects of potential accidents in nuclear power plants) have usually been presented in Complementary Cumulative Distribution Function curves, widely known as CCDF risk curves. CCDF curves are characteristic of probabilistic accident analyses and consequence calculations, although, in many cases, the codes producing the CCDF curves consist of a mixture of both probabilistic and deterministic calculations. One of the main difficulties in the process of PRA is the problem of uncertainties associated with the risk assessments. The uncertainties, as expressed in CCDF risk curves can be classified into two main categories: (a) uncertainties expressed by the CCDF risk curve itself due to its probabilistic nature and - (b) the uncertainty band of CCDF risk curves. The band consists of a ''family of CCDF curves'' which represents the risks (e.g. early/late fatalities) evaluated at various levels of confidence for a specific Plant-Site Combination (PSC) i.e. a certain nuclear power plant located at a certain site. The reasons why a family of curves rather than a single curve represents the risk of a certain PSC have been discussed. Generally, the uncertainty band of CCDF curves is limited by the 95% (''conservative'') and the 5% curves. In most cases the 50% (median, ''best estimate'') curve is also shown because scientists tend to believe that it represents the ''realistic'' (or real) risk of the plant

  2. QUENCH: A software package for the determination of quenching curves in Liquid Scintillation counting

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cassette, Philippe

    2016-01-01

    In Liquid Scintillation Counting (LSC), the scintillating source is part of the measurement system and its detection efficiency varies with the scintillator used, the vial and the volume and the chemistry of the sample. The detection efficiency is generally determined using a quenching curve, describing, for a specific radionuclide, the relationship between a quenching index given by the counter and the detection efficiency. A quenched set of LS standard sources are prepared by adding a quenching agent and the quenching index and detection efficiency are determined for each source. Then a simple formula is fitted to the experimental points to define the quenching curve function. The paper describes a software package specifically devoted to the determination of quenching curves with uncertainties. The experimental measurements are described by their quenching index and detection efficiency with uncertainties on both quantities. Random Gaussian fluctuations of these experimental measurements are sampled and a polynomial or logarithmic function is fitted on each fluctuation by χ"2 minimization. This Monte Carlo procedure is repeated many times and eventually the arithmetic mean and the experimental standard deviation of each parameter are calculated, together with the covariances between these parameters. Using these parameters, the detection efficiency, corresponding to an arbitrary quenching index within the measured range, can be calculated. The associated uncertainty is calculated with the law of propagation of variances, including the covariance terms. - Highlights: • The program “QUENCH” is devoted to the interpolation of quenching curves in LSC. • Functions are fitted to experimental data with uncertainties in both quenching and efficiency. • The parameters of the fitting function and the associated covariance matrix are evaluated. • The detection efficiency and uncertainty corresponding to a given quenching index is calculated.

  3. Climate Prediction Center - Site Index

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weather Service NWS logo - Click to go to the NWS home page Climate Prediction Center Home Site Map News Means Bulletins Annual Winter Stratospheric Ozone Climate Diagnostics Bulletin (Most Recent) Climate (Hazards Outlook) Climate Assessment: Dec. 1999-Feb. 2000 (Seasonal) Climate Assessment: Mar-May 2000

  4. Glycaemic Index and Glycaemic Load of Pounded yam in Diabetic ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Incremental area under the blood glucose curve (IAUC) was used to determine the glycaemic index. Glycaemic load was determined using the percentage of available carbohydrate in the meal multiplied by the glycaemic index. Result: The glycaemic index of pounded yam was 61 and 59 in the diabetic type-2 and healthy ...

  5. Comparison of different sets of instruments for laparoendoscopic single-site surgery in a surgical simulator with novices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Dong; Shi, Long-Qing; Wang, Jing-Min; Jiang, Xiao-Hua; Ji, Zhen-Ling

    2016-04-01

    Given the parallel entry of working instruments through a single incision in laparoendoscopic single-site surgery, loss of triangulation in the abdominal cavity and counteracting movements of the instruments are inevitable obstacles. Some specially designed devices have emerged to ameliorate these challenges. Twenty-four novice participants were randomized into four groups using assigned instruments, conventional straight instruments, single-curved instruments, double-curved instruments and articulating instruments, respectively, to perform two basic tasks (peg transferring and pattern cutting) 14 times in a modified simulator. A test of the tasks and a resection of the intestine segment of a rat were performed. The task scores and evaluation of intraoperative skills during the resection of the intestine segment were recorded. The instrument of modified National Aeronautics and Space Administration Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) was completed. The task scores of the groups using single-curved instruments and articulating instruments were better than the other two groups on the simulator tasks, consistent with the evaluation of intraoperative skills during the resection of intestine segment. As the proficiency with the instruments increased, the task scores improved, as demonstrated by the learning curve. The workload measured by the modified NASA-TLX tool demonstrated that the groups using articulating instruments and double-curved instruments had a heavier workload in most of the categories compared with the other two groups. Single-curved and articulating instruments are more effective than conventional straight and double-curved devices, and are favourable in laparoendoscopic single-site surgery for novice learners. © 2013 Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.

  6. Calculate Your Body Mass Index

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Can! ) Health Professional Resources Calculate Your Body Mass Index Body mass index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based ... Health Information Email Alerts Jobs and Careers Site Index About NHLBI National Institute of Health Department of ...

  7. Learning curve for laparoendoscopic single-site surgery for an experienced laparoscopic surgeon

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pao-Ling Torng

    2013-11-01

    Conclusion: LESS is a safe and feasible alternative to conventional laparoscopic surgery for adnexal and uterine diseases. A learning curve is not required for LESS surgery for experienced laparoscopic surgeons.

  8. Body Mass Index Table

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Families ( We Can! ) Health Professional Resources Body Mass Index Table 1 for BMI greater than 35, go ... Health Information Email Alerts Jobs and Careers Site Index About NHLBI National Institute of Health Department of ...

  9. Lagrangian Curves on Spectral Curves of Monopoles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guilfoyle, Brendan; Khalid, Madeeha; Ramon Mari, Jose J.

    2010-01-01

    We study Lagrangian points on smooth holomorphic curves in TP 1 equipped with a natural neutral Kaehler structure, and prove that they must form real curves. By virtue of the identification of TP 1 with the space LE 3 of oriented affine lines in Euclidean 3-space, these Lagrangian curves give rise to ruled surfaces in E 3 , which we prove have zero Gauss curvature. Each ruled surface is shown to be the tangent lines to a curve in E 3 , called the edge of regression of the ruled surface. We give an alternative characterization of these curves as the points in E 3 where the number of oriented lines in the complex curve Σ that pass through the point is less than the degree of Σ. We then apply these results to the spectral curves of certain monopoles and construct the ruled surfaces and edges of regression generated by the Lagrangian curves.

  10. Continuous daily hydrograph simulation using duration curves of a precipitation index

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Smakhtin, VY

    2000-04-01

    Full Text Available precipitation index reflects the current catchment wetness and is defined as a continuous function of precipitation, which accumulates on rainy days and exponentially decays during the periods of no rainfall. The process of rainfall-to-runoff conversion is based...

  11. Finite element method for radiation heat transfer in multi-dimensional graded index medium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, L.H.; Zhang, L.; Tan, H.P.

    2006-01-01

    In graded index medium, ray goes along a curved path determined by Fermat principle, and curved ray-tracing is very difficult and complex. To avoid the complicated and time-consuming computation of curved ray trajectories, a finite element method based on discrete ordinate equation is developed to solve the radiative transfer problem in a multi-dimensional semitransparent graded index medium. Two particular test problems of radiative transfer are taken as examples to verify this finite element method. The predicted dimensionless net radiative heat fluxes are determined by the proposed method and compared with the results obtained by finite volume method. The results show that the finite element method presented in this paper has a good accuracy in solving the multi-dimensional radiative transfer problem in semitransparent graded index medium

  12. A new method for measuring coronary artery diameters with CT spatial profile curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shimamoto, Ryoichi; Suzuki, Jun-ichi; Yamazaki, Tadashi; Tsuji, Taeko; Ohmoto, Yuki; Morita, Toshihiro; Yamashita, Hiroshi; Honye, Junko; Nagai, Ryozo; Akahane, Masaaki; Ohtomo, Kuni

    2007-01-01

    Purpose: Coronary artery vascular edge recognition on computed tomography (CT) angiograms is influenced by window parameters. A noninvasive method for vascular edge recognition independent of window setting with use of multi-detector row CT was contrived and its feasibility and accuracy were estimated by intravascular ultrasound (IVUS). Methods: Multi-detector row CT was performed to obtain 29 CT spatial profile curves by setting a line cursor across short-axis coronary angiograms processed by multi-planar reconstruction. IVUS was also performed to determine the reference coronary diameter. IVUS diameter was fitted horizontally between two points on the upward and downward slopes of the profile curves and Hounsfield number was measured at the fitted level to test seven candidate indexes for definition of intravascular coronary diameter. The best index from the curves should show the best agreement with IVUS diameter. Results: Of the seven candidates the agreement was the best (agreement: 16 ± 11%) when the two ratios of Hounsfield number at the level of IVUS diameter over that at the peak on the profile curves were used with water and with fat as the background tissue. These edge definitions were achieved by cutting the horizontal distance by the curves at the level defined by the ratio of 0.41 for water background and 0.57 for fat background. Conclusions: Vascular edge recognition of the coronary artery with CT spatial profile curves was feasible and the contrived method could define the coronary diameter with reasonable agreement

  13. The Maslov index in symplectic Banach spaces

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Booss-Bavnbek, Bernhelm; Zhu, Chaofeng

    . Using such decompositions the authors define the Maslov index of the curve by symplectic reduction to the classical finite-dimensional case. The authors prove the transitivity of repeated symplectic reductions and obtain the invariance of the Maslov index under symplectic reduction while recovering all...... for varying well-posed boundary conditions on manifolds with boundary and obtain the splitting formula of the spectral flow on partitioned manifolds....

  14. Growth curves in Down syndrome with congenital heart disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Caroline D’Azevedo Sica

    Full Text Available SUMMARY Introduction: To assess dietary habits, nutritional status and food frequency in children and adolescents with Down syndrome (DS and congenital heart disease (CHD. Additionally, we attempted to compare body mass index (BMI classifications according to the World Health Organization (WHO curves and curves developed for individuals with DS. Method: Cross-sectional study including individuals with DS and CHD treated at a referral center for cardiology, aged 2 to 18 years. Weight, height, BMI, total energy and food frequency were measured. Nutritional status was assessed using BMI for age and gender, using curves for evaluation of patients with DS and those set by the WHO. Results: 68 subjects with DS and CHD were evaluated. Atrioventricular septal defect (AVSD was the most common heart disease (52.9%. There were differences in BMI classification between the curves proposed for patients with DS and those proposed by the WHO. There was an association between consumption of vitamin E and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Conclusion: Results showed that individuals with DS are mostly considered normal weight for age, when evaluated using specific curves for DS. Reviews on specific curves for DS would be the recommended practice for health professionals so as to avoid precipitated diagnosis of overweight and/or obesity in this population.

  15. [The glycemic index of some foods common in Mexico].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frati-Munari, A C; Roca-Vides, R A; López-Pérez, R J; de Vivero, I; Ruiz-Velazco, M

    1991-01-01

    To investigate the increase of glycemia due to the ingestion of usual food in Mexico, portions with 50 g of carbohydrate form white corn tortilla, yellow corn tortilla, spaghetti, rice, potatoes, beans brown and black, nopal (prickle pear cactus) and peanuts, compared with white bread, were given to 21 healthy and 27 non-insulin-dependent diabetic subjects. Serum glucose and insulin were measured every 30 min for 180 min long. Glycemic index was obtained as: (area under curve of glucose with test food/area under curve of glucose with white bread) X 100. A corrected index was calculated subtracting the area corresponding to initial values. Insulin index was obtained similarly. Each sample was studied 14-18 times. Glycemic and insulin indexes of white and yellow corn tortilla, spaghetti, rice and potatoes were not different from bread (P greater than 0.05). Corrected glycemic indexes of brown beans (54 +/- 15, +/- SE) and black beans (43 +/- 17) were low (p less than 0.05), as well as corrected insulin indexes (69 +/- 11 and 64 +/- 10 respectively, (P less than 0.02). Peanuts had low glycemic (33 +/- 17, P less than 0.01), but normal insulin index. Nopal had very low glycemic and insulin indexes (10 +/- 17 and 10 +/- 16, P less than 0.0001). These data might be useful in prescribing diets for diabetic subjects.

  16. On Fermat's principle for causal curves in time oriented Finsler spacetimes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gallego Torromé, Ricardo; Piccione, Paolo; Vitório, Henrique

    2012-12-01

    In this work, a version of Fermat's principle for causal curves with the same energy in time orientable Finsler spacetimes is proved. We calculate the second variation of the time arrival functional along a geodesic in terms of the index form associated with the Finsler spacetime Lagrangian. Then the character of the critical points of the time arrival functional is investigated and a Morse index theorem in the context of Finsler spacetime is presented.

  17. A data science based standardized Gini index as a Lorenz dominance preserving measure of the inequality of distributions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ultsch, Alfred; Lötsch, Jörn

    2017-01-01

    The Gini index is a measure of the inequality of a distribution that can be derived from Lorenz curves. While commonly used in, e.g., economic research, it suffers from ambiguity via lack of Lorenz dominance preservation. Here, investigation of large sets of empirical distributions of incomes of the World's countries over several years indicated firstly, that the Gini indices are centered on a value of 33.33% corresponding to the Gini index of the uniform distribution and secondly, that the Lorenz curves of these distributions are consistent with Lorenz curves of log-normal distributions. This can be employed to provide a Lorenz dominance preserving equivalent of the Gini index. Therefore, a modified measure based on log-normal approximation and standardization of Lorenz curves is proposed. The so-called UGini index provides a meaningful and intuitive standardization on the uniform distribution as this characterizes societies that provide equal chances. The novel UGini index preserves Lorenz dominance. Analysis of the probability density distributions of the UGini index of the World's counties income data indicated multimodality in two independent data sets. Applying Bayesian statistics provided a data-based classification of the World's countries' income distributions. The UGini index can be re-transferred into the classical index to preserve comparability with previous research.

  18. A data science based standardized Gini index as a Lorenz dominance preserving measure of the inequality of distributions.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alfred Ultsch

    Full Text Available The Gini index is a measure of the inequality of a distribution that can be derived from Lorenz curves. While commonly used in, e.g., economic research, it suffers from ambiguity via lack of Lorenz dominance preservation. Here, investigation of large sets of empirical distributions of incomes of the World's countries over several years indicated firstly, that the Gini indices are centered on a value of 33.33% corresponding to the Gini index of the uniform distribution and secondly, that the Lorenz curves of these distributions are consistent with Lorenz curves of log-normal distributions. This can be employed to provide a Lorenz dominance preserving equivalent of the Gini index. Therefore, a modified measure based on log-normal approximation and standardization of Lorenz curves is proposed. The so-called UGini index provides a meaningful and intuitive standardization on the uniform distribution as this characterizes societies that provide equal chances. The novel UGini index preserves Lorenz dominance. Analysis of the probability density distributions of the UGini index of the World's counties income data indicated multimodality in two independent data sets. Applying Bayesian statistics provided a data-based classification of the World's countries' income distributions. The UGini index can be re-transferred into the classical index to preserve comparability with previous research.

  19. The thermoluminescent curve as parameter to compare archaeological ceramics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dominguez R, I.R.; Ramirez C, G.A.; Gonzalez M, P.R.; Mendoza A, D.; Martinez C, G.

    2006-01-01

    Most mineral materials, including the constituents of pottery, have the property of thermoluminescence (TL), where part of the energy from radioactive decay in the mineral is stored and later released as light upon strong heating. The intensity of emitted light as a function of temperature is the thermoluminescence glow curve. However, it is well-know the thermoluminescence glow curve form depends of several factors associates with the incident radiation and type of materials. Between the factors associated with the materials, it can be mentioned the quantity and type of crystalline phases, and quantity and type of impurities that they could be present in the material. That is to say, materials with different physicochemical characteristics will produce different thermoluminescence glow curve, although, they have been irradiated under the same conditions. In accordance with the above mentioned, it is possible to identified differences between pre hispanic ceramic belonging to a same site and other sites. In this work a discussion about advantages and disadvantages is presented. Some specific examples in ceramic artifacts belonging to the Matlatzinca and Teotihuacan cultures are included. (Author)

  20. AFSC/RACE/SAP/Pathobiology: 2015 Bitter crab disease prevalence in immature Chionoecetes spp. at 6 index sites in eastern Bering Sea

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This dataset contains crab data from a field survey of Chionoecetes bairdi and C. opilio collected at six designated index sites in the Bering Sea during the 2015...

  1. AFSC/RACE/SAP/Pathobiology: 2016 Bitter crab disease prevalence in immature Chionoecetes spp. at 6 index sites in eastern Bering Sea

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This dataset contains crab data from a field survey of Chionoecetes bairdi and C. opilio collected at six designated index sites in the Bering Sea during the 2016...

  2. AFSC/RACE/SAP/Pathobiology: 2014 Bitter crab disease prevalence in immature Chionoecetes spp. at 6 index sites in eastern Bering Sea

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This dataset contains crab data from a field survey of Chionoecetes bairdi and C. opilio collected at six designated index sites in the Bering Sea during the 2014...

  3. The PAPAS index: a novel index for the prediction of hepatitis C-related fibrosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ozel, Banu D; Poyrazoğlu, Orhan K; Karaman, Ahmet; Karaman, Hatice; Altinkaya, Engin; Sevinç, Eylem; Zararsiz, Gökmen

    2015-08-01

    Several noninvasive tests have been developed to determine the degree of hepatic fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) without performing liver biopsy. This study aimed to determine the performance of the PAPAS (Platelet/Age/Phosphatase/AFP/AST) index in patients with CHC for the prediction of significant fibrosis and cirrhosis and to compare it with other noninvasive tests. To date, no study has evaluated the application of the PAPAS index in CHC-associated liver fibrosis. This retrospective study included 137 consecutive patients with CHC who had undergone a percutaneous liver biopsy before treatment. The aspartate aminotransferase/platelet ratio (APRI), aspartate aminotransferase/alanine transaminase ratio (AAR), age-platelet index (API), FIB4, cirrhosis discriminate score (CDS), the Göteborg University cirrhosis index (GUCI), and PAPAS were calculated and compared with the diagnostic accuracies of all fibrosis indices between the groups F0-F2 (no-mild fibrosis) versus F3-F6 (significant fibrosis) and F0-F4 (no cirrhosis) versus F5-F6 (cirrhosis). To predict significant fibrosis, the area under curve (95% confidence interval) for FIB4 was 0.727 followed by GUCI (0.721), PAPAS≈APRI≈CDS (0.716), and API (0.68). To predict cirrhosis, the area under curve (95% confidence interval) for FIB4 was calculated to be 0.735, followed by GUCI (0.723), PAPAS≈APRI≈CDS≈(0.71), and API (0.66). No statistically significant difference was observed among these predictors to exclude both significant fibrosis and cirrhosis (P>0.05). The diagnostic capability of the PAPAS index has moderate efficiency and was not superior to other fibrosis markers for the identification of fibrosis in CHC patients. There is a need for more comprehensive prospective studies to help determine the diagnostic value of PAPAS for liver fibrosis.

  4. QUENCH: A software package for the determination of quenching curves in Liquid Scintillation counting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cassette, Philippe

    2016-03-01

    In Liquid Scintillation Counting (LSC), the scintillating source is part of the measurement system and its detection efficiency varies with the scintillator used, the vial and the volume and the chemistry of the sample. The detection efficiency is generally determined using a quenching curve, describing, for a specific radionuclide, the relationship between a quenching index given by the counter and the detection efficiency. A quenched set of LS standard sources are prepared by adding a quenching agent and the quenching index and detection efficiency are determined for each source. Then a simple formula is fitted to the experimental points to define the quenching curve function. The paper describes a software package specifically devoted to the determination of quenching curves with uncertainties. The experimental measurements are described by their quenching index and detection efficiency with uncertainties on both quantities. Random Gaussian fluctuations of these experimental measurements are sampled and a polynomial or logarithmic function is fitted on each fluctuation by χ(2) minimization. This Monte Carlo procedure is repeated many times and eventually the arithmetic mean and the experimental standard deviation of each parameter are calculated, together with the covariances between these parameters. Using these parameters, the detection efficiency, corresponding to an arbitrary quenching index within the measured range, can be calculated. The associated uncertainty is calculated with the law of propagation of variances, including the covariance terms. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Nuclear facility decommissioning and site remedial actions: A selected bibliography, Vol. 18. Part 2. Indexes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1997-09-01

    This bibliography contains 3638 citations with abstracts of documents relevant to environmental restoration, nuclear facility decontamination and decommissioning (D ampersand D), uranium mill tailings management, and site remedial actions. This report is the eighteenth in a series of bibliographies prepared annually for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Restoration. Citations to foreign and domestic literature of all types - technical reports, progress reports, journal articles, symposia proceedings, theses, books, patents, legislation, and research project descriptions - have been included in Part 1 of the report. The bibliography contains scientific, technical, financial, and regulatory information that pertains to DOE environmental restoration programs. The citations are separated by topic into 16 sections, including (1) DOE Environmental Restoration Program; (2) DOE D ampersand D Program; (3) Nuclear Facilities Decommissioning; (4) DOE Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Programs; (5) NORM-Contaminated Site Restoration; (6) DOE Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project; (7) Uranium Mill Tailings Management; (8) DOE Site-Wide Remedial Actions; (9) DOE Onsite Remedial Action Projects; (10) Contaminated Site Remedial Actions; (11) DOE Underground Storage Tank Remediation; (12) DOE Technology Development, Demonstration, and Evaluations; (13) Soil Remediation; (14) Groundwater Remediation; (15) Environmental Measurements, Analysis, and Decision-Making; and (16) Environmental Management Issues. Within the 16 sections, the citations are sorted by geographic location. If a geographic location is not specified, the citations are sorted according to the document title. In Part 2 of the report, indexes are provided for author, author affiliation, selected title phrase, selected title word, publication description, geographic location, and keyword

  6. Nuclear facility decommissioning and site remedial actions: A selected bibliography, Vol. 18. Part 2. Indexes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1997-09-01

    This bibliography contains 3638 citations with abstracts of documents relevant to environmental restoration, nuclear facility decontamination and decommissioning (D&D), uranium mill tailings management, and site remedial actions. This report is the eighteenth in a series of bibliographies prepared annually for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Restoration. Citations to foreign and domestic literature of all types - technical reports, progress reports, journal articles, symposia proceedings, theses, books, patents, legislation, and research project descriptions - have been included in Part 1 of the report. The bibliography contains scientific, technical, financial, and regulatory information that pertains to DOE environmental restoration programs. The citations are separated by topic into 16 sections, including (1) DOE Environmental Restoration Program; (2) DOE D&D Program; (3) Nuclear Facilities Decommissioning; (4) DOE Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Programs; (5) NORM-Contaminated Site Restoration; (6) DOE Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project; (7) Uranium Mill Tailings Management; (8) DOE Site-Wide Remedial Actions; (9) DOE Onsite Remedial Action Projects; (10) Contaminated Site Remedial Actions; (11) DOE Underground Storage Tank Remediation; (12) DOE Technology Development, Demonstration, and Evaluations; (13) Soil Remediation; (14) Groundwater Remediation; (15) Environmental Measurements, Analysis, and Decision-Making; and (16) Environmental Management Issues. Within the 16 sections, the citations are sorted by geographic location. If a geographic location is not specified, the citations are sorted according to the document title. In Part 2 of the report, indexes are provided for author, author affiliation, selected title phrase, selected title word, publication description, geographic location, and keyword.

  7. Classical optics and curved spaces

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bailyn, M.; Ragusa, S.

    1976-01-01

    In the eikonal approximation of classical optics, the unit polarization 3-vector of light satisfies an equation that depends only on the index, n, of refraction. It is known that if the original 3-space line element is d sigma 2 , then this polarization direction propagates parallely in the fictitious space n 2 d sigma 2 . Since the equation depends only on n, it is possible to invent a fictitious curved 4-space in which the light performs a null geodesic, and the polarization 3-vector behaves as the 'shadow' of a parallely propagated 4-vector. The inverse, namely, the reduction of Maxwell's equation, on a curve 'dielectric free) space, to a classical space with dielectric constant n=(-g 00 ) -1 / 2 is well known, but in the latter the dielectric constant epsilon and permeability μ must also equal (-g 00 ) -1 / 2 . The rotation of polarization as light bends around the sun by utilizing the reduction to the classical space, is calculated. This (non-) rotation may then be interpreted as parallel transport in the 3-space n 2 d sigma 2 [pt

  8. Curvature Entropy for Curved Profile Generation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Koichiro Sato

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available In a curved surface design, the overall shape features that emerge from combinations of shape elements are important. However, controlling the features of the overall shape in curved profiles is difficult using conventional microscopic shape information such as dimension. Herein two types of macroscopic shape information, curvature entropy and quadrature curvature entropy, quantitatively represent the features of the overall shape. The curvature entropy is calculated by the curvature distribution, and represents the complexity of a shape (one of the overall shape features. The quadrature curvature entropy is an improvement of the curvature entropy by introducing a Markov process to evaluate the continuity of a curvature and to approximate human cognition of the shape. Additionally, a shape generation method using a genetic algorithm as a calculator and the entropy as a shape generation index is presented. Finally, the applicability of the proposed method is demonstrated using the side view of an automobile as a design example.

  9. Phase and group refractive index curves for electromagnet waves moving in an ionised medium (1962); Courbes des indices de phase et de groupe d'ondes electromagnetiques se propageant dans un milieu ionise (1962)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Consoli, T [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France). Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

    1962-07-01

    The family of curves presented in this table give the phase and group refractive indexes of plane electromagnetic waves propagating along and across a static magnetic field in a plasma. (author) [French] Les courbes presentees sous formes de reseaux donnent les indices de phase et de groupe d'ondes electromagnetiques planes se propageant longitudinalement ou transversalement dans un plasma en presence d'un champ magnetique statique. (auteur)

  10. Use of the landfill water pollution index (LWPI) for groundwater quality assessment near the landfill sites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Talalaj, Izabela A; Biedka, Pawel

    2016-12-01

    The purpose of the paper is to assess the groundwater quality near the landfill sites using landfill water pollution index (LWPI). In order to investigate the scale of groundwater contamination, three landfills (E, H and S) in different stages of their operation were taken into analysis. Samples of groundwater in the vicinity of studied landfills were collected four times each year in the period from 2004 to 2014. A total of over 300 groundwater samples were analysed for pH, EC, PAH, TOC, Cr, Hg, Zn, Pb, Cd, Cu, as required by the UE legal acts for landfill monitoring system. The calculated values of the LWPI allowed the quantification of the overall water quality near the landfill sites. The obtained results indicated that the most negative impact on groundwater quality is observed near the old Landfill H. Improper location of piezometer at the Landfill S favoured infiltration of run-off from road pavement into the soil-water environment. Deep deposition of the groundwater level at Landfill S area reduced the landfill impact on the water quality. Conducted analyses revealed that the LWPI can be used for evaluation of water pollution near a landfill, for assessment of the variability of water pollution with time and for comparison of water quality from different piezometers, landfills or time periods. The applied WQI (Water Quality Index) can also be an important information tool for landfill policy makers and the public about the groundwater pollution threat from landfill.

  11. Site locality identification study: Hanford Site. Volume II. Data cataloging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1980-07-01

    Data compilation and cataloging for the candidate site locality identification study were conducted in order to provide a retrievable data cataloging system for the present siting study and future site evaluation and licensng processes. This task occurred concurrently with and also independently of other tasks of the candidate site locality identification study. Work in this task provided the data utilized primarily in the development and application of screening and ranking processes to identify candidate site localities on the Hanford Site. The overall approach included two steps: (1) data acquisition and screening; and (2) data compilation and cataloging. Data acquisition and screening formed the basis for preliminary review of data sources with respect to their probable utilization in the candidate site locality identification study and review with respect to the level of completeness and detail of the data. The important working assumption was that the data to be used in the study be based on existing and available published and unpublished literature. The data compilation and cataloging provided the basic product of the Task; a retrievable data cataloging system in the form of an annotated reference list and key word index and an index of compiled data. The annotated reference list and key word index are cross referenced and can be used to trace and retrieve the data sources utilized in the candidate site locality identification study

  12. Multimodal determination of Rayleigh dispersion and attenuation curves using the circle fit method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verachtert, R.; Lombaert, G.; Degrande, G.

    2018-03-01

    This paper introduces the circle fit method for the determination of multi-modal Rayleigh dispersion and attenuation curves as part of a Multichannel Analysis of Surface Waves (MASW) experiment. The wave field is transformed to the frequency-wavenumber (fk) domain using a discretized Hankel transform. In a Nyquist plot of the fk-spectrum, displaying the imaginary part against the real part, the Rayleigh wave modes correspond to circles. The experimental Rayleigh dispersion and attenuation curves are derived from the angular sweep of the central angle of these circles. The method can also be applied to the analytical fk-spectrum of the Green's function of a layered half-space in order to compute dispersion and attenuation curves, as an alternative to solving an eigenvalue problem. A MASW experiment is subsequently simulated for a site with a regular velocity profile and a site with a soft layer trapped between two stiffer layers. The performance of the circle fit method to determine the dispersion and attenuation curves is compared with the peak picking method and the half-power bandwidth method. The circle fit method is found to be the most accurate and robust method for the determination of the dispersion curves. When determining attenuation curves, the circle fit method and half-power bandwidth method are accurate if the mode exhibits a sharp peak in the fk-spectrum. Furthermore, simulated and theoretical attenuation curves determined with the circle fit method agree very well. A similar correspondence is not obtained when using the half-power bandwidth method. Finally, the circle fit method is applied to measurement data obtained for a MASW experiment at a site in Heverlee, Belgium. In order to validate the soil profile obtained from the inversion procedure, force-velocity transfer functions were computed and found in good correspondence with the experimental transfer functions, especially in the frequency range between 5 and 80 Hz.

  13. Body mass index, waist circumference, body adiposity index, and risk for type 2 diabetes in two populations in Brazil: general and Amerindian.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rafael de Oliveira Alvim

    Full Text Available The use of the anthropometric indices of adiposity, especially body mass index and waist circumference in the prediction of diabetes mellitus has been widely explored. Recently, a new body composition index, the body adiposity index was proposed. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of body mass index, waist circumference, and body adiposity index in the risk assessment for type 2 diabetes mellitus.A total of 1,572 individuals from the general population of Vitoria City, Brazil and 620 Amerindians from the Aracruz Indian Reserve, Brazil were randomly selected. BMI, waist circumference, and BAI were determined according to a standard protocol. Type 2 diabetes mellitus was diagnosed by the presence of fasting glucose ≥126 mg/dL or by the use of antidiabetic drugs.The area under the curve was similar for all anthropometric indices tested in the Amerindian population, but with very different sensitivities or specificities. In women from the general population, the area under the curve of waist circumference was significantly higher than that of the body adiposity index. Regarding risk assessment for type 2 diabetes mellitus, the body adiposity index was a better risk predictor than body mass index and waist circumference in the Amerindian population and was the index with highest odds ratio for type 2 diabetes mellitus in men from the general population, while in women from the general population waist circumference was the best risk predictor.Body adiposity index was the best risk predictor for type 2 diabetes mellitus in the Amerindian population and men from the general population. Our data suggest that the body adiposity index is a useful tool for the risk assessment of type 2 diabetes mellitus in admixture populations.

  14. Numerical investigation of Dean vortices in a curved pipe

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bernad, S. I.; Totorean, A.; Bosioc, A.; Stanciu, R.; Bernad, E. S.

    2013-10-01

    This study is devoted to the three-dimensional numerical simulation of developing secondary flows of Newtonian fluid through a curved circular duct. The numerical simulations produced for different Dean numbers show clearly the presence of two steady Dean vortices. Therefore, results confirm that helical flow constitutes an important flow signature in vessels, and its strength as a fluid dynamic index.

  15. On the derivation of vector radiative transfer equation for polarized radiative transport in graded index media

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao, J.M.; Tan, J.Y.; Liu, L.H.

    2012-01-01

    Light transport in graded index media follows a curved trajectory determined by Fermat's principle. Besides the effect of variation of the refractive index on the transport of radiative intensity, the curved ray trajectory will induce geometrical effects on the transport of polarization ellipse. This paper presents a complete derivation of vector radiative transfer equation for polarized radiation transport in absorption, emission and scattering graded index media. The derivation is based on the analysis of the conserved quantities for polarized light transport along curved trajectory and a novel approach. The obtained transfer equation can be considered as a generalization of the classic vector radiative transfer equation that is only valid for uniform refractive index media. Several variant forms of the transport equation are also presented, which include the form for Stokes parameters defined with a fixed reference and the Eulerian forms in the ray coordinate and in several common orthogonal coordinate systems.

  16. Analysis of Surface Plasmon Resonance Curves with a Novel Sigmoid-Asymmetric Fitting Algorithm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daeho Jang

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available The present study introduces a novel curve-fitting algorithm for surface plasmon resonance (SPR curves using a self-constructed, wedge-shaped beam type angular interrogation SPR spectroscopy technique. Previous fitting approaches such as asymmetric and polynomial equations are still unsatisfactory for analyzing full SPR curves and their use is limited to determining the resonance angle. In the present study, we developed a sigmoid-asymmetric equation that provides excellent curve-fitting for the whole SPR curve over a range of incident angles, including regions of the critical angle and resonance angle. Regardless of the bulk fluid type (i.e., water and air, the present sigmoid-asymmetric fitting exhibited nearly perfect matching with a full SPR curve, whereas the asymmetric and polynomial curve fitting methods did not. Because the present curve-fitting sigmoid-asymmetric equation can determine the critical angle as well as the resonance angle, the undesired effect caused by the bulk fluid refractive index was excluded by subtracting the critical angle from the resonance angle in real time. In conclusion, the proposed sigmoid-asymmetric curve-fitting algorithm for SPR curves is widely applicable to various SPR measurements, while excluding the effect of bulk fluids on the sensing layer.

  17. Refractive index calculation for analysis of aqueous solutions of heavy water

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Azuaga, N.S.; Marques, A.R.; Djega-Mariadassou, G.

    1978-01-01

    Refractive index measurements are used for analysis of aqueous solutions of D 2 O, particularly in the intermediate concentration range. The accuracy of titration is around 0.4% of atomic deuterium. Assuming that nsub(HDO)=(nsub(H 2 O)+nsub(D 2 O))/2, and that the refractive index of an initial mixture H 2 O-D 2 O is, in this case, an additive property of the molecular species, the refractive index n(t) of the ternary mixture (H 2 O-D 2 O-HDO) can be expressed by a relation. Using these two equations, it becomes possible to calculate the various types of calibration curves versus n, in the whole range of concentrations. To build these composition - n(t) curves, the only necessary data are the refractive index measurements of pure H 2 O and D 2 O and the value of equilibrium constant of the reaction H 2 O+D 2 O reversible 2HDO at the proper temperature [fr

  18. Refractive index modulation in LiNbO3: MgO slab through Lamb wave

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prakash, Suraj; Sharma, Gaurav; Yadav, Gulab Chand; Singh, Vivek

    2018-05-01

    Present theoretical analysis deals with inducing refractive index contrast in Y-Z LiNbO3:MgO plate via GHz Lamb wave perturbation for photonic applications. Dispersion curves for Lamb wave in plate are plotted by employing displacement potential technique. Selecting wave parameters from dispersion curve, fundamental symmetric Lamb mode (S0) is excited in slab for 6GHz frequency. Produced displacement field by propagating S0 mode and thus developed strain is estimated to calculate refractive index modulation by applying photo-elastic relations. Modulated refractive index is of sinusoidal nature with period of modulation dependence on Lamb's wavelength. This plate having periodically modulated refractive index can be used as photonic crystal for different applications with acoustically tunable photonic band gap.

  19. Bayesian analysis of stage-fall-discharge rating curves and their uncertainties

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mansanarez, Valentin; Le Coz, Jérôme; Renard, Benjamin; Lang, Michel; Pierrefeu, Gilles; Le Boursicaud, Raphaël; Pobanz, Karine

    2016-04-01

    Stage-fall-discharge (SFD) rating curves are traditionally used to compute streamflow records at sites where the energy slope of the flow is variable due to variable backwater effects. Building on existing Bayesian approaches, we introduce an original hydraulics-based method for developing SFD rating curves used at twin gauge stations and estimating their uncertainties. Conventional power functions for channel and section controls are used, and transition to a backwater-affected channel control is computed based on a continuity condition, solved either analytically or numerically. The difference between the reference levels at the two stations is estimated as another uncertain parameter of the SFD model. The method proposed in this presentation incorporates information from both the hydraulic knowledge (equations of channel or section controls) and the information available in the stage-fall-discharge observations (gauging data). The obtained total uncertainty combines the parametric uncertainty and the remnant uncertainty related to the model of rating curve. This method provides a direct estimation of the physical inputs of the rating curve (roughness, width, slope bed, distance between twin gauges, etc.). The performance of the new method is tested using an application case affected by the variable backwater of a run-of-the-river dam: the Rhône river at Valence, France. In particular, a sensitivity analysis to the prior information and to the gauging dataset is performed. At that site, the stage-fall-discharge domain is well documented with gaugings conducted over a range of backwater affected and unaffected conditions. The performance of the new model was deemed to be satisfactory. Notably, transition to uniform flow when the overall range of the auxiliary stage is gauged is correctly simulated. The resulting curves are in good agreement with the observations (gaugings) and their uncertainty envelopes are acceptable for computing streamflow records. Similar

  20. Determination of the refractive index of glucose-ethanol-water mixtures using spectroscopic refractometry near the critical angle.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sobral, H; Peña-Gomar, M

    2015-10-01

    A spectroscopic refractometer was used to investigate the dispersion curves of ethanol and D-glucose solutions in water near the critical angle; here, the reflectivity was measured using a white source. Dispersion curves were obtained in the 320-1000 nm wavelength range with a resolution better than 10(-4) for the refractive index, n. The differential refractive index is measured as a function of wavelength, and a simple expression is proposed to obtain the refractive index of the glucose-ethanol-water ternary system. Using this expression, combined with the experimental differential refractive index values, the concentrations of individual components can be calculated.

  1. Estimating daily flow duration curves from monthly streamflow data

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Smakhtin, VU

    2000-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper describes two techniques by which to establish 1-day (1d) flow duration curves at an ungauged site where only a simulated or calculated monthly flow time series is available. Both methods employ the straightforward relationships between...

  2. The ZJU index is a powerful index for identifying NAFLD in the general Chinese population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Linman; You, Wenyi; Ren, Wei

    2017-10-01

    The ZJU index is a novel model for detecting non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) that it is calculated based on combination of the body mass index, fasting plasma glucose, triglycerides, and the serum alanine aminotransferase-to-aspartate transaminase ratio. We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the ZJU index in detecting NAFLD in the Chinese population. This was a cross-sectional study. Anthropometric measurements, laboratory data, and ultrasonography features were collected through a standard protocol. The ZJU index, fatty liver index, hepatic steatosis index, lipid accumulation product, and visceral adiposity index were calculated. Then the predictive values of the five indices were compared according to the area under receiver-operating characteristic curve (AUROC) values. A total of 19,804 participants were recruited, of whom 7324 participants were diagnosed with NFALD and 12,480 subjects were regarded as controls. The AUROC value for NAFLD identification by the ZJU index was 0.925 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.919-0.931), which was significantly higher than the values for the other four models (P 60 years, the AUROC for the ZJU increased from 87.1 to 95.4%, values which were also greater than those for the other four indices. Analysis by sex also showed that the performance of the ZJU index in males and females was better than that of the other four indices. The ZJU index is an accurate and easy to employ tool for identifying NAFLD in the general Chinese population.

  3. Not Fully Developed Turbulence in the Dow Jones Index

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trincado, Estrella; Vindel, Jose María

    2013-08-01

    The shape of the curves relating the scaling exponents of the structure functions to the order of these functions is shown to distinguish the Dow Jones index from other stock market indices. We conclude from the shape differences that the information-loss rate for the Dow Jones index is reduced at smaller time scales, while it grows for other indices. This anomaly is due to the construction of the index, in particular to its dependence on a single market parameter: price. Prices are subject to turbulence bursts, which act against full development of turbulence.

  4. Handbook of elliptic and hyperelliptic curve cryptography

    CERN Document Server

    Cohen, Henri; Avanzi, Roberto; Doche, Christophe; Lange, Tanja; Nguyen, Kim; Vercauteren, Frederik

    2005-01-01

    … very comprehensive coverage of this vast subject area … a useful and essential treatise for anyone involved in elliptic curve algorithms … this book offers the opportunity to grasp the ECC technology with a diversified and comprehensive perspective. … This book will remain on my shelf for a long time and will land on my desk on many occasions, if only because the coverage of the issues common to factoring and discrete log cryptosystems is excellent.-IACR Book Reviews, June 2011… the book is designed for people who are working in the area and want to learn more about a specific issue. The chapters are written to be relatively independent so that readers can focus on the part of interest for them. Such readers will be grateful for the excellent index and extensive bibliography. … the handbook covers a wide range of topics and will be a valuable reference for researchers in curve-based cryptography. -Steven D. Galbraith, Mathematical Reviews, Issue 2007f.

  5. Historical Cost Curves for Hydrogen Masers and Cesium Beam Frequency and Timing Standards

    Science.gov (United States)

    Remer, D. S.; Moore, R. C.

    1985-01-01

    Historical cost curves were developed for hydrogen masers and cesium beam standards used for frequency and timing calibration in the Deep Space Network. These curves may be used to calculate the cost of future hydrogen masers or cesium beam standards in either future or current dollars. The cesium beam standards are decreasing in cost by about 2.3% per year since 1966, and hydrogen masers are decreasing by about 0.8% per year since 1978 relative to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration inflation index.

  6. The Q* Index: A Useful Global Measure of Dementia Screening Test Accuracy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A.J. Larner

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Background/Aims: Single, global or unitary, indicators of test diagnostic performance have intuitive appeal for clinicians. The Q* index, the point in receiver operating characteristic (ROC curve space closest to the ideal top left-hand corner and where test sensitivity and specificity are equal, is one such measure. Methods: Datasets from four pragmatic accuracy studies which examined the Mini-Mental State Examination, Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination-Revised, Montreal Cognitive Assessment, Test Your Memory test, and Mini-Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination were examined to calculate and compare the Q* index, the maximal correct classification accuracy, and the maximal Youden index, as well as the sensitivity and specificity at these cutoffs. Results: Tests ranked similarly for the Q* index and the area under the ROC curve (AUC ROC. The Q* index cutoff was more sensitive (and less specific than the maximal correct classification accuracy cutoff, and less sensitive (and more specific than the maximal Youden index cutoff. Conclusion: The Q* index may be a useful global parameter summarising the test accuracy of cognitive screening instruments, facilitating comparison between tests, and defining a possible test cutoff value. As the point of equal sensitivity and specificity, its use may be more intuitive and appealing for clinicians than AUC ROC.

  7. Derivative based sensitivity analysis of gamma index

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Biplab Sarkar

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Originally developed as a tool for patient-specific quality assurance in advanced treatment delivery methods to compare between measured and calculated dose distributions, the gamma index (γ concept was later extended to compare between any two dose distributions. It takes into effect both the dose difference (DD and distance-to-agreement (DTA measurements in the comparison. Its strength lies in its capability to give a quantitative value for the analysis, unlike other methods. For every point on the reference curve, if there is at least one point in the evaluated curve that satisfies the pass criteria (e.g., δDD = 1%, δDTA = 1 mm, the point is included in the quantitative score as "pass." Gamma analysis does not account for the gradient of the evaluated curve - it looks at only the minimum gamma value, and if it is <1, then the point passes, no matter what the gradient of evaluated curve is. In this work, an attempt has been made to present a derivative-based method for the identification of dose gradient. A mathematically derived reference profile (RP representing the penumbral region of 6 MV 10 cm × 10 cm field was generated from an error function. A general test profile (GTP was created from this RP by introducing 1 mm distance error and 1% dose error at each point. This was considered as the first of the two evaluated curves. By its nature, this curve is a smooth curve and would satisfy the pass criteria for all points in it. The second evaluated profile was generated as a sawtooth test profile (STTP which again would satisfy the pass criteria for every point on the RP. However, being a sawtooth curve, it is not a smooth one and would be obviously poor when compared with the smooth profile. Considering the smooth GTP as an acceptable profile when it passed the gamma pass criteria (1% DD and 1 mm DTA against the RP, the first and second order derivatives of the DDs (δD', δD" between these two curves were derived and used as the

  8. Prediction of massive bleeding. Shock index and modified shock index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terceros-Almanza, L J; García-Fuentes, C; Bermejo-Aznárez, S; Prieto-Del Portillo, I J; Mudarra-Reche, C; Sáez-de la Fuente, I; Chico-Fernández, M

    2017-12-01

    To determine the predictive value of the Shock Index and Modified Shock Index in patients with massive bleeding due to severe trauma. Retrospective cohort. Severe trauma patient's initial attention at the intensive care unit of a tertiary hospital. Patients older than 14 years that were admitted to the hospital with severe trauma (Injury Severity Score >15) form January 2014 to December 2015. We studied the sensitivity (Se), specificity (Sp), positive and negative predictive value (PV+ and PV-), positive and negative likelihood ratio (LR+ and LR-), ROC curves (Receiver Operating Characteristics) and the area under the same (AUROC) for prediction of massive hemorrhage. 287 patients were included, 76.31% (219) were male, mean age was 43,36 (±17.71) years and ISS was 26 (interquartile range [IQR]: 21-34). The overall frequency of massive bleeding was 8.71% (25). For Shock Index: AUROC was 0.89 (95% confidence intervals [CI] 0.84 to 0.94), with an optimal cutoff at 1.11, Se was 91.3% (95% CI: 73.2 to 97.58) and Sp was 79.69% (95% CI: 74.34 to 84.16). For the Modified Shock Index: AUROC was 0.90 (95% CI: 0.86 to 0.95), with an optimal cutoff at 1.46, Se was 95.65% (95% CI: 79.01 to 99.23) and Sp was 75.78% (95% CI: 70.18 to 80.62). Shock Index and Modified Shock Index are good predictors of massive bleeding and could be easily incorporated to the initial workup of patients with severe trauma. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier España, S.L.U. y SEMICYUC. All rights reserved.

  9. A survey of the current status of web-based databases indexing Iranian journals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merat, Shahin; Khatibzadeh, Shahab; Mesgarpour, Bita; Malekzadeh, Reza

    2009-05-01

    The scientific output of Iran is increasing rapidly during the recent years. Unfortunately, most papers are published in journals which are not indexed by popular indexing systems and many of them are in Persian without English translation. This makes the results of Iranian scientific research unavailable to other researchers, including Iranians. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of current web-based databases indexing scientific articles published in Iran. We identified web-based databases which indexed scientific journals published in Iran using popular search engines. The sites were then subjected to a series of tests to evaluate their coverage, search capabilities, stability, accuracy of information, consistency, accessibility, ease of use, and other features. Results were compared with each other to identify strengths and shortcomings of each site. Five web sites were indentified. None had a complete coverage on scientific Iranian journals. The search capabilities were less than optimal in most sites. English translations of research titles, author names, keywords, and abstracts of Persian-language articles did not follow standards. Some sites did not cover abstracts. Numerous typing errors make searches ineffective and citation indexing unreliable. None of the currently available indexing sites are capable of presenting Iranian research to the international scientific community. The government should intervene by enforcing policies designed to facilitate indexing through a systematic approach. The policies should address Iranian journals, authors, and indexing sites. Iranian journals should be required to provide their indexing data, including references, electronically; authors should provide correct indexing information to journals; and indexing sites should improve their software to meet standards set by the government.

  10. Using a topographic index to distribute variable source area runoff predicted with the SCS curve-number equation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lyon, Steve W.; Walter, M. Todd; Gérard-Marchant, Pierre; Steenhuis, Tammo S.

    2004-10-01

    Because the traditional Soil Conservation Service curve-number (SCS-CN) approach continues to be used ubiquitously in water quality models, new application methods are needed that are consistent with variable source area (VSA) hydrological processes in the landscape. We developed and tested a distributed approach for applying the traditional SCS-CN equation to watersheds where VSA hydrology is a dominant process. Predicting the location of source areas is important for watershed planning because restricting potentially polluting activities from runoff source areas is fundamental to controlling non-point-source pollution. The method presented here used the traditional SCS-CN approach to predict runoff volume and spatial extent of saturated areas and a topographic index, like that used in TOPMODEL, to distribute runoff source areas through watersheds. The resulting distributed CN-VSA method was applied to two subwatersheds of the Delaware basin in the Catskill Mountains region of New York State and one watershed in south-eastern Australia to produce runoff-probability maps. Observed saturated area locations in the watersheds agreed with the distributed CN-VSA method. Results showed good agreement with those obtained from the previously validated soil moisture routing (SMR) model. When compared with the traditional SCS-CN method, the distributed CN-VSA method predicted a similar total volume of runoff, but vastly different locations of runoff generation. Thus, the distributed CN-VSA approach provides a physically based method that is simple enough to be incorporated into water quality models, and other tools that currently use the traditional SCS-CN method, while still adhering to the principles of VSA hydrology.

  11. Radioimmunoassays and 2-site immunoradiometric "sandwich" assays: basic principles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodbard, D

    1988-10-01

    The "sandwich" or noncompetitive reagent-excess, 2-site immunoradiometric assay (2-site IRMA), ELISA, USERIA, and related techniques, have several advantages compared with the traditional or competitive radioimmunoassays. IRMAs can provide improved sensitivity and specificity. However, IRMAs present some practical problems with nonspecific binding, increased consumption of antibody, biphasic dose response curve, (high dose hook effect), and may require special techniques for dose response curve analysis. We anticipate considerable growth in the popularity and importance of 2-site IRMA.

  12. Radioimmunoassays and 2-site immunoradiometric 'sandwich' assays: basic principles

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rodbard, D

    1988-10-01

    The 'sandwich' or noncompetitive reagent-excess, 2-site immunoradiometric assay (2-site IRMA), ELISA, USERIA, and related techniques, have several advantages compared with the traditional or competitive radioimmunoassays. IRMAs can provide improved sensitivity and specificity. However, IRMAs present some practical problems with nonspecific binding, increased consumption of antibody, biphasic dose response curve, (high dose hook effect), and may require special techniques for dose response curve analysis. We anticipate considerable growth in the popularity and importance of 2-site IRMA.

  13. Potential Risk Estimation Drowning Index for Children (PREDIC): a pilot study from Matlab, Bangladesh.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borse, N N; Hyder, A A; Bishai, D; Baker, T; Arifeen, S E

    2011-11-01

    Childhood drowning is a major public health problem that has been neglected in many low- and middle-income countries. In Matlab, rural Bangladesh, more than 40% of child deaths aged 1-4 years are due to drowning. The main objective of this paper was to develop and evaluate a childhood drowning risk prediction index. A literature review was carried out to document risk factors identified for childhood drowning in Bangladesh. The Newacheck model for special health care needs for children was adapted and applied to construct a childhood drowning risk index called "Potential Risk Estimation Drowning Index for Children" (PREDIC). Finally, the proposed PREDIC Index was applied to childhood drowning deaths and compared with the comparison group from children living in Matlab, Bangladesh. This pilot study used t-tests and Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve to analyze the results. The PREDIC index was applied to 302 drowning deaths and 624 children 0-4 years old living in Matlab. The results of t-test indicate that the drowned children had a statistically (t=-8.58, p=0.0001) significant higher mean PREDIC score (6.01) than those in comparison group (5.26). Drowning cases had a PREDIC score of 6 or more for 68% of the children however, the comparison group had 43% of the children with score of 6 or more which was statistically significant (t=-7.36, p<0.001). The area under the curve for the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve was 0.662. Index score construction was scientifically plausible; and the index is relatively complete, fairly accurate, and practical. The risk index can help identify and target high risk children with drowning prevention programs. PREDIC index needs to be further tested for its accuracy, feasibility and effectiveness in drowning risk reduction in Bangladesh and other countries. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Reliability Based Geometric Design of Horizontal Circular Curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rajbongshi, Pabitra; Kalita, Kuldeep

    2018-06-01

    Geometric design of horizontal circular curve primarily involves with radius of the curve and stopping sight distance at the curve section. Minimum radius is decided based on lateral thrust exerted on the vehicles and the minimum stopping sight distance is provided to maintain the safety in longitudinal direction of vehicles. Available sight distance at site can be regulated by changing the radius and middle ordinate at the curve section. Both radius and sight distance depend on design speed. Speed of vehicles at any road section is a variable parameter and therefore, normally the 98th percentile speed is taken as the design speed. This work presents a probabilistic approach for evaluating stopping sight distance, considering the variability of all input parameters of sight distance. It is observed that the 98th percentile sight distance value is much lower than the sight distance corresponding to 98th percentile speed. The distribution of sight distance parameter is also studied and found to follow a lognormal distribution. Finally, the reliability based design charts are presented for both plain and hill regions, and considering the effect of lateral thrust.

  15. Reliability Based Geometric Design of Horizontal Circular Curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rajbongshi, Pabitra; Kalita, Kuldeep

    2018-03-01

    Geometric design of horizontal circular curve primarily involves with radius of the curve and stopping sight distance at the curve section. Minimum radius is decided based on lateral thrust exerted on the vehicles and the minimum stopping sight distance is provided to maintain the safety in longitudinal direction of vehicles. Available sight distance at site can be regulated by changing the radius and middle ordinate at the curve section. Both radius and sight distance depend on design speed. Speed of vehicles at any road section is a variable parameter and therefore, normally the 98th percentile speed is taken as the design speed. This work presents a probabilistic approach for evaluating stopping sight distance, considering the variability of all input parameters of sight distance. It is observed that the 98th percentile sight distance value is much lower than the sight distance corresponding to 98th percentile speed. The distribution of sight distance parameter is also studied and found to follow a lognormal distribution. Finally, the reliability based design charts are presented for both plain and hill regions, and considering the effect of lateral thrust.

  16. Conservatism of ASME KIR-reference curve with respect to crack arrest

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wallin, K.; Rintamaa, R.; Nagel, G.

    1999-01-01

    The conservatism of the RT NDT temperature indexing parameter and the ASME K IR -reference curve with respect to crack arrest toughness, has been evaluated. Based on an analysis of the original ASME K Ia data, it was established that inherently, the ASME K IR -reference curve corresponds to an overall 5% lower bound curve with respect to crack arrest. It was shown that the scatter of crack arrest toughness is essentially material independent and has a standard deviation of 18% and the temperature dependence of K Ia has the same form as predicted by the master curve for crack initiation toughness. The 'built in' offset between the mean 100 MPa√(m) crack arrest temperature, TK Ia , and RT NDT is 38 C (TK Ia =RT NDT +38 C) and the experimental relation between TK Ia and NDT is, TK Ia =NDT+28 C. The K IR -reference curve using NDT as reference temperature will be conservative with respect to the general 5% lower bound K Ia(5%) -curve, with a 75% confidence. The use of RT NDT , instead of NDT, will generally increase the degree of conservatism, both for non-irradiated as well as irradiated materials, close to a 95% confidence level. This trend is pronounced for materials with Charpy-V upper shelf energies below 100 J. It is shown that the K IR -curve effectively constitutes a deterministic lower bound curve for crack arrest. The findings are valid both for nuclear pressure vessel plates, forgings and welds. (orig.)

  17. Conservatism of ASME KIR-reference curve with respect to crack arrest

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wallin, K.; Rintamaa, R.; Nagel, G.

    2001-01-01

    The conservatism of the RT NDT temperature indexing parameter and the ASME K IR -reference curve with respect to crack arrest toughness, has been evaluated. Based on an analysis of the original ASME K Ia data, it was established that inherently, the ASME K IR -reference curve corresponds to an overall 5% lower bound curve with respect to crack arrest. It was shown that the scatter of crack arrest toughness is essentially material independent and has a standard deviation (S.D.) of 18% and the temperature dependence of K Ia has the same form as predicted by the master curve for crack initiation toughness. The 'built in' offset between the mean 100 MPa√m crack arrest temperature, TK Ia , and RT NDT is 38 deg. C (TK Ia =RT NDT +38 deg. C) and the experimental relation between TK Ia and NDT is, TK Ia =NDT+28 deg. C. The K IR -reference curve using NDT as reference temperature will be conservative with respect to the general 5% lower bound K Ia(5%) -curve, with a 75% confidence. The use of RT NDT , instead of NDT, will generally increase the degree of conservatism, both for non-irradiated as well as irradiated materials, close to a 95% confidence level. This trend is pronounced for materials with Charpy-V upper shelf energies below 100 J. It is shown that the K IR -curve effectively constitutes a deterministic lower bound curve for crack arrest The findings are valid both for nuclear pressure vessel plates, forgings and welds

  18. Principles for designing proteins with cavities formed by curved β sheets

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Marcos, Enrique; Basanta, Benjamin; Chidyausiku, Tamuka M.; Tang, Yuefeng; Oberdorfer, Gustav; Liu, Gaohua; Swapna, G. V. T.; Guan, Rongjin; Silva, Daniel-Adriano; Dou, Jiayi; Pereira, Jose Henrique; Xiao, Rong; Sankaran, Banumathi; Zwart, Peter H.; Montelione, Gaetano T.; Baker, David

    2017-01-12

    Active sites and ligand-binding cavities in native proteins are often formed by curved β sheets, and the ability to control β-sheet curvature would allow design of binding proteins with cavities customized to specific ligands. Toward this end, we investigated the mechanisms controlling β-sheet curvature by studying the geometry of β sheets in naturally occurring protein structures and folding simulations. The principles emerging from this analysis were used to design, de novo, a series of proteins with curved β sheets topped with α helices. Nuclear magnetic resonance and crystal structures of the designs closely match the computational models, showing that β-sheet curvature can be controlled with atomic-level accuracy. Our approach enables the design of proteins with cavities and provides a route to custom design ligand-binding and catalytic sites.

  19. A tool for the calculation of rockfall fragility curves for masonry buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mavrouli, Olga

    2017-04-01

    Masonries are common structures in mountainous and coastal areas and they exhibit substantial vulnerability to rockfalls. For big rockfall events or precarious structures the damage is very high and the repair is not cost-effective. Nonetheless, for small or moderate rockfalls, the damage may vary in function of the characteristics of the impacting rock blocks and of the buildings. The evaluation of the expected damage for masonry buildings, and for different small and moderate rockfall scenarios, is useful for assessing the expected direct loss at constructed areas, and its implications for life safety. A tool for the calculation of fragility curves for masonry buildings which are impacted by rock blocks is presented. The fragility curves provide the probability of exceeding a given damage state (low, moderate and high) for increasing impact energies of the rock blocks on the walls. The damage states are defined according to a damage index equal to the percentage of the damaged area of a wall, as being proportional to the repair cost. Aleatoric and epistemic uncertainties are incorporated with respect to the (i) rock block velocity, (ii) rock block size, (iii) masonry width, and (iv) masonry resistance. The calculation of the fragility curves is applied using a Monte Carlo simulation. Given user-defined data for the average value of these four parameters and their variability, random scenarios are developed, the respective damage index is assessed for each scenario, and the probability of exceedance of each damage state is calculated. For the assessment of the damage index, a database developed by the results of 576 analytical simulations is used. The variables range is: wall width 0.4 - 1.0 m, wall tensile strength 0.1 - 0.6 MPa, rock velocity 1-20 m/s, rock size 1-20 m3. Nonetheless this tool permits the use of alternative databases, on the condition that they contain data that correlate the damage with the four aforementioned variables. The fragility curves can

  20. POSSIBLE RECESSION CURVE APPLICATIONS FOR RETENTION EVALUATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel Liberacki

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available The objective of the article was to present possible applications of recession flow curve in a small lowland watershed retention discharge size evaluation. The examined woodland micro catchment area of 0.52 sq km is located in Puszcza Zielonka in central Wielkopolska. The Hutka catchment is typically woody with high retention abilities. The catchment of the Hutka watercourse is forested in 89%, the other 11% is covered by swamps and wasteland. The predominant sites are fresh mixed coniferous forest (BMśw, fresh coniferous forest (Bśw and alder carr forest (Ol. Landscape in catchment is characterized by a large number of interior depressions, filled partly with rainwater or peatbogs, with poorly developed natural drainage. The watercourses do not exceed 1 km in length, the mean width is approx. 0.5 m, while mean depth ranges from 0.2 to 0.3 m. During hydrological research conducted in 1997/1998–1999/2000, 35 major (characteristic raised water stages were observed in Hutka after substantial precipitation. The recession curve dating from 18–24 September 2000 has the α and n rates nearest to average. Comparing the model curve and the curve created by observing watercourse flow, one can notice their resemblance and that they have similar ordinate values as well as shape. In the case of other recession curves, the maximum differences of ordinate values are also about 0.1–0.2 l/s/km2. The measuured α and n rates do not reveal any regularities. There are no significant statistical Horton model parameter (for recession flow curves dependencies between α and n and e.g. initial flows (Qo or the whole period of high water waves (Qp. Consequently, calculated relation between these parameters is only an approximation for the general evaluation of the retention discharge in the catchment area towards retention with flow function.

  1. Comparison of index velocity measurements made with a horizontal acoustic Doppler current profiler

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jackson, P. Ryan; Johnson, Kevin K.; Duncker, James J.

    2012-01-01

    The State of Illinois' annual withdrawal from Lake Michigan is limited by a U.S. Supreme Court decree, and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is responsible for monitoring flows in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) near Lemont, Illinois as a part of the Lake Michigan Diversion Accounting overseen by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District. Every 5 years, a technical review committee consisting of practicing engineers and academics is convened to review the U.S. Geological Survey's streamgage practices in the CSSC near Lemont, Illinois. The sixth technical review committee raised a number of questions concerning the flows and streamgage practices in the CSSC near Lemont and this report provides answers to many of those questions. In addition, it is the purpose of this report to examine the index velocity meters in use at Lemont and determine whether the acoustic velocity meter (AVM), which is now the primary index velocity meter, can be replaced by the horizontal acoustic Doppler current profiler (H-ADCP), which is currently the backup meter. Application of the AVM and H-ADCP to index velocity measurements in the CSSC near Lemont, Illinois, has produced good ratings to date. The site is well suited to index velocity measurements in spite of the large range of velocities and highly unsteady flows at the site. Flow variability arises from a range of sources: operation of the waterway through control structures, lockage-generated disturbances, commercial and recreational traffic, industrial withdrawals and discharges, natural inflows, seiches, and storm events. The influences of these factors on the index velocity measurements at Lemont is examined in detail in this report. Results of detailed data comparisons and flow analyses show that use of bank-mounted instrumentation such as the AVM and H-ADCP appears to be the best option for index velocity measurement in the CSSC near Lemont. Comparison of the rating curves for the AVM and H-ADCP demonstrates

  2. Insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR) levels in a general adult population: curves percentile by gender and age. The EPIRCE study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gayoso-Diz, Pilar; Otero-Gonzalez, Alfonso; Rodriguez-Alvarez, María Xosé; Gude, Francisco; Cadarso-Suarez, Carmen; García, Fernando; De Francisco, Angel

    2011-10-01

    To describe the distribution of HOMA-IR levels in a general nondiabetic population and its relationships with metabolic and lifestyles characteristics. Cross-sectional study. Data from 2246 nondiabetic adults in a random Spanish population sample, stratified by age and gender, were analyzed. Assessments included a structured interview, physical examination, and blood sampling. Generalized additive models (GAMs) were used to assess the effect of lifestyle habits and clinical and demographic measurements on HOMA-IR. Multivariate GAMs and quantile regression analyses of HOMA-IR were carried out separately in men and women. This study shows refined estimations of HOMA-IR levels by age, body mass index, and waist circumference in men and women. HOMA-IR levels were higher in men (2.06) than women (1.95) (P=0.047). In women, but not men, HOMA-IR and age showed a significant nonlinear association (P=0.006), with increased levels above fifty years of age. We estimated HOMA-IR curves percentile in men and women. Age- and gender-adjusted HOMA-IR levels are reported in a representative Spanish adult non-diabetic population. There are gender-specific differences, with increased levels in women over fifty years of age that may be related with changes in body fat distribution after menopause. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Modelling critical NDVI curves in perennial ryegrass

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gislum, R; Boelt, B

    2010-01-01

      The use of optical sensors to measure canopy reflectance and calculate crop index as e.g. normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) is widely used in agricultural crops, but has so far not been implemented in herbage seed production. The present study has the purpose to develop a critical...... NDVI curve where the critical NDVI, defined as the minimum NDVI obtained to achieve a high seed yield, will be modelled during the growing season. NDVI measurements were made at different growing degree days (GDD) in a three year field experiment where different N application rates were applied....... There was a clear maximum in the correlation coefficient between seed yield and NDVI in the period from approximately 700 to 900 GDD. At this time there was an exponential relationship between NDVI and seed yield where highest seed yield were at NDVI ~0.9. Theoretically the farmers should aim for an NDVI of 0...

  4. Study on soil-water retention curves for loess aerated zone

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guo Zede; Cheng Jinru; Deng An; Masayuki Mukai; Hideo Kamiyama

    2000-01-01

    The author introduces the measuring method and results of soil-water retention curves of 46 samples taken from ground surface to water table of 28 m depth at CIRP's Field Test Site. The results indicate that the soil-water retention characteristics vary significantly with depth, and the loess-aerated zone at the site can be divided into five layers. From the results, unsaturated hydraulic parameters are deduced, such as conductivity, specific water capacity and equivalent pore diameter. The water velocity calculated from these parameters is satisfactorily consistent with that one obtained from 3 H tracing test carried out at the site

  5. ROC-ing along: Evaluation and interpretation of receiver operating characteristic curves.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carter, Jane V; Pan, Jianmin; Rai, Shesh N; Galandiuk, Susan

    2016-06-01

    It is vital for clinicians to understand and interpret correctly medical statistics as used in clinical studies. In this review, we address current issues and focus on delivering a simple, yet comprehensive, explanation of common research methodology involving receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. ROC curves are used most commonly in medicine as a means of evaluating diagnostic tests. Sample data from a plasma test for the diagnosis of colorectal cancer were used to generate a prediction model. These are actual, unpublished data that have been used to describe the calculation of sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive and negative predictive values, and accuracy. The ROC curves were generated to determine the accuracy of this plasma test. These curves are generated by plotting the sensitivity (true-positive rate) on the y axis and 1 - specificity (false-positive rate) on the x axis. Curves that approach closest to the coordinate (x = 0, y = 1) are more highly predictive, whereas ROC curves that lie close to the line of equality indicate that the result is no better than that obtained by chance. The optimum sensitivity and specificity can be determined from the graph as the point where the minimum distance line crosses the ROC curve. This point corresponds to the Youden index (J), a function of sensitivity and specificity used commonly to rate diagnostic tests. The area under the curve is used to quantify the overall ability of a test to discriminate between 2 outcomes. By following these simple guidelines, interpretation of ROC curves will be less difficult and they can then be interpreted more reliably when writing, reviewing, or analyzing scientific papers. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. [A comparative study between inflation and deflation pressure-volume curve in determining the optimal positive end-expiratory pressure].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gang, Li; Sun, Xiao-yi; Xu, Jin-quan; Zhang, Xin-li; Kou, Lu-xin; Jiang, Zhi-hong; Zhang, Lei

    2012-02-01

    To determine the optimal positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) according to inflation and deflation pressure-volume curve (P-V curve) in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). ARDS models were reproduced in 20 dogs, and they were randomly divided into two groups. In both groups, Levenberg-Marquardt iterative algorithm was employed using software to explore parameters fitting with Boltzmann formula, by which the real inflection point of pressure (Pinf d) in deflation limb or lower inflection point pressure (PLip) in inflation limb on P-V curve were defined. For the control group (inflation curve) P-V curve of PLip + 2 cm H(2)O [1 cm H(2)O = 0.098 kPa] was applied as the best PEEP value. In the experimental group (deflation curve) the Pinf d was taken as the best PEEP value. The heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP), fingertip pulse oxygen saturation [SpO(2)], static lung compliance (Cst), arterial partial pressure of oxygen [PaO(2)] and arterial partial pressure of carbon dioxide [PaCO(2)] were monitored at 0, 2, 6, 12, 24 and 48 hours. Oxygenation index increased significantly both in control and experimental groups. In experimental group, oxygenation index (mm Hg, 1 mm Hg = 0.133 kPa) of 12, 24 and 48 hours was respectively significantly higher than that of the control group (12 hours: 177.63 ± 8.94 vs. 165.60 ± 8.90, 24 hours: 194.19 ± 10.67 vs. 168.70 ± 10.60, 48 hours: 203.15 ± 13.21 vs. 171.26 ± 9.21, all P deflation P-V curve was better than that of inflation curve.

  7. Body Mass Index Percentile Curves for 7 To 18 Year Old Children and Adolescents; are the Sample Populations from Tehran Nationally Representative?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mostafa Hosseini

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Background: The children’s body composition status is an important indicator of health condition evaluated through their body mass index (BMI. We aimed to provide standardized percentile curves of BMI in a population of Iranian children and adolescents. We assessed the nationally representative of sample populations from Tehran. Materials and Methods: A total sample of 14,865 children aged 7-18 years was gathered. The Lambda-Mu-Sigma method was used to derive sex-specific smoothed centiles for age via the Lambda-Mu-Sigma Chart Maker Program. Finally, the prevalence of overweight and obesity with 95% confidence interval (CI was calculated. Results: BMI percentiles obtained from Tehran’s population, except for the 10th percentile, seem to be very slightly greater than the urban boys from all over Iran. BMI percentiles have an increasing trend by age that is S-shaped with a slight slope. Only in the 90th and 97th percentiles of BMI for girls, this rising trend seems to stop. Boys generally have higher BMIs than girls. The exceptions are younger ages of 90th and 97th percentiles and older ages of 3rd and 10th percentiles. A total number of 1,008 (13.20%; 95% CI: 12.46-13.98 boys and 603 (8.34%; 95% CI: 7.72-9.00 girls were categorized as overweight and obese. Obesity were observed in 402 (5.27%; 95% CI: 4.79-5.79 boys and 274 (3.76%; 95% CI: 3.35-4.22 girls. Conclusion: We construct BMI percentile curves by age and gender for 7 to 18 years Iranian children and adolescents. It can be concluded that sample populations from Tehran are nationally representative.

  8. An Analytical Study on an Orthodontic Index: Index of Complexity, Outcome and Need (ICON)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torkan, Sepide; Pakshir, Hamid Reza; Fattahi, Hamid Reza; Oshagh, Morteza; Momeni Danaei, Shahla; Salehi, Parisa; Hedayati, Zohreh

    2015-01-01

    Statement of the Problem The validity of the Index of Complexity, Outcome and Need (ICON) which is an orthodontic index developed and introduced in 2000 should be studied in different ethnic groups. Purpose The aim of this study was to perform an analysis on the ICON and to verify whether this index is valid for assessing both the need and complexity of orthodontic treatment in Iran. Materials and Method Five orthodontists were asked to score pre-treatment diagnostic records of 100 patients with a uniform distribution of different types of malocclusions determined by Dental Health Component of the Index of Treatment Need. A calibrated examiner also assessed the need for orthodontic treatment and complexity of the cases based on the ICON index as well as the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN). 10 days later, 25% of the cases were re-scored by the panel of experts and the calibrated orthodontist. Results The weighted kappa revealed the inter-examiner reliability of the experts to be 0.63 and 0.51 for the need and complexity components, respectively. ROC curve was used to assess the validity of the index. A new cut-off point was adjusted at 35 in lieu of 43 as the suggested cut-off point. This cut-off point showed the highest level of sensitivity and specificity in our society for orthodontic treatment need (0.77 and 0.78, respectively), but it failed to define definite ranges for the complexity of treatment. Conclusion ICON is a valid index in assessing the need for treatment in Iran when the cut-off point is adjusted to 35. As for complexity of treatment, the index is not validated for our society. It seems that ICON is a well-suited substitute for the IOTN index. PMID:26331142

  9. [Validation of the Pneumonia Severity Index for hospitalizing patients with community-acquired pneumonia].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Querol-Ribelles, José M; Tenías, José M; Querol-Borrás, José M; González-Granda, Damiana; Hernández, Manuel; Ferreruela, Rosa; Martínez, Isidoro

    2004-04-10

    Our main objective was to assess the utility of the Pneumonia Severity Index (PSI) to decide the site of care home or hospital of patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). All CAP patients who came to the emergency department from 1 January to 31 December, 2000, were prospectively assessed with a protocol based on the PSI and additional admission criteria applied to classes I, II and III. Mortality within 30 days and poor outcome were used as endpoints. We tested the diagnostic efficacy of the PSI scale in predicting mortality or unfavourable events by calculating the area below the ROC curve. Of the 243 CAP patients included, 124 (51%) belonged to classes I, II and III, and 119 (49%) belonged to classes IV and V. One hundred and fifty six (64%) patients were admitted. Fifteen (6.2%) patients died, all of them belonging to classes IV and V. Forty four (18%) patients showed a poor outcome. Only one patient who was initially sent home had a poor outcome. The prognostic value of the PSI scale to predict mortality (ROC = 0.92; CI 95%, 0.88-0.95) was high. Our results confirm that the PSI scale is a good prognostic index in clinical practice for predicting mortality due to CAP. In order to use the PSI to decide the site of care of patients with CAP, not only the score obtained but also additional factors should be taken into account.

  10. Regional Curves of Bankfull Channel Geometry for Non-Urban Streams in the Piedmont Physiographic Province, Virginia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lotspeich, R. Russell

    2009-01-01

    Natural-channel design involves constructing a stream channel with the dimensions, slope, and plan-view pattern that would be expected to transport water and sediment and yet maintain habitat and aesthetics consistent with unimpaired stream segments, or reaches. Regression relations for bankfull stream characteristics based on drainage area, referred to as 'regional curves,' are used in natural stream channel design to verify field determinations of bankfull discharge and stream channel characteristics. One-variable, ordinary least-squares regressions relating bankfull discharge, bankfull cross-sectional area, bankfull width, bankfull mean depth, and bankfull slope to drainage area were developed on the basis of data collected at 17 streamflow-gaging stations in rural areas with less than 20 percent urban land cover within the basin area (non-urban areas) of the Piedmont Physiographic Province in Virginia. These regional curves can be used to estimate the bankfull discharge and bankfull channel geometry when the drainage area of a watershed is known. Data collected included bankfull cross-sectional geometry, flood-plain geometry, and longitudinal profile data. In addition, particle-size distributions of streambed material were determined, and data on basin characteristics were compiled for each reach. Field data were analyzed to determine bankfull cross-sectional area, bankfull width, bankfull mean depth, bankfull discharge, bankfull channel slope, and D50 and D84 particle sizes at each site. The bankfull geometry from the 17 sites surveyed during this study represents the average of two riffle cross sections for each site. Regional curves developed for the 17 sites had coefficient of determination (R2) values of 0.950 for bankfull cross-sectional area, 0.913 for bankfull width, 0.915 for bankfull mean depth, 0.949 for bankfull discharge, and 0.497 for bankfull channel slope. The regional curves represent conditions for streams with defined channels and bankfull

  11. A Primer on the Statistical Modelling of Learning Curves in Health Professions Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pusic, Martin V.; Boutis, Kathy; Pecaric, Martin R.; Savenkov, Oleksander; Beckstead, Jason W.; Jaber, Mohamad Y.

    2017-01-01

    Learning curves are a useful way of representing the rate of learning over time. Features include an index of baseline performance (y-intercept), the efficiency of learning over time (slope parameter) and the maximal theoretical performance achievable (upper asymptote). Each of these parameters can be statistically modelled on an individual and…

  12. Decomposing the misery index: A dynamic approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ivan K. Cohen

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The misery index (the unweighted sum of unemployment and inflation rates was probably the first attempt to develop a single statistic to measure the level of a population’s economic malaise. In this letter, we develop a dynamic approach to decompose the misery index using two basic relations of modern macroeconomics: the expectations-augmented Phillips curve and Okun’s law. Our reformulation of the misery index is closer in spirit to Okun’s idea. However, we are able to offer an improved version of the index, mainly based on output and unemployment. Specifically, this new Okun’s index measures the level of economic discomfort as a function of three key factors: (1 the misery index in the previous period; (2 the output gap in growth rate terms; and (3 cyclical unemployment. This dynamic approach differs substantially from the standard one utilised to develop the misery index, and allow us to obtain an index with five main interesting features: (1 it focuses on output, unemployment and inflation; (2 it considers only objective variables; (3 it allows a distinction between short-run and long-run phenomena; (4 it places more importance on output and unemployment rather than inflation; and (5 it weights recessions more than expansions.

  13. Flood Hazard Assessment for the Savannah River Site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, K.F.

    2000-01-01

    A method was developed to determine the probabilistic flood elevation curves for certain Savannah River Site (SRS) facilities. This paper presents the method used to determine the probabilistic flood elevation curve for F-Area due to runoff from the Upper Three Runs basin. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 420.1, Facility Safety, outlines the requirements for Natural Phenomena Hazard (NPH) mitigation for new and existing DOE facilities. The NPH considered in this paper is flooding. The facility-specific probabilistic flood hazard curve defines as a function of water elevation the annual probability of occurrence or the return period in years. Based on facility-specific probabilistic flood hazard curves and the nature of facility operations (e.g., involving hazardous or radioactive materials), facility managers can design permanent or temporary devices to prevent the propagation of flood on site, and develop emergency preparedness plans to mitigate the consequences of floods. A method was developed to determine the probabilistic flood hazard curves for SRS facilities. The flood hazard curves for the SRS F-Area due to flooding in the Upper Three Runs basin are presented in this paper

  14. Flood Hazard Assessment for the Savannah River Site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, K.F.

    1999-01-01

    'A method was developed to determine the probabilistic flood elevation curves for certain Savannah River Site (SRS) facilities. This paper presents the method used to determine the probabilistic flood elevation curve for F-Area due to runoff from the Upper Three Runs basin. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 420.1, Facility Safety, outlines the requirements for Natural Phenomena Hazard (NPH) mitigation for new and existing DOE facilities. The NPH considered in this paper is flooding. The facility-specific probabilistic flood hazard curve defines as a function of water elevation the annual probability of occurrence or the return period in years. Based on facility-specific probabilistic flood hazard curves and the nature of facility operations (e.g., involving hazardous or radioactive materials), facility managers can design permanent or temporary devices to prevent the propagation of flood on site, and develop emergency preparedness plans to mitigate the consequences of floods.'

  15. Long-term Behavior of Hydrocarbon Production Curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lovell, A.; Karra, S.; O'Malley, D.; Viswanathan, H. S.; Srinivasan, G.

    2017-12-01

    Recovering hydrocarbons (such as natural gas) from naturally-occurring formations with low permeability has had a huge impact on the energy sector, however, recovery rates are low due to poor understanding of recovery and transport mechanisms [1]. The physical mechanisms that control the production of hydrocarbon are only partially understood. Calculations have shown that the short-term behavior in the peak of the production curve is understood to come from the free hydrocarbons in the fracture networks, but the long-term behavior of these curves is often underpredicted [2]. This behavior is thought to be due to small scale processes - such as matrix diffusion, desorption, and connectivity in the damage region around the large fracture network. In this work, we explore some of these small-scale processes using discrete fracture networks (DFN) and the toolkit dfnWorks [3], the matrix diffusion, size of the damage region, and distribution of free gas between the fracture networks and rock matrix. Individual and combined parameter spaces are explored, and comparisons of the resulting production curves are made to experimental site data from the Haynesville formation [4]. We find that matrix diffusion significantly controls the shape of the tail of the production curve, while the distribution of free gas impacts the relative magnitude of the peak to the tail. The height of the damage region has no effect on the shape of the tail. Understanding the constrains of the parameter space based on site data is the first step in rigorously quantifying the uncertainties coming from these types of systems, which can in turn optimize and improve hydrocarbon recovery. [1] C. McGlade, et. al., (2013) Methods of estimating shale gas resources - comparison, evaluation, and implications, Energy, 59, 116-125 [2] S. Karra, et. al., (2015) Effect of advective flow in fractures and matrix diffusion on natural gas production, Water Resources Research, 51(10), 8646-8657 [3] J.D. Hyman, et

  16. Surgical Site Infection after Sternotomy in Low- and Middle-Human Development Index Countries: A Systematic Review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forrester, Joseph D; Cai, Lawrence Z; Zeigler, Sanford; Weiser, Thomas G

    2017-10-01

    The burden of cardiovascular disease is increasing in low- and middle-human development index (LMHDI) countries, and cardiac operations are an important component of a comprehensive cardiovascular care package. Little is known about the baseline incidence of surgical site infections (SSIs) among patients undergoing sternotomy in LMHDI countries. A prospectively registered, systematic literature review of articles in the PubMed, Ovid, and Web of Science databases describing the epidemiology and management of SSIs among persons undergoing sternotomy in LMHDI countries was performed. We performed a quantitative synthesis of patients undergoing sternotomy for CABG to estimate published sternotomy SSI rates. Of the 423 abstracts identified after applying search criteria, 14 studies were reviewed in detail. The pooled SSI rate after sternotomy among reviewed studies was 4.3 infections per 100 sternotomies (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.3-6.0 infections per 100 sternotomies), which is comparable to infection rates in high-human development index countries. As the burden of cardiovascular disease in LMHDI settings increases, the ability to provide safe cardiac surgical care is paramount. Describing the baseline SSI rate after sternotomy in LMHDI countries is an important first step in creating baseline expectations for SSI rates in cardiac surgical programs in these settings.

  17. Flood hazard assessment for the Savannah River Site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, K.F.

    2000-01-01

    A method was developed to determine the probabilistic flood elevation curves for certain Savannah River Site (SRS) facilities. This paper presents the method used to determine the probabilistic flood elevation curve for F-Area due to runoff from the Upper Three Runs basin. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 420.1, Facility Safety, outlines the requirements for Natural Phenomena Hazard (NPH) mitigation for new and existing DOE facilities. The NPH considered in this paper is flooding. The facility-specific probabilistic flood hazard curve defines as a function of water elevation the annual probability of occurrence or the return period in years. Based on facility-specific probabilistic flood hazard curves and the nature of facility operations (e.g., involving hazardous or radioactive materials), facility managers can design permanent or temporary devices to prevent the propagation of flood on site, and develop emergency preparedness plans to mitigate the consequences of floods. The flood hazard curves for the SRS F-Area due to flooding in the Upper Three Runs basin are presented in this paper

  18. The 2014 Danish references from birth to 20 years for height, weight and body mass index

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tinggaard, Jeanette; Aksglaede, Lise; Sørensen, Kaspar

    2014-01-01

    in body mass index (BMI) above median levels was found. Reference curves for height were superimposable with standard curves based on the selective WHO criteria. Danish children were longer/taller and heavier and they had larger head circumferences than those reported in the recent multiethnic WHO...

  19. Huang's three-step maneuver shortens the learning curve of laparoscopic spleen-preserving splenic hilar lymphadenectomy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Chang-Ming; Huang, Ze-Ning; Zheng, Chao-Hui; Li, Ping; Xie, Jian-Wei; Wang, Jia-Bin; Lin, Jian-Xian; Jun, Lu; Chen, Qi-Yue; Cao, Long-Long; Lin, Mi; Tu, Ru-Hong

    2017-12-01

    The goal of this study was to investigate the difference between the learning curves of different maneuvers in laparoscopic spleen-preserving splenic hilar lymphadenectomy for advanced upper gastric cancer. From January 2010 to April 2014, 53 consecutive patients who underwent laparoscopic spleen-preserving splenic hilar lymphadenectomy via the traditional-step maneuver (group A) and 53 consecutive patients via Huang's three-step maneuver (group B) were retrospectively analyzed. No significant difference in patient characteristics were found between the two groups. The learning curves of groups A and B were divided into phase 1 (1-43 cases and 1-30 cases, respectively) and phase 2 (44-53 cases and 31-53 cases, respectively). Compared with group A, the dissection time, bleeding loss and vascular injury were significantly decreased in group B. No significant differences in short-term outcomes were found between the two maneuvers. The multivariate analysis indicated that the body mass index, short gastric vessels, splenic artery type and maneuver were significantly associated with the dissection time in group B. No significant difference in the survival curve was found between the maneuvers. The learning curve of Huang's three-step maneuver was shorter than that of the traditional-step maneuver, and the former represents an ideal maneuver for laparoscopic spleen-preserving splenic hilar lymphadenectomy.To shorten the learning curve at the beginning of laparoscopic spleen-preserving splenic hilar lymphadenectomy, beginners should beneficially use Huang's three-step maneuver and select patients with advanced upper gastric cancer with a body mass index of less than 25 kg/m 2 and the concentrated type of splenic artery. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  20. Factors predicting early postpartum glucose intolerance in Japanese women with gestational diabetes mellitus: decision-curve analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kondo, M; Nagao, Y; Mahbub, M H; Tanabe, Tsuyoshi; Tanizawa, Y

    2018-04-29

    To identify factors predicting early postpartum glucose intolerance in Japanese women with gestational diabetes mellitus, using decision-curve analysis. A retrospective cohort study was performed. The participants were 123 Japanese women with gestational diabetes who underwent 75-g oral glucose tolerance tests at 8-12 weeks after delivery. They were divided into a glucose intolerance and a normal glucose tolerance group based on postpartum oral glucose tolerance test results. Analysis of the pregnancy oral glucose tolerance test results showed predictive factors for postpartum glucose intolerance. We also evaluated the clinical usefulness of the prediction model based on decision-curve analysis. Of 123 women, 78 (63.4%) had normoglycaemia and 45 (36.6%) had glucose intolerance. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed insulinogenic index/fasting immunoreactive insulin and summation of glucose levels, assessed during pregnancy oral glucose tolerance tests (total glucose), to be independent risk factors for postpartum glucose intolerance. Evaluating the regression models, the best discrimination (area under the curve 0.725) was obtained using the basic model (i.e. age, family history of diabetes, BMI ≥25 kg/m 2 and use of insulin during pregnancy) plus insulinogenic index/fasting immunoreactive insulin intolerance. Insulinogenic index/fasting immunoreactive insulin calculated using oral glucose tolerance test results during pregnancy is potentially useful for predicting early postpartum glucose intolerance in Japanese women with gestational diabetes. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  1. NormaCurve: a SuperCurve-based method that simultaneously quantifies and normalizes reverse phase protein array data.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sylvie Troncale

    Full Text Available MOTIVATION: Reverse phase protein array (RPPA is a powerful dot-blot technology that allows studying protein expression levels as well as post-translational modifications in a large number of samples simultaneously. Yet, correct interpretation of RPPA data has remained a major challenge for its broad-scale application and its translation into clinical research. Satisfying quantification tools are available to assess a relative protein expression level from a serial dilution curve. However, appropriate tools allowing the normalization of the data for external sources of variation are currently missing. RESULTS: Here we propose a new method, called NormaCurve, that allows simultaneous quantification and normalization of RPPA data. For this, we modified the quantification method SuperCurve in order to include normalization for (i background fluorescence, (ii variation in the total amount of spotted protein and (iii spatial bias on the arrays. Using a spike-in design with a purified protein, we test the capacity of different models to properly estimate normalized relative expression levels. The best performing model, NormaCurve, takes into account a negative control array without primary antibody, an array stained with a total protein stain and spatial covariates. We show that this normalization is reproducible and we discuss the number of serial dilutions and the number of replicates that are required to obtain robust data. We thus provide a ready-to-use method for reliable and reproducible normalization of RPPA data, which should facilitate the interpretation and the development of this promising technology. AVAILABILITY: The raw data, the scripts and the normacurve package are available at the following web site: http://microarrays.curie.fr.

  2. Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain Site, Nevada Research and Development Area, Nevada: Volume 9, Index

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1988-12-01

    This site characterization plan (SCP) has been developed for the candidate repository site at Yucca Mountain in the State of Nevada. The SCP includes a description of the Yucca Mountain site (Chapters 1-5), a conceptual design for the repository (Chapter 6), a description of the packaging to be used for the waste to be emplaced in the repository (Chapter 7), and a description of the planned site characterization activities (Chapter 8). The schedules and milestones presented in Sections 8.3 and 8.5 of the SCP were developed to be consistent with the June 1988 draft Amendment to the DOE`s Mission Plan for the Civilian Radioactive Waste Management Program. The five month delay in the scheduled start of exploratory shaft construction that was announced recently is not reflected in these schedules.

  3. Wind Energy Potential and Power Law Indexes Assessment for Selected Near-Coastal Sites in Malaysia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aliashim Albani

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper investigated the wind energy potential by analysing a certain amount of gathered 10-min measured data at four stations located at coastal sites in Malaysia, i.e., Kudat, Mersing, Kijal, and Langkawi. The wind data are collected from a total of four new wind measurement masts with sensors mounted at various heights on the tower. The measured data have enabled the establishment of wind resource maps and the power law indexes (PLIs analysis. In addition, the dependence of PLI upon surface temperature and terrain types is studied, as they are associated to the form of exponential fits. Moreover, the accuracy of exponential fits is assessed by comparing the results with the 1/7 law via the capacity factor (CF discrepancies. In order to do so, the wind turbine with a hub-height similar to the maximum height of the measured data at each site is selected to simulate energy production. Accordingly, the discrepancy of CF based on the extrapolated data by employing 1/7 laws and exponential fits, in spite of being computed using measured data, is determined as well. Furthermore, the large discrepancy of the wind data and the CF, which has been determined with the application of 1/7, is compared to the exponential fits. This is because; discrepancy in estimation of vertical wind speed could lead to inaccurate CF computation. Meanwhile, from the energy potential analysis based on the computed CF, only Kudat and Mersing display a promising potential to develop a medium capacity of wind turbine power, while the other sites may be suitable for wind turbines at a small scale.

  4. Comparing the index-flood and multiple-regression methods using L-moments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malekinezhad, H.; Nachtnebel, H. P.; Klik, A.

    In arid and semi-arid regions, the length of records is usually too short to ensure reliable quantile estimates. Comparing index-flood and multiple-regression analyses based on L-moments was the main objective of this study. Factor analysis was applied to determine main influencing variables on flood magnitude. Ward’s cluster and L-moments approaches were applied to several sites in the Namak-Lake basin in central Iran to delineate homogeneous regions based on site characteristics. Homogeneity test was done using L-moments-based measures. Several distributions were fitted to the regional flood data and index-flood and multiple-regression methods as two regional flood frequency methods were compared. The results of factor analysis showed that length of main waterway, compactness coefficient, mean annual precipitation, and mean annual temperature were the main variables affecting flood magnitude. The study area was divided into three regions based on the Ward’s method of clustering approach. The homogeneity test based on L-moments showed that all three regions were acceptably homogeneous. Five distributions were fitted to the annual peak flood data of three homogeneous regions. Using the L-moment ratios and the Z-statistic criteria, GEV distribution was identified as the most robust distribution among five candidate distributions for all the proposed sub-regions of the study area, and in general, it was concluded that the generalised extreme value distribution was the best-fit distribution for every three regions. The relative root mean square error (RRMSE) measure was applied for evaluating the performance of the index-flood and multiple-regression methods in comparison with the curve fitting (plotting position) method. In general, index-flood method gives more reliable estimations for various flood magnitudes of different recurrence intervals. Therefore, this method should be adopted as regional flood frequency method for the study area and the Namak-Lake basin

  5. Use of regionalisation approach to develop fire frequency curves for Victoria, Australia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khastagir, Anirban; Jayasuriya, Niranjali; Bhuyian, Muhammed A.

    2017-11-01

    It is important to perform fire frequency analysis to obtain fire frequency curves (FFC) based on fire intensity at different parts of Victoria. In this paper fire frequency curves (FFCs) were derived based on forest fire danger index (FFDI). FFDI is a measure related to fire initiation, spreading speed and containment difficulty. The mean temperature (T), relative humidity (RH) and areal extent of open water (LC2) during summer months (Dec-Feb) were identified as the most important parameters for assessing the risk of occurrence of bushfire. Based on these parameters, Andrews' curve equation was applied to 40 selected meteorological stations to identify homogenous stations to form unique clusters. A methodology using peak FFDI from cluster averaged FFDIs was developed by applying Log Pearson Type III (LPIII) distribution to generate FFCs. A total of nine homogeneous clusters across Victoria were identified, and subsequently their FFC's were developed in order to estimate the regionalised fire occurrence characteristics.

  6. Temporal Evolution of the Gamma-ray Burst Afterglow Spectrum for an Observer: GeV–TeV Synchrotron Self-Compton Light Curve

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fukushima, Takuma; Fujita, Yutaka [Department of Earth and Space Science, Osaka University, Osaka, 560-0043 (Japan); To, Sho; Asano, Katsuaki, E-mail: fukushima@vega.ess.sci.osaka-u.ac.jp, E-mail: fujita@vega.ess.sci.osaka-u.ac.jp, E-mail: tosho@icrr.u-tokyo.ac.jp, E-mail: asanok@icrr.u-tokyo.ac.jp [Institute for Cosmic Ray Research, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8582 (Japan)

    2017-08-01

    We numerically simulate the gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglow emission with a one-zone time-dependent code. The temporal evolutions of the decelerating shocked shell and energy distributions of electrons and photons are consistently calculated. The photon spectrum and light curves for an observer are obtained taking into account the relativistic propagation of the shocked shell and the curvature of the emission surface. We find that the onset time of the afterglow is significantly earlier than the previous analytical estimate. The analytical formulae of the shock propagation and light curve for the radiative case are also different from our results. Our results show that even if the emission mechanism is switching from synchrotron to synchrotron self-Compton, the gamma-ray light curves can be a smooth power law, which agrees with the observed light curve and the late detection of a 32 GeV photon in GRB 130427A. The uncertainty of the model parameters obtained with the analytical formula is discussed, especially in connection with the closure relation between spectral index and decay index.

  7. A learning curve for solar thermal power

    Science.gov (United States)

    Platzer, Werner J.; Dinter, Frank

    2016-05-01

    Photovoltaics started its success story by predicting the cost degression depending on cumulated installed capacity. This so-called learning curve was published and used for predictions for PV modules first, then predictions of system cost decrease also were developed. This approach is less sensitive to political decisions and changing market situations than predictions on the time axis. Cost degression due to innovation, use of scaling effects, improved project management, standardised procedures including the search for better sites and optimization of project size are learning effects which can only be utilised when projects are developed. Therefore a presentation of CAPEX versus cumulated installed capacity is proposed in order to show the possible future advancement of the technology to politics and market. However from a wide range of publications on cost for CSP it is difficult to derive a learning curve. A logical cost structure for direct and indirect capital expenditure is needed as the basis for further analysis. Using derived reference cost for typical power plant configurations predictions of future cost have been derived. Only on the basis of that cost structure and the learning curve levelised cost of electricity for solar thermal power plants should be calculated for individual projects with different capacity factors in various locations.

  8. Obesity Index That Better Predict Metabolic Syndrome: Body Mass Index, Waist Circumference, Waist Hip Ratio, or Waist Height Ratio

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abdulbari Bener

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Aim. The aim was to compare body mass index (BMI, waist circumference (WC, waist hip ratio (WHR, and waist height ratio (WHtR to identify the best predictor of metabolic syndrome (MetS among Qatari adult population. Methods. A cross-sectional survey from April 2011 to December 2012. Data was collected from 1552 participants followed by blood sampling. MetS was defined according to Third Adult Treatment Panel (ATPIII and International Diabetes Federation (IDF. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC curve analysis was performed. Results. Among men, WC followed by WHR and WHtR yielded the highest area under the curve (AUC (0.78; 95% CI 0.74–0.82 and 0.75; 95% CI 0.71–0.79, resp.. Among women, WC followed by WHtR yielded the highest AUC (0.81; 95% CI 0.78–0.85 & 0.79; 95% CI 0.76–0.83, resp.. Among men, WC at a cut-off 99.5 cm resulted in the highest Youden index with sensitivity 81.6% and 63.9% specificity. Among women, WC at a cut-off 91 cm resulted in the highest Youden index with the corresponding sensitivity and specificity of 86.5% and 64.7%, respectively. BMI had the lowest sensitivity and specificity in both genders. Conclusion. WC at cut-off 99.5 cm in men and 91 cm in women was the best predictor of MetS in Qatar.

  9. Seismic fragility curves of bridge piers accounting for ground motions in Korea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, Duy-Duan; Lee, Tae-Hyung

    2018-04-01

    Korea is located in a slight-to-moderate seismic zone. Nevertheless, several studies pointed that the peak earthquake magnitude in the region can be reached to approximately 6.5. Accordingly, a seismic vulnerability evaluation of the existing structures accounting for ground motions in Korea is momentous. The purpose of this paper is to develop seismic fragility curves for bridge piers of a steel box girder bridge equipped with and without base isolators based on a set of ground motions recorded in Korea. A finite element simulation platform, OpenSees, is utilized to perform nonlinear time history analyses of the bridges. A series of damage states is defined based on a damage index which is expressed in terms of the column displacement ductility ratio. The fragility curves based on Korean motions were thereafter compared with the fragility curves generated using worldwide earthquakes to assess the effect of the two ground motion groups on the seismic fragility curves of the bridge piers. The results reveal that both non- and base-isolated bridge piers are less vulnerable during the Korean ground motions than that under worldwide earthquakes.

  10. Heterogeneity image patch index and its application to consumer video summarization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dang, Chinh T; Radha, Hayder

    2014-06-01

    Automatic video summarization is indispensable for fast browsing and efficient management of large video libraries. In this paper, we introduce an image feature that we refer to as heterogeneity image patch (HIP) index. The proposed HIP index provides a new entropy-based measure of the heterogeneity of patches within any picture. By evaluating this index for every frame in a video sequence, we generate a HIP curve for that sequence. We exploit the HIP curve in solving two categories of video summarization applications: key frame extraction and dynamic video skimming. Under the key frame extraction frame-work, a set of candidate key frames is selected from abundant video frames based on the HIP curve. Then, a proposed patch-based image dissimilarity measure is used to create affinity matrix of these candidates. Finally, a set of key frames is extracted from the affinity matrix using a min–max based algorithm. Under video skimming, we propose a method to measure the distance between a video and its skimmed representation. The video skimming problem is then mapped into an optimization framework and solved by minimizing a HIP-based distance for a set of extracted excerpts. The HIP framework is pixel-based and does not require semantic information or complex camera motion estimation. Our simulation results are based on experiments performed on consumer videos and are compared with state-of-the-art methods. It is shown that the HIP approach outperforms other leading methods, while maintaining low complexity.

  11. Stenting for curved lesions using a novel curved balloon: Preliminary experimental study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tomita, Hideshi; Higaki, Takashi; Kobayashi, Toshiki; Fujii, Takanari; Fujimoto, Kazuto

    2015-08-01

    Stenting may be a compelling approach to dilating curved lesions in congenital heart diseases. However, balloon-expandable stents, which are commonly used for congenital heart diseases, are usually deployed in a straight orientation. In this study, we evaluated the effect of stenting with a novel curved balloon considered to provide better conformability to the curved-angled lesion. In vitro experiments: A Palmaz Genesis(®) stent (Johnson & Johnson, Cordis Co, Bridgewater, NJ, USA) mounted on the Goku(®) curve (Tokai Medical Co. Nagoya, Japan) was dilated in vitro to observe directly the behavior of the stent and balloon assembly during expansion. Animal experiment: A short Express(®) Vascular SD (Boston Scientific Co, Marlborough, MA, USA) stent and a long Express(®) Vascular LD stent (Boston Scientific) mounted on the curved balloon were deployed in the curved vessel of a pig to observe the effect of stenting in vivo. In vitro experiments: Although the stent was dilated in a curved fashion, stent and balloon assembly also rotated conjointly during expansion of its curved portion. In the primary stenting of the short stent, the stent was dilated with rotation of the curved portion. The excised stent conformed to the curved vessel. As the long stent could not be negotiated across the mid-portion with the balloon in expansion when it started curving, the mid-portion of the stent failed to expand fully. Furthermore, the balloon, which became entangled with the stent strut, could not be retrieved even after complete deflation. This novel curved balloon catheter might be used for implantation of the short stent in a curved lesion; however, it should not be used for primary stenting of the long stent. Post-dilation to conform the stent to the angled vessel would be safer than primary stenting irrespective of stent length. Copyright © 2014 Japanese College of Cardiology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Indexes to Volume 77

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    2015-11-27

    Proceedings of the International Workshop/Conference on Computational Condensed Matter Physics and Materials Science (IWCCMP-2015). Posted on November 27, 2015. Guest Editors: Anurag Srivastava, C. S. Praveen, H. S. Tewari. © 2015 Indian Academy of Sciences, Bengaluru. Contact | Site index.

  13. Curve Boxplot: Generalization of Boxplot for Ensembles of Curves.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mirzargar, Mahsa; Whitaker, Ross T; Kirby, Robert M

    2014-12-01

    In simulation science, computational scientists often study the behavior of their simulations by repeated solutions with variations in parameters and/or boundary values or initial conditions. Through such simulation ensembles, one can try to understand or quantify the variability or uncertainty in a solution as a function of the various inputs or model assumptions. In response to a growing interest in simulation ensembles, the visualization community has developed a suite of methods for allowing users to observe and understand the properties of these ensembles in an efficient and effective manner. An important aspect of visualizing simulations is the analysis of derived features, often represented as points, surfaces, or curves. In this paper, we present a novel, nonparametric method for summarizing ensembles of 2D and 3D curves. We propose an extension of a method from descriptive statistics, data depth, to curves. We also demonstrate a set of rendering and visualization strategies for showing rank statistics of an ensemble of curves, which is a generalization of traditional whisker plots or boxplots to multidimensional curves. Results are presented for applications in neuroimaging, hurricane forecasting and fluid dynamics.

  14. THE CONDITION INDEX OF MUSSELS (Mytilus galloprovincialis IN BUDAVA AND RAŠA BAY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nives Marušić

    2009-07-01

    Full Text Available Condition index is a factor that can show of some area for shellfish cultivation. Analysis of the condition index from various sites may show importance of these sites for cultivation and shellfish during the year. By monitoring the condition index it is possible to determine dynamic of meat amount change in time. Condition index depends on mussel spawning period, presence of food and changes of environmental factors (temperature, salinity, concentration of dissolved oxygen. The research of condition index was monitored in Budava and Ra{a Bay at depth of 0.5 and 2.5 m. In summer months (July and August when the sea water temperature and salinity were in optimum, the mussel condition index had maximum value. Value of the condition index is proportional with sea temperature and salinity. The condition index of mussels significantly changed over the year period, at different sites (Budava and Raška Bay and at different depth (0.5 and 2.5 m.

  15. JUMPING THE CURVE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    René Pellissier

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper explores the notion ofjump ing the curve,following from Handy 's S-curve onto a new curve with new rules policies and procedures. . It claims that the curve does not generally lie in wait but has to be invented by leadership. The focus of this paper is the identification (mathematically and inferentially ofthat point in time, known as the cusp in catastrophe theory, when it is time to change - pro-actively, pre-actively or reactively. These three scenarios are addressed separately and discussed in terms ofthe relevance ofeach.

  16. Inconsistent Growth Response to Fertilization and Thinning of Lodgepole Pine in the Rocky Mountain Foothills Is Linked to Site Index

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bradley D. Pinno

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Fertilization of conifers often results in highly variable growth responses across sites which are difficult to predict. The goal of this study was to predict the growth response of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia crop trees to thinning and fertilization using basic site and foliar characteristics. Fifteen harvest-origin stands along the foothills of the Rocky Mountains of Alberta were subjected to six treatments including two levels of thinning (thinning to 2500 stems per hectare and a control and three types of fertilization (nitrogen-only fertilization, complete fertilization including nitrogen with added P, K, S, Mg, and B, and no fertilization. After three growing seasons, the growth response and foliar status of the crop trees were examined and this response was related to site and foliar characteristics. There was a small and highly variable additive response to fertilization and thinning; diameter growth of crop trees increased relative to the controls an average of 0.3 cm with thinning, 0.3 cm with either N-only or complete fertilization and 0.6 cm when thinned and fertilized. The increase in diameter growth with thinning and nitrogen-only fertilization was positively related to site index but not to any other site factors or pretreatment foliar variables such as nutrient concentrations, ratios, or thresholds.

  17. Geometry of curves and surfaces with Maple

    CERN Document Server

    Rovenski, Vladimir

    2000-01-01

    This concise text on geometry with computer modeling presents some elementary methods for analytical modeling and visualization of curves and surfaces. The author systematically examines such powerful tools as 2-D and 3-D animation of geometric images, transformations, shadows, and colors, and then further studies more complex problems in differential geometry. Well-illustrated with more than 350 figures---reproducible using Maple programs in the book---the work is devoted to three main areas: curves, surfaces, and polyhedra. Pedagogical benefits can be found in the large number of Maple programs, some of which are analogous to C++ programs, including those for splines and fractals. To avoid tedious typing, readers will be able to download many of the programs from the Birkhauser web site. Aimed at a broad audience of students, instructors of mathematics, computer scientists, and engineers who have knowledge of analytical geometry, i.e., method of coordinates, this text will be an excellent classroom resource...

  18. Dual Smarandache Curves of a Timelike Curve lying on Unit dual Lorentzian Sphere

    OpenAIRE

    Kahraman, Tanju; Hüseyin Ugurlu, Hasan

    2016-01-01

    In this paper, we give Darboux approximation for dual Smarandache curves of time like curve on unit dual Lorentzian sphere. Firstly, we define the four types of dual Smarandache curves of a timelike curve lying on dual Lorentzian sphere.

  19. Application of Dexter’s soil physical quality index: an Irish case study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fenton O.

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Historically, due to a lack of measured soil physical data, the quality of Irish soils was relatively unknown. Herein, we investigate the physical quality of the national representative profiles of Co. Waterford. To do this, the soil physical quality (SPQ S-Index, as described by Dexter (2004a,b,c using the S-theory (which seeks the inflection point of a soil water retention curve [SWRC], is used. This can be determined using simple (S-Indirect or complex (S-Direct soil physical data streams. Both are achievable using existing data for the County Waterford profiles, but until now, the suitability of this S-Index for Irish soils has never been tested. Indirect-S provides a generic characterisation of SPQ for a particular soil horizon, using simplified and modelled information (e.g. texture and SWRC derived from pedo-transfer functions, whereas Direct-S provides more complex site-specific information (e.g. texture and SWRC measured in the laboratory, which relates to properties measured for that exact soil horizon. Results showed a significant correlation between S-Indirect (Si and S-Direct (Sd. Therefore, the S-Index can be used in Irish soils and presents opportunities for the use of Si at the national scale. Outlier horizons contained >6% organic carbon (OC and bulk density (Bd values <1 g/cm3 and were not suitable for Si estimation. In addition, the S-Index did not perform well on excessively drained soils. Overall correlations of Si. with Bd and of Si. with OC% for the dataset were detected. Future work should extend this approach to the national scale dataset in the Irish Soil Information System.

  20. ECM using Edwards curves

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bernstein, Daniel J.; Birkner, Peter; Lange, Tanja

    2013-01-01

    -arithmetic level are as follows: (1) use Edwards curves instead of Montgomery curves; (2) use extended Edwards coordinates; (3) use signed-sliding-window addition-subtraction chains; (4) batch primes to increase the window size; (5) choose curves with small parameters and base points; (6) choose curves with large...

  1. Assessment of Water Quality Index and Heavy Metal Contamination in Active and Abandoned Iron Ore Mining Sites in Pahang, Malaysia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Madzin Zafira

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The composition of heavy metals in water and surface soils of iron ore mining sites were investigated to evaluate on the potential occurrence of heavy metal contamination. Physico-chemical characteristics of the waters were also investigated to determine the current status of water quality index (WQI of the sites. Samples of water and surface soils of active mine (Kuala Lipis and abandoned mine (Bukit Ibam in Pahang were collected at four locations, respectively. The physico-chemical parameters measured for WQI were pH, dissolved oxygen, biological oxygen demand (BOD, chemical oxygen demand (COD, suspended solids (SS, and ammoniacal nitrogen (AN. The water quality parameters were classified according to the Department of Environment (DOE water quality classification. The study revealed that most of the sites in Bukit Ibam and Kuala Lipis were categorized as clean to slightly polluted. On the other hand, heavy metal analysis in water showed that aluminium and manganese level in both sites have exceeded the allowable limits for raw and treated water standards by the Ministry of Health. For heavy metal compositions in soils showed most of the heavy metal concentrations were below the recommended guideline values except for lead, arsenic, zinc and copper.

  2. NOAA History - About This Site

    Science.gov (United States)

    NOAA History Banner gold bar divider home - takes you to index page about the site contacts noaa - takes you to the noaa home page search this site white divider about this site The NOAA History site is the result of the work of many individuals throughout 3d history page NOAA who have been inspired by

  3. Technological change in energy systems. Learning curves, logistic curves and input-output coefficients

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pan, Haoran; Koehler, Jonathan

    2007-01-01

    Learning curves have recently been widely adopted in climate-economy models to incorporate endogenous change of energy technologies, replacing the conventional assumption of an autonomous energy efficiency improvement. However, there has been little consideration of the credibility of the learning curve. The current trend that many important energy and climate change policy analyses rely on the learning curve means that it is of great importance to critically examine the basis for learning curves. Here, we analyse the use of learning curves in energy technology, usually implemented as a simple power function. We find that the learning curve cannot separate the effects of price and technological change, cannot reflect continuous and qualitative change of both conventional and emerging energy technologies, cannot help to determine the time paths of technological investment, and misses the central role of R and D activity in driving technological change. We argue that a logistic curve of improving performance modified to include R and D activity as a driving variable can better describe the cost reductions in energy technologies. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the top-down Leontief technology can incorporate the bottom-up technologies that improve along either the learning curve or the logistic curve, through changing input-output coefficients. An application to UK wind power illustrates that the logistic curve fits the observed data better and implies greater potential for cost reduction than the learning curve does. (author)

  4. Radiosurgery for brain metastases: a score index for predicting prognosis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Weltman, Eduardo; Salvajoli, Joao Victor; Brandt, Reynaldo Andre; Morais Hanriot, Rodrigo de; Prisco, Flavio Eduardo; Cruz, Jose Carlos; Oliveira Borges, Sandra Regina de; Wajsbrot, Dalia Ballas

    2000-01-01

    Purpose: To analyze a prognostic score index for patients with brain metastases submitted to stereotactic radiosurgery (the Score Index for Radiosurgery in Brain Metastases [SIR]). Methods and Materials: Actuarial survival of 65 brain metastases patients treated with radiosurgery between July 1993 and December 1997 was retrospectively analyzed. Prognostic factors included age, Karnofsky performance status (KPS), extracranial disease status, number of brain lesions, largest brain lesion volume, lesions site, and receiving or not whole brain irradiation. The SIR was obtained through summation of the previously noted first five prognostic factors. Kaplan-Meier actuarial survival curves for all prognostic factors, SIR, and recursive partitioning analysis (RPA) (RTOG prognostic score) were calculated. Survival curves of subsets were compared by log-rank test. Application of the Cox model was utilized to identify any correlation between prognostic factors, prognostic scores, and survival. Results: Median overall survival from radiosurgery was 6.8 months. Utilizing univariate analysis, extracranial disease status, KPS, number of brain lesions, largest brain lesion volume, RPA, and SIR were significantly correlated with prognosis. Median survival for the RPA classes 1, 2, and 3 was 20.19 months, 7.75 months, and 3.38 months respectively (p = 0.0131). Median survival for patients, grouped under SIR from 1 to 3, 4 to 7, and 8 to 10, was 2.91 months, 7.00 months, and 31.38 months respectively (p = 0.0001). Using the Cox model, extracranial disease status and KPS demonstrated significant correlation with prognosis (p 0.0001 and 0.0004 respectively). Multivariate analysis also demonstrated significance for SIR and RPA when tested individually (p = 0.0001 and 0.0040 respectively). Applying the Cox Model to both SIR and RPA, only SIR reached independent significance (p = 0.0004). Conclusions: Systemic disease status, KPS, SIR, and RPA are reliable prognostic factors for patients

  5. Potential change in lodgepole pine site index and distribution under climatic change in Alberta

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Monserud, R.A. [United States Dept. of Agriculture Forest Service, Portland, OR (United States); Yang, Y.; Huang, S. [Alberta Sustainable Resource Development, Edmonton, AB (Canada). Forest Management Branch; Tchebakova, N. [Russian Academy of Sciences, Krasnoyarsk (Russian Federation). Sukachev Forest Inst.

    2008-02-15

    The Alberta climate model was used in conjunction with climate change scenario projections from 3 global circulation models to estimate the impact of global climate change on lodgepole pine site productivity in Alberta. The modelling study demonstrated that mean growing degree days greater than 5 degrees C (GGD{sub 5}) were increased by 18 per cent, 38 per cent, and 65 per cent by the 2020s, 2050s, and 2080s respectively. Changes in precipitation did not occur. A dryness index was used to predict productivity ranges and GDD{sub 5}. Results showed that productivity increased by 3 meters for each 30-year period. A large reduction in growing areas was also indicated. Initially, warming increased the potential growing range by 67 per cent by the year 2020. By 2080, growing ranges had decreased to 58 per cent of its current area. Changes in range should be considered when setting longer-term forest management plans. It was concluded that the increased risk of both insect and wildfire outbreaks must also be considered. 40 refs., 3 tabs., 4 figs.

  6. Refractive-index changes in lithium niobate crystals by radiation damages

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zamani Meymian, Mohammad Reza

    2007-01-01

    For the study in this thesis 3 He 2+ ions with the energy of about 40 MeV were applied. The results of these studies show a timely very stable anisotrope refractive-index change in the range of some 10 -3 . The radiation damages caused by ions cause a decreasement of the ordinary refractive index n o and an increasement of the extra-ordinary refractive index n e . While the absolute values for Δn o and Δn e are nearly equal the birefringence of the material (n e -n o ) smaller. The generated refractive-index change is dose dependent and the curve Δn has at increasing dose a strongly nonlinear slope with a characteristic stage at the radiation dose of about 2 x 10 20 ions/m 2

  7. Percentile Curves for Anthropometric Measures for Canadian Children and Youth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuhle, Stefan; Maguire, Bryan; Ata, Nicole; Hamilton, David

    2015-01-01

    Body mass index (BMI) is commonly used to assess a child's weight status but it does not provide information about the distribution of body fat. Since the disease risks associated with obesity are related to the amount and distribution of body fat, measures that assess visceral or subcutaneous fat, such as waist circumference (WC), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), or skinfolds thickness may be more suitable. The objective of this study was to develop percentile curves for BMI, WC, WHtR, and sum of 5 skinfolds (SF5) in a representative sample of Canadian children and youth. The analysis used data from 4115 children and adolescents between 6 and 19 years of age that participated in the Canadian Health Measures Survey Cycles 1 (2007/2009) and 2 (2009/2011). BMI, WC, WHtR, and SF5 were measured using standardized procedures. Age- and sex-specific centiles were calculated using the LMS method and the percentiles that intersect the adult cutpoints for BMI, WC, and WHtR at age 18 years were determined. Percentile curves for all measures showed an upward shift compared to curves from the pre-obesity epidemic era. The adult cutoffs for overweight and obesity corresponded to the 72nd and 91st percentile, respectively, for both sexes. The current study has presented for the first time percentile curves for BMI, WC, WHtR, and SF5 in a representative sample of Canadian children and youth. The percentile curves presented are meant to be descriptive rather than prescriptive as associations with cardiovascular disease markers or outcomes were not assessed. PMID:26176769

  8. Refractive index depth profile in PMMA due to proton irradiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Szilasi, S.Z.; Rajta, I.; Budai, J.; Toth, Z.; Petrik, P.; Baradacs, E.

    2006-01-01

    Complete text of publication follows. During Proton Beam Writing the beam damage causes chain scissioning in the polymer resist material (e.g. PMMA (Polymethyl methacrylate)), producing smaller molecular weight chains. Hydrogen implantation also takes place at the end of range. Compaction of the sample has been observed too, which means that the sample density becomes higher at the places where proton irradiation occurred. Furthermore, P-beam Writing has been successfully used to create buried channel waveguides in PMMA [1], since proton irradiation increases the refractive index. There are two ways of fabricating waveguides using P-beam Writing, one of them applies direct micromachining of the high refractive index core followed by the coating of a lower refractive index cladding layer. In this application the refractive indices of the substrate, the core and the cladding have to be known, which should be homogeneous within the whole structure. The other method allows producing buried waveguides. In this case proton beam writing is used to modify the refractive index along the ion path in the sample, where most of the ion energy is deposited near the end of range also known as the Bragg peak. For polymers 10 -3 refractive index change has been reported, which is usually sufficient for forming waveguides. Those measurements of the refractive index change have been performed by the refracted near field technique. In this work we used ellipsometry, in order to measure the optical parameters of the P-beam treated sample near the surface, and along the Bragg curve. Ellipsometry measures the change in the polarization state of light occurring during reflection. This change is related to the quality of the reflecting surface (i.e. the physical structure, layer thicknesses, optical constants, surface roughness, etc.). >From these measurements the refractive index and the extinction coefficient can be determined rather accurately, which makes ellipsometry a powerful tool

  9. 76 FR 71997 - Proposed Renewal of Information Collection: 1090-0008 American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-11-21

    ...: 1090-0008 American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) E-Government Web Site Customer Satisfaction... site Customer Satisfaction Surveys. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information... Satisfaction Index (ACSI) E-Government Web site Customer Satisfaction Surveys. OMB Control Number: 1090-0008...

  10. Computerised curve deconvolution of TL/OSL curves using a popular spreadsheet program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Afouxenidis, D; Polymeris, G S; Tsirliganis, N C; Kitis, G

    2012-05-01

    This paper exploits the possibility of using commercial software for thermoluminescence and optically stimulated luminescence curve deconvolution analysis. The widely used software package Microsoft Excel, with the Solver utility has been used to perform deconvolution analysis to both experimental and reference glow curves resulted from the GLOw Curve ANalysis INtercomparison project. The simple interface of this programme combined with the powerful Solver utility, allows the analysis of complex stimulated luminescence curves into their components and the evaluation of the associated luminescence parameters.

  11. Computerised curve deconvolution of TL/OSL curves using a popular spreadsheet program

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Afouxenidis, D.; Polymeris, G. S.; Tsirliganis, N. C.; Kitis, G.

    2012-01-01

    This paper exploits the possibility of using commercial software for thermoluminescence and optically stimulated luminescence curve deconvolution analysis. The widely used software package Microsoft Excel, with the Solver utility has been used to perform deconvolution analysis to both experimental and reference glow curves resulted from the Glow Curve Analysis Intercomparison project. The simple interface of this programme combined with the powerful Solver utility, allows the analysis of complex stimulated luminescence curves into their components and the evaluation of the associated luminescence parameters. (authors)

  12. Comparison of NCHS, CDC, and WHO curves in children with cardiovascular risk.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oliveira, Grasiela Junges de; Barbiero, Sandra Mari; Cesa, Claudia Ciceri; Pellanda, Lucia Campos

    2013-01-01

    The study aimed to compare the prevalence of overweight and obesity according to three growth curves, created by the World Health Organization (WHO/2006), by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS/1977), and by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC/2000) in children with cardiovascular risk factors. Data from 118 children and adolescents, aged between 2 and 19 years, treated between the years 2001 to 2009 at the Pediatric Preventive Cardiology Outpatient Clinic of the Instituto de Cardiologia de Porto Alegre were evaluated. The variables analyzed were: weight, height, age, and gender. Variables were classified according to the following criteria: weight/age, height/age, and body mass index (BMI). The cutoff points used were obtained from the three growth curves: WHO/2006, NCHS/1977, and CDC/2000. Regarding the criterion weight/age by the NCHS curve, 18% of the children were classified as having normal weight, and 82% had excess weight; by the CDC curve, 28% had normal and 72% had excess weight; by the WHO curve, 16.0% had normal weight and 84% had excess weight. According to the BMI, 0.8% of the population was underweight. According to the CDC and WHO curves, 7.6% and 6.8% had normal weight; 26.3% and 11.9% were overweight; and 65.3% and 80.5% were obese, respectively. Regarding the height/age criterion, there was no significant difference between the references and, on average, 98.3% of the population showed adequate height for age. The new WHO curves are more sensitive to identify obesity in a population at risk, which has important implications for preventive and therapeutic management. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

  13. Biofuel consumption, biodiversity, and the environmental Kuznets curve: trivariate analysis in a panel of biofuel consuming countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zaman, Khalid

    2017-11-01

    This study examined the relationship between biofuel consumption, forest biodiversity, and a set of national scale indicators of per capita income, foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows, trade openness, and population density with a panel data of 12 biofuels consuming countries for a period of 2000 to 2013. The study used Global Environmental Facility (GEF) biodiversity benefits index and forest biodiversity index in an environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) framework. The results confirmed an inverted U-shaped relationship between GEF biodiversity index and per capita income, while there is flat/no relationship between carbon emissions and economic growth, and between forest biodiversity and economic growth models. FDI inflows and trade openness both reduce carbon emissions while population density and biofuel consumption increase carbon emissions and decrease GEF biodiversity index. Trade openness supports to increases GEF biodiversity index while it decreases forest biodiversity index and biofuel consumption in a region.

  14. Sex-, Ethnic-, and Age-Specific Centile Curves for pQCT- and HR-pQCT-Derived Measures of Bone Structure and Strength in Adolescents and Young Adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gabel, Leigh; Macdonald, Heather M; Nettlefold, Lindsay A; McKay, Heather A

    2018-02-02

    There are presently no adolescent centile curves for bone parameters at the tibial midshaft using peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) or at the distal radius and tibia using high-resolution pQCT (HR-pQCT). Thus, we aimed to develop sex-, ethnic-, site-, and age-specific centile curves for pQCT and HR-pQCT-derived bone outcomes for youth and young adults aged 10 to 21 years. We acquired pQCT scans (XCT3000 or XCT2000) at the tibial midshaft (50% site) and HR-pQCT scans (XtremeCT) at the distal radius (7% site) and tibia (8% site) in a convenience sample of participants in the mixed-longitudinal University of British Columbia Healthy Bones III Study. We scanned 778 10- to 21-year-olds annually for a maximum of 11 years using pQCT (413 girls, 56% Asian; 365 boys, 54% Asian; n = 3160 observations) and 349 10- to 21-year-olds annually for a maximum of 4 years using HR-pQCT (189 girls, 51% Asian; 165 boys, 50% Asian; n = 1090 observations). For pQCT, we report cortical bone mineral density (BMD), total bone cross-sectional area, and polar strength-strain index. For HR-pQCT, we report standard measures (total BMD, trabecular number, thickness, and bone volume fraction) and automated segmentation measures (total bone cross-sectional area, cortical BMD, porosity, and thickness). We applied finite element analysis to estimate failure load. We applied the lamda, mu, sigma (LMS) method using LMS ChartMaker Light (version 2.5, The Institute of Child Health, London, UK) to construct LMS tables and centile plots. We report sex- and age-specific centiles (3rd, 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, and 97th) for whites and Asians for pQCT bone parameters at the tibial midshaft and HR-pQCT bone parameters at the distal radius and tibia. These centile curves might be used by clinicians and scientists to interpret values or better understand trajectories of bone parameters in clinical populations, those from different geographic regions or of different ethnic origins. © 2018

  15. Joint projections of sea level and storm surge using a flood index

    Science.gov (United States)

    Little, C. M.; Lin, N.; Horton, R. M.; Kopp, R. E.; Oppenheimer, M.

    2016-02-01

    Capturing the joint influence of sea level rise (SLR) and tropical cyclones (TCs) on future coastal flood risk poses significant challenges. To address these difficulties, Little et al. (2015) use a proxy of tropical cyclone activity and a probabilistic flood index that aggregates flood height and duration over a wide area (the US East and Gulf coasts). This technique illuminates the individual impacts of TCs and SLR and their correlation across different coupled climate models. By 2080-2099, changes in the flood index relative to 1986-2005 are substantial and positively skewed: a 10th-90th percentile range of 35-350x higher for a high-end business-as-usual emissions scenario (see figure). This aggregated flood index: 1) is a means to consistently combine TC-driven storm surges and SLR; 2) provides a more robust description of historical surge-climate relationships than is available at any one location; and 3) allows the incorporation of a larger climate model ensemble - which is critical to uncertainty characterization. It does not provide a local view of the complete spectrum of flood severity (i.e. return curves). However, alternate techniques that provide localized return curves (e.g. Lin et al., 2012) are computationally intensive, limiting the set of large-scale climate models that can be incorporated, and require several linked statistical and dynamical models, each with structural uncertainties that are difficult to quantify. Here, we present the results of Little et al. (2015) along with: 1) alternate formulations of the flood index; 2) strategies to localize the flood index; and 3) a comparison of flood index projections to those provided by model-based return curves. We look to this interdisciplinary audience for feedback on the advantages and disadvantages of each tool for coastal planning and decision-making. Lin, N., K. Emanuel, M. Oppenheimer, and E. Vanmarcke, 2012: Physically based assessment of hurricane surge threat under climate change. Nature

  16. Leachate characterization and identification of dominant pollutants using leachate pollution index for an uncontrolled landfill site

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. De

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Landfill leachates are potential threats for environmental degradation. This study was conducted to determine the leachate quality, to identify the dominant pollutants and to evaluate the leachate pollution potential of an active and closed dumping ground of an uncontrolled municipal solid waste landfill site in Kolkata, India using leachate pollution index. The results of the physico-chemical and biological analyses of leachate indicated that landfill site was in its methanogenic phase. Among the analysed leachate pollutants, TDS, BOD5, COD, TKN, NH3-N, Cl¯, TCB, Pb, and Hg surpassed the leachate discharge standards for inland surface water as specified by the municipal solid waste (Management and Handling Rules, 2013 for both the dumping grounds. Moreover the concentrations of total Cr and Zn also exceeded the leachate disposal standards for the active dumping ground. The leachate pollution potentialities of both the active and closed dumping grounds were comparable as the overall LPI obtained 34.02 and 31.80 respectively. The overall LPI, LPI organic (LPIor, LPI inorganic (LPIin and LPI heavy metals (LPIhm of both the dumping grounds largely exceeded the LPI and sub-LPI values for treated leachate before disposal to the inland surface water. In terms of the individual pollution rating, total coliform bacteria, TKN, NH3-N and Hg were identified as the dominant pollutants and major contributing factors for the leachate pollution potential.

  17. Leachate characterization and identification of dominant pollutants using leachate pollution index for an uncontrolled landfill site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    De, S.; Maiti, S. K.; Hazra, T.; Debsarkar, A.; Dutta, A.

    2016-01-01

    Landfill leachates are potential threats for environmental degradation. This study was conducted to determine the leachate quality, to identify the dominant pollutants and to evaluate the leachate pollution potential of an active and closed dumping ground of an uncontrolled municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill site in Kolkata, India using leachate pollution index. The results of the physico-chemical and biological analyses of leachate indicated that landfill site was in its methanogenic phase. Among the analysed leachate pollutants, TDS, BOD5, COD, TKN, NH3-N, Cl¯ , TCB, Pb, and Hg surpassed the leachate discharge standards for inland surface water as specified by the municipal solid waste (management and handling) rules, 2013 for both the dumping grounds. Moreover the concentrations of total Cr and Zn also exceeded the leachate disposal standards for the active dumping ground. The leachate pollution potentialities of both the active and closed dumping grounds were comparable as the overall LPI obtained 34.02 and 31.80 respectively. The overall LPI, LPI organic (LPIor), LPI inorganic (LPIin) and LPI heavy metals (LPIhm) of both the dumping grounds largely exceeded the LPI and sub-LPI values for treated leachate before disposal to the inland surface water. In terms of the individual pollution rating, total coliform bacteria, TKN, NH3-N and Hg were identified as the dominant pollutants and major contributing factors for the leachate pollution potential.

  18. 5 CFR 2604.202 - Index identifying information for the public.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 5 Administrative Personnel 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Index identifying information for the... DISCLOSURE REPORTS FOIA Public Reading Room Facility and Web Site; Index Identifying Information for the Public § 2604.202 Index identifying information for the public. (a) The Office of Government Ethics will...

  19. Índice de sítio para Pinus elliottii Engelm, em trê s unidades de mapeamento de solo, nas regiões da Serra do Sudeste e Litoral, no estado do Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Helio Tonini

    2002-01-01

    Full Text Available Dominant height growth of Pinus elliottii was analized in four stands at ages between 18 and 21 years old on three mapping soil units in the southeastern mountain region and coastal plains of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Dominant height and age data were fitted using the Richards function. The site index curves, which were established for each locality, indicated that there was no difference in growth between the localities. This allowed to group all the curves to a unique system of 9 monomorphic curves for the site index between 6 and 30 m at the reference age of 18 years old.

  20. Development of multiple strain competitive index assays for Listeria monocytogenes using pIMC; a new site-specific integrative vector

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cronin Michael

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The foodborne, gram-positive pathogen, Listeria monocytogenes, is capable of causing lethal infections in compromised individuals. In the post genomic era of L. monocytogenes research, techniques are required to identify and validate genes involved in the pathogenicity and environmental biology of the organism. The aim here was to develop a widely applicable method to tag L. monocytogenes strains, with a particular emphasis on the development of multiple strain competitive index assays. Results We have constructed a new site-specific integrative vector, pIMC, based on pPL2, for the selection of L. monocytogenes from complex samples. The pIMC vector was further modified through the incorporation of IPTG inducible markers (antibiotic and phenotypic to produce a suite of four vectors which allowed the discrimination of multiple strains from a single sample. We were able to perform murine infection studies with up to four EGDe isolates within a single mouse and showed that the tags did not impact upon growth rate or virulence. The system also allowed the identification of subtle differences in virulence between strains of L. monocytogenes commonly used in laboratory studies. Conclusion This study has developed a competitive index assay that can be broadly applied to all L. monocytogenes strains. Improved statistical robustness of the data was observed, resulting in fewer mice being required for virulence assays. The competitive index assays provide a powerful method to analyse the virulence or fitness of L. monocytogenes in complex biological samples.

  1. Approximation by planar elastic curves

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brander, David; Gravesen, Jens; Nørbjerg, Toke Bjerge

    2016-01-01

    We give an algorithm for approximating a given plane curve segment by a planar elastic curve. The method depends on an analytic representation of the space of elastic curve segments, together with a geometric method for obtaining a good initial guess for the approximating curve. A gradient......-driven optimization is then used to find the approximating elastic curve....

  2. Estimation of rice situation index in Japan using remotely sensed and meteorological data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kaneko, D.

    2006-01-01

    This research aims to develop a remote sensing method for monitoring rice production in Japan. A photosynthesis-based crop production index CPI for rice is proposed that takes into consideration the solar radiation, the effective air temperature, and normalized vegetation index NDVI as a factor representing vegetation biomass. The CPI index incorporates temperature influences such as the effect of temperature on photosynthesis by grain plant leaves, low-temperature effects of sterility, cool summer damage due to delayed growth, and high-temperature injury. These latter factors are significant at around the heading period of rice. The CPI index for rice was modeled at ten monitoring sites in the Kanto, Tohoku, and Hokkaido districts, which occasionally tend to suffer poor harvests as a result of low temperatures. The photosynthesis-based crop production index CPI proposed here can predict the crop situation index of rice by using NDVI, solar radiation at meteorological observatories and air temperature at AMeDAS sites. The method is based on routine observation data, allowing automated monitoring of rice situation index at arbitrary sites in Japan. However, it is possible to further refine the estimation formula for the rice situation index for early monitoring

  3. Investigation on Motorcyclist Riding Behaviour at Curve Entry Using Instrumented Motorcycle

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yuen, Choon Wah; Karim, Mohamed Rehan; Saifizul, Ahmad

    2014-01-01

    This paper details the study on the changes in riding behaviour, such as changes in speed as well as the brake force and throttle force applied, when motorcyclists ride over a curve section road using an instrumented motorcycle. In this study, an instrumented motorcycle equipped with various types of sensors, on-board cameras, and data loggers, was developed in order to collect the riding data on the study site. Results from the statistical analysis showed that riding characteristics, such as changes in speed, brake force, and throttle force applied, are influenced by the distance from the curve entry, riding experience, and travel mileage of the riders. A structural equation modeling was used to study the impact of these variables on the change of riding behaviour in curve entry section. Four regression equations are formed to study the relationship between four dependent variables, which are speed, throttle force, front brake force, and rear brake force applied with the independent variables. PMID:24523660

  4. Bragg Curve Spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gruhn, C.R.

    1981-05-01

    An alternative utilization is presented for the gaseous ionization chamber in the detection of energetic heavy ions, which is called Bragg Curve Spectroscopy (BCS). Conceptually, BCS involves using the maximum data available from the Bragg curve of the stopping heavy ion (HI) for purposes of identifying the particle and measuring its energy. A detector has been designed that measures the Bragg curve with high precision. From the Bragg curve the range from the length of the track, the total energy from the integral of the specific ionization over the track, the dE/dx from the specific ionization at the beginning of the track, and the Bragg peak from the maximum of the specific ionization of the HI are determined. This last signal measures the atomic number, Z, of the HI unambiguously

  5. Learning Curve? Which One?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paulo Prochno

    2004-07-01

    Full Text Available Learning curves have been studied for a long time. These studies provided strong support to the hypothesis that, as organizations produce more of a product, unit costs of production decrease at a decreasing rate (see Argote, 1999 for a comprehensive review of learning curve studies. But the organizational mechanisms that lead to these results are still underexplored. We know some drivers of learning curves (ADLER; CLARK, 1991; LAPRE et al., 2000, but we still lack a more detailed view of the organizational processes behind those curves. Through an ethnographic study, I bring a comprehensive account of the first year of operations of a new automotive plant, describing what was taking place on in the assembly area during the most relevant shifts of the learning curve. The emphasis is then on how learning occurs in that setting. My analysis suggests that the overall learning curve is in fact the result of an integration process that puts together several individual ongoing learning curves in different areas throughout the organization. In the end, I propose a model to understand the evolution of these learning processes and their supporting organizational mechanisms.

  6. Contractibility of curves

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Janusz Charatonik

    1991-11-01

    Full Text Available Results concerning contractibility of curves (equivalently: of dendroids are collected and discussed in the paper. Interrelations tetween various conditions which are either sufficient or necessary for a curve to be contractible are studied.

  7. The TyG index may predict the development of cardiovascular events.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sánchez-Íñigo, Laura; Navarro-González, David; Fernández-Montero, Alejandro; Pastrana-Delgado, Juan; Martínez, Jose Alfredo

    2016-02-01

    Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the worldwide leading cause of morbidity and mortality. An early risk detection of apparently healthy people before CVD onset has clinical relevance in the prevention of cardiovascular events. We evaluated the association between the product of fasting plasma glucose and triglycerides (TyG index) and CVD. A total of 5014 patients of the Vascular Metabolic CUN cohort (VMCUN cohort) were followed up during a median period of 10 years. We used a Cox proportional-hazard ratio with repeated measures to estimate the risk of incidence of CVD across quintiles of the TyG index, calculated as ln[fasting triglycerides (mg/dL) × fasting plasma glucose (mg(dL)/2], and plotted a receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curve to compare a prediction model fitted on the variables used in the Framingham risk score, a new model containing the Framingham variables with the TyG index, and the risk of coronary heart disease. A higher level of TyG index was significantly associated with an increased risk of developing CVD independent of confounding factors with a value of 2·32 (95% CI: 1·65-3·26) for those in the highest quintile and 1·52 (95% CI: 1·07-2·16) for those in the fourth quintile. The areas under the curve (AUC) of the ROC plots were 0·708 (0·68-0·73) for the Framingham model and 0·719 (0·70-0·74) for the Framingham + TyG index model (P = 0·014). The TyG index, a simple measure reflecting insulin resistance, might be useful to early identify individuals at a high risk of developing a cardiovascular event. © 2015 Stichting European Society for Clinical Investigation Journal Foundation.

  8. Roc curves for continuous data

    CERN Document Server

    Krzanowski, Wojtek J

    2009-01-01

    Since ROC curves have become ubiquitous in many application areas, the various advances have been scattered across disparate articles and texts. ROC Curves for Continuous Data is the first book solely devoted to the subject, bringing together all the relevant material to provide a clear understanding of how to analyze ROC curves.The fundamental theory of ROC curvesThe book first discusses the relationship between the ROC curve and numerous performance measures and then extends the theory into practice by describing how ROC curves are estimated. Further building on the theory, the authors prese

  9. Comparação gráfica entre curvas de índice de sítio para Pinus elliottii e Pinus taeda desenvolvidas no sul do Brasil

    OpenAIRE

    Helio Tonini; César Augusto Finger Guimarães; Paulo Renato Schneider; Peter Spathelf

    2002-01-01

    This research had as main objective to study the dominant height growth of Pinus elliottii and Pinus taeda through site index curves comparisons in some regions of Rio Grande do Sul State and other states of the country. These comparisons showed that the site index curves made by Tonini (2000), for the southeastern mountain and coast land in Rio Grande do Sul State did not show the same pattern of those by Scolforo e Machado (1988), for Paraná and Santa Catarina, Brazil (1989a) fo...

  10. An iterative method to reconstruct the refractive index of a medium from time-of-flight measurements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schröder, Udo; Schuster, Thomas

    2016-08-01

    The article deals with a classical inverse problem: the computation of the refractive index of a medium from ultrasound time-of-flight measurements. This problem is very popular in seismics but also for tomographic problems in inhomogeneous media. For example ultrasound vector field tomography needs a priori knowledge of the sound speed. According to Fermat’s principle ultrasound signals travel along geodesic curves of a Riemannian metric which is associated with the refractive index. The inverse problem thus consists of determining the index of refraction from integrals along geodesics curves associated with the integrand leading to a nonlinear problem. In this article we describe a numerical solver for this problem scheme based on an iterative minimization method for an appropriate Tikhonov functional. The outcome of the method is a stable approximation of the sought index of refraction as well as a corresponding set of geodesic curves. We prove some analytical convergence results for this method and demonstrate its performance by means of several numerical experiments. Another novelty in this article is the explicit representation of the backprojection operator for the ray transform in Riemannian geometry and its numerical realization relying on a corresponding phase function that is determined by the metric. This gives a natural extension of the conventional backprojection from 2D computerized tomography to inhomogeneous geometries. The authors dedicate this article to Prof Todd Quinto on the occasion of his 65th birthday.

  11. Soil homogeneity evaluation by radionuclide tracer breakthrough curve interpretation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brenizer, J.S. Jr.; Jarrett, A.R.; Jester, W.A.

    1980-01-01

    Increasing concern about the environmental impact of hazardous waste disposal has made site evaluation and site selection difficult and expensive. Pollutants, assumed to be absorbed by the soil immediately surrounding the burial trench, have been detected far from sites. Discrepancies between predicted migration distances based on indirect methods such as laboratory and computer modeling and those observed at the field site are often significant. The homogeneity of subsurface media, often assumed in laboratory and modeling studies, is seldom found in the field. The use of tracers to determine the flow characteristics of a potential disposal site involves time and expense, but offers a direct evaluation of solute transport and eliminates the assumptions inherent in indirect methods. Current modeling of solute transport in nonhomogeneous porous media is limited by the quantification of input parameters. Several general models can predict solute transport in saturated-unsaturated media from low-level disposal sites if the hydraulic characteristics and chemical reactions expected in each unique water-solute-media system can be defined. The objective of this research was to develop a method of evaluating potential shallow-land burial waste disposal sites by interpreting tracer breakthrough curve structure with respect to the hydrologic properties of the media at the potential disposal site. This methodology will be helpful in evaluating the potential performance of many types of shallow-land waste burial sites such as low-level radioactive waste disposal, surface disposal of flyash, chemical waste disposal, waste sedimentation ponds, and sanitary landfills

  12. 10 CFR 765.12 - Inflation index adjustment procedures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 10 Energy 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Inflation index adjustment procedures. 765.12 Section 765... THORIUM PROCESSING SITES Reimbursement Criteria § 765.12 Inflation index adjustment procedures. (a) The... § 765.2(i) of this rule) shall be adjusted for inflation as provided by this section. (b) To make...

  13. Screening for Sleep Apnoea in Mild Cognitive Impairment: The Utility of the Multivariable Apnoea Prediction Index

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Georgina Wilson

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. Mild cognitive impairment (MCI is considered an “at risk” state for dementia and efforts are needed to target modifiable risk factors, of which Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA is one. This study aims to evaluate the predictive utility of the multivariate apnoea prediction index (MAPI, a patient self-report survey, to assess OSA in MCI. Methods. Thirty-seven participants with MCI and 37 age-matched controls completed the MAPI and underwent polysomnography (PSG. Correlations were used to compare the MAPI and PSG measures including oxygen desaturation index and apnoea-hypopnoea index (AHI. Receiver-operating characteristics (ROC curve analyses were performed using various cut-off scores for apnoea severity. Results. In controls, there was a significant moderate correlation between higher MAPI scores and more severe apnoea (AHI: r=0.47, P=0.017. However, this relationship was not significant in the MCI sample. ROC curve analysis indicated much lower area under the curve (AUC in the MCI sample compared to the controls across all AHI severity cut-off scores. Conclusions. In older people, the MAPI moderately correlates with AHI severity but only in those who are cognitively intact. Development of further screening tools is required in order to accurately screen for OSA in MCI.

  14. Tornado-Shaped Curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martínez, Sol Sáez; de la Rosa, Félix Martínez; Rojas, Sergio

    2017-01-01

    In Advanced Calculus, our students wonder if it is possible to graphically represent a tornado by means of a three-dimensional curve. In this paper, we show it is possible by providing the parametric equations of such tornado-shaped curves.

  15. Quantitative contrast enhanced ultrasound of the liver for time intensity curves-Reliability and potential sources of errors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ignee, Andre; Jedrejczyk, Maciej; Schuessler, Gudrun; Jakubowski, Wieslaw; Dietrich, Christoph F

    2010-01-01

    Time intensity curves for real-time contrast enhanced low MI ultrasound is a promising technique since it adds objective data to the more subjective conventional contrast enhanced technique. Current developments showed that the amount of uptake in modern targeted therapy strategies correlates with therapy response. Nevertheless no basic research has been done concerning the reliability and validity of the method. Videos sequences of 31 consecutive patients for at least 60s were recorded. Parameters analysed: area under the curve, maximum intensity, mean transit time, perfusion index, time to peak, rise time. The influence of depth, lateral shift as well as size and shape of the region of interest was analysed. The parameters time to peak and rise time showed a good stability in different depths. Overall there was a variation >50% for all other parameters. Mean transit time, time to peak and rise time were stable from 3 to 10cm depths, whereas all other parameters showed only satisfying results at 4-6cm. Time to peak and rise time were stable as well against lateral shifting whereas all other parameters had again variations over 50%. Size and shape of the region of interest did not influence the results. (1) It is important to compare regions of interest, e.g. in a tumour vs. representative parenchyma in the same depths. (2) Time intensity curves should not be analysed in a depth of less than 4cm. (3) The parameters area under the curve, perfusion index and maximum intensity should not be analysed in a depth more than 6cm. (4) Size and shape of a region of interest in liver parenchyma do not affect time intensity curves. Copyright (c) 2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Quantitative contrast enhanced ultrasound of the liver for time intensity curves-Reliability and potential sources of errors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ignee, Andre [Department of Internal Medicine and Diagnostic Imaging, Caritas Hospital, Uhlandstr. 7, 97990 Bad Mergentheim (Germany)], E-mail: andre.ignee@gmx.de; Jedrejczyk, Maciej [Department of Diagnostic Imaging, 2nd Division of Medical Faculty, Medical University, Ul. Kondratowicza 8, 03-242 Warsaw (Poland)], E-mail: mjedrzejczyk@interia.pl; Schuessler, Gudrun [Department of Internal Medicine and Diagnostic Imaging, Caritas Hospital, Uhlandstr. 7, 97990 Bad Mergentheim (Germany)], E-mail: gudrunschuessler@gmx.de; Jakubowski, Wieslaw [Department of Diagnostic Imaging, 2nd Division of Medical Faculty, Medical University, Ul. Kondratowicza 8, 03-242 Warsaw (Poland)], E-mail: ewajbmd@go2.pl; Dietrich, Christoph F. [Department of Internal Medicine and Diagnostic Imaging, Caritas Hospital, Uhlandstr. 7, 97990 Bad Mergentheim (Germany)], E-mail: christoph.dietrich@ckbm.de

    2010-01-15

    Introduction: Time intensity curves for real-time contrast enhanced low MI ultrasound is a promising technique since it adds objective data to the more subjective conventional contrast enhanced technique. Current developments showed that the amount of uptake in modern targeted therapy strategies correlates with therapy response. Nevertheless no basic research has been done concerning the reliability and validity of the method. Patients and methods: Videos sequences of 31 consecutive patients for at least 60 s were recorded. Parameters analysed: area under the curve, maximum intensity, mean transit time, perfusion index, time to peak, rise time. The influence of depth, lateral shift as well as size and shape of the region of interest was analysed. Results: The parameters time to peak and rise time showed a good stability in different depths. Overall there was a variation >50% for all other parameters. Mean transit time, time to peak and rise time were stable from 3 to 10 cm depths, whereas all other parameters showed only satisfying results at 4-6 cm. Time to peak and rise time were stable as well against lateral shifting whereas all other parameters had again variations over 50%. Size and shape of the region of interest did not influence the results. Discussion: (1) It is important to compare regions of interest, e.g. in a tumour vs. representative parenchyma in the same depths. (2) Time intensity curves should not be analysed in a depth of less than 4 cm. (3) The parameters area under the curve, perfusion index and maximum intensity should not be analysed in a depth more than 6 cm. (4) Size and shape of a region of interest in liver parenchyma do not affect time intensity curves.

  17. Quantitative contrast enhanced ultrasound of the liver for time intensity curves-Reliability and potential sources of errors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ignee, Andre; Jedrejczyk, Maciej; Schuessler, Gudrun; Jakubowski, Wieslaw; Dietrich, Christoph F.

    2010-01-01

    Introduction: Time intensity curves for real-time contrast enhanced low MI ultrasound is a promising technique since it adds objective data to the more subjective conventional contrast enhanced technique. Current developments showed that the amount of uptake in modern targeted therapy strategies correlates with therapy response. Nevertheless no basic research has been done concerning the reliability and validity of the method. Patients and methods: Videos sequences of 31 consecutive patients for at least 60 s were recorded. Parameters analysed: area under the curve, maximum intensity, mean transit time, perfusion index, time to peak, rise time. The influence of depth, lateral shift as well as size and shape of the region of interest was analysed. Results: The parameters time to peak and rise time showed a good stability in different depths. Overall there was a variation >50% for all other parameters. Mean transit time, time to peak and rise time were stable from 3 to 10 cm depths, whereas all other parameters showed only satisfying results at 4-6 cm. Time to peak and rise time were stable as well against lateral shifting whereas all other parameters had again variations over 50%. Size and shape of the region of interest did not influence the results. Discussion: (1) It is important to compare regions of interest, e.g. in a tumour vs. representative parenchyma in the same depths. (2) Time intensity curves should not be analysed in a depth of less than 4 cm. (3) The parameters area under the curve, perfusion index and maximum intensity should not be analysed in a depth more than 6 cm. (4) Size and shape of a region of interest in liver parenchyma do not affect time intensity curves.

  18. A versatile curve-fit model for linear to deeply concave rank abundance curves

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Neuteboom, J.H.; Struik, P.C.

    2005-01-01

    A new, flexible curve-fit model for linear to concave rank abundance curves was conceptualized and validated using observational data. The model links the geometric-series model and log-series model and can also fit deeply concave rank abundance curves. The model is based ¿ in an unconventional way

  19. Flood frequency analysis at ungauged sites in the KwaZulu-Natal ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Use of the index-flood method at ungauged sites requires methods for estimation of the index-flood parameter at these sites. This study attempts to relate the mean annual flood to site characteristics of catchments in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The ordinary, weighted and generalised least square methods for estimating ...

  20. Utility of the whole-kidney and parenchymal time-activity curves for a prediction of diuretic response

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Samal, M.; Mostbeck, A.; Bergmann, H.; Nimmon, C.C.; Staudenherz, A.; Dudczak, R.

    2002-01-01

    Full text: In a retrospective study, MAG3 dynamic renal data (90 kidneys in 57 children) have been analyzed with the aim to test a prediction of diuretic response. Whole-kidney (WK) and parenchymal (PA) curves were extracted from 20 min pre-diuretic phase using standard and fuzzy ROIs. Peak time (PT), half time (HT), ratio of the curve value in 20th min to the curve maximum (RM), mean transit time (TT), and output efficiency (OE) were calculated for each curve. With PA curves, also the transit time index (PI) was calculated. The curve parameters were compared with the maximum elimination rate of urine after diuretic (EM) using paired correlation and Fisher's linear discriminate function. The highest correlation was found between ln EM and OE-PA (0.61), RM-PA (-0.58), TT-PA (-0.57), and PI (-0.57). Best diagnostic accuracy in prediction of EM ≤ 7 % (a sign of obstruction) was obtained with OE-PA (87 %), PI (87 %), and both PT-PA and RM-PA (83 %). Parameters of WK curves had higher sensitivity, those of PA curves higher specificity. Most parameters had a high predictive value of negative result (NPV > 90 %) but low predictive value of positive result (PPV < 50 %). Best discrimination of low EM was obtained with a combination of both WK and PA parameters (diagnostic accuracy of 90 %). Using PA curves in kidneys with late PT-WK made possible to increase the diagnostic accuracy from 70 - 80 % (with WK parameters only) to 95 %. Our results demonstrate that PA curves carry additional clinical information and may help to predict and Interpret a diuretic response especially in kidneys with late peak of the WK curves. (author)

  1. In-Vehicle Dynamic Curve-Speed Warnings at High-Risk Rural Curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    2018-03-01

    Lane-departure crashes at horizontal curves represent a significant portion of fatal crashes on rural Minnesota roads. Because of this, solutions are needed to aid drivers in identifying upcoming curves and inform them of a safe speed at which they s...

  2. Oil exploitation and the environmental Kuznets curve

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Esmaeili, Abdoulkarim; Abdollahzadeh, Negar

    2009-01-01

    This study refers to a panel estimation of an environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) for oil to determine the factors most affecting oil exploitation in 38 oil-producing countries during 1990-2000. Control variables such as oil reserves, oil price, population, political rights, and the Gini index were used to determine its contribution to the main EKC model. The empirical results fully support the existence of an EKC for oil exploitation. Furthermore, the result indicates that the proved oil reserves has a significant and positive role in oil production, but oil price and population do not significantly affect crude oil production. Also, increased freedoms and a better income distribution will reduce the rate of oil exploitation. Thus, policies aiming at enhancing democratic society and better income distribution would be more compatible with sustainability. (author)

  3. Oil exploitation and the environmental Kuznets curve

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Esmaeili, Abdoulkarim; Abdollahzadeh, Negar [Department of Agricultural Economics, College of Agriculture, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Fars (Iran)

    2009-01-15

    This study refers to a panel estimation of an environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) for oil to determine the factors most affecting oil exploitation in 38 oil-producing countries during 1990-2000. Control variables such as oil reserves, oil price, population, political rights, and the Gini index were used to determine its contribution to the main EKC model. The empirical results fully support the existence of an EKC for oil exploitation. Furthermore, the result indicates that the proved oil reserves has a significant and positive role in oil production, but oil price and population do not significantly affect crude oil production. Also, increased freedoms and a better income distribution will reduce the rate of oil exploitation. Thus, policies aiming at enhancing democratic society and better income distribution would be more compatible with sustainability. (author)

  4. Simulation of leaf area index on site scale based on model data fusion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Y.; Wang, J. B.

    2017-12-01

    The world's grassland area is about 24 × 108hm2, accounting for about one-fifth of the global land area. It is one of the most widely distributed terrestrial ecosystems on Earth. And currently, it is the most affected area of human activity. A considerable portion of the global CO2 emissions are fixed by grassland, and the grassland carbon cycle plays an important role in the global carbon cycle (Li Bo, Yongshen Peng, Li Yao, China's Prairie, 1990). In recent years, the carbon cycle and its influencing factors of grassland ecosystems have become one of the hotspots in ecology, geology, botany and agronomy under the background of global change ( Mu Shaojie, 2014) . And the model is now as a popular and effective method of research. However, there are still some uncertainties in this approach. CEVSA ( Carbon Exchange between Vegetation, Soil and Atmosphere) is a biogeochemical cycle model based on physiological and ecological processes to simulate plant-soil-atmosphere system energy exchange and water-carbon-nitrogen coupling cycles (Cao at al., 1998a; 1998b; Woodward et al., 1995). In this paper, the remote sensing observation data of leaf area index are integrated into the model, and the CEVSA model of site version is optimized by Markov chain-Monte Carlo method to achieve the purpose of increasing the accuracy of model results.

  5. Procedures and methods that increase reliability and reproducibility of the transplanted kidney perfusion index

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smokvina, A.

    1994-01-01

    At different times following surgery and during various complications, 119 studies were performed on 57 patients. In many patients studies were repeated several times. Twenty-three studies were performed in as many patients, in whom a normal function of the transplanted kidney was established by other diagnostic methods and retrospective analysis. Comparison was made of the perfusion index results obtained by the Hilson et al. method from 1978 and the ones obtained by my own modified method, which for calculating the index also takes into account: the time difference in appearance of the initial portions of the artery and kidney curves; the positioning of the region of interest over the distal part of the aorta; the bolus injection into the arteriovenous shunt of the forearm with high specific activity of small volumes of Tc-99m labelled agents; a fast 0.5 seconds study of data collection; and a standard for normalization of numerical data. The reliability of one or the other method tested by simulated time shift of the peak of arterial curves shows that the deviation percentage from the main index value in the unmodified method is 2-5 times greater than in the modified method. The normal value of the perfusion index applying the modified method is 91-171. (author)

  6. MHD convective flow of magnetite-Fe3O4 nanoparticles by curved stretching sheet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tasawar Hayat

    Full Text Available Present work is devoted to convective flow of ferrofluid due to non linear stretching curved sheet. Electrically conducting fluid is considered in the presence of uniform magnetic field. Nanofluid comprises water and magnetite-Fe3O4 as nanoparticles. Thermal radiation and heat generation/absorption are explained. Homotopy concept is utilized for the development of solutions. Highly nonlinear partial differential systems are reduced into the nonlinear ordinary differential system. Impact of non-dimensional radius of curvature and power law index on the physical quantities like fluid pressure, velocity and temperature field are examined. Computations for surface shear stress and heat transfer rate also analyzed. Keywords: MHD nanofluid, Thermal radiation, Porous medium, Convective boundary conditions, Non-linear curved stretching sheet

  7. Influence of fluid structure upon the shape of RTD curve at a sugar crystallizer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Griffith, J.; Borroto, J.I.; Leclerc, J.P.

    2004-01-01

    The influence of fluid structure over the shape of the RTD curve at a pilot sugar crystallizer has been tested by the radiotracer method. For Newtonian pure molasses B sugar fluid the pattern flux was close to a perfect mixing cells with backmixing model with a back flow-rate ratio lower than one. In the case of molasses B transformed to a non-Newtonian fluid the pattern flux approaches the same model but with extreme values of the back flow-rate ration (higher than one). A direct relationship was founded between the back flow rate ratio and the flow index of the tested fluids, showing that a special attention has to be pay during data processing of the RTD curves for non-Newtonian fluids. (author)

  8. Three-dimensional topography of the gingival line of young adult maxillary teeth: curve averaging using reverse-engineering methods.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Young-Seok; Chang, Mi-Sook; Lee, Seung-Pyo

    2011-01-01

    This study attempted to establish three-dimensional average curves of the gingival line of maxillary teeth using reconstructed virtual models to utilize as guides for dental implant restorations. Virtual models from 100 full-mouth dental stone cast sets were prepared with a three-dimensional scanner and special reconstruction software. Marginal gingival lines were defined by transforming the boundary points to the NURBS (nonuniform rational B-spline) curve. Using an iterative closest point algorithm, the sample models were aligned and the gingival curves were isolated. Each curve was tessellated by 200 points using a uniform interval. The 200 tessellated points of each sample model were averaged according to the index of each model. In a pilot experiment, regression and fitting analysis of one obtained average curve was performed to depict it as mathematical formulae. The three-dimensional average curves of six maxillary anterior teeth, two maxillary right premolars, and a maxillary right first molar were obtained, and their dimensions were measured. Average curves of the gingival lines of young people were investigated. It is proposed that dentists apply these data to implant platforms or abutment designs to achieve ideal esthetics. The curves obtained in the present study may be incorporated as a basis for implant component design to improve the biologic nature and related esthetics of restorations.

  9. Infused cardioplegia index: A new tool to improve myocardial protection. A cohort study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiménez Rivera, J J; Llanos Jorge, C; Iribarren Sarrías, J L; Brouard Martín, M; Lacalzada Almeida, J; Pérez Vela, J L; Avalos Pinto, R; Pérez Hernández, R; Ramos de la Rosa, S; Yanes Bowden, G; Martínez Sanz, R

    2018-05-19

    Strategies for cardio-protection are essential in coronary artery bypass graft surgery. The authors explored the relationship between cardioplegia volume, left ventricular mass index and ischemia time by means of the infused cardioplegia index and its relationship with post-operative low cardiac output syndrome. All patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery between January 2013 and December 2015 were included. Low cardiac output syndrome was defined according to criteria of the SEMICYUC's consensus document. The perioperative factors associated with low cardiac output syndrome were estimated, and using a ROC curve, the optimum cut-off point for the infused cardioplegia index to predict the absence of low cardiac output syndrome was calculated. Of 360 patients included, 116 (32%) developed low cardiac output syndrome. The independent risk predictors were: New York Heart Association Functional Classification (OR 1.8 [95% CI=1.18-2.55]), left ventricle ejection fraction (OR 0.95 (95% CI=0.93-0.98]), ICI (OR 0.99 [95% CI=0.991-0.996]) and retrograde cardioplegia (OR 1.2 [95% CI=1.03-1.50]). The infused cardioplegia index showed an area under the ROC curve of 0.77 (0.70-0.83; P<.001) for the absence of postoperative low cardiac output syndrome using the optimum cut-off point of 23.6ml·min -1 (100g/m 2 of LV) -1 . The infused cardioplegia index presents an inverse relationship with the development of post-operative low cardiac output syndrome. This index could form part of new strategies aimed at optimising cardio-protection. The total volume of intermittent cardioplegia, especially that of maintenance, should probably be individualised, adjusting for ischemia time and left ventricle mass index. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier España, S.L.U. y SEMICYUC. All rights reserved.

  10. The curve shortening problem

    CERN Document Server

    Chou, Kai-Seng

    2001-01-01

    Although research in curve shortening flow has been very active for nearly 20 years, the results of those efforts have remained scattered throughout the literature. For the first time, The Curve Shortening Problem collects and illuminates those results in a comprehensive, rigorous, and self-contained account of the fundamental results.The authors present a complete treatment of the Gage-Hamilton theorem, a clear, detailed exposition of Grayson''s convexity theorem, a systematic discussion of invariant solutions, applications to the existence of simple closed geodesics on a surface, and a new, almost convexity theorem for the generalized curve shortening problem.Many questions regarding curve shortening remain outstanding. With its careful exposition and complete guide to the literature, The Curve Shortening Problem provides not only an outstanding starting point for graduate students and new investigations, but a superb reference that presents intriguing new results for those already active in the field.

  11. An assessment of the BEST procedure to estimate the soil water retention curve

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castellini, Mirko; Di Prima, Simone; Iovino, Massimo

    2017-04-01

    The Beerkan Estimation of Soil Transfer parameters (BEST) procedure represents a very attractive method to accurately and quickly obtain a complete hydraulic characterization of the soil (Lassabatère et al., 2006). However, further investigations are needed to check the prediction reliability of soil water retention curve (Castellini et al., 2016). Four soils with different physical properties (texture, bulk density, porosity and stoniness) were considered in this investigation. Sites of measurement were located at Palermo University (PAL site) and Villabate (VIL site) in Sicily, Arborea (ARB site) in Sardinia and in Foggia (FOG site), Apulia. For a given site, BEST procedure was applied and the water retention curve was estimated using the available BEST-algorithms (i.e., slope, intercept and steady), and the reference values of the infiltration constants (β=0.6 and γ=0.75) were considered. The water retention curves estimated by BEST were then compared with those obtained in laboratory by the evaporation method (Wind, 1968). About ten experiments were carried out with both methods. A sensitivity analysis of the constants β and γ within their feasible range of variability (0.1analysis showed that S tended to increase for increasing β values and decreasing values of γ for all the BEST-algorithms and soils. On the other hand, Ks tended to decrease for increasing β and γ values. Our results also reveal that: i) BEST-intercept and BEST-steady algorithms yield lower S and higher Ks values than BEST-slope; ii) these algorithms yield also more variable values. For the latter, a higher sensitiveness of these two alternative algorithms to β than for γ was established. The decreasing sensitiveness to γ may lead to a possible lack in the correction of the simplified theoretical description of the parabolic two-dimensional and one-dimensional wetting front along the soil profile (Smettem et al., 1994). This likely resulted in lower S and higher Ks values

  12. PDW Index - A Simple Model for the Prediction of Liver Fibrosis in Chronic Viral Hepatitis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ashraf, S.; Ali, N.

    2013-01-01

    Objectives: To assess the accuracy of platelets, platelet morphological parameters, mean platelet volume(MPV) and platelet distribution width, (PDW) to diagnose advanced fibrosis. Study Design: Validation study. Place and Duration of Study: Combined Military Hospital, Malir, from Jun 2008 to Jun 2009. Patients and Methods: Simple laboratory tests, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) alanine aminotransferase (ALT) platelet count and platelet morphological parameters were measured in 91 chronic viral hepatitis patients. All patients had liver biopsy performed. A new index, PDW index was derived to detect the opposing effects of liver fibrosis on platelet count, MPV, and PDW. The predictive value of the index for advanced fibrosis (F3-F4) was assessed through descriptive statistics and area under the ROC curves. Results: Two cut-offs were chosen to qualify different stages of fibrosis. A value of > 8.00 predicted advanced fibrosis, F3-F4, with a specificity of 94% and positive predictive value of 78%. A value of < 6.00 ruled out advanced fibrosis with a negative predictive value of 93% and a sensitivity of 82%. The area under the ROC curve for advanced fibrosis was 0.840. PDW Index values outside of these cut-offs correctly classified 60% of patients. Conclusion: A simple index comprising platelet as only parameters have high diagnostic value for the advanced stages of fibrosis. (author)

  13. Prostate Health Index improves multivariable risk prediction of aggressive prostate cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loeb, Stacy; Shin, Sanghyuk S; Broyles, Dennis L; Wei, John T; Sanda, Martin; Klee, George; Partin, Alan W; Sokoll, Lori; Chan, Daniel W; Bangma, Chris H; van Schaik, Ron H N; Slawin, Kevin M; Marks, Leonard S; Catalona, William J

    2017-07-01

    To examine the use of the Prostate Health Index (PHI) as a continuous variable in multivariable risk assessment for aggressive prostate cancer in a large multicentre US study. The study population included 728 men, with prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels of 2-10 ng/mL and a negative digital rectal examination, enrolled in a prospective, multi-site early detection trial. The primary endpoint was aggressive prostate cancer, defined as biopsy Gleason score ≥7. First, we evaluated whether the addition of PHI improves the performance of currently available risk calculators (the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial [PCPT] and European Randomised Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer [ERSPC] risk calculators). We also designed and internally validated a new PHI-based multivariable predictive model, and created a nomogram. Of 728 men undergoing biopsy, 118 (16.2%) had aggressive prostate cancer. The PHI predicted the risk of aggressive prostate cancer across the spectrum of values. Adding PHI significantly improved the predictive accuracy of the PCPT and ERSPC risk calculators for aggressive disease. A new model was created using age, previous biopsy, prostate volume, PSA and PHI, with an area under the curve of 0.746. The bootstrap-corrected model showed good calibration with observed risk for aggressive prostate cancer and had net benefit on decision-curve analysis. Using PHI as part of multivariable risk assessment leads to a significant improvement in the detection of aggressive prostate cancer, potentially reducing harms from unnecessary prostate biopsy and overdiagnosis. © 2016 The Authors BJU International © 2016 BJU International Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  14. Waist-to-height ratio as index of cardiometabolic risk among the doctors

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miliva Mozaffor

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to see the cardiometabolic risk among doctors using waist-to-height ratio index as tool. Cardiometabolic risk is an umbrella term that includes all the risk factors of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The study was conducted among 195 doctors. According to waist-to-height ratio index 167 (85.6% doctors had cardiometabolic risk. Waist-to-height ratio index was found good (area under the curve >0.5, sensitivity 88.1%, specificity 23.2%, positive predictive value 53.9%, and negative predictive value 66.7% for their predictive value of cardiometabolic risk. Age grouping was done and found that no age group was free from cardiometabolic risk.

  15. The c-index is not proper for the evaluation of $t$-year predicted risks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blanche, Paul; Kattan, Michael W; Gerds, Thomas A

    2018-02-16

    We show that the widely used concordance index for time to event outcome is not proper when interest is in predicting a $t$-year risk of an event, for example 10-year mortality. In the situation with a fixed prediction horizon, the concordance index can be higher for a misspecified model than for a correctly specified model. Impropriety happens because the concordance index assesses the order of the event times and not the order of the event status at the prediction horizon. The time-dependent area under the receiver operating characteristic curve does not have this problem and is proper in this context.

  16. Part 5: Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve and Area under the Curve

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Saeed Safari

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Multiple diagnostic tools are used by emergency physicians,every day. In addition, new tools are evaluated to obtainmore accurate methods and reduce time or cost of conventionalones. In the previous parts of this educationalseries, we described diagnostic performance characteristicsof diagnostic tests including sensitivity, specificity, positiveand negative predictive values, and likelihood ratios. Thereceiver operating characteristics (ROC curve is a graphicalpresentation of screening characteristics. ROC curve is usedto determine the best cutoff point and compare two or moretests or observers by measuring the area under the curve(AUC. In this part of our educational series, we explain ROCcurve and two methods to determine the best cutoff value.

  17. Smoothed Body Composition Percentiles Curves for Mexican Children Aged 6 to 12 Years

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Melchor Alpizar

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Overweight children and childhood obesity are a public health problem in Mexico. Obesity is traditionally assessed using body mass index (BMI, but an excess of adiposity does not necessarily reflect a high BMI. Thus, body composition indexes are a better alternative. Our objective was to generate body composition percentile curves in children from Mexico City. A total of 2026 boys and 1488 girls aged 6 to 12 years old were studied in Mexico City. Body weight, height, and BMI calculation were measured. Total body fat percentage (TBFP was derived from the skinfold thicknesses, and fat mass (FMI and free fat mass indexes (FFMI were calculated. Finally, age- and gender-specifıc smoothed percentile curves were generated with Cole’s Lambda, Mu, and Sigma (LMS method. In general, height, weight, waist circumference (WC, and TBFP were higher in boys, but FFM was higher in girls. TBFP appeared to increase significantly between ages 8 and 9 in boys (+2.9% and between ages 10 and 11 in girls (+1.2%. In contrast, FFM% decreased noticeably between ages 8 and 9 until 12 years old in boys and girls. FMI values peaked in boys at age 12 (P97 = 14.1 kg/m2 and in girls at age 11 (P97 = 8.8 kg/m2. FFMI percentiles increase at a steady state reaching a peak at age 12 in boys and girls. Smoothed body composition percentiles showed a different pattern in boys and girls. The use of TBFP, FMI, and FFMI along with BMI provides valuable information in epidemiological, nutritional, and clinical research.

  18. Comparison of Lipid Accumulation Product Index with Body Mass Index and Waist Circumference as a Predictor of Metabolic Syndrome in Indian Population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ray, Lopamudra; Ravichandran, Kandasamy; Nanda, Sunil Kumar

    2018-06-01

    Metabolic syndrome (MetS), which confers a high risk for cardiovascular diseases, needs early diagnosis and treatment to reduce morbidity and mortality. Lipid accumulation product index has been reported to be an inexpensive marker of visceral fat and metabolic syndrome. This study aimed to evaluate lipid accumulation product index as a marker for metabolic syndrome in the Indian population where the prevalence of the condition is steadily increasing. A hospital-based, case-control study was conducted with 72 diagnosed cases of metabolic syndrome and 79 control subjects. In all the participants, body mass index (BMI) and lipid accumulation product index were calculated. The difference between cases and controls in BMI, waist circumference (WC), and lipid accumulation product index was assessed by Mann-Whitney U test/unpaired t-test. Associations of BMI, WC, and lipid accumulation product index with metabolic syndrome were compared by multiple logistic regression analysis and receiver operating characteristic analysis. BMI, WC, and lipid accumulation product index were significantly higher in metabolic syndrome (P product index had the highest prediction accuracy. The parameter also had a high area under curve of 0.901 (95% confidence interval 0.85-0.95) and a high sensitivity (76.4%), specificity (91.1%), positive predictive value (88.7%), and negative predictive value (80.9%) for detection of metabolic syndrome. In the Indian population, lipid accumulation product index is a better predictor of metabolic syndrome compared to BMI and WC and should be incorporated in laboratory reports as early, accurate, and inexpensive indicator of metabolic syndrome.

  19. A climate index derived from satellite measured spectral infrared radiation. Ph.D. Thesis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abel, M. D.; Fox, S. K.

    1982-01-01

    The vertical infrared radiative emitting structure (VIRES) climate index, based on radiative transfer theory and derived from the spectral radiances typically used to retrieve temperature profiles, is introduced. It is assumed that clouds and climate are closely related and a change in one will result in a change in the other. The index is a function of the cloud, temperature, and moisture distributions. It is more accurately retrieved from satellite data than is cloudiness per se. The VIRES index is based upon the shape and relative magnitude of the broadband weighting function of the infrared radiative transfer equation. The broadband weighting curves are retrieved from simulated satellite infrared sounder data (spectral radiances). The retrieval procedure is described and the error error sensitivities of the method investigated. Index measuring options and possible applications of the VIRES index are proposed.

  20. Signature Curves Statistics of DNA Supercoils

    OpenAIRE

    Shakiban, Cheri; Lloyd, Peter

    2004-01-01

    In this paper we describe the Euclidean signature curves for two dimensional closed curves in the plane and their generalization to closed space curves. The focus will be on discrete numerical methods for approximating such curves. Further we will apply these numerical methods to plot the signature curves related to three-dimensional simulated DNA supercoils. Our primary focus will be on statistical analysis of the data generated for the signature curves of the supercoils. We will try to esta...

  1. Modelling of acid-base titration curves of mineral assemblages

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stamberg Karel

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The modelling of acid-base titration curves of mineral assemblages was studied with respect to basic parameters of their surface sites to be obtained. The known modelling approaches, component additivity (CA and generalized composite (GC, and three types of different assemblages (fucoidic sandstones, sedimentary rock-clay and bentonite-magnetite samples were used. In contrary to GC-approach, application of which was without difficulties, the problem of CA-one consisted in the credibility and accessibility of the parameters characterizing the individual mineralogical components.

  2. Method of construction spatial transition curve

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S.V. Didanov

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. The movement of rail transport (speed rolling stock, traffic safety, etc. is largely dependent on the quality of the track. In this case, a special role is the transition curve, which ensures smooth insertion of the transition from linear to circular section of road. The article deals with modeling of spatial transition curve based on the parabolic distribution of the curvature and torsion. This is a continuation of research conducted by the authors regarding the spatial modeling of curved contours. Methodology. Construction of the spatial transition curve is numerical methods for solving nonlinear integral equations, where the initial data are taken coordinate the starting and ending points of the curve of the future, and the inclination of the tangent and the deviation of the curve from the tangent plane at these points. System solutions for the numerical method are the partial derivatives of the equations of the unknown parameters of the law of change of torsion and length of the transition curve. Findings. The parametric equations of the spatial transition curve are calculated by finding the unknown coefficients of the parabolic distribution of the curvature and torsion, as well as the spatial length of the transition curve. Originality. A method for constructing the spatial transition curve is devised, and based on this software geometric modeling spatial transition curves of railway track with specified deviations of the curve from the tangent plane. Practical value. The resulting curve can be applied in any sector of the economy, where it is necessary to ensure a smooth transition from linear to circular section of the curved space bypass. An example is the transition curve in the construction of the railway line, road, pipe, profile, flat section of the working blades of the turbine and compressor, the ship, plane, car, etc.

  3. Entomologic index for human risk of Lyme disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mather, T N; Nicholson, M C; Donnelly, E F; Matyas, B T

    1996-12-01

    An entomologic index based on density estimates of Lyme disease spirochete-infected nymphal deer ticks (lxodes scapularis) was developed to assess human risk of Lyme disease. The authors used a standardized protocol to determine tick density and infection in numerous forested sites in six Rhode Island towns. An entomologic risk index calculated for each town was compared with the number of human Lyme disease cases reported to the Rhode Island State Health Department for the same year. A strong positive relation between entomologic risk index and the Lyme disease case rate for each town suggested that the entomologic index was predictive of Lyme disease risk.

  4. Photoelectic BV Light Curves of Algol and the Interpretations of the Light Curves

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ho-Il Kim

    1985-06-01

    Full Text Available Standardized B and V photoelectric light curves of Algol are made with the observations obtained during 1982-84 with the 40-cm and the 61-cm reflectors of Yonsei University Observatory. These light curves show asymmetry between ascending and descending shoulders. The ascending shoulder is 0.02 mag brighter than descending shoulder in V light curve and 0.03 mag in B light curve. These asymmetric light curves are interpreted as the result of inhomogeneous energy distribution on the surface of one star of the eclipsing pair rather than the result of gaseous stream flowing from KOIV to B8V star. The 180-year periodicity, so called great inequality, are most likely the result proposed by Kim et al. (1983 that the abrupt and discrete mass losses of cooler component may be the cause of this orbital change. The amount of mass loss deduced from these discrete period changes turned out to be of the order of 10^(-6 - 10^(-5 Msolar.

  5. A Journey Between Two Curves

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sergey A. Cherkis

    2007-03-01

    Full Text Available A typical solution of an integrable system is described in terms of a holomorphic curve and a line bundle over it. The curve provides the action variables while the time evolution is a linear flow on the curve's Jacobian. Even though the system of Nahm equations is closely related to the Hitchin system, the curves appearing in these two cases have very different nature. The former can be described in terms of some classical scattering problem while the latter provides a solution to some Seiberg-Witten gauge theory. This note identifies the setup in which one can formulate the question of relating the two curves.

  6. Inverse relationship between body mass index and mortality in older nursing home residents

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Veronese, N; Cereda, E; Solmi, M

    2015-01-01

    Body mass index (BMI) and mortality in old adults from the general population have been related in a U-shaped or J-shaped curve. However, limited information is available for elderly nursing home populations, particularly about specific cause of death. A systematic PubMed/EMBASE/CINAHL/SCOPUS...

  7. Site evaluation using measured meteorology data

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cooper, R. E.; Rusche, B. C. [Savannah River Lab., E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., Aiken, South Carolina (United States)

    1967-07-01

    A key factor in reactor site evaluation is the frequency of occurrence of various dispersion conditions and this relationship to potential off-site doses following a reactor accident. Detailed measurements of the wind speed, wind direction, and temperature at heights up to 1200 ft at the Savannah River Plant form the basis for a comprehensive analysis of the frequency of occurrence of potential off-site doses. A complete set of data was taken about every five minutes, and 107,000 sets (about one year of data) were analyzed. The meteorology data were converted to ordinary dispersion parameters through correlating equations developed at Brookhaven National Laboratory. The results were expressed on curves in dose per unit release of activity vs distance from the reactor with probability of occurrence as a parameter. Separate sets of curves were calculated for releases of noble gas and of halogens and at release heights of 200 ft (a nominal stack height) and of 850 ft (about the height of the tallest power plant stacks). Additional curves were developed to show dose as a function of direction and probability of occurrence. In addition to the dose frequency distribution analyses performed as a function of height of release, direction, and distance; more conventional frequency distributions of wind speed, wind direction, and thermal stability were developed as a function of height. All the analyses were carried out on the IBM 360/65. These results represent the first known analysis utilizing data up to 1200 ft and taken often enough to develop reliable frequency distributions for a short term release. (author)

  8. PENGARUH UMUR POHON, BONITA DAN POSISI AKSIAL BATANG TERHADAP STRUKTUR MAKROSKOPIS DAN KUALITAS KAYU JATI SEBAGAI BAHAN FURNITUR (Effect of Tree Age, Site Quality Index and Trunk Axial Position on Macroscopic Structure and Quality of Teak Wood

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yustinus Suranto

    2015-03-01

    is an alternative solution of limited raw materials faced by furniture industry. Young wood tends to have a low-quality wood. One element for measuring wood quality is wood macroscopic structure properties. This study was aimed to determine the effect of tree age, site quality index and axial stem position on wood structures and wood quality. Thirty-six young teak trees were harvested on forest areas of Kendal Forest District, Central Java Province. Three disks were taken from each trunk, namely from the butt, middle and upper parts. Heartwood proportion and annual ring dimensions were measured based on natural color difference by using millimeter grid apparatus. Data were analyzed by using variance analysis arranged in blocked factorial and further testing were performed by using HSD Duncan. Wood quality was analyzed using determinant method which elaborated based on Z norm curve. Results showed that interaction of three factors did not affect on heart-wood proportion and growth ring dimensions. Interaction of age classes and site quality index influence significantly on heart-wood proportion and growth ring dimensions. Stem axial position significantly affects on heart-wood proportion and very significantly effect on growth ring dimensions. The lower wood position, the higher heart-wood proportion and the wider growth ring dimensions. Interaction of three factors namely class age V, site quality index 4 and middle trunk position has a highest wood quality, namely class 2, but interaction of age class V, site quality index 3 and top trunk has the lowest one, namely class 4. The use of wood-based quality will maximize the value and increase the product lifespan, thereby reducing the intensity of logging and become more environmental friendly.

  9. Bond yield curve construction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kožul Nataša

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available In the broadest sense, yield curve indicates the market's view of the evolution of interest rates over time. However, given that cost of borrowing it closely linked to creditworthiness (ability to repay, different yield curves will apply to different currencies, market sectors, or even individual issuers. As government borrowing is indicative of interest rate levels available to other market players in a particular country, and considering that bond issuance still remains the dominant form of sovereign debt, this paper describes yield curve construction using bonds. The relationship between zero-coupon yield, par yield and yield to maturity is given and their usage in determining curve discount factors is described. Their usage in deriving forward rates and pricing related derivative instruments is also discussed.

  10. Applicability of internet search index for asthma admission forecast using machine learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luo, Li; Liao, Chengcheng; Zhang, Fengyi; Zhang, Wei; Li, Chunyang; Qiu, Zhixin; Huang, Debin

    2018-04-15

    This study aimed to determine whether a search index could provide insight into trends in asthma admission in China. An Internet search index is a powerful tool to monitor and predict epidemic outbreaks. However, whether using an internet search index can significantly improve asthma admissions forecasts remains unknown. The long-term goal is to develop a surveillance system to help early detection and interventions for asthma and to avoid asthma health care resource shortages in advance. In this study, we used a search index combined with air pollution data, weather data, and historical admissions data to forecast asthma admissions using machine learning. Results demonstrated that the best area under the curve in the test set that can be achieved is 0.832, using all predictors mentioned earlier. A search index is a powerful predictor in asthma admissions forecast, and a recent search index can reflect current asthma admissions with a lag-effect to a certain extent. The addition of a real-time, easily accessible search index improves forecasting capabilities and demonstrates the predictive potential of search index. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  11. Curve Digitizer – A software for multiple curves digitizing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Florentin ŞPERLEA

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available The Curve Digitizer is software that extracts data from an image file representing a graphicand returns them as pairs of numbers which can then be used for further analysis and applications.Numbers can be read on a computer screen stored in files or copied on paper. The final result is adata set that can be used with other tools such as MSEXCEL. Curve Digitizer provides a useful toolfor any researcher or engineer interested in quantifying the data displayed graphically. The image filecan be obtained by scanning a document

  12. Large-scale international validation of the ADO index in subjects with COPD

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Puhan, Milo A; Hansel, Nadia N; Sobradillo, Patricia

    2012-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Little evidence on the validity of simple and widely applicable tools to predict mortality in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exists. OBJECTIVE: To conduct a large international study to validate the ADO index that uses age, dyspnoea and FEV(1) to predict 3......-IV. MEASUREMENTS: We validated the original ADO index. We then obtained an updated ADO index in half of our cohorts to improve its predictive accuracy, which in turn was validated comprehensively in the remaining cohorts using discrimination, calibration and decision curve analysis and a number of sensitivity......-to-moderate risk of 3-year mortality than FEV(1) alone. INTERPRETATION: The updated 15-point ADO index accurately predicts 3-year mortality across the COPD severity spectrum and can be used to inform patients about their prognosis, clinical trial study design or benefit harm assessment of medical interventions....

  13. SITEQUAL--A User's Guide: Computerized Site Evaluation for 14 Southern Hardwood Species

    Science.gov (United States)

    Constance A. Harrington; Bettina M. Casson

    1986-01-01

    An interactive computer program, SITEQUAL, has been developed from the widely-used Baker and Broadfoot field guides, which evaluate site quality for 14 southern hardwood tree species. The SITEQUAL program calculates site index for all species simultaneously and provides a breakdown of site index into the component contributions by each of the four major soil factors...

  14. Classification of Obesity Varies between Body Mass Index and Direct Measures of Body Fat in Boys and Girls of Asian and European Ancestry

    Science.gov (United States)

    McConnell-Nzunga, J.; Naylor, P. J.; Macdonald, H.; Rhodes, R. E.; Hofer, S. M.; McKay, H.

    2018-01-01

    Body mass index is a common proxy for proportion of body fat. However, body mass index may not classify youth similarly across ages and ethnicities. We used sex- and ethnic-specific receiver operating characteristic curves to determine how obesity classifications compared between body mass index and dual energy x-ray absorptiometry-based body fat…

  15. Hybrid finite volume/ finite element method for radiative heat transfer in graded index media

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, L.; Zhao, J. M.; Liu, L. H.; Wang, S. Y.

    2012-09-01

    The rays propagate along curved path determined by the Fermat principle in the graded index medium. The radiative transfer equation in graded index medium (GRTE) contains two specific redistribution terms (with partial derivatives to the angular coordinates) accounting for the effect of the curved ray path. In this paper, the hybrid finite volume with finite element method (hybrid FVM/FEM) (P.J. Coelho, J. Quant. Spectrosc. Radiat. Transf., vol. 93, pp. 89-101, 2005) is extended to solve the radiative heat transfer in two-dimensional absorbing-emitting-scattering graded index media, in which the spatial discretization is carried out using a FVM, while the angular discretization is by a FEM. The FEM angular discretization is demonstrated to be preferable in dealing with the redistribution terms in the GRTE. Two stiff matrix assembly schemes of the angular FEM discretization, namely, the traditional assembly approach and a new spherical assembly approach (assembly on the unit sphere of the solid angular space), are discussed. The spherical assembly scheme is demonstrated to give better results than the traditional assembly approach. The predicted heat flux distributions and temperature distributions in radiative equilibrium are determined by the proposed method and compared with the results available in other references. The proposed hybrid FVM/FEM method can predict the radiative heat transfer in absorbing-emitting-scattering graded index medium with good accuracy.

  16. Hybrid finite volume/ finite element method for radiative heat transfer in graded index media

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, L.; Zhao, J.M.; Liu, L.H.; Wang, S.Y.

    2012-01-01

    The rays propagate along curved path determined by the Fermat principle in the graded index medium. The radiative transfer equation in graded index medium (GRTE) contains two specific redistribution terms (with partial derivatives to the angular coordinates) accounting for the effect of the curved ray path. In this paper, the hybrid finite volume with finite element method (hybrid FVM/FEM) (P.J. Coelho, J. Quant. Spectrosc. Radiat. Transf., vol. 93, pp. 89-101, 2005) is extended to solve the radiative heat transfer in two-dimensional absorbing-emitting-scattering graded index media, in which the spatial discretization is carried out using a FVM, while the angular discretization is by a FEM. The FEM angular discretization is demonstrated to be preferable in dealing with the redistribution terms in the GRTE. Two stiff matrix assembly schemes of the angular FEM discretization, namely, the traditional assembly approach and a new spherical assembly approach (assembly on the unit sphere of the solid angular space), are discussed. The spherical assembly scheme is demonstrated to give better results than the traditional assembly approach. The predicted heat flux distributions and temperature distributions in radiative equilibrium are determined by the proposed method and compared with the results available in other references. The proposed hybrid FVM/FEM method can predict the radiative heat transfer in absorbing-emitting-scattering graded index medium with good accuracy.

  17. Modeling of Ship Collision Risk Index Based on Complex Plane and Its Realization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiaoqin Xu

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Ship collision risk index is the basic and important concept in the domain of ship collision avoidance. In this paper, the advantages and deficiencies of the various calculation methods of ship collision risk index are pointed out. Then the ship collision risk model based on complex plane, which can well make up for the deficiencies of the widely-used evaluation model proposed by Kearon.J and Liu ruru is proposed. On this basis, the calculation method of collision risk index under the encountering situation of multi-ships is constructed, then the three-dimensional image and spatial curve of the risk index are figured out. Finally, single chip microcomputer is used to realize the model. And attaching this single chip microcomputer to ARPA is helpful to the decision-making of the marine navigators.

  18. Estimating reaction rate constants: comparison between traditional curve fitting and curve resolution

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bijlsma, S.; Boelens, H. F. M.; Hoefsloot, H. C. J.; Smilde, A. K.

    2000-01-01

    A traditional curve fitting (TCF) algorithm is compared with a classical curve resolution (CCR) approach for estimating reaction rate constants from spectral data obtained in time of a chemical reaction. In the TCF algorithm, reaction rate constants an estimated from the absorbance versus time data

  19. A catalog of special plane curves

    CERN Document Server

    Lawrence, J Dennis

    2014-01-01

    Among the largest, finest collections available-illustrated not only once for each curve, but also for various values of any parameters present. Covers general properties of curves and types of derived curves. Curves illustrated by a CalComp digital incremental plotter. 12 illustrations.

  20. Intersection numbers of spectral curves

    CERN Document Server

    Eynard, B.

    2011-01-01

    We compute the symplectic invariants of an arbitrary spectral curve with only 1 branchpoint in terms of integrals of characteristic classes in the moduli space of curves. Our formula associates to any spectral curve, a characteristic class, which is determined by the laplace transform of the spectral curve. This is a hint to the key role of Laplace transform in mirror symmetry. When the spectral curve is y=\\sqrt{x}, the formula gives Kontsevich--Witten intersection numbers, when the spectral curve is chosen to be the Lambert function \\exp{x}=y\\exp{-y}, the formula gives the ELSV formula for Hurwitz numbers, and when one chooses the mirror of C^3 with framing f, i.e. \\exp{-x}=\\exp{-yf}(1-\\exp{-y}), the formula gives the Marino-Vafa formula, i.e. the generating function of Gromov-Witten invariants of C^3. In some sense this formula generalizes ELSV, Marino-Vafa formula, and Mumford formula.

  1. A void ratio dependent water retention curve model including hydraulic hysteresis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pasha Amin Y.

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Past experimental evidence has shown that Water Retention Curve (WRC evolves with mechanical stress and structural changes in soil matrix. Models currently available in the literature for capturing the volume change dependency of WRC are mainly empirical in nature requiring an extensive experimental programme for parameter identification which renders them unsuitable for practical applications. In this paper, an analytical model for the evaluation of the void ratio dependency of WRC in deformable porous media is presented. The approach proposed enables quantification of the dependency of WRC on void ratio solely based on the form of WRC at the reference void ratio and requires no additional parameters. The effect of hydraulic hysteresis on the evolution process is also incorporated in the model, an aspect rarely addressed in the literature. Expressions are presented for the evolution of main and scanning curves due to loading and change in the hydraulic path from scanning to main wetting/drying and vice versa as well as the WRC parameters such as air entry value, air expulsion value, pore size distribution index and slope of the scanning curve. The model is validated using experimental data on compacted and reconstituted soils subjected to various hydro-mechanical paths. Good agreement is obtained between model predictions and experimental data in all the cases considered.

  2. State and localisation of the nuclear wastes in France. Index established by the ANDRA observatory

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1999-01-01

    This index is the seventh edition of the the national index on nuclear wastes state and localisation. Its purpose is to index the sites where people could find radioactive wastes in France (great industry as EDF or Cogema but also little producers, national defense sites and research laboratories) and the sealed sources distributors. Law texts concerning the radioactive wastes and general information on nuclear elements or radioactivity are also provided. (A.L.B.)

  3. Elliptic curves for applications (Tutorial)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lange, T.; Bernstein, D.J.; Chatterjee, S.

    2011-01-01

    More than 25 years ago, elliptic curves over finite fields were suggested as a group in which the Discrete Logarithm Problem (DLP) can be hard. Since then many researchers have scrutinized the security of the DLP on elliptic curves with the result that for suitably chosen curves only exponential

  4. Differential geometry and topology of curves

    CERN Document Server

    Animov, Yu

    2001-01-01

    Differential geometry is an actively developing area of modern mathematics. This volume presents a classical approach to the general topics of the geometry of curves, including the theory of curves in n-dimensional Euclidean space. The author investigates problems for special classes of curves and gives the working method used to obtain the conditions for closed polygonal curves. The proof of the Bakel-Werner theorem in conditions of boundedness for curves with periodic curvature and torsion is also presented. This volume also highlights the contributions made by great geometers. past and present, to differential geometry and the topology of curves.

  5. Models of genus one curves

    OpenAIRE

    Sadek, Mohammad

    2010-01-01

    In this thesis we give insight into the minimisation problem of genus one curves defined by equations other than Weierstrass equations. We are interested in genus one curves given as double covers of P1, plane cubics, or complete intersections of two quadrics in P3. By minimising such a curve we mean making the invariants associated to its defining equations as small as possible using a suitable change of coordinates. We study the non-uniqueness of minimisations of the genus one curves des...

  6. OPS index - KOME | LSDB Archive [Life Science Database Archive metadata

    Lifescience Database Archive (English)

    Full Text Available switchLanguage; BLAST Search Image Search Home About Archive Update History Data ...listed. Data file File name: kome_ops_index.zip File URL: ftp://ftp.biosciencedbc.jp/archive/kome/LATEST/kom...e History of This Database Site Policy | Contact Us OPS index - KOME | LSDB Archive ...

  7. Hold Your Breath. A New Index of Air Quality

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Buehn, A.; Reza Farzanega, M.

    2011-01-01

    Environmental quality and climate change have long attracted attention in policy debates. Recently, air quality has emerged on the policy agenda. We calculate a new index of air quality using CO2 and SO2 emissions per capita as indicators and provide a ranking for 122 countries from 1985 to 2005.The empirical analysis supports the EKC hypothesis (Environmental Kuznets Curve) and shows a significant influence of determinants such as energy efficiency, industrial production, electricity produced from coal sources, and urbanization on air quality. According to our index, Luxemburg, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, and Japan are among the top 5 countries in terms of air quality performance. The Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Togo, and Nepal performed worst in 2005.

  8. Hold Your Breath. A New Index of Air Quality

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Buehn, A. [Utrecht School of Economics, Utrecht University, Utrecht (Netherlands); Reza Farzanega, M. [Dresden University of Technology and ZEW Mannheim, Mannheim (Germany)

    2011-12-15

    Environmental quality and climate change have long attracted attention in policy debates. Recently, air quality has emerged on the policy agenda. We calculate a new index of air quality using CO2 and SO2 emissions per capita as indicators and provide a ranking for 122 countries from 1985 to 2005.The empirical analysis supports the EKC hypothesis (Environmental Kuznets Curve) and shows a significant influence of determinants such as energy efficiency, industrial production, electricity produced from coal sources, and urbanization on air quality. According to our index, Luxemburg, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, and Japan are among the top 5 countries in terms of air quality performance. The Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Togo, and Nepal performed worst in 2005.

  9. The crime kuznets curve

    OpenAIRE

    Buonanno, Paolo; Fergusson, Leopoldo; Vargas, Juan Fernando

    2014-01-01

    We document the existence of a Crime Kuznets Curve in US states since the 1970s. As income levels have risen, crime has followed an inverted U-shaped pattern, first increasing and then dropping. The Crime Kuznets Curve is not explained by income inequality. In fact, we show that during the sample period inequality has risen monotonically with income, ruling out the traditional Kuznets Curve. Our finding is robust to adding a large set of controls that are used in the literature to explain the...

  10. KMAH index and separation of PSP-waves from streamer data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitrofanov, Georgy; Priimenko, Viatcheslav

    2017-08-01

    The presence of triplications (caustics) can be a serious problem in seismic data processing and analysis. The travel-time curve becomes multi-valued and the geometrical spreading correction factor tends to zero due to energy focusing. To select the regions of possible triplications (caustics) of travel-times, which can arise during the propagation of reflected seismic waves, we use the Keller-Maslov-Arnol'd-Hörmander (KMAH) index. The identification of such regions improves the selection of signals associated with target reflecting horizons and their use in solving various inverse dynamic problems, including amplitude-versus-offset (AVO) and full-waveform inversions. The importance of the KMAH index increases in 4D surveys when the structure of the model is already known, and it is necessary to conduct a detailed analysis of the shapes of seismic signals with increasing accuracy when solving inverse seismic problems. In addition, this index can be valuable when solving various marine seismic problems associated with single and converted waves, in particular with PSP-waves. The present work is dedicated to the separation of signals associated with this type of wave using surface marine seismic data. However, the proposed algorithm has a wider application. It is based on: (i) a priori information on the medium under study; (ii) ray tracing method. The ray tracing method enables the identification of the corresponding signals and the determination of the time and space intervals, in which such signals are most accurately traced. These intervals are used in the selection of target signals, particularly signals related to PSP-waves. In order to select optimal areas of observation with higher amplitudes of target signals, we use the τ -p transform. To improve the stability of the signal separation, KMAH index is used. This approach allows the elimination of possible triplications (caustics) in the travel-time curve from the selected intervals.

  11. Why do total-body decay curves of iodine-labeled proteins begin with a delay

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Regoeczi, E.

    1987-01-01

    The initial delay that occurs in total-body radiation curves reaching their single-exponential slopes was analyzed from 106 experiments involving several mammalian species (guinea pig, mouse, rabbit, and rat) and plasma proteins (alpha 1-acid glycoprotein, antithrombin III, fibrinogen, immunoglobulin G, and transferrin) in 14 different combinations. The time interval (Td) between injection and the intercept of the slope with the full-dose value was adopted as a measure of curve nonideality. The overall mean Td was 6.6 h, but individual values showed a significant correlation to protein half-lives, whereby proteins of unequal metabolic properties exhibited different mean Td values. Targeting protein to the liver abolished delay. Choice of the isotope ( 125 I or 131 I) and size of the labeled protein had no influence on the magnitude of delay. Whole-body radiation curves of animals that received [ 125 I]iodotyrosines, Na 131 I, or 131 I-polyvinylpyrrolidone exhibited no initial delays. These results do not support the earlier notion that delay is caused by a redistribution of the labeled protein in the body to radiometrically more favorable sites. However, they are compatible with the assumption that delayed passage of a protein dose through the extracellular matrix and/or retarded transfer of proteolytic products from extravascular catabolic sites to plasma may be responsible for the phenomenon

  12. Extending World Health Organization weight-for-age reference curves to older children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodd, Celia; Metzger, Daniel L; Sharma, Atul

    2014-02-03

    For ages 5-19 years, the World Health Organization (WHO) publishes reference charts based on 'core data' from the US National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), collected from 1963-75 on 22,917 US children. To promote the use of body mass index in older children, weight-for-age was omitted after age 10. Health providers have subsequently expressed concerns about this omission and the selection of centiles. We therefore sought to extend weight-for-age reference curves from 10 to 19 years by applying WHO exclusion criteria and curve fitting methods to the core NCHS data and to revise the choice of displayed centiles. WHO analysts first excluded ~ 3% of their reference population in order to achieve a "non-obese sample with equal height". Based on these exclusion criteria, 314 girls and 304 boys were first omitted for 'unhealthy' weights-for-height. By applying WHO global deviance and information criteria, optimal Box-Cox power exponential models were used to fit smoothed weight-for-age centiles. Bootstrap resampling was used to assess the precision of centile estimates. For all charts, additional centiles were included in the healthy range (3 to 97%), and the more extreme WHO centiles 0.1 and 99.9% were dropped. In addition to weight-for-age beyond 10 years, our charts provide more granularity in the centiles in the healthy range -2 to +2 SD (3-97%). For both weight and BMI, the bootstrap confidence intervals for the 99.9th centile were at least an order of magnitude wider than the corresponding 50th centile values. These charts complement existing WHO charts by allowing weight-for-age to be plotted concurrently with height in older children. All modifications followed strict WHO methodology and utilized the same core data from the US NCHS. The additional centiles permit a more precise assessment of normal growth and earlier detection of aberrant growth as it crosses centiles. Elimination of extreme centiles reduces the risk of misclassification. A complete set of

  13. The index-flood and the GRADEX methods combination for flood frequency analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fuentes, Diana; Di Baldassarre, Giuliano; Quesada, Beatriz; Xu, Chong-Yu; Halldin, Sven; Beven, Keith

    2017-04-01

    Flood frequency analysis is used in many applications, including flood risk management, design of hydraulic structures, and urban planning. However, such analysis requires of long series of observed discharge data which are often not available in many basins around the world. In this study, we tested the usefulness of combining regional discharge and local precipitation data to estimate the event flood volume frequency curve for 63 catchments in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. This was achieved by combining two existing flood frequency analysis methods, the regionalization index-flood approach with the GRADEX method. For up to 10-years return period, similar shape of the scaled flood frequency curve for catchments with similar flood behaviour was assumed from the index-flood approach. For return periods larger than 10-years the probability distribution of rainfall and discharge volumes were assumed to be asymptotically and exponential-type functions with the same scale parameter from the GRADEX method. Results showed that if the mean annual flood (MAF), used as index-flood, is known, the index-flood approach performed well for up to 10 years return periods, resulting in 25% mean relative error in prediction. For larger return periods the prediction capability decreased but could be improved by the use of the GRADEX method. As the MAF is unknown at ungauged and short-period measured basins, we tested predicting the MAF using catchments climate-physical characteristics, and discharge statistics, the latter when observations were available for only 8 years. Only the use of discharge statistics resulted in acceptable predictions.

  14. Surgical site infection rates following laparoscopic urological procedures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    George, Arvin K; Srinivasan, Arun K; Cho, Jane; Sadek, Mostafa A; Kavoussi, Louis R

    2011-04-01

    Surgical site infections have been categorized by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as "never events". The incidence of surgical site infection following laparoscopic urological surgery and its risk factors are poorly defined. We evaluated surgical site infection following urological laparoscopic surgery and identified possible factors that may influence occurrence. Patients who underwent transperitoneal laparoscopic procedures during a 4-year period by a single laparoscopic surgeon were retrospectively reviewed. Surgical site infections were identified postoperatively and defined using the Centers for Disease Control criteria. Clinical parameters, comorbidities, smoking history, preoperative urinalysis and culture results as well as operative data were analyzed. Nonparametric testing using the Mann-Whitney U test, multivariable logistic regression and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient were used for data analysis. In 556 patients undergoing urological laparoscopic procedures 14 surgical site infections (2.5%) were identified at mean postoperative day 21.5. Of the 14 surgical site infections 10 (71.4%) were located at a specimen extraction site. Operative time, procedure type and increasing body mass index were significantly associated with the occurrence of surgical site infections (p = 0.007, p = 0.019, p = 0.038, respectively), whereas history of diabetes mellitus (p = 0.071) and intraoperative transfusion (p = 0.053) were found to trend toward significance. Age, gender, positive urine culture, steroid use, procedure type and smoking history were not significantly associated with surgical site infection. Body mass index and operative time remained significant predictors of surgical site infection on multivariate logistic regression analysis. Surgical site infection is an infrequent complication following laparoscopic surgery with the majority occurring at the specimen extraction site. Infection is associated with prolonged operative time and

  15. Site classification for National Strong Motion Observation Network System (NSMONS) stations in China using an empirical H/V spectral ratio method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ji, Kun; Ren, Yefei; Wen, Ruizhi

    2017-10-01

    Reliable site classification of the stations of the China National Strong Motion Observation Network System (NSMONS) has not yet been assigned because of lacking borehole data. This study used an empirical horizontal-to-vertical (H/V) spectral ratio (hereafter, HVSR) site classification method to overcome this problem. First, according to their borehole data, stations selected from KiK-net in Japan were individually assigned a site class (CL-I, CL-II, or CL-III), which is defined in the Chinese seismic code. Then, the mean HVSR curve for each site class was computed using strong motion recordings captured during the period 1996-2012. These curves were compared with those proposed by Zhao et al. (2006a) for four types of site classes (SC-I, SC-II, SC-III, and SC-IV) defined in the Japanese seismic code (JRA, 1980). It was found that an approximate range of the predominant period Tg could be identified by the predominant peak of the HVSR curve for the CL-I and SC-I sites, CL-II and SC-II sites, and CL-III and SC-III + SC-IV sites. Second, an empirical site classification method was proposed based on comprehensive consideration of peak period, amplitude, and shape of the HVSR curve. The selected stations from KiK-net were classified using the proposed method. The results showed that the success rates of the proposed method in identifying CL-I, CL-II, and CL-III sites were 63%, 64%, and 58% respectively. Finally, the HVSRs of 178 NSMONS stations were computed based on recordings from 2007 to 2015 and the sites classified using the proposed method. The mean HVSR curves were re-calculated for three site classes and compared with those from KiK-net data. It was found that both the peak period and the amplitude were similar for the mean HVSR curves derived from NSMONS classification results and KiK-net borehole data, implying the effectiveness of the proposed method in identifying different site classes. The classification results have good agreement with site classes

  16. ROBUST DECLINE CURVE ANALYSIS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sutawanir Darwis

    2012-05-01

    Full Text Available Empirical decline curve analysis of oil production data gives reasonable answer in hyperbolic type curves situations; however the methodology has limitations in fitting real historical production data in present of unusual observations due to the effect of the treatment to the well in order to increase production capacity. The development ofrobust least squares offers new possibilities in better fitting production data using declinecurve analysis by down weighting the unusual observations. This paper proposes a robustleast squares fitting lmRobMM approach to estimate the decline rate of daily production data and compares the results with reservoir simulation results. For case study, we usethe oil production data at TBA Field West Java. The results demonstrated that theapproach is suitable for decline curve fitting and offers a new insight in decline curve analysis in the present of unusual observations.

  17. Photochemical Reflectance Index (PRI) as a proxy of Light Use Efficiency (LUE) and transpiration in Mediterranean crop sites

    Science.gov (United States)

    LE Dantec, V.; Chebbi, W.; Boulet, G.; Merlin, O.; Lili-Chabaane, Z.; Er Raki, S.; Ceschia, E.; Khabba, S.; Fanise, P.; Zawilski, B.; Simonneaux, V.; Jarlan, L.

    2016-12-01

    The Photochemical Reflectance Index (PRI) is based on the short term reversible xanthophyll pigment changes accompanying plant stress and therefore of the associated photosynthetic activities. Strong relationships between PRI and Light Use Efficiency (LUE) were shown at leaf and canopy scales and over a wide range of species (Garbulsky et al., 2011). But very few previous works have explored the potential link with plant water status. In this study, we have first analyzed the link between PRI and LUE at canopy scale on two different crops in terms of canopy structure and crop management: olive grove (Tunisia) and wheat grown under different water regimes (irrigated or rainfed) and climate zones (France, Morocco). We have investigated the daily and seasonal dynamics of PRI; linking its variations to meteorological factors (global radiation and sun angle effects, soil water content, relative air humidity …) and plant processes. The highest correlations were mainly observed in clear skies conditions. We have found, whatever site, linear negative relationships between PRI and LUE using data acquired in midday (i.e. in solar zenithal angle condition). Linear link between PRI and sapflow measurements was also revealed. This correlation was obtained over periods characterized by a moderate soil water deficit, i.e. by when transpiration rate was mainly control by Vapor Pressure Deficit. We will then briefly presented alternative and complementary approaches to this index, to detect different level of water stress using thermal infrared emissions.

  18. The thermoluminescent curve as parameter to compare archaeological ceramics; La curva termoluminiscente como parametro para comparar ceramica arqueologica

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dominguez R, I.R.; Ramirez C, G.A. [Centro INAH Estado de Mexico. Morelos Ote. 502, Col. San Sebastian, 50090 Toluca, Estado de Mexico (Mexico); Gonzalez M, P.R.; Mendoza A, D. [lNIN, Carr. Mexico-Toluca S/N, La Marquesa, 52750 Ocoyoacac, Estado de Mexico (Mexico); Martinez C, G. [Coordinacion Nacional de Conservacion del Patrimonio Cultural, INAH, Mexico D.F. (Mexico)

    2006-07-01

    Most mineral materials, including the constituents of pottery, have the property of thermoluminescence (TL), where part of the energy from radioactive decay in the mineral is stored and later released as light upon strong heating. The intensity of emitted light as a function of temperature is the thermoluminescence glow curve. However, it is well-know the thermoluminescence glow curve form depends of several factors associates with the incident radiation and type of materials. Between the factors associated with the materials, it can be mentioned the quantity and type of crystalline phases, and quantity and type of impurities that they could be present in the material. That is to say, materials with different physicochemical characteristics will produce different thermoluminescence glow curve, although, they have been irradiated under the same conditions. In accordance with the above mentioned, it is possible to identified differences between pre hispanic ceramic belonging to a same site and other sites. In this work a discussion about advantages and disadvantages is presented. Some specific examples in ceramic artifacts belonging to the Matlatzinca and Teotihuacan cultures are included. (Author)

  19. NEW CONCEPTS AND TEST METHODS OF CURVE PROFILE AREA DENSITY IN SURFACE: ESTIMATION OF AREAL DENSITY ON CURVED SPATIAL SURFACE

    OpenAIRE

    Hong Shen

    2011-01-01

    The concepts of curve profile, curve intercept, curve intercept density, curve profile area density, intersection density in containing intersection (or intersection density relied on intersection reference), curve profile intersection density in surface (or curve intercept intersection density relied on intersection of containing curve), and curve profile area density in surface (AS) were defined. AS expressed the amount of curve profile area of Y phase in the unit containing surface area, S...

  20. M-curves and symmetric products

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Indranil Biswas

    2017-08-03

    Aug 3, 2017 ... is bounded above by g + 1, where g is the genus of X [11]. Curves which have exactly the maximum number (i.e., genus +1) of components of the real part are called M-curves. Classifying real algebraic curves up to homeomorphism is straightforward, however, classifying even planar non-singular real ...

  1. Assessment of the left ventricular systolic and diastolic function by the left ventricular density curve derived from intravenous digital subtraction angiography in children

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Horigome, Hitoshi; Satoh, Hideo; Isobe, Takeshi; Takita, Hitoshi

    1991-01-01

    To evaluate the left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic function, fifty-four children with various heart diseases underwent intravenous digital subtraction angiography (IV-DSA). Global left ventricular density curve was obtained through densitometry of the DSA images. The curve was smoothed by a third-degree Fourier transformation and systolic and diastolic indexes were obtained. In the control group, consisting of Kawasaki disease without coronary lesion and mild pulmonary stenosis, the peak ejection rate (PER) and the peak filling rate in early diastole (PFR-E) correlated positively with the heart rate (HR) in a quadratic curve manner [PER: r= 0.93 p<0.01, PFR-E: r= 0.94 p<0.01]. Time from end-diastolic to PER (T-PER) and time from end-systolic to PFR (T-PFR) were correlated negatively with HR [T-PER: r=-0.86 p<0.01, T-PFR: r=-0.91 p<0.01]. However, T-PER/RR and T-PFR/RR values were rather constant (20.9±3.2%, 17.0±2.6%, respectively). We also found significant correlations of PER and PFR-E with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Patients with corrected tetralogy of Fallot and with cardiomyopaties showed not only abnormal systolic indexes but some depressed diastolic indexes. LV density curve also disclosed isolated diastolic dysfunction in a group of aortic stenosis and in two patients with coronary lesions. A correlation of LVEF derived from the density curve and conventional area-length method was high [r= 0.91 p<0.001]. To evaluate the reproducibility, we were able to obtain the digital data twice with over one month interval on 24 patients. The intraobserver correlation was satisfactory. We applied the remasking method, resulting in improving the quality of digital images under spontaneous breathing. Our results indicated that IV-DSA was a less-invasive and clinically reliable method for assessment of LV function in children. (author)

  2. Assessment of the left ventricular systolic and diastolic function by the left ventricular density curve derived from intravenous digital subtraction angiography in children

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Horigome, Hitoshi; Satoh, Hideo; Isobe, Takeshi; Takita, Hitoshi (Tsukuba Univ., Ibaraki (Japan). Inst. of Clinical Medicine)

    1991-05-01

    To evaluate the left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic function, fifty-four children with various heart diseases underwent intravenous digital subtraction angiography (IV-DSA). Global left ventricular density curve was obtained through densitometry of the DSA images. The curve was smoothed by a third-degree Fourier transformation and systolic and diastolic indexes were obtained. In the control group, consisting of Kawasaki disease without coronary lesion and mild pulmonary stenosis, the peak ejection rate (PER) and the peak filling rate in early diastole (PFR-E) correlated positively with the heart rate (HR) in a quadratic curve manner (PER: r= 0.93 p<0.01, PFR-E: r= 0.94 p<0.01). Time from end-diastolic to PER (T-PER) and time from end-systolic to PFR (T-PFR) were correlated negatively with HR (T-PER: r=-0.86 p<0.01, T-PFR: r=-0.91 p<0.01). However, T-PER/RR and T-PFR/RR values were rather constant (20.9+-3.2%, 17.0+-2.6%, respectively). We also found significant correlations of PER and PFR-E with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Patients with corrected tetralogy of Fallot and with cardiomyopaties showed not only abnormal systolic indexes but some depressed diastolic indexes. LV density curve also disclosed isolated diastolic dysfunction in a group of aortic stenosis and in two patients with coronary lesions. A correlation of LVEF derived from the density curve and conventional area-length method was high (r= 0.91 p<0.001). To evaluate the reproducibility, we were able to obtain the digital data twice with over one month interval on 24 patients. The intraobserver correlation was satisfactory. We applied the remasking method, resulting in improving the quality of digital images under spontaneous breathing. Our results indicated that IV-DSA was a less-invasive and clinically reliable method for assessment of LV function in children. (author).

  3. Birds' species diversity measurement of Uchali Wetland (Ramsar site Pakistan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Taofik Oyedele Dauda

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available We carried out this study to evaluate bird species diversity and to model bird species abundance using Uchali Wetland, Pakistan (32°33′N, 72°01′E. Data obtained were subjected to summary statistics, Simpson diversity, Shannon evenness index, and rank abundance curve and model. The watershed supports 25,361 birds of 47 species, which is appreciably less than the number of bird species supported by the same wetland in the past year (1991. Total evenness could be obtained as the ranks increases and this differed annually. Evenness index (EI analysis showed that EI for 2011 was 0.0231, for 2012, it was 0.02, for 2013, it was 0.01, and for the annual mean, it was 0.046 indicating functional abundance of the species. Bird species diversity measurement could be enhanced by the use of the modified rank–abundance curve and would clearly present the true picture of the bird species abundance.

  4. [Identification of cutoff points for Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance index in adolescents: systematic review].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Andrade, Maria Izabel Siqueira de; Oliveira, Juliana Souza; Leal, Vanessa Sá; Lima, Niedja Maria da Silva; Costa, Emília Chagas; Aquino, Nathalia Barbosa de; Lira, Pedro Israel Cabral de

    2016-06-01

    To identify cutoff points of the Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) index established for adolescents and discuss their applicability for the diagnosis of insulin resistance in Brazilian adolescents. A systematic review was performed in the PubMed, Lilacs and SciELO databases, using the following descriptors: "Adolescents", "insulin resistance" and "ROC curve". Original articles carried out with adolescents published between 2005 and 2015 in Portuguese, English or Spanish languages, which included the statistical analysis using ROC curve to determine the index cutoff (HOMA-IR) were included. A total of 184 articles were identified and after the study phases were applied, seven articles were selected for the review. All selected studies established their cutoffs using a ROC curve, with the lowest observed cutoff of 1.65 for girls and 1.95 for boys and the highest of 3.82 for girls and 5.22 for boys. Of the studies analyzed, one proposed external validity, recommending the use of the HOMA-IR cutoff >2.5 for both genders. The HOMA-IR index constitutes a reliable method for the detection of insulin resistance in adolescents, as long as it uses cutoffs that are more adequate for the reality of the study population, allowing early diagnosis of insulin resistance and enabling multidisciplinary interventions aiming at health promotion of this population. Copyright © 2015 Sociedade de Pediatria de São Paulo. Publicado por Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

  5. Titration Curves: Fact and Fiction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chamberlain, John

    1997-01-01

    Discusses ways in which datalogging equipment can enable titration curves to be measured accurately and how computing power can be used to predict the shape of curves. Highlights include sources of error, use of spreadsheets to generate titration curves, titration of a weak acid with a strong alkali, dibasic acids, weak acid and weak base, and…

  6. Transrectal real-time tissue elastography targeted biopsy coupled with peak strain index improves the detection of clinically important prostate cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Qi; Yang, Dong-Rong; Xue, Bo-Xin; Wang, Cheng; Chen, Han-Bin; Dong, Yun; Wang, Cai-Shan; Shan, Yu-Xi

    2017-07-01

    The focus of the present study was to evaluate transrectal real-time tissue elastography (RTE)-targeted two-core biopsy coupled with peak strain index for the detection of prostate cancer (PCa) and to compare this method with 10-core systematic biopsy. A total of 141 patients were enrolled for evaluation. The diagnostic value of peak strain index was assessed using a receiver operating characteristic curve. The cancer detection rates of the two approaches and corresponding positive cores and Gleason score were compared. The cancer detection rate per core in the RTE-targeted biopsy (44%) was higher compared with that in systematic biopsy (30%). The peak strain index value of PCa was higher compared with that of the benign lesion. PCa was detected with the highest sensitivity (87.5%) and specificity (85.5%) using the threshold value of a peak strain index of ≥5.97 with an area under the curve value of 0.95. When the Gleason score was ≥7, RTE-targeted biopsy coupled with peak strain index detected 95.6% of PCa cases, but 84.4% were detected using systematic biopsy. Peak strain index as a quantitative parameter may improve the differentiation of PCa from benign lesions in the prostate peripheral zone. Transrectal RTE-targeted biopsy coupled with peak strain index may enhance the detection of clinically significant PCa, particularly when combined with systematic biopsy.

  7. Inverse Diffusion Curves Using Shape Optimization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Shuang; Durand, Fredo; Zheng, Changxi

    2018-07-01

    The inverse diffusion curve problem focuses on automatic creation of diffusion curve images that resemble user provided color fields. This problem is challenging since the 1D curves have a nonlinear and global impact on resulting color fields via a partial differential equation (PDE). We introduce a new approach complementary to previous methods by optimizing curve geometry. In particular, we propose a novel iterative algorithm based on the theory of shape derivatives. The resulting diffusion curves are clean and well-shaped, and the final image closely approximates the input. Our method provides a user-controlled parameter to regularize curve complexity, and generalizes to handle input color fields represented in a variety of formats.

  8. Local gray level S-curve transformation - A generalized contrast enhancement technique for medical images.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gandhamal, Akash; Talbar, Sanjay; Gajre, Suhas; Hani, Ahmad Fadzil M; Kumar, Dileep

    2017-04-01

    Most medical images suffer from inadequate contrast and brightness, which leads to blurred or weak edges (low contrast) between adjacent tissues resulting in poor segmentation and errors in classification of tissues. Thus, contrast enhancement to improve visual information is extremely important in the development of computational approaches for obtaining quantitative measurements from medical images. In this research, a contrast enhancement algorithm that applies gray-level S-curve transformation technique locally in medical images obtained from various modalities is investigated. The S-curve transformation is an extended gray level transformation technique that results into a curve similar to a sigmoid function through a pixel to pixel transformation. This curve essentially increases the difference between minimum and maximum gray values and the image gradient, locally thereby, strengthening edges between adjacent tissues. The performance of the proposed technique is determined by measuring several parameters namely, edge content (improvement in image gradient), enhancement measure (degree of contrast enhancement), absolute mean brightness error (luminance distortion caused by the enhancement), and feature similarity index measure (preservation of the original image features). Based on medical image datasets comprising 1937 images from various modalities such as ultrasound, mammograms, fluorescent images, fundus, X-ray radiographs and MR images, it is found that the local gray-level S-curve transformation outperforms existing techniques in terms of improved contrast and brightness, resulting in clear and strong edges between adjacent tissues. The proposed technique can be used as a preprocessing tool for effective segmentation and classification of tissue structures in medical images. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Retrograde curves of solidus and solubility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vasil'ev, M.V.

    1979-01-01

    The investigation was concerned with the constitutional diagrams of the eutectic type with ''retrograde solidus'' and ''retrograde solubility curve'' which must be considered as diagrams with degenerate monotectic transformation. The solidus and the solubility curves form a retrograde curve with a common retrograde point representing the solubility maximum. The two branches of the Aetrograde curve can be described with the aid of two similar equations. Presented are corresponding equations for the Cd-Zn system and shown is the possibility of predicting the run of the solubility curve

  10. Glycemic index and glycemic load in the Opuntia ficus-indica fruit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ibarra-Salas, María de Jesús; Novelo-Huerta, Hilda Irene; De León-Salas, Marcela Alejandra; Sánchez-Murillo, Mayra Elisa; Mata-Obregón, María Del Carmen; Garza-Juárez, Aurora de Jesús

    2017-01-01

    There is evidence that support the clinical usage of glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) in the prevention of chronic disease. To determine the GI and GL of the Opuntia ficus-indica fruit. An analytic, transversal study was made involving 25 healthy volunteers accepted by an informed consent with a normal body mass index, glucose, glycoside hemoglobin, cholesterol and serum triglycerides. The homogeneity of the population was evaluated with anthropometrical and biochemical data using principal component analysis (PCA). The equivalent of 50 g of carbohydrates test food (tuna) and 50 g of dextrose as food standard was provided for the measure of the glucose curve. The GI was determined by calculating the area under the curve by the triangulation method. The CG was reported as the product of IG by carbohydrate loading provided. The IG of the tuna was 48.01 ± 17.4, classified as low, while the CG was 24.0 ± 8.7 rated as high. The chemometric analysis by PCA showed that the selection of the normal population for determining the IG, it is important to consider the values of cholesterol and triglycerides. Copyright: © 2017 SecretarÍa de Salud

  11. [Customized and non-customized French intrauterine growth curves. II - Comparison with existing curves and benefits of customization].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ego, A; Prunet, C; Blondel, B; Kaminski, M; Goffinet, F; Zeitlin, J

    2016-02-01

    Our aim is to compare the new French EPOPé intrauterine growth curves, developed to address the guidelines 2013 of the French College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, with reference curves currently used in France, and to evaluate the consequences of their adjustment for fetal sex and maternal characteristics. Eight intrauterine and birthweight curves, used in France were compared to the EPOPé curves using data from the French Perinatal Survey 2010. The influence of adjustment on the rate of SGA births and the characteristics of these births was analysed. Due to their birthweight values and distribution, the selected intrauterine curves are less suitable for births in France than the new curves. Birthweight curves led to low rates of SGA births from 4.3 to 8.5% compared to 10.0% with the EPOPé curves. The adjustment for maternal and fetal characteristics avoids the over-representation of girls among SGA births, and reclassifies 4% of births. Among births reclassified as SGA, the frequency of medical and obstetrical risk factors for growth restriction, smoking (≥10 cigarettes/day), and neonatal transfer is higher than among non-SGA births (P<0.01). The EPOPé curves are more suitable for French births than currently used curves, and their adjustment improves the identification of mothers and babies at risk of growth restriction and poor perinatal outcomes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  12. Hold your breath: A new index of air pollution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Buehn, Andreas; Farzanegan, Mohammad Reza

    2013-01-01

    Environmental quality and climate change have been discussed prominently as urgent problems that – due to air pollution – produce severe consequences affecting the everyday life of millions of people. Using a Multiple Indicators Multiple Causes (MIMIC) model, we calculate a new index of air pollution and provide a ranking for 122 countries for every fifth year between 1985 and 2005. The empirical analysis supports the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis and shows a significant influence of determinants such as energy efficiency, industrial production, the electricity produced from coal sources, and demographic transition on air pollution. According to the index, Norway, Switzerland, Japan, Luxembourg, and Iceland are among the top 5 countries in terms of air quality performance. Eritrea, Mozambique, Tajikistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ethiopia performed worst in 2005. - Highlights: ► We calculate a new index of air pollution and provide a ranking for 122 countries. ► The empirical analysis supports the EKC hypothesis. ► Country ranking of this air pollution index is comparable across the period 1985 to 2005. ► Definition of the underlying variables does not change and the methodology is consistent

  13. Extended analysis of cooling curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Djurdjevic, M.B.; Kierkus, W.T.; Liliac, R.E.; Sokolowski, J.H.

    2002-01-01

    Thermal Analysis (TA) is the measurement of changes in a physical property of a material that is heated through a phase transformation temperature range. The temperature changes in the material are recorded as a function of the heating or cooling time in such a manner that allows for the detection of phase transformations. In order to increase accuracy, characteristic points on the cooling curve have been identified using the first derivative curve plotted versus time. In this paper, an alternative approach to the analysis of the cooling curve has been proposed. The first derivative curve has been plotted versus temperature and all characteristic points have been identified with the same accuracy achieved using the traditional method. The new cooling curve analysis also enables the Dendrite Coherency Point (DCP) to be detected using only one thermocouple. (author)

  14. Flood frequency analysis at ungauged sites in the KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjeldsen, Thomas Rodding; Smithers, J.C.; Schulze, R.E.

    2001-01-01

    Use of the index-flood method at ungauged sites requires methods for estimation of the index-flood parameter at these sites. This study attempts to relate the mean annual flood to site characteristics of catchments in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The ordinary, weighted and generalised least square...

  15. Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty: the learning curve.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hill, Christine; El Zein, Mohamad; Agnihotri, Abhishek; Dunlap, Margo; Chang, Angela; Agrawal, Alison; Barola, Sindhu; Ngamruengphong, Saowanee; Chen, Yen-I; Kalloo, Anthony N; Khashab, Mouen A; Kumbhari, Vivek

    2017-09-01

     Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG) is gaining traction as a minimally invasive bariatric treatment. Concern that the learning curve may be slow, even among those proficient in endoscopic suturing, is a barrier to widespread implementation of the procedure. Therefore, we aimed to define the learning curve for ESG in a single endoscopist experienced in endoscopic suturing who participated in a 1-day ESG training program.  Consecutive patients who underwent ESG between February 2016 and November 2016 were included. The performing endoscopist, who is proficient in endoscopic suturing for non-ESG procedures, participated in a 1-day ESG training session before offering ESG to patients. The outcome measurements were length of procedure (LOP) and number of plications per procedure. Nonlinear regression was used to determine the learning plateau and calculate the learning rate.  Twenty-one consecutive patients (8 males), with mean age 47.7 ± 11.2 years and mean body mass index 41.8 ± 8.5 kg/m 2 underwent ESG. LOP decreased significantly across consecutive procedures, with a learning plateau at 101.5 minutes and a learning rate of 7 cases ( P  = 0.04). The number of plications per procedure also decreased significantly across consecutive procedures, with a plateau at 8 sutures and a learning rate of 9 cases ( P  < 0.001). Further, the average time per plication decreased significantly with consecutive procedures, reaching a plateau at 9 procedures ( P  < 0.001).  Endoscopists experienced in endoscopic suturing are expected to achieve a reduction in LOP and number of plications per procedure in successive cases, with progress plateauing at 7 and 9 cases, respectively.

  16. Site classification of ponderosa pine stands under stocking control in California

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robert F. Powers; William W. Oliver

    1978-01-01

    Existing systems for estimating site index of ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Laws.) do not apply well to California stands where stocking is controlled. A more suitable system has been developed using trends in natural height growth, derived from stem analysis of dominant trees in California. This site index system produces polymorphic patterns of...

  17. Determination of polyphenol content and colour index in wines through PEDOT-modified electrodes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pigani, Laura; Rioli, Cristina; Foca, Giorgia; Ulrici, Alessandro; Seeber, Renato; Terzi, Fabio; Zanardi, Chiara

    2016-10-01

    Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-modified electrodes have been used for the estimation of the polyphenolic content and of the colour index of different samples of wines. Synthetic wine solutions, prepared with different amount of oenocyanins, have been analysed spectrophotometrically and electrochemically in order to find a correlation between the total polyphenolic content or colour index and the current peak. The regression curves obtained have been used as external calibration lines for the analysis of several commercial wines, ranging from white to dark red wines. In this way, a rapid estimation of the total polyphenolic content and of the colour index may be accomplished from a single voltammetric measurement. Furthermore, principal component analysis has also been used to evaluate the effect of total polyphenolic content and colour index on the whole voltammetric signals within a selected potential range, both for the synthetic solutions and for the commercial products. Graphical abstract Electrochemical sensors for the rapid determination of colour index and polyphenol content in wines.

  18. Tempo curves considered harmful

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Desain, P.; Honing, H.

    1993-01-01

    In the literature of musicology, computer music research and the psychology of music, timing or tempo measurements are mostly presented in the form of continuous curves. The notion of these tempo curves is dangerous, despite its widespread use, because it lulls its users into the false impression

  19. [Vegetation index estimation by chlorophyll content of grassland based on spectral analysis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiao, Han; Chen, Xiu-Wan; Yang, Zhen-Yu; Li, Huai-Yu; Zhu, Han

    2014-11-01

    Comparing the methods of existing remote sensing research on the estimation of chlorophyll content, the present paper confirms that the vegetation index is one of the most practical and popular research methods. In recent years, the increasingly serious problem of grassland degradation. This paper, firstly, analyzes the measured reflectance spectral curve and its first derivative curve in the grasslands of Songpan, Sichuan and Gongger, Inner Mongolia, conducts correlation analysis between these two spectral curves and chlorophyll content, and finds out the regulation between REP (red edge position) and grassland chlorophyll content, that is, the higher the chlorophyll content is, the higher the REIP (red-edge inflection point) value would be. Then, this paper constructs GCI (grassland chlorophyll index) and selects the most suitable band for retrieval. Finally, this paper calculates the GCI by the use of satellite hyperspectral image, conducts the verification and accuracy analysis of the calculation results compared with chlorophyll content data collected from field of twice experiments. The result shows that for grassland chlorophyll content, GCI has stronger sensitivity than other indices of chlorophyll, and has higher estimation accuracy. GCI is the first proposed to estimate the grassland chlorophyll content, and has wide application potential for the remote sensing retrieval of grassland chlorophyll content. In addition, the grassland chlorophyll content estimation method based on remote sensing retrieval in this paper provides new research ideas for other vegetation biochemical parameters' estimation, vegetation growth status' evaluation and grassland ecological environment change's monitoring.

  20. Flood Hazard Recurrence Frequencies for the Savannah River Site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, K.F.

    2001-01-01

    Department of Energy (DOE) regulations outline the requirements for Natural Phenomena Hazard (NPH) mitigation for new and existing DOE facilities. The NPH considered in this report is flooding. The facility-specific probabilistic flood hazard curve defines, as a function of water elevation, the annual probability of occurrence or the return period in years. The facility-specific probabilistic flood hazard curves provide basis to avoid unnecessary facility upgrades, to establish appropriate design criteria for new facilities, and to develop emergency preparedness plans to mitigate the consequences of floods. A method based on precipitation, basin runoff and open channel hydraulics was developed to determine probabilistic flood hazard curves for the Savannah River Site. The calculated flood hazard curves show that the probabilities of flooding existing SRS major facilities are significantly less than 1.E-05 per year

  1. Fecal Calprotectin is an Accurate Tool and Correlated to Seo Index in Prediction of Relapse in Iranian Patients With Ulcerative Colitis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hosseini, Seyed Vahid; Jafari, Peyman; Taghavi, Seyed Alireza; Safarpour, Ali Reza; Rezaianzadeh, Abbas; Moini, Maryam; Mehrabi, Manoosh

    2015-02-01

    The natural clinical course of Ulcerative Colitis (UC) is characterized by episodes of relapse and remission. Fecal Calprotectin (FC) is a relatively new marker of intestinal inflammation and is an available, non-expensive tool for predicting relapse of quiescent UC. The Seo colitis activity index is a clinical index for assessment of the severity of UC. The present study aimed to evaluate the accuracy of FC and the Seo colitis activity index and their correlation in prediction of UC exacerbation. In this prospective cohort study, 157 patients with clinical and endoscopic diagnosis of UC selected randomly from 1273 registered patients in Fars province's IBD registry center in Shiraz, Iran, were followed from October 2012 to October 2013 for 12 months or shorter, if they had a relapse. Two patients left the study before completion and one patient had relapse because of discontinuation of drugs. The participants' clinical and serum factors were evaluated every three months. Furthermore, stool samples were collected at the beginning of study and every three months and FC concentration (commercially available enzyme linked immunoassay) and the Seo Index were assessed. Then univariate analysis, multiple variable logistic regression, Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) curve analysis, and Pearson's correlation test (r) were used for statistical analysis of data. According to the results, 74 patients (48.1%) relapsed during the follow-up (33 men and 41 women). Mean ± SD of FC was 862.82 ± 655.97 μg/g and 163.19 ± 215.85 μg/g in relapsing and non-relapsing patients, respectively (P Seo index were significant predictors of relapse. ROC curve analysis of FC level and Seo activity index for prediction of relapse demonstrated area under the curve of 0.882 (P Seo index was significant in prediction of relapse (r = 0.63, P Seo activity index in prediction of relapse in the course of quiescent UC in Iranian patients.

  2. STUDY OF POND WATER QUALITY BY THE ASSESSMENT OF PHYSICOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS AND WATER QUALITY INDEX

    OpenAIRE

    Vinod Jena; Satish Dixit; Ravi ShrivastavaSapana Gupta; Sapana Gupta

    2013-01-01

    Water quality index (WQI) is a dimensionless number that combines multiple water quality factors into a single number by normalizing values to subjective rating curves. Conventionally it has been used for evaluating the quality of water for water resources suchas rivers, streams and lakes, etc. The present work is aimed at assessing the Water Quality Index (W.Q.I) ofpond water and the impact of human activities on it. Physicochemical parameters were monitored for the calculation of W.Q.I for ...

  3. Spectral curves of surface reflectance in some Antarctic regions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lupi, A.; Tomasi, C.; Orsini, A.; Cacciari, A.; Vitale, V.; Georgiadis, T.; Casacchia, R.; Salvatori, R.; Salvi, S.

    2001-01-01

    Four surface reflectance models of solar radiation were determined by examining several sets of field measurements taken for clear-sky conditions at various sites in Antarctica. Each model consists of the mean spectral curve of surface reflectance in the 0.25-2.7 μm wavelength range and of the dependence curve of total abedo on the solar elevation angle h, within the range from 5 0 to 55 0 . The TNB (Terra Nova Bay) model refers to a rocky terrain where granites are predominant; the NIS (Nansen Ice Sheet) model to a glacier surface made uneven by sastrugi and streaked by irregular fractures; the HAP (High Altitude Plateau) model to a flat ice surface covered by fresh snow and scored by light sastrugi; and the RIS (Ross Ice Shelf) model to an area covered by the sea ice pack presenting many discontinuities in the reflectance features, due to melt water lakes, puddles, refrozen ice and snow pots. The reflectance curve obtained for the TNB model presents gradually increasing values as wavelength increases through the visible spectral range and almost constant values at infrared wavelengths, giving a total albedo value equal to 0.264 at = 30 0 , which increases by about 80% through the lower range of h and decreases by 12% through the upper range. The reflectance curves of the NIS, HAP and RIS models are all peaked at visible wavelengths and exhibit decreasing values throughout the infrared spectral range, giving values of total albedo equal to 0.464, 0.738 and 0.426 at h 30 0 , respectively. These values were estimated to increase by 8-14% as h decreases from 30 0 to 5 0 and to decrease by 2-4% only as h increases from 30 0 to 55 0

  4. Rating curve estimation of nutrient loads in Iowa rivers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stenback, G.A.; Crumpton, W.G.; Schilling, K.E.; Helmers, M.J.

    2011-01-01

    Accurate estimation of nutrient loads in rivers and streams is critical for many applications including determination of sources of nutrient loads in watersheds, evaluating long-term trends in loads, and estimating loading to downstream waterbodies. Since in many cases nutrient concentrations are measured on a weekly or monthly frequency, there is a need to estimate concentration and loads during periods when no data is available. The objectives of this study were to: (i) document the performance of a multiple regression model to predict loads of nitrate and total phosphorus (TP) in Iowa rivers and streams; (ii) determine whether there is any systematic bias in the load prediction estimates for nitrate and TP; and (iii) evaluate streamflow and concentration factors that could affect the load prediction efficiency. A commonly cited rating curve regression is utilized to estimate riverine nitrate and TP loads for rivers in Iowa with watershed areas ranging from 17.4 to over 34,600km2. Forty-nine nitrate and 44 TP datasets each comprising 5-22years of approximately weekly to monthly concentrations were examined. Three nitrate data sets had sample collection frequencies averaging about three samples per week. The accuracy and precision of annual and long term riverine load prediction was assessed by direct comparison of rating curve load predictions with observed daily loads. Significant positive bias of annual and long term nitrate loads was detected. Long term rating curve nitrate load predictions exceeded observed loads by 25% or more at 33% of the 49 measurement sites. No bias was found for TP load prediction although 15% of the 44 cases either underestimated or overestimate observed long-term loads by more than 25%. The rating curve was found to poorly characterize nitrate and phosphorus variation in some rivers. ?? 2010 .

  5. Image scaling curve generation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    2012-01-01

    The present invention relates to a method of generating an image scaling curve, where local saliency is detected in a received image. The detected local saliency is then accumulated in the first direction. A final scaling curve is derived from the detected local saliency and the image is then

  6. Image scaling curve generation.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    2011-01-01

    The present invention relates to a method of generating an image scaling curve, where local saliency is detected in a received image. The detected local saliency is then accumulated in the first direction. A final scaling curve is derived from the detected local saliency and the image is then

  7. Can Observation Skills of Citizen Scientists Be Estimated Using Species Accumulation Curves?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steve Kelling

    Full Text Available Volunteers are increasingly being recruited into citizen science projects to collect observations for scientific studies. An additional goal of these projects is to engage and educate these volunteers. Thus, there are few barriers to participation resulting in volunteer observers with varying ability to complete the project's tasks. To improve the quality of a citizen science project's outcomes it would be useful to account for inter-observer variation, and to assess the rarely tested presumption that participating in a citizen science projects results in volunteers becoming better observers. Here we present a method for indexing observer variability based on the data routinely submitted by observers participating in the citizen science project eBird, a broad-scale monitoring project in which observers collect and submit lists of the bird species observed while birding. Our method for indexing observer variability uses species accumulation curves, lines that describe how the total number of species reported increase with increasing time spent in collecting observations. We find that differences in species accumulation curves among observers equates to higher rates of species accumulation, particularly for harder-to-identify species, and reveals increased species accumulation rates with continued participation. We suggest that these properties of our analysis provide a measure of observer skill, and that the potential to derive post-hoc data-derived measurements of participant ability should be more widely explored by analysts of data from citizen science projects. We see the potential for inferential results from analyses of citizen science data to be improved by accounting for observer skill.

  8. Sea-level rise and archaeological site destruction: An example from the southeastern United States using DINAA (Digital Index of North American Archaeology).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anderson, David G; Bissett, Thaddeus G; Yerka, Stephen J; Wells, Joshua J; Kansa, Eric C; Kansa, Sarah W; Myers, Kelsey Noack; DeMuth, R Carl; White, Devin A

    2017-01-01

    The impact of changing climate on terrestrial and underwater archaeological sites, historic buildings, and cultural landscapes can be examined through quantitatively-based analyses encompassing large data samples and broad geographic and temporal scales. The Digital Index of North American Archaeology (DINAA) is a multi-institutional collaboration that allows researchers online access to linked heritage data from multiple sources and data sets. The effects of sea-level rise and concomitant human population relocation is examined using a sample from nine states encompassing much of the Gulf and Atlantic coasts of the southeastern United States. A 1 m rise in sea-level will result in the loss of over >13,000 recorded historic and prehistoric archaeological sites, as well as over 1000 locations currently eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), encompassing archaeological sites, standing structures, and other cultural properties. These numbers increase substantially with each additional 1 m rise in sea level, with >32,000 archaeological sites and >2400 NRHP properties lost should a 5 m rise occur. Many more unrecorded archaeological and historic sites will also be lost as large areas of the landscape are flooded. The displacement of millions of people due to rising seas will cause additional impacts where these populations resettle. Sea level rise will thus result in the loss of much of the record of human habitation of the coastal margin in the Southeast within the next one to two centuries, and the numbers indicate the magnitude of the impact on the archaeological record globally. Construction of large linked data sets is essential to developing procedures for sampling, triage, and mitigation of these impacts.

  9. Anterior Overgrowth in Primary Curves, Compensatory Curves and Junctional Segments in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schlösser, Tom P C; van Stralen, Marijn; Chu, Winnie C W; Lam, Tsz-Ping; Ng, Bobby K W; Vincken, Koen L; Cheng, Jack C Y; Castelein, René M

    2016-01-01

    Although much attention has been given to the global three-dimensional aspect of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS), the accurate three-dimensional morphology of the primary and compensatory curves, as well as the intervening junctional segments, in the scoliotic spine has not been described before. A unique series of 77 AIS patients with high-resolution CT scans of the spine, acquired for surgical planning purposes, were included and compared to 22 healthy controls. Non-idiopathic curves were excluded. Endplate segmentation and local longitudinal axis in endplate plane enabled semi-automatic geometric analysis of the complete three-dimensional morphology of the spine, taking inter-vertebral rotation, intra-vertebral torsion and coronal and sagittal tilt into account. Intraclass correlation coefficients for interobserver reliability were 0.98-1.00. Coronal deviation, axial rotation and the exact length discrepancies in the reconstructed sagittal plane, as defined per vertebra and disc, were analyzed for each primary and compensatory curve as well as for the junctional segments in-between. The anterior-posterior difference of spinal length, based on "true" anterior and posterior points on endplates, was +3.8% for thoracic and +9.4% for (thoraco)lumbar curves, while the junctional segments were almost straight. This differed significantly from control group thoracic kyphosis (-4.1%; P<0.001) and lumbar lordosis (+7.8%; P<0.001). For all primary as well as compensatory curves, we observed linear correlations between the coronal Cobb angle, axial rotation and the anterior-posterior length difference (r≥0.729 for thoracic curves; r≥0.485 for (thoraco)lumbar curves). Excess anterior length of the spine in AIS has been described as a generalized growth disturbance, causing relative anterior spinal overgrowth. This study is the first to demonstrate that this anterior overgrowth is not a generalized phenomenon. It is confined to the primary as well as the

  10. Development of a statistically-based lower bound fracture toughness curve (Ksub(IR) curve)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wullaert, R.A.; Server, W.L.; Oldfield, W.; Stahlkopf, K.E.

    1977-01-01

    A program of initiation fracture toughness measurements on fifty heats of nuclear pressure vessel production materials (including weldments) was used to develop a methodology for establishing a revised reference toughness curve. The new methodology was statistically developed and provides a predefined confidence limit (or tolerance limit) for fracture toughness based upon many heats of a particular type of material. Overall reference curves were developed for seven specific materials using large specimen static and dynamic fracture toughness results. The heat-to-heat variation was removed by normalizing both the fracture toughness and temperature data with the precracked Charpy tanh curve coefficients for each particular heat. The variance and distribution about the curve were determined, and lower bounds of predetermined statistical significance were drawn based upon a Pearson distribution in the lower shelf region (since the data were skewed to high values) and a t-distribution in the transition temperature region (since the data were normally distributed)

  11. The thermoluminescence glow-curve analysis using GlowFit - the new powerful tool for deconvolution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Puchalska, M.; Bilski, P.

    2005-10-01

    A new computer program, GlowFit, for deconvoluting first-order kinetics thermoluminescence (TL) glow-curves has been developed. A non-linear function describing a single glow-peak is fitted to experimental points using the least squares Levenberg-Marquardt method. The main advantage of GlowFit is in its ability to resolve complex TL glow-curves consisting of strongly overlapping peaks, such as those observed in heavily doped LiF:Mg,Ti (MTT) detectors. This resolution is achieved mainly by setting constraints or by fixing selected parameters. The initial values of the fitted parameters are placed in the so-called pattern files. GlowFit is a Microsoft Windows-operated user-friendly program. Its graphic interface enables easy intuitive manipulation of glow-peaks, at the initial stage (parameter initialization) and at the final stage (manual adjustment) of fitting peak parameters to the glow-curves. The program is freely downloadable from the web site www.ifj.edu.pl/NPP/deconvolution.htm (author)

  12. Curved Radio Spectra of Weak Cluster Shocks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kang, Hyesung; Ryu, Dongsu

    2015-08-01

    In order to understand certain observed features of arc-like giant radio relics such as the rareness, uniform surface brightness, and curved integrated spectra, we explore a diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) model for radio relics in which a spherical shock impinges on a magnetized cloud containing fossil relativistic electrons. Toward this end, we perform DSA simulations of spherical shocks with the parameters relevant for the Sausage radio relic in cluster CIZA J2242.8+5301, and calculate the ensuing radio synchrotron emission from re-accelerated electrons. Three types of fossil electron populations are considered: a delta-function like population with the shock injection momentum, a power-law distribution, and a power law with an exponential cutoff. The surface brightness profile of the radio-emitting postshock region and the volume-integrated radio spectrum are calculated and compared with observations. We find that the observed width of the Sausage relic can be explained reasonably well by shocks with speed {u}{{s}}˜ 3× {10}3 {km} {{{s}}}-1 and sonic Mach number {M}{{s}}˜ 3. These shocks produce curved radio spectra that steepen gradually over (0.1-10){ν }{br} with a break frequency {ν }{br}˜ 1 GHz if the duration of electron acceleration is ˜60-80 Myr. However, the abrupt increase in the spectral index above ˜1.5 GHz observed in the Sausage relic seems to indicate that additional physical processes, other than radiative losses, operate for electrons with {γ }{{e}}≳ {10}4.

  13. Optical fiber sensors for process refractometry and temperature measuring based on curved fibers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Willsch, R.; Schwotzer, G.; Haubenreisser, W.; Jahn, J.U.

    1986-01-01

    Based on U-shape curved multimode fibers with defined bending radii intensity-modulated optical sensors for the determination of refractive index changes in liquids and related measurands (solution concentration, mixing ratio and others) in process-refractometry and for temperature measuring under special environmental conditions have been developed. The optoelectronic transmitting and receiving units are performed in modular technique and can be used in multi-purpose applications. The principles, performance and characteristical properties of these sensors are described and their possibilities of application in process measuring and automation are discussed by some selected examples. (orig.) [de

  14. Optical fiber sensors for process refractometry and temperature measuring based on curved fibers

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Willsch, R; Schwotzer, G; Haubenreisser, W; Jahn, J U

    1986-01-01

    Based on U-shape curved multimode fibers with defined bending radii intensity-modulated optical sensors for the determination of refractive index changes in liquids and related measurands (solution concentration, mixing ratio and others) in process-refractometry and for temperature measuring under special environmental conditions have been developed. The optoelectronic transmitting and receiving units are performed in modular technique and can be used in multi-purpose applications. The principles, performance and characteristical properties of these sensors are described and their possibilities of application in process measuring and automation are discussed by some selected examples.

  15. A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OF SWIFT/X-RAY TELESCOPE DATA. IV. SINGLE POWER-LAW DECAYING LIGHT CURVES VERSUS CANONICAL LIGHT CURVES AND IMPLICATIONS FOR A UNIFIED ORIGIN OF X-RAYS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liang Enwei; Lue Houjun; Hou Shujin; Zhang Binbin; Zhang Bing

    2009-01-01

    By systematically analyzing the Swift/XRT light curves detected before 2009 July, we find 19 light curves that monotonously decay as a single power law (SPL) with an index of 1 ∼ 1.7 from tens (or hundreds) of seconds to ∼10 5 s post the gamma-ray burst (GRB) trigger. They are apparently different from the canonical light curves characterized by a shallow-to-normal decay transition. We compare the observations of the prompt gamma rays and the X-rays for these two samples of GRBs (SPL vs. canonical). No statistical difference is found in the prompt gamma-ray properties for the two samples. The X-ray properties of the two samples are also similar, although the SPL sample tends to have a slightly lower neutral hydrogen absorption column for the host galaxies and a slightly larger energy release compared with the canonical sample. The SPL X-ray Telescope (XRT) light curves in the burst frame gradually merge into a conflux, and their luminosities at 10 5 s are normally distributed at log L/ergs s -1 = 45.6 ± 0.5. The normal decay segment of the canonical XRT light curves has the same feature. Similar to the normal decay segment, the SPL light curves satisfy the closure relations and therefore can be roughly explained with external shock models. In the scenario that the X-rays are the afterglows of the GRB fireball, our results indicate that the shallow decay would be due to energy injection into the fireball and the total energy budget after injection for both samples of GRBs is comparable. More intriguing, we find that a prior X-ray emission model proposed by Yamazaki is more straightforward to interpret the observed XRT data. We show that the zero times (T 0 ) of the X-rays are 10 2 -10 5 s prior to the GRB trigger for the canonical sample, and satisfy a log-normal distribution. The negligible T 0 's of the SPL sample are consistent with being the tail of T 0 distributions at low end, suggesting that the SPL sample and the canonical sample may be from a same

  16. A note on families of fragility curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kaplan, S.; Bier, V.M.; Bley, D.C.

    1989-01-01

    In the quantitative assessment of seismic risk, uncertainty in the fragility of a structural component is usually expressed by putting forth a family of fragility curves, with probability serving as the parameter of the family. Commonly, a lognormal shape is used both for the individual curves and for the expression of uncertainty over the family. A so-called composite single curve can also be drawn and used for purposes of approximation. This composite curve is often regarded as equivalent to the mean curve of the family. The equality seems intuitively reasonable, but according to the authors has never been proven. The paper presented proves this equivalence hypothesis mathematically. Moreover, the authors show that this equivalence hypothesis between fragility curves is itself equivalent to an identity property of the standard normal probability curve. Thus, in the course of proving the fragility curve hypothesis, the authors have also proved a rather obscure, but interesting and perhaps previously unrecognized, property of the standard normal curve

  17. Finding Risk Groups by Optimizing Artificial Neural Networks on the Area under the Survival Curve Using Genetic Algorithms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kalderstam, Jonas; Edén, Patrik; Ohlsson, Mattias

    2015-01-01

    We investigate a new method to place patients into risk groups in censored survival data. Properties such as median survival time, and end survival rate, are implicitly improved by optimizing the area under the survival curve. Artificial neural networks (ANN) are trained to either maximize or minimize this area using a genetic algorithm, and combined into an ensemble to predict one of low, intermediate, or high risk groups. Estimated patient risk can influence treatment choices, and is important for study stratification. A common approach is to sort the patients according to a prognostic index and then group them along the quartile limits. The Cox proportional hazards model (Cox) is one example of this approach. Another method of doing risk grouping is recursive partitioning (Rpart), which constructs a decision tree where each branch point maximizes the statistical separation between the groups. ANN, Cox, and Rpart are compared on five publicly available data sets with varying properties. Cross-validation, as well as separate test sets, are used to validate the models. Results on the test sets show comparable performance, except for the smallest data set where Rpart's predicted risk groups turn out to be inverted, an example of crossing survival curves. Cross-validation shows that all three models exhibit crossing of some survival curves on this small data set but that the ANN model manages the best separation of groups in terms of median survival time before such crossings. The conclusion is that optimizing the area under the survival curve is a viable approach to identify risk groups. Training ANNs to optimize this area combines two key strengths from both prognostic indices and Rpart. First, a desired minimum group size can be specified, as for a prognostic index. Second, the ability to utilize non-linear effects among the covariates, which Rpart is also able to do.

  18. MICA: Multiple interval-based curve alignment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mann, Martin; Kahle, Hans-Peter; Beck, Matthias; Bender, Bela Johannes; Spiecker, Heinrich; Backofen, Rolf

    2018-01-01

    MICA enables the automatic synchronization of discrete data curves. To this end, characteristic points of the curves' shapes are identified. These landmarks are used within a heuristic curve registration approach to align profile pairs by mapping similar characteristics onto each other. In combination with a progressive alignment scheme, this enables the computation of multiple curve alignments. Multiple curve alignments are needed to derive meaningful representative consensus data of measured time or data series. MICA was already successfully applied to generate representative profiles of tree growth data based on intra-annual wood density profiles or cell formation data. The MICA package provides a command-line and graphical user interface. The R interface enables the direct embedding of multiple curve alignment computation into larger analyses pipelines. Source code, binaries and documentation are freely available at https://github.com/BackofenLab/MICA

  19. Satellite altimetry based rating curves throughout the entire Amazon basin

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paris, A.; Calmant, S.; Paiva, R. C.; Collischonn, W.; Silva, J. S.; Bonnet, M.; Seyler, F.

    2013-05-01

    experiment shows that the stochastic approach is more efficient than the determinist one. By using for the parameters prior credible intervals defined by the user, this method provides an estimate of best rating curve estimate without any unlikely parameter, and all sites achieved convergence before reaching the maximum number of model evaluations. Results were assessed trough the Nash Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient, applied both to discharge and logarithm of discharges. Most of the virtual stations had good or very good results, showing values of Ens going from 0.7 to 0.98. However, worse results were found at a few virtual stations, unveiling the necessity of investigating possibilities of segmentation of the rating curve, depending on the stage or the rising or recession limb, but also possible errors in the altimetry series.

  20. Power forward curves: a managerial perspective

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nagarajan, Shankar

    1999-01-01

    This chapter concentrates on managerial application of power forward curves, and examines the determinants of electricity prices such as transmission constraints, its inability to be stored in a conventional way, its seasonality and weather dependence, the generation stack, and the swing risk. The electricity forward curve, classical arbitrage, constructing a forward curve, volatilities, and electricity forward curve models such as the jump-diffusion model, the mean-reverting heteroscedastic volatility model, and an econometric model of forward prices are examined. A managerial perspective of the applications of the forward curve is presented covering plant valuation, capital budgeting, performance measurement, product pricing and structuring, asset optimisation, valuation of transmission options, and risk management

  1. Effect of foamability index of short chain alkyl amines on flotation of quartz

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Szczerkowska Sabina

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Amines can be used for flotation of various minerals, especially quartz. The flotation efficiency of quartz depends on the amine type and dose. It was proved that the shorter alkyl amine, higher amine concentration has to be used to recover quartz at the same level. In flotation amines play a role of both collectors and frothers. The ability of a amine to collect particles can be expressed in the form of contact angle, while the foaming properties by different parameters including dynamic foamability index (DFI and critical coalescence concentration (CCC. Determination of DFI and CCC requires advanced techniques and methods. Therefore, in this paper a rapid and facile method for determination of foaming properties of amines and also other surfactants was used. It was based on measuring the initial foam and froth heights in a conventional flotation machine at different concentrations of surfactants. The foam height-concentration curve was described by utilizing an empirical equation which was based on one-adjustable parameter called the foamability index (FI. In this work the foamability index was determined for butylamine (ButNH2, hexylamine (HexNH2 and octylamine (OctNH2 as examples of short chain alkyl amines. The determined foamability indices were 92, 12 and 4 mg/dm3 for ButNH2, HexNH2 and OctNH2, respectively. It was shown that when the flotation results of quartz were presented in the form of recovery versus normalized amine concentration in relation to the foamability index (c/FI, all the experimental data points converged to one curve. It indicates that amines act similarly but at different concentrations expressed as FI. The foamability index seems to be a useful parameter for characterizing any flotation frother.

  2. Left ventricular time volume curve analysis in the detection of limited ischaemic heart disease

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liechtenstein, M.; Blanchett, W.; Andrews, J.; Hunt, D.

    1982-01-01

    The aim of the study was to determine whether limited coronary artery disease (CAD) could be accurately detected using the Cardiac Gated Blood Pool (CGBP) scan with exercise. Regional left ventricular time volume curves (RLTVD) were generated from 52 studies (46 patients: 22 normals, 24 abnormals). The parameters assessed both globally and regionally and at rest (R) and exercise (Ex) were: (1) the ejection fraction (EF) (2) the change in ejection fraction from R to Ex (δEF) (3) an early contraction index (ECI) (4) a maximal emptying index (DR) and (5) a maximal refilling index (AR). After careful analysis of these parameters it was decided that our diagnostic criteria would rely on the following: (1) the EF at R and Ex (2) the δ EF (3) the ECI at Ex (4) the AR at Ex This study showed that both the sensitivity and the specificity of the CGBP scan can be improved considerably with the inclusion of RLTVC from the levels obtained when the EF parameters alone are considered. It is possible with this technique to accurately diagnose limited CAD. (Author)

  3. Reliability assessment of a manual-based procedure towards learning curve modeling and fmea analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gustavo Rech

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Separation procedures in drug Distribution Centers (DC are manual-based activities prone to failures such as shipping exchanged, expired or broken drugs to the customer. Two interventions seem as promising in improving the reliability in the separation procedure: (i selection and allocation of appropriate operators to the procedure, and (ii analysis of potential failure modes incurred by selected operators. This article integrates Learning Curves (LC and FMEA (Failure Mode and Effect Analysis aimed at reducing the occurrence of failures in the manual separation of a drug DC. LCs parameters enable generating an index to identify the recommended operators to perform the procedures. The FMEA is then applied to the separation procedure carried out by the selected operators in order to identify failure modes. It also deployed the traditional FMEA severity index into two sub-indexes related to financial issues and damage to company´s image in order to characterize failures severity. When applied to a drug DC, the proposed method significantly reduced the frequency and severity of failures in the separation procedure.

  4. The correlational research on the physical mechanical indexes of typical soil collecting from the Xu Wei Lianyungang port

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Wenbin; Wang, Yuanzhan; Liu, Aimin

    2017-11-01

    The tests on the physical mechanical indexes of the reclaimed soft clay are necessary to be done before the foundation strengthening treatment. This paper focus on the study of correlational relationship between the physical mechanical indexes, such as the natural water content, the void ratio, the liquid limit etc., by fitting the data of model test on samples collecting from the Xu Wei Lianyungang port. The linear relationship fitting curve of the physical mechanical indexes is proposed, and these results support the high efficient operation in engineering practice.

  5. Characterization of an estuarine environment by means of an index based on intertidal macrofauna.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Conde, Anxo; Novais, Júlio M; Domínguez, Jorge

    2013-06-15

    Macrobenthic intertidal assemblages from five Atlantic Iberian estuaries were analyzed to develop an estuarine index. An R-mode analysis revealed a close association between the isopod Cyathura carinata, the polychaete Hediste diversicolor and the bivalve Scrobicularia plana. Although these species are abundant in all the estuaries considered, they tend to be absent from sites at the marine and freshwater ends of the environmental gradient. Three different ways of calculating the estuarine index are proposed. The index is comprised in the interval [0,1] and was constructed using relative abundances rather than absolute abundances. Transformation of the raw data helped improve the performance of the index. A non-parametric statistical test is proposed for application to the estuarine index to find sites with the same values after a significant omnibus test. The index appears to be a good proxy for recognizing estuarine limits by use of indicator species. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. The Antiviral Activity of Approved and Novel Drugs against HIV-1 Mutations Evaluated under the Consideration of Dose-Response Curve Slope.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shuai Chang

    Full Text Available This study was designed to identify common HIV-1 mutation complexes affecting the slope of inhibition curve, and to propose a new parameter incorporating both the IC50 and the slope to evaluate phenotypic resistance.Utilizing site-directed mutagenesis, we constructed 22 HIV-1 common mutation complexes. IC50 and slope of 10 representative approved drugs and a novel agent against these mutations were measured to determine the resistance phenotypes. The values of new parameter incorporating both the IC50 and the slope of the inhibition curve were calculated, and the correlations between parameters were assessed.Depending on the class of drug, there were intrinsic differences in how the resistance mutations affected the drug parameters. All of the mutations resulted in large increases in the IC50s of nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors. The effects of the mutations on the slope were the most apparent when examining their effects on the inhibition of non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors and protease inhibitors. For example, some mutations, such as V82A, had no effect on IC50, but reduced the slope. We proposed a new concept, termed IIPatoxic, on the basis of IC50, slope and the maximum limiting concentrations of the drug. The IIPatoxic values of 10 approved drugs and 1 novel agent were calculated, and were closely related to the IIPmax values (r > 0.95, p < 0.001.This study confirms that resistance mutations cannot be accurately assessed by IC50 alone, because it tends to underestimate the degree of resistance. The slope parameter is of very importance in the measurement of drug resistance and the effect can be applied to more complex patterns of resistance. This is the most apparent when testing the effects of the mutations on protease inhibitors activity. We also propose a new index, IIPatoxic, which incorporates both the IC50 and the slope. This new index could complement current IIP indices, thereby enabling predict the

  7. Auctioning wind power sites when environmental quality matters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ciaccia, Gervasio; Doni, Nicola; Fontini, Fulvio

    2010-01-01

    In this work, we propose an index that allows a public authority to order different projects for the construction of onshore wind energy plants and that explicitly takes into account their environmental quality. Wind farm projects are defined as vectors of four attributes: the technical properties of each project, its social impact, its environmental impact, and the share of earnings that proponents offer to the collectivity in compensation for the negative externalities of the wind plant. We define an absolute index that allows the ordering of different proposals and evaluation of the acceptability of each project, providing the monetary value of each point and inducing a truthful revelation of firms' private information. Moreover, we calibrate the index on the basis of data referring to wind plants in Southern Italy and derive the corresponding iso-scoring curves. (author)

  8. Consistent Valuation across Curves Using Pricing Kernels

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrea Macrina

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available The general problem of asset pricing when the discount rate differs from the rate at which an asset’s cash flows accrue is considered. A pricing kernel framework is used to model an economy that is segmented into distinct markets, each identified by a yield curve having its own market, credit and liquidity risk characteristics. The proposed framework precludes arbitrage within each market, while the definition of a curve-conversion factor process links all markets in a consistent arbitrage-free manner. A pricing formula is then derived, referred to as the across-curve pricing formula, which enables consistent valuation and hedging of financial instruments across curves (and markets. As a natural application, a consistent multi-curve framework is formulated for emerging and developed inter-bank swap markets, which highlights an important dual feature of the curve-conversion factor process. Given this multi-curve framework, existing multi-curve approaches based on HJM and rational pricing kernel models are recovered, reviewed and generalised and single-curve models extended. In another application, inflation-linked, currency-based and fixed-income hybrid securities are shown to be consistently valued using the across-curve valuation method.

  9. Longitudinal associations between body mass index, physical activity, and healthy dietary behaviors in adults: A parallel latent growth curve modeling approach.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Youngdeok Kim

    Full Text Available Physical activity (PA and healthy dietary behaviors (HDB are two well-documented lifestyle factors influencing body mass index (BMI. This study examined 7-year longitudinal associations between changes in PA, HDB, and BMI among adults using a parallel latent growth curve modeling (LGCM.We used prospective cohort data collected by a private company (SimplyWell LLC, Omaha, NE, USA implementing a workplace health screening program. Data from a total of 2,579 adults who provided valid BMI, PA, and HDB information for at least 5 out of 7 follow-up years from the time they entered the program were analyzed. PA and HDB were subjectively measured during an annual online health survey. Height and weight measured during an annual onsite health screening were used to calculate BMI (kg·m2. The parallel LGCMs stratified by gender and baseline weight status (normal: BMI30 were fitted to examine the longitudinal associations of changes in PA and HDB with change in BMI over years.On average, BMI gradually increased over years, at rates ranging from 0.06 to 0.20 kg·m2·year, with larger increases observed among those of normal baseline weight status across genders. The increases in PA and HDB were independently associated with a smaller increase in BMI for obese males (b = -1.70 and -1.98, respectively, and overweight females (b = -1.85 and -2.46, respectively and obese females (b = -2.78 and -3.08, respectively. However, no significant associations of baseline PA and HDB with changes in BMI were observed.Our study suggests that gradual increases in PA and HDB are independently associated with smaller increases in BMI in overweight and obese adults, but not in normal weight individuals. Further study is warranted to address factors that check increases in BMI in normal weight adults.

  10. Prediction of Massive Transfusion in Trauma Patients with Shock Index, Modified Shock Index, and Age Shock Index

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cheng-Shyuan Rau

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: The shock index (SI and its derivations, the modified shock index (MSI and the age shock index (Age SI, have been used to identify trauma patients with unstable hemodynamic status. The aim of this study was to evaluate their use in predicting the requirement for massive transfusion (MT in trauma patients upon arrival at the hospital. Participants: A patient receiving transfusion of 10 or more units of packed red blood cells or whole blood within 24 h of arrival at the emergency department was defined as having received MT. Detailed data of 2490 patients hospitalized for trauma between 1 January 2009, and 31 December 2014, who had received blood transfusion within 24 h of arrival at the emergency department, were retrieved from the Trauma Registry System of a level I regional trauma center. These included 99 patients who received MT and 2391 patients who did not. Patients with incomplete registration data were excluded from the study. The two-sided Fisher exact test or Pearson chi-square test were used to compare categorical data. The unpaired Student t-test was used to analyze normally distributed continuous data, and the Mann-Whitney U-test was used to compare non-normally distributed data. Parameters including systolic blood pressure (SBP, heart rate (HR, hemoglobin level (Hb, base deficit (BD, SI, MSI, and Age SI that could provide cut-off points for predicting the patients’ probability of receiving MT were identified by the development of specific receiver operating characteristic (ROC curves. High accuracy was defined as an area under the curve (AUC of more than 0.9, moderate accuracy was defined as an AUC between 0.9 and 0.7, and low accuracy was defined as an AUC less than 0.7. Results: In addition to a significantly higher Injury Severity Score (ISS and worse outcome, the patients requiring MT presented with a significantly higher HR and lower SBP, Hb, and BD, as well as significantly increased SI, MSI, and Age SI. Among

  11. The estimation of I–V curves of PV panel using manufacturers’ I–V curves and evolutionary strategy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barukčić, M.; Hederić, Ž.; Špoljarić, Ž.

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • The approximation of a I–V curve by two linear and a sigmoid functions is proposed. • The sigmoid function is used to estimate the knee of the I–V curve. • Dependence on irradiance and temperature of sigmoid function parameters is proposed. • The sigmoid function is used to estimate maximum power point (MPP). - Abstract: The method for estimation of I–V curves of photovoltaic (PV) panel by analytic expression is presented in the paper. The problem is defined in the form of an optimization problem. The optimization problem objective is based on data from I–V curves obtained by manufacturers’ or measured I–V curves. In order to estimate PV panel parameters, the optimization problem is solved by using an evolutionary strategy. The proposed method is tested for different PV panel technologies using data sheets. In this method the I–V curve approximation with two linear and a sigmoid function is proposed. The method for estimating the knee of the I–V curve and maximum power point at any irradiance and temperature is proposed

  12. Application of remote sensing and geographical information system for generation of runoff curve number

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meshram, S. Gajbhiye; Sharma, S. K.; Tignath, S.

    2017-07-01

    Watershed is an ideal unit for planning and management of land and water resources (Gajbhiye et al., IEEE international conference on advances in technology and engineering (ICATE), Bombay, vol 1, issue 9, pp 23-25, 2013a; Gajbhiye et al., Appl Water Sci 4(1):51-61, 2014a; Gajbhiye et al., J Geol Soc India (SCI-IF 0.596) 84(2):192-196, 2014b). This study aims to generate the curve number, using remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS) and the effect of slope on curve number values. The study was carried out in Kanhaiya Nala watershed located in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh. Soil map, Land Use/Land cover and slope map were generated in GIS Environment. The CN parameter values corresponding to various soil, land cover, and land management conditions were selected from Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) standard table. Curve number (CN) is an index developed by the NRCS, to represent the potential for storm water runoff within a drainage area. The CN for a drainage basin is estimated using a combination of land use, soil, and antecedent soil moisture condition (AMC). In present study effect of slope on CN values were determined. The result showed that the CN unadjusted value are higher in comparison to CN adjusted with slope. Remote sensing and GIS is very reliable technique for the preparation of most of the input data required by the SCS curve number model.

  13. Dual Smarandache Curves and Smarandache Ruled Surfaces

    OpenAIRE

    Tanju KAHRAMAN; Mehmet ÖNDER; H. Hüseyin UGURLU

    2013-01-01

    In this paper, by considering dual geodesic trihedron (dual Darboux frame) we define dual Smarandache curves lying fully on dual unit sphere S^2 and corresponding to ruled surfaces. We obtain the relationships between the elements of curvature of dual spherical curve (ruled surface) x(s) and its dual Smarandache curve (Smarandache ruled surface) x1(s) and we give an example for dual Smarandache curves of a dual spherical curve.

  14. The writhe of open and closed curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Berger, Mitchell A; Prior, Chris

    2006-01-01

    Twist and writhe measure basic geometric properties of a ribbon or tube. While these measures have applications in molecular biology, materials science, fluid mechanics and astrophysics, they are under-utilized because they are often considered difficult to compute. In addition, many applications involve curves with endpoints (open curves); but for these curves the definition of writhe can be ambiguous. This paper provides simple expressions for the writhe of closed curves, and provides a new definition of writhe for open curves. The open curve definition is especially appropriate when the curve is anchored at endpoints on a plane or stretches between two parallel planes. This definition can be especially useful for magnetic flux tubes in the solar atmosphere, and for isotropic rods with ends fixed to a plane

  15. F(α) curves: Experimental results

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Glazier, J.A.; Gunaratne, G.; Libchaber, A.

    1988-01-01

    We study the transition to chaos at the golden and silver means for forced Rayleigh-Benard (RB) convection in mercury. We present f(α) curves below, at, and above the transition, and provide comparisons to the curves calculated for the one-dimensional circle map. We find good agreement at both the golden and silver means. This confirms our earlier observation that for low amplitude forcing, forced RB convection is well described by the one-dimensional circle map and indicates that the f(α) curve is a good measure of the approach to criticality. For selected subcritical experimental data sets we calculate the degree of subcriticality. We also present both experimental and calculated results for f(α) in the presence of a third frequency. Again we obtain agreement: The presence of random noise or a third frequency narrows the right-hand (negative q) side of the f(α) curve. Subcriticality results in symmetrically narrowed curves. We can also distinguish these cases by examining the power spectra and Poincare sections of the time series

  16. Investigation of learning and experience curves

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Krawiec, F.; Thornton, J.; Edesess, M.

    1980-04-01

    The applicability of learning and experience curves for predicting future costs of solar technologies is assessed, and the major test case is the production economics of heliostats. Alternative methods for estimating cost reductions in systems manufacture are discussed, and procedures for using learning and experience curves to predict costs are outlined. Because adequate production data often do not exist, production histories of analogous products/processes are analyzed and learning and aggregated cost curves for these surrogates estimated. If the surrogate learning curves apply, they can be used to estimate solar technology costs. The steps involved in generating these cost estimates are given. Second-generation glass-steel and inflated-bubble heliostat design concepts, developed by MDAC and GE, respectively, are described; a costing scenario for 25,000 units/yr is detailed; surrogates for cost analysis are chosen; learning and aggregate cost curves are estimated; and aggregate cost curves for the GE and MDAC designs are estimated. However, an approach that combines a neoclassical production function with a learning-by-doing hypothesis is needed to yield a cost relation compatible with the historical learning curve and the traditional cost function of economic theory.

  17. New share index to track progress of environmental industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Edge, Gordon

    1999-01-01

    This article discusses the work of the environmental finance house Imax Capital in persuading investors to invest in environmental industries. The development of the ET-50 Index by Impax Capital Asset Management to track progress of the environmental industry is reported, and the categories of the ET-50 including alternative energy generators and equipment providers, air and water pollution control, soil and site remediation, recycling and waste management, and environmental engineering and consulting are considered. The performance of the ET-50 Index, and the work of Impax and RER in the development of a dedicated renewable energy share index by are discussed

  18. Dissolution glow curve in LLD

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haverkamp, U.; Wiezorek, C.; Poetter, R.

    1990-01-01

    Lyoluminescence dosimetry is based upon light emission during dissolution of previously irradiated dosimetric materials. The lyoluminescence signal is expressed in the dissolution glow curve. These curves begin, depending on the dissolution system, with a high peak followed by an exponentially decreasing intensity. System parameters that influence the graph of the dissolution glow curve, are, for example, injection speed, temperature and pH value of the solution and the design of the dissolution cell. The initial peak does not significantly correlate with the absorbed dose, it is mainly an effect of the injection. The decay of the curve consists of two exponential components: one fast and one slow. The components depend on the absorbed dose and the dosimetric materials used. In particular, the slow component correlates with the absorbed dose. In contrast to the fast component the argument of the exponential function of the slow component is independent of the dosimetric materials investigated: trehalose, glucose and mannitol. The maximum value, following the peak of the curve, and the integral light output are a measure of the absorbed dose. The reason for the different light outputs of various dosimetric materials after irradiation with the same dose is the differing solubility. The character of the dissolution glow curves is the same following irradiation with photons, electrons or neutrons. (author)

  19. The Soil-Water Characteristic Curve of Unsaturated Tropical Residual Soil

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yusof, M. F.; Setapa, A. S.; Tajudin, S. A. A.; Madun, A.; Abidin, M. H. Z.; Marto, A.

    2016-07-01

    This study was conducted to determine the SWCC of unsaturated tropical residual soil in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Undisturbed soil samples at five locations of high-risk slopes area were taken at a depth of 0.5 m using block sampler. In the determination of the SWCC, the pressure plate extractor with the capacity of 1500 kN/m2 has been used. The index properties of the soil such as natural moisture content, Atterberg limits, specific gravity, and soil classification are performed according to BS 1377: Part 2: 1990. The results of index properties show that the natural moisture content of the soil is between 36% to 46%, the plasticity index is between 10% - 26%, the specific gravity is between 2.51 - 2.61 and the soils is classified as silty organic clay of low plasticity. The SWCC data from the pressure plate extractor have been fitted with the Fredlund and Xing equation. The results show that the air entry value and residual matric suction for residual soils are in the range of 17 kN/m2 to 24 kN/m2 and 145 kN/m2 to 225 kN/m2 respectively. From the fitting curve, it is found that the average value of the Fredlund and Xing parameters such as a, n and m are in the range of 0.24-0.299, 1.7-4.8 and 0.142-0.440 respectively.

  20. Construction of estimated flow- and load-duration curves for Kentucky using the Water Availability Tool for Environmental Resources (WATER)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Unthank, Michael D.; Newson, Jeremy K.; Williamson, Tanja N.; Nelson, Hugh L.

    2012-01-01

    Flow- and load-duration curves were constructed from the model outputs of the U.S. Geological Survey's Water Availability Tool for Environmental Resources (WATER) application for streams in Kentucky. The WATER application was designed to access multiple geospatial datasets to generate more than 60 years of statistically based streamflow data for Kentucky. The WATER application enables a user to graphically select a site on a stream and generate an estimated hydrograph and flow-duration curve for the watershed upstream of that point. The flow-duration curves are constructed by calculating the exceedance probability of the modeled daily streamflows. User-defined water-quality criteria and (or) sampling results can be loaded into the WATER application to construct load-duration curves that are based on the modeled streamflow results. Estimates of flow and streamflow statistics were derived from TOPographically Based Hydrological MODEL (TOPMODEL) simulations in the WATER application. A modified TOPMODEL code, SDP-TOPMODEL (Sinkhole Drainage Process-TOPMODEL) was used to simulate daily mean discharges over the period of record for 5 karst and 5 non-karst watersheds in Kentucky in order to verify the calibrated model. A statistical evaluation of the model's verification simulations show that calibration criteria, established by previous WATER application reports, were met thus insuring the model's ability to provide acceptably accurate estimates of discharge at gaged and ungaged sites throughout Kentucky. Flow-duration curves are constructed in the WATER application by calculating the exceedence probability of the modeled daily flow values. The flow-duration intervals are expressed as a percentage, with zero corresponding to the highest stream discharge in the streamflow record. Load-duration curves are constructed by applying the loading equation (Load = Flow*Water-quality criterion) at each flow interval.

  1. Impact of positive and negative lesion site remodeling on clinical outcomes: insights from PROSPECT.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Inaba, Shinji; Mintz, Gary S; Farhat, Naim Z; Fajadet, Jean; Dudek, Dariusz; Marzocchi, Antonio; Templin, Barry; Weisz, Giora; Xu, Ke; de Bruyne, Bernard; Serruys, Patrick W; Stone, Gregg W; Maehara, Akiko

    2014-01-01

    This study investigated coronary artery remodeling patterns associated with clinical outcomes. In the prospective, multicenter PROSPECT (Providing Regional Observations to Study Predictors of Events in the Coronary Tree: An Imaging Study in Patients With Unstable Atherosclerotic Lesions) study, reported predictors of nonculprit lesion (NCL) major adverse cardiac events (MACE) were an intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) minimal lumen area (MLA) ≤4 mm(2), a plaque burden ≥70%, and a IVUS-virtual histology (VH) thin-cap fibroatheroma (TCFA), but not lesion site remodeling. Overall, 697 consecutive patients with an acute coronary syndrome were enrolled and underwent 3-vessel gray-scale and IVUS-VH; 3,223 NCLs were identified by IVUS. The remodeling index (RI) was calculated as the external elastic membrane area at the MLA site divided by the average of the proximal and distal reference external elastic membrane areas. First, one third of the patients were randomly selected to determine RI cutoffs related to NCL MACE (development cohort). Receiver-operating characteristic analysis showed that there were 2 separate cut points that predicted NCL MACE: RI = 0.8789 and RI = 1.0046 (area under the curve = 0.663). These cut points were used to define negative remodeling as an RI 1.00. Second, we used the remaining two-thirds of patients to validate these cut points with respect to lesion morphology and clinical outcomes (validation cohort). Kaplan-Meier curve analysis in the validation cohort showed that NCL MACE occurred more frequent (and equally) in negative and positive remodeling lesions compared with intermediate remodeling lesions. In this cohort, negative remodeling lesions had the smallest MLA, positive remodeling lesions had the largest plaque burden, and VH TCFA, especially VH TCFA with multiple necrotic cores, was most common in negatively remodeling lesions. The present study showed the novel concept that positive and negative lesion site remodeling was

  2. Development of the curve of Spee.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marshall, Steven D; Caspersen, Matthew; Hardinger, Rachel R; Franciscus, Robert G; Aquilino, Steven A; Southard, Thomas E

    2008-09-01

    Ferdinand Graf von Spee is credited with characterizing human occlusal curvature viewed in the sagittal plane. This naturally occurring phenomenon has clinical importance in orthodontics and restorative dentistry, yet we have little understanding of when, how, or why it develops. The purpose of this study was to expand our understanding by examining the development of the curve of Spee longitudinally in a sample of untreated subjects with normal occlusion from the deciduous dentition to adulthood. Records of 16 male and 17 female subjects from the Iowa Facial Growth Study were selected and examined. The depth of the curve of Spee was measured on their study models at 7 time points from ages 4 (deciduous dentition) to 26 (adult dentition) years. The Wilcoxon signed rank test was used to compare changes in the curve of Spee depth between time points. For each subject, the relative eruption of the mandibular teeth was measured from corresponding cephalometric radiographs, and its contribution to the developing curve of Spee was ascertained. In the deciduous dentition, the curve of Spee is minimal. At mean ages of 4.05 and 5.27 years, the average curve of Spee depths are 0.24 and 0.25 mm, respectively. With change to the transitional dentition, corresponding to the eruption of the mandibular permanent first molars and central incisors (mean age, 6.91 years), the curve of Spee depth increases significantly (P < 0.0001) to a mean maximum depth of 1.32 mm. The curve of Spee then remains essentially unchanged until eruption of the second molars (mean age, 12.38 years), when the depth increases (P < 0.0001) to a mean maximum depth of 2.17 mm. In the adolescent dentition (mean age, 16.21 years), the depth decreases slightly (P = 0.0009) to a mean maximum depth of 1.98 mm, and, in the adult dentition (mean age 26.98 years), the curve remains unchanged (P = 0.66), with a mean maximum depth of 2.02 mm. No significant differences in curve of Spee development were found between

  3. GLOBAL AND STRICT CURVE FITTING METHOD

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Nakajima, Y.; Mori, S.

    2004-01-01

    To find a global and smooth curve fitting, cubic B­Spline method and gathering­ line methods are investigated. When segmenting and recognizing a contour curve of character shape, some global method is required. If we want to connect contour curves around a singular point like crossing points,

  4. Predicted impact and evaluation of North Carolina's phosphorus indexing tool.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Amy M; Osmond, Deanna L; Hodges, Steven C

    2005-01-01

    Increased concern about potential losses of phosphorus (P) from agricultural fields receiving animal waste has resulted in the implementation of new state and federal regulations related to nutrient management. In response to strengthened nutrient management standards that require consideration of P, North Carolina has developed a site-specific P indexing system called the Phosphorus Loss Assessment Tool (PLAT) to predict relative amounts of potential P loss from agricultural fields. The purpose of this study was to apply the PLAT index on farms throughout North Carolina in an attempt to predict the percentage and types of farms that will be forced to change management practices due to implementation of new regulations. Sites from all 100 counties were sampled, with the number of samples taken from each county depending on the proportion of the state's agricultural land that occurs in that county. Results showed that approximately 8% of producers in the state will be required to apply animal waste or inorganic fertilizer on a P rather than nitrogen basis, with the percentage increasing for farmers who apply animal waste (approximately 27%). The PLAT index predicted the greatest amounts of P loss from sites in the Coastal Plain region of North Carolina and from sites receiving poultry waste. Loss of dissolved P through surface runoff tended to be greater than other loss pathways and presents an area of concern as no best management practices (BMPs) currently exist for the reduction of in-field dissolved P. The PLAT index predicted the areas in the state that are known to be disproportionately vulnerable to P loss due to histories of high P applications, high densities of animal units, or soil type and landscapes that are most susceptible to P loss.

  5. Simulating Supernova Light Curves

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Even, Wesley Paul [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Dolence, Joshua C. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

    2016-05-05

    This report discusses supernova light simulations. A brief review of supernovae, basics of supernova light curves, simulation tools used at LANL, and supernova results are included. Further, it happens that many of the same methods used to generate simulated supernova light curves can also be used to model the emission from fireballs generated by explosions in the earth’s atmosphere.

  6. Simulating Supernova Light Curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Even, Wesley Paul; Dolence, Joshua C.

    2016-01-01

    This report discusses supernova light simulations. A brief review of supernovae, basics of supernova light curves, simulation tools used at LANL, and supernova results are included. Further, it happens that many of the same methods used to generate simulated supernova light curves can also be used to model the emission from fireballs generated by explosions in the earth's atmosphere.

  7. INDEXING AND INDEX FUNDS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    HAKAN SARITAŞ

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Proponents of the efficient market hypothesis believe that active portfolio management is largely wasted effort and unlikely to justify the expenses incurred. Therefore, they advocate a passive investment strategy that makes no attempt to outsmart the market. One common strategy for passive management is indexing where a fund is designed to replicate the performance of a broad-based index of stocks and bonds. Traditionally, indexing was used by institutional investors, but today, the use of index funds proliferated among individual investors. Over the years, both international and domestic index funds have disproportionately outperformed the market more than the actively managed funds have.

  8. Comparação gráfica entre curvas de índice de sítio para Pinus elliottii e Pinus taeda desenvolvidas no sul do Brasil

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Helio Tonini

    2002-01-01

    Full Text Available This research had as main objective to study the dominant height growth of Pinus elliottii and Pinus taeda through site index curves comparisons in some regions of Rio Grande do Sul State and other states of the country. These comparisons showed that the site index curves made by Tonini (2000, for the southeastern mountain and coast land in Rio Grande do Sul State did not show the same pattern of those by Scolforo e Machado (1988, for Paraná and Santa Catarina, Brazil (1989a for Passo Fundo RS, Marcolin (1990, for the Parana’s Second Upland and Selle (1993 for Cambará do Sul RS. However, the same growth pattern was observed for curves by Brasil (1989b for S ão Francisco de Paula which only level differences were observed.

  9. Trigonometric Characterization of Some Plane Curves

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    IAS Admin

    (Figure 1). A relation between tan θ and tanψ gives the trigonometric equation of the family of curves. In this article, trigonometric equations of some known plane curves are deduced and it is shown that these equations reveal some geometric characteristics of the families of the curves under consideration. In Section 2,.

  10. Prioritization Scheme for Proposed Road Weather Information System Sites: Montana Case Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ahmed Al-Kaisy

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available A model for prioritization of new proposed environmental sensor station (ESS sites is developed and presented in this paper. The model assesses the overall merit (OM of a proposed ESS site as part of a Road Weather Information System (RWIS using weather, traffic, and safety data among other variables. The purpose of the proposed model is to help in selecting optimum sites for new ESS locations, which is important in guiding RWIS system expansion. Inputs to the OM model include weather index (WI, traffic index (TI, crash index, geographic coverage, and opportunistic factors. The WI at a proposed site is determined using multiple indicators of weather severity and variability. The crash index, another major input to the OM model, incorporates crash rate along the route and the percentage of weather-related crashes over the analysis period. The TI, in turn, reflects the amount of travel on the highway network in the area surrounding the proposed ESS site. The fourth input to the merit model accounts for the ESS existing coverage in the area where the proposed site is located, while the fifth and last input is concerned with the availability and ease of access to power and communications. Model coefficients are represented by weights that reflect the contribution of each input (variable to the OM of the ESS site. Those weights are user-specified and should be selected to reflect the agency preferences and priorities. The application of the proposed merit model on sample sites in Montana demonstrated the utility of the model in ranking candidate sites using data readily available to highway agencies.

  11. Considerations for reference pump curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stockton, N.B.

    1992-01-01

    This paper examines problems associated with inservice testing (IST) of pumps to assess their hydraulic performance using reference pump curves to establish acceptance criteria. Safety-related pumps at nuclear power plants are tested under the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (the Code), Section 11. The Code requires testing pumps at specific reference points of differential pressure or flow rate that can be readily duplicated during subsequent tests. There are many cases where test conditions cannot be duplicated. For some pumps, such as service water or component cooling pumps, the flow rate at any time depends on plant conditions and the arrangement of multiple independent and constantly changing loads. System conditions cannot be controlled to duplicate a specific reference value. In these cases, utilities frequently request to use pump curves for comparison of test data for acceptance. There is no prescribed method for developing a pump reference curve. The methods vary and may yield substantially different results. Some results are conservative when compared to the Code requirements; some are not. The errors associated with different curve testing techniques should be understood and controlled within reasonable bounds. Manufacturer's pump curves, in general, are not sufficiently accurate to use as reference pump curves for IST. Testing using reference curves generated with polynomial least squares fits over limited ranges of pump operation, cubic spline interpolation, or cubic spline least squares fits can provide a measure of pump hydraulic performance that is at least as accurate as the Code required method. Regardless of the test method, error can be reduced by using more accurate instruments, by correcting for systematic errors, by increasing the number of data points, and by taking repetitive measurements at each data point

  12. Ultrasound predictors of placental invasion: the Placenta Accreta Index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rac, Martha W F; Dashe, Jodi S; Wells, C Edward; Moschos, Elysia; McIntire, Donald D; Twickler, Diane M

    2015-03-01

    We sought to apply a standardized evaluation of ultrasound parameters for the prediction of placental invasion in a high-risk population. This was a retrospective review of gravidas with ≥1 prior cesarean delivery who received an ultrasound diagnosis of placenta previa or low-lying placenta in the third trimester at our institution from 1997 through 2011. Sonographic images were reviewed by an investigator blinded to pregnancy outcome and sonography reports. Parameters assessed included loss of retroplacental clear zone, irregularity and width of uterine-bladder interface, smallest myometrial thickness, presence of lacunar spaces, and bridging vessels. Diagnosis of placental invasion was based on histologic confirmation. Statistical analyses were performed using linear logistic regression and multiparametric analyses to generate a predictive equation evaluated using a receiver operating characteristic curve. Of 184 gravidas who met inclusion criteria, 54 (29%) had invasion confirmed on hysterectomy specimen. All sonographic parameters were associated with placental invasion (P placental location, yielded an area under the curve of 0.87 (95% confidence interval, 0.80-0.95). Using logistic regression, a predictive equation was generated, termed the "Placenta Accreta Index." Each parameter was weighted to create a 9-point scale in which a score of 0-9 provided a probability of invasion that ranged from 2-96%, respectively. Assignment of the Placenta Accreta Index may be helpful in predicting individual patient risk for morbidly adherent placenta. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Management of the learning curve

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, Peter-Christian; Slepniov, Dmitrij

    2016-01-01

    Purpose – This paper focuses on the management of the learning curve in overseas capacity expansions. The purpose of this paper is to unravel the direct as well as indirect influences on the learning curve and to advance the understanding of how these affect its management. Design...... the dimensions of the learning process involved in a capacity expansion project and identified the direct and indirect labour influences on the production learning curve. On this basis, the study proposes solutions to managing learning curves in overseas capacity expansions. Furthermore, the paper concludes...... with measures that have the potential to significantly reduce the non-value-added time when establishing new capacities overseas. Originality/value – The paper uses a longitudinal in-depth case study of a Danish wind turbine manufacturer and goes beyond a simplistic treatment of the lead time and learning...

  14. Six-SOMAmer Index Relating to Immune, Protease and Angiogenic Functions Predicts Progression in IPF.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shanna L Ashley

    Full Text Available Biomarkers in easily accessible compartments like peripheral blood that can predict disease progression in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF would be clinically useful regarding clinical trial participation or treatment decisions for patients. In this study, we used unbiased proteomics to identify relevant disease progression biomarkers in IPF.Plasma from IPF patients was measured using an 1129 analyte slow off-rate modified aptamer (SOMAmer array, and patient outcomes were followed over the next 80 weeks. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC curves evaluated sensitivity and specificity for levels of each biomarker and estimated area under the curve (AUC when prognostic biomarker thresholds were used to predict disease progression. Both logistic and Cox regression models advised biomarker selection for a composite disease progression index; index biomarkers were weighted via expected progression-free days lost during follow-up with a biomarker on the unfavorable side of the threshold.A six-analyte index, scaled 0 to 11, composed of markers of immune function, proteolysis and angiogenesis [high levels of ficolin-2 (FCN2, cathepsin-S (Cath-S, legumain (LGMN and soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFsR2, but low levels of inducible T cell costimulator (ICOS or trypsin 3 (TRY3] predicted better progression-free survival in IPF with a ROC AUC of 0.91. An index score ≥ 3 (group ≥ 2 was strongly associated with IPF progression after adjustment for age, gender, smoking status, immunomodulation, forced vital capacity % predicted and diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide % predicted (HR 16.8, 95% CI 2.2-126.7, P = 0.006.This index, derived from the largest proteomic analysis of IPF plasma samples to date, could be useful for clinical decision making in IPF, and the identified analytes suggest biological processes that may promote disease progression.

  15. Predicting lodgepole pine site index from climatic parameters in Alberta.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robert A. Monserud; Shongming Huang; Yuqing. Yang

    2006-01-01

    We sought to evaluate the impact of climatic variables on site productivity of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm.) for the province of Alberta. Climatic data were obtained from the Alberta Climate Model, which is based on 30-year normals from the provincial weather station network. Mapping methods were based...

  16. Computational aspects of algebraic curves

    CERN Document Server

    Shaska, Tanush

    2005-01-01

    The development of new computational techniques and better computing power has made it possible to attack some classical problems of algebraic geometry. The main goal of this book is to highlight such computational techniques related to algebraic curves. The area of research in algebraic curves is receiving more interest not only from the mathematics community, but also from engineers and computer scientists, because of the importance of algebraic curves in applications including cryptography, coding theory, error-correcting codes, digital imaging, computer vision, and many more.This book cove

  17. Discriminative ability of commonly used indices to predict adverse outcomes after poster lumbar fusion: a comparison of demographics, ASA, the modified Charlson Comorbidity Index, and the modified Frailty Index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ondeck, Nathaniel T; Bohl, Daniel D; Bovonratwet, Patawut; McLynn, Ryan P; Cui, Jonathan J; Shultz, Blake N; Lukasiewicz, Adam M; Grauer, Jonathan N

    2018-01-01

    As research tools, the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status classification system, the modified Charlson Comorbidity Index (mCCI), and the modified Frailty Index (mFI) have been associated with complications following spine procedures. However, with respect to clinical use for various adverse outcomes, no known study has compared the predictive performance of these indices specifically following posterior lumbar fusion (PLF). This study aimed to compare the discriminative ability of ASA, mCCI, and mFI, as well as demographic factors including age, body mass index, and gender for perioperative adverse outcomes following PLF. A retrospective review of prospectively collected data was performed. Patients undergoing elective PLF with or without interbody fusion were extracted from the 2011-2014 American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP). Perioperative adverse outcome variables assessed included the occurrence of minor adverse events, severe adverse events, infectious adverse events, any adverse event, extended length of hospital stay, and discharge to higher-level care. Patient comorbidity indices and characteristics were delineated and assessed for discriminative ability in predicting perioperative adverse outcomes using an area under the curve analysis from the receiver operating characteristics curves. In total, 16,495 patients were identified who met the inclusion criteria. The most predictive comorbidity index was ASA and demographic factor was age. Of these two factors, age had the larger discriminative ability for three out of the six adverse outcomes and ASA was the most predictive for one out of six adverse outcomes. A combination of the most predictive demographic factor and comorbidity index resulted in improvements in discriminative ability over the individual components for five of the six outcome variables. For PLF, easily obtained patient ASA and age have overall similar or better

  18. Learning curves in health professions education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pusic, Martin V; Boutis, Kathy; Hatala, Rose; Cook, David A

    2015-08-01

    Learning curves, which graphically show the relationship between learning effort and achievement, are common in published education research but are not often used in day-to-day educational activities. The purpose of this article is to describe the generation and analysis of learning curves and their applicability to health professions education. The authors argue that the time is right for a closer look at using learning curves-given their desirable properties-to inform both self-directed instruction by individuals and education management by instructors.A typical learning curve is made up of a measure of learning (y-axis), a measure of effort (x-axis), and a mathematical linking function. At the individual level, learning curves make manifest a single person's progress towards competence including his/her rate of learning, the inflection point where learning becomes more effortful, and the remaining distance to mastery attainment. At the group level, overlaid learning curves show the full variation of a group of learners' paths through a given learning domain. Specifically, they make overt the difference between time-based and competency-based approaches to instruction. Additionally, instructors can use learning curve information to more accurately target educational resources to those who most require them.The learning curve approach requires a fine-grained collection of data that will not be possible in all educational settings; however, the increased use of an assessment paradigm that explicitly includes effort and its link to individual achievement could result in increased learner engagement and more effective instructional design.

  19. Mannheim Curves in Nonflat 3-Dimensional Space Forms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wenjing Zhao

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available We consider the Mannheim curves in nonflat 3-dimensional space forms (Riemannian or Lorentzian and we give the concept of Mannheim curves. In addition, we investigate the properties of nonnull Mannheim curves and their partner curves. We come to the conclusion that a necessary and sufficient condition is that a linear relationship with constant coefficients will exist between the curvature and the torsion of the given original curves. In the case of null curve, we reveal that there are no null Mannheim curves in the 3-dimensional de Sitter space.

  20. Non-invasive index of liver fibrosis induced by alcohol, thioacetamide and schistosomal infection in mice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    El-Beltagy Doha M

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Non invasive approaches will likely be increasing utilized to assess liver fibrosis. This work provides a new non invasive index to predict liver fibrosis induced in mice. Methods Fibrosis was generated by thioacetamide (TAA, chronic intake of ethanol, or infection with S. mansoni in 240 mice. Both progression and regression of fibrosis (after treatment with silymarin and/or praziquantel were monitored. The following methods were employed: (i The METAVIR system was utilized to grade and stage liver inflammation and fibosis; (ii Determination of hepatic hydroxyproline and collagen; and (iii Derivation of a new hepatic fibrosis index from the induced changes, and its prospective validation in a group of 70 mice. Results The index is composed of 4 serum variable including total proteins, γ-GT, bilirubin and reduced glutathione (GSH, measured in diseased, treated and normal mice. These parameters were highly correlated with both the histological stage and the grade. They were combined in a logarithmic formula, which non-invasively scores the severity of liver fibrosis through a range (0 to 2, starting with healthy liver (corresponding to stage 0 to advanced fibrosis (corresponding stage 3.Receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC for the accuracy of the index to predict the histological stages demonstrated that the areas under the curve (AUC were 0.954, 0.979 and 0.99 for index values corresponding to histological stages 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Also, the index was correlated with stage and grade, (0.947 and 0.859, respectively. The cut off values that cover the range between stages 0-1, 1-2 and 2-3 are 0.4, 1.12 and 1.79, respectively. The results in the validation group confirmed the accuracy of the test. The AUROC was 0.869 and there was good correlation with the stage of fibrosis and grade of inflammation. Conclusion The index fulfils the basic criteria of non-invasive marker of liver fibrosis since it is liver

  1. String Sigma Models on Curved Supermanifolds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Roberto Catenacci

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available We use the techniques of integral forms to analyze the easiest example of two-dimensional sigma models on a supermanifold. We write the action as an integral of a top integral form over a D = 2 supermanifold, and we show how to interpolate between different superspace actions. Then, we consider curved supermanifolds, and we show that the definitions used for flat supermanifolds can also be used for curved supermanifolds. We prove it by first considering the case of a curved rigid supermanifold and then the case of a generic curved supermanifold described by a single superfield E.

  2. Power Curve Measurements FGW

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Georgieva Yankova, Ginka; Federici, Paolo

    This report describes power curve measurements carried out on a given turbine in a chosen period. The measurements are carried out in accordance to IEC 61400-12-1 Ed. 1 and FGW Teil 2.......This report describes power curve measurements carried out on a given turbine in a chosen period. The measurements are carried out in accordance to IEC 61400-12-1 Ed. 1 and FGW Teil 2....

  3. Construction of calibration curve for accountancy tank

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kato, Takayuki; Goto, Yoshiki; Nidaira, Kazuo

    2009-01-01

    Tanks are equipped in a reprocessing plant for accounting solution of nuclear material. The careful measurement of volume in tanks is very important to implement rigorous accounting of nuclear material. The calibration curve relating the volume and level of solution needs to be constructed, where the level is determined by differential pressure of dip tubes. Several calibration curves are usually employed, but it's not explicitly decided how many segment are used, where to select segment, or what should be the degree of polynomial curve. These parameters, i.e., segment and degree of polynomial curve are mutually interrelated to give the better performance of calibration curve. Here we present the construction technique of giving optimum calibration curves and their characteristics. (author)

  4. Pregestational body mass index is related to neonatal abdominal circumference at birth--a Danish population-based study

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tanvig, M; Wehberg, S; Vinter, C A

    2013-01-01

    OBJECTIVES: To examine the impact of maternal pregestational body mass index (BMI) and smoking on neonatal abdominal circumference (AC) and weight at birth. To define reference curves for birth AC and weight in offspring of healthy, nonsmoking, normal weight women. DESIGN: Population-based study....

  5. Optical light curve of GRB 121011A: a textbook for the onset of GRB afterglow in a mixture of ISM and wind-type medium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xin, Li-Ping; Wei, Jian-Yan; Qiu, Yu-Lei; Deng, Jin-Song; Wang, Jing; Han, Xu-Hui

    2016-01-01

    We report the optical observations of GRB 121011A by the 0.8m TNT facility at Xinglong observatory, China. The light curve of the optical afterglow shows a smooth and featureless bump during the epoch of ∼130 s and ∼5000 s with a rising index of 1.57 ± 0.28 before the break time of 539 ± 44 s, and a decaying index of about 1.29 ± 0.07 up to the end of our observations. Moreover, the X-ray light curve decays in a single power-law with a slope of about 1.51 ± 0.03 observed by XRT onboard Swift from 100 s to about 10 000 s after the burst trigger. The featureless optical light curve could be understood as an onset process under the external-shock model. The typical frequency has been below or near the optical one before the deceleration time, and the cooling frequency is located between the optical and X-ray wavelengths. The external medium density has a transition from a mixed stage of ISM and wind-type medium before the peak time to the ISM at the later phase. The joint-analysis of X-ray and optical light curves shows that the emissions from both frequencies are consistent with the prediction of the standard afterglow model without any energy injections, indicating that the central engine has stopped its activity and does not restart anymore after the prompt phase. (paper)

  6. 51Cr - erythrocyte survival curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Paiva Costa, J. de.

    1982-07-01

    Sixteen patients were studied, being fifteen patients in hemolytic state, and a normal individual as a witness. The aim was to obtain better techniques for the analysis of the erythrocytes, survival curves, according to the recommendations of the International Committee of Hematology. It was used the radiochromatic method as a tracer. Previously a revisional study of the International Literature was made in its aspects inherent to the work in execution, rendering possible to establish comparisons and clarify phonomena observed in cur investigation. Several parameters were considered in this study, hindering both the exponential and the linear curves. The analysis of the survival curves of the erythrocytes in the studied group, revealed that the elution factor did not present a homogeneous answer quantitatively to all, though, the result of the analysis of these curves have been established, through listed programs in the electronic calculator. (Author) [pt

  7. A human fecal contamination index for ranking impaired ...

    Science.gov (United States)

    Human fecal pollution of surface water remains a public health concern worldwide. As a result, there is a growing interest in the application of human-associated fecal source identification quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) technologies for recreational water quality risk management. The transition from a research subject to a management tool requires the integration of standardized water sampling, laboratory, and data analysis procedures. In this study, a standardized HF183/BacR287 qPCR method was combined with a water sampling strategy and Bayesian data algorithm to establish a human fecal contamination index that can be used to rank impaired recreational water sites polluted with human waste. Stability and bias of index predictions were investigated under various parameters including siteswith different pollution levels, sampling period time range (1-15 weeks), and number of qPCR replicates per sample (2-14 replicates). Sensitivity analyses were conducted with simulated data sets (100 iterations) seeded with HF183/BacR287 qPCR laboratory measurements from water samples collected from three Southern California sites (588 qPCR measurements). Findings suggest that site ranking is feasible and that all parameters tested influence stability and bias in human fecal contamination indexscoring. Trends identified by sensitivity analyses will provide managers with the information needed to design and conduct field studies to rank impaired recreational water sites based

  8. Methods of ecological capability evaluation of forest

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hosseini, M.; Makhdoum, M.F.; Akbarnia, M.; Saghebtalebi, Kh.

    2000-01-01

    In this research common methods of ecological capability evaluation of forests were reviewed and limitations for performance were analysed. Ecological capability of forests is an index that show site potential in several role of wood production, soil conservation, flood control, biodiversity, conservation and water supply. This index is related to ecological characteristics of land, such as soil, micro climate, elevation, slope and aspect that affect potential of sites. Suitable method of ecological capability evaluation must be chosen according to the objective of forestry. Common methods for ecological capability evaluation include plant and animal diversity, site index curve, soil and land form, inter branches, index plants, leave analyses, analyses regeneration and ecological mapping

  9. Hyper-and-elliptic-curve cryptography

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bernstein, D.J.; Lange, T.

    2014-01-01

    This paper introduces ‘hyper-and-elliptic-curve cryptography’, in which a single high-security group supports fast genus-2-hyperelliptic-curve formulas for variable-base-point single-scalar multiplication (for example, Diffie–Hellman shared-secret computation) and at the same time supports fast

  10. Power Curve Measurements REWS

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gómez Arranz, Paula; Vesth, Allan

    This report describes the power curve measurements carried out on a given wind turbine in a chosen period. The measurements were carried out following the measurement procedure in the draft of IEC 61400-12-1 Ed.2 [1], with some deviations mostly regarding uncertainty calculation. Here, the refere......This report describes the power curve measurements carried out on a given wind turbine in a chosen period. The measurements were carried out following the measurement procedure in the draft of IEC 61400-12-1 Ed.2 [1], with some deviations mostly regarding uncertainty calculation. Here......, the reference wind speed used in the power curve is the equivalent wind speed obtained from lidar measurements at several heights between lower and upper blade tip, in combination with a hub height meteorological mast. The measurements have been performed using DTU’s measurement equipment, the analysis...

  11. Novel immunological and nutritional-based prognostic index for gastric cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Kai-Yu; Xu, Jian-Bo; Chen, Shu-Ling; Yuan, Yu-Jie; Wu, Hui; Peng, Jian-Jun; Chen, Chuang-Qi; Guo, Pi; Hao, Yuan-Tao; He, Yu-Long

    2015-05-21

    To assess the prognostic significance of immunological and nutritional-based indices, including the prognostic nutritional index (PNI), neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet-lymphocyte ratio in gastric cancer. We retrospectively reviewed 632 gastric cancer patients who underwent gastrectomy between 1998 and 2008. Areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve were calculated to compare the predictive ability of the indices, together with estimating the sensitivity, specificity and agreement rate. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify risk factors for overall survival (OS). Propensity score analysis was performed to adjust variables to control for selection bias. Each index could predict OS in gastric cancer patients in univariate analysis, but only PNI had independent prognostic significance in multivariate analysis before and after adjustment with propensity scoring (hazard ratio, 1.668; 95% confidence interval: 1.368-2.035). In subgroup analysis, a low PNI predicted a significantly shorter OS in patients with stage II-III disease (P = 0.019, P gastric cancer. Canton score can be a novel preoperative prognostic index in gastric cancer.

  12. Contemporary labor patterns: the impact of maternal body mass index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kominiarek, Michelle A; Zhang, Jun; Vanveldhuisen, Paul; Troendle, James; Beaver, Julie; Hibbard, Judith U

    2011-09-01

    We sought to compare labor patterns by body mass index (BMI). A total of 118,978 gravidas with a singleton term cephalic gestation were studied. Repeated-measures analysis constructed mean labor curves by parity and BMI categories for those who reached 10 cm. Interval-censored regression analysis determined median traverse times, adjusting for covariates in vaginal deliveries and intrapartum cesareans. In the labor curves, the time difference to reach 10 cm was 1.2 hours from the lowest to highest BMI category for nulliparas. Multiparas entered active phase by 6 cm, but reaching this point took longer for BMI ≥40.0 (3.4 hours) compared to BMI .05) but decreased as BMI increased for multiparas (P < .001). Labor proceeds more slowly as BMI increases, suggesting that labor management be altered to allow longer time for these differences. Copyright © 2011 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Geometric invariant theory for polarized curves

    CERN Document Server

    Bini, Gilberto; Melo, Margarida; Viviani, Filippo

    2014-01-01

    We investigate GIT quotients of polarized curves. More specifically, we study the GIT problem for the Hilbert and Chow schemes of curves of degree d and genus g in a projective space of dimension d-g, as d decreases with respect to g. We prove that the first three values of d at which the GIT quotients change are given by d=a(2g-2) where a=2, 3.5, 4. We show that, for a>4, L. Caporaso's results hold true for both Hilbert and Chow semistability. If 3.5curves. If 2curves. We also analyze in detail the critical values a=3.5 and a=4, where the Hilbert semistable locus is strictly smaller than the Chow semistable locus. As an application, we obtain three compactications of the universal Jacobian over the moduli space of stable curves, weakly-pseudo-stable curves and pseu...

  14. Curved electromagnetic missiles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Myers, J.M.; Shen, H.M.; Wu, T.T.

    1989-01-01

    Transient electromagnetic fields can exhibit interesting behavior in the limit of great distances from their sources. In situations of finite total radiated energy, the energy reaching a distant receiver can decrease with distance much more slowly than the usual r - 2 . Cases of such slow decrease have been referred to as electromagnetic missiles. All of the wide variety of known missiles propagate in essentially straight lines. A sketch is presented here of a missile that can follow a path that is strongly curved. An example of a curved electromagnetic missile is explicitly constructed and some of its properties are discussed. References to details available elsewhere are given

  15. Rock index properties for geoengineering in underground development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    O'Rourke, J.E.

    1989-01-01

    This paper describes the use of index testing to obtain rock properties that are useful in the design and construction planning of an underground development for civil engineering or mining projects. The index properties discussed include: point load; Schmidt hammer hardness; abrasion hardness; and total hardness. The first two index properties correlate to uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) and Young's modulus. Discussions are given on empirical, normalized relationships of UCS to rock mass properties and the integrated use with semi-empirical, geotechnical design methods. The hardness property indices correlate to construction performance parameters and some relevant experience is cited. Examples of data are presented from an index testing program carried out primarily on siltstone, sandstone and limestone rock core samples retrieved from depths up to 1005 m (3300 ft) in a borehole drilled in the Paradox Basin in eastern Utah. The borehole coring was done for a nuclear waste repository site investigation

  16. Cine dyscontractility index: A novel marker of mechanical dyssynchrony that predicts response to cardiac resynchronization therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Werys, Konrad; Petryka-Mazurkiewicz, Joanna; Błaszczyk, Łukasz; Miśko, Jolanta; Śpiewak, Mateusz; Małek, Łukasz A; Mazurkiewicz, Łukasz; Miłosz-Wieczorek, Barbara; Marczak, Magdalena; Kubik, Agata; Dąbrowska, Agnieszka; Piątkowska-Janko, Ewa; Sawionek, Błażej; Wijesurendra, Rohan; Piechnik, Stefan K; Bogorodzki, Piotr

    2016-12-01

    To investigate whether magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) cine-derived dyssynchrony indices provide additional information compared to conventional tagged MRI (tMRI) acquisitions in heart failure patients undergoing cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). Patients scheduled for CRT (n = 52) underwent preprocedure MRI including cine and tMRI acquisitions. Segmental strain curves were calculated for both cine and tMRI to produce a range of standard indices for direct comparison between modalities. We also proposed and evaluated a novel index of "dyscontractility," which detects the presence of focal areas with paradoxically positive circumferential strain. Across conventional strain indices, there was only moderate-to-poor (R = 0.3-0.6) correlation between modalities; eight cine-derived indices showed statistically significant (P cine images (cine dyscontractility index, "CDI") was the single best predictor of clinical response to CRT (area under the curve AUC = 0.81, P Cine-derived strain indices offer potentially new information compared to tMRI. Specifically, the novel CDI is most strongly linked to response to cardiac resynchronization therapy in a contemporary patient cohort. It utilizes readily available MRI data, is relatively straightforward to process, and compares favorably with any conventional tagging index. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2016;44:1483-1492. © 2016 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

  17. Use of instantaneous streamflow measurements to improve regression estimates of index flow for the summer month of lowest streamflow in Michigan

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holtschlag, David J.

    2011-01-01

    In Michigan, index flow Q50 is a streamflow characteristic defined as the minimum of median flows for July, August, and September. The state of Michigan uses index flow estimates to help regulate large (greater than 100,000 gallons per day) water withdrawals to prevent adverse effects on characteristic fish populations. At sites where long-term streamgages are located, index flows are computed directly from continuous streamflow records as GageQ50. In an earlier study, a multiple-regression equation was developed to estimate index flows IndxQ50 at ungaged sites. The index equation explains about 94 percent of the variability of index flows at 147 (index) streamgages by use of six explanatory variables describing soil type, aquifer transmissivity, land cover, and precipitation characteristics. This report extends the results of the previous study, by use of Monte Carlo simulations, to evaluate alternative flow estimators, DiscQ50, IntgQ50, SiteQ50, and AugmQ50. The Monte Carlo simulations treated each of the available index streamgages, in turn, as a miscellaneous site where streamflow conditions are described by one or more instantaneous measurements of flow. In the simulations, instantaneous flows were approximated by daily mean flows at the corresponding site. All estimators use information that can be obtained from instantaneous flow measurements and contemporaneous daily mean flow data from nearby long-term streamgages. The efficacy of these estimators was evaluated over a set of measurement intensities in which the number of simulated instantaneous flow measurements ranged from 1 to 100 at a site. The discrete measurement estimator DiscQ50 is based on a simple linear regression developed between information on daily mean flows at five or more streamgages near the miscellaneous site and their corresponding GageQ50 index flows. The regression relation then was used to compute a DiscQ50 estimate at the miscellaneous site by use of the simulated instantaneous flow

  18. A simple transformation for converting CW-OSL curves to LM-OSL curves

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bulur, E.

    2000-01-01

    A simple mathematical transformation is introduced to convert from OSL decay curves obtained in the conventional way to those obtained using a linear modulation technique based on a linear increase of the stimulation light intensity during OSL measurement. The validity of the transformation...... was tested by the IR-stimulated luminescence curves from feldspars, recorded using both the conventional and the linear modulation techniques. The transformation was further applied to green-light-stimulated OSL from K and Na feldspars. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved....

  19. Post-precipitation bias in band-tailed pigeon surveys conducted at mineral sites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Overton, C.T.; Schmitz, R.A.; Casazza, Michael L.

    2005-01-01

    Many animal surveys to estimate populations or index trends include protocol prohibiting counts during rain but fail to address effects of rainfall preceding the count. Prior research on Pacific Coast band-tailed pigeons (Patagioenas fasciata monilis) documented declines in use of mineral sites during rainfall. We hypothesized that prior precipitation was associated with a short-term increase in use of mineral sites following rain. We conducted weekly counts of band-tailed pigeons at 19 Pacific Northwest mineral sites in 2001 and 20 sites in 2002. Results from regression analysis indicated higher counts ???2 days after rain (11.31??5.00% [x????SE]) compared to ???3 days. Individual index counts conducted ???2 days after rain were biased high, resulting in reduced ability to accurately estimate population trends. Models of band-tailed pigeon visitation rates throughout the summer showed increased mineral-site counts during both June and August migration periods, relative to the July breeding period. Our research supported previous studies recommending that mineral-site counts used to index the band-tailed pigeon population be conducted during July. We further recommend conducting counts >3 days after rain to avoid weather-related bias in index estimation. The design of other population sampling strategies that rely on annual counts should consider the influence of aberrant weather not only coincident with but also preceding surveys if weather patterns are thought to influence behavior or detection probability of target species.

  20. Development of LiDAR measurements for the German offshore test site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rettenmeier, A; Kuehn, M; Waechter, M; Rahm, S; Mellinghoff, H; Siegmeier, B; Reeder, L

    2008-01-01

    The paper introduces the content of the recently started joint research project 'Development of LiDAR measurements for the German Offshore Test Site' which has the objective to support other research projects at the German offshore test site 'alpha ventus'. The project has started before the erection of the offshore wind farm and one aim is to give recommendations concerning LiDAR technology useable for offshore measurement campaigns and data analysis. The work is organized in four work packages. The work package LiDAR technology deals with the specification, acquisition and calibration of a commercial LiDAR system for the measurement campaigns. Power curve measurements are dedicated to power curve assessment with ground-based LiDAR using standard statistical methods. Additionally, it deals with the development of new methods for the measurement of non-steady short-term power curves. Wind field research aims at the development of wake loading simulation methods of wind turbines and the exploration of loading control strategies and nacelle-based wind field measurement techniques. Finally, dissemination of results to the industry takes place in work package Technology transfer

  1. A proposed site index for red spruce in the Northeast

    Science.gov (United States)

    T. F. McLintock; C. A. Bickford

    1957-01-01

    A basic principle that should be recognized at the start of any forward-looking forest-management plan is that the intensity or level of management that can be profitably applied to a given tract will be controlled largely by four factors: markets, labor supply, accessibility, and site. The more favorable these factors are, the higher the intensity of management that...

  2. Influence of internal refractive index gradients on size measurements of spherically symmetric particles by phase Doppler anemometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schneider, M; Hirleman, E D

    1994-04-20

    A model based on geometric optics for predicting the response of interferometric (phase Doppler) instruments for size measurements of particles with radially symmetric but inhomogeneous internal refractive index profiles is developed. The model and results are important for applications in which heat or mass transfer from the particles or droplets is significant, for example, in liquid-fuel combustion. To quantify the magnitude of potential bias errors introduced by the classical assumption of uniform internal properties on phase Doppler measurements, we compute calibration curves for a sequence of times during the evaporation of a decane droplet immersed in an environment of T = 2000 K and p = 10 bars. The results reveal considerable effects on the relation between phase difference and droplet diameter caused by the refractive index gradients present. The model provides an important tool to assess sizing uncertainties that can be expected when applying conventional (based on uniform properties) phase Doppler calibration curves in spray combustion and similar processes.

  3. Fermionic fields on ZN-curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bershadsky, M.; Radul, A.

    1988-01-01

    The line bundles of degree g-1 on Z N -curves corresponding to 1/N nonsingular characteristics are considered. The determinants of Dirac operators defined on these line bundles are evaluated in terms of branch points. The generalization of Thomae's formula for Z N -curves is derived. (orig.)

  4. Mannheim Partner D-Curves in the Euclidean 3-space

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mustafa Kazaz

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we consider the idea of Mannheim partner curves for curves lying on surfaces. By considering the Darboux frames of surface curves, we define Mannheim partner D-curves and give the characterizations for these curves. We also find the relations between geodesic curvatures, normal curvatures and geodesic torsions of these associated curves. Furthermore, we show that definition and characterizations of Mannheim partner D-curves include those of Mannheim partner curves in some special cases.

  5. Remote sensing used for power curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wagner, R; Joergensen, H E; Paulsen, U S; Larsen, T J; Antoniou, I; Thesbjerg, L

    2008-01-01

    Power curve measurement for large wind turbines requires taking into account more parameters than only the wind speed at hub height. Based on results from aerodynamic simulations, an equivalent wind speed taking the wind shear into account was defined and found to reduce the power standard deviation in the power curve significantly. Two LiDARs and a SoDAR are used to measure the wind profile in front of a wind turbine. These profiles are used to calculate the equivalent wind speed. The comparison of the power curves obtained with the three instruments to the traditional power curve, obtained using a cup anemometer measurement, confirms the results obtained from the simulations. Using LiDAR profiles reduces the error in power curve measurement, when these are used as relative instrument together with a cup anemometer. Results from the SoDAR do not show such promising results, probably because of noisy measurements resulting in distorted profiles

  6. Rational points, rational curves, and entire holomorphic curves on projective varieties

    CERN Document Server

    Gasbarri, Carlo; Roth, Mike; Tschinkel, Yuri

    2015-01-01

    This volume contains papers from the Short Thematic Program on Rational Points, Rational Curves, and Entire Holomorphic Curves and Algebraic Varieties, held from June 3-28, 2013, at the Centre de Recherches Mathématiques, Université de Montréal, Québec, Canada. The program was dedicated to the study of subtle interconnections between geometric and arithmetic properties of higher-dimensional algebraic varieties. The main areas of the program were, among others, proving density of rational points in Zariski or analytic topology on special varieties, understanding global geometric properties of rationally connected varieties, as well as connections between geometry and algebraic dynamics exploring new geometric techniques in Diophantine approximation.

  7. Triglyceride-glucose index (TyG index) in comparison with fasting plasma glucose improved diabetes prediction in patients with normal fasting glucose: The Vascular-Metabolic CUN cohort.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Navarro-González, David; Sánchez-Íñigo, Laura; Pastrana-Delgado, Juan; Fernández-Montero, Alejandro; Martinez, J Alfredo

    2016-05-01

    We evaluated the potential role of the triglyceride-glucose index (TyG index) as a predictor of diabetes in a White European cohort, and compared it to fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and triglycerides. 4820 patients of the Vascular-Metabolic CUN cohort (VMCUN cohort) were examined and followed up for 8.84years (±4.39). We performed a Cox proportional hazard ratio with repeated-measures analyses to assess the risk of developing type 2 diabetes across quartiles of FPG, triglycerides and the TyG index (ln[fasting triglycerides (mg/dl)×fasting plasma glucose (mg/dl)/2]), and plotted a receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve for discrimination. There were 332 incident cases of type 2 diabetes involving 43,197.32person-years of follow-up. We observed a progressively increased risk of diabetes in subjects with TyG index levels of 8.31 or more. Among those with normal fasting glucose at baseline, index in the fourth quartile were 6.87 times more likely to develop diabetes (95% CI, 2.76-16.85; P for trendindex, 0.66 (0.60-0.72) for FPG and 0.71 (0.65-0.77) for TG, in subjects with normal fasting glucose (p=0.017). Our data suggest that the TyG index is useful for the early identification of individuals at risk of type 2 diabetes. The TyG index seems to be a better predictor than FPG or triglycerides of the potential development of type 2 diabetes in normoglycemic patients. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Curves and Abelian varieties

    CERN Document Server

    Alexeev, Valery; Clemens, C Herbert; Beauville, Arnaud

    2008-01-01

    This book is devoted to recent progress in the study of curves and abelian varieties. It discusses both classical aspects of this deep and beautiful subject as well as two important new developments, tropical geometry and the theory of log schemes. In addition to original research articles, this book contains three surveys devoted to singularities of theta divisors, of compactified Jacobians of singular curves, and of "strange duality" among moduli spaces of vector bundles on algebraic varieties.

  9. Monte Carlo simulation of radiative transfer in scattering, emitting, absorbing slab with gradient index

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huang Yong; Liang Xingang; Xia Xinlin

    2005-01-01

    The Monte Carlo method is used to simulate the thermal emission of absorbing-emitting-scattering slab with gradient index. Three Monte Carlo ray-tracing strategies are considered. The first strategy is keeping the real distribution of the refractive index and to trace bundles in a curve route. The second strategy is discretizing the slab into sub-layers, each having constant refractive index. The bundle is traced in a straight route in each sub-layer and the reflection at the inner interface is taken into account. The third strategy is similar to the second one but only the total reflection at the inner interface is computed. Little difference is observed among the results of apparent thermal emission by these three different Monte Carlo ray tracing strategies. The results also show that the apparent hemispherical emissivity non-monotonously varies with increasing optical thickness of the slab with strong scattering gradient index. Many parameters can influence the apparent thermal emission greatly

  10. Curve Modulation and Apex Migration Using Shilla Growth Guidance Rods for Early-onset Scoliosis at 5-Year Follow-up.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilkinson, John T; Songy, Chad E; Bumpass, David B; McCullough, Francis L; McCarthy, Richard E

    2017-04-03

    The Shilla procedure was designed to correct and control early-onset spinal deformity while harnessing a child's remaining spinal growth. It allows for controlled axial skeletal growth within the construct, avoiding the need for frequent surgeries to lengthen implants. We hypothesized that curve characteristics evolve over time after initial apex fusion and placement of the Shilla implants. The purpose of this study was to identify trends in curve evolution after Shilla implantation and understand how these changes influence ultimate outcome. A single-center, retrospective review of all patients with Shilla implants in place for ≥5 years yielded 21 patients. Charts and radiographs were reviewed to compare coronal curve characteristics preoperatively, postoperatively, and at last follow-up to note changes in the apex of the primary curve. Also noted were the development of adjacent compensatory curves, the overall vertical spinal growth, and the need for definitive spinal fusion once skeletal maturity was reached. Of the 21 patients, the curve apex migrated caudally in 12 patients (57%) and cephalad in 1 patient (5%), with a mean migration of 2.7 vertebral levels. Two patients (10%) developed new, significant compensatory curves (1 caudal and 1 cephalad). All patients demonstrated spinal growth in T1-S1 length following index surgery (mean, 45 mm). At skeletal maturity, 10 patients underwent definitive posterior spinal fusion and instrumentation, and 3 underwent implant removal alone. This study constitutes the longest follow-up of Shilla patients evaluating curve and implant behavior. Results of this review suggest that the apex of the fused primary curve shifts in approximately 62% of patients, with nearly all of these (92%) involving a distal migration. Compensatory curves did develop after Shilla placement as well. Overall, these findings represent adding-on distal to the apex after Shilla instrumentation rather than a crankshaft phenomenon about the apex. A

  11. Determination of critical nitrogen dilution curve based on stem dry matter in rice.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Syed Tahir Ata-Ul-Karim

    Full Text Available Plant analysis is a very promising diagnostic tool for assessment of crop nitrogen (N requirements in perspectives of cost effective and environment friendly agriculture. Diagnosing N nutritional status of rice crop through plant analysis will give insights into optimizing N requirements of future crops. The present study was aimed to develop a new methodology for determining the critical nitrogen (Nc dilution curve based on stem dry matter (SDM and to assess its suitability to estimate the level of N nutrition for rice (Oryza sativa L. in east China. Three field experiments with varied N rates (0-360 kg N ha(-1 using three Japonica rice hybrids, Lingxiangyou-18, Wuxiangjing-14 and Wuyunjing were conducted in Jiangsu province of east China. SDM and stem N concentration (SNC were determined during vegetative stage for growth analysis. A Nc dilution curve based on SDM was described by the equation (Nc = 2.17W(-0.27 with W being SDM in t ha(-1, when SDM ranged from 0.88 to 7.94 t ha(-1. However, for SDM < 0.88 t ha(-1, the constant critical value Nc = 1.76% SDM was applied. The curve was dually validated for N-limiting and non-N-limiting growth conditions. The N nutrition index (NNI and accumulated N deficit (Nand of stem ranged from 0.57 to 1.06 and 51.1 to -7.07 kg N ha(-1, respectively, during key growth stages under varied N rates in 2010 and 2011. The values of ΔN derived from either NNI or Nand could be used as references for N dressing management during rice growth. Our results demonstrated that the present curve well differentiated the conditions of limiting and non-limiting N nutrition in rice crop. The SDM based Nc dilution curve can be adopted as an alternate and novel approach for evaluating plant N status to support N fertilization decision during the vegetative growth of Japonica rice in east China.

  12. Anatomical curve identification

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bowman, Adrian W.; Katina, Stanislav; Smith, Joanna; Brown, Denise

    2015-01-01

    Methods for capturing images in three dimensions are now widely available, with stereo-photogrammetry and laser scanning being two common approaches. In anatomical studies, a number of landmarks are usually identified manually from each of these images and these form the basis of subsequent statistical analysis. However, landmarks express only a very small proportion of the information available from the images. Anatomically defined curves have the advantage of providing a much richer expression of shape. This is explored in the context of identifying the boundary of breasts from an image of the female torso and the boundary of the lips from a facial image. The curves of interest are characterised by ridges or valleys. Key issues in estimation are the ability to navigate across the anatomical surface in three-dimensions, the ability to recognise the relevant boundary and the need to assess the evidence for the presence of the surface feature of interest. The first issue is addressed by the use of principal curves, as an extension of principal components, the second by suitable assessment of curvature and the third by change-point detection. P-spline smoothing is used as an integral part of the methods but adaptations are made to the specific anatomical features of interest. After estimation of the boundary curves, the intermediate surfaces of the anatomical feature of interest can be characterised by surface interpolation. This allows shape variation to be explored using standard methods such as principal components. These tools are applied to a collection of images of women where one breast has been reconstructed after mastectomy and where interest lies in shape differences between the reconstructed and unreconstructed breasts. They are also applied to a collection of lip images where possible differences in shape between males and females are of interest. PMID:26041943

  13. Non-Invasive Seismic Methods for Earthquake Site Classification Applied to Ontario Bridge Sites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bilson Darko, A.; Molnar, S.; Sadrekarimi, A.

    2017-12-01

    How a site responds to earthquake shaking and its corresponding damage is largely influenced by the underlying ground conditions through which it propagates. The effects of site conditions on propagating seismic waves can be predicted from measurements of the shear wave velocity (Vs) of the soil layer(s) and the impedance ratio between bedrock and soil. Currently the seismic design of new buildings and bridges (2015 Canadian building and bridge codes) requires determination of the time-averaged shear-wave velocity of the upper 30 metres (Vs30) of a given site. In this study, two in situ Vs profiling methods; Multichannel Analysis of Surface Waves (MASW) and Ambient Vibration Array (AVA) methods are used to determine Vs30 at chosen bridge sites in Ontario, Canada. Both active-source (MASW) and passive-source (AVA) surface wave methods are used at each bridge site to obtain Rayleigh-wave phase velocities over a wide frequency bandwidth. The dispersion curve is jointly inverted with each site's amplification function (microtremor horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio) to obtain shear-wave velocity profile(s). We apply our non-invasive testing at three major infrastructure projects, e.g., five bridge sites along the Rt. Hon. Herb Gray Parkway in Windsor, Ontario. Our non-invasive testing is co-located with previous invasive testing, including Standard Penetration Test (SPT), Cone Penetration Test and downhole Vs data. Correlations between SPT blowcount and Vs are developed for the different soil types sampled at our Ontario bridge sites. A robust earthquake site classification procedure (reliable Vs30 estimates) for bridge sites across Ontario is evaluated from available combinations of invasive and non-invasive site characterization methods.

  14. Biological Soil Crust Web Site

    Science.gov (United States)

    www.soilcrust.org Crust 101 Advanced Gallery References CCERS site Links Biological Soil Crusts Textbook Corrections Level of Development Index Biological soil crusts are the community of organisms , mosses, liverworts and lichens. A Field Guide to Biological Soil Crusts of Western U.S. Drylands: Common

  15. Rock index properties for geoengineering in the Paradox Basin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    O'Rourke, J.E.; Rey, P.H.; Alviti, E.; Capps, C.C.

    1986-02-01

    Previous researchers have investigated the use of a number of rapid index tests that can be used on core samples, or in situ, to determine rock properties needed for geoengineering design, or to predict construction performance in these rock types. Selected research is reviewed, and the correlations of index tests with laboratory tests of rock properties found by the earlier investigators are discussed. The selection and testing of rock core samples from the Gibson Dome No. 1 borehole in Paradox Basin are described. The samples consist primarily of non-salt rock above salt cycle 6, but include some samples of anhydrite and salt cycle 6. The index tests included the point load test, Schmidt hammer rebound test, and abrasion hardness test. Statistical methods were used to analyze the correlations of index test data with laboratory test data of rock properties for the same core. Complete statistical results and computer-generated graphics are presented; these results are discussed in relation to the work of earlier investigations for index testing of similar rock types. Generally, fair to good correlations were obtained for predicting unconfined compressive strength and Young's modulus for sandstone and siltstone, while poorer correlations were found for limestone. This may be due to the large variability of limestone properties compared to the small number of samples. Overall, the use of index tests to assess rock properties at Paradox Basin appears to be practial for some conceptual and preliminary design needs, and the technique should prove useful at any salt repository site. However, it is likely that specific correlations should be demonstrated separately for each site, and the data base for establishing the correlations should probably include at least several hundred data points for each type

  16. A method for the measurement of dispersion curves of circumferential guided waves radiating from curved shells: experimental validation and application to a femoral neck mimicking phantom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nauleau, Pierre; Minonzio, Jean-Gabriel; Chekroun, Mathieu; Cassereau, Didier; Laugier, Pascal; Prada, Claire; Grimal, Quentin

    2016-07-01

    Our long-term goal is to develop an ultrasonic method to characterize the thickness, stiffness and porosity of the cortical shell of the femoral neck, which could enhance hip fracture risk prediction. To this purpose, we proposed to adapt a technique based on the measurement of guided waves. We previously evidenced the feasibility of measuring circumferential guided waves in a bone-mimicking phantom of a circular cross-section of even thickness. The goal of this study is to investigate the impact of the complex geometry of the femoral neck on the measurement of guided waves. Two phantoms of an elliptical cross-section and one phantom of a realistic cross-section were investigated. A 128-element array was used to record the inter-element response matrix of these waveguides. This experiment was simulated using a custom-made hybrid code. The response matrices were analyzed using a technique based on the physics of wave propagation. This method yields portions of dispersion curves of the waveguides which were compared to reference dispersion curves. For the elliptical phantoms, three portions of dispersion curves were determined with a good agreement between experiment, simulation and theory. The method was thus validated. The characteristic dimensions of the shell were found to influence the identification of the circumferential wave signals. The method was then applied to the signals backscattered by the superior half of constant thickness of the realistic phantom. A cut-off frequency and some portions of modes were measured, with a good agreement with the theoretical curves of a plate waveguide. We also observed that the method cannot be applied directly to the signals backscattered by the lower half of varying thicknesses of the phantom. The proposed approach could then be considered to evaluate the properties of the superior part of the femoral neck, which is known to be a clinically relevant site.

  17. MODELING THE TRANSITION CURVE ON A LIMITED TERAIN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. D. Borisenko

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. Further development of the method of geometric modelling of transition curves, which are placed between rectilinear and circular sections of railway tracks and are created in localities, the relief of which causes certain restrictions on the size of the transition curves of the railway track. Methodology. The equation of the transition curve is taken in parametric form, in which the length of the arc of the modelled curve is used as a parameter. As initial data in the modelling of the transition curve, the coordinates of its initial point and the angle of inclination in it are tangent, the radius of the circumference of the circular section and the parameter that is used as a constraint when placing a section of the railway track. The transition curve is modelled under the condition that the distribution of its curvature from the length of the arc - the natural parameter - is described by a cubic dependence. This dependence contains four unknown coefficients; the unknown is also the length of the arc. The coefficients of the cubic dependence and the length of the arc of the transition curve, the coordinates of its end point, the angle of inclination in it of the tangent are determined during the simulation of the transition curve. The application of boundary conditions and methods of differential geometry with respect to the distribution of the slope angle of the tangent to the simulated curve from the initial to the end points of the transition curve and the calculation of the coordinates of the end point of the curve allows us to reduce the problem of modelling the transition curve to determine the arc length of this curve. Directly the length of the transition curve is in the process of minimizing the deviation of the circumference of the circular path from its current value obtained when searching for the arc length. Findings. As a result of the computational experiment, the possibility of modelling a transition curve between a

  18. Secondary flow in a curved artery model with Newtonian and non-Newtonian blood-analog fluids

    Science.gov (United States)

    Najjari, Mohammad Reza; Plesniak, Michael W.

    2016-11-01

    Steady and pulsatile flows of Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids through a 180°-curved pipe were investigated using particle image velocimetry (PIV). The experiment was inspired by physiological pulsatile flow through large curved arteries, with a carotid artery flow rate imposed. Sodium iodide (NaI) and sodium thiocyanate (NaSCN) were added to the working fluids to match the refractive index (RI) of the test section to eliminate optical distortion. Rheological measurements revealed that adding NaI or NaSCN changes the viscoelastic properties of non-Newtonian solutions and reduces their shear-thinning property. Measured centerline velocity profiles in the upstream straight pipe agreed well with an analytical solution. In the pulsatile case, secondary flow structures, i.e. deformed-Dean, Dean, Wall and Lyne vortices, were observed in various cross sections along the curved pipe. Vortical structures at each cross section were detected using the d2 vortex identification method. Circulation analysis was performed on each vortex separately during the systolic deceleration phase, and showed that vortices split and rejoin. Secondary flow structures in steady flows were found to be morphologically similar to those in pulsatile flows for sufficiently high Dean number. supported by the George Washington University Center for Biomimetics and Bioinspired Engineering.

  19. Global experience curves for wind farms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Junginger, M.; Faaij, A.; Turkenburg, W.C.

    2005-01-01

    In order to forecast the technological development and cost of wind turbines and the production costs of wind electricity, frequent use is made of the so-called experience curve concept. Experience curves of wind turbines are generally based on data describing the development of national markets, which cause a number of problems when applied for global assessments. To analyze global wind energy price development more adequately, we compose a global experience curve. First, underlying factors for past and potential future price reductions of wind turbines are analyzed. Also possible implications and pitfalls when applying the experience curve methodology are assessed. Second, we present and discuss a new approach of establishing a global experience curve and thus a global progress ratio for the investment cost of wind farms. Results show that global progress ratios for wind farms may lie between 77% and 85% (with an average of 81%), which is significantly more optimistic than progress ratios applied in most current scenario studies and integrated assessment models. While the findings are based on a limited amount of data, they may indicate faster price reduction opportunities than so far assumed. With this global experience curve we aim to improve the reliability of describing the speed with which global costs of wind power may decline

  20. Development and assessment of users' satisfaction with the systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity index 2000 responder index-50 website.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Touma, Zahi; Gladman, Dafna D; MacKinnon, Anne; Carette, Simon; Abu-Shakra, Mahmoud; Askanase, Anca; Nived, Ola; Hanly, John G; Landolt-Marticorena, Carolina; Tam, Lai-Shan; Toloza, Sergio; Nikpour, Mandana; Riddell, Claire; Steiman, Amanda; Eder, Lihi; Haddad, Amir; Barber, Claire; Urowitz, Murray B

    2013-01-01

    To describe the development of the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index 2000 Responder Index-50 (S2K RI-50) Website (www.s2k-ri-50.com) and to assess satisfaction with its training and examination modules among rheumatologists and rheumatology fellows. The development of the Website occurred in 3 phases. The first was a deployment phase that consisted of preparing the site map along with its content. The content included the S2K RI-50 training manual, the tests and corresponding question bank, and the online adaptive training module, along with the extensive site testing. The second phase included the participation of rheumatologists and trainees who completed the Website modules. The third was a quality assurance phase in which an online survey was developed to determine the satisfaction level of its users. Further modifications were implemented per participants' recommendations. The site has been online since it was registered in September 2010. Fourteen rheumatologists and rheumatology trainees from different centers reviewed and completed the material contained in the Website. The survey revealed acceptance among rheumatologists for the Website's content, design, and presentation. The Website was rated as user-friendly and useful in familiarizing investigators with the S2K RI-50. After completion of the training and examination modules, participants reported a suitable level of preparation to implement the S2K RI-50 in clinical trials and research settings in a timely manner. The Website includes training and examination modules that familiarize rheumatologists with the S2K RI-50 and assesses their competence to use the index. This prepares them for the use of the S2K RI-50 in clinical trials and research settings.

  1. Automated Blazar Light Curves Using Machine Learning

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Johnson, Spencer James [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

    2017-07-27

    This presentation describes a problem and methodology pertaining to automated blazar light curves. Namely, optical variability patterns for blazars require the construction of light curves and in order to generate the light curves, data must be filtered before processing to ensure quality.

  2. Polar representation of centrifugal pump homologous curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Veloso, Marcelo Antonio; Mattos, Joao Roberto Loureiro de

    2008-01-01

    Essential for any mathematical model designed to simulate flow transient events caused by pump operations is the pump performance data. The performance of a centrifugal pump is characterized by four basic parameters: the rotational speed, the volumetric flow rate, the dynamic head, and the hydraulic torque. Any one of these quantities can be expressed as a function of any two others. The curves showing the relationships between these four variables are called the pump characteristic curves, also referred to as four-quadrant curves. The characteristic curves are empirically developed by the pump manufacturer and uniquely describe head and torque as functions of volumetric flow rate and rotation speed. Because of comprising a large amount of points, the four-quadrant configuration is not suitable for computational purposes. However, it can be converted to a simpler form by the development of the homologous curves, in which dynamic head and hydraulic torque ratios are expressed as functions of volumetric flow and rotation speed ratios. The numerical use of the complete set of homologous curves requires specification of sixteen partial curves, being eight for the dynamic head and eight for the hydraulic torque. As a consequence, the handling of homologous curves is still somewhat complicated. In solving flow transient problems that require the pump characteristic data for all the operation zones, the polar form appears as the simplest way to represent the homologous curves. In the polar method, the complete characteristics of a pump can be described by only two closed curves, one for the dynamic head and other for the hydraulic torque, both in function of a single angular coordinate defined adequately in terms of the quotient between volumetric flow ratio and rotation speed ratio. The usefulness and advantages of this alternative method are demonstrated through a practical example in which the homologous curves for a pump of the type used in the main coolant loops of a

  3. Fatty liver index and hepatic steatosis index for prediction of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in type 1 diabetes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sviklāne, Laura; Olmane, Evija; Dzērve, Zane; Kupčs, Kārlis; Pīrāgs, Valdis; Sokolovska, Jeļizaveta

    2018-01-01

    Little is known about the diagnostic value of hepatic steatosis index (HSI) and fatty liver index (FLI), as well as their link to metabolic syndrome in type 1 diabetes mellitus. We have screened the effectiveness of FLI and HSI in an observational pilot study of 40 patients with type 1 diabetes. FLI and HSI were calculated for 201 patients with type 1 diabetes. Forty patients with FLI/HSI values corresponding to different risk of liver steatosis were invited for liver magnetic resonance study. In-phase/opposed-phase technique of magnetic resonance was used. Accuracy of indices was assessed from the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. Twelve (30.0%) patients had liver steatosis. For FLI, sensitivity was 90%; specificity, 74%; positive likelihood ratio, 3.46; negative likelihood ratio, 0.14; positive predictive value, 0.64; and negative predictive value, 0.93. For HSI, sensitivity was 86%; specificity, 66%; positive likelihood ratio, 1.95; negative likelihood ratio, 0.21; positive predictive value, 0.50; and negative predictive value, 0.92. Area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for FLI was 0.86 (95% confidence interval [0.72; 0.99]); for HSI 0.75 [0.58; 0.91]. Liver fat correlated with liver enzymes, waist circumference, triglycerides, and C-reactive protein. FLI correlated with C-reactive protein, liver enzymes, and blood pressure. HSI correlated with waist circumference and C-reactive protein. FLI ≥ 60 and HSI ≥ 36 were significantly associated with metabolic syndrome and nephropathy. The tested indices, especially FLI, can serve as surrogate markers for liver fat content and metabolic syndrome in type 1 diabetes. © 2017 Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Foundation and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

  4. Medium-Index Mixed-Oxide Layers for Use in AR-Coatings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ganner, Peter

    1986-10-01

    Ttedesign philosophy of MC-AR-Coatings can be divided into two categories: a) Restriction to two film materials, namely one high-index and one low-index material and b) Use of medium-index layers in addition to high- and low-index layers. Both philosophies have advan-tages and drawbacks. In case a) the total number of layers necessary to obtain a required reflectance curve has to be higher. Thus in case of production errors it can be a problem to find out which layer was responsible for a deviation of the measured reflectance from the nominal one. In case b) using more than two materials reduces the total number of layers and consequently, pinpointing the cause of even small production errors is made simpler. Unfortunately there are not many materials commercially available which can be used to make hard, durable and robust films in the medium-index range namely between n=1.65 and n=2.00. In this paper the results of homogeneous mixtures of Alumina (Al203) and Tantala (Ta205) used for EB-gun evaporated medium-index films in AR-coatings is presented. It is shown that by proper adjustment of the weight percentages of the oxide mixture one can get homogeneous films in this index range. A number of design examples show the favourable application of such layers in AR-coatings. Among the most important ones is the well known QHQ-design for BBAR-coatings as well as AR-designs of the multiple half wave type with extended bandwidth. Further applications of the mixed-oxide layers are AR-coatings for cemented optical elements and beam splitters.

  5. Refractive-index changes in lithium niobate crystals by radiation damages; Brechungsindexaenderungen in Lithiumniobat-Kristallen durch Strahlenschaeden

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zamani Meymian, Mohammad Reza

    2007-12-18

    For the study in this thesis {sup 3}He{sup 2+} ions with the energy of about 40 MeV were applied. The results of these studies show a timely very stable anisotrope refractive-index change in the range of some 10{sup -3}. The radiation damages caused by ions cause a decreasement of the ordinary refractive index n{sub o} and an increasement of the extra-ordinary refractive index n{sub e}. While the absolute values for {delta}n{sub o} and {delta}n{sub e} are nearly equal the birefringence of the material (n{sub e}-n{sub o}) smaller. The generated refractive-index change is dose dependent and the curve {delta}n has at increasing dose a strongly nonlinear slope with a characteristic stage at the radiation dose of about 2 x 10{sup 20} ions/m{sup 2}.

  6. Parametric representation of centrifugal pump homologous curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Veloso, Marcelo A.; Mattos, Joao R.L. de

    2015-01-01

    Essential for any mathematical model designed to simulate flow transient events caused by pump operations is the pump performance data. The performance of a centrifugal pump is characterized by four basic quantities: the rotational speed, the volumetric flow rate, the dynamic head, and the hydraulic torque. The curves showing the relationships between these four variables are called the pump characteristic curves. The characteristic curves are empirically developed by the pump manufacturer and uniquely describe head and torque as functions of volumetric flow rate and rotation speed. Because of comprising a large amount of points, this configuration is not suitable for computational purposes. However, it can be converted to a simpler form by the development of the homologous curves, in which dynamic head and hydraulic torque ratios are expressed as functions of volumetric flow and rotation speed ratios. The numerical use of the complete set of homologous curves requires specification of sixteen partial curves, being eight for the dynamic head and eight for the hydraulic torque. As a consequence, the handling of homologous curves is still somewhat complicated. In solving flow transient problems that require the pump characteristic data for all the operation zones, the parametric form appears as the simplest way to deal with the homologous curves. In this approach, the complete characteristics of a pump can be described by only two closed curves, one for the dynamic head and other for the hydraulic torque, both in function of a single angular coordinate defined adequately in terms of the quotient between volumetric flow ratio and rotation speed ratio. The usefulness and advantages of this alternative method are demonstrated through a practical example in which the homologous curves for a pump of the type used in the main coolant loops of a pressurized water reactor (PWR) are transformed to the parametric form. (author)

  7. Experience Curves: A Tool for Energy Policy Assessment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Neij, Lena; Helby, Peter [Lund Univ. (Sweden). Environmental and Energy Systems Studies; Dannemand Andersen, Per; Morthorst, Poul Erik [Riso National Laboratory, Roskilde (Denmark); Durstewitz, Michael; Hoppe-Kilpper, Martin [Inst. fuer Solare Energieversorgungstechnik e.V., Kassel (DE); and others

    2003-07-01

    The objective of the project, Experience curves: a tool for energy policy assessment (EXTOOL), was to analyse the experience curve as a tool for the assessment of energy policy measures. This is of special interest, since the use of experience curves for the assessment of energy policy measures requires the development of the established experience curve methodology. This development raises several questions which have been addressed and analysed in this project. The analysis is based on case studies of wind power, an area with considerable experience in technology development, deployment and policy measures. Therefore, a case study based on wind power provides a good opportunity to study the usefulness of experience curves as a tool for the assessment of energy policy measures. However, the results are discussed in terms of using experience curves for the assessment of any energy technology. The project shows that experience curves can be used to assess the effect of combined policy measures in terms of cost reductions. Moreover, the result of the project show that experience curves could be used to analyse international 'learning systems', i.e. cost reductions brought about by the development of wind power and policy measures used in other countries. Nevertheless, the use of experience curves for the assessment of policy programmes has several limitations. First, the analysis and assessment of policy programmes cannot be achieved unless relevant experience curves based on good data can be developed. The authors are of the opinion that only studies that provide evidence of the validity, reliability and relevance of experience curves should be taken into account in policy making. Second, experience curves provide an aggregated picture of the situation and more detailed analysis of various sources of cost reduction, and cost reductions resulting from individual policy measures, requires additional data and analysis tools. Third, we do not recommend the use of

  8. Section curve reconstruction and mean-camber curve extraction of a point-sampled blade surface.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wen-long Li

    Full Text Available The blade is one of the most critical parts of an aviation engine, and a small change in the blade geometry may significantly affect the dynamics performance of the aviation engine. Rapid advancements in 3D scanning techniques have enabled the inspection of the blade shape using a dense and accurate point cloud. This paper proposes a new method to achieving two common tasks in blade inspection: section curve reconstruction and mean-camber curve extraction with the representation of a point cloud. The mathematical morphology is expanded and applied to restrain the effect of the measuring defects and generate an ordered sequence of 2D measured points in the section plane. Then, the energy and distance are minimized to iteratively smoothen the measured points, approximate the section curve and extract the mean-camber curve. In addition, a turbine blade is machined and scanned to observe the curvature variation, energy variation and approximation error, which demonstrates the availability of the proposed method. The proposed method is simple to implement and can be applied in aviation casting-blade finish inspection, large forging-blade allowance inspection and visual-guided robot grinding localization.

  9. NOISY DISPERSION CURVE PICKING (NDCP): a Matlab friendly suite package for fully control dispersion curve picking

    Science.gov (United States)

    Granados, I.; Calo, M.; Ramos, V.

    2017-12-01

    We developed a Matlab suite package (NDCP, Noisy Dispersion Curve Picking) that allows a full control over parameters to identify correctly group velocity dispersion curves in two types of datasets: correlograms between two stations or surface wave records from earthquakes. Using the frequency-time analysis (FTAN), the procedure to obtain the dispersion curves from records with a high noise level becomes difficult, and sometimes, the picked curve result in a misinterpreted character. For correlogram functions, obtained with cross-correlation of noise records or earthquake's coda, a non-homogeneous noise sources distribution yield to a non-symmetric Green's function (GF); to retrieve the complete information contained in there, NDCP allows to pick the dispersion curve in the time domain both in the causal and non-causal part of the GF. Then the picked dispersion curve is displayed on the FTAN diagram to in order to check if it matches with the maximum of the signal energy avoiding confusion with overtones or spike of noise. To illustrate how NDCP performs, we show exemple using: i) local correlograms functions obtained from sensors deployed into a volcanic caldera (Los Humeros, in Puebla, Mexico), ii) regional correlograms functions between two stations of the National Seismological Service (SSN, Servicio Sismológico Nacional in Spanish), and iii) surface wave seismic record for an earthquake located in the Pacific Ocean coast of Mexico and recorded by the SSN. This work is supported by the GEMEX project (Geothermal Europe-Mexico consortium).

  10. Spatio-temporal analysis of the extreme precipitation by the L-moment-based index-flood method in the Yangtze River Delta region, China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yin, Yixing; Chen, Haishan; Xu, Chongyu; Xu, Wucheng; Chen, Changchun

    2014-05-01

    The regionalization methods which 'trade space for time' by including several at-site data records in the frequency analysis are an efficient tool to improve the reliability of extreme quantile estimates. With the main aims of improving the understanding of the regional frequency of extreme precipitation and providing scientific and practical background and assistance in formulating the regional development strategies for water resources management in one of the most developed and flood-prone regions in China, the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region, in this paper, L-moment-based index-flood (LMIF) method, one of the popular regionalization methods, is used in the regional frequency analysis of extreme precipitation; attention was paid to inter-site dependence and its influence on the accuracy of quantile estimates, which hasn't been considered for most of the studies using LMIF method. Extensive data screening of stationarity, serial dependence and inter-site dependence was carried out first. The entire YRD region was then categorized into four homogeneous regions through cluster analysis and homogenous analysis. Based on goodness-of-fit statistic and L-moment ratio diagrams, Generalized extreme-value (GEV) and Generalized Normal (GNO) distributions were identified as the best-fit distributions for most of the sub regions. Estimated quantiles for each region were further obtained. Monte-Carlo simulation was used to evaluate the accuracy of the quantile estimates taking inter-site dependence into consideration. The results showed that the root mean square errors (RMSEs) were bigger and the 90% error bounds were wider with inter-site dependence than those with no inter-site dependence for both the regional growth curve and quantile curve. The spatial patterns of extreme precipitation with return period of 100 years were obtained which indicated that there are two regions with the highest precipitation extremes (southeastern coastal area of Zhejiang Province and the

  11. Mentorship, learning curves, and balance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, Meryl S; Jacobs, Jeffrey P; Quintessenza, James A; Chai, Paul J; Lindberg, Harald L; Dickey, Jamie; Ungerleider, Ross M

    2007-09-01

    Professionals working in the arena of health care face a variety of challenges as their careers evolve and develop. In this review, we analyze the role of mentorship, learning curves, and balance in overcoming challenges that all such professionals are likely to encounter. These challenges can exist both in professional and personal life. As any professional involved in health care matures, complex professional skills must be mastered, and new professional skills must be acquired. These skills are both technical and judgmental. In most circumstances, these skills must be learned. In 2007, despite the continued need for obtaining new knowledge and learning new skills, the professional and public tolerance for a "learning curve" is much less than in previous decades. Mentorship is the key to success in these endeavours. The success of mentorship is two-sided, with responsibilities for both the mentor and the mentee. The benefits of this relationship must be bidirectional. It is the responsibility of both the student and the mentor to assure this bidirectional exchange of benefit. This relationship requires time, patience, dedication, and to some degree selflessness. This mentorship will ultimately be the best tool for mastering complex professional skills and maturing through various learning curves. Professional mentorship also requires that mentors identify and explicitly teach their mentees the relational skills and abilities inherent in learning the management of the triad of self, relationships with others, and professional responsibilities.Up to two decades ago, a learning curve was tolerated, and even expected, while professionals involved in healthcare developed the techniques that allowed for the treatment of previously untreatable diseases. Outcomes have now improved to the point that this type of learning curve is no longer acceptable to the public. Still, professionals must learn to perform and develop independence and confidence. The responsibility to

  12. A simple Lissajous curves experimental setup

    Science.gov (United States)

    Şahin Kızılcık, Hasan; Damlı, Volkan

    2018-05-01

    The aim of this study is to develop an experimental setup to produce Lissajous curves. The setup was made using a smartphone, a powered speaker (computer speaker), a balloon, a laser pointer and a piece of mirror. Lissajous curves are formed as follows: a piece of mirror is attached to a balloon. The balloon is vibrated with the sound signal provided by the speaker that is connected to a smartphone. The laser beam is reflected off the mirror and the reflection is shaped as a Lissajous curve. Because of the intersection of two frequencies (frequency of the sound signal and natural vibration frequency of the balloon), these curves are formed. They can be used to measure the ratio of frequencies.

  13. Quantum fields in curved space

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Birrell, N.D.; Davies, P.C.W.

    1982-01-01

    The book presents a comprehensive review of the subject of gravitational effects in quantum field theory. Quantum field theory in Minkowski space, quantum field theory in curved spacetime, flat spacetime examples, curved spacetime examples, stress-tensor renormalization, applications of renormalization techniques, quantum black holes and interacting fields are all discussed in detail. (U.K.)

  14. SRHA calibration curve

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — an UV calibration curve for SRHA quantitation. This dataset is associated with the following publication: Chang, X., and D. Bouchard. Surfactant-Wrapped Multiwalled...

  15. The nature of the active site in heterogeneous metal catalysis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nørskov, Jens Kehlet; Bligaard, Thomas; Larsen, Britt Hvolbæk

    2008-01-01

    This tutorial review, of relevance for the surface science and heterogeneous catalysis communities, provides a molecular-level discussion of the nature of the active sites in metal catalysis. Fundamental concepts such as "Bronsted-Evans-Polanyi relations'' and "volcano curves'' are introduced...

  16. Slow light effect with high group index and wideband by saddle-like mode in PC-CROW

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wan, Yong; Jiang, Li-Jun; Xu, Sheng; Li, Meng-Xue; Liu, Meng-Nan; Jiang, Cheng-Yi; Yuan, Feng

    2018-04-01

    Slow light with high group index and wideband is achieved in photonic crystal coupled-resonator optical waveguides (PC-CROWs). According to the eye-shaped scatterers and various microcavities, saddle-like curves between the normalized frequency f and wave number k can be obtained by adjusting the parameters of the scatterers, parameters of the coupling microcavities, and positions of the scatterers. Slow light with decent flat band and group index can then be achieved by optimizing the parameters. Simulations prove that the maximal value of the group index is > 104, and the normalized delay bandwidth product within a new varying range of n g > 102 or n g > 103 can be a new and effective criterion of evaluation for the slow light in PC-CROWs.

  17. Incidence of surgical-site infections and the validity of the National Nosocomial Infections Surveillance System risk index in a general surgical ward in Santa Cruz, Bolivia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soleto, Lorena; Pirard, Marianne; Boelaert, Marleen; Peredo, Remberto; Vargas, Reinerio; Gianella, Alberto; Van der Stuyft, Patrick

    2003-01-01

    To estimate the frequency of and risk factors for surgical-site infections (SSIs) in Bolivia, and to study the performance of the National Nosocomial Infections Surveillance (NNIS) System risk index in a developing country. A prospective study with patient follow-up until the 30th postoperative day. A general surgical ward of a public hospital in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. Patients admitted to the ward between July 1998 and June 1999 on whom surgical procedures were performed. Follow-up was complete for 91.5% of 376 surgical procedures. The overall SSI rate was 12%. Thirty-four (75.6%) of the 45 SSIs were culture positive. A logistic regression model retained an American Society of Anesthesiologists score of more than 1 (odds ratio [OR], 1.87), a not-clean wound class (OR, 2.28), a procedure duration of more than 1 hour (OR, 1.81), and drain (OR, 1.98) as independent risk factors for SSI. There was no significant association between the NNIS System risk index and SSI rates. However, a "local" risk index constructed with the above cutoff points showed a linear trend with SSI (P < .001) and a relative risk of 3.18 for risk class 3 versus a class of less than 3. SSIs cause considerable morbidity in Santa Cruz. Appropriate nosocomial infection surveillance and control should be introduced. The NNIS System risk index did not discriminate between patients at low and high risk for SSI in this hospital setting, but a risk score based on local cutoff points performed substantially better.

  18. Methods of Identification and Evaluation of Brownfield Sites

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Safet Kurtović

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available The basic objective of this paper was to determine the importance and potential restoration of brownfield sites in terms of economic prosperity of a particular region or country. In addition, in a theoretical sense, this paper presents the methods used in the identification of brownfield sites such as Smart Growth Network model and Thomas GIS model, and methods for evaluation of brownfield sites or the indexing method, cost-benefit and multivariate analysis.

  19. Holomorphic curves in exploded manifolds: Kuranishi structure

    OpenAIRE

    Parker, Brett

    2013-01-01

    This paper constructs a Kuranishi structure for the moduli stack of holomorphic curves in exploded manifolds. To avoid some technicalities of abstract Kuranishi structures, we embed our Kuranishi structure inside a moduli stack of curves. The construction also works for the moduli stack of holomorphic curves in any compact symplectic manifold.

  20. Transition curves for highway geometric design

    CERN Document Server

    Kobryń, Andrzej

    2017-01-01

    This book provides concise descriptions of the various solutions of transition curves, which can be used in geometric design of roads and highways. It presents mathematical methods and curvature functions for defining transition curves. .

  1. Soil Water Retention Curve

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, L. E.; Kim, J.; Cifelli, R.; Chandra, C. V.

    2016-12-01

    Potential water retention, S, is one of parameters commonly used in hydrologic modeling for soil moisture accounting. Physically, S indicates total amount of water which can be stored in soil and is expressed in units of depth. S can be represented as a change of soil moisture content and in this context is commonly used to estimate direct runoff, especially in the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) curve number (CN) method. Generally, the lumped and the distributed hydrologic models can easily use the SCS-CN method to estimate direct runoff. Changes in potential water retention have been used in previous SCS-CN studies; however, these studies have focused on long-term hydrologic simulations where S is allowed to vary at the daily time scale. While useful for hydrologic events that span multiple days, the resolution is too coarse for short-term applications such as flash flood events where S may not recover its full potential. In this study, a new method for estimating a time-variable potential water retention at hourly time-scales is presented. The methodology is applied for the Napa River basin, California. The streamflow gage at St Helena, located in the upper reaches of the basin, is used as the control gage site to evaluate the model performance as it is has minimal influences by reservoirs and diversions. Rainfall events from 2011 to 2012 are used for estimating the event-based SCS CN to transfer to S. As a result, we have derived the potential water retention curve and it is classified into three sections depending on the relative change in S. The first is a negative slope section arising from the difference in the rate of moving water through the soil column, the second is a zero change section representing the initial recovery the potential water retention, and the third is a positive change section representing the full recovery of the potential water retention. Also, we found that the soil water moving has traffic jam within 24 hours after finished first

  2. Super-quantum curves from super-eigenvalue models

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ciosmak, Paweł [Faculty of Mathematics, Informatics and Mechanics, University of Warsaw,ul. Banacha 2, 02-097 Warsaw (Poland); Hadasz, Leszek [M. Smoluchowski Institute of Physics, Jagiellonian University,ul. Łojasiewicza 11, 30-348 Kraków (Poland); Manabe, Masahide [Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw,ul. Pasteura 5, 02-093 Warsaw (Poland); Sułkowski, Piotr [Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw,ul. Pasteura 5, 02-093 Warsaw (Poland); Walter Burke Institute for Theoretical Physics, California Institute of Technology,1200 E. California Blvd, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)

    2016-10-10

    In modern mathematical and theoretical physics various generalizations, in particular supersymmetric or quantum, of Riemann surfaces and complex algebraic curves play a prominent role. We show that such supersymmetric and quantum generalizations can be combined together, and construct supersymmetric quantum curves, or super-quantum curves for short. Our analysis is conducted in the formalism of super-eigenvalue models: we introduce β-deformed version of those models, and derive differential equations for associated α/β-deformed super-matrix integrals. We show that for a given model there exists an infinite number of such differential equations, which we identify as super-quantum curves, and which are in one-to-one correspondence with, and have the structure of, super-Virasoro singular vectors. We discuss potential applications of super-quantum curves and prospects of other generalizations.

  3. Super-quantum curves from super-eigenvalue models

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ciosmak, Paweł; Hadasz, Leszek; Manabe, Masahide; Sułkowski, Piotr

    2016-01-01

    In modern mathematical and theoretical physics various generalizations, in particular supersymmetric or quantum, of Riemann surfaces and complex algebraic curves play a prominent role. We show that such supersymmetric and quantum generalizations can be combined together, and construct supersymmetric quantum curves, or super-quantum curves for short. Our analysis is conducted in the formalism of super-eigenvalue models: we introduce β-deformed version of those models, and derive differential equations for associated α/β-deformed super-matrix integrals. We show that for a given model there exists an infinite number of such differential equations, which we identify as super-quantum curves, and which are in one-to-one correspondence with, and have the structure of, super-Virasoro singular vectors. We discuss potential applications of super-quantum curves and prospects of other generalizations.

  4. Super-quantum curves from super-eigenvalue models

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ciosmak, Paweł; Hadasz, Leszek; Manabe, Masahide; Sułkowski, Piotr

    2016-10-01

    In modern mathematical and theoretical physics various generalizations, in particular supersymmetric or quantum, of Riemann surfaces and complex algebraic curves play a prominent role. We show that such supersymmetric and quantum generalizations can be combined together, and construct supersymmetric quantum curves, or super-quantum curves for short. Our analysis is conducted in the formalism of super-eigenvalue models: we introduce β-deformed version of those models, and derive differential equations for associated α/ β-deformed super-matrix integrals. We show that for a given model there exists an infinite number of such differential equations, which we identify as super-quantum curves, and which are in one-to-one correspondence with, and have the structure of, super-Virasoro singular vectors. We discuss potential applications of super-quantum curves and prospects of other generalizations.

  5. Bragg Curve, Biological Bragg Curve and Biological Issues in Space Radiation Protection with Shielding

    Science.gov (United States)

    Honglu, Wu; Cucinotta, F.A.; Durante, M.; Lin, Z.; Rusek, A.

    2006-01-01

    The space environment consists of a varying field of radiation particles including high-energy ions, with spacecraft shielding material providing the major protection to astronauts from harmful exposure. Unlike low-LET gamma or X-rays, the presence of shielding does not always reduce the radiation risks for energetic charged particle exposure. Since the dose delivered by the charged particle increases sharply as the particle approaches the end of its range, a position known as the Bragg peak, the Bragg curve does not necessarily represent the biological damage along the particle traversal since biological effects are influenced by the track structure of both primary and secondary particles. Therefore, the biological Bragg curve is dependent on the energy and the type of the primary particle, and may vary for different biological endpoints. To achieve a Bragg curve distribution, we exposed cells to energetic heavy ions with the beam geometry parallel to a monolayer of fibroblasts. Qualitative analyses of gamma-H2AX fluorescence, a known marker of DSBs, indicated increased clustering of DNA damage before the Bragg peak, enhanced homogenous distribution at the peak, and provided visual evidence of high linear energy transfer (LET) particle traversal of cells beyond the Bragg peak. A quantitative biological response curve generated for micronuclei (MN) induction across the Bragg curve did not reveal an increased yield of MN at the location of the Bragg peak. However, the ratio of mono-to bi-nucleated cells, which indicates inhibition in cell progression, increased at the Bragg peak location. These results, along with other biological concerns, show that space radiation protection with shielding can be a complicated issue.

  6. Theoretical melting curve of caesium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Simozar, S.; Girifalco, L.A.; Pennsylvania Univ., Philadelphia

    1983-01-01

    A statistical-mechanical model is developed to account for the complex melting curve of caesium. The model assumes the existence of three different species of caesium defined by three different electronic states. On the basis of this model, the free energy of melting and the melting curve are computed up to 60 kbar, using the solid-state data and the initial slope of the fusion curve as input parameters. The calculated phase diagram agrees with experiment to within the experimental error. Other thermodynamic properties including the entropy and volume of melting were also computed, and they agree with experiment. Since the theory requires only one adjustable constant, this is taken as strong evidence that the three-species model is satisfactory for caesium. (author)

  7. Curve collection, extension of databases

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gillemot, F.

    1992-01-01

    Full text: Databases: generally calculated data only. The original measurements: diagrams. Information loss between them Expensive research eg. irradiation, aging, creep etc. Original curves should be stored for reanalysing. The format of the stored curves: a. Data in ASCII files, only numbers b. Other information in strings in a second file Same name, but different extension. Extensions shows the type of the test and the type of the file. EXAMPLES. TEN is tensile information, TED is tensile data, CHN is Charpy informations, CHD is Charpy data. Storing techniques: digitalised measurements, digitalising old curves stored on paper. Use: making catalogues, reanalysing, comparison with new data. Tools: mathematical software packages like quattro, genplot, exel, mathcad, qbasic, pascal, fortran, mathlab, grapher etc. (author)

  8. Subsurface characterization and geohydrologic site evaluation West Chestnut Ridge site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1984-01-01

    The West Chestnut Ridge Site at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory is being considered for use as a repository for low-level radioactive waste. The purposes of this study were to provide a geohydrological characterization of the site for use in pathways analysis, and to provide preliminary geotechnical recommendations that would be used for development of a site utilization plan. Subsurface conditions were investigated at twenty locations and observation wells were installed. Field testing at each location included the Standard Penetration Test and permeability tests in soil and rock. A well pumping test was ocmpleted at one site. Laboratory testing included permeability, deformability, strength and compaction tests, as well as index and physical property tests. The field investigations showed that the subsurface conditions include residual soil overlying a weathered zone of dolomite which grades into relatively unweathered dolomite at depth. The thickness of residual soil is typically 80 ft (24 m) on the ridges, but can be as little as 10 ft (3 m) in the valleys. Trench excavations to depths of 30 ft (9 m) should not present serious slope stability problems above the water table. On-site soils can be used for liners or trench backfill but these soils may require moisture conditioning to achieve required densities. 19 figures, 8 tables

  9. Application of Bimodal Master Curve Approach on KSNP RPV steel SA508 Gr. 3

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Jongmin; Kim, Minchul; Choi, Kwonjae; Lee, Bongsang

    2014-01-01

    In this paper, the standard MC approach and BMC are applied to the forging material of the KSNP RPV steel SA508 Gr. 3. A series of fracture toughness tests were conducted in the DBTT transition region, and fracture toughness specimens were extracted from four regions, i.e., the surface, 1/8T, 1/4T and 1/2T. Deterministic material inhomogeneity was reviewed through a conventional MC approach and the random inhomogeneity was evaluated by BMC. In the present paper, four regions, surface, 1/8T, 1/4T and 1/2T, were considered for the fracture toughness specimens of KSNP (Korean Standard Nuclear Plant) SA508 Gr. 3 steel to provide deterministic material inhomogeneity and review the applicability of BMC. T0 determined by a conventional MC has a low value owing to the higher quenching rate at the surface as expected. However, more than about 15% of the KJC values lay above the 95% probability curves indexed with the standard MC T0 at the surface and 1/8T, which implies the existence of inhomogeneity in the material. To review the applicability of the BMC method, the deterministic inhomogeneity owing to the extraction location and quenching rate is treated as random inhomogeneity. Although the lower bound and upper bound curve of the BMC covered more KJC values than that of the conventional MC, there is no significant relationship between the BMC analysis lines and measured KJC values in the higher toughness distribution, and BMC and MC provide almost the same T0 values. Therefore, the standard MC evaluation method for this material is appropriate even though the standard MC has a narrow upper/lower bound curve range from the RPV evaluation point of view. The material is not homogeneous in reality. Such inhomogeneity comes in the effect of material inhomogeneity depending on the specimen location, heat treatment, and whole manufacturing process. The conventional master curve has a limitation to be applied to a large scatted data of fracture toughness such as the weld region

  10. Sibling curves of quadratic polynomials | Wiggins | Quaestiones ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Sibling curves were demonstrated in [1, 2] as a novel way to visualize the zeroes of real valued functions. In [3] it was shown that a polynomial of degree n has n sibling curves. This paper focuses on the algebraic and geometric properites of the sibling curves of real and complex quadratic polynomials. Key words: Quadratic ...

  11. Retiring the Short-Run Aggregate Supply Curve

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elwood, S. Kirk

    2010-01-01

    The author argues that the aggregate demand/aggregate supply (AD/AS) model is significantly improved--although certainly not perfected--by trimming it of the short-run aggregate supply (SRAS) curve. Problems with the SRAS curve are shown first for the AD/AS model that casts the AD curve as identifying the equilibrium level of output associated…

  12. Comparison of power curve monitoring methods

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cambron Philippe

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Performance monitoring is an important aspect of operating wind farms. This can be done through the power curve monitoring (PCM of wind turbines (WT. In the past years, important work has been conducted on PCM. Various methodologies have been proposed, each one with interesting results. However, it is difficult to compare these methods because they have been developed using their respective data sets. The objective of this actual work is to compare some of the proposed PCM methods using common data sets. The metric used to compare the PCM methods is the time needed to detect a change in the power curve. Two power curve models will be covered to establish the effect the model type has on the monitoring outcomes. Each model was tested with two control charts. Other methodologies and metrics proposed in the literature for power curve monitoring such as areas under the power curve and the use of statistical copulas have also been covered. Results demonstrate that model-based PCM methods are more reliable at the detecting a performance change than other methodologies and that the effectiveness of the control chart depends on the types of shift observed.

  13. Principal Curves on Riemannian Manifolds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hauberg, Soren

    2016-09-01

    Euclidean statistics are often generalized to Riemannian manifolds by replacing straight-line interpolations with geodesic ones. While these Riemannian models are familiar-looking, they are restricted by the inflexibility of geodesics, and they rely on constructions which are optimal only in Euclidean domains. We consider extensions of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to Riemannian manifolds. Classic Riemannian approaches seek a geodesic curve passing through the mean that optimizes a criteria of interest. The requirements that the solution both is geodesic and must pass through the mean tend to imply that the methods only work well when the manifold is mostly flat within the support of the generating distribution. We argue that instead of generalizing linear Euclidean models, it is more fruitful to generalize non-linear Euclidean models. Specifically, we extend the classic Principal Curves from Hastie & Stuetzle to data residing on a complete Riemannian manifold. We show that for elliptical distributions in the tangent of spaces of constant curvature, the standard principal geodesic is a principal curve. The proposed model is simple to compute and avoids many of the pitfalls of traditional geodesic approaches. We empirically demonstrate the effectiveness of the Riemannian principal curves on several manifolds and datasets.

  14. RMS fatigue curves for random vibrations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brenneman, B.; Talley, J.G.

    1984-01-01

    Fatigue usage factors for deterministic or constant amplitude vibration stresses may be calculated with well known procedures and fatigue curves given in the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code. However, some phenomena produce nondeterministic cyclic stresses which can only be described and analyzed with statistical concepts and methods. Such stresses may be caused by turbulent fluid flow over a structure. Previous methods for solving this statistical fatigue problem are often difficult to use and may yield inaccurate results. Two such methods examined herein are Crandall's method and the ''3sigma'' method. The objective of this paper is to provide a method for creating ''RMS fatigue curves'' which accurately incorporate the requisite statistical information. These curves are given and may be used by analysts with the same ease and in the same manner as the ASME fatigue curves

  15. Spatio-temporal characteristics of the extreme precipitation by L-moment-based index-flood method in the Yangtze River Delta region, China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yin, Yixing; Chen, Haishan; Xu, Chong-Yu; Xu, Wucheng; Chen, Changchun; Sun, Shanlei

    2016-05-01

    The regionalization methods, which "trade space for time" by pooling information from different locations in the frequency analysis, are efficient tools to enhance the reliability of extreme quantile estimates. This paper aims at improving the understanding of the regional frequency of extreme precipitation by using regionalization methods, and providing scientific background and practical assistance in formulating the regional development strategies for water resources management in one of the most developed and flood-prone regions in China, the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region. To achieve the main goals, L-moment-based index-flood (LMIF) method, one of the most popular regionalization methods, is used in the regional frequency analysis of extreme precipitation with special attention paid to inter-site dependence and its influence on the accuracy of quantile estimates, which has not been considered by most of the studies using LMIF method. Extensive data screening of stationarity, serial dependence, and inter-site dependence was carried out first. The entire YRD region was then categorized into four homogeneous regions through cluster analysis and homogenous analysis. Based on goodness-of-fit statistic and L-moment ratio diagrams, generalized extreme-value (GEV) and generalized normal (GNO) distributions were identified as the best fitted distributions for most of the sub-regions, and estimated quantiles for each region were obtained. Monte Carlo simulation was used to evaluate the accuracy of the quantile estimates taking inter-site dependence into consideration. The results showed that the root-mean-square errors (RMSEs) were bigger and the 90 % error bounds were wider with inter-site dependence than those without inter-site dependence for both the regional growth curve and quantile curve. The spatial patterns of extreme precipitation with a return period of 100 years were finally obtained which indicated that there are two regions with highest precipitation

  16. Projection-based curve clustering

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Auder, Benjamin; Fischer, Aurelie

    2012-01-01

    This paper focuses on unsupervised curve classification in the context of nuclear industry. At the Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique (CEA), Cadarache (France), the thermal-hydraulic computer code CATHARE is used to study the reliability of reactor vessels. The code inputs are physical parameters and the outputs are time evolution curves of a few other physical quantities. As the CATHARE code is quite complex and CPU time-consuming, it has to be approximated by a regression model. This regression process involves a clustering step. In the present paper, the CATHARE output curves are clustered using a k-means scheme, with a projection onto a lower dimensional space. We study the properties of the empirically optimal cluster centres found by the clustering method based on projections, compared with the 'true' ones. The choice of the projection basis is discussed, and an algorithm is implemented to select the best projection basis among a library of orthonormal bases. The approach is illustrated on a simulated example and then applied to the industrial problem. (authors)

  17. Comparison of radiographic density and compaction index of root canal obturation using nickel titanium or stainless-steel spreaders

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Adel

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Background: Both nickel titanium and stainless-steel spreaders are available. The obvious advantage of nickel titanium spreader over stainless steel spreaders is greater penetration in curved canals. Objective: To compare the radiographic density and compaction index of root canal obturation using nickel-titanium or stainless-steel spreaders in curved canals. Methods: In this experimental study the primary weight of 30 acrylic blocks with 45o degrees of apical curvature were measured by a scale (W1. After canals were prepared by step back master apical up to file #30 all blocks were weighed again (W2 and randomly divided in two groups of 15each. All canals were obturated by Cold lateral compaction technique (with nickel-titanium in one group and stainless-steel finger spreaders in another group. After all blocks were reweighed (W3, compaction index (W3-W2/W1-W2 was calculated. One radiograph was taken for each sample. Apical density of the apical third of each canal was measured by digital transmission densitometer. Data were analyzed statistically using T-test. Findings: Mean compaction index for nickel-titanium group was 7.67±2.38 and for stainless-steel group was 9.14±4.06. There was no significant difference between two groups. Mean radiographic density of obturation was 2.05±0.14 in nickel-titanium group and was 2.07±0.21 in stainless-steel group. There was no significant difference between two groups. Conclusion: It is concluded that nickel-titanium spreaders are not superior than stainless-steel spreaders in obturating curved canal.

  18. An adaptive-binning method for generating constant-uncertainty/constant-significance light curves with Fermi-LAT data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lott, B.; Escande, L.; Larsson, S.; Ballet, J.

    2012-01-01

    Here, we present a method enabling the creation of constant-uncertainty/constant-significance light curves with the data of the Fermi-Large Area Telescope (LAT). The adaptive-binning method enables more information to be encapsulated within the light curve than with the fixed-binning method. Although primarily developed for blazar studies, it can be applied to any sources. Furthermore, this method allows the starting and ending times of each interval to be calculated in a simple and quick way during a first step. The reported mean flux and spectral index (assuming the spectrum is a power-law distribution) in the interval are calculated via the standard LAT analysis during a second step. In the absence of major caveats associated with this method Monte-Carlo simulations have been established. We present the performance of this method in determining duty cycles as well as power-density spectra relative to the traditional fixed-binning method.

  19. Experimental refractive index determination of the optic fiber's core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oezelsoy, S.

    2005-01-01

    In this work, the Fresnel's fundamental Law was used to be able to obtain the refractive index of the fiber optic's core. The intensity of light reflected from the boundary between two mediums was measured by the optical powermeter (Melles Griot, Universal optical powermeter). In recent technology, the light that is illuminated from the light source can be transported to the boundary region and measured with minimum loss by using the optic fibers which make the measurement more sensitively. The liquid and the optic fiber's core whose refractive indices will be measured are the two mediums and the surface of the optic fiber's core is the boundary region. By dipping the fiber optic probe to the liquids, the reflected light intensities were measured with powermeter via Silicon Detector for single mode fiber and multimode fiber respectively to obtain the refractive index of the optic fiber's core. At this work, because of the using the diode laser with 661,4 nm (FWHM) and He-Ne laser with 632,8 nm (FWHM) the refractive indices were measured at this wavelengthes with the Refractometer (Abbe 60-70, Bellingham+Stanley). If the refractive indices of two mediums are equal, the light doesn't reflect from the boundary. The graphic is drawn depend upon the refractive index of the liquids versus the back reflected light energy and from the minimum point of the curve the effective refractive index of the fiber optic's core is calculated for 661,4 nm and 780 nm

  20. Growing Degree Vegetation Production Index (GDVPI): A Novel and Data-Driven Approach to Delimit Season Cycles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Graham, W. D.; Spruce, J.; Ross, K. W.; Gasser, J.; Grulke, N.

    2014-12-01

    Growing Degree Vegetation Production Index (GDVPI) is a parametric approach to delimiting vegetation seasonal growth and decline cycles using incremental growing degree days (GDD), and NASA's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) 8-day composite cumulative integral data. We obtain a specific location's daily minimum and maximum temperatures from the nearest National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) weather stations posted on the National Climate Data Center (NCDC) Climate Data Online (CDO) archive and compute GDD. The date range for this study is January 1, 2000 through December 31, 2012. We employ a novel process, a repeating logistic product (RLP), to compensate for short-term weather variability and data drops from the recording stations and fit a curve to the median daily GDD values, adjusting for asymmetry, amplitude, and phase shift that minimize the sum of squared errors when comparing the observed and predicted GDD. The resulting curve, here referred to as the surrogate GDD, is the time-temperature phasing parameter used to convert Cartesian NDVI values into polar coordinate pairs, multiplying the NDVI values as the radial by the cosine and sine of the surrogate GDD as the angular. Depending on the vegetation type and the original NDVI curve, the polar NDVI curve may be nearly circular, kidney-shaped, or pear-shaped in the case of conifers, deciduous, or agriculture, respectively. We examine the points of tangency about the polar coordinate NDVI curve, identifying values of 1, 0, -1, or infinity, as each of these represent natural inflection points. Lines connecting the origin to each tangent point illustrate and quantify the parametrically segmentation of the growing season based on the GDD and NDVI ostensible dependency. Furthermore, the area contained by each segment represents the apparent vegetation production. A particular benefit is that the inflection points are determined

  1. Minimal families of curves on surfaces

    KAUST Repository

    Lubbes, Niels

    2014-01-01

    A minimal family of curves on an embedded surface is defined as a 1-dimensional family of rational curves of minimal degree, which cover the surface. We classify such minimal families using constructive methods. This allows us to compute the minimal

  2. Methods for predicting isochronous stress-strain curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kiyoshige, Masanori; Shimizu, Shigeki; Satoh, Keisuke.

    1976-01-01

    Isochronous stress-strain curves show the relation between stress and total strain at a certain temperature with time as a parameter, and they are drawn up from the creep test results at various stress levels at a definite temperature. The concept regarding the isochronous stress-strain curves was proposed by McVetty in 1930s, and has been used for the design of aero-engines. Recently the high temperature characteristics of materials are shown as the isochronous stress-strain curves in the design guide for the nuclear energy equipments and structures used in high temperature creep region. It is prescribed that these curves are used as the criteria for determining design stress intensity or the data for analyzing the superposed effects of creep and fatigue. In case of the isochronous stress-strain curves used for the design of nuclear energy equipments with very long service life, it is impractical to determine the curves directly from the results of long time creep test, accordingly the method of predicting long time stress-strain curves from short time creep test results must be established. The method proposed by the authors, for which the creep constitution equations taking the first and second creep stages into account are used, and the method using Larson-Miller parameter were studied, and it was found that both methods were reliable for the prediction. (Kako, I.)

  3. Rapid determination of strontium-90 in environmental samples by single Cerenkov counting using two different colour quench curves

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Torres, J.M.; Garcia, J.F.; Llaurado, M.; Rauret, G. [Barcelona Univ. (Spain). Dept. de Quimica Analitica

    1996-11-01

    The validation of the Cerenkov radiation measurement of {sup 90}Y to determine the activity concentration of {sup 90}Sr in environmental samples is described. Liquid-liquid extraction with di-2-ethyhexylphosphoric acid in toluene was used to separate {sup 90}Y from {sup 90}Sr. Optimum conditions for Cerenkov counting (low-level counting option, counting windows, mass of solution to be measured) were established. The need for a counting efficiency correction by using a colour quench curve is stated to be essential, otherwise a significant error may occur. Two different colour quench curves (counting efficiency versus the channel ratio or spectral index parameter) were used and the results were compared. The method was applied to 12 environmental matrices: sea-water, algae, carobs, milk, almonds, hake, honey, shellfish, lamb meat, sardine, pork meat and shore sand. No significant differences were observed on using either of the two colour quench curves for any of these environmental matrices. In order to validate the proposed method, a certified soil reference material (CRM IAEA-375) was used, together with participation in an interlaboratory exercise to determine {sup 90}Sr in a natural water sample. Again, efficiency correction was performed by using either of the two colour quench curves and in both instances the calculated {sup 90}Sr activity concentration was in good agreement with the known values. (Author).

  4. Interpretation of time-domain electromagnetic soundings in the Calico Hills area, Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kauahikaua, J.

    A controlled source, time domain electromagnetic (TDEM) sounding survey was conducted in the Calico Hills area of the Nevada Test Site (NTS). The geoelectric structure was determined as an aid in the evaluation of the site for possible future storage of spent nuclear fuel or high level nuclear waste. The data were initially interpreted with a simple scheme that produces an apparent resistivity versus depth curve from the vertical magnetic field data. These curves are qualitatively interpreted much like standard Schlumberger resistivity sounding curves. Final interpretation made use of a layered earth Marquardt inversion computer program. The results combined with those from a set of Schlumberger soundings in the area show that there is a moderately resistive basement at a depth no greater than 800 meters. The basement resistivity is greater than 100 ohm meters.

  5. LCC: Light Curves Classifier

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vo, Martin

    2017-08-01

    Light Curves Classifier uses data mining and machine learning to obtain and classify desired objects. This task can be accomplished by attributes of light curves or any time series, including shapes, histograms, or variograms, or by other available information about the inspected objects, such as color indices, temperatures, and abundances. After specifying features which describe the objects to be searched, the software trains on a given training sample, and can then be used for unsupervised clustering for visualizing the natural separation of the sample. The package can be also used for automatic tuning parameters of used methods (for example, number of hidden neurons or binning ratio). Trained classifiers can be used for filtering outputs from astronomical databases or data stored locally. The Light Curve Classifier can also be used for simple downloading of light curves and all available information of queried stars. It natively can connect to OgleII, OgleIII, ASAS, CoRoT, Kepler, Catalina and MACHO, and new connectors or descriptors can be implemented. In addition to direct usage of the package and command line UI, the program can be used through a web interface. Users can create jobs for ”training” methods on given objects, querying databases and filtering outputs by trained filters. Preimplemented descriptors, classifier and connectors can be picked by simple clicks and their parameters can be tuned by giving ranges of these values. All combinations are then calculated and the best one is used for creating the filter. Natural separation of the data can be visualized by unsupervised clustering.

  6. Clinical significance of the serum biomarker index detection in children with Henoch-Schonlein purpura.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Purevdorj, Narangerel; Mu, Yun; Gu, Yajun; Zheng, Fang; Wang, Ran; Yu, Jinwei; Sun, Xuguo

    2018-02-01

    To explore a panel of serum biomarkers for laboratory diagnosis of pediatric Henoch-Schönlein purpura (HSP). The blood white blood cells (WBC) and serum levels of serum amyloid A (SAA), interleukin 6 (IL-6), immunoglobulin A (IgA), immunoglobulin G (IgG), immunoglobulin M (IgM), immunoglobulin E (IgE), C-reactive protein (CRP), complement component 3 (C3), complement component 4 (C4), and ASO (anti-streptolysin O) were detected in 127 patients with Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP), 110 cases of septicemia patients, and 121 healthy volunteers. The diagnostic ability of biomarkers selected from HSP and septicemia patients was analyzed by ROC curve. By designing the calculation model, the biomarker index was calculated for laboratory diagnosis of HSP and differential diagnosis between HSP and septicemia. The levels of serum WBC, CRP, IL-6 and SAA in the septicemia patients were significantly higher than those in the control group (p<0.05). Compared with the healthy individuals, serum levels of WBC, CRP, IL-6, SAA, IgA and IgM were significantly increased in patients with HSP (p<0.05). The area under the curve (AUC) of SAA, IgA, IgM, WBC, IL-6, and CRP in the patients with HSP was 0.964, 0.855, 0.849, 0.787, 0.765, and 0.622, respectively. The values of SAA, IgA, IgM, WBC, IL-6, and CRP in septicemia patients were 0.700, 0.428, 0.689, 0.682, 0.891, and 0.853, respectively. Biomarker index=SAA+IgA/4000+IgM/4000×0.4CRPmean valueCRPi . The biomarker index in HSP patients was significantly higher than that of the healthy controls. However, the biomarker index in septicemia patients was significantly lower than the control. The biomarker index of HSP patients is higher than that of the control group. While in the infectious disease represented by septicemia, it is decreased. The detection of biomarker index could exclude the interference of infection as the auxiliary examination to HSP patients. Copyright © 2017 The Canadian Society of Clinical Chemists. Published by

  7. Disease prevalence and the index of detectability: a survey of studies of lung cancer detection by chest radiography

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kundel, Harold L.

    2000-04-01

    A survey of 12 studies of lung cancer detection with cancer prevalence ranging from 0.9 to 476 cancers per 1000 showed that the unit-slope index of detectability, d', decreased from a high value of 3.9 at low prevalence to 1.4 at high prevalence. A proposed explanation is that the readers are operating on an ROC curve with a slope that is less than unity approximating 0.6. On such a curve, a shift to more stringent criteria that occurs with decreasing prevalence in order to minimize false positives, would result in a increased unity- slope d'.

  8. Validation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Task Load Index as a tool to evaluate the learning curve for endoscopy training.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohamed, Rachid; Raman, Maitreyi; Anderson, John; McLaughlin, Kevin; Rostom, Alaa; Coderre, Sylvain

    2014-03-01

    Although workplace workload assessments exist in different fields, an endoscopy-specific workload assessment tool is lacking. To validate such a workload tool and use it to map the progression of novice trainees in gastroenterology in performing their first endoscopies. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) workload assessment tool was completed by eight novice trainees in gastroenterology and 10 practicing gastroenterologists⁄surgeons. An exploratory factor analysis was performed to construct a streamlined endoscopy-specific task load index, which was subsequently validated. The 'Endoscopy Task Load Index' was used to monitor progression of trainee exertion and self-assessed performance over their first 40 procedures. From the factor analysis of the NASA-TLX, two principal components emerged: a measure of exertion and a measure of self-efficacy. These items became the components of the newly validated Endoscopy Task Load Index. There was a steady decline in self-perceived exertion over the training period, which was more rapid for gastroscopy than colonoscopy. The self-efficacy scores for gastroscopy rapidly increased over the first few procedures, reaching a plateau after this period of time. For colonoscopy, there was a progressive increase in reported self-efficacy over the first three quartiles of procedures, followed by a drop in self-efficacy scores over the final quartile. The present study validated an Endoscopy Task Load Index that can be completed in <1 min. Practical implications of such a tool in endoscopy education include identifying periods of higher perceived exertion among novice endoscopists, facilitating appropriate levels of guidance from trainers.

  9. Comparison of wind turbines based on power curve analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1998-02-01

    In the study measured power curves for 46 wind turbines were analyzed with the purpose to establish the basis for a consistent comparison of the efficiency of the wind turbines. Emphasis is on wind turbines above 500 kW rated power, with power curves measured after 1994 according to international recommendations. The available power curves fulfilling these requirements were smoothened according to a procedure developed for the purpose in such a way that the smoothened power curves are equally representative as the measured curves. The resulting smoothened power curves are presented in a standardized format for the subsequent processing. Using wind turbine data from the power curve documentation the analysis results in curves for specific energy production (kWh/M{sup 2}/yr) versus specific rotor load (kW/M{sup 2}) for a range of mean wind speeds. On this basis generalized curves for specific annual energy production versus specific rotor load are established for a number of generalized wind turbine concepts. The 46 smoothened standardized power curves presented in the report, the procedure developed to establish them, and the results of the analysis based on them aim at providers of measured power curves as well as users of them including manufacturers, advisors and decision makers. (au)

  10. Comparison of index systems for rating water quality in intermittent rivers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perrin, Jean-Louis; Salles, Christian; Bancon-Montigny, Chrystelle; Raïs, Naoual; Chahinian, Nanée; Dowse, Lauryan; Rodier, Claire; Tournoud, Marie-George

    2018-01-08

    Water quality indexes (WQI) are a practical way to evaluate and compare the level of chemical contamination of different water bodies and to spatially and temporally compare levels of pollution. The purpose of this study was to check if these indexes are appropriate for intermittent rivers under arid and semi-arid climates. A literature review enabled the comparison of 25 water quality indexes to discern their capability to evaluate spatial (inter and intra catchment) and temporal (high and low water flow conditions) variations in water quality in three Mediterranean intermittent rivers: the River Vène (France) and the Oued Fez and the River Sebou (Morocco). Hierarchical cluster analysis identified groups of WQI with similar behavior and brought to light the 6 most distinguishing indexes. Whatever the hydrological conditions at the two sites, both the ME-MCATUHE and NCS indexes, which were developed for Morocco and Greece, and the CCMEWQI and BCWQI indexes, which were developed for non-arid or semi-arid zones, gave appropriate water quality evaluations.

  11. Algebraic curves and cryptography

    CERN Document Server

    Murty, V Kumar

    2010-01-01

    It is by now a well-known paradigm that public-key cryptosystems can be built using finite Abelian groups and that algebraic geometry provides a supply of such groups through Abelian varieties over finite fields. Of special interest are the Abelian varieties that are Jacobians of algebraic curves. All of the articles in this volume are centered on the theme of point counting and explicit arithmetic on the Jacobians of curves over finite fields. The topics covered include Schoof's \\ell-adic point counting algorithm, the p-adic algorithms of Kedlaya and Denef-Vercauteren, explicit arithmetic on

  12. Statistics from dynamics in curved spacetime

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Parker, L.; Wang, Y.

    1989-01-01

    We consider quantum fields of spin 0, 1/2, 1, 3/2, and 2 with a nonzero mass in curved spacetime. We show that the dynamical Bogolubov transformations associated with gravitationally induced particle creation imply the connection between spin and statistics: By embedding two flat regions in a curved spacetime, we find that only when one imposes Bose-Einstein statistics for an integer-spin field and Fermi-Dirac statistics for a half-integer-spin field in the first flat region is the same type of statistics propagated from the first to the second flat region. This derivation of the flat-spacetime spin-statistics theorem makes use of curved-spacetime dynamics and does not reduce to any proof given in flat spacetime. We also show in the same manner that parastatistics, up to the fourth order, are consistent with the dynamical evolution of curved spacetime

  13. Using reefcheck monitoring database to develop the coral reef index of biological integrity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nguyen, Hai Yen T.; Pedersen, Ole; Ikejima, Kou

    2009-01-01

    The coral reef indices of biological integrity was constituted based on the reef check monitoring data. Seventy six minimally disturbed sites and 72 maximallv disturbed sites in shallow water and 39 minimally disturbed sites and 37 maximally disturbed sites in deep water were classified based...... on the high-end and low-end percentages and ratios of hard coral, dead coral and fieshy algae. A total of 52 candidate metrics was identified and compiled, Eight and four metrics were finally selected to constitute the shallow and deep water coral reef indices respectively. The rating curve was applied.......05) and coral damaged by other factors -0.283 (pcoral reef indices were sensitive responses to stressors and can be capable to use as the coral reef biological monitoring tool....

  14. DNFSB Recommendation 94-1 Hanford Site Integrated Stabilization Management Plan. Volume 2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gerber, E.W.

    1995-10-01

    The Hanford Site Integrated Stabilization Management Plan (SISMP) was developed in support of the US Department of Energy's (DOE) Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) Recommendation 94-1 Integrated Program Plan (IPP). Volume 1 of the SISMP identifies the technical scope and costs associated with Hanford Site plans to resolve concerns identified in DNFSB Recommendation 94-1. Volume 2 of the SISMP provides the Resource Loaded Integrated Schedules for Spent Nuclear Fuel Project and Plutonium Finishing Plant activities identified in Volume 1 of the SISMP. Appendix A provides the schedules and progress curves related to spent nuclear fuel management. Appendix B provides the schedules and progress curves related to plutonium-bearing material management. Appendix C provides programmatic logic diagrams that were referenced in Volume 1 of the SISMP

  15. Environmental bias and elastic curves on surfaces

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guven, Jemal; María Valencia, Dulce; Vázquez-Montejo, Pablo

    2014-01-01

    The behavior of an elastic curve bound to a surface will reflect the geometry of its environment. This may occur in an obvious way: the curve may deform freely along directions tangent to the surface, but not along the surface normal. However, even if the energy itself is symmetric in the curve's geodesic and normal curvatures, which control these modes, very distinct roles are played by the two. If the elastic curve binds preferentially on one side, or is itself assembled on the surface, not only would one expect the bending moduli associated with the two modes to differ, binding along specific directions, reflected in spontaneous values of these curvatures, may be favored. The shape equations describing the equilibrium states of a surface curve described by an elastic energy accommodating environmental factors will be identified by adapting the method of Lagrange multipliers to the Darboux frame associated with the curve. The forces transmitted to the surface along the surface normal will be determined. Features associated with a number of different energies, both of physical relevance and of mathematical interest, are described. The conservation laws associated with trajectories on surface geometries exhibiting continuous symmetries are also examined. (paper)

  16. Prognostic classification index in Iranian colorectal cancer patients: Survival tree analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amal Saki Malehi

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Aims: The aim of this study was to determine the prognostic index for separating homogenous subgroups in colorectal cancer (CRC patients based on clinicopathological characteristics using survival tree analysis. Methods: The current study was conducted at the Research Center of Gastroenterology and Liver Disease, Shahid Beheshti Medical University in Tehran, between January 2004 and January 2009. A total of 739 patients who already have been diagnosed with CRC based on pathologic report were enrolled. The data included demographic and clinical-pathological characteristic of patients. Tree-structured survival analysis based on a recursive partitioning algorithm was implemented to evaluate prognostic factors. The probability curves were calculated according to the Kaplan-Meier method, and the hazard ratio was estimated as an interest effect size. Result: There were 526 males (71.2% of these patients. The mean survival time (from diagnosis time was 42.46± (3.4. Survival tree identified three variables as main prognostic factors and based on their four prognostic subgroups was constructed. The log-rank test showed good separation of survival curves. Patients with Stage I-IIIA and treated with surgery as the first treatment showed low risk (median = 34 months whereas patients with stage IIIB, IV, and more than 68 years have the worse survival outcome (median = 9.5 months. Conclusion: Constructing the prognostic classification index via survival tree can aid the researchers to assess interaction between clinical variables and determining the cumulative effect of these variables on survival outcome.

  17. Estimates of evapotranspiration for riparian sites (Eucalyptus) in the Lower Murray -Darling Basin using ground validated sap flow and vegetation index scaling techniques

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doody, T.; Nagler, P. L.; Glenn, E. P.

    2014-12-01

    Water accounting is becoming critical globally, and balancing consumptive water demands with environmental water requirements is especially difficult in in arid and semi-arid regions. Within the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB) in Australia, riparian water use has not been assessed across broad scales. This study therefore aimed to apply and validate an existing U.S. riparian ecosystem evapotranspiration (ET) algorithm for the MDB river systems to assist water resource managers to quantify environmental water needs over wide ranges of niche conditions. Ground-based sap flow ET was correlated with remotely sensed predictions of ET, to provide a method to scale annual rates of water consumption by riparian vegetation over entire irrigation districts. Sap flux was measured at nine locations on the Murrumbidgee River between July 2011 and June 2012. Remotely sensed ET was calculated using a combination of local meteorological estimates of potential ET (ETo) and rainfall and MODIS Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) from selected 250 m resolution pixels. The sap flow data correlated well with MODIS EVI. Sap flow ranged from 0.81 mm/day to 3.60 mm/day and corresponded to a MODIS-based ET range of 1.43 mm/day to 2.42 mm/day. We found that mean ET across sites could be predicted by EVI-ETo methods with a standard error of about 20% across sites, but that ET at any given site could vary much more due to differences in aquifer and soil properties among sites. Water use was within range of that expected. We conclude that our algorithm developed for US arid land crops and riparian plants is applicable to this region of Australia. Future work includes the development of an adjusted algorithm using these sap flow validated results.

  18. Methodology to evaluate the site standard seismic motion for a nuclear facility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Soares, W.A.

    1983-03-01

    An overall view of the subjects involved in the determination of the site standard seismic motion to a nuclear facility is presented. The main topics discussed are: basic priciples of seismic instrumentation; dynamic and spectral concepts; design earthquakes definitions; fundamentals of seismology; empirical curves developed from prior seismic data; avalable methodologies and recommended procedures to evaluate the site standard seismic motion. (E.G.) [pt

  19. Modelling curves of manufacturing feasibilities and demand

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Soloninko K.S.

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The authors research the issue of functional properties of curves of manufacturing feasibilities and demand. Settlement of the problem, and its connection with important scientific and practical tasks. According to its nature, the market economy is unstable and is in constant movement. Economy has an effective instrument for explanation of changes in economic environment; this tool is called the modelling of economic processes. The modelling of economic processes depends first and foremost on the building of economic model which is the base for the formalization of economic process, that is, the building of mathematical model. The effective means for formalization of economic process is the creation of the model of hypothetic or imaginary economy. The building of demand model is significant for the market of goods and services. The problem includes the receiving (as the result of modelling definite functional properties of curves of manufacturing feasibilities and demand according to which one can determine their mathematical model. Another problem lies in obtaining majorant properties of curves of joint demand on the market of goods and services. Analysis of the latest researches and publications. Many domestic and foreign scientists dedicated their studies to the researches and building of the models of curves of manufacturing feasibilities and demand. In spite of considerable work of the scientists, such problems as functional properties of the curves and their practical use in modelling. The purpose of the article is to describe functional properties of curves of manufacturing feasibilities and demand on the market of goods and services on the base of modelling of their building. Scientific novelty and practical value. The theoretical regulations (for functional properties of curves of manufacturing feasibilities and demand received as a result of the present research, that is convexity, give extra practical possibilities in a microeconomic

  20. Reflected Light Curves of Extrasolar Planets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Green, D.; Matthews, J.; Kuschnig, R.; Seager, S.

    The planned launches of ultra-precise photometric satellites such as MOST, COROT and MONS should provide the first opportunity to study the reflected light curves from extrasolar planets. To predict the capabilities of these missions, we have constructed a series of models of such light curves, improving upon the Monte Carlo simulations by Seager et al. (2000). These models include more realistic features such limb darkening of the star and broad band photometry. For specific models, the resulting planet light curves exhibit unique behavior with the variation of radius, inclination and presence or absence of clouds.

  1. Growth curves for twins in Slovenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bricelj, Katja; Blickstein, Isaac; Bržan-Šimenc, Gabrijela; Janša, Vid; Lučovnik, Miha; Verdenik, Ivan; Trojner-Bregar, Andreja; Tul, Nataša

    2017-02-01

    Abnormalities of fetal growth are more common in twins. We introduce the growth curves for monitoring fetal growth in twin pregnancies in Slovenia. Slovenian National Perinatal Information System for the period between 2002 and 2010 was used to calculate birth weight percentiles for all live born twins for each week from 22nd to 40th week. The calculated percentiles of birth weight for all live-born twins in Slovenia served as the basis for drawing 'growth' curves. The calculated growth curves for twins will help accurately diagnose small or large twin fetuses for their gestational age in the native central European population.

  2. Developing index maps of water-harvest potential in Africa

    Science.gov (United States)

    Senay, G.B.; Verdin, J.P.

    2004-01-01

    The food security problem in Africa is tied to the small farmer, whose subsistence farming relies heavily on rain-fed agriculture. A dry spell lasting two to three weeks can cause a significant yield reduction. A small-scale irrigation scheme from small-capacity ponds can alleviate this problem. This solution would require a water harvest mechanism at a farm level. In this study, we looked at the feasibility of implementing such a water harvest mechanism in drought prone parts of Africa. A water balance study was conducted at different watershed levels. Runoff (watershed yield) was estimated using the SCS curve number technique and satellite derived rainfall estimates (RFE). Watersheds were delineated from the Africa-wide HYDRO-1K digital elevation model (DEM) data set in a GIS environment. Annual runoff volumes that can potentially be stored in a pond during storm events were estimated as the product of the watershed area and runoff excess estimated from the SCS Curve Number method. Estimates were made for seepage and net evaporation losses. A series of water harvest index maps were developed based on a combination of factors that took into account the availability of runoff, evaporation losses, population density, and the required watershed size needed to fill a small storage reservoir that can be used to alleviate water stress during a crop growing season. This study presents Africa-wide water-harvest index maps that could be used for conducting feasibility studies at a regional scale in assessing the relative differences in runoff potential between regions for the possibility of using ponds as a water management tool. ?? 2004 American Society of Agricultural Engineers.

  3. Application of Artificial Neural Networks for estimating index floods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Šimor, Viliam; Hlavčová, Kamila; Kohnová, Silvia; Szolgay, Ján

    2012-12-01

    This article presents an application of Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) and multiple regression models for estimating mean annual maximum discharge (index flood) at ungauged sites. Both approaches were tested for 145 small basins in Slovakia in areas ranging from 20 to 300 km2. Using the objective clustering method, the catchments were divided into ten homogeneous pooling groups; for each pooling group, mutually independent predictors (catchment characteristics) were selected for both models. The neural network was applied as a simple multilayer perceptron with one hidden layer and with a back propagation learning algorithm. Hyperbolic tangents were used as an activation function in the hidden layer. Estimating index floods by the multiple regression models were based on deriving relationships between the index floods and catchment predictors. The efficiencies of both approaches were tested by the Nash-Sutcliffe and a correlation coefficients. The results showed the comparative applicability of both models with slightly better results for the index floods achieved using the ANNs methodology.

  4. Laws governing the energy conversion of ionization curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gorgoskii, V.I.

    1986-01-01

    The author attempts to determine if ionization curves are structured or smooth, the cause of the smoothing of the curves, the possibility of the curves having maxima and why, how many maxima are on the ionization curve, and which of these maxima is the fundamental maxima. The study shows that ionization curves without and additional maximum, i.e., with one fundamental maximum, can be obtained for potassium, rubidium, and cesium. This requires reduction of the density of the electrons in the stream and the density of the atoms of the target gas. It is also shown that in order to obtain ionization curves with additional maxima in the cases of neon, argon, and krypton, the measurements must be carried out at high densities of the electrons in the stream and of the atoms of the target gas

  5. An Alternate Light Curve Solution of AR Lacertae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hong Suh Park

    1984-09-01

    Full Text Available Photoelectric UBV light curves of AR Lacertae made in one season during 1981-82 are presented. Although the shape of the light curves in the outside eclipses show a strong distortion, the scatter of observations as well as phase coverage are better than those previously available. Fourier coefficients are derived from the V-light curve and observed curve successfully rectified to the Russell model. Light curve solutions are computed and the geometrical and physical parameters of AR Lac are derived as as = 0.812, ag = 0.341, j = 86°3, Ls = 0.372, Lg = 0.628, k = 0.53, Xs = 0.85, Xg = 0.4.

  6. Stormwater Pollutant Process Analysis with Long-Term Online Monitoring Data at Micro-Scale Sites

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dominik Leutnant

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Stormwater runoff quality was measured with online turbidity sensors at four common types of small urban subcatchments: (i a flat roof; (ii a parking lot; (iii a residential catchment; and (iv a high-traffic street. Samples were taken to estimate site-specific correlations between total suspended solids (TSS and turbidity. Continuous TSS time series were derived from online turbidity measurements and were used to estimate event loads and event mean concentrations. Rainfall runoff event characteristics were subjected to correlation analysis to TSS loads. Significant correlations were found for rainfall intensities at sites with high imperviousness and decrease with increasing catchment size. Antecedent dry weather periods are only correlated at the parking lot site. Intra-event TSS load distributions were studied with M (V-curves. M (V-curves are grouped at runoff quantiles and statistically described with boxplots. All sites show, in general, a more pronounced first-flush effect. While wash-off of the flat roof tends to be source-limited, the parking lot and high-traffic street sites show a more transport-limited behavior. Wash-off process of the residential catchment appears to be influenced by a composition of different subcatchments.

  7. Assimilation of Soil Wetness Index and Leaf Area Index into the ISBA-A-gs land surface model: grassland case study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. L. Barbu

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available The performance of the joint assimilation in a land surface model of a Soil Wetness Index (SWI product provided by an exponential filter together with Leaf Area Index (LAI is investigated. The data assimilation is evaluated with different setups using the SURFEX modeling platform, for a period of seven years (2001–2007, at the SMOSREX grassland site in southwestern France. The results obtained with a Simplified Extended Kalman Filter demonstrate the effectiveness of a joint data assimilation scheme when both SWI and Leaf Area Index are merged into the ISBA-A-gs land surface model. The assimilation of a retrieved Soil Wetness Index product presents several challenges that are investigated in this study. A significant improvement of around 13 % of the root-zone soil water content is obtained by assimilating dimensionless root-zone SWI data. For comparison, the assimilation of in situ surface soil moisture is considered as well. A lower impact on the root zone is noticed. Under specific conditions, the transfer of the information from the surface to the root zone was found not accurate. Also, our results indicate that the assimilation of in situ LAI data may correct a number of deficiencies in the model, such as low LAI values in the senescence phase by using a seasonal-dependent error definition for background and observations. In order to verify the specification of the errors for SWI and LAI products, a posteriori diagnostics are employed. This approach highlights the importance of the assimilation design on the quality of the analysis. The impact of data assimilation scheme on CO2 fluxes is also quantified by using measurements of net CO2 fluxes gathered at the SMOSREX site from 2005 to 2007. An improvement of about 5 % in terms of rms error is obtained.

  8. A new plan quality index for nasopharyngeal cancer SIB IMRT.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jin, X; Yi, J; Zhou, Y; Yan, H; Han, C; Xie, C

    2014-02-01

    A new plan quality index integrating dosimetric and radiobiological indices was proposed to facilitate the evaluation and comparison of simultaneous integrated boost (SIB) intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) plans for nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) patients. Ten NPC patients treated by SIB-IMRT were enrolled in the study. Custom software was developed to read dose-volume histogram (DVH) curves from the treatment planning system (TPS). A plan filtering matrix was introduced to filter plans that fail to satisfy treatment protocol. Target plan quality indices and organ at risk (OAR) plan quality indices were calculated for qualified plans. A unique composite plan quality index (CPQI) was proposed based on the relative weight of these indices to evaluate and compare competing plans. Plan ranking results were compared with detailed statistical analysis, radiation oncology quality system (ROQS) scoring results and physician's evaluation results to verify the accuracy of this new plan quality index. The average CPQI values for plans with OAR priority of low, normal, high, and PTV only were 0.22 ± 0.08, 0.49 ± 0.077, 0.71 ± 0.062, and -0.21 ± 0.16, respectively. There were significant differences among these plan quality indices (One-way ANOVA test, p plans were selected. Plan filtering matrix was able to speed up the plan evaluation process. The new matrix plan quality index CPQI showed good consistence with physician ranking results. It is a promising index for NPC SIB-IMRT plan evaluation. Copyright © 2013 Associazione Italiana di Fisica Medica. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Learning curves in energy planning models

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Barreto, L; Kypreos, S [Paul Scherrer Inst. (PSI), Villigen (Switzerland)

    1999-08-01

    This study describes the endogenous representation of investment cost learning curves into the MARKAL energy planning model. A piece-wise representation of the learning curves is implemented using Mixed Integer Programming. The approach is briefly described and some results are presented. (author) 3 figs., 5 refs.

  10. Migration and the Wage-Settings Curve

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brücker, Herbert; Jahn, Elke

    Germany on basis of a wage-setting curve. The wage-setting curve relies on the assumption that wages respond to a hange in the unemployment rate, albeit imperfectly. This allows one to derive the wage and employment effects of migration simultaneously in a general equilibrium framework. Using...

  11. Deep-learnt classification of light curves

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mahabal, Ashish; Gieseke, Fabian; Pai, Akshay Sadananda Uppinakudru

    2017-01-01

    Astronomy light curves are sparse, gappy, and heteroscedastic. As a result standard time series methods regularly used for financial and similar datasets are of little help and astronomers are usually left to their own instruments and techniques to classify light curves. A common approach is to d...

  12. Symmetry Properties of Potentiometric Titration Curves.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macca, Carlo; Bombi, G. Giorgio

    1983-01-01

    Demonstrates how the symmetry properties of titration curves can be efficiently and rigorously treated by means of a simple method, assisted by the use of logarithmic diagrams. Discusses the symmetry properties of several typical titration curves, comparing the graphical approach and an explicit mathematical treatment. (Author/JM)

  13. Laffer Curves and Home Production

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kotamäki Mauri

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available In the earlier related literature, consumption tax rate Laffer curve is found to be strictly increasing (see Trabandt and Uhlig (2011. In this paper, a general equilibrium macro model is augmented by introducing a substitute for private consumption in the form of home production. The introduction of home production brings about an additional margin of adjustment – an increase in consumption tax rate not only decreases labor supply and reduces the consumption tax base but also allows a substitution of market goods with home-produced goods. The main objective of this paper is to show that, after the introduction of home production, the consumption tax Laffer curve exhibits an inverse U-shape. Also the income tax Laffer curves are significantly altered. The result shown in this paper casts doubt on some of the earlier results in the literature.

  14. An Index of Biotic Integrity for shallow streams of the Hondo River basin, Yucatan Peninsula

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schmitter-Soto, Juan J.; Ruiz-Cauich, Lissie E.; Herrera, Roberto L.; Gonzalez-Solis, David

    2011-01-01

    An Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) is proposed, based on the fish communities and populations in streams of the Hondo River basin, Mexico-Belize. Freshwater environments in this area are threatened by exotic fishes, eutrophication, and pesticide pollution, among other problems. This IBI should allow to identify the most vulnerable sites and eventually guide rehabilitation efforts. Data on composition, structure, and function of fish communities were evaluated. Twenty-three sites in the Mexican part of the basin were explored; a stratified sample of 13 sites was used to design the IBI, and the rest were used to test and refine the index. Thirty-four candidate indicator metrics were scanned for their correlation with an index of water and habitat quality (IWHQ), as well as for the possible influence of stream width and altitude or distance to the Hondo River mainstem. Twelve variables were selected to constitute the IBI: relative abundances of Astyanax aeneus, 'Cichlasoma' urophthalmus, Poecilia mexicana, Poecilia sp. (a new species, probably endemic to the upper Hondo River basin), Xiphophorus hellerii, and X. maculatus; relative abundances of bentholimnetic, herbivore, and sensitive species; percentage of native and tolerant species; and Pielou's evenness index. Most of the sites have a low-medium quality and integrity, showing impact due to partial channelization or to suboptimal water quality, reflected in scarcity or absence of sensitive species, frequent excess of tolerant species, occasional presence of exotics, dominance of herbivores (perhaps due to proliferation of filamentous algae), or dominance of the opportunistic species P. mexicana. The streams with better water and habitat quality are those farthest away from the river mainstem, probably because of lower human population and economical production. - Research Highlights: → An Index of Biotic Integrity based on fishes is proposed for streams of the Hondo River basin. → Twelve variables were

  15. a new approach of Analysing GRB light curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Varga, B.; Horvath, I.

    2005-01-01

    We estimated the T xx quantiles of the cumulative GRB light curves using our recalculated background. The basic information of the light curves was extracted by multivariate statistical methods. The possible classes of the light curves are also briefly discussed

  16. Soil-Water Repellency Characteristic Curves for Soil Profiles with Organic Carbon Gradients

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wijewardana, Nadeeka Senani; Muller, Karin; Moldrup, Per

    2016-01-01

    Soil water repellency (SWR) of soils is a property with significant consequences for agricultural water management, water infiltration, contaminant transport, and for soil erosion. It is caused by the presence of hydrophobic agents on mineral grain surfaces. Soils were samples in different depths......, and the sessile drop method (SDM). The aim to (i) compare the methods, (ii) characterize the soil-water repellency characteristic curves (SWRCC) being SWR as a function of the volumetric soil-water content (θ) or matric potential (ψ), and (iii) find relationships between SWRCC parameters and SOC content. The WDPT...... at three forest sites in Japan and three pasture sites in New Zealand, covering soil organic carbon (SOC) contents between 1 and 26%. The SWR was measured over a range of water contents by three common methods; the water drop penetration time (WDPT) test, the molarity of an ethanol droplet (MED) method...

  17. The South Carolina bridge-scour envelope curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benedict, Stephen T.; Feaster, Toby D.; Caldwell, Andral W.

    2016-09-30

    The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the South Carolina Department of Transportation, conducted a series of three field investigations to evaluate historical, riverine bridge scour in the Piedmont and Coastal Plain regions of South Carolina. These investigations included data collected at 231 riverine bridges, which lead to the development of bridge-scour envelope curves for clear-water and live-bed components of scour. The application and limitations of the South Carolina bridge-scour envelope curves were documented in four reports, each report addressing selected components of bridge scour. The current investigation (2016) synthesizes the findings of these previous reports into a guidance manual providing an integrated procedure for applying the envelope curves. Additionally, the investigation provides limited verification for selected bridge-scour envelope curves by comparing them to field data collected outside of South Carolina from previously published sources. Although the bridge-scour envelope curves have limitations, they are useful supplementary tools for assessing the potential for scour at riverine bridges in South Carolina.

  18. Automorphisms of double coverings of curves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Torres, F.

    1994-11-01

    We study automorphisms of curves that commute with each other. We prove that the order and the number of fixed points of one of them satisfy certain relations involving those of the other. Then, we specialize our results to the case of double coverings of curves. For instance, if the genus of the curve is at least 4γ + 2 and γ >= 1 (γ = the genus of the covered curve) we prove that the order of an automorphism is bounded above by 2γ + 1 (resp. 4γ + 2) provided it is prime (resp. it has at least five fixed points). We also improve Farkas' bound on the number of fixed points namely 4γ + 4 by showing that it involves the order of the automorphism except in the case of even order when such an improvement is obtained provided the automorphism and the γ-involution has at least one common fixed point. (author). 15 refs

  19. PEDIATRIC VISCERAL ADIPOSITY INDEX ADAPTATION CORRELATES WITH HOMA-IR, MATSUDA, AND TRANSAMINASES.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hernández, María José Garcés; Klünder, Miguel; Nieto, Nayely Garibay; Alvarenga, Juan Carlos López; Gil, Jenny Vilchis; Huerta, Samuel Flores; Siccha, Rosa Quispe; Hernandez, Joselin

    2018-03-01

    Visceral adiposity index (VAI) is a mathematical model associated with cardiometabolic risk in adults, but studies on children failed to support this association. Our group has proposed a pediatric VAI model using pediatric ranges, but it has not yet been evaluated and needs further adjustments. The objective of this study was to further adjust the proposed pediatric VAI by age, creating a new pediatric metabolic index (PMI), and assess the correlation of the PMI with insulin resistance indexes and hepatic enzymes. A cross-sectional design with data from 396 children (age 5 to 17 years) was analyzed with a generalized linear model to find the coefficients for triglycerides, high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol, and waist circumference-body mass index quotient. The model was constructed according to sex and age and designated PMI. A cross-validation analysis was performed and a receiver operating characteristic curve was used to determine cut-off points. Significant moderate correlation was found between PMI and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) ( r = 0.452; P = .003), Matsuda ( r = -0.366; P = .019), alanine aminotransferase ( r = 0.315, P = .045), and γ-glutamyltransferase ( r = 0.397; P = .010). A PMI score >1.7 was considered as risk. PMI correlates with HOMA-IR, Matsuda, and hepatic enzymes. It could be helpful for identifying children at risk for cardiometabolic diseases. ALT = alanine transaminase BMI = body mass index GGT = γ-glutamyltransferase HDL-C = high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol HOMA-IR = homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance hs-CRP = high sensitivity C-reactive protein ISI = insulin sensitivity index NAFLD = nonalcoholic fatty liver disease PMI = pediatric metabolic index QUICKI = quantitative insulin sensitivity check index ROC = receiver operating characteristic TG = triglyceride TNF-α = tumor necrosis factor-alpha VAI = visceral adiposity index VAT = visceral adipose tissue WC = waist circumference.

  20. Dynamic renal transplant imaging with /sup 99m/Tc DTPA (Sn) supplemented by a transplant perfusion index in the management of renal transplants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hilson, A.J.W.; Maisey, M.N.; Brown, C.B.; Ogg, C.S.; Bewick, M.S.

    1978-01-01

    We have performed 955 studies on 152 patients with 167 renal transplants. Images were recorded following bolus injection of 12 to 15 mCi Tc-99m DTPA (Sn). The data were stored on a computer and analyzed by generation of region-of-interest curves from (a) the iliac artery distal to the transplant, (b) the kidney, and (c) a background area. A perfusion index was adopted: arterial counts per cell, integrated to peak/concurrent renal counts per cell x 100. In 276 studies the patient clearly had acute tubular necrosis (ATN), rejection, or a normal kidney on retrospective analysis. The normal perfusion index has a value below 150, and it increases with falling perfusion, such as is seen in rejection and in renal-artery stenosis. The use of this index in addition to sequential images and changes in the region-of-interest curves usually allows separation of rejection from ATN and, particularly, rejection from normals. When serial studies are performed, the separation of rejecting from nonrejecting transplants is excellent, although renal-artery stenosis may cause similar changes in perfusion