Vehicular sources in acoustic propagation experiments

One of the most important uses of acoustic propagation models lies in the area of detection and tracking of vehicles. Propagation models are used to compute transmission losses in performance prediction models and to analyze the results of past experiments. Vehicles can also provide the means for cost effective experiments to measure acoustic propagation conditions over significant ranges. In order to properly correlate the information provided by the experimental data and the propagation models, the following issues must be taken into consideration: the phenomenology of the vehicle noise sources must be understood and characterized; the vehicle's location or 'ground truth' must be accurately reproduced and synchronized with the acoustic data; and sufficient meteorological data must be collected to support the requirements of the propagation models. The experimental procedures and instrumentation needed to carry out propagation experiments are discussed. Illustrative results are presented for two cases. First, a helicopter was used to measure propagation losses at a range of 1 to 10 Km. Second, a heavy diesel-powered vehicle was used to measure propagation losses in the 300 to 2200 m range

Strain Gradient Modification of the Mori-Tanaka Model to Predict the Elastic Properties of the Layer by Layer (LBL)Manufactured Polymer/Clay Nanocomposites

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/83580/1/AIAA-2010-2813-592.pd

Chá de quebra pedra e extração da tinta do jenipapo para o ensino de química

Entender a realidade e a aplicação dos conteúdos de química é de extrema importância para o processo de ensino-aprendizagem. Esse relato visa descrever a experiência adquirida na aproximação dos alunos de química através de sua cultura tradicional, aplicando palestra e atividade lúdica. Foi realizada uma pequena palestra com intuito de aplicar o conhecimento de oxidação utilizando exemplo de receitas tradicionais e atividades dinâmicas, assim aproximando o aluno da química através de cultura regional. Essas atividades foram aplicadas em uma visita técnica dos estudantes do 2º ano do Ensino Médio do Instituto Federal do Amazonas (IFAM). Na palestra abordou-se o assunto de oxidação aplicando as receitas tradicionais como o Chá de quebra pedra e a extração da tinta do jenipapo. Posteriormente foi aplicado uma atividade denominada “Queimada oxidativa”, onde os participantes utilizaram a adaptação de um jogo comumente usado no município e que os alunos que eram acertados pela bola precisavam responder perguntas sobre o processo de oxidação envolvido nas atividades teóricas. Foi aplicado com sucesso essas atividades onde pôde ser observada a satisfação dos alunos, havendo uma grande interação com os palestrantes. Verificou-se uma rica experiência adquirida tanto para os acadêmicos do ISB quanto para os alunos do IFAM, que fizeram muito elogios pelos métodos diferenciados de ensinar. Foi concluído que relacionar o ensino de química com a vida em si do aluno, como sua cultura, facilitou a aprendizagem, aproximando e construindo uma relação mais interessante entre o ensino de química e a aplicação do cotidiano dos conteúdo

Resolving the neural circuits of anxiety

Although anxiety disorders represent a major societal problem demanding new therapeutic targets, these efforts have languished in the absence of a mechanistic understanding of this subjective emotional state. While it is impossible to know with certainty the subjective experience of a rodent, rodent models hold promise in dissecting well-conserved limbic circuits. The application of modern approaches in neuroscience has already begun to unmask the neural circuit intricacies underlying anxiety by allowing direct examination of hypotheses drawn from existing psychological concepts. This information points toward an updated conceptual model for what neural circuit perturbations could give rise to pathological anxiety and thereby provides a roadmap for future therapeutic development.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (U.S.) (NIH Director’s New Innovator Award DP2-DK-102256-01)National Institute of Mental Health (U.S.) (NIH) R01-MH102441-01)JPB Foundatio

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

A Protocol for a Pan-Canadian Prospective Observational Study on Active Surveillance or Surgery for Very Low Risk Papillary Thyroid Cancer

BackgroundThe traditional management of papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) is thyroidectomy (total or partial removal of the thyroid). Active surveillance (AS) may be considered as an alternative option for small, low risk PTC. AS involves close follow-up (including regularly scheduled clinical and radiological assessments), with the intention of intervening with surgery for disease progression or patient preference.MethodsThis is a protocol for a prospective, observational, long-term follow-up multi-centre Canadian cohort study. Consenting eligible adults with small, low risk PTC (< 2cm in maximal diameter, confined to the thyroid, and not immediately adjacent to critical structures in the neck) are offered the choice of AS or surgery for management of PTC. Patient participants are free to choose either option (AS or surgery) and the disease management course is thus not assigned by the investigators. Surgery is provided as usual care by a surgeon in an institution of the patient’s choice. Our primary objective is to determine the rate of ‘failure’ of disease management in respective AS and surgical arms as defined by: i) AS arm – surgery for progression of PTC, and ii) surgical arm - surgery or other treatment for disease persistence or progression after completing initial treatment. Secondary outcomes include long-term thyroid oncologic and treatment outcomes, as well as patient-reported outcomes.DiscussionThe results from this study will provide long-term clinical and patient reported outcome evidence regarding active surveillance or immediate surgery for management of small, low risk PTC. This will inform future clinical trials in disease management of small, low risk papillary thyroid cancer.Registration detailsThis prospective observational cohort study is registered on clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04624477), but it should not be considered a clinical trial as there is no assigned intervention and patients are free to choose either AS or surgery