Acoustic signature of flow instabilities in radial compressors

Rotating stall and surge are flow instabilities contributing to the acoustic noise generated in centrifugal compressors at low mass flow rates. Their acoustic generation mechanisms are exposed employing compressible Large Eddy Sim- ulations (LES). The LES data are used for calculating the dominant acoustic sources emerging at low mass flow rates. They give the inhomogeneous char- acter of the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings (FW-H) wave equation. The blade loading term associated with the unsteady pressure loads developed on solid surfaces (dipole in character) is found to be the major contributor to the aerodynamically generated noise at low mass flow rates. The acoustic source due to the velocity variations and compressibility effects (quadrupole in character) as well as the acoustic source caused by the displacement of the fluid due to the accelerations of the solid surfaces (monopole in character) were found to be not as dominant. We show that the acoustic source associated with surge is generated by the pressure oscillation, which is governed by the tip leakage flow. The vortical structures of rotating stall are interacting with the impeller. These manipulate the flow incidence angles and cause thereby unsteady blade loading towards the discharge. A low-pressure sink between 4 and 6 o’clock causes a halving of the perturbation frequencies at low mass flow rates operat- ing conditions. From two point space-time cross correlation analysis based on circumferential velocity in the diffuser it was found that the rotating stall cell propagation speed increases locally in the low pressure zone under the volute tongue. It was also found that rotating stall can coexist with surge operat- ing condition, but the feature is then seen to operate over a broader frequency interval

Left ventricular geometric patterns and adaptations to hemodynamics are similar in elderly men and women

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Common conditions such as obesity and hypertension result in hemodynamic alterations that will induce remodeling of the left ventricle (LV). However, differences between the genders in the relationship of hemodynamics to LV geometry are not well known.</p> <p>The present study aims to investigate differences between the genders in this respect, in a sample of elderly persons.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Echocardiography and Doppler was performed in a population-based sample aged 70 - The Prospective Investigation of the Vasculature in Uppsala Seniors (PIVUS) study (n = 922).</p> <p>Hemodynamic patterns obtained by echocardiography and Doppler were evaluated in relation to four LV geometric groups (normal, concentric remodeling, eccentric hypertrophy and concentric hypertrophy).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>No significant difference between the genders was observed regarding the prevalence of the LV geometric groups.</p> <p>Mean values of most evaluated echocardiography and Doppler variables differed between men and women, such as LA, IVS, LVEDD and IVRT, but the relationship of hemodynamic variables to LV geometric groups did not differ between the genders.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Although mean values of many echocardiographic variables differed between men and women, the LV geometric adaptations to a given hemodynamic load appear similar in both genders.</p

A comparison of the nutritional qualities of supermarket's own and regular brands of bread in Sweden

Processed food is associated with unhealthy qualities such as higher content of harmful fats, sugars and salt. The aim of our study was to compare the nutritional qualities of supermarket's own brands and regular brands of bread sold in Sweden. Additionally, we compared the nutritional qualities of gluten-free and gluten-containing bread. We collected information from the labels of 332 bread products available in the largest grocery store chains. The Australian Health Star Rating (HSR) system was used to quantify the nutritional quality of each bread product. We compared all supermarket's own brand products to regular brand products, and gluten-free to gluten-containing bread. The mean HSR for the supermarket's own brands was lower than the regular brands (3.6 vs. 3.7; p = 0.046). For the regular brand products, the fibre, sugar and total fat content were greater (p < 0.001, p = 0.002 and p = 0.021, respectively), while less protein (p = 0.009) compared to regular bread products. Gluten-free bread had a lower HSR than gluten-containing bread (mean 3.5 vs. 3.8, respectively; p < 0.001). The regular brand products were slightly healthier than the supermarket's own brands, primarily as a result of a higher fibre content. Gluten-free bread products were slightly unhealthier due to a lower protein content

Risk map as a library management information dashboard: a case study in adapting a configural display

In this paper, we report on our application of Cognitive Work Analysis to create an Abstraction Hierarchy model that helps librarians identify key functional relationships for managing the overall performance of a library. By themselves, functional relationships are not as useful in providing insights into the reasons for good or poor performance. However, when these functional relationships are set against the context of system invariants and constraints, they can provide library managers information useful for diagnosis and localization of problems. We propose the Risk Map visualization technique as an information dashboard to cognitively access these functional relationships. Furthermore, when these functional relationships are portrayed over time, trends and patterns can be detected with relative ease

Heterogeneity in Blood Pressure Response to 4 Antihypertensive Drugs: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Importance: Hypertension is the leading risk factor for premature death worldwide. Multiple blood pressure-lowering therapies are available but the potential for maximizing benefit by personalized targeting of drug classes is unknown. Objective: To investigate and quantify the potential for targeting specific drugs to specific individuals to maximize blood pressure effects. Design, Setting, and Participants: A randomized, double-blind, repeated crossover trial in men and women with grade 1 hypertension at low risk for cardiovascular events at an outpatient research clinic in Sweden. Mixed-effects models were used to assess the extent to which individuals responded better to one treatment than another and to estimate the additional blood pressure lowering achievable by personalized treatment. Interventions: Each participant was scheduled for treatment in random order with 4 different classes of blood pressure-lowering drugs (lisinopril [angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor], candesartan [angiotensin-receptor blocker], hydrochlorothiazide [thiazide], and amlodipine [calcium channel blocker]), with repeated treatments for 2 classes. Main Outcomes and Measures: Ambulatory daytime systolic blood pressure, measured at the end of each treatment period. Results: There were 1468 completed treatment periods (median length, 56 days) recorded in 270 of the 280 randomized participants (54% men; mean age, 64 years). The blood pressure response to different treatments varied considerably between individuals (P <.001), specifically for the choices of lisinopril vs hydrochlorothiazide, lisinopril vs amlodipine, candesartan vs hydrochlorothiazide, and candesartan vs amlodipine. Large differences were excluded for the choices of lisinopril vs candesartan and hydrochlorothiazide vs amlodipine. On average, personalized treatment had the potential to provide an additional 4.4 mm Hg-lower systolic blood pressure. Conclusions and Relevance: These data reveal substantial heterogeneity in blood pressure response to drug therapy for hypertension, findings that may have implications for personalized therapy. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02774460

Tri-critical point and suppression of the Shastry-Sutherland phase in Ce2_{2}Pd2_{2}Sn by Ni doping

Structural, magnetization and heat capacity measurements were performed on Ce$_2$(Pd$_{1-x}$Ni$_x$)$_2$Sn ($0 \leq x \leq 0.25$) alloys, covering the full range of the Mo$_2$FeB$_2$ structure stability. In this system, the two transitions observed in Ce$_2$Pd$_2$Sn (at $T_N=4.8$\,K and $T_C=2.1$\,K respectively) converge into a tri-critical point at $T_{cr}\approx 3.4$\,K for $x\approx 0.3$, where the intermediate antiferromagnetic AF phase is suppressed. The $T_N(x)$ phase boundary decrease is due to an incipient Kondo screening of the Ce-4f moments and local atomic disorder in the alloy. Both mechanisms affect the formation of Ce-magnetic dimers on which the Shastry-Sutherland lattice (SSL) builds up. On the contrary, the $T_C(x)$ transition to the ferromagnetic ground state increases as a consequence of the weakening of the AF-SSL phase. Applied magnetic field also suppresses the AF phase like in the stoichiometric compound.Comment: 6 pages, 8 figure

ECG-Based Electrolyte Prediction: Evaluating Regression and Probabilistic Methods

Objective: Imbalances of the electrolyte concentration levels in the body can lead to catastrophic consequences, but accurate and accessible measurements could improve patient outcomes. While blood tests provide accurate measurements, they are invasive and the laboratory analysis can be slow or inaccessible. In contrast, an electrocardiogram (ECG) is a widely adopted tool which is quick and simple to acquire. However, the problem of estimating continuous electrolyte concentrations directly from ECGs is not well-studied. We therefore investigate if regression methods can be used for accurate ECG-based prediction of electrolyte concentrations. Methods: We explore the use of deep neural networks (DNNs) for this task. We analyze the regression performance across four electrolytes, utilizing a novel dataset containing over 290000 ECGs. For improved understanding, we also study the full spectrum from continuous predictions to binary classification of extreme concentration levels. To enhance clinical usefulness, we finally extend to a probabilistic regression approach and evaluate different uncertainty estimates. Results: We find that the performance varies significantly between different electrolytes, which is clinically justified in the interplay of electrolytes and their manifestation in the ECG. We also compare the regression accuracy with that of traditional machine learning models, demonstrating superior performance of DNNs. Conclusion: Discretization can lead to good classification performance, but does not help solve the original problem of predicting continuous concentration levels. While probabilistic regression demonstrates potential practical usefulness, the uncertainty estimates are not particularly well-calibrated. Significance: Our study is a first step towards accurate and reliable ECG-based prediction of electrolyte concentration levels.Comment: Code and trained models are available at https://github.com/philippvb/ecg-electrolyte-regressio

A Model System for In Vitro Studies of Bank Vole Borne Viruses

The bank vole (Myodes glareolus) is a common small mammal in Europe and a natural host for several important emerging zoonotic viruses, e.g. Puumala hantavirus (PUUV) that causes hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS). Hantaviruses are known to interfere with several signaling pathways in infected human cells, and HFRS is considered an immune-mediated disease. There is no in vitro-model available for infectious experiments in bank vole cells, nor tools for analyses of bank vole immune activation and responses. Consequently, it is not known if there are any differences in the regulation of virus induced responses in humans compared to natural hosts during infection. We here present an in vitro-model for studies of bank vole borne viruses and their interactions with natural host cell innate immune responses. Bank vole embryonic fibroblasts (VEFs) were isolated and shown to be susceptible for PUUV-infection, including a wild-type PUUV strain (only passaged in bank voles). The significance of VEFs as a model system for bank vole associated viruses was further established by infection studies showing that these cells are also susceptible to tick borne encephalitis, cowpox and Ljungan virus. The genes encoding bank vole IFN-β and Mx2 were partially sequenced and protocols for semi-quantitative RT-PCR were developed. Interestingly, PUUV did not induce an increased IFN-β or Mx2 mRNA expression. Corresponding infections with CPXV and LV induced IFN-β but not Mx2, while TBEV induced both IFN-β and Mx2