Multifrequency synthetic aperture radar antenna comparison study

Three multifrequency, dual polarization SAR antenna designs are reviewed. The SAR antenna design specifications were for a "straw man' SAR which would approximate the requirements for projected shuttle-based SAR's. Therefore, the physical dimensions were constrained to be compatible with the space shuttle. The electrical specifications were similar to those of SIR-A and SIR-B with the addition of dual polarization and the addition of C and X band operation. Early in the antenna design considerations, three candidate technologies emerged as having promise. They were: (1) microstrip patch planar array antennas, (2) slotted waveguide planar array antennas, and (3) open-ended waveguide planar array antennas

Why crime prevention strategies may be effective against both deliberate and impulsive burglars.

Not all those who commit burglary offenses do so for the same reasons – some are deliberate, planning their actions, while others are more impulsive. In new research on patterns of opportunism among burglars, Amber N. Sanders, Joseph B. Kuhns, and Kristie R. Blevins find that deliberate burglars are more motivated by money, while impulsive burglars were motivated by drugs and/or money. They suggest that burglars of both types may be dissuaded by crime prevention measures which might make their actions riskier

Exploring and Understanding Differences Between Deliberate and Impulsive Male and Female Burglars

Relying on rational choice theory, we compare burglars’ varying levels of offense planning to understand differences among types of burglars. Surveys were collected from a sample of incarcerated male and female burglars in three states. Participants answered questions detailing aspects of a burglary including motivations, target selection, deterrents, and techniques. Comparisons were made between 119 deliberate (32%) and 257 impulsive (68%) burglars. Deliberate burglars focused on obtaining cash, whereas impulsive burglars were more motivated by drug habits. Impulsive burglars were more easily dissuaded from a target when multiple obstacles are present. Burglars consider how many obstacles they may have to overcome, providing support for rational choice-based, situational crime prevention efforts. Differences in burglar motivation emerged and are discussed

The Validity of a Novel Staged Exercise Test for Measuring Lactate Metabolism and Performance in Cyclists

Several types of lactate threshold (Tlac) protocols have been developed over the years to maximize accuracy and reliability while maintaining ease of measurement and application to training and performance. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the validity of a novel staged maximal lactate steady state exercise test (sMLSS) in predicting the MLSS using the Lactate Plus® (Nova Biomedical, Waltham, MA) analyzer. METHODS: Blood lactate concentration (BLC) was measured in duplicate for all tests. Seven trained cyclists (20 miles per week) performed a V̇O2max test starting at 100W and increasing by 30W every three minutes until volitional fatigue. Lactate threshold was defined as the previous workload to a 2 mmol•L-1 increase in BLC. Next, the sMLSS test was performed starting at the Tlac workload, determined previously, then increasing 10W every 15 minutes for a total of three stages. BLC was measured every 3 minutes. MLSS was predicted by visual inspection and defined as \u3c 1.0 mmol•L-1 increase in the final 6 minutes of the stage. Finally, cyclists then performed two to six MLSS exercise tests, adjusting by 5W depending on lactate response, to validate the sMLSS. MLSS was determined at the maximal workload with \u3c 1 mmol•L-1 increase in BLC in the final 20 minutes. Dependent T-test and Pearson correlation coefficient was used to determine reliability between lactate trials. Bland-Altman plots, One-way ANOVA, and regression analyses were used to analyze differences between the types of exercise tests. RESULTS: There were no significant differences for duplicate BLC trials for all tests (p= 0.21; r=0.982). The sMLSS was significantly correlated with the MLSS workload and percentage of max workload (r = 0.997; p=0.001, r = 0.978, p=0.01), respectively. There was no bias noted between sMLSS and MLSS protocols for predicting lactate accumulation. CONCLUSION: This novel protocol was determined to be a valid and efficient means determining lactate performance in recreationally trained cyclists. The sMLSS was effective at reducing testing time from 12 days to 3 days

Spectral geometry, homogeneous spaces, and differential forms with finite Fourier series

Let G be a compact Lie group acting transitively on Riemannian manifolds M and N. Let p be a G equivariant Riemannian submersion from M to N. We show that a smooth differential form on N has finite Fourier series if and only if the pull back has finite Fourier series on

Gender & Sport Related Differences in Electrocardiogram & Pre-participation Exams (PPE) in College Age Athletes

TACSM Abstract Gender & sport related differences in electrocardiogram & pre-participation exams (PPE) in college age athletes Harp J, Garcia B, Fulfer S, Cvikel J ,. Blevins-McNaughton J. Clinical Exercise Research Facility; Kinesiology; Tarleton State University; Stephenville, TX Category: Masters Advisor/ Mentor: Blevins-McNaughton, JS ([email protected]) ABSTRACT Background and Purpose: The NCAA requires all college level athletes receive a pre-participation physical exam. However, the pre-participation exams occasionally do not require electrocardiogram screening to help detect cardiac abnormalities. Though electrocardiograms may not be available at all testing’s, using specific markers and finding differences between gender and sport abnormalities could help detect cardiac abnormalities. The purpose of this study was to determine if there were significant differences in resting 12-Lead ECG markers in a group NCAA Div. II collegiate level athletes. Methods: Three hundred and eight college level athlete’s ages 18 to 25 participated in this study. Age, gender, height, weight, BMI, blood pressure and heart rate were measured during a pre-participation exam. Electrocardiogram measurements were gathered by using Mortara X-Scribe™ , Vacumed Turbo Fit 5™, Welch Allyn CardioPerfect™. Twelve-Lead ECGs were categorized by sport and analyzed by the lab director and the attending physician. One-way ANOVA was used to analyze differences in ECG findings in genders and sports. Independent t-test and linear regression were used to analyze differences between male and female outcomes. Significance was set at the 0.05 level. Results: No significant differences in wave conformation or arrhythmias were found between sports. Cross country athletes had significantly lower resting heart rate (61 ± 12.5 bpm) than football (70.6 ± 14 bpm), baseball (72.6 ± 12.8 bpm), track and field (73.2 ± 13.4 bpm), and cheerleading (75 ± 11.8 bpm) (P=0.003) . Resting systolic blood pressure was significantly higher in football (124.8 ± 10.4 mmHg) and baseball (124 ± 10.4 mmHg) than softball (115.8 ± 5.4 mmHg), track and field (119.2 ± 10.9 mmHg), cross country (112.7 ± 11.2 mmHg), and cheerleading (114.9 ± 7.9 mmHg) (P=0.001). Similarly, heart work expressed as rate pressure product (RPP) was significantly lower in cross country compared to all other sports. Relative to ECG parameters cross country athletes showed ECG changes typical for cardiovascular endurance training compared to all other sports including sinus bradycardia, increased RR interval, and leftward axis shift. Discussion: Although marked differences in 12-lead ECG parameters were not found between sports in this sample, two athletes were sent for further echo evaluation due to abnormal ECGs, but were subsequently cleared to participate in their sport

Susceptibility Provision Enhances Effective De-escalation (SPEED): utilizing rapid phenotypic susceptibility testing in Gram-negative bloodstream infections and its potential clinical impact

Abstract Objectives We evaluated the performance and time to result for pathogen identification (ID) and antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) of the Accelerate Pheno™ system (AXDX) compared with standard of care (SOC) methods. We also assessed the hypothetical improvement in antibiotic utilization if AXDX had been implemented. Methods Clinical samples from patients with monomicrobial Gram-negative bacteraemia were tested and compared between AXDX and the SOC methods of the VERIGENE® and Bruker MALDI Biotyper® systems for ID and the VITEK® 2 system for AST. Additionally, charts were reviewed to calculate theoretical times to antibiotic de-escalation, escalation and active and optimal therapy Results ID mean time was 21 h for MALDI-TOF MS, 4.4 h for VERIGENE® and 3.7 h for AXDX. AST mean time was 35 h for VITEK® 2 and 9.0 h for AXDX. For ID, positive percentage agreement was 95.9% and negative percentage agreement was 99.9%. For AST, essential agreement was 94.5% and categorical agreement was 93.5%. If AXDX results had been available to inform patient care, 25% of patients could have been put on active therapy sooner, while 78% of patients who had therapy optimized during hospitalization could have had therapy optimized sooner. Additionally, AXDX could have reduced time to de-escalation (16 versus 31 h) and escalation (19 versus 31 h) compared with SOC. Conclusions By providing fast and reliable ID and AST results, AXDX has the potential to improve antimicrobial utilization and enhance antimicrobial stewardship

Gender & Sport Related Differences in Electrocardiogram & Pre-Participation Exams (PPE) in College Age Athletes

Background and Purpose: The NCAA requires all college level athletes receive a pre-participation physical exam. However, the pre-participation exams occasionally do not require electrocardiogram screening to help detect cardiac abnormalities. Though electrocardiograms may not be available at all testing’s, using specific markers and finding differences between gender and sport abnormalities could help detect cardiac abnormalities. The purpose of this study was to determine if there were significant differences in resting 12-Lead ECG markers in a group NCAA Div. II collegiate level athletes. Methods: Four hundred fifty-one college level athlete’s ages 18 to 25 participated in this study. Age, gender, height, weight, BMI, blood pressure and heart rate were measured during a pre-participation exam. Electrocardiogram measurements were gathered by using Mortara X-Scribe™ , Vacumed Turbo Fit 5™, Welch Allyn CardioPerfect™. Twelve-Lead ECGs were categorized by sport and analyzed by the lab director and the attending physician. One-way ANOVA was used to analyze differences in ECG findings in sports. Independent t-test and linear regression were used to analyze differences between male and female outcomes. Significance was set at the 0.05 level. Results: No significant differences in wave durations were found between male and female athletes. However, P wave amplitude was higher in males (1.50 ± 0.61 mm) than females (1.44 ± .55 mm) (P=0.01). Males had higher resting blood pressures (SBP=123.1 ± 10.9 mmHg) (DBP=73.6 ± 8.1 mmHg) than females (SBP=112.6 ± 9.6 mmHg) (DBP=69.9 ± 7.9 mmHg) (P\u3c0.001). Males also had a higher frequency of arrhythmias, T wave inversions, and 1st degree atrioventricular blocks when compared to females. Similarly, SBP was significantly higher in football compared to all other sports. Relative to ECG parameters cross country athletes showed ECG changes typical for cardiovascular endurance training compared to all other sports including sinus bradycardia, increased RR interval, and leftward axis shift. Discussion: Although marked differences in 12-lead ECG parameters were not found between sports in this sample, two athletes were sent for further echocardiogram evaluation due to abnormal ECGs, but were subsequently cleared to participate in their sport

Interaction of reed and acoustic resonator in clarinetlike systems

Sound emergence in clarinetlike instruments is investigated in terms of instability of the static regime. Various models of reed-bore coupling are considered, from the pioneering work of Wilson and Beavers ["Operating modes of the clarinet", J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 56, 653--658 (1974)] to more recent modeling including viscothermal bore losses and vena contracta at the reed inlet. The pressure threshold above which these models may oscillate as well as the frequency of oscillation at threshold are calculated. In addition to Wilson and Beavers' previous conclusions concerning the role of the reed damping in the selection of the register the instrument will play on, the influence of the reed motion induced flow is also emphasized, particularly its effect on playing frequencies, contributing to reduce discrepancies between Wilson and Beavers' experimental results and theory, despite discrepancies still remain concerning the pressure threshold. Finally, analytical approximations of the oscillating solution based on Fourier series expansion are obtained in the vicinity of the threshold of oscillation. This allows to emphasize the conditions which determine the nature of the bifurcation (direct or inverse) through which the note may emerge, with therefore important consequences on the musical playing performances