Whole-grain foods and chronic disease: evidence from epidemiological and intervention studies

Cereal-based foods are key components of the diet and they dominate most food-based dietary recommendations in order to achieve targets for intake of carbohydrate, protein and dietary fibre. Processing (milling) of grains to produce refined grain products removes key nutrients and phytochemicals from the flour and although in some countries nutrients may be replaced with mandatory fortification, overall this refinement reduces their potential nutritional quality. There is increasing evidence from both observational and intervention studies that increased intake of less-refined, whole-grain (WG) foods has positive health benefits. The highest WG consumers are consistently shown to have lower risk of developing CVD, type 2 diabetes and some cancers. WG consumers may also have better digestive health and are likely to have lower BMI and gain less weight over time. The bulk of the evidence for the benefits of WG comes from observational studies, but evidence of benefit in intervention studies and potential mechanisms of action is increasing. Overall this evidence supports the promotion of WG foods over refined grain foods in the diet, but this would require adoption of standard definitions of 'whole grain' and 'whole-grain foods' which will enable innovation by food manufacturers, provide clarity for the consumer and encourage the implementation of food-based dietary recommendations and public health strategies

Error estimates for interpolation of rough data using the scattered shifts of a radial basis function

The error between appropriately smooth functions and their radial basis function interpolants, as the interpolation points fill out a bounded domain in R^d, is a well studied artifact. In all of these cases, the analysis takes place in a natural function space dictated by the choice of radial basis function -- the native space. The native space contains functions possessing a certain amount of smoothness. This paper establishes error estimates when the function being interpolated is conspicuously rough.Comment: 12 page

Viking Mars lander 1975 dynamic test model/orbiter developmental test model forced vibration test

The Viking Mars Lander 1975 dynamic test model and orbiter developmental test model were subjected to forced vibration sine tests. Flight acceptance (FA) and type approval (TA) test levels were applied to the spacecraft structure in a longitudinal test configuration using a 133,440-N (30,000-lb) force shaker. Testing in the two lateral axes (X, Y) was performed at lower levels using four 667-N (150-lb) force shakers. Forced vibration qualification (TA) test levels were successfully imposed on the spacecraft at frequencies down to 10 Hz. Measured responses showed the same character as analytical predictions, and correlation was reasonably good. Because of control system test tolerances, orbiter primary structure generally did not reach the design load limits attained in earlier static testing. A post-test examination of critical orbiter structure disclosed no apparent damage to the structure as a result of the test environment

Stable multispeed lattice Boltzmann methods

We demonstrate how to produce a stable multispeed lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) for a wide range of velocity sets, many of which were previously thought to be intrinsically unstable. We use non-Gauss--Hermitian cubatures. The method operates stably for almost zero viscosity, has second-order accuracy, suppresses typical spurious oscillation (only a modest Gibbs effect is present) and introduces no artificial viscosity. There is almost no computational cost for this innovation. DISCLAIMER: Additional tests and wide discussion of this preprint show that the claimed property of coupled steps: no artificial dissipation and the second-order accuracy of the method are valid only on sufficiently fine grids. For coarse grids the higher-order terms destroy coupling of steps and additional dissipation appears. The equations are true.Comment: Disclaimer about the area of applicability is added to abstrac

Enhancing SPH using moving least-squares and radial basis functions

In this paper we consider two sources of enhancement for the meshfree Lagrangian particle method smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) by improving the accuracy of the particle approximation. Namely, we will consider shape functions constructed using: moving least-squares approximation (MLS); radial basis functions (RBF). Using MLS approximation is appealing because polynomial consistency of the particle approximation can be enforced. RBFs further appeal as they allow one to dispense with the smoothing-length -- the parameter in the SPH method which governs the number of particles within the support of the shape function. Currently, only ad hoc methods for choosing the smoothing-length exist. We ensure that any enhancement retains the conservative and meshfree nature of SPH. In doing so, we derive a new set of variationally-consistent hydrodynamic equations. Finally, we demonstrate the performance of the new equations on the Sod shock tube problem.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, In Proc. A4A5, Chester UK, Jul. 18-22 200

Agricultural engineering

Believing that the study of Agricultural Engineering should fill an important place in the training of the young man who would make farming the object of his life\u27s work, the author has attempted to furnish in this volume an aid in supplying this part of his training. The application of agricultural engineering methods to agriculture should not only raise the efficiency of the farm worker but should also provide for hlm a more comfortable and healthful home. This volume has been written primarily as a text for secondary schools of agriculture, and for colleges where only a generaf course can be offered. Claim is not made for much new material concerning the subjects discussed; but rather an attempt has ·been made to place under one cover a general discussion of agricultural engineering subjects which hitherto could not be secured except in several volumes and hence impractical for text-book purposes.https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/abe_eng_books/1001/thumbnail.jp

Extending the range of error estimates for radial approximation in Euclidean space and on spheres

We adapt Schaback's error doubling trick [R. Schaback. Improved error bounds for scattered data interpolation by radial basis functions. Math. Comp., 68(225):201--216, 1999.] to give error estimates for radial interpolation of functions with smoothness lying (in some sense) between that of the usual native space and the subspace with double the smoothness. We do this for both bounded subsets of R^d and spheres. As a step on the way to our ultimate goal we also show convergence of pseudoderivatives of the interpolation error.Comment: 10 page

Influence of Electrode Height on Carbon Nanotube Electrochemical Biosensors

High sensitivity of electrochemical sensors enables the detection of low concentrations of target analyte. Being able to quickly and accurately detect low concentrations of proteins at point-of-care allows for results to be analyzed more easily and effectively. Having high surface area allows for more analyte to be detected, possibly leading to increased sensitivity. Vertically-aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs) were patterned into interdigitated electrodes (IDEs) and then functionalized with the representative protein streptavidin to demonstrate sensing of biotin. Three electrode heights were investigated to determine the influence of electrode height on sensor sensitivity. Cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were used to characterize the electrodes and track the associated changes with the addition of streptavidin and biotin. A change in imaginary impedance at 147 Hz was shown to have the largest sensitivity. Height was shown to have a significant impact on sensor response, particularly at higher concentrations, with 80 μm tall VACNTs having 138% change in impedance when adding streptavidin and biotin