Inversion of spinning sound fields

A method is presented for the reconstruction of rotating monopole source distributions using acoustic pressures measured on a sideline parallel to the source axis. The method requires no \textit{a priori} assumptions about the source other than that its strength at the frequency of interest vary sinusoidally in azimuth on the source disc so that the radiated acoustic field is composed of a single circumferential mode. When multiple azimuthal modes are present, the acoustic field can be decomposed into azimuthal modes and the method applied to each mode in sequence. The method proceeds in two stages, first finding an intermediate line source derived from the source distribution and then inverting this line source to find the radial variation of source strength. A far-field form of the radiation integrals is derived, showing that the far field pressure is a band-limited Fourier transform of the line source, establishing a limit on the quality of source reconstruction which can be achieved using far-field measurements. The method is applied to simulated data representing wind-tunnel testing of a ducted rotor system (tip Mach number~0.74) and to control of noise from an automotive cooling fan (tip Mach number~0.14), studies which have appeared in the literature of source identification.Comment: Revised version of paper submitted to JASA; five more figures; expanded content with more discussion of error behaviour and relation to Nearfield Acoustical Holograph

Fibroblast Growth Factor-9 Enhances M2 Macrophage Differentiation and Attenuates Adverse Cardiac Remodeling in the Infarcted Diabetic Heart

Inflammation has been implicated as a perpetrator of diabetes and its associated complications. Monocytes, key mediators of inflammation, differentiate into pro-inflammatory M1 macrophages and anti-inflammatory M2 macrophages upon infiltration of damaged tissue. However, the inflammatory cell types, which propagate diabetes progression and consequential adverse disorders, remain unclear. The current study was undertaken to assess monocyte infiltration and the role of fibroblast growth factor-9 (FGF-9) on monocyte to macrophage differentiation and cardioprotection in the diabetic infarcted heart. Db/db diabetic mice were assigned to sham, myocardial infarction (MI), and MI+FGF-9 groups. MI was induced by permanent coronary artery ligation and animals were subjected to 2D transthoracic echocardiography two weeks post-surgery. Immunohistochemical and immunoassay results from heart samples collected suggest significantly increased infiltration of monocytes (Mean +/- SEM; MI: 2.02% +/- 0.23% vs. Sham 0.75% +/- 0.07%; p \u3c 0.05) and associated pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-alpha, MCP-1, and IL-6), adverse cardiac remodeling (Mean +/- SEM; MI: 33% +/- 3.04% vs. Sham 2.2% +/- 0.33%; p \u3c 0.05), and left ventricular dysfunction (Mean +/- SEM; MI: 35.4% +/- 1.25% vs. Sham 49.19% +/- 1.07%; p \u3c 0.05) in the MI group. Importantly, treatment of diabetic infarcted myocardium with FGF-9 resulted in significantly decreased monocyte infiltration (Mean +/- SEM; MI+FGF-9: 1.39% +/- 0.1% vs. MI: 2.02% +/- 0.23%; p \u3c 0.05), increased M2 macrophage differentiation (Mean +/- SEM; MI+FGF-9: 4.82% +/- 0.86% vs. MI: 0.85% +/- 0.3%; p \u3c 0.05) and associated anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-10 and IL-1RA), reduced adverse remodeling (Mean +/- SEM; MI+FGF-9: 11.59% +/- 1.2% vs. MI: 33% +/- 3.04%; p \u3c 0.05), and improved cardiac function (Fractional shortening, Mean +/- SEM; MI+FGF-9: 41.51% +/- 1.68% vs. MI: 35.4% +/- 1.25%; p \u3c 0.05). In conclusion, our data suggest FGF-9 possesses novel therapeutic potential in its ability to mediate monocyte to M2 differentiation and confer cardiac protection in the post-MI diabetic heart

Nonperturbative calculation of Born-Infeld effects on the Schroedinger spectrum of the hydrogen atom

We present the first nonperturbative numerical calculations of the nonrelativistic hydrogen spectrum as predicted by first-quantized electrodynamics with nonlinear Maxwell-Born-Infeld field equations. We also show rigorous upper and lower bounds on the ground state. When judged against empirical data our results significantly restrict the range of viable values of the new electromagnetic constant which is introduced by the Born-Infeld theory. We assess Born's own proposal for the value of his constant.Comment: 4p., 2 figs, 1 table; submitted for publicatio

The Impact of Online Social Networks on Decision Support Systems

Previous research on this matter had already determined that many concepts are encompassed by both online social networking and decision support systems research. Due to the large number of concepts and using clustering techniques, we were able to determine four concept clusters, namely: the technical infrastructure, online communities, network analysis and knowledge management. Then, we intended to gain further knowledge on how those concepts influenced DSS related research and the contribution of each cluster to the support of the phases of decision-making process. We also wanted to perceive the interconnections among the concept clusters themselves, for which we used structural equation modeling techniques. The obtained results evidence that not only online social networks are being used as a technical infrastructure to support the three decision making phases and to support knowledge management and online communities, but also that the other clusters only regard the intelligence phase of the decision process.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Impact of Public Charging Infrastructure on the Adoption of Electric Vehicles in London

The discussion on the importance of public charging infrastructure is usually framed around the ‘chicken-egg’ challenge of consumers feeling reluctant to purchase without the necessary infrastructure and policy makers reluctant to invest in the infrastructure without the demand. However, public charging infrastructure may be more crucial to EV adoption than previously thought. Historically, access to residential charging was thought to be a major factor in potential for growth in the EV market as it offered a guaranteed place for a vehicle to be charged. However, these conclusions were reached through studies conducted in regions with a high percentage of homes that have access to residential parking. The purpose of this study is to understand how the built environment may encourage uptake of EVs by seeking a correlation between EV ownership and public charging points in an urban and densely populated city such as London. Using a statistical approach with data from the Department for Transport and Zap Map, a statistically significant correlation was found between the total (slow, fast and rapid) number of public charging points and number of EV registrations per borough—with the strongest correlation found between EV registrations and rapid chargers. This research does not explicitly prove that there is a cause-and-effect relationship between public charging points EVs but challenges some of the previous literature which indicates that public charging infrastructure is not as important as home charging. The study also supports the notion that the built environment can influence human behaviour

Where is the evidence for emergency planning: a scoping review

Background Recent terrorist attacks and natural disasters have led to an increased awareness of the importance of emergency planning. However, the extent to which emergency planners can access or use evidence remains unclear. The aim of this study was to identify, analyse and assess the location, source and quality of emergency planning publications in the academic and UK grey literature. Methods We conducted a scoping review, using as data sources for academic literature Embase, Medline, Medline in Process, Psychinfo, Biosis, Science Citation Index, Cinahl, Cochrane library and Clinicaltrials.gov. For grey literature identification we used databases at the Health Protection Agency, NHS Evidence, British Association of Immediate Care Schemes, Emergency Planning College and the Health and Safety Executive, and the websites of UK Department of Health Emergency Planning Division and UK Resilience. Aggregative synthesis was used to analyse papers and documents against a framework based on a modified FEMA Emergency Planning cycle. Results Of 2736 titles identified from the academic literature, 1603 were relevant. 45% were from North America, 27% were commentaries or editorials and 22% were event reports. Of 192 documents from the grey literature, 97 were relevant. 76% of these were event reports. The majority of documents addressed emergency planning and response. Very few documents related to hazard analysis, mitigation or capability assessment. Conclusions Although a large body of literature exists, its validity and generalisability is unclear There is little evidence that this potential evidence base has been exploited through synthesis to inform policy and practice. The type and structure of evidence that would be of most value of emergency planners and policymakers has yet to be identified

A Dynamic Knowledge Management Framework for the High Value Manufacturing Industry

Dynamic Knowledge Management (KM) is a combination of cultural and technological factors, including the cultural factors of people and their motivations, technological factors of content and infrastructure and, where these both come together, interface factors. In this paper a Dynamic KM framework is described in the context of employees being motivated to create profit for their company through product development in high value manufacturing. It is reported how the framework was discussed during a meeting of the collaborating company’s (BAE Systems) project stakeholders. Participants agreed the framework would have most benefit at the start of the product lifecycle before key decisions were made. The framework has been designed to support organisational learning and to reward employees that improve the position of the company in the market place