Prediction of Wave Propagation in Buildings Using Data from a Single Seismometer

Crowd‐sourced seismic networks in buildings collect important scientific data, in addition to allowing a diverse audience to visualize the vibrations of buildings. Visualization of a building’s deformation requires spatiotemporal interpolation of motions from seismometers that are located wherever the crowd places them. In many cases, a crowd‐sourced building network may actually be just a single seismometer. A method to rapidly estimate the total displacement response of a building based on limited observational data, in some cases from only a single seismometer, is presented. In general, the earliest part of the response is simulated by assuming a vertically propagating shear wave. Later motions are simulated using mode shapes derived from a beam model (a shear beam, or more generally a Timoshenko beam), the parameters of which are determined from the ratios of the modal frequencies and the building’s exterior dimensions. The method is verified by (1) comparing predicted and actual records from a 54‐story building in downtown Los Angeles, California, and (2) comparing finite‐element simulations of the 17‐story University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Factor building. The response of each of these buildings can be simulated with a simple shear beam. The importance of including the traveling wave part of the solution depends on the characteristics of the base ground shaking; the traveling wave becomes more apparent as the excitation becomes more impulsive. The method can be straightforwardly applied to multiple instrumented buildings, resulting in a tool to visualize linear elastic motions of those buildings

Interpretation of Millikan Library's Vibrating Modes Using A Magneto Coil To Measure Phase Shifts

A new set of natural frequencies for the 9-story reinforced concrete Millikan Library building on the Caltech campus is computed using the observed phase shift between the driving force of a shaker installed on the building’s roof and structural response at resonance. The phase of the shaker’s output force was recorded by a magneto coil and magnet attached to the shaker’s rotating mechanism, and the phase of the structural response was obtained from acceleration time series recorded by an accelerometer on the roof. These new results refute previous studies’ identification of the 3rd EW and 2nd torsional modes which used spectral analysis of forced and free vibrations, but did not consider the phase shift. In addition, the newly identified 3rd EW mode shape is independent of the other EW mode shapes, unlike previous findings. This new interpretation is compatible with results from subspace system identification based on two sets of earthquake records

The Community Seismic Network and Quake-Catcher Network: enabling structural health monitoring through instrumentation by community participants

A new type of seismic network is in development that takes advantage of community volunteers to install low-cost accelerometers in houses and buildings. The Community Seismic Network and Quake-Catcher Network are examples of this, in which observational-based structural monitoring is carried out using records from one to tens of stations in a single building. We have deployed about one hundred accelerometers in a number of buildings ranging between five and 23 stories in the Los Angeles region. In addition to a USB-connected device which connects to the host’s computer, we have developed a stand-alone sensor-plug-computer device that directly connects to the internet via Ethernet or wifi. In the case of the Community Seismic Network, the sensors report both continuous data and anomalies in local acceleration to a cloud computing service consisting of data centers geographically distributed across the continent. Visualization models of the instrumented buildings’ dynamic linear response have been constructed using Google SketchUp and an associated plug-in to matlab with recorded shaking data. When data are available from only one to a very limited number of accelerometers in high rises, the buildings are represented as simple shear beam or prismatic Timoshenko beam models with soil-structure interaction. Small-magnitude earthquake records are used to identify the first set of horizontal vibrational frequencies. These frequencies are then used to compute the response on every floor of the building, constrained by the observed data. These tools are resulting in networking standards that will enable data sharing among entire communities, facility managers, and emergency response groups

Community Seismic Network

The article describes the design of the Community Seismic Network, which is a dense open seismic network based on low cost sensors. The inputs are from sensors hosted by volunteers from the community by direct connection to their personal computers, or through sensors built into mobile devices. The server is cloud-based for robustness and to dynamically handle the load of impulsive earthquake events. The main product of the network is a map of peak acceleration, delivered within seconds of the ground shaking. The lateral variations in the level of shaking will be valuable to first responders, and the waveform information from a dense network will allow detailed mapping of the rupture process. Sensors in buildings may be useful for monitoring the state-of-health of the structure after major shaking

Inherited Forms of Bladder Cancer: A review of Lynch Syndrome and Other Inherited Conditions

Environmental factors that play a role in the urothelial carcinogenesis have been well characterized. Current research is continuously exploring potential heritable forms of bladder cancer. Lynch syndrome is a well-known inheritable disease that increases the risk for a variety of cancers, including urothelial carcinomas. Screening of patients with known Lynch syndrome is important to evaluate for development of new primary tumors. Further study may provide more information on what level of follow-up each patient needs. Recent data suggest that mismatch repair mutations confer a greater risk for urothelial cancer. Additional large patient series as well as advancement of molecular testing may provide triage for Lynch syndrome patients in regards to the frequency and type of screening best suited for individual patient

Combined targeting of TGF-beta, EGFR and HER2 suppresses lymphangiogenesis and metastasis in a pancreatic cancer model

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (PDAC) are aggressive with frequent lymphatic spread. By analysis of data from The Cancer Genome Atlas, we determined that ∼35% of PDACs have a pro-angiogenic gene signature. We now show that the same PDACs exhibit increased expression of lymphangiogenic genes and lymphatic endothelial cell (LEC) markers, and that LEC abundance in human PDACs correlates with endothelial cell microvessel density. Lymphangiogenic genes and LECs are also elevated in murine PDACs arising in the KRC (mutated Kras; deleted RB) and KIC (mutated Kras; deleted INK4a) genetic models. Moreover, pancreatic cancer cells (PCCs) derived from KRC tumors express and secrete high levels of lymphangiogenic factors, including the EGF receptor ligand, amphiregulin. Importantly, TGF-β1 increases lymphangiogenic genes and amphiregulin expression in KRC PCCs but not in murine PCCs that lack SMAD4, and combinatorial targeting of the TGF-β type I receptor (TβRI) with LY2157299 and EGFR/HER2 with lapatanib suppresses tumor growth and metastasis in a syngeneic orthotopic model, and attenuates tumor lymphangiogenesis and angiogenesis while reducing lymphangiogenic genes and amphiregulin and enhancing apoptosis. Therefore, this combination could be beneficial in PDACs with lymphangiogenic or angiogenic gene signatures