Simulating Sea Breeze Type Climatologies: Implications for Wind Energy, Weather Forecasting and Sailing in the Southern North Sea

The energy industry is currently undergoing a revolution. In the southern North Sea, renewable energy production targets, set by European governments to counter growing concerns over climate change, have sparked an initiative to rapidly construct a large number of offshore wind farms. To meet the targets, the industry must overcome many challenges, one of which is to capitalize on the coastal and offshore wind resource. One particular relative component of the sea breeze system, including the contrasting individual sea breeze types, in the offshore environment and requires further study. Here it is shown through idealized model simulations, that each sea breeze type has distinctive characteristics and that the scales involved have the potential to influence opposing coastlines at length scales equivalent to the southern North Sea. It is revealed, through model sensitivity experiments, that variations due to the choice of model boundary layer scheme significantly alter the characteristics of the sea breeze and verification against onshore and offshore measurement data is conducted in order to quantify model performance. A unique simulated climatology of sea breezes is constructed for 5 different coastlines in the southern North Sea spanning from 2002-2012 using an identification method created to distinguish between the sea breeze types. Crucially, it is found that the frequency of sea breezes is highly dependant on coastal orientation with respect to the gradient wind and that total sea breeze frequency varies by more than a factor of two between coastlines. Furthermore, sea breezes forming on one coastline are shown to directly influence those on another. In order to quantify the impact of each sea breeze on wind energy, the climatology is used to assess wind power production on both spatial and temporal scales. It is found that sea breezes do have the potential to significantly impact offshore wind energy production, including the proposed round 3 farms which are further offshore. Furthermore, the precise impact is dependant on sea breeze type. Pure sea breezes reduce power output through the generation of offshore calm zones, whilst corkscrew sea breezes can add to the wind resource through the formation of coastal jets. The lesser known corkscrew sea breeze is attributed to 70% of the total power contribution of all sea breeze events. As turbines increase both in size and power capabilities, it is also demonstrated that the impact of sea breezes on wind turbine output will be greater in the future

Evidence that process simulations reduce anxiety in patients receiving dental treatment: randomized exploratory trial

Process simulations – mental simulations that ask people to imagine the process of completing a task – have been shown to decrease anxiety in students facing hypothetical or psychological threats in the short term. The aim of the present study was to see whether process simulations could reduce anxiety in a sample of the general population attending a dental practice, and whether these effects could be sustained throughout treatment. Participants (N = 75) were randomized to an experimental condition where they were asked to simulate mentally the process of seeing the dentist, or to a control condition where they were asked to simulate mentally the outcome of seeing the dentist. Findings showed that participants in the experimental condition were significantly less anxious both before and after their consultations. Self-efficacy and self-esteem remained unchanged. This study suggests that process simulation is one active ingredient in anxiety treatment programs and further research is required to enhance its effects

SONIA: an immersive customizable virtual reality system for the education and exploration of brain networks

While mastery of neuroanatomy is important for the investigation of the brain, there is an increasing interest in exploring the neural pathways to better understand the roles of neural circuitry in brain functions. To tackle the limitations of traditional 2D-display-based neuronavigation software in intuitively visualizing complex 3D anatomies, several virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) solutions have been proposed to facilitate neuroanatomical education. However, with the increasing knowledge on brain connectivity and the functioning of the sub-systems, there is still a lack of similar software solutions for the education and exploration of these topics, which demand more elaborate visualization and interaction strategies. To address this gap, we designed the immerSive custOmizable Neuro learnIng plAform (SONIA), a novel user-friendly VR software system with a multi-scale interaction paradigm that allows flexible customization of learning materials. With both quantitative and qualitative evaluations through user studies, the proposed system is shown to have high usability, attractive visual design, and good educational value. As the first immersive system that integrates customizable design and detailed narratives of the brain sub-systems for the education of neuroanatomy and brain connectivity, SONIA showcases new potential directions and provides valuable insights regarding medical learning and exploration in VR

Monitoring and Correction of Geometric Distortion in Projected Displays

A technique, and associated system and computer executable program code on a computer readable storage medium, for automatically correcting distortion of a front-projected display under observation by at least one camera. The technique may be employed in a myriad of front-projected display environments, e.g., single or multiple projectors and cameras are used. The technique includes: observing a first image, projected from at least one projector, comprising at least one target distribution of light intensities; for each conglomeration of white pixels of a difference image, compute a bounding box comprising a corresponding conglomeration of pixels in a framebuffer information of the camera, compute a bounding box comprising a corresponding conglomeration of pixels in a framebuffer information of the projector, compute an initial homography matrix, Htemp, mapping pixels of the projector\u27s bounding box to those of the camera\u27s bounding box, optimize the initial homography matrix, compute a central location, (Cx, Cy), of the camera\u27s bounding box using the initial homography matrix; and using a plurality of correspondence values comprising the correspondence, compute a corrective transform to aid in the automatic correcting of the display

Verifying likelihoods for low template DNA profiles using multiple replicates

AbstractTo date there is no generally accepted method to test the validity of algorithms used to compute likelihood ratios (LR) evaluating forensic DNA profiles from low-template and/or degraded samples. An upper bound on the LR is provided by the inverse of the match probability, which is the usual measure of weight of evidence for standard DNA profiles not subject to the stochastic effects that are the hallmark of low-template profiles. However, even for low-template profiles the LR in favour of a true prosecution hypothesis should approach this bound as the number of profiling replicates increases, provided that the queried contributor is the major contributor. Moreover, for sufficiently many replicates the standard LR for mixtures is often surpassed by the low-template LR. It follows that multiple LTDNA replicates can provide stronger evidence for a contributor to a mixture than a standard analysis of a good-quality profile. Here, we examine the performance of the likeLTD software for up to eight replicate profiling runs. We consider simulated and laboratory-generated replicates as well as resampling replicates from a real crime case. We show that LRs generated by likeLTD usually do exceed the mixture LR given sufficient replicates, are bounded above by the inverse match probability and do approach this bound closely when this is expected. We also show good performance of likeLTD even when a large majority of alleles are designated as uncertain, and suggest that there can be advantages to using different profiling sensitivities for different replicates. Overall, our results support both the validity of the underlying mathematical model and its correct implementation in the likeLTD software

An overview of mutational and copy number signatures in human cancer

The genome of each cell in the human body is constantly under assault from a plethora of exogenous and endogenous processes that can damage DNA. If not successfully repaired, DNA damage generally becomes permanently imprinted in cells, and all their progenies, as somatic mutations. In most cases, the patterns of these somatic mutations contain the tell-tale signs of the mutagenic processes that have imprinted and are termed mutational signatures. Recent pan-cancer genomic analyses have elucidated the compendium of mutational signatures for all types of small mutational events, including: (i) single base substitutions; (ii) doublet base substitutions; and (iii) small insertions/deletions. In contrast to small mutational events, where, in most cases, DNA damage is a prerequisite, aneuploidy, which refers to the abnormal number of chromosomes in a cell, usually develops from mistakes during DNA replication. Such mistakes include DNA replication stress, mitotic errors caused by faulty microtubule dynamics, or cohesion defects that contribute to chromosomal breakage and can lead to copy number alterations or even to structural rearrangements. These aberrations also leave behind genomic scars which can be inferred from sequencing as copy number signatures and rearrangement signatures. The analyses of mutational signatures of small mutational events have been extensively reviewed [1-3], so we will not comprehensively re-examine them here. Rather, our focus will be on summarizing the existing knowledge for mutational signatures of copy number alterations. As studying copy number signatures is an emerging field, we briefly summarize the utility that mutational signatures of small mutational events have provided in basic science, cancer treatment, and cancer prevention and we emphasize the future role that copy number signatures may play in each of these fields

The relationship between brain structure, motor performance, and early musical training

The current dissertation investigated the relationship between brain structure, motor performance, and musical training. Two structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques were used: voxel-based morphometry (VBM) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). The first study examined the structural correlates of visuomotor synchronisation performance in normal adults. DTI analyses showed that individual differences in synchronisation performance were negatively correlated with white-matter integrity in a region underlying bilateral sensorimotor cortex. Performance was also positively correlated with radial diffusivity in this region, suggesting the influence of a crossing fibre tract. Fibre tractography identified two fibre populations in this region: the corticospinal tract and superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF). The SLF links parietal and auditory cortical regions previously shown to be engaged during performance of this task in a functional MRI study with the same sample. VBM analyses showed that grey-matter volume in cerebellar regions important for learning was related to the rate of improvement in synchronisation during learning of the task. The second study explored how musical training during early childhood may have long-lasting effects on brain structure and sensorimotor synchronisation performance. DTI was used to compare white-matter structure in three groups: (1) early-trained musicians (ET; before age seven), (2) late-trained musicians (LT; after age seven), and (3) nonmusicians. Groups were also tested on a visuomotor synchronisation task. ET and LT were matched for years of musical training and experience to isolate the possible effect of age of onset of musical training. Behaviourally, ET outperformed LT and nonmusicians on the synchronisation task. DTI results showed that ET had greater white-matter integrity than LT in the posterior midbody of the corpus callosum, a region connecting bilateral sensorimotor cortices. Measures of white-matter integrity extracted from this region correlated with both synchronisation performance and age of onset of musical training. These findings provide evidence that musical training during a potential sensitive period in development can differentially influence white-matter structure and behavioural performance. Our results are consistent with literature supporting the links between individual differences in brain structure and performance, and training and structural plasticity. They suggest that brain structure is the result of interactions between pre-existing factors, developmental factors, and training and experience

Tides of change : identifying the neural correlates of motor sequence learning

The present study combines behavioural and neuroimaging techniques to investigate the learning of a motor sequence task within- and across-day. The goals of this study were to identify behavioural changes during learning, determine the patterns of activity associated with learning, and investigate the relationships between behaviour and brain activity over the course of learning. Participants were trained on a relatively complex motor sequencing task and a simple baseline task. They performed these tasks in an fMRI scanner while behavioural and functional data were collected. Behavioural performance increased within, but not across, day. The initial learning network included activity in CB cortex, posterior BG, PMC, PL, and preSMA/SMA. Within-day changes included increased activity in anterior BG, CB nucleus, and STS; with decreased activity in M1/S1, SMA, and planum temporale. Across-day increases were found in the left anterior BG, no decreases were found across-day. These results may be interpreted as a shift in activity from the visual to the spatial corticostriatal loop, and are discussed within the context of two current theories of motor sequence learning

The emergence of a local memorial landscape in the aftermath of violent tragedy: a study of Baltimore's Dawson murders, 2002-2005

Memorial landscapes are inextricably linked to the processes of national, regional, local, and individual identity formation; and are tightly bound to notions of place and space. A rich body of literature exists in the social sciences on the structure and function of national scale memorial landscapes. A nascent body of literature on informal memorial works and landscapes is emerging in the social sciences. The current study bridges these bodies of literature by investigating the collection of memorial interventions as elements of a single memorial landscape and by focusing on local, human-scale remembrance over a three years period. A triangulated, multi-method, qualitative research design has been applied to the investigation of the material, discursive, and representational components of the memorial landscape which has emerged in Baltimore's Oliver neighborhood in response to the murder of all seven members of the Dawson family on October 16, 2002. The memorial landscape is viewed here as the manifestation of the community's negotiation between the production of space and the making of place. The data reveal that the initial years in the formation of a local-scale memorial landscape are bound up with complex sociopolitical processes. The outcomes of this research are that the formation of the local-scale memorial landscape is a complex and dynamic expression of sociopolitical identity and power; that memory work is transformative with regard to space and place; that there is merit in a more inclusive definition of the memorial landscape; that multiple geographic scales produce the memorial landscape; and that participation in local-scale memory work diminishes over time. Future research should focus upon the variability of memory work across race, class, gender, faith and geography at the local scale. Such an investigation has the potential to yield greater degrees of understanding of complexity and ambiguity of local-scale identity formation.