EXPERIMENTAL AND COMPUTATIONAL ACTIVITIES AT THE OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY NEES TSUNAMI RESEARCH FACILITY

A diverse series of research projects have taken place or are underway at the NEES Tsunami Research Facility at Oregon State University. Projects range from the simulation of the processes and effects of tsunamis generated by sub-aerial and submarine landslides (NEESR, Georgia Tech.), model comparisons of tsunami wave effects on bottom profiles and scouring (NEESR, Princeton University), model comparisons of wave induced motions on rigid and free bodies (Shared-Use, Cornell), numerical model simulations and testing of breaking waves and inundation over topography (NEESR, TAMU), structural testing and development of standards for tsunami engineering and design (NEESR, University of Hawaii), and wave loads on coastal bridge structures (non-NEES), to upgrading the two-dimensional wave generator of the Large Wave Flume. A NEESR payload project (Colorado State University) was undertaken that seeks to improve the understanding of the stresses from wave loading and run-up on residential structures. Advanced computational tools for coupling fluid-structure interaction including turbulence, contact and impact are being developed to assist with the design of experiments and complement parametric studies. These projects will contribute towards understanding the physical processes that occur during earthquake generated tsunamis including structural stress, debris flow and scour, inundation and overland flow, and landslide generated tsunamis. Analytical and numerical model development and comparisons with the experimental results give engineers additional predictive tools to assist in the development of robust structures as well as identification of hazard zones and formulation of hazard plans

An intravaginal ring for real-time evaluation of adherence to therapy

© 2017 Moss et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Two recent Phase III clinical trials to investigate an intravaginal ring for preventing HIV infection demonstrated that adherence to prescribed device use was a primary driver of efficacy. Surrogate methods for determining adherence in the studies were limited in their inability to monitor temporal patterns of use and allow deconvolution of the effects of adherence and device efficacy on HIV infection rates. To address this issue, we have developed functionality in an intravaginal ring to continuously monitor when the device is being used and maintain a log of adherence that can be accessed by clinicians after it is removed. An electronic module fabricated with common, inexpensive electronic components was encapsulated in a silicone intravaginal ring. The device uses temperature as a surrogate measure of periods of device insertion and removal, and stores a record of the data for subsequent retrieval. The adherence-monitoring intravaginal ring accurately recorded the device status over 33 simulated IN-OUT cycles and more than 1000 measurement cycles in vitro. Following initial in vitro testing in a temperature-controlled chamber, the device was evaluated in vivo in sheep using a predetermined insertion/removal pattern to simulate intravaginal ring use. After insertion into the vaginal cavity of a sheep, the logged data correctly indicated the device status over 29 hours of continuous measurement including three cycles of insertion and removal. The device described here is a promising, low-cost method for real-time adherence assessment in clinical trials involving medicated intravaginal rings or other intravaginal devices

Applicability of LCA tool for building materials produced from construction and demolition waste : case of Tanzania

It is estimated that about 10 million tonnes of construction and demolition (C&D) waste is generated annually in Tanzania. This waste is expected to increase even more because of population increases, urbanization, industrialization and commercialization which results in more utilization of natural resources as well. The stock of material resources (raw materials) decrease worldwide and any excessive material extraction puts pressure on natural resources, including ecosystems which depend on this resource for survival. This justifies the research to find a proper technology for recovery (reusing, recycling and upcycling) of C&D wastes which would alleviate the excessive extraction and utilization of natural resources. The research aims at solutions to use the C&D waste to produce building materials (for example concrete blocks) which is a commonly used building material in Tanzania. To ensure the sustainability of such building materials, the environmental, social and economic parameters have to be assessed by using a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) tool. Life cycle assessment is a technique for assessing the environmental impacts associated with a product over its life cycle. Currently, most of Life Cycle Assessment tools applied are developed in developed countries such as SimaPro (Netherlands), INVEST (United Kingdom), BEES (United States) etc. Their direct applicability is limited due to the fact that they are developed in countries with different environmental conditions as well as economic status. Therefore, this research paper discusses the identification of an appropriate Life Cycle Assessment tool which can be applied in research to determine the extent to which building products resulting from construction and demolition waste are sustainable in ecological sense

Characterisation, modification and mathematical modelling of sudsing

A programme of research is outlined which considers the foaming performance and foam behaviour of surfactant systems commonly encountered in hand-wash laundry detergent applications. An experimental study of the physical chemistry of foam generation indicates that precipitation of a typical anionic surfactant with calcium forms mesophase particles and causes a marked reduction in the rate of transport of surfactant to air–water surfaces and a concomitant reduction in foaming. Oily soil antifoam effects are however insensitive to the presence of calcium, being equally effective regardless of pH and calcium content. They may be reproduced by a simple particle–oil mixture of a saturated and an unsaturated triglyceride (e.g. tristearin and triolein respectively). A detailed foam rheometry study is performed using foam flowing through a constriction. Bubble shapes are used to deduce the normal and shear stresses across the foam flow field. Broad agreement between the experimental stress field and that obtained from quasistatic simulations is demonstrated. As foam flow-rate increases, a different model, which takes explicit account of viscous dissipative forces within the foam flow field is required. The dissipative foam flow model predicts differential shrinkage and stretch rates of foam films. Coupled to a model for surfactant transport, this shows the extent to which surfactant concentration accumulates in shrinking films and is depleted in stretching films. In addition to film stretching, it is also important to know about film bursting or failure rates. Here failure rates are estimated using capillary suction pressures exerted on the films by Plateau border channels around film edges. The failure rates can then be employed to predict the evolution of bubble size at various spatial locations in a foam: reasonable agreement with experimental bubble size distributions is obtained

Healthcare Game Design: Behavioral Modeling of Serious Gaming Design for Children with Chronic Diseases

This article introduces the design principles of serious games for chronic patients based on behavioral models. First, key features of the targeted chronic condition (Diabetes) are explained. Then, the role of psychological behavioral models in the management of chronic conditions is covered. After a short review of the existing health focused games, two recent health games that are developed based on behavioral models are overviewed in more detail. Furthermore, design principles and usability issues regarding the creation of these health games are discussed. Finally, the authors conclude that designing healthcare games based on behavioral models can increase the usability of the game in order to improve the effectiveness of the game’s desired healthcare outcomes

Site-Specific Iron Substitution in STA-28, a Large Pore Aluminophosphate Zeotype Prepared by Using 1, 10-Phenanthrolines as Framework-Bound Templates

An AlPO4 zeotype has been prepared using the aromatic diamine 1, 10-phenanthroline and some of its methylated analogues as templates. In each case the two template N atoms bind to a specific framework Al site to expand its coordination to the unusual octahedral AlO4N2 environment. Furthermore, using this framework-bound template, Fe atoms can be included selectively at this site in the framework by direct synthesis, as confirmed by annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy and Rietveld refinement. Calcination removes the organic molecules to give large pore framework solids, with BET surface areas up to 540 m2 g-1 and two perpendicular sets of channels that intersect to give pore space connected by 12-ring openings along all crystallographic directions

Annual Research Review: interparental conflict and youth psychopathology: an evidence review and practice focused update

The quality of the interparental relationship is recognized as an important influence on child and adolescent psychopathology. Historically, clinically-oriented research on this topic has focused on the impacts of parental divorce and domestic violence as primary interparental relationship influences on child outcomes, to the relative neglect of dimensional or qualitative features of the couple/interparental relationship for youth (child and adolescent) psychopathology. Recent research has highlighted that children are affected by attributes of interparental conflict, specifically how parents express and manage conflicts in their relationship, across a continuum of expressed severity and negativity – ranging from silence to violence. Further, new evidence highlights that children’s emotional, behavioral, social, academic outcomes and future interpersonal relationships are adversely affected by conflict between parents/carers whether adults are living together or not (i.e. married or separated), or where children are or are not genetically related to their rearing parents (e.g. adoption). We review evidence and present an integrated theoretical model, highlighting how children are affected by interparental conflict and what this evidence base means for effective intervention and prevention program development, as well as the development of possible cost-benefit models. Additionally, we review policy implications of this research and highlight some very recent examples of UK-based policy focusing on addressing the interparental relationship and its impact on youth psychopathology

The Science of Sungrazers, Sunskirters, and Other Near-Sun Comets

This review addresses our current understanding of comets that venture close to the Sun, and are hence exposed to much more extreme conditions than comets that are typically studied from Earth. The extreme solar heating and plasma environments that these objects encounter change many aspects of their behaviour, thus yielding valuable information on both the comets themselves that complements other data we have on primitive solar system bodies, as well as on the near-solar environment which they traverse. We propose clear definitions for these comets: We use the term near-Sun comets to encompass all objects that pass sunward of the perihelion distance of planet Mercury (0.307 AU). Sunskirters are defined as objects that pass within 33 solar radii of the Sun’s centre, equal to half of Mercury’s perihelion distance, and the commonly-used phrase sungrazers to be objects that reach perihelion within 3.45 solar radii, i.e. the fluid Roche limit. Finally, comets with orbits that intersect the solar photosphere are termed sundivers. We summarize past studies of these objects, as well as the instruments and facilities used to study them, including space-based platforms that have led to a recent revolution in the quantity and quality of relevant observations. Relevant comet populations are described, including the Kreutz, Marsden, Kracht, and Meyer groups, near-Sun asteroids, and a brief discussion of their origins. The importance of light curves and the clues they provide on cometary composition are emphasized, together with what information has been gleaned about nucleus parameters, including the sizes and masses of objects and their families, and their tensile strengths. The physical processes occurring at these objects are considered in some detail, including the disruption of nuclei, sublimation, and ionisation, and we consider the mass, momentum, and energy loss of comets in the corona and those that venture to lower altitudes. The different components of comae and tails are described, including dust, neutral and ionised gases, their chemical reactions, and their contributions to the near-Sun environment. Comet-solar wind interactions are discussed, including the use of comets as probes of solar wind and coronal conditions in their vicinities. We address the relevance of work on comets near the Sun to similar objects orbiting other stars, and conclude with a discussion of future directions for the field and the planned ground- and space-based facilities that will allow us to address those science topics

The VLA Nascent Disk And Multiplicity Survey of Perseus Protostars (VANDAM). III. Extended Radio Emission from Protostars in Perseus

Interstellar matter and star formatio