Performance of the forward scattering spectrometer probe in NASA's icing research tunnel

Two Forward Scattering Spectrometer Probes were used to measure droplet distributions in the NASA Lewis Icing Research Tunnel. The instruments showed good agreement when the median volume diameter (MVD) was approximately 16 micrometers. Coincidence events affect much of the data and caused the measured MVD to be about 2 to 3 micrometers larger than expected. Coincidence events were reduced by shutting down half of the spray bars in the tunnel during certain tests

Approximation of Bayesian inverse problems for PDEs

Inverse problems are often ill posed, with solutions that depend sensitively on data. In any numerical approach to the solution of such problems, regularization of some form is needed to counteract the resulting instability. This paper is based on an approach to regularization, employing a Bayesian formulation of the problem, which leads to a notion of well posedness for inverse problems, at the level of probability measures. The stability which results from this well posedness may be used as the basis for quantifying the approximation, in finite dimensional spaces, of inverse problems for functions. This paper contains a theory which utilizes this stability property to estimate the distance between the true and approximate posterior distributions, in the Hellinger metric, in terms of error estimates for approximation of the underlying forward problem. This is potentially useful as it allows for the transfer of estimates from the numerical analysis of forward problems into estimates for the solution of the related inverse problem. It is noteworthy that, when the prior is a Gaussian random field model, controlling differences in the Hellinger metric leads to control on the differences between expected values of polynomially bounded functions and operators, including the mean and covariance operator. The ideas are applied to some non-Gaussian inverse problems where the goal is determination of the initial condition for the Stokes or Navier–Stokes equation from Lagrangian and Eulerian observations, respectively

Childhood Pneumonia and under-five morbidity and mortality at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital- a situational analysis

Background: Childhood mortality which remains high in children under the age of 5years is largely due to infectious and other preventable causes such as Human immunodeficiency virus/ Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome ((HIV/AIDS), pneumonia and malaria1 . The prevention of pneumonia deaths is therefore an important th approach if the 4th Millennium Development Goal (MDG4) is to be attained.Aim: The aim of this study was to describe the pattern, clinical features, management and complications of pneumonia in under-five children admitted in the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) and to highlight their morbidity and mortality.Methods: This was a retrospective cross sectional descriptive study of children diagnosed with pneumonia who were admitted into the children's wards between January 2007 and December 2009. The case notes of all children diagnosed of pneumonia who were admitted into the paediatric wards as recorded in the ward register, were reviewed.Results: Five hundred and ninety-two children met the inclusion criteria. The yearly number ranged from 107 in 2007 to 213 in 2009. The quarterly distribution showed a peak during the north east wind (harmattan) season. Their ages ranged from <1-168 months (mean age 13.2 months, SD=19.84). Neonates accounted for 24.5% of all cases, while 66.9% were Infants and Under-fives were 97.1%. They were 333(56.3%) males and 251(42.4%) females, with a M: F ratio of 1.3:1. Pneumonia alone was the diagnosis in 127(54 .7%) while 106(45.7 %) had pneumonia plus other associated conditions, the commonest being malaria. Heart failure was the commonest complication 69(29.7%). The children who completed their immunization in infancy according to the National program on immunization schedule were 61.2% of cases, those who were exclusively breast feeding for the first six months of life - 31.9%, while HIV/AIDS was observed in 9.1%. The case fatality rate was 9.0% with 79.2% of them as infants.Conclusion: Pneumonia which is still prevalent in underfives in this environment is associated with significant morbidity and mortality especially among infants. Efforts to address this contributor to under-five morbidity and mortality is required if MDG4 is to be attained.Keywords: Pneumonia, under-five mortality, morbidity, MDG4

Quality of Neonatal Health Care: Learning From Health Workers’ Experiences in Critical Care in Kilimanjaro Region, Northeast Tanzania

Neonatal deaths are generally attributed to suboptimal standards of health care. Health care worker motivation and adherence to existing guidelines are rarely studied. To assess the performance of health workers for neonatal health care in the hospitals of Kilimanjaro region. A descriptive study using a semi-structured interview for health care workers at a tertiary referral hospital and peripheral health facilities (regional referral, district hospitals and health centres).was used. Health Care Workers (HCW) were asked to recall a scenario of a critically ill neonate admitted in the wards and the treatment that was provided. The WHO Emergency Triage Assessment and Treatment (ETAT) guidelines were used as a standard reference for knowledge of critical care. Birth asphyxia was the most recalled health problem requiring critical care, reported by 27.5% of 120 HCW at both peripheral hospitals and by 46.4% of 28 health workers in tertiary referral centres. Half of the HCW commented on their own performance (47.5%, n=140). HCW presented with low to moderate levels of knowledge for critical care were at 92%. Supplementary training was associated with a higher levels of knowledge of neonatal critical care (p value = 0.05). HCW in peripheral hospital had lower levels of knowledge (only 44.7% at peripheral hospitals had sufficient ratings compared to 82.1% at the referral centre). [Pearson χ2 (2) = 12.10, p value = 0.002]. Guided Practical-Competence Diagnostic Specific neonatal health care training is highly needed in the peripheral facilities of rural Kilimanjaro region

First comes the river, then comes the conflict? A qualitative comparative analysis of flood-related political unrest

Disasters triggered by natural hazards will increase in the future due to climate change, population growth, and more valuable assets located in vulnerable areas. The impacts of disasters on political conflict have been the subject of broad academic and public debates. Existing research has paid little attention to the links between climate change, disasters, and small-scale conflicts, such as protests or riots. Floods are particularly relevant in this context as they are the most frequent and most costly contemporary disasters. However, they remain understudied compared to other disasters, specifically, droughts and storms. We address these gaps by focusing on flood-related political unrest between 2015 and 2018 in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. Drawing on data from the Dartmouth Flood Observatory (DFO) and Armed Conflict Location and Event Dataset (ACLED), we find that flood-related political unrest occurs within two months after 24% of the 92 large flooding events recorded in our sample. Subsequently, a qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) shows that the simultaneous presence of a large population, a democratic regime, and either the exclusion of ethnic groups from political power or a heavy impact of the flood is an important scope condition for the onset of flood-related political unrest. This indicates that disaster–conflict links are by no means deterministic. Rather, they are contingent on complex interactions between multiple contextual factors

Securitisation through the schoolbook? On facilitating conditions for and audience dispositions towards the securitisation of climate change

This article contributes to the literature on securitisation in a twofold way. Firstly, it argues that school textbooks reveal the consolidated discursive realms of a given society and convey them to the next generation. Focusing on school textbooks can thus enrich the analysis of facilitating conditions for securitisation processes. The second and main contribution of this article is that it addresses the lack of empirical studies on the audience in securitisation research. After an analysis of climate change discourses in Germany, we test whether or not students exposed to vastly different positions in the same consolidated discursive realm are more prone to accept the securitisation of climate change. In order to do so, we use a quasi-experimental research design and a closed questionnaire. Results show that young people who read school textbooks using an alarmist logic are indeed more likely to conceive climate change as an urgent threat necessitating extraordinary measures, and are thus more likely to accept the securitisation of climate change