Novel technology based on the spectral kurtosis and wavelet transform for rolling bearing diagnosis

A novel diagnosis technology combining the benefits of spectral kurtosis and wavelet transform is proposed and validated for early defect diagnosis of rolling element bearings. A systematic procedure for feature calculation is proposed and rules for selection of technology parameters are explained. Experimental validation of the proposed method carried out for early detection of the inner race defect. A comparison between frequency band selection through wavelets and spectral kurtosis is also presented. It has been observed that the frequency band selected using spectral kurtosis provide better separation between healthy and defective bearings compared to the frequency band selection using wavelet. In terms of Fisher criterion the use of spectral kurtosis has a gain of 2.75 times compared to the wavelet

Psychiatric nurses’ views on criteria for psychiatric intensive care: acute and intensive care staff compared

Aim: To explore and investigate differences between the views of qualified nurses working in psychiatric intensive care units (PICUs) and acute care wards on which patients are appropriate for PICU care. Background: Previous research on the area of psychiatric intensive care highlights the great differences that exist in all aspects of service provision, from unit size and staffing levels to treatment approaches and physical environment. One of the most common areas of controversy is the type of client behaviour that warrants admission to the PICU. Method: Structured interviews of 100 qualified nursing staff (in the London area, England) working on either acute or PICU wards were used to gather data on appropriate and inappropriate referral to PICUs. Comments made during the course of the interviews were also collected and subjected to content analysis. Findings: There was evidence to support the hypothesis that acute ward staff considered patients suitable for PICU care at a lower level of risk than PICU staff thought appropriate. In comparison to acute ward nurses, those working in PICUs attended to a broader range of factors when considering suitability for admission to PICU. Appropriate reasons for transfer fell into five groups: risk to others; risk of intentional harm to self; risk of unintentional harm to self; therapeutic benefit from the PICU environment; and legitimate acute ward care problem. Inappropriate reasons for transfer fell into four groups: low risk to others and/or self; illegitimate acute admission care problems; patient belongs elsewhere; policy issues. Conclusion: The study opens up a range of issues not previously studied in relation to the use of PICUs and the intricate relationship of this use with the available acute care wards and other services. These findings and their implications for the care of acute and disturbed psychiatric patients are discussed

Emerging new climate extremes over Europe

Human society and natural systems are intrinsically adapted to the local climate mean and variability. Therefore, changes relative to the local expected variability are highly relevant for assessing impact and planning for adaptation as the climate changes. We analyse the emerging climate signal relative to the diagnosed internal variability (signal-to-noise ratio, S/N) of a set of recently published climate indices over Europe. We calculate the signal-to-noise ratio with respect to a recent baseline (1951–1983) which relates to recent societal experience. In this framework, we find that during the 2000–2016 period, many areas of Europe already experienced significant changes in climate extremes, even when compared to this recent period which is within living memory. In particular, the S/N of extreme temperatures is larger than 1 and 2 over 34% and 4% of Europe, respectively. We also find that about 15% of Europe is experiencing more intense winter precipitation events, while in summer, 7% of Europe is experiencing stronger drought-inducing conditions

Observational evidence of European summer weather patterns predictable from spring

Forecasts of summer weather patterns months in advance would be of great value for a wide range of applications. However, seasonal dynamical model forecasts for European summers have very little skill, particularly for rainfall. It has not been clear whether this low skill reflects inherent unpredictability of summer weather or, alternatively, is a consequence of weaknesses in current forecast systems. Here we analyze atmosphere and ocean observations and identify evidence that a specific pattern of summertime atmospheric circulation--the summer East Atlantic (SEA) pattern--is predictable from the previous spring. An index of North Atlantic sea-surface temperatures in March-April can predict the SEA pattern in July-August with a cross-validated correlation skill above 0.6. Our analyses show that the sea-surface temperatures influence atmospheric circulation and the position of the jet stream over the North Atlantic. The SEA pattern has a particularly strong influence on rainfall in the British Isles, which we find can also be predicted months ahead with a significant skill of 0.56. Our results have immediate application to empirical forecasts of summer rainfall for the United Kingdom, Ireland, and northern France and also suggest that current dynamical model forecast systems have large potential for improvement

Relationship between service ecology, special observation and self-harm during acute in-patient care: City-128 study

Background: Special observation (the allocation of nurses to watch over nominated patients) is one means by which psychiatric services endeavour to keep in-patients safe from harm. The practice is both contentious and of unknown efficacy. Aims: To assess the relationship between special observation and self-harm rates, by ward, whilst controlling for potential confounding variables. Method: A multivariate cross sectional study collecting data on self-harm, special observation, other conflict and containment, physical environment, patient and staff factors for a six month period on 136 acute admission psychiatric wards. Results: Constant special observation was not associated with self-harm rates, but intermittent observation was associated with reduced self-harm, as were levels of qualified nursing staff and more intense programmes of patient activities. Conclusions: Certain features of nursing deployment and activity may serve to protect patients. The efficacy of constant special observation remains open to question

Zeolites: A Theoretical and Practical Approach with Uses in (Bio)Chemical Processes

This review provides a state-of-the-art summary of distributed zeolite technology, as well as identifying strategies to further promote the absorption of these materials in various areas of study. Zeolites are materials that can be synthesized or found in natural rock deposits a with a basic composition consisting in Al, Si, and O. Zeolite’s consideration as a future material is due to many facile synthesis methods to obtain different structures with variations in pore size, surface area, pore volume and physical properties. These methods are developed using the control of relevant synthesis parameters that influences structure formation, such as crystallization temperature, time of aging and/or crystallization, stoichiometric relationships between components of synthesis gel, pH of the medium, and in some cases the type of structure-directing agent. Each method will lead to geometric changes in the framework formation, making possible the formation of typical chemical bonds that are the fingerprint of any zeolitic structure (O-Si-O and Al-O-Si), forming typical acid sites that give specificity in zeolite and allows it to act as a nanoreactor. The specificity is a characteristic that in some cases depends on selectivity, a fundamental property derived of the porosity, mostly in processes that occur inside the zeolite. In processes outside the structure, the surface area is the main factor influencing this property. Moreover, there are many natural sources with adequate chemical composition to be used as precursors. Some of these sources are waste, minimizing the deposition of potential hazardous materials that can be recalcitrant pollutants depending on the environment. Besides its uses as a catalyst, zeolite serves as a support for many bioprocesses; therefore, this review aims to explain relevant aspects in chemical nature, physical properties, main methods of synthesis, main precursors used for synthesis, and relevant applications of zeolites in chemical catalysis and biological processes

Psychiatric intensive care units: A literature review

Background: Psychiatric Intensive Care Units (PICU) have been part of most inpatient psychiatric services for some time, however information about their functioning and outcome has not previously been collated. Aim: To conduct a systematic literature review to assess the current state of knowledge about such services. Method: A search of electronic databases was undertaken, followed by obtaining additional references from items obtained. Results: Over 50 papers in English containing some empirical data were identified. Most studies were retrospective. Typical PICU patients are: male; younger; single; unemployed; suffering from schizophrenia or mania; from a black Caribbean or African background; legally detained; with a forensic history. The most common reason for admission is for aggression management, and most patients stay a week or less. Evidence of the efficacy of PICU care is very poor. Conclusions: Most research so far has been small scale, and more substantial work using better methodologies is clearly required

Morale is high in acute inpatient psychiatry

Background: Morale on acute psychiatric wards has been considered to be problematic, and is reported to contribute to low quality patient care. Aim: To assess the relationship of staff morale to patient, service environment, physical environment, patient routines, conflict, containment, staff demographics, and staff group variables. Method: A multivariate cross sectional study was undertaken collecting data on morale and other variables on 136 acute admission psychiatric wards in England. Results: Morale was higher than published comparison samples. Length of time in post was correlated with low morale, and qualified nurses had higher emotional exhaustion but also higher personal accomplishment. The level of verbal abuse on a ward was associated with low morale, as was a higher level of social deprivation among patients. Higher levels of order and organisation correlated with better morale. Conclusions: Clear policies relating to the management of verbal abuse by patients, high levels of order and organisation, and staff rotation and education, may all support high morale. Acute inpatient psychiatry is generally a happy and rewarding work environment, and identified problems are likely to be due to other factors

Decadal prediction of the North Atlantic subpolar gyre in the HiGEM high-resolution climate model

This paper presents an analysis of initialised decadal hindcasts of the North Atlantic subpolar gyre (SPG) using the HiGEM model, which has a nominal grid-spacing of 90 km in the atmosphere, and 1/3 ∘∘ in the ocean. HiGEM decadal predictions (HiGEM-DP) exhibit significant skill at capturing 0–500 m ocean heat content in the SPG, and outperform historically forced transient integrations and persistence for up to a decade ahead. An analysis of case-studies of North Atlantic decadal change, including the 1960s cooling, the mid-1990s warming, and the post-2005 cooling, show that changes in ocean circulation and heat transport dominate the predictions of the SPG. However, different processes are found to dominate heat content changes in different regions of the SPG. Specifically, ocean advection dominates in the east, but surface fluxes dominate in the west. Furthermore, compared to previous studies, we find a smaller role for ocean heat transport changes due to ocean circulation anomalies at the latitudes of the SPG, and, for the 1960s cooling, a greater role for surface fluxes. Finally, HiGEM-DP predicts the observed positive state of the North Atlantic Oscillation in the early 1990s. These results support an important role for the ocean in driving past changes in the North Atlantic region, and suggest that these changes were predictable

Crop Updates 2006 - Cereals

This session covers twenty nine papers from different authors: PLENARY 1. The 2005 wheat streak mosaic virus epidemic in New South Wales and the threat posed to the Western Australian wheat industry, Roger Jones and Nichole Burges, Department of Agriculture SOUTH COAST AGRONOMY 2. South coast wheat variety trial results and best options for 2006, Mohammad Amjad, Ben Curtis and Wal Anderson, Department of Agriculture 3. Dual purpose winter wheats to improve productivity, Mohammad Amjad and Ben Curtis, Department of Agriculture 4. South coast large-scale premium wheat variety trials, Mohammad Amjad and Ben Curtis, Department of Agriculture 5. Optimal input packages for noodle wheat in Dalwallinu – Liebe practice for profit trial, Darren Chitty, Agritech Crop Research and Brianna Peake, Liebe Group 6. In-crop risk management using yield prophet®, Harm van Rees1, Cherie Reilly1, James Hunt1, Dean Holzworth2, Zvi Hochman2; 1Birchip Cropping Group, Victoria; 2CSIRO, Toowoomba, Qld 7. Yield Prophet® 2005 – On-line yield forecasting, James Hunt1, Harm van Rees1, Zvi Hochman2,Allan Peake2, Neal Dalgliesh2, Dean Holzworth2, Stephen van Rees1, Trudy McCann1 and Peter Carberry2; 1Birchip Cropping Group, Victoria; 2CSIRO, Toowoomba, Qld 8. Performance of oaten hay varieties in Western Australian environments, Raj Malik and Kellie Winfield, Department of Agriculture 9. Performance of dwarf potential milling varieties in Western Australian environments, Kellie Winfield and Raj Malik, Department of Agriculture 10. Agronomic responses of new wheat varieties in the Southern agricultural region of WA, Brenda Shackley and Judith Devenish, Department of Agriculture 11. Responses of new wheat varieties to management factors in the central agricultural region of Western Australia, Darshan Sharma, Steve Penny and Wal Anderson,Department of Agriculture 12. Sowing time on wheat yield, quality and $ - Northern agricultural region, Christine Zaicou-Kunesch, Department of Agriculture NUTRITION 13.The most effective method of applying phosphorus, copper and zinc to no-till crops, Mike Bolland and Ross Brennan, Department of Agriculture 14. Uptake of K from the soil profile by wheat, Paul Damon and Zed Rengel, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Western Australia 15. Reducing nitrogen fertiliser risks, Jeremy Lemon, Department of Agriculture 16. Yield Prophet® and canopy management, Harm van Rees1, Zvi Hochman2, Perry Poulton2, Nick Poole3, Brooke Thompson4, James Hunt1; 1Birchip Cropping Group, Victoria; 2CSIRO, Toowoomba, Qld; 3Foundation for Arable Research, New Zealand; 4Cropfacts, Victoria 17. Producing profits with phosphorus, Stephen Loss, CSBP Ltd, WA 18. Potassium response in cereal cropping within the medium rainfall central wheatbelt, Jeff Russell1, Angie Roe2 and James Eyres2, Department of Agriculture1, Farm Focus Consultants, Northam2 19. Matching nitrogen supply to wheat demand in the high rainfall cropping zone, Narelle Simpson, Ron McTaggart, Wal Anderson, Lionel Martin and Dave Allen, Department of Agriculture DISEASES 20. Comparative study of commercial wheat cultivars and differential lines (with known Pm resistance genes) to powdery mildew response, Hossein Golzar, Manisha Shankar and Robert Loughman, Department of Agriculture 21. On farm research to investigate fungicide applications to minimise leaf disease impacts in wheat – part II, Jeff Russell1, Angie Roe2and James Eyres2, Department of Agriculture1, and Farm Focus Consultants, Northam2 22. Disease resistance update for wheat varieties in WA, Manisha Shankar, John Majewski, Donna Foster, Hossein Golzar, Jamie Piotrowski, Nicole Harry and Rob Loughman, Department of Agriculture 23. Effect of time of stripe rust inoculum arrival on variety response in wheat, Manisha Shankar, John Majewski and Rob Loughman, Department of Agriculture 24. Fungicide seed dressing management of loose smut in Baudin barley, Geoff Thomas and Kith Jayasena, Department of Agriculture PESTS 25. How to avoid insect contamination in cereal grain at harvest, Svetlana Micic, Paul Matson and Tony Dore, Department of Agriculture ABIOTIC 26. Environment – is it as important as variety in sprouting tolerance? Thomas (Ben) Biddulph1, Dr Daryl Mares1, Dr Julie Plummer1 and Dr Tim Setter2, School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia1 and Department of Agriculture2 27. Frost or fiction, Garren Knell, Steve Curtin and Wade Longmuir, ConsultAg Pty Ltd, WA 28. High moisture wheat harvesting in Esperance 2005, Nigel Metz, South East Premium Wheat Growers Association (SEPWA) Projects Coordinator, Esperance, WA SOILS 28. Hardpan penetration ability of wheat roots, Tina Botwright Acuña and Len Wade, School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia MARKETS 29. Crop shaping to meet predicted market demands for wheat in the 21st Century, Cindy Mills and Peter Stone,Australian Wheat Board, Melbourn