Red supergiants as potential Type IIn supernova progenitors: Spatially resolved 4.6 micron CO emission around VY CMa and Betelgeuse

We present high-resolution 4.6micron CO spectra of the circumstellar environments of two RSGs that are potential SN progenitors: Betelgeuse and VY CMa. Around Betelgeuse, 12CO emission within 3arcsec follows a mildly clumpy but otherwise spherical shell, smaller than its 55arcsec shell in KI lambda7699. In stark contrast, 4.6micron CO emission around VY CMa is coincident with bright KI in its clumpy asymmetric reflection nebula, within 5arcsec of the star. Our CO data reveal redshifted features not seen in KI spectra of VY CMa, indicating a more isotropic distribution of gas punctuated by randomly distributed asymmetric clumps. The relative CO and KI distribution in Betelgeuse arises from ionization effects within a steady wind, whereas in VY CMa, KI is emitted from skins of CO cloudlets resulting from episodic mass ejections 500--1000 yr ago. In both cases, CO and KI trace potential pre-SN circumstellar matter: we conclude that an extreme RSG like VY CMa might produce a Type IIn event like SN1988Z if it were to explode in its current state, but Betelgeuse will not. VY CMa demonstrates that LBVs are not necessarily the only progenitors of SNe IIn, but it underscores the requirement that SNe IIn suffer enhanced episodic mass loss shortly before exploding.Comment: 16 pages, AJ accepte

Prediction of second neurological attack in patients with clinically isolated syndrome using support vector machines

The aim of this study is to predict the conversion from clinically isolated syndrome to clinically definite multiple sclerosis using support vector machines. The two groups of converters and non-converters are classified using features that were calculated from baseline data of 73 patients. The data consists of standard magnetic resonance images, binary lesion masks, and clinical and demographic information. 15 features were calculated and all combinations of them were iteratively tested for their predictive capacity using polynomial kernels and radial basis functions with leave-one-out cross-validation. The accuracy of this prediction is up to 86.4% with a sensitivity and specificity in the same range indicating that this is a feasible approach for the prediction of a second clinical attack in patients with clinically isolated syndromes, and that the chosen features are appropriate. The two features gender and location of onset lesions have been used in all feature combinations leading to a high accuracy suggesting that they are highly predictive. However, it is necessary to add supporting features to maximise the accuracy. © 2013 IEEE

Methane release and migration in post-mining hydrogeological context : experimental protocol development and modeling approach

Dans le but d'une meilleure caractérisation de l'aléa gaz dans les bassins houillers miniers ennoyés, un dispositif expérimental a été développé pour quantifier la libération du méthane depuis le charbon. Des échantillons de charbon saturés en méthane ont été soumis à des pressions hydrostatiques allant de 3 à 4,3 MPa, dans une cellule autoclave. Le protocole développé à partir du système initial et des moyens techniques apportés au cours des travaux de thèse s'est révélé opérationnel. Les résultats des expériences et leur analyse ont mis en évidence deux phénomènes : une désorption significative du méthane initialement adsorbé et l'effet de la pénétration de l'eau dans les pores du charbon sur la pression dans la cellule. Les différents niveaux de pression imposée au charbon ont montré que la fraction de méthane désorbé augmente avec la pression, du fait d'une sollicitation plus profonde des pores saturés en méthane.Les constantes d'équilibre déterminées ont été utilisées dans des modèles numériques visant à simuler la migration du méthane dans des structures minières ennoyées. Les modèles les plus simples ont montré l'importance des perméabilités du charbon et des vides miniers, ainsi que l'effet inhibiteur de l'ennoyage sur la libération de méthane. La concentration atteinte en méthane dissous est limitée par la constante de sorption attribuée au charbon et à sa teneur initiale en méthane. D'autres scénarios reprenant un contexte de gestion de la remontée des eaux de mine illustrent l'impact d'un pompage sur la sollicitation du méthane et son influence quant à une possible émission en surface, au terme d'une durée de l'ordre de la décennie, voire du siècle.An experimental laboratory device has been developed in order to better characterize the possibility if gas emissions from flooded coal mines. Coal samples, saturated with methane, have been submitted at hydrostatic pressure from 3 to 4.3 MPa in an autoclave cell. The initial set-up and the technical apparatus added during the thesis work permit to establish an operational protocol. The results and their analysis highlight two processes: a significant desorption of methane from the flooded coal and the impact of the water penetration in the coal pores on the hydrostatic pressure. The pressure levels the coal was submitted to reveal that an increase of hydrostatic pressure enhances desorption and dissolution, as a consequence of a deeper solicitation of the methane-saturated pores.The experimental equilibrium constants have been taken into account in numerical models aiming to simulate the methane migration in flooded mine structures. The simplest models showed the importance of coal and mine voids permeability and the methane release limitation by flooding. The methane concentration in water is controlled by the desorption constant of the coal and its initial methane content. Other models simulating a flooding management context illustrate the impact of pumping on methane release and its influence concerning an eventual surface emission after decades or even century

Libération et migration du méthane depuis le charbon dans un contexte hydrogéologique post-minier : développement d'un protocole expérimental et approche numérique

An experimental laboratory device has been developed in order to better characterize the possibility if gas emissions from flooded coal mines. Coal samples, saturated with methane, have been submitted at hydrostatic pressure from 3 to 4.3 MPa in an autoclave cell. The initial set-up and the technical apparatus added during the thesis work permit to establish an operational protocol. The results and their analysis highlight two processes: a significant desorption of methane from the flooded coal and the impact of the water penetration in the coal pores on the hydrostatic pressure. The pressure levels the coal was submitted to reveal that an increase of hydrostatic pressure enhances desorption and dissolution, as a consequence of a deeper solicitation of the methane-saturated pores.The experimental equilibrium constants have been taken into account in numerical models aiming to simulate the methane migration in flooded mine structures. The simplest models showed the importance of coal and mine voids permeability and the methane release limitation by flooding. The methane concentration in water is controlled by the desorption constant of the coal and its initial methane content. Other models simulating a flooding management context illustrate the impact of pumping on methane release and its influence concerning an eventual surface emission after decades or even century.Dans le but d'une meilleure caractérisation de l'aléa gaz dans les bassins houillers miniers ennoyés, un dispositif expérimental a été développé pour quantifier la libération du méthane depuis le charbon. Des échantillons de charbon saturés en méthane ont été soumis à des pressions hydrostatiques allant de 3 à 4,3 MPa, dans une cellule autoclave. Le protocole développé à partir du système initial et des moyens techniques apportés au cours des travaux de thèse s'est révélé opérationnel. Les résultats des expériences et leur analyse ont mis en évidence deux phénomènes : une désorption significative du méthane initialement adsorbé et l'effet de la pénétration de l'eau dans les pores du charbon sur la pression dans la cellule. Les différents niveaux de pression imposée au charbon ont montré que la fraction de méthane désorbé augmente avec la pression, du fait d'une sollicitation plus profonde des pores saturés en méthane.Les constantes d'équilibre déterminées ont été utilisées dans des modèles numériques visant à simuler la migration du méthane dans des structures minières ennoyées. Les modèles les plus simples ont montré l'importance des perméabilités du charbon et des vides miniers, ainsi que l'effet inhibiteur de l'ennoyage sur la libération de méthane. La concentration atteinte en méthane dissous est limitée par la constante de sorption attribuée au charbon et à sa teneur initiale en méthane. D'autres scénarios reprenant un contexte de gestion de la remontée des eaux de mine illustrent l'impact d'un pompage sur la sollicitation du méthane et son influence quant à une possible émission en surface, au terme d'une durée de l'ordre de la décennie, voire du siècle

Experimental characterization of CH4 release from coal at high hydrostatic pressure

International audienceCoal mines naturally emit gases, mostly methane, during exploitation and at the beginning of flooding. Once they are flooded, the conditions of gas migration are changed, and the capacity of release and retention of gas by coal is poorly known. The experimental device CASPER has made it possible to demonstrate and quantify a significant release of methane from coal under more than 3 MPa of hydrostatic pressure. The analysis of these results showed that the main fraction of released methane comes from sorption sites. The porous volume has a minor role in reaching content equilibrium, but has a strong effect on hydrostatic pressure, due to water penetration into the coal structure

Using optical index matching to visualize solute transport and perform particle tracking in a synthetic porous medium

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Visualization of solute transport and particle tracking in a three-dimensional porous medium, using optical index matching.

International audienceThe experimental study of preferential flow paths in real soil porous systems usually requires elaborate and expensive techniques such as X-ray tomography or MRI. When one aims at studying a particular feature of transport in such systems, one can utilize a laboratory experiment in which the real porous medium is replaced by a model porous system; in this case, it is sometimes possible, even for a three-dimensional medium, to rely on optical visualization techniques. We present here an experimental setup addressing the visualization of solute transport and particle advection in a synthetic porous medium consisting of glass beads. At fluid preparation, we obtain optical index matching between the glass beads and the fluid by mixing two miscible fluids whose refraction indices are respectively smaller and larger than that of the beads. The right proportions for the two fluids are found when the transmission of a laser Beam through a box containing a sample porous medium is observed to be maximal. The matched fluid allows monitoring of solute dispersion inside the porous medium. The influence of the index mismatch on the uncertainty of the measurements has been estimated using available theories[1]. Successful attempts at tracking colloidal particles advected inside the porous medium are presented. The simple tracking algorithm requires that particles not too close to each other be monitored at a large enough acquisition frequency

The Swiss cohort of elderly patients with venous thromboembolism (SWITCO65+): rationale and methodology

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is common and has a high impact on morbidity, mortality, and costs of care. Although most of the patients with VTE are aged ≥65 years, there is little data about the medical outcomes in the elderly with VTE. The Swiss Cohort of Elderly Patients with VTE (SWITCO65+) is a prospective multicenter cohort study of in- and outpatients aged ≥65 years with acute VTE from all five Swiss university and four high-volume non-university hospitals. The goal is to examine which clinical and biological factors and processes of care drive short- and long-term medical outcomes, health-related quality of life, and medical resource utilization in elderly patients with acute VTE. The cohort also includes a large biobank with biological material from each participant. From September 2009 to March 2012, 1,863 elderly patients with VTE were screened and 1003 (53.8 %) were enrolled in the cohort. Overall, 51.7 % of patients were aged ≥75 years and 52.7 % were men. By October 16, 2012, after an average follow-up time of 512 days, 799 (79.7 %) patients were still actively participating. SWITCO65+ is a unique opportunity to study short- and long-term outcomes in elderly patients with VTE. The Steering Committee encourages national and international collaborative research projects related to SWITCO65+, including sharing anonymized data and biological samples

2019 ESC Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of acute pulmonary embolism developed in collaboration with the European Respiratory Society (ERS).

Guidelines summarize and evaluate available evidence with the aim of assisting health professionals in proposing the best management strategies for an individual patient with a given condition. Guidelines and their recommendations should facilitate decision making of health professionals in their daily practice. However, the final decisions concerning an individual patient must be made by the responsible health professional(s) in consultation with the patient and caregiver as appropriate