Effects of Added Vegetation on Sand Bar Stability and Stream Hydrodynamics

Vegetation was added to a fully developed sandy point bar in the meander of a constructed stream. Significant changes in the flow structure and bed topography were observed. As expected, the addition of vegetative resistance decreased the depth-averaged streamwise velocity over the bar and increased it in the open region. In addition, the secondary circulation increased in strength but became confined to the deepest section of the channel. Over the point bar, the secondary flow was entirely outward, i.e., toward the outer bank. The changes in flow led to changes in bar shape. Although the region of the bar closest to the inner bank accumulated sediment, erosion of the bar and the removal of plants by scouring were observed at the interface between the planted bar and the open channel.National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant No. EAR 0738352

Systematics of 2+ states in C isotopes from the ab initio no-core shell model

We study low-lying states of even carbon isotopes in the range A = 10 - 20 within the large- scale no-core shell model (NCSM). Using several accurate nucleon-nucleon (NN) as well as NN plus three-nucleon (NNN) interactions, we calculate excitation energies of the lowest 2+ state, the electromagnetic B(E2; 2+1 -> 0+1) transition rates, the 2+1 quadrupole moments as well as se- lected electromagnetic transitions among other states. Recent experimental campaigns to measure 2+-state lifetimes indicate an interesting evolution of nuclear structure that pose a challenge to reproduce theoretically from first principles. Our calculations do not include any effective charges or other fitting parameters. However, calculated results extrapolated to infinite model spaces are also presented. The model-dependence of those results is discussed. Overall, we find a good agree- ment with the experimentally observed trends, although our extrapolated B(E2; 2+1 -> 0+1) value for 16C is lower compared to the most recent measurements. Relative transition strengths from higher excited states are investigated and the influence of NNN forces is discussed. In particular for 16C we find a remarkable sensitivity of the transition rates from higher excited states to the details of the nuclear interactions.Comment: 22 pages, 8 figures, preprint version. Accepted for publication in Journal of Physics G: Nuclear and Particle Physic

RESPOND – A patient-centred program to prevent secondary falls in older people presenting to the emergency department with a fall: Protocol for a multi-centre randomised controlled trial

Introduction: Participation in falls prevention activities by older people following presentation to the Emergency Department (ED) with a fall is suboptimal. This randomised controlled trial (RCT) will test the RESPOND program which is designed to improve older persons’ participation in falls prevention activities through delivery of patient-centred education and behaviour change strategies. Design and setting: An RCT at two tertiary referral EDs in Melbourne and Perth, Australia. Participants: Five-hundred and twenty eight community-dwelling people aged 60-90 years presenting to the ED with a fall and discharged home will be recruited. People who: require an interpreter or hands-on assistance to walk; live in residential aged care or >50 kilometres from the trial hospital; have terminal illness, cognitive impairment, documented aggressive behaviour or history of psychosis; are receiving palliative care; or are unable to use a telephone will be excluded. Methods: Participants will be randomly allocated to the RESPOND intervention or standard care control group. RESPOND incorporates: (1) home-based risk factor assessment; (2) education, coaching, goal setting, and follow-up telephone support for management of one or more of four risk factors with evidence of effective intervention; and (3) healthcare provider communication and community linkage delivered over six months. Primary outcomes are falls and fall injuries per-person-year. Discussion: RESPOND builds on prior falls prevention learnings and aims to help individuals make guided decisions about how they will manage their falls risk. Patient-centred models have been successfully trialled in chronic and cardiovascular disease however evidence to support this approach in falls prevention is limited. Trial registration. The protocol for this study is registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12614000336684)

NIDCAP improves brain function and structure in preterm infants with severe intrauterine growth restriction

Objective: The effect of NIDCAP (Newborn Individualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program) was examined on the neurobehavioral, electrophysiological and neurostructural development of preterm infants with severe intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). Study Design: A total of 30 infants, 27–33 weeks gestation, were randomized to control (C; N=17) or NIDCAP/experimental (E; N=13) care. Baseline health and demographics were assessed at intake; electroencephalography (EEG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at 35 and 42 weeks postmenstrual age; and health, growth and neurobehavior at 42 weeks and 9 months corrected age (9 months). Results: C and E infants were comparable in health and demographics at baseline. At follow-up, E infants were healthier, showed significantly improved brain development and better neurobehavior. Neurobehavior, EEG and MRI discriminated between C and E infants. Neurobehavior at 42 weeks correlated with EEG and MRI at 42 weeks and neurobehavior at 9 months. Conclusion: NIDCAP significantly improved IUGR preterm infants' neurobehavior, electrophysiology and brain structure. Longer-term outcome assessment and larger samples are recommended

Laboratory investigation of lateral dispersion within dense arrays of randomly distributed cylinders at transitional Reynolds number

Published versio

Quasi-elastic and inelastic inclusive electron scattering from an oxygen jet target

The results of an experiment on inclusive electron scattering from an oxygen jet target, performed in a wide range of energy and momentum transfer covering both quasi-elastic and $\Delta$(1232) resonance regions, are reported. In the former region the theoretical predictions, obtained including effects of nucleon-nucleon correlations in both initial and final states, give a good description of the experimental data. In the inelastic region a broadening as well as a damping of the resonant part of the cross section with respect to the free nucleon case is observed. The need of more detailed calculations including nuclear structure effects on the electroproduction cross section of nucleon resonances is highlighted.Comment: to appear in Nucl. Phys.