5,564 research outputs found
A vertical profile of deep horizontal current near Cape Lookout, North Carolina
The acoustic transit times for a float to sink to a bottom-anchored triangular array of disposable transponders are used to construct a horizontal current profile in the anticyclonic shear region of the Gulf Stream, southeast of Cape Lookout, North Carolina...
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Profiles of transport, current and temperature in the MODE areas of the North Atlantic
The implausibility of ‘usual care’ in an open system: sedation and weaning practices in Paediatric Intensive Care Units (PICUs) in the United Kingdom (UK)
Background: The power of the randomised controlled trial depends upon its capacity to operate in a closed
system whereby the intervention is the only causal force acting upon the experimental group and absent in the
control group, permitting a valid assessment of intervention efficacy. Conversely, clinical arenas are open systems
where factors relating to context, resources, interpretation and actions of individuals will affect implementation and
effectiveness of interventions. Consequently, the comparator (usual care) can be difficult to define and variable in
multi-centre trials. Hence outcomes cannot be understood without considering usual care and factors that may
affect implementation and impact on the intervention.
Methods: Using a fieldwork approach, we describe PICU context, ‘usual’ practice in sedation and weaning from
mechanical ventilation, and factors affecting implementation prior to designing a trial involving a sedation and
ventilation weaning intervention. We collected data from 23 UK PICUs between June and November 2014 using
observation, individual and multi-disciplinary group interviews with staff.
Results: Pain and sedation practices were broadly similar in terms of drug usage and assessment tools. Sedation
protocols linking assessment to appropriate titration of sedatives and sedation holds were rarely used (9 % and 4 %
of PICUs respectively). Ventilator weaning was primarily a medical-led process with 39 % of PICUs engaging senior
nurses in the process: weaning protocols were rarely used (9 % of PICUs). Weaning methods were variably based
on clinician preference. No formal criteria or use of spontaneous breathing trials were used to test weaning
readiness. Seventeen PICUs (74 %) had prior engagement in multi-centre trials, but limited research nurse
availability. Barriers to previous trial implementation were intervention complexity, lack of belief in the evidence and
inadequate training. Facilitating factors were senior staff buy-in and dedicated research nurse provision.
Conclusions: We examined and identified contextual and organisational factors that may impact on the
implementation of our intervention. We found usual practice relating to sedation, analgesia and ventilator weaning
broadly similar, yet distinctively different from our proposed intervention, providing assurance in our ability to
evaluate intervention effects. The data will enable us to develop an implementation plan; considering these factors
we can more fully understand their impact on study outcomes
Three-dimensional photoacoustic imaging and inversion for accurate quantification of chromophore distributions
Photoacoustic tomography can, in principle, provide quantitatively accurate, high-resolution, images of chromophore distributions in 3D in vivo. However, achieving this goal requires not only dealing with the optical fluence-related spatial and spectral distortion but also having access to high quality, calibrated, measurements and using image reconstruction algorithms free from inaccurate assumptions. Furthermore, accurate knowledge of experimental parameters, such as the positions of the ultrasound detectors and the illumination pattern, is necessary for the reconstruction step. A meticulous and rigorous experimental phantom study was conducted to show that highly-resolved 3D estimation of chromophore distributions can be achieved: a crucial step towards in vivo implementation. The phantom consisted of four 580 μm diameter tubes with different ratios of copper sulphate and nickel sulphate as hemoglobin analogues, submersed in a background medium of intralipid and india ink. The optical absorption, scattering, photostability, and Grüneisen parameter were characterised for all components independently. A V-shaped imaging scanner enabled 3D imaging with the high resolution, high sensitivity, and wide bandwidth characteristic of Fabry-Pérot ultrasound sensors, but without the limited-view disadvantage of single-plane scanners. The optical beam profile and position were determined experimentally. Nine wavelengths between 750 and 1110 nm were used. The images of the chromophore concentrations were obtained using a model-based, two-step, procedure, that did not require image segmentation. First, the acoustic reconstruction was solved with an iterative time-reversal algorithm to obtain images of the initial acoustic pressure at each of the nine wavelengths for an 18×17×13 mm3 volume with 50μm voxels. Then, 3D high resolution estimates of the chromophore concentrations were obtained by using a diffusion model of light transport in an iterative nonlinear optimisation scheme. Among the lessons to be drawn from this study, one is fundamental: in order to obtain accurate estimates of chromophores (or their ratios) it is not only necessary to model the light fluence accurately, but it is just as crucial to obtain accurate estimates of the initial acoustic pressure distributions, and to account for variations in the thermoelastic efficiency (Grüneisen parameter). © (2017) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only
Multiproxy bioarchaeological data reveals interplay between growth, diet and population dynamics across the transition to farming in the central Mediterranean
The transition to farming brought on a series of important changes in human society, lifestyle, diet and health. The human bioarchaeology of the agricultural transition has received much attention, however, relatively few studies have directly tested the interrelationship between individual lifestyle factors and their implications for understanding life history changes among the first farmers. We investigate the interplay between skeletal growth, diet, physical activity and population size across 30,000 years in the central Mediterranean through a ‘big data’ cross-analysis of osteological data related to stature (n = 361), body mass (n = 334) and long bone biomechanics (n = 481), carbon (δ 13C) and nitrogen (δ 15N) stable isotopes (n = 1986 human, n = 475 animal) and radiocarbon dates (n = 5263). We present the observed trends on a continuous timescale in order to avoid grouping our data into assigned ‘time periods’, thus achieving greater resolution and chronological control over our analysis. The results identify important changes in human life history strategies associated with the first farmers, but also highlight the long-term nature of these trends in the millennia either side of the agricultural transition. The integration of these different data is an important step towards disentangling the complex relationship between demography, diet and health, and reconstruct life history changes within a southern European context. We believe the methodological approach adopted here has broader global implications for bioarchaeological studies of human adaptation more generally
Ozone depletion, greenhouse gases, and climate change
This symposium was organized to study the unusual convergence of a number of observations, both short and long term that defy an integrated explanation. Of particular importance are surface temperature observations and observations of upper atmospheric temperatures, which have declined significantly in parts of the stratosphere. There has also been a dramatic decline in ozone concentration over Antarctica that was not predicted. Significant changes in precipitation that seem to be latitude dependent have occurred. There has been a threefold increase in methane in the last 100 years; this is a problem because a source does not appear to exist for methane of the right isotopic composition to explain the increase. These and other meteorological global climate changes are examined in detail
Reproductive factors, age at maximum height, and risk of three histologic types of breast cancer.
Numerous studies have evaluated the association between factors related to maturation and reproduction and breast cancer risk, but few have assessed how these factors are related to different histologic types of breast cancer among postmenopausal women. We used polytomous logistic regression to assess the effect of age at maximum height and reproductive factors on risk of invasive breast cancer by histologic type in three case groups (524 ductal, 324 lobular, and 196 ductal-lobular) and 469 controls enrolled in a population-based case-control study of women ages 55 to 74 years residing in the Seattle-Puget Sound region of Washington State (2000-2004). Histologic type was determined by a centralized tissue review for 83% of cases. Age at menarche and age at maximum height were inversely associated with risk of ductal-lobular carcinoma (P(trend) = 0.04 for both exposures) but not ductal or lobular carcinoma. Relative to nulliparous women, parous women had a 50% reduced risk of all histologic types of breast cancer. We observed similar increases in risk across histologic types associated with having a first live birth at ages > or = 30 years compared with ages < or = 19 years. Compared with parous women who never breast-fed, those who breast-fed had a reduced risk of ductal carcinoma (odds ratio, 0.7; 95% confidence interval, 0.5-0.9) but not lobular or ductal-lobular carcinoma. Further exploration of breast cancer risk by histology is merited to understand differences in the etiology of ductal, lobular, and ductal-lobular carcinoma
Comparison of X-ray and gamma-ray dose-response curves for pink somatic mutations in Tradescantia clone 02
Microdosimetric data indicate that the mean specific energy,zeta, produced by individual charged particles from X rays and gamma rays is different for the two radiation qualities by nearly a factor of two. In order to test whether this influences the initial, linear component in the dose-effect relations, a comparison was made between dose-response curves for pink somatic mutations inTradescantia clone 02 stamen hairs following X and gamma irradiations. Absorbed doses ranged from 2.66 to 300 rad. The results are in agreement with predictions made on the basis of microdosimetric data. At low doses gamma rays are substantially less effective than X rays. The RBE of gamma rays vs. X rays at low doses was approximately 0.6, a value lower than those usually reported in other experimental systems
Relativistic Mean-Field Theory Equation of State of Neutron Star Matter and a Maxwellian Phase Transition to Strange Quark Matter
The equation of state of neutron star matter is examined in terms of the
relativistic mean-field theory, including a scalar-isovector -meson
effective field. The constants of the theory are determined numerically so that
the empirically known characteristics of symmetric nuclear matter are
reproduced at the saturation density. The thermodynamic characteristics of both
asymmetric nucleonic matter and -equilibrium hadron-electron
-plasmas are studied. Assuming that the transition to strange quark matter
is an ordinary first-order phase transition described by Maxwell's rule, a
detailed study is made of the variations in the parameters of the phase
transition owing to the presence of a -meson field. The quark phase is
described using an improved version of the bag model, in which interactions
between quarks are accounted for in a one-gluon exchange approximation. The
characteristics of the phase transition are determined for various values of
the bag parameter within the range and it is shown
that including a -meson field leads to a reduction in the phase
transition pressure and in the concentrations and at
the phase transition point.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figure
The LOFT perspective on neutron star thermonuclear bursts
This is a White Paper in support of the mission concept of the Large
Observatory for X-ray Timing (LOFT), proposed as a medium-sized ESA mission. We
discuss the potential of LOFT for the study of thermonuclear X-ray bursts on
accreting neutron stars. For a summary, we refer to the paper.Comment: White Paper in Support of the Mission Concept of the Large
Observatory for X-ray Timin
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