Compatibility between Independent Activities in the Course of Study for Schools for Special Needs Education and ICF Categories

In the 2009 amendment to the course of study for schools for special needs education, the new teaching guideline "independent activities" was introduced to teach skills that ease difficulties in learning and daily living. The present study aimed to clarify compatibility between the independent activities and ICF categories by conducting a survey of teaching staff in schools for special needs education. The independent activities consist of 6 major items accompanied by a total of 26 sub-items. The ICF involves 4 components: body functions and structures, activities and participation, environmental factors and personal factors. Thirty items at the first level of classification were employed for the present investigation, excluding personal factors. The independent activities were linked not only to activities and participation in the ICF, but also body functions and structures and environmental factors. Amongst the independent activities "psychological stability" had the largest degree of compatibility with ICF items (15 items); while "health care" and "understanding situations" had the smallest number (6 items). The results suggest that a combined use of independent activities and ICF categories provides a more useful and quantitative foundation to assess the independent activities and to facilitate individual teaching plans

Long-term changes in summer temperature anomaly patterns in Japan since the early 20th century

The relationship between long-term variations in summer temperature in Japan since the early 20th century and the large-scale atmospheric circulation field was analysed. The combined influence of various circulation predictors on temperarure variations was analysed via a multicomponent canonical correlation analysis(CCA). The positive phase of the first CCA mode is related to a positive temperature anomaly across Japan, characterized by a weak blocking hi gh over the Okhotsk Sea, and a strong North Pac ific subtropical high (NPSH) over Japan. The positive phase of the second CCA mode corresponds to a positive temperature anomaly in southwestern Japan, and a negative anomaly in northern Japan, characterized by an anticyclonic circulation anomaly over eastern China and a cyclonic anomaly over the northwestern Pacific. By investigating the temporal changes in CCA scores, we detected an abrupt increase in the first CCA score in the early 1910s and a long-term increasing trend in the second CCA score since the early 20th centu ry. The abrupt increase in the first CCA score indicates an abrupt increase in temperature throughout Japan . By investigating changes in the circulation field associated with thisabrupt warming, we determined that intensification of zonal flow over the Okhotsk Sea was responsibl e. The increasingtrend of the second CCA score indicates an increase in the regional difference in summer temperatures between northernand somhwestern Japan. After investigating changes in the circulation field before and after the mid-20th century, we suggest that the southwestward shift of the NPSH and the weakening of anticyclonic circulation anomalies over the northwestern Pacific were responsible for this increase in the regional temperature difference

Long-Term Variability of the Western Edge of the North Pacific Subtropical High and Its Relation to Summer Temperatures over Japan, 1901-2000

The long-term variability of the western edge of the North Pacific subtropical high (NPSH) and its relationship to summer temperature variability at 17 weather stations in Japan were investigated for the period from 1901 to 2000. Using the Hadley Center sea level pressure dataset (HadSLP2), we developed NPSH indices (NPSHIs) to describe both the zonal and meridional variability of the western edge of the NPSH.The NPSHIs revealed that the western edge of the NPSH had shifted southwestward over the past 100 years. This study contrasts the correlation of temperatures over Japan with NPSHIs between 1901-1950(pre50) and 1951-2000(post50). In the post50, a significant positive correlation between temperature andthe meridional displacement of the western edge of the NPSH was observed at the most stations, which indicates that temperatures over Japan increase (decrease) when the western edge of the NPSH shifts northward (southward). In the pre50, in contrast, a significant positive correlation between temperature and the meridional displacement of the western edge of the NPSH was found at only two stations. In the post50, a strong relationship between the meridional displacement of the western edge of the NPSH and the east-west gradient of summertime sea surface temperature (SST) between the South China Sea and the tropical western Pacific east of the Philippines was observed, while there was no significant connection between them in the pre50. The Pacific-Japan(PJ) pattern, which affects meridional displacement of the western edge of the NPSH, is closely related to the east-west gradient of summertime SST across the Philippines. It is thus considered that the PJ pattern is excited frequently in the post50, which may affect the relationship between the meridional displacement of the western edge of the NPSH and summer temperatures over Japan

Network optimization for enhanced resilience of urban heat island measurements

The urban heat island is a well-known phenomenon that impacts a wide variety of city operations. With greater availability of cheap meteorological sensors, it is possible to measure the spatial patterns of urban atmospheric characteristics with greater resolution. To develop robust and resilient networks, recognizing sensors may malfunction, it is important to know when measurement points are providing additional information and also the minimum number of sensors needed to provide spatial information for particular applications. Here we consider the example of temperature data, and the urban heat island, through analysis of a network of sensors in the Tokyo metropolitan area (Extended METROS). The effect of reducing observation points from an existing meteorological measurement network is considered, using random sampling and sampling with clustering. The results indicated the sampling with hierarchical clustering can yield similar temperature patterns with up to a 30% reduction in measurement sites in Tokyo. The methods presented have broader utility in evaluating the robustness and resilience of existing urban temperature networks and in how networks can be enhanced by new mobile and open data sources

Optimization Of Flame Stabilization Limits In Meso-Scale Tube Combustors With Wire Mesh

In the last two decades, with the continued depletion of energy resources and the need for better power sources for small scale devices, researchers have become increasingly interested in meso and micro-scale combustion. Flame stability of a meso-scale combustor depends on a few important factors such as combustor wall thickness, wall thermal conductivity and inner diameter. In order to enhance the combustor performance such as the operational limits, it is vital to fundamentally understand these determinant factors. In this research, simulations and experiments were performed to investigate the factors affecting the flame stabilization in meso- scale tube combustors with stainless steel wire mesh. The inner diameter of the meso-scale cylindrical tube combustors is fixed to 3.5 mm while the wall thickness is maintained at 0.7 mm. The wire mesh is located between the unburned and burned gas region of the combustor. The numerical simulations were performed using a three-dimensional (3-D) numerical model, from which the results in terms of gas and wire mesh temperature contours, blowout limits, combustor outer wall temperature distribution and combustion efficiency were established. In the experiments, the equivalence ratio and mixture flow velocity were varied and the effects in terms of flame stabilization limits were recorded. The main objective of utilizing a 3-D numerical model is to successfully demonstrate the role of thermal path from the tube combustor wall to the wire mesh in enhancing the flame stabilization near the blowout limits. The numerical results show that the direction of the thermal path plays a significant role in improving the blowout limits. It is also demonstrated that more heat can be recirculated to the unburned gas region with the use material with higher wall thermal conductivity in burned gas region. As a result, the flame stabilization limits can be enhanced

Reconstruction of Winter Temperature since the 1830s in Kawanishi Based on Historical Weather Documents

In the present study, we estimated the winter temperature variations from 1830/31 to 2008/09 in the town of Kawanishi in the southern part of Yamagata prefecture using daily weather reports and observa tions documented in an old personal diary. Using historical weather reports, we computed the snowfall rate (percentage ratio of snowfall days to the total number of precipitation days) for each winter during the study period. Then, mean winter temperatures in Kawanishi were estimated using a simple linear regression analysis based on the relationship between the mean winter temperature and snowfall rate, which was computed from historical weather reports. The results of this analysis showed that there were several warm winters in the late 19th century. The warm winters were observed in a period extending from the late 1840s to the early 1850s, and a period in the late 1860s. The results also showed that the temperatures in those warm winters were similar to the average winter temperature for the period 1970/71-1999/2000. By comparing the time series of estimated temperatures to those of long-term historical instrumental temperature data since the late 19th century, we found that the variation in the estimated temperature correlated well with that of the instrumental temperature data. This indicates that the estimated results in the present study are highly reliable

Associations between Mobility Restriction and Motor and Intellectual Impairments, and the Impact of Environmental Factors in Children with Disabilities

The present study was conducted to clarify associations between motor and intellectual impairments and mobility restriction, and the impact of environmental factors on the mobility of children in residential institutions for children with motor impairments. Mobility restriction was assessed using the 1^st and 4^th qualifiers defined in the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). Motor and intellectual impairments were characterized by gross motor function and intelligent quotient, respectively. The relationship between mobility restriction and the two impairments was examined using Spearman\u27s rank correlation analysis. The 1^st and 4^th qualifiers in mobility were moderately correlated to both motor and intellectual impairments. The correlation coefficient for the 1^st qualifier was somewhat smaller than that for the 4^th qualifier. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test indicated that the 1^st qualifier was significantly smaller than the 4^th qualifier in mobility (p<0.001). The present results suggest that mobility restriction is influenced not only by motor impairments, but also by intellectual impairments. The contextual assistances are considered to play an important role in reducing the impact of motor and intellectual impairments and improving mobility

Reconstruction of July Temperature Variations since the 1830s in Kawanishi Based on Historical Weather Documents

In the present study, we estimated the July maximum temperature variations from 1830 to 2011 in the town of Kawanishi in the southern part of Yamagata prefecture using daily weather reports and observa tions documented in an old personal diary. Using historical weather reports, we computed the number of "fine-weather" days for each July during the study period. Then, July maximum temperatures in Kawanishi were estimated using a simple linear regression analysis based on the relationship between the July maximum temperature and number of "fine-weather" days, computed from historical weather reports. By com paring the time series of estimated temperatures with those of historical instrumental temperature data in the late 19th century, we found that the variation in the estimated temperature correlated well with that of the instrumental temperature data. This indicates that the estimated results in the present study are highly reliable. The results of this analysis showed that there were cool periods in the 1830s, 1860s, 1900s, and a period extending from the 1980s to the early 1990s. Those cool periods in the 1830s, 1860s, and 1900s coincided with poor rice harvests and severe famines in northern Japan. Warm summers were observed in the 1850s, a period extending from the 1870s to 1880s, and 1920s. We found that temperatures in the early 1850s were similar to those of warm summers in the late 20th century

The 1780s: global climate anomalies, floods, droughts, and famines

This handbook offers the first comprehensive, state-of-the-field guide to past weather and climate and their role in human societies. Bringing together dozens of international specialists from the sciences and humanities, this volume describes the methods, sources, and major findings of historical climate reconstruction and impact research. Its chapters take the reader through each key source of past climate and weather information and each technique of analysis; through each historical period and region of the world; through the major topics of climate and history and core case studies; and finally through the history of climate ideas and science. Using clear, non-technical language, The Palgrave Handbook of Climate History serves as a textbook for students, a reference guide for specialists and an introduction to climate history for scholars and interested readers