Representing multifunctional cities: density and diversity in space and time

In this paper, we define measures of urban diversity, density and segregation using newdata and software systems based on GIS. These allow us to visualise the meaning of themultifunctional city. We begin with a discussion of how cities have become moresegregated in their land uses and activities during the last 200 years and how the currentfocus is on reversing this trend through limiting urban sprawl and bringing new lifeback to the inner and central city. We define various indices which show how diversityand density manifest themselves spatially. We argue that multifunctionalism is a relativeconcept, dependent upon the spatial and temporal scale that we use to think about themixing and concentration of urban land uses. We present three examples using spatiallysmoothed indicators of diversity: for a world city ? London, for a highly controlledpolycentric urban region ? Randstad Holland, and for a much more diffusely populatedsemi-urban region ? Venice-Padua-Teviso. We conclude by illustrating that urbandiversity varies as people engage in different activities associated with different landuses throughout the day, as well as through the vertical, third dimension of the city. Thisimpresses the point that we need to understand multifunctional cities in all theirdimensions of space and time

Suppression of spin-torque in current perpendicular to the plane spin-valves by addition of Dy cap layers

We demonstrate that the addition of Dy capping layers in current perpendicular to the plane giant magneto-resistive spin-valves can increase the critical current density beyond which spin-torque induced instabilities are observed by about a factor of three. Current densities as high as 5e7 A/cm2 are measured provided that the electron current flows from the free to the reference layer. While Dy capped samples exhibit nonmagnetic 1/f noise, it is sufficiently small to be unimportant for read head operation at practical data rates.Comment: 13 pages (manuscript form), with 5 figures. Submitted for publicatio

An Animation Framework for Continuous Interaction with Reactive Virtual Humans

We present a complete framework for animation of Reactive Virtual Humans that offers a mixed animation paradigm: control of different body parts switches between keyframe animation, procedural animation and physical simulation, depending on the requirements of the moment. This framework implements novel techniques to support real-time continuous interaction. It is demonstrated on our interactive Virtual Conductor

Search for Barents: Evaluation of Possible Burial Sites on North Novaya Zemlya, Russia

ABSTRACT. Three cairns on northernmost Novaya Zemlya identified as possible rock-pile graves by Russian investigators in 1977 and 1988 were located and inspected for human remains. These cairns are in the area visited by Dutch seafarers between 17 and 22 June 1597, after their wintering on Novaya Zemlya, and may contain the body of Willem Barents. Barents and one of his crewmen died on 20 June 1597 while the winterers were on landfast ice close to shore. Previous research on Spitsbergen and contemporary reports on the efforts of 16th and 17th century Dutch seafarers to prepare a Christian grave led us to conclude that the deceased probably were buried on the beach, possibly in a shallow grave or a snowbank. Inspection of the area indicates that this grave probably was destroyed by high (5+ m asl) wave run-up during storms, cryogenic erosion, and animals (polar bear, fox). None of the cairns, or any of several other prominent rock piles in the ~180 km long search area, contained human remains or had lichen growths that would indicate construction ~400 years ago (> 2 cm, Rhizocarpon sp.). Cairns were not reported by the Dutch in 1594 –98, and most of those encountered on northern Novaya Zemlya probably date from explorations after ca. 1860, when the region north of ~76˚N became accessible in a warming, post-Little Ice Age climate

Search for Barents: Evaluation of Possible Burial Sites on North Novaya Zemlya, Russia

Three cairns on northernmost Novaya Zemlya identified as possible rock-pile graves by Russian investigators in 1977 and 1988 were located and inspected for human remains. These cairns are in the area visited by Dutch seafarers between 17 and 22 June 1597, after their wintering on Novaya Zemlya, and may contain the body of Willem Barents. Barents and one of his crewmen died on 20 June 1597 while the winterers were on landfast ice close to shore. Previous research on Spitsbergen and contemporary reports on the efforts of 16th and 17th century Dutch seafarers to prepare a Christian grave led us to conclude that the deceased probably were buried on the beach, possibly in a shallow grave or a snowbank. Inspection of the area indicates that this grave probably was destroyed by high (5+ m asl) wave run-up during storms, cryogenic erosion, and animals (polar bear, fox). None of the cairns, or any of several other prominent rock piles in the ~180 km long search area, contained human remains or had lichen growths that would indicate construction ~400 years ago (>2 cm, Rhizocarpon sp.). Cairns were not reported by the Dutch in 1594-98, and most of those encountered on northern Novaya Zemlya probably date from exploration after ca. 1860, when the region north of ~76°N became accessible in a warming, post-Little Ice Age climate.Trois cairns situés aux confins septentrionaux de la Nouvelle-Zemble et identifiés en 1977 et 1988 par des chercheurs russes comme pouvant signaler des amas de pierres funéraires ont été localisés et ont fait l'objet d'une inspection en vue de déterminer s'ils renfermaient des restes humains. Ces cairns se trouvent dans la région visitée par des navigateurs néerlandais entre le 17 et le 22 juin 1597, après leur hivernage en Nouvelle-Zemble, et ils auraient pu contenir le corps de Willem Barents. Ce dernier et un membre de son équipage périrent le 20 juin 1597, alors que les hivernants se trouvaient sur la glace près du rivage. Des recherches antérieures sur le Spitzberg et des rapports contemporains sur les efforts des marins néerlandais des XVIe et XVIIe siècles en vue de préparer une sépulture chrétienne nous amènent à la conclusion que les défunts ont probablement été enterrés sur la plage, voire dans une tombe peu profonde ou un amoncellement de neige. Un examen du site indique que cette tombe a probablement été détruite par un assaut puissant (+ 5 m ASL) des vagues au cours de tempêtes, par l'érosion cryogénique et par les animaux (ours polaire, renard). Aucun des cairns, et aucun des autres amas de rochers bien visibles situés dans la région de l'étude, qui s'étendait sur une longueur d'environ 180 km, ne renfermait de vestiges humains ou n'affichait une croissance lichénique qui aurait indiqué une construction remontant à près de 400 ans (> 2 cm, Rhizocarpon sp.) Les Néerlandais n'ont pas rapporté la présence de cairns entre 1594 et 1598 et ceux que l'on a retrouvés en Nouvelle-Zemble septentrionale datent probablement des explorations qui eurent lieu après environ 1860, quand la région située en gros au nord du 76° de latit. N. est devenue accessible dans le contexte d'un réchauffement climatique survenu au petit âge glaciaire

Evaluation of European Land Data Assimilation System (ELDAS) products using in site observations

Three land-surface models with land-data assimilation scheme (DA) were evaluated for one growing season using in situ observations obtained across Europe. To avoid drifts in the land-surface state in the models, soil moisture corrections are derived from errors in screen-level atmospheric quantities. With the in situ data it is assessed whether these land-surface schemes produce adequate results regarding the annual range of the soil water content, the monthly mean soil moisture content in the root zone and evaporative fraction (the ratio of evapotranspiration to energy available at the surface). DA considerably reduced bias in net precipitation, while slightly reducing RMSE as well. Evaporative fraction was improved in dry conditions but was hardly affected in moist conditions. The amplitude of soil moisture variations tended to be underestimated. The impact of improved land-surface properties like Leaf Area Index, water holding capacity and rooting depth may be as large as corrections of the DA systems. Because soil moisture memorizes errors in the hydrological cycle of the models, DA will remain necessary in forecast mode. Model improvements should be balanced against improvements of DA per se. Model bias appearing from persistent analysis increments arising from DA systems should be addressed by model improvement

An auditory brainstem implant for treatment of unilateral tinnitus:protocol for an interventional pilot study

INTRODUCTION: Tinnitus may have a very severe impact on the quality of life. Unfortunately, for many patients, a satisfactory treatment modality is lacking. The auditory brainstem implant (ABI) was originally indicated for hearing restoration in patients with non-functional cochlear nerves, for example, in neurofibromatosis type II. In analogy to a cochlear implant (CI), it has been demonstrated that an ABI may reduce tinnitus as a beneficial side effect. For tinnitus treatment, an ABI may have an advantage over a CI, as cochlear implantation can harm inner ear structures due to its invasiveness, while an ABI is presumed to not damage anatomical structures. This is the first study to implant an ABI to investigate its effect on intractable tinnitus. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: In this pilot study, 10 adults having incapacitating unilateral intractable tinnitus and ipsilateral severe hearing loss will have an ABI implanted. The ABI is switched on 6 weeks after implantation, followed by several fitting sessions aimed at finding an optimal stimulation strategy. The primary outcome will be the change in Tinnitus Functioning Index. Secondary outcomes will be tinnitus burden and quality of life (using Tinnitus Handicap Inventory and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale questionnaires), tinnitus characteristics (using Visual Analogue Scale, a tinnitus analysis), safety, audiometric and vestibular function. The end point is set at 1 year after implantation. Follow-up will continue until 5 years after implantation. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The protocol was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of the University Medical Centre Groningen, The Netherlands (METc 2015/479). The trial is registered at www.clinicialtrials.gov and will be updated if amendments are made. Results of this study will be disseminated in peer-reviewed journals and at scientific conferences. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02630589. TRIAL STATUS: Inclusion of first patient in November 2017. Data collection is in progress. Trial is open for further inclusion. The trial ends at 5 years after inclusion of the last patient

Contribution of Red Blood Cells and Platelets to Blood Clot Computed Tomography Imaging and Compressive Mechanical Characteristics

Thrombus computed tomography (CT) imaging characteristics may correspond with thrombus mechanical properties and thus predict thrombectomy success. The impact of red blood cell (RBC) content on these properties (imaging and mechanics) has been widely studied. However, the additional effect of platelets has not been considered. The objective of the current study was to examine the individual and combined effects of blood clot RBC and platelet content on resultant CT imaging and mechanical characteristics. Human blood clot analogues were prepared from a combination of preselected RBC volumes and platelet concentrations to decouple their contributions. The resulting clot RBC content (%) and platelet content (%) were determined using Martius Scarlet Blue and CD42b staining, respectively. Non-contrast and contrast-enhanced CT (NCCT and CECT) scans were performed to measure the clot densities. CECT density increase was taken as a proxy for clinical perviousness. Unconfined compressive mechanics were analysed by performing 10 cycles of 80% strain. RBC content is the major determinant of clot NCCT density. However, additional consideration of the platelet content improves the association. CECT density increase is influenced by clot platelet and not RBC content. Platelet content is the dominant component driving clot stiffness, especially at high strains. Both RBC and platelet content contribute to the clot's viscoelastic and plastic compressive properties. The current in vitro results suggest that CT density is reflective of RBC content and subsequent clot viscoelasticity and plasticity, and that perviousness reflects the clot's platelet content and subsequent stiffness. However, these indications should be confirmed in a clinical stroke cohort