Constructing streak surfaces for 3D unsteady vector fields

Visualization of 3D, unsteady flow (4D) is very difficult due to both perceptual challenges and the large size of 4D vector field data. One approach to this challenge is to use integral surfaces to visualize the 4D properties of the field. However the construction of streak surfaces has remained elusive due to problems stemming from expensive computation and complex meshing schemes. We present a novel streak surface construction algorithm that generates the surface using a quadrangular mesh. In contrast to previous approaches the algorithm offers a combination of speed for exploration of 3D unsteady flow, high precision, and places less restriction on data or mesh size due to its CPU-based implementation compared to a GPU-based method. The algorithm can be applied to large data sets because it is based on local operations performed on the quad primitives. We demonstrate the technique on a variety of 3D, unsteady simulation data sets to show its speed and robustness. We also present both a detailed implementation and a performance evaluation. We show that a technique based on quad meshes handles large data sets and can achieve interactive frame rates

Visualization of Input Parameters for Stream and Pathline Seeding

Uncertainty arises in all stages of the visualization pipeline. However, the majority of flow visualization applications convey no uncertainty information to the user. In tools where uncertainty is conveyed, the focus is generally on data, such as error that stems from numerical methods used to generate a simulation or on uncertainty associated with mapping visualiza-tion primitives to data. Our work is aimed at another source of uncertainty - that associated with user-controlled input param-eters. The navigation and stability analysis of user-parameters has received increasing attention recently. This work presents an investigation of this topic for flow visualization, specifically for three-dimensional streamline and pathline seeding. From a dynamical systems point of view, seeding can be formulated as a predictability problem based on an initial condition. Small perturbations in the initial value may result in large changes in the streamline in regions of high unpredictability. Analyzing this predictability quantifies the perturbation a trajectory is subjugated to by the flow. In other words, some predictions are less certain than others as a function of initial conditions. We introduce novel techniques to visualize important user input parameters such as streamline and pathline seeding position in both space and time, seeding rake position and orientation, and inter-seed spacing. The implementation is based on a metric which quantifies similarity between stream and pathlines. This is important for Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) engineers as, even with the variety of seeding strategies available, manual seeding using a rake is ubiquitous. We present methods to quantify and visualize the effects that changes in user-controlled input parameters have on the resulting stream and pathlines. We also present various visualizations to help CFD scientists to intuitively and effectively navigate this parameter space. The reaction from a domain expert in fluid dynamics is also reported. - See more at: http://thesai.org/Publications/ViewPaper?Volume=6&Issue=4&Code=IJACSA&SerialNo=17#sthash.PNlUBslJ.dpu

Shifting gears versus sudden stops: qualitative study of consultations about driving in patients with cognitive impairment

Objective General practitioners (GPs) report finding consultations on fitness to drive (FtD) in people with cognitive impairment difficult and potentially damaging to the physician–patient relationship. We aimed to explore GP and patient experiences to understand how the negative impacts associated with FtD consultations may be mitigated. Methods Individual qualitative interviews were conducted with GPs (n=12) and patients/carers (n=6) in Ireland. We recruited a maximum variation sample of GPs using criteria of length of time qualified, practice location and practice size. Patients with cognitive impairment were recruited via driving assessment services and participating general practices. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed and analysed thematically by the multidisciplinary research team using an approach informed by the framework method. Results The issue of FtD arose in consultations in two ways: introduced by GPs to proactively prepare patients for future driving cessation or by patients who urgently needed a medical report for an expiring driving license. The former strategy, implementable by GPs who had strong relational continuity with their patients, helped prevent crisis consultations from arising. The latter scenario became acrimonious if cognition had not been openly discussed with patients previously and was now potentially impacting on their right to drive. Patients called for greater clarity and empathy for the threat of driving cessation from their GPs. Conclusion GPs used their longitudinal relationship with cognitively impaired patients to reduce the potential for conflict in consultations on FtD. These efforts could be augmented by explicit discussion of cognitive impairment at an earlier stage for all affected patients. Patients would benefit from greater input into planning driving cessation and acknowledgement from their GPs of the impact this may have on their quality of life.Road Safety Authority of Irelan

Inhibition of major integrin αVβ3 reduces Staphylococcus aureus attachment to sheared human endothelial cells.

BACKGROUND: Vascular endothelial dysfunction with associated oedema and organ failure is one of the hallmarks of sepsis. While a large number of microorganisms can cause sepsis, Staphylococcus aureus is one of the primary etiological agents. Currently there are no approved specific treatments for sepsis and therefore the initial management bundle focuses on cardiorespiratory resuscitation and mitigation against the immediate threat of uncontrolled infection. The continuous emergence of antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria urges the development of new therapeutic approaches for this disease. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to identify the molecular mechanisms leading to endothelial dysfunction as a result of Staphylococcus aureus binding. METHODS: Stahpylococcus aureus Newman and clumping factor A-deficient binding to endothelium were measured in vitro and in the mesenteric circulation of C57Bl/6 mice. The effect of the αVβ3 blocker, cilengitide, on bacterial binding, endothelial VE-cadherin expression, apoptosis, proliferation and permeability were assessed. RESULTS: Here we show that the major Staphylococcus aureus cell wall protein clumping factor A binds to endothelial cell integrin αVβ3 in the presence of fibrinogen. This interaction results in disturbances in barrier function mediated by VE-cadherin in endothelial cell monolayers and ultimately cell death by apoptosis. Using a low concentration of cilengitide, ClfA binding to αVβ3 was significantly inhibited both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, preventing Staphylococcus aureus from attaching to αVβ3 resulted in a significant reduction in endothelial dysfunction following infection. CONCLUSION: Inhibition of Staphylococcus aureus ClfA binding to endothelial cell αVβ3 using cilengitide prevents endothelial dysfunction. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Animated Edge Textures in Node-Link Diagrams: a Design Space and Initial Evaluation

International audienceNetwork edge data attributes are usually encoded using color, opacity, stroke thickness and stroke pattern, or some combination thereof. In addition to these static variables, it is also possible to animate dynamic particles flowing along the edges. This opens a larger design space of animated edge textures, featuring additional visual encodings that have potential not only in terms of visual mapping capacity but also playfulness and aesthetics. Such animated edge textures have been used in several commercial and design-oriented visualizations, but to our knowledge almost always in a relatively ad hoc manner. We introduce a design space and Web-based framework for generating animated edge textures, and report on an initial evaluation of particle properties – particle speed, pattern and frequency – in terms of visual perception

Children and Young People’s Advocacy House North: Final Report

The vision for a children’s advocacy centre in the north of England was first mooted in a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust report (Rowland 2014). Having witnessed the work of the child advocacy movement in the USA, Rowland argued that a UK based children’s advocacy centre would be an exciting and innovative project that could result in real benefits for children in the area in which it was located. He argued that the children’s advocacy centre would fully involve children of all ages in the location, design and service-specification. It would be a place where children could self-refer to get advice and support with a wide range of problems, including physical and mental health, social care, protection, help with relationship difficulties, bullying and schooling. He also acknowledged the importance of co-design and co-production, whereby the children and young people with most to gain from the centre would work with the adults with access to resources (skills and money) to make it happe

Four-year longitudinal impact evaluation of the action for children UK neglect project : outcomes for the children, families, action for children, and the UK

Neglect has a devastating impact on children and is the most pervasive form of child maltreatment in the United Kingdom. The study purpose was to establish outcomes for neglected children following structured assessment and intervention to ascertain what worked and why it worked. This prospective cohort study included 85 cases of neglected children under 8 years of age from 7 centers across the United Kingdom. Data were collected between 2008 and 2012 through serial quantitative recording of the level of concern about neglect. Serial review of qualitative casefile data was undertaken for detail of assessment, interventions, and evidence of outcomes for the child. Data analysis was undertaken by paired t-test, Chi Square, descriptive statics for categorical data, and, for narrative data, identification of recurring factors and patterns, with correlation of presenting factors, interventions, and outcomes. Paired t-test demonstrated significant decrease in overall Action for Children Assessment Tool scores between assessment (M = 43.77, SD = 11.09) and closing the case (M = 35.47,SD = 9.6, t(84) = 6.77, p < 0.01). Improvement in the level of concern about neglect was shown in 79% of cases, with only 21% showing no improvement. In 59% of cases, concern about neglect was removed completely. Use of the assessment tool fostered engagement by parents. The relationship between lack of parental engagement and children being taken into care was statistically significant, with a large effect size (χ2 10.66, df1, p = 0.0001,OR = 17.24). When parents refused or were unable to respond positively to the intervention, children benefited from an expedited move into care

Impact of Sauropod Dinosaurs on Lagoonal Substrates in the Broome Sandstone (Lower Cretaceous), Western Australia

Existing knowledge of the tracks left by sauropod dinosaurs (loosely ‘brontosaurs’) is essentially two-dimensional, derived mainly from footprints exposed on bedding planes, but examples in the Broome Sandstone (Early Cretaceous) of Western Australia provide a complementary three-dimensional picture showing the extent to which walking sauropods could deform the ground beneath their feet. The patterns of deformation created by sauropods traversing thinly-stratified lagoonal deposits of the Broome Sandstone are unprecedented in their extent and structural complexity. The stacks of transmitted reliefs (underprints or ghost prints) beneath individual footfalls are nested into a hierarchy of deeper and more inclusive basins and troughs which eventually attain the size of minor tectonic features. Ultimately the sauropod track-makers deformed the substrate to such an extent that they remodelled the topography of the landscape they inhabited. Such patterns of substrate deformation are revealed by investigating fragmentary and eroded footprints, not by the conventional search for pristine footprints on intact bedding planes. For that reason it is not known whether similar patterns of substrate deformation might occur at sauropod track-sites elsewhere in the world

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy