Extended Photometry for the DEEP2 Galaxy Redshift Survey: A Testbed for Photometric Redshift Experiments

This paper describes a new catalog that supplements the existing DEEP2 Galaxy Redshift Survey photometric and spectroscopic catalogs with ugriz photometry from two other surveys; the Canada-France-Hawaii Legacy Survey (CFHTLS) and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Each catalog is cross-matched by position on the sky in order to assign ugriz photometry to objects in the DEEP2 catalogs. We have recalibrated the CFHTLS photometry where it overlaps DEEP2 in order to provide a more uniform dataset. We have also used this improved photometry to predict DEEP2 BRI photometry in regions where only poorer measurements were available previously. In addition, we have included improved astrometry tied to SDSS rather than USNO-A2.0 for all DEEP2 objects. In total this catalog contains ~27,000 objects with full ugriz photometry as well as robust spectroscopic redshift measurements, 64% of which have r > 23. By combining the secure and accurate redshifts of the DEEP2 Galaxy Redshift Survey with ugriz photometry, we have created a catalog that can be used as an excellent testbed for future photo-z studies, including tests of algorithms for surveys such as LSST and DES.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures and 5 tables. Accepted to The Astrophysical Journal Supplement. Catalogs are publicly available at http://deep.ps.uci.edu/DR4/photo.extended.htm

1D convolutional neural networks for detecting nystagmus

Vertigo is a type of dizziness characterised by the subjective feeling of movement despite being stationary. One in four individuals in the community experience symptoms of dizziness at any given time, and it can be challenging for clinicians to diagnose the underlying cause. When dizziness is the result of a malfunction in the inner-ear, the eyes flicker and this is called nystagmus. In this article we describe the first use of Deep Neural Network architectures applied to detecting nystagmus. The data used in these experiments was gathered during a clinical investigation of a novel medical device for recording head and eye movements. We describe methods for training networks using very limited amounts of training data, with an average of 11 mins of nystagmus across four subjects, and less than 24 hours of data in total, per subject. Our methods work by replicating and modifying existing samples to generate new data. In a cross-fold validation experiment, we achieve an average F1 score of 0.59 (SD = 0.24) across all four folds, showing that the methods employed are capable of identifying periods of nystagmus with a modest degree of accuracy. Notably, we were also able to identify periods of pathological nystagmus produced by a patient during an acute attack of Ménière's Disease, despite training the network on nystagmus that was induced by different means

The atmospheric circulation and dust activity in different orbital epochs on Mars

A general circulation model is used to evaluate changes to the circulation and dust transport in the martian atmosphere for a range of past orbital conditions. A dust transport scheme, including parameterized dust lifting, is incorporated within the model to enable passive or radiatively active dust transport. The focus is on changes which relate to surface features, as these may potentially be verified by observations. Obliquity variations have the largest impact, as they affect the latitudinal distribution of solar heating. At low obliquities permanent CO2 ice caps form at both poles, lowering mean surface pressures. At higher obliquities, solar insolation peaks at higher summer latitudes near solstice, producing a stronger, broader meridional circulation and a larger seasonal CO2 ice cap in winter. Near-surface winds associated with the main meridional circulation intensify and extend polewards, with changes in cap edge position also affecting the flow. Hence the model predicts significant changes in surface wind directions as well as magnitudes. Dust lifting by wind stress increases with obliquity as the meridional circulation and associated near-surface winds strengthen. If active dust transport is used, then lifting rates increase further in response to the larger atmospheric dust opacities (hence circulation) produced. Dust lifting by dust devils increases more gradually with obliquity, having a weaker link to the meridional circulation. The primary effect of varying eccentricity is to change the impact of varying the areocentric longitude of perihelion, l, which determines when the solar forcing is strongest. The atmospheric circulation is stronger when l aligns with solstice rather than equinox, and there is also a bias from the martian topography, resulting in the strongest circulations when perihelion is at northern winter solstice. Net dust accumulation depends on both lifting and deposition. Dust which has been well mixed within the atmosphere is deposited preferentially over high topography. For wind stress lifting, the combination produces peak net removal within western boundary currents and southern midlatitude bands, and net accumulation concentrated in Arabia and Tharsis. In active dust transport experiments, dust is also scoured from northern midlatitudes during winter, further confining peak accumulation to equatorial regions. As obliquity increases, polar accumulation rates increase for wind stress lifting and are largest for high eccentricities when perihelion occurs during northern winter. For dust devil lifting, polar accumulation rates increase (though less rapidly) with obliquity above o=25°, but increase with decreasing obliquity below this, thus polar dust accumulation at low obliquities may be increasingly due to dust lifted by dust devils. For all cases discussed, the pole receiving most dust shifts from north to south as obliquity is increased

An investigation into the diagnostic accuracy, reliability, acceptability and safety of a novel device for Continuous Ambulatory Vestibular Assessment (CAVA)

Dizziness is a common condition that is responsible for a significant degree of material morbidity and burden on health services. It is usually episodic and short-lived, so when a patient presents to their clinician, examination is normal. The CAVA (Continuous Ambulatory Vestibular Assessment) device has been developed to provide continuous monitoring of eye-movements, allowing insight into the physiological parameters present during a dizziness attack. This article describes the first clinical investigation into the medical and technical aspects of this new diagnostic system. Seventeen healthy subjects wore the device near continuously for up to thirty days, artificially inducing nystagmus on eight occasions. 405 days’ worth of data was captured, comprising around four billion data points. A computer algorithm developed to detect nystagmus demonstrated a sensitivity of 99.1% (95% CI: 95.13% to 99.98%) and a specificity of 98.6% (95% CI: 96.54% to 99.63%). Eighty-two percent of participants wore the device for a minimum of eighty percent of each day. Adverse events were self-limiting and mostly the consequence of skin stripping from the daily replacement of the electrodes. The device was shown to operate effectively as an ambulatory monitor, allowing the reliable detection of artificially induced nystagmus

Local Food Systems: Concepts, Impacts, and Issues

This comprehensive overview of local food systems explores alternative definitions of local food, estimates market size and reach, describes the characteristics of local consumers and producers, and examines early indications of the economic and health impacts of local food systems. There is no consensus on a definition of “local” or “local food systems” in terms of the geographic distance between production and consumption. But defining “local” based on marketing arrangements, such as farmers selling directly to consumers at regional farmers’ markets or to schools, is well recognized. Statistics suggest that local food markets account for a small, but growing, share of U.S. agricultural production. For smaller farms, direct marketing to consumers accounts for a higher percentage of their sales than for larger farms. Findings are mixed on the impact of local food systems on local economic development and better nutrition levels among consumers, and sparse literature is so far inconclusive about whether localization reduces energy use or greenhouse gas emissions.local food systems, farmers’ markets, direct-to-consumer marketing, direct-to-retail/ foodservice marketing, community supported agriculture, farm to school programs, Farmers’ Market Promotion Program, food miles, Community/Rural/Urban Development,

Modeling the Martian dust cycle 1. Representations of dust transport processes

A dust transport scheme has been developed for a general circulation model of the Martian atmosphere. This enables radiatively active dust transport, with the atmospheric state responding to changes in the dust distribution via atmospheric heating, as well as dust transport being determined by atmospheric conditions. The scheme includes dust lifting, advection by model winds, atmospheric mixing, and gravitational sedimentation. Parameterizations of lifting initiated by (1) near-surface wind stress and (2) convective vortices known as dust devils are considered. Two parameterizations are defined for each mechanism and are first investigated offline using data previously output from the non-dust-transporting model. The threshold-insensitive parameterizations predict some lifting over most regions, varying smoothly in space and time. The threshold-sensitive parameterizations predict lifting only during extreme atmospheric conditions (such as exceptionally strong winds), so lifting is rarer and more confined to specific regions and times. Wind stress lifting is predicted to peak during southern summer, largely between latitudes 15° and 35°S, with maxima also in regions of strong slope winds or thermal contrast flows. These areas are consistent with observed storm onset regions and dark streak surface features. Dust devil lifting is also predicted to peak during southern summer, with a moderate peak during northern summer. The greatest dust devil lifting occurs in early afternoon, particularly in the Noachis, Arcadia/Amazonis, Sirenum, and Thaumasia regions. Radiatively active dust transport experiments reveal strong positive feedbacks on lifting by near-surface wind stress and negative feedbacks on lifting by dust devils

Brief Note Multiple Linear Regression Models Which More Closely Reflect Bayesian Concerns

Author Institution: Educational Foundations, The University of Akron; Guidance and Educational Psychology, Southern Illinois University; National Testing Service; Department of Psychology, University of Akro

Nystagmus during an acute Ménière's attack: From prodrome to recovery

OBJECTIVE: We are currently undertaking a clinical investigation to evaluate the diagnostic capability of a system for detecting periods of pathological dizziness. This article presents an analysis of the data captured during an acute attack of Ménière's disease. DESIGN: The Continuous Ambulatory Vestibular Assessment (CAVA) device is worn by patients in the community, and continuously records eye and head movement data (vestibular telemetry). STUDY SAMPLE: A 53-year-old lady with a fifteen-year history of left-sided unilateral Ménière's disease. RESULTS: The patient wore the device nearly continuously for thirty days. The data revealed a three-hour long attack of vertigo consisting of four separate phases of nystagmus. The duration, beat-direction and slow phase velocity of the nystagmus evolved through time. The first phase contained isolated nystagmus beats which preceded the patient's record of the vertigo attack onset but coincided with anticipation of an impending vertigo attack. CONCLUSIONS: CAVA provides a unique insight into the physiological parameters present during episodes of dizziness. Here, it has provided the first full example of an acute Ménière's attack, including a period of prodrome. These findings have implications for the prediction of vertigo attack onset, for the diagnosis of Ménière's disease and other diseases resulting in dizziness

Observation of ferromagnetism above 900 K in Cr-GaN and Cr-AlN

We report the observation of ferromagnetism at over 900K in Cr-GaN and Cr-AlN thin films. The saturation magnetization moments in our best films of Cr-GaN and Cr-AlN at low temperatures are 0.42 and 0.6 u_B/Cr atom, respectively, indicating that 14% and 20%, of the Cr atoms, respectively, are magnetically active. While Cr-AlN is highly resistive, Cr-GaN exhibits thermally activated conduction that follows the exponential law expected for variable range hopping between localized states. Hall measurements on a Cr-GaN sample indicate a mobility of 0.06 cm^2/V.s, which falls in the range characteristic of hopping conduction, and a free carrier density (1.4E20/cm^3), which is similar in magnitude to the measured magnetically-active Cr concentration (4.9E19/cm^3). A large negative magnetoresistance is attributed to scattering from loose spins associated with non-ferromagnetic impurities. The results indicate that ferromagnetism in Cr-GaN and Cr-AlN can be attributed to the double exchange mechanism as a result of hopping between near-midgap substitutional Cr impurity bands.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, submitted to AP