Liquid droplet generation

A pre-prototype segment of a droplet sheet generator for a liquid droplet radiator was designed, constructed and tested. The ability to achieve a uniform, non-diverging droplet sheet is limited by manufacturing tolerances on nozzle parallelism. For an array of 100, 100 micrometer diameters nozzles spaced 5 stream diameters apart, typical standard deviations in stream alignment were plus or minus 10 mrad. The drop to drop fractional speed variations of the drops in typical streams were similar and independent of position in the array. The absolute value of the speed dispersion depended on the amplitude of the disturbance applied to the stream. A second generation preliminary design of a 5200 stream segment of a droplet sheet generator was completed. The design is based on information developed during testing of the pre-prototype segment, along with the results of an acoustical analysis for the stagnation cavity pressure fluctuations used to break-up the streams into droplets

A Trip to Al Aber , Quati state, Hadramaut, Eastern Aden protectorate

Volume: XX

Epidemiology of diabetes mellitus among 193,435 cats attending primary-care veterinary practices in England

BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common endocrine disease of cats. The prevalence of DM in cats in England is not well‐defined. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence and identify risk factors for DM in a large population of cats attending primary‐care practices. ANIMALS: A cohort of 193,563 cats in the VetCompass Programme attending 118 primary‐care practices in England. METHODS: Cross‐sectional analysis of cohort clinical data. Data were extracted covering September 1st 2009 and August 31st 2014. Period prevalence of DM was calculated. Associations between risk factors and DM were assessed using logistic regression modelling. RESULTS: Of 1,128 DM cases were identified among 194,563 cats (period prevalence 0.58%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.54–0.61). Multivariable modelling indicated that Tonkinese (OR 4.1; 95% CI 1.8–9.6; P = .001), Norwegian Forest (odds ratio [OR] 3.5; 95% CI 1.3–9.6; P = .001) and Burmese (OR 3.0; 95% CI 2.0–4.4; P < .001) cats had increased odds of DM compared with crossbred cats. DM odds increased as bodyweight categories increased above 4 kg (P < .001), as cats aged beyond 6 years old (P < .001) and in insured cats (OR 2.0; 95% CI 1.6–2.4; P < .001) but sex was not significantly associated with DM. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Diabetes mellitus is an important component of the primary‐care practice caseload with 1‐in‐200 cats affected. An increased risk of DM in certain cat breeds supports a genetic predisposition. These results can guide future research and preventative healthcare

An Assessment of Heart Rate as a Tool for the Monitoring of Physiological Status in Soccer Players Following Competitive Match-play

The area of recovery following soccer match play has become an increasingly popular area of focus in recent years. There is limited research around the activities and monitoring processes undertaken within elite soccer clubs. To the authors knowledge, there is only one previous research article that has attempted to understand the activities undertaken during this period within elite soccer (Nedelec et al., 2013). The aim of this thesis was to understand the activities undertaken by elite soccer players during the recovery period following match play and to investigate the suitability of the various approaches to monitor physiological status during the period. The aim of study 1 (Chapter 3) was to provide an overview of the activities undertaken by soccer players (n=53) during periods of the training week dedicated to recovery following match play. The findings of this study show that massage therapy accounted for the longest amount of time on matchday +1 (MD+1) (43min) and pitch based active recovery on matchday +2 (MD+2) (44min). Pool based active recovery was the most consistently completed method on MD+1 (64%) and pitch based active recovery on MD+2 (80%). These data may not only provide useful information on the recovery processes included in the training plans of elite soccer players but also give potential insights into the strategies that may be used to effectively monitor this recovery between games. The aim of study 2 (Chapter 4) was to determine if heart rate variability (HRV) obtained through a purpose built smartphone application measured on the first day (MD+1) and second day (MD+2) following match play can detect changes in the physical loads undertaken by elite soccer players (n=21). No significant relationships between any of the physical loading variables assessed in this study and smartphone derived HRV MD+1 or HRV MD+2 (natural logarithm of the square root of the mean squared differences of successive R-R intervals [Ln rMSSD]) were found. This suggests that measurements of HRV through the ‘ithlete’ method may not be suitable for use in monitoring physiological status following soccer match play. The aim of study 3 (Chapter 5) was to develop a reliable exercise protocol that could be used for calculation of heart rate recovery (HRR) and percentage of maximum heart rate reached (%MAXHRr) with elite soccer players (n=15) while adhering to the specific characteristics of an exercise test that would facilitate completion with an elite soccer team. The data presented in this study suggests that the most suitable exercise protocol with regards to the reliability of the heart rate (HR) response and adherence to the physical loads used during the recovery period with elite soccer players was 6x80m straight-line runs at 5m/s with an exercise: rest ratio of 16:14s. This protocol presented coefficient of variation (CV), standard error of measurement (SEM) and physical loading data that were superior to data associated with other similarly styled protocols considered throughout this study. The aim of study 4 (Chapter 6) was to assess the face validity of the HR response to the developed standardised exercise protocol (SEP) under controlled conditions following a high physical load simulated soccer training session (HSSTS) and a low physical load simulated soccer training session (LSSTS) (n=10). The findings of this study suggest that the HR response to the SEP was able to detect manipulated changes in physiological status as a result of a high physical load and a low physical load simulated soccer training session. The %MAXHR during the SEP was found to be significantly higher following the HSSTS (92%) in comparison to the LSSTS (90%). HRR was found to be lower following the HSSTS (17%) when compared to the LSSTS (22%). The aim of study 5 (chapter 7) was to assess the effectiveness of using HRR and %MAXHRr measured through the SEP on the first day (MD+1), second day (MD+2), and third day (MD+3) following match play to detect changes in physical loads experienced by players (n=16) during the preceding soccer game. The findings of this study show the SEP to have limited capabilities in the detection of changes in HRR and %MAXHR on MD+1, MD+2, or MD+3. The data presented may suggest that the SEP is most suited for implementation on MD+2 or MD+3. It seems that HRR is the more sensitive of the markers investigated. In summary, the studies undertaken as part of this thesis provided an insight into the structure of the activities employed during the recovery period following elite soccer match play and the potential opportunities to monitor physiological status during this process. Initially this involved providing an understanding of the types of activities that were completed by players during this period. This was followed by an assessment of one of the current methods of monitoring physiological status (HRV analysis in chapter 4) during this time frame. This provided the basis for a novel method to be developed. The latter studies then focussed on developing a reliable and valid method of monitoring that could be easily implemented into the schedules during the recovery period within an elite soccer club which were outlined at the outset

An Intensive Winter Fixture Schedule Induces a Transient Fall in Salivary IgA in English Premier League Soccer Players

We examined the effects of an intensive fixture schedule on salivary IgA (SIgA) concentration in professional soccer players from the English Premier League. Salivary samples were obtained from 21 males who participated in 7 games over a 30-day period during December 2013 and January 2014 (games 1-5 occurred in a 15-day period). Salivary-IgA decreased (P 0.05) from game 1 (91 ± 18 and 99 ± 21 μg.mL-1, respectively). Data demonstrate for the first time that a congested winter fixture schedule induces detectable perturbations to mucosal immunity in professional soccer players

Anisotropic States of Two-Dimensional Electron Systems in High Landau Levels: Effect of an In-Plane Magnetic Field

We report the observation of an acute sensitivity of the anisotropic longitudinal resistivity of two-dimensional electron systems in half-filled high Landau levels to the magnitude and orientation of an in-plane magnetic field. In the third and higher Landau levels, at filling fractions nu=9/2, 11/2, etc., the in-plane field can lead to a striking interchange of the "hard" and "easy" transport directions. In the second Landau level the normally isotropic resistivity and the weak nu=5/2 quantized Hall state are destroyed by a large in-plane field and the transport becomes highly anisotropic.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, minor errors correcte

Speciation and Extinction Drive the Appearance of Directional Range Size Evolution in Phylogenies and the Fossil Record

The appearance of directional trends in the evolution of species range sizes can arise from stochastic models and need not imply the existence of underlying trends

The influence of nicotinamide on the development of neurons

This document is the Accepted Manuscript version of a published work that appeared in final form in Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry. To access the final edited and published work see http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jnnp-2014-309236.199A major challenge in translating the promise of stem cell therapies to treat a myriad of neurodegenerative disorders is to rapidly and efficiently direct pluripotent stem cells to generate differentiated neurons. The application of active vitamin metabolites known to function in embryonic development and maintenance in the adult brain such as retinoic acid (vitamin A), ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and calcitriol (vitamin D3) have proven effective in current in-vitro differentiation protocols. Therefore, in this study we investigated whether the biologically active vitamin B3 metabolite, nicotinamide could enhance the differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells, cultured as monolayers, into mature neurons at either early or late stages of development. Interestingly, nicotinamide elicited a dose-responsive increase in the percentage of neurons when added at an early developmental stage to the cells undergoing differentiation (days 0–7). Nicotinamide (10 mM) increased the proportion of β-III tubulin positive neurons by two fold and concomitantly decreased the total number of cells in culture, measured by quantification of 4′, 6-diamidino-2-phenylindole positive cells. This effect could result from induction of cell-cycle exit and/or selective cell death in non-neural populations. Higher levels of nicotinamide (20 mM) induced cytoxicity and cell death. This study supports previous evidence that vitamins and their metabolites can efficiently direct stem cells into neurons. Current work is focusing on the effect of nicotinamide on the process of neural induction and whether nicotinamide influences the generation of particular neuronal subtypes implicated in neurodegenerative diseases, specifically focusing on midbrain dopamine neurons; towards a therapy for Parkinson's disease