Integrating Industrial Laser Scanners for Small Vessel Operations

The NOAA Navigation Response Teams (NRTs) perform hydrographic surveys to support nautical charting updates for 175 ports of the United States Marine Transportation System.These include the identification of bathymetric and anthropogenic features that may pose a danger to navigation. In addition, NRTs respond to emergencies, speed the resumption of shipping after storm events, and protect life and property from underwater dangers. The spectrum of dangers occurs from natural features, such as rocks to anthropogenic objects such as piers.Previous work conducted by the NOAA Office of Coast Survey have shown that survey-grade laser scanners can be used to remotely map features that are dangers-to-navigation. However, the justifications to purchase these systems are difficult since one system can be on the order of several hundred thousand dollars. An alternative solution is proposed through the use of economical industrial laser scanners. The capabilities of these systems can vary widely with range and angular resolution and require additional integration (e.g., translation into geographic space and timing considerations) into the network of sensors typical of vessels engaged inhydrographic operations. This paper presents evaluation work to balance cost versus performance using an industrial laser scanner into a hydrographic system. The laser scanner wasevaluated in a laboratory setting at the Joint Hydrographic Center / Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping (CCOM/JHC), University of New Hampshire (UNH) water tank facilities and aboard the R/V Coastal Surveyor (Portsmouth Harbor, NH). The results of the study include a first-order analysis of Velodyne’s VLP-32E system and its target detection performance on piers, piles, air gaps and overhanging cables

City of Klamath Falls, Oregon Geothermal Power Plant Feasibility Study

The purpose of the Klamath Falls project is to demonstrate the effectiveness of a combined thermal distribution system and power generation facility. The city of Klamath Falls operates a geothermal district heating system which would appear to be an attractive opportunity to install a power generation system. Since the two wells have operated reliably and consistently over many years, no new sources or resource exploration would be necessary. It appears that it will cost more to construct, operate, maintain and amortize a proposed geothermal facility than the long?term value of the power it would produce. The success of a future project will be determined by whether utility power production costs will remain low and whether costs of construction, operations, or financing may be reduced. There are areas that it would be possible to reduce construction cost. More detailed design could enable the city to obtain more precise quotes for components and construction, resulting in reduction in contingency projections. The current level of the contingency for uncertainty of costs is between $200,000 and$300,000. Another key issue with this project appears to be operation cost. While it is expected that only minimal routine monitoring and operating expenses will occur, the cost of water supply and waste water disposal represents nearly one quarter of the value of the power. If the cost of water alone could be reduced, the project could become viable. In addition, the projected cost of insurance may be lower than estimated under a city?wide policy. No provisions have been made for utilization of federal tax incentives. If a transaction with a third-party owner/taxpayer were to be negotiated, perhaps the net cost of ownership could be reduced. It is recommended that these options be investigated to determine if the costs and benefits could be brought together. The project has good potential, but like many alternative energy projects today, they only work economically if the federal tax incentives come into play

The Societal Value of the Modern Zoo: A Commentary on How Zoos Can Positively Impact on Human Populations Locally and Globally

This is the final version. Available on open access from MDPI via the DOI in this recordModern zoos and aquariums have evolved greatly since the end of the Second World War, to become centres of conservation excellence and scientific institutions for the study of animal behaviour, ecology, husbandry management. Whilst the impact of zoos and aquariums to biodiversity conservation, population management and advancement of species care is well documented, their positive impacts on society (including the communities that they are located within) is less well known. The four established aims of the modern zoo—Conservation, Education, Recreation (Engagement) and Research—provide a strong foundation for wider review and critique of the societal value of zoos and aquariums. This article synthesises what such value may be, and how it could be measured, from a systematic review of the literature pertaining to each of these four established aims. It also recommends areas of future scientific inquiry to further study the wider impact of zoos on their local communities and on human populations and behaviour more generally. Including Wellbeing as a fifth aim of the modern zoo would also cement their wider societal value. Further scrutiny of the societal value of the modern zoo enhances the value of the zoo’s living collection and the green spaces that it manages to provide accessibility to biodiversity and nature-centric education essential to long-term, planetary friendly human behaviour change

Controlling infectious disease outbreaks: Lessons from mathematical modelling.

Accepted versio

What traits are carried on mobile genetic elements, and why?

Although similar to any other organism, prokaryotes can transfer genes vertically from mother cell to daughter cell, they can also exchange certain genes horizontally. Genes can move within and between genomes at fast rates because of mobile genetic elements (MGEs). Although mobile elements are fundamentally self-interested entities, and thus replicate for their own gain, they frequently carry genes beneficial for their hosts and/or the neighbours of their hosts. Many genes that are carried by mobile elements code for traits that are expressed outside of the cell. Such traits are involved in bacterial sociality, such as the production of public goods, which benefit a cell's neighbours, or the production of bacteriocins, which harm a cell's neighbours. In this study we review the patterns that are emerging in the types of genes carried by mobile elements, and discuss the evolutionary and ecological conditions under which mobile elements evolve to carry their peculiar mix of parasitic, beneficial and cooperative genes

Simple synthesis of 32P-labelled inositol hexakisphosphates for study of phosphate transformations

In many soils inositol hexakisphosphate in its various forms is as abundant as inorganic phosphate. The organismal and geochemical processes that exchange phosphate between inositol hexakisphosphate and other pools of soil phosphate are poorly defined, as are the organisms and enzymes involved. We rationalized that simple enzymic synthesis of inositol hexakisphosphate labeled with 32P would greatly enable study of transformation of soil inositol phosphates when combined with robust HPLC separations of different inositol phosphates

Do horizontal propulsive forces influence the nonlinear structure of locomotion?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Several investigations have suggested that changes in the nonlinear gait dynamics are related to the neural control of locomotion. However, no investigations have provided insight on how neural control of the locomotive pattern may be directly reflected in changes in the nonlinear gait dynamics. Our simulations with a passive dynamic walking model predicted that toe-off impulses that assist the forward motion of the center of mass influence the nonlinear gait dynamics. Here we tested this prediction in humans as they walked on the treadmill while the forward progression of the center of mass was assisted by a custom built mechanical horizontal actuator.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Nineteen participants walked for two minutes on a motorized treadmill as a horizontal actuator assisted the forward translation of the center of mass during the stance phase. All subjects walked at a self-select speed that had a medium-high velocity. The actuator provided assistive forces equal to 0, 3, 6 and 9 percent of the participant's body weight. The largest Lyapunov exponent, which measures the nonlinear structure, was calculated for the hip, knee and ankle joint time series. A repeated measures one-way analysis of variance with a t-test post hoc was used to determine significant differences in the nonlinear gait dynamics.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The magnitude of the largest Lyapunov exponent systematically increased as the percent assistance provided by the mechanical actuator was increased.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results support our model's prediction that control of the forward progression of the center of mass influences the nonlinear gait dynamics. The inability to control the forward progression of the center of mass during the stance phase may be the reason the nonlinear gait dynamics are altered in pathological populations. However, these conclusions need to be further explored at a range of walking speeds.</p

Adolescents' health and health behaviour as predictors of injury death. A prospective cohort follow-up of 652,530 person-years

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Injuries represent an important cause of mortality among young adults. Longitudinal studies on risk factors are scarce. We studied associations between adolescents' perceived health and health behaviour and injury death.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A prospective cohort of 57,407 Finns aged 14 to 18 years was followed for an average of 11.4 years. The end-point of study was injury death or termination of follow-up in 2001. The relationships of eight health and health behaviour characteristics with injury death were studied with adjusted Cox's proportional hazard model.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We identified 298 (0.5%) injury deaths, 232 (0.9%) in men and 66 (0.2%) in women. The mean age at death was 23.8 years. In the models adjusted for age, sex and socioeconomic background, the strongest risk factors for injury death were recurring drunkenness (HR 2.1; 95% CI: 1.4–3.1) and daily smoking (HR 1.7; 95% CI: 1.3–2.2). Poor health did not predict injury death. Unintentional and intentional injury deaths had similar health and health behavioural risk factors.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Health compromising behaviour adopted at adolescence has a clear impact on the risk of injury death in adulthood independent from socioeconomic background. On the other hand, poor health as such is not a significant predictor of injury death. Promotion of healthy lifestyle among adolescents as part of public health programmes would seem an appropriate way to contribute to adolescent injury prevention.</p