2,399 research outputs found
Training health professionals in patient-centered communication during magnetic resonance imaging to reduce patients’ perceived anxiety
Objective: We examined how a patient-centered communication training program for magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) affected health professional (HP) practice and patients’ perceived anxiety (PA).
Methods: We implemented an intervention program. Six of the 17 eligible HPs completed the study. The
proportion of observed desired behaviors (PODBs), including MRI procedure explanation (MRI-PE),
communication, and MRI checking procedures was measured using an observation grid. We tested 182
patients (85 pre-, 58 post-, and 39 at follow-up) for PA pre- and post-MRI.
Results: The Bayesian ANOVA effect size suggested moderate evidence of improvement in HP PODBs, preto
post-intervention. Use of MRI-PE declined between post-intervention and follow-up (6 months later).
Observed changes in PA, pre- to post-MRI, could be related to time constraints and perceived pressure to
explain the exam in detail once institutional routines are reestablished.
Conclusion: In MRI units, time constraints condition the performance of HPs who address patients’ PA.
Practice implications: “Real workplace” interventions that promote better patient-centered communication
and provide each patient with a comprehensive explanation of MRI procedures also appear to
improve HP PODBs
Imaging of a fluid injection process using geophysical data - A didactic example
In many subsurface industrial applications, fluids are injected into or withdrawn from a geologic formation. It is of practical interest to quantify precisely where, when, and by how much the injected fluid alters the state of the subsurface. Routine geophysical monitoring of such processes attempts to image the way that geophysical properties, such as seismic velocities or electrical conductivity, change through time and space and to then make qualitative inferences as to where the injected fluid has migrated. The more rigorous formulation of the time-lapse geophysical inverse problem forecasts how the subsurface evolves during the course of a fluid-injection application. Using time-lapse geophysical signals as the data to be matched, the model unknowns to be estimated are the multiphysics forward-modeling parameters controlling the fluid-injection process. Properly reproducing the geophysical signature of the flow process, subsequent simulations can predict the fluid migration and alteration in the subsurface. The dynamic nature of fluid-injection processes renders imaging problems more complex than conventional geophysical imaging for static targets. This work intents to clarify the related hydrogeophysical parameter estimation concepts
An instance of the MIKADO migration model
In this document, we briefly describe the main contribution to the deliverable on experimenting with the implementation of most of the calculi considered in the project. First, we describe how two well known calculi for mobile processes KLAIM and DĎ€ have been implemented on the top of IMC. We then describe the implementation of the MiKO programming language, an instance of the parametric calculus introduced in the WP1 with the TyCO calculus as the content of the membrane itself. After this, we outline the description of the implementation of the abstract machine for an instance of the Kell Calculus that dedicates particular attention to the proof of its correctness. Our presentation ends with a discussion of the problem of implementing security membranes on the top of an execution platform
Steady-state entanglement between distant quantum dots in photonic crystal dimers
We show that two spatially separated semiconductor quantum dots under
resonant and continuous-wave excitation can be strongly entangled in the
steady-state, thanks to their radiative coupling by mutual interaction through
the normal modes of a photonic crystal dimer. We employ a quantum master
equation formalism to quantify the steady-state entanglement by calculating the
system {\it negativity}. Calculations are specified to consider realistic
semiconductor nanostructure parameters for the photonic crystal dimer-quantum
dots coupled system, determined by a guided mode expansion solution of Maxwell
equations. Negativity values of the order of 0.1 ( of the maximum value)
are shown for interdot distances that are larger than the resonant wavelength
of the system. It is shown that the amount of entanglement is almost
independent of the interdot distance, as long as the normal mode splitting of
the photonic dimer is larger than their linewidths, which becomes the only
requirement to achieve a local and individual qubit addressing. Considering
inhomogeneously broadened quantum dots, we find that the steady-state
entanglement is preserved as long as the detuning between the two quantum dot
resonances is small when compared to their decay rates. The steady-state
entanglement is shown to be robust against the effects of pure dephasing of the
quantum dot transitions. We finally study the entanglement dynamics for a
configuration in which one of the two quantum dots is initially excited and
find that the transient negativity can be enhanced by more than a factor of two
with respect to the steady-state value. These results are promising for
practical applications of entangled states at short time scales.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figure
Enhanced propagation of motile bacteria on surfaces due to forward scattering
How motile bacteria move near a surface is a problem of fundamental
biophysical interest and is key to the emergence of several phenomena of
biological, ecological and medical relevance, including biofilm formation.
Solid boundaries can strongly influence a cell's propulsion mechanism, thus
leading many flagellated bacteria to describe long circular trajectories stably
entrapped by the surface. Experimental studies on near-surface bacterial
motility have, however, neglected the fact that real environments have typical
microstructures varying on the scale of the cells' motion. Here, we show that
micro-obstacles influence the propagation of peritrichously flagellated
bacteria on a flat surface in a non-monotonic way. Instead of hindering it, an
optimal, relatively low obstacle density can significantly enhance cells'
propagation on surfaces due to individual forward-scattering events. This
finding provides insight on the emerging dynamics of chiral active matter in
complex environments and inspires possible routes to control microbial ecology
in natural habitats
Characterization and formation of on-disk spicules in the Ca II K and Mg II k spectral lines
We characterize, for the first time, type-II spicules in Ca II K 3934\AA\
using the CHROMIS instrument at the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope. We find that
their line formation is dominated by opacity shifts with the K minimum
best representing the velocity of the spicules. The K features are either
suppressed by the Doppler-shifted K or enhanced via an increased
contribution from the lower layers, leading to strongly enhanced but un-shifted
K peaks, with widening towards the line-core as consistent with
upper-layer opacity removal via Doppler-shift. We identify spicule spectra in
concurrent IRIS Mg II k 2796\AA\ observations with very similar properties.
Using our interpretation of spicule chromospheric line-formation, we produce
synthetic profiles that match observations.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and
Astrophysics Letter
A Hot Downflowing Model Atmosphere For Umbral Flashes And The Physical Properties Of Their Dark Fibrils
We perform NLTE inversions in a large set of umbral flashes, including the
dark fibrils visible within them, and in the quiescent umbra by using the
inversion code NICOLE on a set of full Stokes high-resolution Ca II 8542 A
observations of a sunspot at disk center. We find that the dark structures have
Stokes profiles that are distinct from those of the quiescent and flashed
regions. They are best reproduced by atmospheres that are more similar to the
flashed atmosphere in terms of velocities, even if with reduced amplitudes. We
also find two sets of solutions that finely fit the flashed profiles: a set
that is upflowing, featuring a transition region that is deeper than in the
quiescent case and preceded by a slight dip in temperature, and a second
solution with a hotter atmosphere in the chromosphere but featuring downflows
close to the speed of sound at such heights. Such downflows may be related, or
even dependent, on the presence of coronal loops, rooted in the umbra of
sunspots, as is the case in the region analyzed. Similar loops have been
recently observed to have supersonic downflows in the transition region and are
consistent with the earlier "sunspot plumes" which were invariably found to
display strong downflows in sunspots. Finally we find, on average, a magnetic
field reduction in the flashed areas, suggesting that the shock pressure is
moving field lines in the upper layers.Comment: Accepted in June for publication at ApJ. Comments to
[email protected] or [email protected]
Residual stress measurement in PVD optical coatings by microtopography
Residual stress in optical plasma vapor deposited coatings must be carefully measured. The topographic inspection of the coatings’ surface at microlevel allows the assessment of its residual stress. In the present work we will report on the optical non-destructive and non-invasive microtopographic inspection of WO3 PVD thin films for residual stress evaluation. The MICROTOP.06.MFC system, an active optical triangulation sensor developed at the Universidade do Minho, was employed. It allows depth resolutions down to 2 nm and lateral resolutions down to 1 μm. The three dimensional coordinate set obtained on the inspection allow the calculation of the stress distribution over the film
Properties and recycling of covalently immobilized glycanases used for aqueous enzyme assisted Rosa mosqueta oil extraction
2nd International Conference on Protein Stabilisation - From Molecular Interpretation to Bio-Industrial Applicationsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
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