HOW CAN WE TEACH STUDENT TO ESTIMATE VERTICAL JUMP HEIGHTS USING GROUND REACTION FORCE DATA

The purpose of this study was to estimate vertical jump heights using ground reaction force (GRF) data and to suggest one practical example of biomechanical theory application to a real human motion. Vertical jump heights of impulse and flight time method were statistically smaller than three-dimensional video method. The causes of height differences seemed mainly from the fact that impulse was used to move jumper into the horizontal direction as well as into the vertical direction. Other important factors for accurate height calculation are jumper's mass and threshold value of GRF data collection. Vertical jump height calculation with GRF data showed an example of practical application of biomechanical theory to human motion and demonstrated a way of GRF equipment use for effective biomechanical theory education

Identification of a novel locus C2 controlling canary yellow flesh color in watermelons

The flesh color of watermelon is an important trait that is determined by carotenoid composition and affects consumers’ fruit desirability. Although a complete dominant control by C locus (Cllcyb) for canary yellow flesh (CY) over red flesh has been reported, red and CY colors frequently appear as a mixed pattern in the same flesh (incomplete canary yellow, ICY) in F1 and inbred lines carrying dominant C alleles. Therefore, we examined the genetic control of the mixed color pattern in ICY using whole-genome resequencing of three ICY (ICY group) and three CY inbred lines (CY group), as well as genetic linkage mapping of an F2 population. The segregation pattern in 135 F2 plants indicated that CY is controlled by a single locus (named C2) dominant over ICY. The whole-genome resequencing of ICY and CY inbred lines revealed an ICY/CY-specific region of approximately 27.60–27.88 Mb on Chr. 2 that was polymorphic between the ICY and CY groups. Our genetic map, using nine cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence markers developed based on the single-nucleotide polymorphisms from the ICY/CY-specific region, confirmed that C2 is located on Chr. 2 and cosegregated with the marker (M7) derived from a non-synonymous single-nucleotide polymorphism of the pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) gene (ClPPR, Cla97C02G039880). Additionally, 27 watermelon inbred lines of ICY, CY, and red flesh were evaluated using previously reported Cllcyb (C locus)-based markers and our C2 locus-linked ClPPR-based marker (M7). As a result, dominant alleles at the C2 locus were required to produce CY, in addition to dominant alleles at the C locus, while a recessive homozygous genotype at the C locus gave the red flesh irrespective of the genotype at the C2 locus. Using a ClPPR-based cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence developed in this study and Cllcyb-based markers, watermelon cultivars with CY, ICY, and red flesh could be successfully discerned, implying that the combined use of these markers will be efficient for marker-assisted selection of flesh color in watermelon breeding

Reinforcement Learning versus Swarm Intelligence for Autonomous Multi-HAPS Coordination

This work analyses the performance of Reinforcement Learning (RL) versus Swarm Intelligence (SI) for coordinating multiple unmanned High Altitude Platform Stations (HAPS) for communications area coverage. It builds upon previous work which looked at various elements of both algorithms. The main aim of this paper is to address the continuous state space challenge within this work by using partitioning to manage the high dimensionality problem. This enabled comparing the performance of the classical cases of both RL and SI establishing a baseline for future comparisons of improved versions. From previous work, SI was observed to perform better across various key performance indicators. However, after tuning parameters and empirically choosing suitable partitioning ratio for the RL state space, it was observed that the SI algorithm still maintained superior coordination capability by achieving higher mean overall user coverage (about 20% better than the RL algorithm), in addition to faster convergence rates. Though the RL technique showed better average peak user coverage, the unpredictable coverage dips was a key weakness, making SI a more suitable algorithm within the context of this work

Mobility Management Based on Beam-Level Measurement Report in 5G Massive MIMO Cellular Networks

Massive multiple-input-multiple-output (MMIMO) in the mmWave band is an essential technique to achieve the desired performance for 5G new radio (NR) systems. To employ mmWave MMIMO technology, an important challenge is maintaining seamless mobility to users because we need to consider beam-switching within a cell besides the handover between cells. For mobility management in 5G NR systems, 3GPP specified a beam-level-mobility scheme that includes beam pairing and maintenance between a transmitter (Tx) and receiver (Rx) pair. We propose a unific-measurement report based mobility management scheme for improved radio-link-failure (RLF) rate and the accuracy of the Tx-Rx-beam-pair (TRP) selection with low overhead in 5G mmWave MMIMO networks where both handover and beam-switching are required. Furthermore, we modeled a finite-state-machine (FSM) for a user terminal to evaluate performance gain based on a system-level-simulation (SLS). We use the FSM-based Monte-Carlo SLS for the experiment and compare the performance of the proposed scheme with that of existing schemes in the scenario where both beam and cell-level-mobility are necessary. We show that the proposed scheme achieves an improvement in terms of the 3-dB loss probabilities representing the accuracy of the TRP selection, signal-to-interference-and-noise-ratio (SINR), and RLF rates with a lower signaling overhead compared to existing methods

Hierarchical Porous Carbon Materials Prepared by Direct Carbonization of Metal-Organic Frameworks as an Electrode Material for Supercapacitors

© 2020 Korean Chemical Society and Wiley-VCH GmbH. We report the synthesis and characterization of hierarchical porous carbons (HPCs) prepared by direct carbonization of zinc-based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), and their electrochemical performance as an electrode material for supercapacitors. All the HPCs showed high porosity (Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface areas 1000-1820 m(2)/g) with micro-, meso-, and macropores. The HPC-based electrodes exhibited a high-specific capacitance in the range of 164-203 F/g (scan rate: 10 mV/s), which suggests that these porous carbons may be useful for fabricating supercapacitors. Among the HPCs, HPC-4 with the largest surface area as well as with similar to 1% nitrogen content exhibited the highest specific capacitance, which is comparable with those of other reported carbon materials. This work suggests that the hierarchical porosity and nitrogen doping in HPCs may enhance their conductivity and specific capacitance.11Nsciescopuskc

Effects of continuous positive airway pressure therapy on left ventricular performance in patients with severe obstructive sleep apnea

Abstract We investigated myocardial performance concerning obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) severity and the benefits of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy. In this randomized sham-controlled trial, 52 patients (mean age, 49 years; 92%, males; mean AHI, 59) with severe OSA were randomly assigned to receive either CPAP or sham treatment for 3 months. The severity of OSA was determined using the apnea/hypopnea index (AHI), oxygen desaturation index (ODI), percentage of sleep time below 90% oxygen saturation (T90), and average O2 saturation during sleep (mean SpO2). We compared the changes in myocardial work after 3 months of CPAP (n = 26) versus the sham group (n = 26) at rest and during an exercise stress test. Unlike AHI or ODI, indices of hypoxemia including T90 and mean SpO2 were significantly correlated with global constructive work, as defined by work of left ventricle (LV) that contributes to LV ejection during systole (T90, β = 0.393, p = 0.012; mean SpO2, β = 0.331, p = 0.048), and global wasted work (GWW), as defined by work of LV that does not contribute to LV ejection (T90, β = 0.363, p = 0.015; mean SpO2, β =  − 0.370, p = 0.019). After 3 months, GWW decreased (80.0 ± 49.2 to 60.8 ± 26.3, p = 0.009) and global work efficiency increased (94.0 ± 4.5 to 95.7 ± 2.0, p = 0.008) in the CPAP group compared to those in the sham group. At the 3-month follow-up exercise stress echocardiography, worsening of GWW during exercise was significantly decreased in the CPAP group compared to that in the sham group (p = 0.045 at 50 W). Hypoxemia indices were closely associated with myocardial performance in patients with severe OSA. CPAP treatment for 3 months improved left ventricular myocardial performance by decreasing wasted work and increasing work efficacy compared to the sham treatment