Impact experimentation and the microgravity environment: An overview

Impact is an ubiguitous physical process in the solar system. It occurs on all solid bodies and operates over a spectrum of scales. Understanding impact phenomena is therefore paramount in constraining and underpinning a large number of research efforts into fundamental problems in planetary geology. Gravity is an important parameter in impact processes. The advantages of microgravity experimentation are discussed

Melt production in large-scale impact events: Implications and observations at terrestrial craters

The volume of impact melt relative to the volume of the transient cavity increases with the size of the impact event. Here, we use the impact of chondrite into granite at 15, 25, and 50 km s(sup -1) to model impact-melt volumes at terrestrial craters in crystalline targets and explore the implications for terrestrial craters. Figures are presented that illustrate the relationships between melt volume and final crater diameter D(sub R) for observed terrestrial craters in crystalline targets; also included are model curves for the three different impact velocities. One implication of the increase in melt volumes with increasing crater size is that the depth of melting will also increase. This requires that shock effects occurring at the base of the cavity in simple craters and in the uplifted peaks of central structures at complex craters record progressively higher pressures with increasing crater size, up to a maximum of partial melting (approx. 45 GPa). Higher pressures cannot be recorded in the parautochthonous rocks of the cavity floor as they will be represented by impact melt, which will not remain in place. We have estimated maximum recorded pressures from a review of the literature, using such observations as planar features in quartz and feldspar, diaplectic glasses of feldspar and quartz, and partial fusion and vesiculation, as calibrated with estimates of the pressures required for their formation. Erosion complicates the picture by removing the surficial (most highly shocked) rocks in uplifted structures, thereby reducing the maximum shock pressures observed. In addition, the range of pressures that can be recorded is limited. Nevertheless, the data define a trend to higher recorded pressures with crater diameter, which is consistent with the implications of the model. A second implication is that, as the limit of melting intersects the base of the cavity, central topographic peaks will be modified in appearance and ultimately will not occur. That is, the peak will first develop a central depression, due to the flow of low-strength melted materials, when the melt volume begins to intersect the transient-cavity base

Melt production in large-scale impact events: Calculations of impact-melt volumes and crater scaling

Along with an apparent convergence in estimates of impact-melt volumes produced during planetary impact events, intensive efforts at deriving scaling relationships for crater dimensions have also yielded results. It is now possible to examine a variety of phenomena associated with impact-melt production during large cratering events and apply them to planetary problems. This contribution describes a method of combining calculations of impact-melt production with crater scaling to investigate the relationship between the two

Melt production in large-scale impact events: Planetary observations and implications

Differences in scaling relationships for crater formation and the generation of impact melt should lead to a variety of observable features and phenomena. These relationships infer that the volume of the transient cavity (and final crater) relative to the volume of impact melt (and the depth to which melting occurs) decreases as the effects of gravity and impact velocity increase. Since planetary gravity and impact velocity are variables in the calculation of cavity and impact-melt volumes, the implications of the model calculation will vary between planetary bodies. Details of the model calculations of impact-melt generation as a function of impact and target physical conditions were provided elsewhere, as were attempts to validate the model through ground-truth data on melt volumes, shock attenuation, and morphology from terrestrial impact craters

Logan Medallist 4. Large-Scale Impact and Earth History

The current record of large-scale impact on Earth consists of close to 200 impact structures and some 30 impact events recorded in the stratigraphic record, only some of which are related to known structures. It is a preservation sample of a much larger production population, with the impact rate on Earth being higher than that of the moon. This is due to the Earth’s larger physical and gravitational cross-sections, with respect to asteroidal and cometary bodies entering the inner solar system. While terrestrial impact structures have been studied as the only source of ground-truth data on impact as a planetary process, it is becoming increasingly acknowledged that large-scale impact has had its effects on the geologic history of the Earth, itself. As extremely high energy events, impacts redistribute, disrupt and reprocess target lithologies, resulting in topographic, structural and thermal anomalies in the upper crust. This has resulted in many impact structures being the source of natural resources, including some world-class examples, such as gold and uranium at Vredefort, South Africa, Ni–Cu–PGE sulphides at Sudbury, Canada and hydrocarbons from the Campeche Bank, Mexico. Large-scale impact also has the potential to disrupt the terrestrial biosphere. The most devastating known example is the evidence for the role of impact in the Cretaceous–Paleocene (K–Pg) mass extinction event and the formation of the Chicxulub structure, Mexico. It also likely had a role in other, less dramatic, climatic excursions, such as the Paleocene–Eocene–Thermal Maximum (PETM) event. The impact rate was much higher in early Earth history and, while based on reasoned speculation, it is argued that the early surface of the Hadean Earth was replete with massive impact melt pools, in place of the large multiring basins that formed on the lower gravity moon in the same time-period. These melt pools would differentiate to form more felsic upper lithologies and, thus, are a potential source for Hadean-aged zircons, without invoking more modern geodynamic scenarios. The Earth-moon system is unique in the inner solar system and currently the best working hypothesis for its origin is a planetary-scale impact with the proto-Earth, after core formation at ca. 4.43 Ga. Future large-scale impact is a low probability event but with high consequences and has the potential to create a natural disaster of proportions unequalled by other geologic processes and threaten the extended future of human civilization, itself.RÉSUMÉLe bilan actuel de traces de grands impacts sur la Terre se compose de près de 200 astroblèmes et d'une trentaine d’impacts enregistrés dans la stratigraphie, dont seulement certains sont liés à des astroblèmes connus. Il s'agit d'échantillons préservés sur une population d’événements beaucoup plus importante, le taux d'impact sur Terre étant supérieur à celui de la lune. Cela tient aux plus grandes sections transversales physiques et gravitationnelles de la Terre sur la trajectoire des astéroïdes et comètes qui pénètrent le système solaire interne. Alors que les astroblèmes terrestres ont été étudiés comme étant la seule source de données avérée d’impacts en tant que processus planétaire, de plus en plus on reconnaît que les grands impacts ont eu des effets sur l'histoire géologique de la Terre. À l’instar des événements d'énergie extrême, les impacts redistribuent, perturbent et remanient les lithologies impliquées, provoquant dans la croûte terrestre supérieure des anomalies topographiques, structurelles et thermiques. Il en a résulté de nombreux astroblèmes à l’origine de ressources naturelles, dont certains exemples de classe mondiale tels que l'or et l'uranium à Vredefort en Afrique du Sud, les sulfures de Ni–Cu–PGE à Sudbury au Canada, et les hydrocarbures du Banc de Campeche au Mexique. Les grands impacts peuvent également perturber la biosphère terrestre. L'exemple le plus dévastateur connu nous est donné des indices du rôle de l'impact dans l'extinction de masse au Crétacé–Paléogène (K–Pg) et la formation de la structure de Chicxulub, au Mexique. Il a également probablement joué un rôle dans d'autres événements climatiques extraordinaires moins dramatiques, comme le Maximum thermal du Paleocène–Eocène (PETM). Le taux d'impact était beaucoup plus élevé au début de l'histoire de la Terre et, tout en étant basé sur une spéculation raisonnée, on fait valoir que la surface précoce de la Terre à l’Hadéen était tapissée de grands bassins en fusion, au lieu de grands bassins à couronnes multiples tels ceux qui se sont formés à la même période sur la lune ayant une gravité inférieure. Ces bassins en fusion se seraient différenciées pour constituer des lithologies plus felsiques sur le dessus, devenant ainsi une source potentielle de zircons d’âge Hadéen, sans qu’il soit nécessaire d’invoquer des scénarios géodynamiques plus récents. Le système Terre-lune est unique dans le système solaire interne. Actuellement la meilleure hypothèse de travail pour son origine est un impact planétaire avec la proto-Terre, après la formation du noyau à env. 4,43 Ga. La probabilité d’un futur grand impact est faible mais comporte des conséquences capables d’engendrer un désastre naturel aux proportions inégalées comparé à d'autres processus géologiques, menaçant l'avenir de la civilisation humaine elle-même

Non-compliance and missing data in health economic evaluation

Health economic evaluations face the issues of non-compliance and missing data. Here, non-compliance is defined as non-adherence to a specific treatment, and occurs within randomised controlled trials (RCTs) when participants depart from their random assignment. Missing data arises if, for example, there is loss to follow-up, survey non-response, or the information available from routine data sources is incomplete. Appropriate statistical methods for handling non-compliance and missing data have been developed, but they have rarely been applied in health economics studies. Here, we illustrate the issues and outline some of the appropriate methods to handle these with an application to a health economic evaluation that uses data from an RCT. In an RCT the random assignment can be used as an instrument for treatment receipt, to obtain consistent estimates of the complier average causal effect, provided the underlying assumptions are met. Instrumental variable methods can accommodate essential features of the health economic context such as the correlation between individuals' costs and outcomes in cost-effectiveness studies. Methodological guidance for handling missing data encourages approaches such as multiple imputation or inverse probability weighting, that assume the data are Missing At Random, but also sensitivity analyses that recognise the data may be missing according to the true, unobserved values, that is, Missing Not at Random. Future studies should subject the assumptions behind methods for handling non-compliance and missing data to thorough sensitivity analyses. Modern machine learning methods can help reduce reliance on correct model specification. Further research is required to develop flexible methods for handling more complex forms of non-compliance and missing data.Comment: 41 page

An investigation of cost variation across health care settings and the implications for economic evaluation

This thesis is concerned with the estimation of costs in economic evaluation. The thesis reviews the theoretical and applied literature on costing and highlights that studies generally ignore cost variation across health care settings. The thesis aims to assess why costs vary across health care settings, and the implications for economic evaluations. The study uses microeconomic theory to pose hypotheses for cost variation across health care settings and uses a consistent methodology to collect costs across a range of health care settings. The analysis uses multilevel models (MLMs) to test hypotheses concerning cost variation. Statistical theory suggests that MLMs accommodate the hierarchical structure of the data and may therefore be more appropriate than ordinary least squares (OLS) models for identifying reasons for cost variation across settings. The use of MLMs and OLS models for analysing reasons for cost variation are compared. The OLS models find that both patient and higher-level covariates are associated with length of hospital stay (LOS) and total cost, but these models overestimate the precision of the higher-level variables. By contrast, the MLMs show that none of the higher-level variables are associated with LOS, and the national level of spending on health care is the only higher-level variable associated with total cost. The empirical investigation also illustrates that using OLS regression analysis to report cost-effectiveness can lead to inaccurate estimates. By contrast, the MLMs recognise the structure of the data and accurately quantify mean incremental cost- effectiveness and the associated levels of uncertainty. The thesis concludes that ignoring cost variation across health care settings can lead to inaccurate estimates of cost and cost-effectiveness. Basing decision-making on inaccurate information can move the allocation of health care resources away from the target of allocative efficiency. This thesis presents a methodology for improving the conduct of cost analyses that future economic evaluations can adopt

Sharing large data collections between mobile peers

New directions in the provision of end-user computing experiences mean that we need to determine the best way to share data between small mobile computing devices. Partitioning large structures so that they can be shared efficiently provides a basis for data-intensive applications on such platforms. In conjunction with such an approach, dictionary-based compression techniques provide additional benefits and help to prolong battery life