Investigating properties of the cardiovascular system using innovative analysis algorithms based on ensemble empirical mode decomposition

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited - Copyright @ 2012 Jia-Rong Yeh et al.Cardiovascular system is known to be nonlinear and nonstationary. Traditional linear assessments algorithms of arterial stiffness and systemic resistance of cardiac system accompany the problem of nonstationary or inconvenience in practical applications. In this pilot study, two new assessment methods were developed: the first is ensemble empirical mode decomposition based reflection index (EEMD-RI) while the second is based on the phase shift between ECG and BP on cardiac oscillation. Both methods utilise the EEMD algorithm which is suitable for nonlinear and nonstationary systems. These methods were used to investigate the properties of arterial stiffness and systemic resistance for a pig's cardiovascular system via ECG and blood pressure (BP). This experiment simulated a sequence of continuous changes of blood pressure arising from steady condition to high blood pressure by clamping the artery and an inverse by relaxing the artery. As a hypothesis, the arterial stiffness and systemic resistance should vary with the blood pressure due to clamping and relaxing the artery. The results show statistically significant correlations between BP, EEMD-based RI, and the phase shift between ECG and BP on cardiac oscillation. The two assessments results demonstrate the merits of the EEMD for signal analysis.This work is supported by the National Science Council (NSC) of Taiwan (Grant number NSC 99-2221-E-155-046-MY3), Centre for Dynamical Biomarkers and Translational Medicine, National Central University, Taiwan which is sponsored by National Science Council (Grant number: NSC 100–2911-I-008-001) and the Chung-Shan Institute of Science & Technology in Taiwan (Grant numbers: CSIST-095-V101 and CSIST-095-V102)

Computation of full-coverage film-cooled airfoil temperatures by two methods and comparison with high heat flux data

Two methods were used to calculate the heat flux to full-coverage film cooled airfoils and, subsequently, the airfoil wall temperatures. The calculated wall temperatures were compared to measured temperatures obtained in the Hot Section Facility operating at real engine conditions. Gas temperatures and pressures up to 1900 K and 18 atm with a Reynolds number up to 1.9 million were investigated. Heat flux was calculated by the convective heat transfer coefficient adiabatic wall method and by the superposition method which incorporates the film injection effects in the heat transfer coefficient. The results of the comparison indicate the first method can predict the experimental data reasonably well. However, superposition overpredicted the heat flux to the airfoil without a significant modification of the turbulent Prandtl number. The results suggest that additional research is required to model the physics of full-coverage film cooling where there is significant temperature/density differences between the gas and the coolant

Spatial properties of entangled photon pairs generated in nonlinear layered structures

A spatial quantum model of spontaneous parametric down-conversion in nonlinear layered structures is developed expanding the interacting vectorial fields into monochromatic plane waves. A two-photon spectral amplitude depending on the signal- and idler-field frequencies and propagation directions is used to derive transverse profiles of the emitted fields as well as their spatial correlations. Intensity spatial profiles and their spatial correlations are mainly determined by the positions of transmission peaks formed in these structures with photonic bands. A method for geometry optimization of the structures with respect to efficiency of the nonlinear process is suggested. Several structures composed of GaN/AlN layers are analyzed as typical examples. They allow the generation of photon pairs correlated in several emission directions. Photon-pair generation rates increasing better than the second power of the number of layers can be reached. Also structures efficiently generated photon pairs showing anti-bunching and anti-coalescence can be obtained. Three reasons for splitting the correlated area in photonic-band-gap structures are revealed: zig-zag movement of photons inside the structure, spatial symmetry and polarization-dependent properties. Also spectral splitting can be observed in these structures.Comment: 13 pages, 17 figure

Emission of photon pairs at discontinuities of nonlinearity in spontaneous parametric down-conversion

In order to fulfil the continuity requirements for electric- and magnetic-field amplitudes at discontinuities of chi2 nonlinearity additional photon pairs have to be emitted in the area of discontinuity. Generalized two-photon spectral amplitudes can be used to describe properties of photon pairs generated in this process that we call surface spontaneous parametric down-conversion. The spectral structure of such photon pairs is similar to that derived for photon pairs generated in the volume. Surface and volume contributions to spontaneous down-conversion can be comparable as an example of nonlinear layered structures shows.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figure

SeaWiFS Technical Report Series

For Earth-observing satellite instruments, it was standard to consider each instrument band to have a spectral response that is infinitely narrow, i.e., to have a response from a single wavelength. The SeaWiFS bands, however, have nominal spectral bandwidths of 20 and 40 nm. These bandwidths effect the SeaWiFS measurements on orbit. The effects are also linked to the manner in which the instrument was calibrated and to the spectral shape of the radiance that SeaWiFS views. The spectral shape of that radiance will not be well known on orbit. In this technical memorandum, two source spectra are examined. The first is a 12,000 K Planck function, and the second is based on the modeling results of H. Gordon at the University of Miami. By comparing these spectra, the best available corrections to the SeaWiFS measurements for source spectral shape, plus estimates of the uncertainties in these corrections, can be tabulated

Generation of 3D retinal tissue from human pluripotent stem cells using a directed small molecule-based serum-free microwell platform

Retinal degenerative diseases are a leading cause of blindness worldwide with debilitating life-long consequences for the affected individuals. Cell therapy is considered a potential future clinical intervention to restore and preserve sight by replacing lost photoreceptors and/or retinal pigment epithelium. Development of protocols to generate retinal tissue from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC), reliably and at scale, can provide a platform to generate photoreceptors for cell therapy and to model retinal disease in vitro. Here, we describe an improved differentiation platform to generate retinal organoids from hPSC at scale and free from time-consuming manual microdissection steps. The scale up was achieved using an agarose mould platform enabling generation of uniform self-assembled 3D spheres from dissociated hPSC in microwells. Subsequent retinal differentiation was efficiently achieved via a stepwise differentiation protocol using a number of small molecules. To facilitate clinical translation, xeno-free approaches were developed by substituting Matrigel™ and foetal bovine serum with recombinant laminin and human platelet lysate, respectively. Generated retinal organoids exhibited important features reminiscent of retinal tissue including correct site-specific localisation of proteins involved in phototransduction

Andreev Reflection in Ferromagnet/Superconductor/Ferromagnet Double Junction Systems

We present a theory of Andreev reflection in a ferromagnet/superconductor/ferromagnet double junction system. The spin polarized quasiparticles penetrate to the superconductor in the range of penetration depth from the interface by the Andreev reflection. When the thickness of the superconductor is comparable to or smaller than the penetration depth, the spin polarized quasiparticles pass through the superconductor and therefore the electric current depends on the relative orientation of magnetizations of the ferromagnets. The dependences of the magnetoresistance on the thickness of the superconductor, temperature, the exchange field of the ferromagnets and the height of the interfacial barriers are analyzed. Our theory explains recent experimental results well.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.