26,773 research outputs found
Physiotherapy students\u27 perceptions and experiences of clinical prediction rules
Objectives: Clinical reasoning can be difficult to teach to pre-professional physiotherapy students due to their lack of clinical experience. It may be that tools such as clinical prediction rules (CPRs) could aid the process, but there has been little investigation into their use in physiotherapy clinical education. This study aimed to determine the perceptions and experiences of physiotherapy students regarding CPRs, and whether they are learning about CPRs on clinical placement.
Design: Cross-sectional survey using a paper-based questionnaire.
Participants: Final year pre-professional physiotherapy students (n=371, response rate 77%) from five universities across five states of Australia.
Results: Sixty percent of respondents had not heard of CPRs, and a further 19% had not clinically used CPRs. Only 21% reported using CPRs, and of these nearly three-quarters were rarely, if ever, learning about CPRs in the clinical setting. However most of those who used CPRs (78%) believed CPRs assisted in the development of clinical reasoning skills and none (0%) was opposed to the teaching of CPRs to students. The CPRs most commonly recognised and used by students were those for determining the need for an X-ray following injuries to the ankle and foot (67%), and for identifying deep venous thrombosis (63%).
Conclusions: The large majority of students in this sample knew little, if anything, about CPRs and few had learned about, experienced or practiced them on clinical placement. However, students who were aware of CPRs found them helpful for their clinical reasoning and were in favour of learning more about them
Well-Posedness And Accuracy Of The Ensemble Kalman Filter In Discrete And Continuous Time
The ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) is a method for combining a dynamical model
with data in a sequential fashion. Despite its widespread use, there has been
little analysis of its theoretical properties. Many of the algorithmic
innovations associated with the filter, which are required to make a useable
algorithm in practice, are derived in an ad hoc fashion. The aim of this paper
is to initiate the development of a systematic analysis of the EnKF, in
particular to do so in the small ensemble size limit. The perspective is to
view the method as a state estimator, and not as an algorithm which
approximates the true filtering distribution. The perturbed observation version
of the algorithm is studied, without and with variance inflation. Without
variance inflation well-posedness of the filter is established; with variance
inflation accuracy of the filter, with resepct to the true signal underlying
the data, is established. The algorithm is considered in discrete time, and
also for a continuous time limit arising when observations are frequent and
subject to large noise. The underlying dynamical model, and assumptions about
it, is sufficiently general to include the Lorenz '63 and '96 models, together
with the incompressible Navier-Stokes equation on a two-dimensional torus. The
analysis is limited to the case of complete observation of the signal with
additive white noise. Numerical results are presented for the Navier-Stokes
equation on a two-dimensional torus for both complete and partial observations
of the signal with additive white noise
Probing the mechanical properties of graphene using a corrugated elastic substrate
The exceptional mechanical properties of graphene have made it attractive for
nano-mechanical devices and functional composite materials. Two key aspects of
graphene's mechanical behavior are its elastic and adhesive properties. These
are generally determined in separate experiments, and it is moreover typically
difficult to extract parameters for adhesion. In addition, the mechanical
interplay between graphene and other elastic materials has not been well
studied. Here, we demonstrate a technique for studying both the elastic and
adhesive properties of few-layer graphene (FLG) by placing it on deformable,
micro-corrugated substrates. By measuring deformations of the composite
graphene-substrate structures, and developing a related linear elasticity
theory, we are able to extract information about graphene's bending rigidity,
adhesion, critical stress for interlayer sliding, and sample-dependent tension.
The results are relevant to graphene-based mechanical and electronic devices,
and to the use of graphene in composite, flexible, and strain-engineered
materials.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Correlation inequalities for noninteracting Bose gases
For a noninteracting Bose gas with a fixed one-body Hamiltonian H^0
independent of the number of particles we derive the inequalities _N <
_{N+1}, _N _N _N for i\neq j, \partial
_N/\partial \beta >0 and ^+_N _N. Here N_i is the occupation
number of the ith eigenstate of H^0, \beta is the inverse temperature and the
superscript + refers to adding an extra level to those of H^0. The results
follow from the convexity of the N-particle free energy as a function of N.Comment: a further inequality adde
Evaluation of automated decisionmaking methodologies and development of an integrated robotic system simulation, appendix A
A generic computer simulation for manipulator systems (ROBSIM) was implemented and the specific technologies necessary to increase the role of automation in various missions were developed. The specific items developed were: (1) Capability for definition of a manipulator system consisting of multiple arms, load objects, and an environment; (2) Capability for kinematic analysis, requirements analysis, and response simulation of manipulator motion; (3) Postprocessing options such as graphic replay of simulated motion and manipulator parameter plotting; (4) Investigation and simulation of various control methods including manual force/torque and active compliance control; (5) Evaluation and implementation of three obstacle avoidance methods; (6) Video simulation and edge detection; and (7) Software simulation validation. This appendix is the user's guide and includes examples of program runs and outputs as well as instructions for program use
Evaluation of automated decisionmaking methodologies and development of an integrated robotic system simulation
A generic computer simulation for manipulator systems (ROBSIM) was implemented and the specific technologies necessary to increase the role of automation in various missions were developed. The specific items developed are: (1) capability for definition of a manipulator system consisting of multiple arms, load objects, and an environment; (2) capability for kinematic analysis, requirements analysis, and response simulation of manipulator motion; (3) postprocessing options such as graphic replay of simulated motion and manipulator parameter plotting; (4) investigation and simulation of various control methods including manual force/torque and active compliances control; (5) evaluation and implementation of three obstacle avoidance methods; (6) video simulation and edge detection; and (7) software simulation validation
Electric Field Modulation of Galvanomagnetic Properties of Mesoscopic Graphite
Electric field effect devices based on mesoscopic graphite are fabricated for
galvanomagnetic measurements. Strong modulation of magneto-resistance and Hall
resistance as a function of gate voltage is observed as sample thickness
approaches the screening length. Electric field dependent Landau level
formation is detected from Shubnikov de Haas oscillations in
magneto-resistance. The effective mass of electron and hole carriers has been
measured from the temperature dependant behavior of these oscillations.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures included, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
Detection limits of organic compounds achievable with intense, short-pulse lasers
Many organic molecules have strong absorption bands which can be accessed by ultraviolet short pulse lasers to produce efficient ionization. This resonant multiphoton ionization scheme has already been exploited as an ionization source in time-of-flight mass spectrometers used for environmental trace analysis. In the present work we quantify the ultimate potential of this technique by measuring absolute ion yields produced from the interaction of 267 nm femtosecond laser pulses with the organic molecules indole and toluene, and gases Xe, N2 and O2. Using multiphoton ionization cross sections extracted from these results, we show that the laser pulse parameters required for real-time detection of aromatic molecules at concentrations of one part per trillion in air and a limit of detection of a few attomoles are achievable with presently available commercial laser systems. The potential applications for the analysis of human breath, blood and tissue samples are discussed
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