Numerical Simulation of Snow Deposition Around living Snow Fences

In this study, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was used to investigate the air flow around porous snow fences to gain insight into snow transport and deposition in the vicinity of fences. Numerical simulations were performed to validate the CFD approach using experimental data from a wind tunnel study. Subsequent simulations were used to test the use of a porosity model to represent fence geometry and determine the effect of fence spacing for fences comprised of multiple rows. The results demonstrate that CFD simulations can reproduce the aerodynamics around porous fences. Additionally, the flow field generated with a porosity model is in close agreement with that from a model with explicit representation of fence porosity. Simulations of fences comprised of two rows spaced at various distances demonstrate that when the row spacing is small the fence behaves as a single row

A new perspective on metformin therapy in type 1 diabetes

Metformin is quite frequently used off-label in type 1 diabetes to limit insulin dose requirement. Guidelines recommend that it can improve glucose control in those who are overweight and obese but evidence in support of this is limited. Recently-published findings from the REducing with MetfOrmin Vascular Adverse Lesions (REMOVAL) trial suggest that metformin therapy in type 1 diabetes can reduce atherosclerosis progression, weight and LDL-cholesterol levels. This provides a new perspective on metformin therapy in type 1 diabetes and suggests a potential role for reducing the long-term risk of cardiovascular disease

Pirates and Naval Officers

Two years ago I was involved in a situation in which more than 20 Vietnamese refugees, including a number of children, apparently lost their lives. at the hands of pirates. \u27\u27 Their deaths occurred in international waters in the South China Sea, Had my ship arrived on the scene a few hours earHer, we might have had an opportunity to act on the behalf of the refugees. What we didn\u27t know, though, was what our authority was or the extent to which we could act

Diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease: clinical insights and vascular mechanisms

Hypertension and type 2 diabetes are common comorbidities. Hypertension is twice as frequent in patients with diabetes compared with those who do not have diabetes. Moreover, patients with hypertension often exhibit insulin resistance and are at greater risk of diabetes developing than are normotensive individuals. The major cause of morbidity and mortality in diabetes is cardiovascular disease, which is exacerbated by hypertension. Accordingly, diabetes and hypertension are closely interlinked because of similar risk factors, such as endothelial dysfunction, vascular inflammation, arterial remodelling, atherosclerosis, dyslipidemia, and obesity. There is also substantial overlap in the cardiovascular complications of diabetes and hypertension related primarily to microvascular and macrovascular disease. Common mechanisms, such as upregulation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, oxidative stress, inflammation, and activation of the immune system likely contribute to the close relationship between diabetes and hypertension. In this article we discuss diabetes and hypertension as comorbidities and discuss the pathophysiological features of vascular complications associated with these conditions. We also highlight some vascular mechanisms that predispose to both conditions, focusing on advanced glycation end products, oxidative stress, inflammation, the immune system, and microRNAs. Finally, we provide some insights into current therapies targeting diabetes and cardiovascular complications and introduce some new agents that may have vasoprotective therapeutic potential in diabetes

Myths and Misconceptions about the United Nations

In the U.S. Navy, Inspections measure readieness and perfor­ mance against standard criteria. These evolutions identify problems for correction and provide an opportunity for improvement. They can offer both assessment and prediction, but only when the inspecton understand the criteria and how they influence performance. Analogously, any evaluation of the United Nations, if it is to achieve comparable results, should proceed from a similar foundation-a shared understanding of standard criteria. Let us consider, then, how these familiar practices may be applied to an assessment of the United Nations

SGLT2 inhibitors in type 1 diabetes: knocked down, but up again?

No abstract available

Serum insulin concentrations, insulin sensitivity, and endothelial function in essential hypertension and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus

A series of studies is described in which specific and conventional insulin immunoassays, the hyperinsulinaemic clamp technique and forearm venous occlusion plethysmography with local intra-arterial infusions have been used to investigate: the effect of insulin assay specificity on the relationships among serum insulin concentrations, insulin sensitivity, and blood pressure in diabetic and non-diabetic subjects with and without essential hypertension (Chapter 5) the effect of sustained physiological activation of the renin-angiotensin system induced by moderate dietary sodium restriction on insulin sensitivity in patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (Chapter 6) the relationship between endothelial function and insulin sensitivity in healthy subjects (Chapter 7) Prior to these investigations, preliminary studies (Chapters 3 and 4) were performed in order to validate aspects of the clinical physiological techniques required for the measurement of blood flow and insulin sensitivity. The reproducibility of bilateral forearm venous occlusion plethysmography Studies using this technique to measure changes in forearm blood flow (FBF) during intra-arterial infusions of vasoactive substances often report changes in blood flow ratio (expressing responses in the intervention arm as a ratio of responses in the control arm) rather than absolute values for flow. However, unilateral measurements are reported by other investigators, and the possibility was considered that the method used for expressing responses might influence the conclusions reached. A reproducibility study was performed (Chapter 3) which demonstrated that the between-day intra-subject variability of bilateral forearm venous occlusion plethysmography (FBF ratios) was less than that of unilateral FBF measurements. The bilateral technique was used thereafter where possible