Calibration and Signal Processing of Airborne Stand Profile Radar used in forest inventory

TomoRadar is a helicopter/UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) based FM-CW microwave ranging radar designed for the forest inventory. Developed by FGI (Finnish Geospatial Research Institute), TomoRadar can scan forest with Ku-band signals and then receive the backscatter signal from targets. The target distance can be figured out from the backscattered signal. Furthermore, various information around forest can be evaluated. As a ranging scatterometer the system calibration and signal processing are necessary and critical tasks. In This thesis, these two major problems are researched and solved. The system calibration is limited to complete on ground and restricted in a particular range despite TomoRadar works on helicopter. Thus the range calibration experiment is conducted on the ground test field with a Luneburg lens. Besides, power calibration of system backscatter signal is researched through electrical component tests. The linearity of the radar system frequency sweep is critical in FM-CW radars. Hence, it is studied in this thesis. When TomoRadar works, the output of the whole system is analog signal in intimidate frequency (IF) band. A digitizer samples and records the output analog signal. With these signal, the information around forest cannot be obtained. To draw stand profile of forest and research forest information, the IF band signals need to be further processed. This is signal processing part of the thesis work. As a result of this thesis work, TomoRadar range calibration was achieved. The calibration results were verified by the helicopter based flying tests. The results present that the calibration completed on ground test field applied with the situation that TomoRadar works in air and scans targets in long distance. The linearity of system frequency sweep generated by DDS (Direct Digital Synthesizer) is verified. Finally, the test forest backscattered data was processed and the ranges were evaluated. Some targets stand profiles are generated and presented in this thesi

Further results on laws of large numbers for uncertain random variables

summary:The uncertainty theory was founded by Baoding Liu to characterize uncertainty information represented by humans. Basing on uncertainty theory, Yuhan Liu created chance theory to describe the complex phenomenon, in which human uncertainty and random phenomenon coexist. In this paper, our aim is to derive some laws of large numbers (LLNs) for uncertain random variables. The first theorem proved the Etemadi type LLN for uncertain random variables being functions of pairwise independent and identically distributed random variables and uncertain variables without satisfying the conditions of regular, independent and identically distributed (IID). Two kinds of Marcinkiewicz-Zygmund type LLNs for uncertain random variables were established in the case of $p \in (0, 1)$ by the second theorem, and in the case of $p > 1$ by the third theorem, respectively. For better illustrating of LLNs for uncertain random variables, some examples were stated and explained. Compared with the existed theorems of LLNs for uncertain random variables, our theorems are the generalised results

Feasibility and Effect Sizes of the Revised Daily Engagement of Meaningful Activities Intervention for Persons with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Their Caregivers

A nurse-led intervention, Daily Engagement of Meaningful Activities (DEMA), was evaluated for feasibility and effect sizes in a two-group randomized pilot study with 36 patient–caregiver dyads (17 DEMA and 19 attention control). Effect sizes were estimated on 10 outcomes: dyad functional ability awareness congruence; patients' meaningful activity performance and satisfaction, confidence, depressive symptoms, communication satisfaction, physical function, and life satisfaction; and caregivers' depressive symptoms and life changes. High feasibility of DEMA was supported by the following indicators: consent (97.7%), session completion (91.7%), and Time 3 measure completion (97.2%). Compared to the attention control group, the DEMA group had higher dyad congruence in functional ability awareness and life satisfaction 3 months post-intervention and improved physical function at 2 weeks post-intervention. Although DEMA showed high feasibility and benefits on some health-related outcomes, further testing of DEMA in a larger randomized controlled clinical trial is needed

Satisfaction with a Family-focused Intervention for Mild Cognitive Impairment Dyads

Purpose This article describes satisfaction that persons with mild cognitive impairment (PwMCI) and their caregivers had with the Daily Enhancement of Meaningful Activity (DEMA) intervention. Methods This randomized controlled pilot study compared satisfaction (usefulness, ease of use, and acceptability) with DEMA (n = 17 dyads) to an information support (IS) control group (n = 19 dyads). Six biweekly sessions (two in person and four by telephone) were delivered by trained nurses. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, independent-sample t tests, and content analysis. Findings PwMCI receiving DEMA rated their satisfaction significantly higher (p = .033) than did the control group; there was no difference in satisfaction between caregivers across groups. Qualitative interview data supported the usefulness, ease of use, and acceptability of DEMA for both PwMCI and caregivers. Conclusions Results documented PwMCI's satisfaction with DEMA as implemented by nurses to support PwMCI–caregiver dyads’ engagement in meaningful activity. DEMA may need revision to increase satisfaction for caregivers. Clinical Relevance The DEMA intervention was evaluated as useful, easy to use, and acceptable to PwMCI and their caregivers based on positive mean ratings. The study findings provide preliminary support of DEMA as a means to improve quality of life by helping to support patient and caregiver engagement in meaningful activities and problem solving

Properties of dense molecular gas along the major axis of M 82

Dense gas is important for galaxy evolution and star formation. Optically-thin dense-gas tracers, such as isotopologues of HCN, HCO+, etc., are very helpful to diagnose excitation conditions of dense molecular gas. However, previous studies of optically-thin dense-gas tracers were mostly focusing on average properties of galaxies as a whole, due to limited sensitivity and angular resolution. M82, a nearby prototype starburst galaxy, offers a unique case for spatially-resolved studies with single-dish telescopes. With the IRAM 30-m telescope, we observed the J = 1 - 0 transition of H13CN, HC15N, H13CO+, HN13C, H15NC, and SiO J = 2 - 1, HC3N J= 10 - 9, H2CO J = 2 - 1 toward five positions along the major axis of M82. The intensity ratios of I(HCN)/I(H13CN) and I(HCO+)/I(H13CO+) show a significant spatial variation along the major axis, with lower values in the central region than those on the disk, indicating higher optical depths in the central region. The optical depths of HCO+ lines are found to be systematically higher than those of HCN lines at all positions. Futhermore, we find that the 14N/15N ratios have an increasing gradient from the center to the outer disk.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, publication in Ap

Guiding kinetic trajectories between jammed and unjammed states in 2D colloidal nanocrystal-polymer assemblies with zwitterionic ligands

Mesostructured matter composed of colloidal nanocrystals in solidified architectures abounds with broadly tunable catalytic, magnetic, optoelectronic, and energy storing properties. Less common are liquid-like assemblies of colloidal nanocrystals in a condensed phase, which may have different energy transduction behaviors owing to their dynamic character. Limiting investigations into dynamic colloidal nanocrystal architectures is the lack of schemes to control or redirect the tendency of the system to solidify. We show how to solidify and subsequently reconfigure colloidal nanocrystal assemblies dimensionally confined to a liquid-liquid interface. Our success in this regard hinged on the development of competitive chemistries anchoring or releasing the nanocrystals to or from the interface. With these chemistries, it was possible to control the kinetic trajectory between quasi–two-dimensional jammed (solid-like) and unjammed (liquid-like) states. In future schemes, it may be possible to leverage this control to direct the formation or destruction of explicit physical pathways for energy carriers to migrate in the system in response to an external field

Is field-measured tree height as reliable as believed A comparison study of tree height estimates from field measurement, airborne laser scanning and terrestrial laser scanning in a boreal forest

Quantitative comparisons of tree height observations from different sources are scarce due to the difficulties in effective sampling. In this study, the reliability and robustness of tree height observations obtained via a conventional field inventory, airborne laser scanning (ALS) and terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) were investigated. A carefully designed non-destructive experiment was conducted that included 1174 individual trees in 18 sample plots (32 m x 32 m) in a Scandinavian boreal forest. The point density of the ALS data was approximately 450 points/m(2). The TLS data were acquired with multi-scans from the center and the four quadrant directions of the sample plots. Both the ALS and TLS data represented the cutting edge point cloud products. Tree heights were manually measured from the ALS and TLS point clouds with the aid of existing tree maps. Therefore, the evaluation results revealed the capacities of the applied laser scanning (LS) data while excluding the influence of data processing approach such as the individual tree detection. The reliability and robustness of different tree height sources were evaluated through a cross-comparison of the ALS-, TLS-, and field- based tree heights. Compared to ALS and TLS, field measurements were more sensitive to stand complexity, crown classes, and species. Overall, field measurements tend to overestimate height of tall trees, especially tall trees in codominant crown class. In dense stands, high uncertainties also exist in the field measured heights for small trees in intermediate and suppressed crown class. The ALS-based tree height estimates were robust across all stand conditions. The taller the tree, the more reliable was the ALS-based tree height. The highest uncertainty in ALS-based tree heights came from trees in intermediate crown class, due to the difficulty of identifying treetops. When using TLS, reliable tree heights can be expected for trees lower than 15-20 m in height, depending on the complexity of forest stands. The advantage of LS systems was the robustness of the geometric accuracy of the data. The greatest challenges of the LS techniques in measuring individual tree heights lie in the occlusion effects, which lead to omissions of trees in intermediate and suppressed crown classes in ALS data and incomplete crowns of tall trees in TLS data.Peer reviewe

The risk of long-term cardiometabolic disease in women with premature or early menopause: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundTransition into menopause is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, it is unclear whether the association exists between premature menopause (defined as age at menopause 40 years) or early menopause (defined as age at menopause 40–45 years) and CVD or cardiovascular risk factors. The aim of this review was to comprehensively evaluate and meta-analyze the most reliable evidence about the relationship between menopausal age and the risk of long-term cardiometabolic disease.MethodsA comprehensive literature search of the PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase databases from inception to October 1, 2022, for titles and abstracts with a restriction to English language papers led to the discovery of the studies. Data are expressed as the Hazard Ratio (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). The degree of heterogeneity was measured using the I-square (I2) index.Results921,517 participants from 20 cohort studies published between 1998 and 2022 were considered. Compared to women with menopause at age >45 years, women with premature menopause (PM) or early menopause (EM) had a higher risks of type 2 diabetes (RR: 1.32, 95% CI: 1.08–1.62; RR: 1.11, 95% CI: 0.91–1.36, respectively), hyperlipidemia (RR: 1.21, 95% CI: 1.05–1.39; RR: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.02–1.33, respectively), coronary heart disease (RR: 1.52, 95% CI: 1.22–1.91; RR: 1.19, 95% CI: 1.07–1.32, respectively), stroke (RR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.02–1.58; RR: 1.13, 95% CI: 0.97–1.32, respectively) and total cardiovascular event (RR: 1.36, 95% CI: 1.16–1.60; RR: 1.14, 95% CI: 0.97–1.35, respectively). No difference was found for hypertension in PM or EM women (RR: 0.98, 95% CI: 0.89–1.07; RR: 0.97, 95% CI: 0.91–1.04, respectively). Additionally, we also found that PM women, but not EM women, were linked with an increased risk of ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. However, this is not in line with the conclusion that both PM and EM had a higher risk of total stroke.ConclusionWomen with PM or EM have a higher risk of developing long-term CVD, compared to women with menopause at age >45 years. Therefore, we recommend early lifestyle interventions (e.g., maintaining a healthy lifestyle) and medical treatments (e.g., timely initiation of menopausal hormone therapy) to decrease the risk of cardiometabolic disease in early or premature menopausal women.Systematic Review RegistrationPROSPERO, identifier CRD4202237875