Settlement Prediction of Soft Clay Ground under Sustained and Transient Loading

Two case studies of settlement prediction of Ariake clay ground which is counted as one of the soft clays in Japan are described. The one of them is to report a long-term settlement which have been observed over 25 years since construction of embankment for breakwater on the coastal Ariake deposit. The another case study is concerned with the settlement of low embankment highway on Ariake clay whose shallow surface was improved by quicklime-clay mixture as a countermeasure for the settlement. It is featured by the fact that the predominant secondary settlement is common with two case studies. The finite element method using an elasto-plastic model was adopted to analyze the settlement of Ariake clay observed in above-mentioned two case studies under sustained and transient loading, respectively. It is concluded from comparison of analytieal results with observed settlement that the proposed model with consideration of secondary compression is advantageous for settlement prediction of soft clay ground

Prevention of hypoglycemia by intermittent-scanning continuous glucose monitoring device combined with structured education in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus : A randomized, crossover trial

Aims: We conducted a randomized, crossover trial to compare intermittent-scanning continuous glucose monitoring (isCGM) device with structured education (Intervention) to self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) (Control) in the reduction of time below range. Methods: This crossover trial involved 104 adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) using multiple daily injections. Participants were randomly allocated to either sequence Intervention/Control or sequence Control/Intervention. During the Intervention period which lasted 84 days, participants used the first-generation FreeStyle Libre (Abbott Diabetes Care, Alameda, CA, USA) and received structured education on how to prevent hypoglycemia based on the trend arrow and by frequent sensor scanning (≥10 times a day). Confirmatory SMBG was conducted before dosing insulin. The Control period lasted 84 days. The primary endpoint was the decrease in the time below range (TBR; <70 mg/dL). Results: The time below range was significantly reduced in the Intervention arm compared to the Control arm (2.42 ± 1.68 h/day [10.1 %±7.0 %] vs 3.10 ± 2.28 h/day [12.9 %±9.5 %], P = 0.012). The ratio of high-risk participants with low blood glucose index >5 was significantly reduced (8.6 % vs 23.7 %, P < 0.001). Conclusions: The use of isCGM combined with structured education significantly reduced the time below range in patients with T1DM

MECHANISM OF SLOPE FAILURE DURING HEAVY RAINFALL IN NAGASAKI JULY 1982

On July 23,1982,299 human lives were lost in Nagasaki Prefecture due to localized heavy rainfall, nearly 90% of which were due to sediment disaster. So, it is important to clarify a mechanism of slope failure during heavy rainfall for sediment disaster prevention. In this paper, we firstly carry out a model experiment of slope failure due to infiltration and observe a phenomenon in progressive failure of slope. Secondly, we apply a finite element analysis which is divided into two stages, i.e. a saturated-unsaturated seepage flow analysis and a stability analysis taking into account the seepage force and the reduction of strength due to the rise in the degree of saturation, to two actually failured slope in Nagasaki city. And we check their failure under the conditions of preceding rainfall, rainfall on the day of failure, topography, geology and so on. Finally, we have clarified a mechanism of slope failure during heavy rainfall and shown that slope failure can be predicted if a rise in the groundwater table can be detected