Binary Musical Bias in Irreguilar Meters

The rhythmic structures of Western art music tend to be highly regular. With regards to metrical organization (i.e. grouping of strong and weak beats), previous research by Huron (2006) indicates that binary (strong-weak) meters tend to be more prevalent than ternary (strong-weak-weak) meters. However, relatively little is known about other types of metrical organization, such as meters based on 5- or 7-beat patterns. Results are reported from a corpus study of 5- and 7-beat musical melodies. Five-beat metrical patterns were found to occur more frequently than meters with 7-beat patterns, χ2 (1, N = 144) = 30.25, p \u3c 0.001, φ= 0.46. This finding was consistent with the hypothesis that simpler metrical structures are preferred to more complex ones, and therefore, also more prevalent in the literature. The results warrant future research on listeners’ preferences for simpler metrical structures in the context of irregular meters

Multiparametric MRI and [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography imaging is a potential prognostic imaging biomarker in recurrent glioblastoma

Purpose/objectivesMultiparametric advanced MR and [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET) imaging may be important biomarkers for prognosis as well for distinguishing recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) from treatment-related changes.Methods/materialsWe retrospectively evaluated 30 patients treated with chemoradiation for GBM and underwent advanced MR and FDG-PET for confirmation of tumor progression. Multiparametric MRI and FDG-PET imaging metrics were evaluated for their association with 6-month overall (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) based on pathological, radiographic, and clinical criteria.Results17 males and 13 females were treated between 2001 and 2014, and later underwent FDG-PET at suspected recurrence. Baseline FDG-PET and MRI imaging was obtained at a median of 7.5 months [interquartile range (IQR) 3.7–12.4] following completion of chemoradiation. Median follow-up after FDG-PET imaging was 10 months (IQR 7.2–13.0). Receiver-operator characteristic curve analysis identified that lesions characterized by a ratio of the SUVmax to the normal contralateral brain (SUVmax/NB index) >1.5 and mean apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value of ≤1,400 × 10−6 mm2/s correlated with worse 6-month OS and PFS. We defined three patient groups that predicted the probability of tumor progression: SUVmax/NB index >1.5 and ADC ≤1,400 × 10−6 mm2/s defined high-risk patients (n = 7), SUVmax/NB index ≤1.5 and ADC >1,400 × 10−6 mm2/s defined low-risk patients (n = 11), and intermediate-risk (n = 12) defined the remainder of the patients. Median OS following the time of the FDG-PET scan for the low, intermediate, and high-risk groups were 23.5, 10.5, and 3.8 months (p < 0.01). Median PFS were 10.0, 4.4, and 1.9 months (p = 0.03). Rates of progression at 6-months in the low, intermediate, and high-risk groups were 36, 67, and 86% (p = 0.04).ConclusionRecurrent GBM in the molecular era is associated with highly variable outcomes. Multiparametric MR and FDG-PET biomarkers may provide a clinically relevant, non-invasive and cost-effective method of predicting prognosis and improving clinical decision making in the treatment of patients with suspected tumor recurrence

A Pilot Study of Nulling in 22 Pulsars Using Mixture Modeling

The phenomenon of pulsar nulling, observed as the temporary inactivity of a pulsar, remains poorly understood both observationally and theoretically. Most observational studies that quantify nulling employ a variant of Ritchings (1976)'s algorithm which can suffer significant biases for pulsars where the emission is weak. Using a more robust mixture model method, we study pulsar nulling in a sample of 22 recently discovered pulsars, for which we publish the nulling fractions for the first time. These data clearly demonstrate biases of the former approach and show how an otherwise non-nulling pulsar can be classified as having significant nulls. We show that the population-wide studies that find a positive correlation of nulling with pulsar period/characteristic age can similarly be biased because of the bias in estimating the nulling fraction. We use our probabilistic approach to find the evidence for periodicity in the nulls in a subset of three pulsars in our sample. In addition, we also provide improved timing parameters for 17 of the 22 pulsars that had no prior follow-up.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal (ApJ

Random walk and lighting control

We pose the problem of turning off a single luminaire (or group) as an optimal stopping problem. We present the stationary and first-passage analysis of motion data obtained using custom wireless nodes in an open office floor plan. These calculations allow us to estimate the state of the network and calculate the probability and expected number of steps to visit a state from any arbitrary state. We also investigate if there is any evidence of clustering amongst the nodes by studying the covariance of the dataset. The data indicate the existence of clustering within the lattice. In other words, the analysis of random walk prevents luminaires from accidentally shutting off and dimensionality reduction determines the correct zoning of lighting via the occupants' movements

Orbital Evolution of Dust Size Particles Released From Catastrophic Asteroid Disruption

Infrared satellite detectors, such as IRAS (Infrared Astronomical Satellite) and WISE (Wide Field Infrared Survey Explorer), provide observational evidence of catastrophic asteroid disruptions in the form of zodiacal cloud dust bands. With observations of these bands, the asteroid parents and their families (fragments of disruptions) are studied to better understand the zodiacal cloud prior to disruption, as well as how asteroids contribute to the debris disk of the solar system\u27s zodiacal cloud. Before creating models that can be compared to satellite data, the dynamical evolutions of small particles resulting from different disruptions of different ages as they evolve into the inner solar system are tracked. The dynamical evolution code, written in IDL, simulates the orbital elements of small particles during disruption. It takes into consideration the gravitational and radiative forces affecting small particle orbits for specific families within their unique epochs of disruptions. Through plots of temporal variations of numerous orbital elements of the resulting disruptions, this team has begun comparing the dynamical evolution of small particles from different asteroidal disruptions, as they reach Near-Earth Space. Understanding the particles in this region is important for many reasons, including determining potential threats for spacecraft in future missions

Session 11: \u3cem\u3eCan machine learning predict particle deposition at specific intranasal regions based on computational fluid dynamics inputs/outputs and nasal geometry measurements?\u3c/em\u3e

Along with machine learning modeling, numerical simulations of respiratory airflow and particle transport can be used to improve targeted deposition at the upper respiratory infection site of numerous airborne diseases. Given the need for more patient data from varied demographics, we propose a machine learning-enabled protocol for determining optimal formulation design parameters that may match nasal spray device settings for successful drug delivery. We measured 11 anatomical parameters (including nasopharyngeal volume, nostril heights, and mid-nasal cavity volume) for 10 CT-based nasal geometries representative of the population for this aim. We also ran 160 computational fluid dynamics simulations of drug delivery on the same geometries for various breathing situations, using varied pressure gradients to drive inhaled air transport to evaluate drug deposition at the various upper airway areas for nasal inhalers. Using this test data, we constructed 18 machine-learning models to estimate the targeted deposition at the different regions of the upper airway. This study contributes to developing a customized, efficient intranasal delivery system for prophylactics, treatments, and immunizations; the findings will apply to a broad spectrum of respiratory disorders

Nonprofessional Peer Support to Improve Mental Health: Randomized Trial of a Scalable Web-Based Peer Counseling Course

Background: Millions of people worldwide are underserved by the mental health care system. Indeed, most mental health problems go untreated, often because of resource constraints (eg, limited provider availability and cost) or lack of interest or faith in professional help. Furthermore, subclinical symptoms and chronic stress in the absence of a mental illness diagnosis often go unaddressed, despite their substantial health impact. Innovative and scalable treatment delivery methods are needed to supplement traditional therapies to fill these gaps in the mental health care system. Objective: This study aims to investigate whether a self-guided web-based course can teach pairs of nonprofessional peers to deliver psychological support to each other. Methods: In this experimental study, a community sample of 30 dyads (60 participants, mostly friends), many of whom presented with mild to moderate psychological distress, were recruited to complete a web-based counseling skills course. Dyads were randomized to either immediate or delayed access to training. Before and after training, dyads were recorded taking turns discussing stressors. Participants’ skills in the helper role were assessed before and after taking the course: the first author and a team of trained research assistants coded recordings for the presence of specific counseling behaviors. When in the client role, participants rated the session on helpfulness in resolving their stressors and supportiveness of their peers. We hypothesized that participants would increase the use of skills taught by the course and decrease the use of skills discouraged by the course, would increase their overall adherence to the guidelines taught in the course, and would perceive posttraining counseling sessions as more helpful and their peers as more supportive. Results: The course had large effects on most helper-role speech behaviors: helpers decreased total speaking time, used more restatements, made fewer efforts to influence the speaker, and decreased self-focused and off-topic utterances (ds=0.8-1.6). When rating the portion of the session in which they served as clients, participants indicated that they made more progress in addressing their stressors during posttraining counseling sessions compared with pretraining sessions (d=1.1), but they did not report substantive changes in feelings of closeness and supportiveness of their peers (d=0.3). Conclusions: The results provide proof of concept that nonprofessionals can learn basic counseling skills from a scalable web-based course. The course serves as a promising model for the development of web-based counseling skills training, which could provide accessible mental health support to some of those underserved by traditional psychotherapy

Oxygen Delivery and Oxygen Consumption in Pediatric Fluid Refractory Septic Shock During the First 42 h of Therapy and Their Relationship to 28-Day Outcome

Background: In septic shock, both oxygen delivery (DO2) and oxygen consumption (VO2) are dysfunctional. The current therapeutic regimens are geared to normalize global oxygen delivery (DO2) to tissues via goal directed therapies but mortality remains high at 10–20%.Methods: We studied cardiac index (CI), systemic vascular resistance index (SVRI), central venous oxygen saturation (ScvO2), central venous pressure (CVP), peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2), mean blood pressure (MBP), body temperature, blood lactate, base excess and hemoglobin concentration (Hb) in a cohort of children admitted in “fluid-refractory” severe septic shock to pediatric intensive care, over 4.5-years. We calculated their 6 h global oxygen delivery (DO2) and global oxygen consumption (VO2) over the first 42 h and looked at factors associated with VO2/DO2 ratio (i.e., global oxygen extraction, gO2ER) and 28-day mortality.Results: Sixty-two children mean age (SD) 7.19 (5.44) years were studied. Fifty-seven (93%) children were sedated and mechanically ventilated and all received adrenaline or noradrenaline or both and added milrinone in 6 (9.6%). At 28 days, 9 (14.5%) were dead. The global oxygen extraction ratio (gO2ER) was consistently lower amongst the survivors and independently predicted mortality (ROC AUC = 0.75). A lactate level of 4 mmol/l or above, when associated with a concurrent metabolic acidosis predicted mortality with a sensitivity of 100% (95% CI 90.5–100) and a specificity of 67.7% (95% CI 62.2–72.9). A gO2ER of 0.48 or above on admission to the PICU was associated with death with a 66.7% sensitivity (95%CI 29.9–92.5) and 90.5% specificity (95%CI 79.3–96.8). A global O2ER of >0.48 combined with a concurrent blood lactate >4.0 mmol/l at any time within the first 42 h of therapy predicted death with a sensitivity of 63.9% (95% CI, 46.2–79.1) and specificity of 97.8% (95% CI, 95.7–99.0). A radar plot identified MBP-CVP difference, and CI as additional goals of therapy that may offer a survival benefit.Conclusions: Global O2ER of >0.48 with a concurrent blood lactate >4.0 mmol/l in children with metabolic acidosis was an independent factor associated with death in fluid resistant septic shock. Trends of gO2ER seem useful to recognize survivors and non-survivors early in the illness