Seismic diagnosis from gravity modes strongly affected by rotation

Most of the information we have about the internal rotation of stars comes from modes that are weakly affected by rotation, for example by using rotational splittings. In contrast, we present here a method, based on the asymptotic theory of Prat et al. (2016), which allows us to analyse the signature of rotation where its effect is the most important, that is in low-frequency gravity modes that are strongly affected by rotation. For such modes, we predict two spectral patterns that could be confronted to observed spectra and those computed using fully two-dimensional oscillation codes.Comment: 3 pages, 1 figure, to appear in the proceedings of the Joint TASC2 & KASC9 Workshop SPACEINN & HELAS8 Conference "Seismology of the Sun and the Distant Stars 2016

A framework for the comparison of different EEG acquisition solutions

The purpose of this work is to propose a framework for the benchmarking of EEG amplifiers, headsets, and electrodes providing objective recommendation for a given application. The framework covers: data collection paradigm, data analysis, and statistical framework. To illustrate, data was collected from 12 different devices totaling up to 6 subjects per device. Two data acquisition protocols were implemented: a resting-state protocol eyes-open (EO) and eyes-closed (EC), and an Auditory Evoked Potential (AEP) protocol. Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) on alpha band (EO/EC) and Event Related Potential (ERP) were extracted as objective quantification of physiologically meaningful information. Then, visual representation, univariate statistical analysis, and multivariate model were performed to increase results interpretability. Objective criteria show that the spectral SNR in alpha does not provide much discrimination between systems, suggesting that the acquisition quality might not be of primary importance for spectral and specifically alpha-based applications. On the contrary, AEP SNR proved much more variable stressing the importance of the acquisition setting for ERP experiments. The multivariate analysis identified some individuals and some systems as independent statistically significant contributors to the SNR. It highlights the importance of inter-individual differences in neurophysiological experiments (sample size) and suggests some device might objectively be superior to others when it comes to ERP recordings. However, the illustration of the proposed benchmarking framework suffers from severe limitations including small sample size and sound card jitter in the auditory stimulations. While these limitations hinders a definite ranking of the evaluated hardware, we believe the proposed benchmarking framework to be a modest yet valuable contribution to the field

Selection of sensors by a new methodology coupling a classification technique and entropy criteria

Complex industrial processes invest a lot of money in sensors and automation devices to monitor and supervise the process in order to guarantee the production quality and the plant and operators safety. Fault detection is one of the multiple tasks of process monitoring and it critically depends on the sensors that measure the significant process variables. Nevertheless, most of the works on fault detection and diagnosis found in literature emphasis more on developing procedures to perform diagnosis given a set of sensors, and less on determining the actual location of sensors for efficient identification of faults. A methodology based on learning and classification techniques and on the information quantity measured by the Entropy concept, is proposed in order to address the problem of sensor location for fault identification. The proposed methodology has been applied to a continuous intensified reactor, the "Open Plate Reactor (OPR)", developed by Alfa Laval and studied at the Laboratory of Chemical Engineering of Toulouse. The different steps of the methodology are explained through its application to the carrying out of an exothermic reaction

Nanobubbles and gas dynamics during capillary filling of nanochannels

This paper focuses on capillary filling at the nanoscale where deviations to the Washburn’s classical theory are observed. Imbibition experiments in microfabricated silicon-glass nanochannels with low aspect ratio (width >> depth and depths going from 400 nm down to 20 nm) are performed for several liquids. In all cases, as predicted by the Washburn’s law, liquid invasion front location evolves as the square root of time. However, filling kinetics slowdown compared to the Washburn’s law is measured in nanochannels for depths below ~ 100 nm. Furthermore, below a liquid-dependent depth threshold, we observe spontaneous bubbles formation behind the advancing meniscus. Bubbles dynamics (formation conditions and lifetime) are analyzed thanks to our experimental data involving several liquids and nanochannels depths. Viscous resistance induced by the bubbles presence is estimated using an effective medium approach. Conjointly, gas flow ahead of the advancing meniscus is modeled considering the gas as viscous and compressible. Influence of these effects on the filling kinetics is discussed

Risques naturels, actions anthropiques et enjeux à San Miguel de Tucuman (Nord-Ouest argentin)

La grande sensibilité écologique de la province de Tucuman s’explique d’abord par les forts contrastes qui existent au niveau du climat et du relief. Le climat subtropical, entre 26 et 28° de latitude Sud, offre des contrastes saisonniers importants où les précipitations estivales fortes et intenses jouent un rôle important dans les processus géomorphologiques, d’autant plus que les contrastes topographiques sont également marqués. Les pluies sont à l’origine de crues brutales accompagnées de phénomènes d’érosion et d’inondations. D’autre part, les sols développés à partir des accumulations lœssiques sont particulièrement sensibles aux érosions hydrique et éolienne. Mais les actions anthropiques ont souvent aggravé cette fragilité naturelle en abaissant le seuil de résistance des différents milieux. Le développement actuel de l’agglomération de Tucuman, située au débouché du bassin versant du Rio Muerto et de l’Arroyo Las Piedras, met en évidence ces problèmes et les risques s’accroissent (aléas et vulnérabilité). La situation économique dans une Argentine en plein marasme, mais aussi la superposition des lois et des organismes rend la recherche de solutions difficile.The ecological sensitivity of the Tucuman province can first be explained by both climate and topographic contrasts. In a subtropical area (26-28oS) strong summer rainfalls take an important part in the geomorphologic processes increased by steep stones. High intensity rainfall events create sudden floods and landslides. Loess deposits and associated soils are especially sensitive to hydric and eolian erosion. However anthropic actions have worsened this natural fragility by lowering the natural tolerance of different environments. The urban growth of Tucuman located at the end of the Rio Muerto’s valley underlines these problems and risks are increasing. The economic crisis in Argentina but also the multitude of administrations and laws make even more difficult to find a solution

Impact of a nurses' protocol-directed weaning procedure on outcomes in patients undergoing mechanical ventilation for longer than 48 hours: a prospective cohort study with a matched historical control group

INTRODUCTION: The aim of the study was to determine whether the use of a nurses' protocol-directed weaning procedure, based on the French intensive care society (SRLF) consensus recommendations, was associated with reductions in the duration of mechanical ventilation and intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay in patients requiring more than 48 hours of mechanical ventilation. METHODS: This prospective study was conducted in a university hospital ICU from January 2002 through to February 2003. A total of 104 patients who had been ventilated for more than 48 hours and were weaned from mechanical ventilation using a nurses' protocol-directed procedure (cases) were compared with a 1:1 matched historical control group who underwent conventional physician-directed weaning (between 1999 and 2001). Duration of ventilation and length of ICU stay, rate of unsuccessful extubation and rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia were compared between cases and controls. RESULTS: The duration of mechanical ventilation (16.6 ± 13 days versus 22.5 ± 21 days; P = 0.02) and ICU length of stay (21.6 ± 14.3 days versus 27.6 ± 21.7 days; P = 0.02) were lower among patients who underwent the nurses' protocol-directed weaning than among control individuals. Ventilator-associated pneumonia, ventilator discontinuation failure rates and ICU mortality were similar between the two groups. DISCUSSION: Application of the nurses' protocol-directed weaning procedure described here is safe and promotes significant outcome benefits in patients who require more than 48 hours of mechanical ventilation

The contribution of tropical cyclones to the atmospheric branch of Middle America's hydrological cycle using observed and reanalysis tracks

Middle America is affected by tropical cyclones (TCs) from the Eastern Pacific and the North Atlantic Oceans. We characterize the regional climatology (1998-2016) of the TC contributions to the atmospheric branch of the hydrological cycle, from May to December. TC contributions to rainfall are quantified using Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) product 3B42 and TC tracks derived from three sources: the International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS), and an objective feature tracking method applied to the Japanese 55-year and ERA-Interim reanalyses. From July to October, TCs contribute 10-30% of rainfall over the west and east coast of Mexico and central Mexico, with the largest monthly contribution during September over the Baja California Peninsula (up to 90%). TCs are associated with 40-60% of daily extreme rainfall (above the 95th percentile) over the coasts of Mexico. IBTrACS and reanalyses agree on TC contributions over the Atlantic Ocean but disagree over the Eastern Pacific Ocean and continent; differences over the continent are mainly attributed to discrepancies in TC tracks in proximity to the coast and TC lifetime. Reanalysis estimates of TC moisture transports show that TCs are an important moisture source for the regional water budget. TC vertically integrated moisture flux (VIMF) convergence can turn regions of weak VIMF divergence by the mean circulation into regions of weak VIMF convergence. We discuss deficiencies in the observed and reanalysis TC tracks, which limit our ability to quantify robustly the contribution of TCs to the regional hydrological cycle

Further investigation of confirmed urinary tract infection (UTI) in children under five years: a systematic review.

Background: Further investigation of confirmed UTI in children aims to prevent renal scarring and future complications. Methods: We conducted a systematic review to determine the most effective approach to the further investigation of confirmed urinary tract infection (UTI) in children under five years of age. Results: 73 studies were included. Many studies had methodological limitations or were poorly reported. Effectiveness of further investigations: One study found that routine imaging did not lead to a reduction in recurrent UTIs or renal scarring. Diagnostic accuracy: The studies do not support the use of less invasive tests such as ultrasound as an alternative to renal scintigraphy, either to rule out infection of the upper urinary tract (LR- = 0.57, 95%CI: 0.47, 0.68) and thus to exclude patients from further investigation or to detect renal scarring (LR+ = 3.5, 95% CI: 2.5, 4.8). None of the tests investigated can accurately predict the development of renal scarring. The available evidence supports the consideration of contrast-enhanced ultrasound techniques for detecting vesico-ureteric reflux (VUR), as an alternative to micturating cystourethrography (MCUG) (LR+ = 14.1, 95% CI: 9.5, 20.8; LR- = 0.20, 95%CI: 0.13, 0.29); these techniques have the advantage of not requiring exposure to ionising radiation. Conclusion: There is no evidence to support the clinical effectiveness of routine investigation of children with confirmed UTI. Primary research on the effectiveness, in terms of improved patient outcome, of testing at all stages in the investigation of confirmed urinary tract infection is urgently required

Epigenetic prediction of response to anti-PD-1 treatment in non-small-cell lung cancer: a multicenter, retrospective analysis

Background: Anti-programmed death-1 (PD-1) treatment for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has improved the survival of patients. However, a substantial percentage of patients do not respond to this treatment. We examined the use of DNA methylation profiles to determine the efficacy of anti-PD-1 treatment in patients recruited with current stage IV NSCLC. Methods: In this multicentre study, we recruited adult patients from 15 hospitals in France, Spain, and Italy who had histologically proven stage IV NSCLC and had been exposed to PD-1 blockade during the course of the disease. The study structure comprised a discovery cohort to assess the correlation between epigenetic features and clinical benefit with PD-1 blockade and two validation cohorts to assess the validity of our assumptions. We first established an epigenomic profile based on a microarray DNA methylation signature (EPIMMUNE) in a discovery set of tumour samples from patients treated with nivolumab or pembrolizumab. The EPIMMUNE signature was validated in an independent set of patients. A derived DNA methylation marker was validated by a single-methylation assay in a validation cohort of patients. The main study outcomes were progression-free survival and overall survival. We used the Kaplan-Meier method to estimate progression-free and overall survival, and calculated the differences between the groups with the log-rank test. We constructed a multivariate Cox model to identify the variables independently associated with progression-free and overall survival. Findings: Between June 23, 2014, and May 18, 2017, we obtained samples from 142 patients: 34 in the discovery cohort, 47 in the EPIMMUNE validation cohort, and 61 in the derived methylation marker cohort (the T-cell differentiation factor forkhead box P1 [FOXP1]). The EPIMMUNE signature in patients with stage IV NSCLC treated with anti-PD-1 agents was associated with improved progression-free survival (hazard ratio [HR] 0·010, 95% CI 3·29 × 10 −4–0·0282; p=0·0067) and overall survival (0·080, 0·017–0·373; p=0·0012). The EPIMMUNE-positive signature was not associated with PD-L1 expression, the presence of CD8+ cells, or mutational load. EPIMMUNE-negative tumours were enriched in tumour-associated macrophages and neutrophils, cancer-associated fibroblasts, and senescent endothelial cells. The EPIMMUNE-positive signature was associated with improved progression-free survival in the EPIMMUNE validation cohort (0·330, 0·149–0·727; p=0·0064). The unmethylated status of FOXP1 was associated with improved progression-free survival (0·415, 0·209–0·802; p=0·0063) and overall survival (0·409, 0·220–0·780; p=0·0094) in the FOXP1 validation cohort. The EPIMMUNE signature and unmethylated FOXP1 were not associated with clinical benefit in lung tumours that did not receive immunotherapy. Interpretation: Our study shows that the epigenetic milieu of NSCLC tumours indicates which patients are most likely to benefit from nivolumab or pembrolizumab treatments. The methylation status of FOXP1 could be associated with validated predictive biomarkers such as PD-L1 staining and mutational load to better select patients who will experience clinical benefit with PD-1 blockade, and its predictive value should be evaluated in prospective studies