bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Psychosocial and Cardiac Outcomes of Yoga for ICD Patients: A Randomized Clinical Control Trial
Authors: TOISE STEFANIE C. F. , SEARS SAMUEL F. , SCHOENFELD MARK H. , BLITZER MARK L. , MARIEB MARK A. , DRURY JOHN H. , SLADE MARTIN D. , DONOHUE THOMAS J.
Published: August 2013

Background

Because as many as 46% of implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) patients experience clinical symptoms of shock anxiety, this randomized controlled study evaluated the efficacy of adapted yoga (vs usual care) in reducing clinical psychosocial risks shown to impact morbidity and mortality in ICD recipients.

Methods

Forty‐six participants were randomized to a control group or an 8‐week adapted yoga group that followed a standardized protocol with weekly classes and home practice. Medical and psychosocial data were collected at baseline and follow‐up, then compared and analyzed.

Results

Total shock anxiety decreased for the yoga group and increased for the control group, t(4.43, 36), P < 0.0001, with significant differences between these changes. Similarly, consequential anxiety decreased for the yoga group but increased for the control group t(2.86,36) P = 0.007. Compared to the control, the yoga group had greater overall self‐compassion, t(–2.84,37), P = 0.007, and greater mindfulness, t(–2.10,37) P = 0.04, at the end of the study. Exploratory analyses utilizing a linear model (R2 = 0.98) of observed device‐treated ventricular (DTV) events revealed that the expected number of DTV events in the yoga group was significantly lower than in the control group (P < 0.0001). Compared to the control, the yoga group had a 32% lower risk of experiencing device‐related firings at end of follow‐up.

Conclusions

Our study demonstrated psychosocial benefits from a program of adapted yoga (vs usual care) for ICD recipients. These data support continued research to better understand the role of complementary medicine to address ICD‐specific stress in cardiac outcomes.
Unravelling the genetic complexity of sorghum seedling development under low‐temperature conditions
Authors: BEKELE WUBISHET A. , FIEDLER KARIN , SHIRINGANI AMUKELANI , SCHNAUBELT DANIEL , WINDPASSINGER STEFFEN , UPTMOOR RALF , FRIEDT WOLFGANG , SNOWDON ROD J.
Published: August 2013

Sorghum is a promising alternative to maize for bioenergy production in Europe; however, its use is currently limited by poor adaptation to low temperatures during and after germination. We collected multi‐trait phenotype data under optimal and suboptimal temperatures in a genetically diverse recombinant inbred line (RIL) mapping population showing contrasting segregation patterns for pre‐ and post‐emergence chilling tolerance. Germination, emergence, seedling development, root architecture and seedling survival were assessed in two different seedlots. Emergence and root establishment were found to be the key determinants of development and survival under chilling stress. Highly interactive epistatic quantitative trait loci (QTL) hotspots, including a previously unknown QTL on Sb06 with a significant effect on prolonged chilling survival, were found to regulate different physiological mechanisms contributing to maintenance of growth and development despite the chilling temperatures. The major QTL regions harbour promising candidate genes with known roles in abiotic stress tolerance. Identification of loci in the QTL hotspot regions conferring maintenance of cell division and growth under early chilling stress represents a promising step towards breeding for successful establishment of sorghum in temperate climates.
Competition between isoprene emission and pigment synthesis during leaf development in aspen
Authors: RASULOV BAHTIJOR , BICHELE IRINA , LAISK AGU , NIINEMETS ÜLO
Published: August 2013

In growing leaves, lack of isoprene synthase (IspS) is considered responsible for delayed isoprene emission, but competition for dimethylallyl diphosphate (DMADP), the substrate for both isoprene synthesis and prenyltransferase reactions in photosynthetic pigment and phytohormone synthesis, can also play a role. We used a kinetic approach based on post‐illumination isoprene decay and modelling DMADP consumption to estimate in vivo kinetic characteristics of IspS and prenyltransferase reactions, and to determine the share of DMADP use by different processes through leaf development in Populus tremula. Pigment synthesis rate was also estimated from pigment accumulation data and distribution of DMADP use from isoprene emission changes due to alendronate, a selective inhibitor of prenyltransferases. Development of photosynthetic activity and pigment synthesis occurred with the greatest rate in 1‐ to 5‐day‐old leaves when isoprene emission was absent. Isoprene emission commenced on days 5 and 6 and increased simultaneously with slowing down of pigment synthesis. In vivo Michaelis–Menten constant (Km) values obtained were 265 nmol m−2 (20 μm) for DMADP‐consuming prenyltransferase reactions and 2560 nmol m−2 (190 μm) for IspS. Thus, despite decelerating pigment synthesis reactions in maturing leaves, isoprene emission in young leaves was limited by both IspS activity and competition for DMADP by prenyltransferase reactions.
Prenatal plumbing—vascular tissue formation in the plant embryo
Authors: De Rybel Bert , Breda Alice S. , Weijers Dolf
Published: August 2013

The first vascular tissue precursors are specified early during embryogenesis. These precursors give rise to the multi‐layered cylinder of hypocotyl and root through controlled, oriented divisions. Concomitant with its growth, the bundle is patterned into xylem and phloem tissues, and intervening procambial cells. These patterns are later maintained during post‐embryonic growth and vascular cells will eventually differentiate, displaying characteristic secondary cell wall modifications. Given that the vascular system forms de novo in a simple yet predictable fashion, the embryo provides an excellent model system to study early developmental aspects of vascular tissue formation. However, the benefits of this model are only beginning to be exploited, and most knowledge about the vascular development is derived from growing post‐embryonic tissues. Importantly, it is unclear how much of these established post‐embryonic mechanisms can be extrapolated to tissue formation during embryogenesis. Here we review concepts established in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana and focus on recent advances made in understanding embryonic vascular development.
Globalization, state, and innovation: An appraisal of networked industrial policy
Authors: Negoita Marian
Published: August 2013

One of the most pressing questions in comparative social science is whether, and to what extent, the rapid advance of globalization has negatively affected states’ capacity to initiate successful economic and social policies. This paper puts forward the notion that states continue to be relevant because they have the potential to build and sustain networks of production and learning, which are sorely needed in the current era of globalization when productive arrangements are dominated by decentralized production networks. The paper argues that government efforts aimed at building and sustaining such networks, labeled as “networked industrial policy,” have become predominant. The study features a series of fixed‐effects time series cross‐section (TSCS) regressions linking innovation performance to several networked industrial policies in 17 countries from western and central Europe. The study finds that several of the policies have a robust effect on innovation performance and technology competitiveness, even after controls are included. These findings constitute considerable support for the notion of networked industrial policy. However, the results of the present study must be treated less as a definitive answer to the research question and more as a first step in an ongoing research process.
Building European Union capacity to manage transboundary crises: Network or lead‐agency model?
Authors: Boin Arjen , Busuioc Madalina , Groenleer Martijn
Published: August 2013

In recent years, the European continent has witnessed a substantial number of “transboundary crises” – crises that cross geographical borders and affect multiple policy domains. Nation states find it hard to deal with such crises by themselves. International cooperation, thus, becomes increasingly important, but it is not clear what shape or form that cooperation should take. This article explores the growing role of the European Union (EU) in managing transboundary crises. More specifically, it reflects on the different ways in which the expanding contours of the EU's emerging crisis capacity can be organized. Using three “performative dimensions” – sense‐making, coordination, and legitimacy – the article discusses the possible advantages and disadvantages of a decentralized, network model and compares it with a more centralized, lead‐agency model. It concludes that the current network model is a logical outcome of the punctuated and fragmentary process through which EU crisis management capacities have been created. It also notes that the shortcomings of this model may necessitate elements of a lead‐agency model. Such “agencification” of networks for transboundary crisis management may well lead to a hybrid model that is uniquely suited for the peculiar organizational and political creature that the EU is.
A Diversity Index for Model Space Selection in the Estimation of Benchmark and Infectious Doses via Model Averaging
Authors: Kim Steven B. , Kodell Ralph L. , Moon Hojin
Published: August 2013

In chemical and microbial risk assessments, risk assessors fit dose‐response models to high‐dose data and extrapolate downward to risk levels in the range of 1–10%. Although multiple dose‐response models may be able to fit the data adequately in the experimental range, the estimated effective dose (ED) corresponding to an extremely small risk can be substantially different from model to model. In this respect, model averaging (MA) provides more robustness than a single dose‐response model in the point and interval estimation of an ED. In MA, accounting for both data uncertainty and model uncertainty is crucial, but addressing model uncertainty is not achieved simply by increasing the number of models in a model space. A plausible set of models for MA can be characterized by goodness of fit and diversity surrounding the truth. We propose a diversity index (DI) to balance between these two characteristics in model space selection. It addresses a collective property of a model space rather than individual performance of each model. Tuning parameters in the DI control the size of the model space for MA.
Dynamin Rings: Not Just for Fission
Authors: Sever Sanja , Chang Joann , Gu Changkyu
Published: August 2013

The GTPase dynamin has captivated researchers for over two decades, even managing to establish its own research field. Dynamin's allure is partly due to its unusual biochemical properties as well as its essential role in multiple cellular processes, which include the regulation of clathrin‐mediated endocytosis and of actin cytoskeleton. On the basis of the classic model, dynamin oligomerization into higher order oligomers such as rings and helices directly executes the final fission reaction in endocytosis, which results in the generation of clathrin‐coated vesicles. Dynamin's role in the regulation of actin cytoskeleton is mostly explained by its interactions with a number of actin‐binding and ‐regulating proteins; however, the molecular mechanism of dynamin's action continues to elude us. Recent insights into the mechanism and role of dynamin oligomerization in the regulation of actin polymerization point to a novel role for dynamin oligomerization in the cell.
Canine transmissible venereal tumour: a review
Authors: Ganguly B. , Das U. , Das A. K.
Published: August 2013

Canine transmissible venereal tumour (CTVT) is a contagious venereal tumour of dogs, commonly observed in dogs that are in close contact with one another, or in stray and wild dogs that exhibit unrestrained sexual activity. CTVT represents a unique, naturally transmissible, contagious tumour, where the mutated tumour cell itself is the causative agent and perpetuates as a parasitic allograft in the host. Clinical history, signalment and cytological features are often obvious for establishing a diagnosis though biopsy and histological examination may be needed in atypical cases. Most cases are curable with three intravenous injections of vincristine sulphate at weekly intervals. The role of stray and wild dogs makes the disease difficult to control and necessitates sustained animal birth control in stray dogs along with prompt therapy of the affected dogs. This review captures the manifold developments in different areas embracing this fascinating tumour, including its biology, diagnosis and therapeutic alternatives.
A Fully Implicit, Lower Bound, Multi-Axial Solution Strategy for Direct Ratchet Boundary Evaluation: Theoretical Development
Authors: Jappy Alan , Mackenzie Donald , Chen Haofeng
Published: August 2013

Ensuring sufficient safety against ratchet is a fundamental requirement in pressure vessel design. Determining the ratchet boundary can prove difficult and computationally expensive when using a full elastic–plastic finite element analysis and a number of direct methods have been proposed that overcome the difficulties associated with ratchet boundary evaluation. Here, a new approach based on fully implicit finite element methods, similar to conventional elastic–plastic methods, is presented. The method utilizes a two-stage procedure. The first stage determines the cyclic stress state, which can include a varying residual stress component, by repeatedly converging on the solution for the different loads by superposition of elastic stress solutions using a modified elastic–plastic solution. The second stage calculates the constant loads which can be added to the steady cycle while ensuring the equivalent stresses remain below a modified yield strength. During stage 2 the modified yield strength is updated throughout the analysis, thus satisfying Melan's lower bound ratchet theorem. This is achieved utilizing the same elastic plastic model as the first stage, and a modified radial return method. The proposed methods are shown to provide better agreement with upper bound ratchet methods than other lower bound ratchet methods, however limitations in these are identified and discussed.
A New Concept for a Wheel-Embedded Assembly for Electric Vehicles
Authors: Pedro João , Weinholtz João , Sousa Luís , Reis Luís
Published: August 2013

The present research focuses on the development of a multifunctional wheel-embedded assembly for electrically powered vehicles. It must perform the core functions of a road-going vehicle—propulsion, braking, steering, and suspension—with all functional mechanical elements within the wheel envelope. The originality of the research lies in the integration of all aforementioned functions at once. The proposed concept exhibits two off-center electric motors, sliding pillar-type suspension with direct-drive steering at the top, and braking is achieved by means of a conventional disk and caliper assembly, but servohydraulically actuated with magnetically actuated parking brake. It makes extensive use of geometric nesting and function sharing—the large transmission gear doubles as hub and wheel carrier, the suspension pillar is also used for steering torque transmission. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of the proposed concept are addressed, as well as practical applications.
An evaluation of organic light emitting diode monitors for medical applications: Great timing, but luminance artifacts
Authors: Elze Tobias , Taylor Christopher , Bex Peter J.
Published: August 2013

Purpose:

In contrast to the dominant medical liquid crystal display (LCD) technology, organic light‐emitting diode (OLED) monitors control the display luminance via separate light‐emitting diodes for each pixel and are therefore supposed to overcome many previously documented temporal artifacts of medical LCDs. We assessed the temporal and luminance characteristics of the only currently available OLED monitor designed for use in the medical treatment field (SONY PVM2551MD) and checked the authors’ main findings with another SONY OLED device (PVM2541).

Methods:

Temporal properties of the photometric output were measured with an optical transient recorder. Luminances of the three color primaries and white for all 256 digital driving levels (DDLs) were measured with a spectroradiometer. Between the luminances of neighboring DDLs, just noticeable differences were calculated according to a perceptual model developed for medical displays. Luminances of full screen (FS) stimuli were compared to luminances of smaller stimuli with identical DDLs.

Results:

All measured luminance transition times were below 300 μs. Luminances were independent of the luminance in the preceding frame. However, for the single color primaries, up to 50.5% of the luminances of neighboring DDLs were not perceptually distinguishable. If two color primaries were active simultaneously, between 36.7% and 55.1% of neighboring luminances for increasing DDLs of the third primary were even decreasing. Moreover, luminance saturation effects were observed when too many pixels were active simultaneously. This effect was strongest for white; a small white patch was close to 400 cd/m2, but in FS the luminance of white saturated at 162 cd/m2. Due to different saturation levels, the luminance of FS green and FS yellow could exceed the luminance of FS white for identical DDLs.

Conclusions:

The OLED temporal characteristics are excellent and superior to those of LCDs. However, the OLEDs revealed severe perceptually relevant artifacts with implications for applicability to medical imaging.
Unmitigated numerical solution to the diffraction term in the parabolic nonlinear ultrasound wave equation
Authors: Hasani Mojtaba H. , Gharibzadeh Shahriar , Farjami Yaghoub , Tavakkoli Jahan
Published: August 2013

Various numerical algorithms have been developed to solve the Khokhlov–Kuznetsov–Zabolotskaya (KZK) parabolic nonlinear wave equation. In this work, a generalized time-domain numerical algorithm is proposed to solve the diffraction term of the KZK equation. This algorithm solves the transverse Laplacian operator of the KZK equation in three-dimensional (3D) Cartesian coordinates using a finite-difference method based on the five-point implicit backward finite difference and the five-point Crank–Nicolson finite difference discretization techniques. This leads to a more uniform discretization of the Laplacian operator which in turn results in fewer calculation gridding nodes without compromising accuracy in the diffraction term. In addition, a new empirical algorithm based on the LU decomposition technique is proposed to solve the system of linear equations obtained from this discretization. The proposed empirical algorithm improves the calculation speed and memory usage, while the order of computational complexity remains linear in calculation of the diffraction term in the KZK equation. For evaluating the accuracy of the proposed algorithm, two previously published algorithms are used as comparison references: the conventional 2D Texas code and its generalization for 3D geometries. The results show that the accuracy/efficiency performance of the proposed algorithm is comparable with the established time-domain methods.
Hearing frequency thresholds of a harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) temporarily affected by a continuous 1.5 kHz tone
Authors: Kastelein Ronald A. , Gransier Robin , Hoek Lean , Rambags Martijn
Published: August 2013

Harbor porpoises may suffer hearing loss when exposed to intense sounds. After exposure to a 1.5 kHz continuous tone without harmonics at a mean received sound pressure level of 154 dB re 1 μPa for 60 min (cumulative sound exposure level: 190 dB re 1 μPa2 s), the temporary hearing threshold shift (TTS) of a porpoise was quantified at 1.5, 2, 4, 6.5, 8, 16, 32, 63, and 125 kHz with a psychoacoustic technique. Significant TTS only occurred at 1.5 and 2 kHz. Mean TTS (1–4 min after sound exposure stopped) was ∼14 dB at 1.5 kHz and ∼11 dB at 2 kHz, and recovery occurred within 96 min. Control hearing tests before and after a 60 min low ambient noise exposure showed that normal variation in TTS was limited (standard deviation: ±1.0 dB). Ecological effects of TTS depend not only on the magnitude of the TTS, its duration (depending on the exposure duration), and the recovery time after the exposure stopped, but also on the hearing frequency affected by the fatiguing noise. The hearing thresholds of harbor porpoises for the frequencies of their echolocation signals are not affected by intense low frequency sounds, therefore these sounds are unlikely to affect foraging efficiency.
Contribution of envelope periodicity to release from speech-on-speech masking
Authors: Christiansen Claus , MacDonald Ewen N. , Dau Torsten
Published: August 2013

Masking release (MR) is the improvement in speech intelligibility for a fluctuating interferer compared to stationary noise. Reduction in MR due to vocoder processing is usually linked to distortions in the temporal fine structure of the stimuli and a corresponding reduction in the fundamental frequency (F0) cues. However, it is unclear if envelope periodicity related to F0, produced by the interaction between unresolved harmonics, contributes to MR. In the present study, MR was determined from speech reception thresholds measured in the presence of stationary speech-shaped noise and a competing talker. Two types of processing were applied to the stimuli: (1) An amplitude- and frequency-modulated vocoder attenuated the envelope periodicity and (2) high-pass (HP) filtering (cutoff = 500 Hz) reduced the influence of F0-related information from low-order resolved harmonics. When applied individually, MR was unaffected by HP filtering, but slightly reduced when envelope periodicity was attenuated. When both were applied, MR was strongly reduced. Thus, the results indicate that F0-related information is crucial for MR, but that it is less important whether the F0-related information is conveyed by low-order resolved harmonics or by envelope periodicity as a result of unresolved harmonics. Further, envelope periodicity contributes substantially to MR.
Optimal irregular microphone distributions with enhanced beamforming performance in immersive environments
Authors: Yu Jingjing , Donohue Kevin D.
Published: August 2013

Complex relationships between array gain patterns and microphone distributions limit the application of optimization algorithms on irregular arrays. This paper proposes a Genetic Algorithm (GA) for microphone array optimization in immersive (near-field) environments. Geometric descriptors for irregular arrays are proposed for use as objective functions to reduce optimization time by circumventing the need for direct array gain computations. In addition, probabilistic descriptions of acoustic scenes are introduced for incorporating prior knowledge of the source distribution. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed optimization, signal-to-noise ratios are compared for GA-optimized arrays, regular arrays, and arrays optimized through direct exhaustive simulations. Results show enhancements for GA-optimized arrays over arbitrary randomly generated arrays and regular arrays, especially at low microphone densities where placement becomes critical. Design parameters for the GA are identified for improving optimization robustness for different applications. The rapid convergence and acceptable processing times observed during the experiments establish the feasibility of this approach for optimizing array geometries in immersive environments where rapid deployment is required with limited knowledge of the acoustic scene, such as in mobile platforms and audio surveillance applications.
A mechanism study of sound wave-trapping barriers
Authors: Yang Cheng , Pan Jie , Cheng Li
Published: August 2013

The performance of a sound barrier is usually degraded if a large reflecting surface is placed on the source side. A wave-trapping barrier (WTB), with its inner surface covered by wedge-shaped structures, has been proposed to confine waves within the area between the barrier and the reflecting surface, and thus improve the performance. In this paper, the deterioration in performance of a conventional sound barrier due to the reflecting surface is first explained in terms of the resonance effect of the trapped modes. At each resonance frequency, a strong and mode-controlled sound field is generated by the noise source both within and in the vicinity outside the region bounded by the sound barrier and the reflecting surface. It is found that the peak sound pressures in the barrier's shadow zone, which correspond to the minimum values in the barrier's insertion loss, are largely determined by the resonance frequencies and by the shapes and losses of the trapped modes. These peak pressures usually result in high sound intensity component impinging normal to the barrier surface near the top. The WTB can alter the sound wave diffraction at the top of the barrier if the wavelengths of the sound wave are comparable or smaller than the dimensions of the wedge. In this case, the modified barrier profile is capable of re-organizing the pressure distribution within the bounded domain and altering the acoustic properties near the top of the sound barrier.
A multimodal detection model of dolphins to estimate abundance validated by field experiments
Authors: Akamatsu Tomonari , Ura Tamaki , Sugimatsu Harumi , Bahl Rajendar , Behera Sandeep , Panda Sudarsan , Khan Muntaz , Kar S. K. , Kar C. S. , Kimura Satoko , Sasaki-Yamamoto Yukiko
Published: August 2013

Abundance estimation of marine mammals requires matching of detection of an animal or a group of animal by two independent means. A multimodal detection model using visual and acoustic cues (surfacing and phonation) that enables abundance estimation of dolphins is proposed. The method does not require a specific time window to match the cues of both means for applying mark-recapture method. The proposed model was evaluated using data obtained in field observations of Ganges River dolphins and Irrawaddy dolphins, as examples of dispersed and condensed distributions of animals, respectively. The acoustic detection probability was approximately 80%, 20% higher than that of visual detection for both species, regardless of the distribution of the animals in present study sites. The abundance estimates of Ganges River dolphins and Irrawaddy dolphins fairly agreed with the numbers reported in previous monitoring studies. The single animal detection probability was smaller than that of larger cluster size, as predicted by the model and confirmed by field data. However, dense groups of Irrawaddy dolphins showed difference in cluster sizes observed by visual and acoustic methods. Lower detection probability of single clusters of this species seemed to be caused by the clumped distribution of this species.
Automatic detection and classification of odontocete whistles
Authors: Gillespie Douglas , Caillat Marjolaine , Gordon Jonathan , White Paul
Published: August 2013

Methods for the fully automatic detection and species classification of odontocete whistles are described. The detector applies a number of noise cancellation techniques to a spectrogram of sound data and then searches for connected regions of data which rise above a pre-determined threshold. When tested on a dataset of recordings which had been carefully annotated by a human operator, the detector was able to detect (recall) 79.6% of human identified sounds that had a signal-to-noise ratio above 10 dB, with 88% of the detections being valid. A significant problem with automatic detectors is that they tend to partially detect whistles or break whistles into several parts. A classifier has been developed specifically to work with fragmented whistle detections. By accumulating statistics over many whistle fragments, correct classification rates of over 94% have been achieved for four species. The success rate is, however, heavily dependent on the number of species included in the classifier mix, with the mean correct classification rate dropping to 58.5% when 12 species were included.
Passive acoustic monitoring of Cook Inlet beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas)
Authors: Lammers Marc O. , Castellote Manuel , Small Robert J. , Atkinson Shannon , Jenniges Justin , Rosinski Anne , Oswald Julie N. , Garner Chris
Published: August 2013

The endangered beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) population in Cook Inlet, AK faces threats from a variety of anthropogenic factors, including coastal development, oil and gas exploration, vessel traffic, and military activities. To address existing gaps in understanding about the occurrence of belugas in Cook Inlet, a project was developed to use passive acoustic monitoring to document the year-round distribution of belugas, as well as killer whales (Orcinus orca), which prey on belugas. Beginning in June 2009, ten moorings were deployed throughout the Inlet and refurbished every two to eight months. Despite challenging conditions consisting of strong tidal currents carrying debris and seasonal ice cover, 83% of mooring deployments were successfully recovered. Noise from water flow, vessel traffic, and/or industrial activities was present at several sites, potentially masking some signals. However, belugas were successfully detected at multiple locations. Detections were relatively common in the upper inlet and less common or absent at middle and lower inlet locations. Killer whale signals were also recorded. Some seasonal variability in the occurrence of both belugas and killer whales was evident.
Predictions from harbor porpoise habitat association models are confirmed by long-term passive acoustic monitoring
Authors: Brookes Kate L. , Bailey Helen , Thompson Paul M.
Published: August 2013

Survey based habitat association models provide good spatial coverage, but only a snapshot in time of a species' occurrence in a particular area. A habitat association model for harbor porpoises was created using data from five visual surveys of the Moray Firth, Scotland. Its predictions were tested over broader temporal scales using data from static passive acoustic loggers, deployed in two consecutive years. Predictions of relative abundance (individuals per kilometer of survey transect) were obtained for each 4 km × 4 km grid cell, and compared with the median number of hours per day that porpoises were acoustically detected in those cells. There was a significant, but weak, correlation between predicted relative abundance and acoustic estimates of occurrence, but this was stronger when predictions with high standard errors were omitted. When grid cells were grouped into those with low, medium, and high predicted relative abundance, there were similarly significant differences in acoustic detections, indicating that porpoises were acoustically detected more often in cells where the habitat model predicted higher numbers. The integration of acoustic and visual data added value to the interpretation of results from each, allowing validation of patterns in relative abundance recorded during snapshot visual surveys over longer time scales.
Automated segmentation of linear time-frequency representations of marine-mammal sounds
Authors: Dadouchi Florian , Gervaise Cedric , Ioana Cornel , Huillery Julien , Mars Jérôme I.
Published: August 2013

Many marine mammals produce highly nonlinear frequency modulations. Determining the time-frequency support of these sounds offers various applications, which include recognition, localization, and density estimation. This study introduces a low parameterized automated spectrogram segmentation method that is based on a theoretical probabilistic framework. In the first step, the background noise in the spectrogram is fitted with a Chi-squared distribution and thresholded using a Neyman–Pearson approach. In the second step, the number of false detections in time-frequency regions is modeled as a binomial distribution, and then through a Neyman–Pearson strategy, the time-frequency bins are gathered into regions of interest. The proposed method is validated on real data of large sequences of whistles from common dolphins, collected in the Bay of Biscay (France). The proposed method is also compared with two alternative approaches: the first is smoothing and thresholding of the spectrogram; the second is thresholding of the spectrogram followed by the use of morphological operators to gather the time-frequency bins and to remove false positives. This method is shown to increase the probability of detection for the same probability of false alarms.
Site specific probability of passive acoustic detection of humpback whale calls from single fixed hydrophones
Authors: Helble Tyler A. , D'Spain Gerald L. , Hildebrand John A. , Campbell Gregory S. , Campbell Richard L. , Heaney Kevin D.
Published: August 2013

Passive acoustic monitoring of marine mammal calls is an increasingly important method for assessing population numbers, distribution, and behavior. A common mistake in the analysis of marine mammal acoustic data is formulating conclusions about these animals without first understanding how environmental properties such as bathymetry, sediment properties, water column sound speed, and ocean acoustic noise influence the detection and character of vocalizations in the acoustic data. The approach in this paper is to use Monte Carlo simulations with a full wave field acoustic propagation model to characterize the site specific probability of detection of six types of humpback whale calls at three passive acoustic monitoring locations off the California coast. Results show that the probability of detection can vary by factors greater than ten when comparing detections across locations, or comparing detections at the same location over time, due to environmental effects. Effects of uncertainties in the inputs to the propagation model are also quantified, and the model accuracy is assessed by comparing calling statistics amassed from 24 690 humpback units recorded in the month of October 2008. Under certain conditions, the probability of detection can be estimated with uncertainties sufficiently small to allow for accurate density estimates.
Calculating the spectrum of anisotropic waveguides using a spectral method
Authors: Zharnikov T. V. , Syresin D. E. , Hsu C.-J.
Published: August 2013

The computation of the spectrum of a waveguide with arbitrary anisotropy with spatial dependence is a challenging task due to the coupling between axial and azimuthal harmonics. This problem is tackled in cylindrical coordinates by extending a spectral method for the general case. By considering the matrix representation of the operator on the right-hand side of the governing equations, the latter are exactly reformulated as an infinite set of integro-differential equations. Essential part of this study is taking into account the coupling of different harmonics, which becomes evident from the kernels of these equations. Provided a waveguide is translationally invariant in the axial direction, the coupling of axial harmonics vanishes. A practical approximation and truncation procedure yields a generalized eigenvalue problem, which can be solved numerically to obtain the entire spectrum of the operator and to construct the dispersion curves for the eigenmodes. The spectral method is tested against the results from the measurements of dispersion curves for the monopole, dipole, and quadrupole normal modes of scaled boreholes in tilted transverse isotropy anisotropic rock sample. Besides, the comparison of dispersion curves calculated by the spectral method and those computed from the synthetic data is discussed.
Vertical coherence and forward scattering from the sea surface and the relation to the directional wave spectrum
Authors: Dahl Peter H. , Plant William J. , Dall'Osto David R.
Published: August 2013

Results of an experiment to measure vertical spatial coherence from acoustic paths interacting once with the sea surface but at perpendicular azimuth angles are presented. The measurements were part of the Shallow Water 2006 program that took place off the coast of New Jersey in August 2006. An acoustic source, frequency range 6–20 kHz, was deployed at depth 40 m, and signals were recorded on a 1.4 m long vertical line array centered at depth 25 m and positioned at range 200 m. The vertical array consisted of four omni-directional hydrophones and vertical coherences were computed between pairs of these hydrophones. Measurements were made over four source–receiver bearing angles separated by 90°, during which sea surface conditions remained stable and characterized by a root-mean-square wave height of 0.17 m and a mixture of swell and wind waves. Vertical coherences show a statistically significant difference depending on source–receiver bearing when the acoustic frequency is less than about 12 kHz, with results tending to fade at higher frequencies. This paper presents field observations and comparisons of these observations with two modeling approaches, one based on bistatic forward scattering and the other on a rough surface parabolic wave equation utilizing synthetic sea surfaces.
Wave field synthesis of a virtual source located in proximity to a loudspeaker array
Authors: Lee Jung-Min , Choi Jung-Woo , Kim Yang-Hann
Published: August 2013

For the derivation of 2.5-dimensional operator in wave field synthesis, a virtual source is assumed to be positioned far from a loudspeaker array. However, such far-field approximation inevitably results in a reproduction error when the virtual source is placed adjacent to an array. In this paper, a method is proposed to generate a virtual source close to and behind a continuous line array of loudspeakers. A driving function is derived by reducing a surface integral (Rayleigh integral) to a line integral based on the near-field assumption. The solution is then combined with the far-field formula of wave field synthesis by introducing a weighting function that can adjust the near- and far-field contribution of each driving function. This enables production of a virtual source anywhere in relation to the array. Simulations show the proposed method can reduce the reproduction error to below −18 dB, regardless of the virtual source position.
Fast acoustic streaming in standing waves: Generation of an additional outer streaming cell
Authors: Reyt Ida , Daru Virginie , Bailliet Hélène , Moreau Solène , Valière Jean-Christophe , Baltean-Carlès Diana , Weisman Catherine
Published: August 2013

Rayleigh streaming in a cylindrical acoustic standing waveguide is studied both experimentally and numerically for nonlinear Reynolds numbers from 1 to 30 [ReNL=(U0/c0)2(R/δν)2, with U0 the acoustic velocity amplitude at the velocity antinode, c0 the speed of sound, R the tube radius, and δν the acoustic boundary layer thickness]. Streaming velocity is measured by means of laser Doppler velocimetry in a cylindrical resonator filled with air at atmospheric pressure at high intensity sound levels. The compressible Navier-Stokes equations are solved numerically with high resolution finite difference schemes. The resonator is excited by shaking it along the axis at imposed frequency. Results of measurements and of numerical calculation are compared with results given in the literature and with each other. As expected, the axial streaming velocity measured and calculated agrees reasonably well with the slow streaming theory for small ReNL but deviates significantly from such predictions for fast streaming (ReNL>1). Both experimental and numerical results show that when ReNL is increased, the center of the outer streaming cells are pushed toward the acoustic velocity nodes until counter-rotating additional vortices are generated near the acoustic velocity antinodes.
Hearing thresholds of two harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) for playbacks of multiple pile driving strike sounds
Authors: Kastelein Ronald A. , Hoek Lean , Gransier Robin , Jennings Nancy
Published: August 2013

Pile driving, which creates high amplitude sounds with potentially negative impacts on the marine environment, is used to attach wind turbines to the sea bed. To quantify the distance at which pile driving sounds can be detected by harbor seals, unmasked hearing thresholds were obtained for series of five pile driving sounds recorded at 100 and 800 m from a pile driving location. The played back spectra resembled the spectra of sounds recorded under certain conditions 10–50 km from an offshore pile driving site. The lower the received level, the later within the series of sounds the harbor seals responded. The mean 50% detection threshold sound exposure levels for any sound in the series were: 40 (seal 01, 100 m), 39 (seal 01, 800 m), 43 (seal 02, 100 m), and 43 (seal 02, 800 m) dB re 1 μPa2s (add 9 dB for sound pressure level, dB re 1 μPa). The mean 50% detection thresholds based on detection of only the first sound of the series were ca. 5 dB higher. Detection at sea depends on the actual propagation conditions and on the degree of masking of the sounds by ambient noise, but the present study suggests that pile driving sounds are audible to harbor seals up to hundreds of kilometers from pile driving sites.
Designing sound and visual components for enhancement of urban soundscapes
Authors: Hong Joo Young , Jeon Jin Yong
Published: August 2013

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of audio-visual components on environmental quality to improve soundscape. Natural sounds with road traffic noise and visual components in urban streets were evaluated through laboratory experiments. Waterfall and stream water sounds, as well as bird sounds, were selected to enhance the soundscape. Sixteen photomontages of a streetscape were constructed in combination with two types of water features and three types of vegetation which were chosen as positive visual components. The experiments consisted of audio-only, visual-only, and audio-visual conditions. The preferences and environmental qualities of the stimuli were evaluated by a numerical scale and 12 pairs of adjectives, respectively. The results showed that bird sounds were the most preferred among the natural sounds, while the sound of falling water was found to degrade the soundscape quality when the road traffic noise level was high. The visual effects of vegetation on aesthetic preference were significant, but those of water features relatively small. It was revealed that the perceptual dimensions of the environment were different from the noise levels. Particularly, the acoustic comfort factor related to soundscape quality considerably influenced preference for the overall environment at a higher level of road traffic noise.
Small bowel metastasis of uterine cervical adenocarcinoma
Authors: Sugimoto Takuya , Mike Makio , Abe Masaru , Kano Nobuyasu
Published: August 2013

A few cases of small bowel metastasis from uterine cervical cancer have been previously reported. All reported cases were connected to squamous cell carcinoma, while none were associated with cervical adenocarcinoma. This report is of a rare case of cervical adenocarcinoma that haematogenously metastasised to the small intestine, and which caused a perforation and small bowel obstruction metachronously. An 84-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital with vaginal bleeding. She was diagnosed with FIGO stage III cervical adenocarcinoma by imaging and pathohistological examinations. Three months after receiving radiation therapy to control the bleeding, surgery was performed twice; the first operation for small bowel perforation and the second for small bowel obstruction. She was then diagnosed with haematogenous metastasis of cervical adenocarcinoma to the ileum according to the operative, histopathological and immunopathological findings.
Pneumosinus dilatans multiplex associated with hormonal imbalance
Authors: Ushas P , Ravi V , Painatt Jaeson Mohanan , Nair Preeti P
Published: August 2013

Pneumosinus dilatans describes an abnormal dilation of one or more paranasal sinuses without radiological evidence of localised bone destruction, hyperostosis or mucous membrane thickening. Dilation of mastoid air cells also occurs rarely along with involvement of paranasal sinuses. This rare combination of unknown aetiology was reported in two cases in the literature and termed ‘Pneumosinus Dilatans Multiplex’ (PSDM). It is usually asymptomatic, and is detected incidentally on plain radiography, CT or MRI. If left untreated, it can further erode the bone leading to complications such as facial asymmetry, neurological disorders and pathological fractures. The aetiology of the condition remains obscure. Various hypotheses proposed are the presence of gas-forming microorganisms, spontaneous drainage of a mucocele, the presence of a one-way valve, dysregulation of hormonal levels leading to a disturbance of osteoblastic and osteoclastic activity. This paper describes a case of PSDM possibly secondary to hormonal disturbance.
Corticosteroid responsive prolonged thrombocytopenia in a case of dengue fever
Authors: Verma Shailendra Prasad , Hamide Abdoul , Wadhwa Jyoti , Sivamani Kalaimani
Published: August 2013

Thrombocytopenia and bleeding manifestations are consistent features of dengue fever. Usually thrombocytopenia resolves and platelet count normalises by day 10 of fever. Persistent thrombocytopenia is not a feature of dengue fever. Proposed mechanisms behind thrombocytopenia are many. Direct platelet destruction by dengue virus, immune-mediated platelet destruction and even megakaryocytic immune injury have been proposed as underlying mechanisms. We are reporting a case of an old man who presented in dengue season in 2012 with fever and bleeding and was diagnosed as a case of dengue fever. He developed persistent thrombocytopenia requiring treatment on the lines of immune thrombocytopenia and responded to steroids. Other causes of thrombocytopenia were ruled out.