The aim of this study is to present a method of assessing psychological tension that is optimized to every individual on the basis of the heart rate variability (HRV) data which, to eliminate the ...influence of the inter-individual variability, are measured in a long time period during daily life.
HRV and body accelerations were recorded from nine normal subjects for two months of normal daily life. Fourteen HRV indices were calculated with the HRV data at 512 seconds prior to the time of every mental tension level report. Data to be analyzed were limited to those with body accelerations of 30 mG (0.294 m/s²) and lower. Further, the differences from the reference values in the same time zone were calculated with both the mental tension score (Δtension) and HRV index values (ΔHRVI). The multiple linear regression model that estimates Δtension from the scores for principal components of ΔHRVI were then constructed for each individual. The data were divided into training data set and test data set in accordance with the twofold cross validation method. Multiple linear regression coefficients were determined using the training data set, and with the optimized model its generalization capability was checked using the test data set.
The subjects' mean Pearson correlation coefficient was 0.52 with the training data set and 0.40 with the test data set. The subjects' mean coefficient of determination was 0.28 with the training data set and 0.11 with the test data set.
We proposed a method of assessing psychological tension that is optimized to every individual based on HRV data measured over a long period of daily life.
Combined heart and liver transplantation (CHLT) is an uncommon but increasingly performed procedure with rising need as the population who has undergone Fontan palliation for single ventricle ...physiology grows. This article reviews the current literature to summarize what is known about patient selection and outcomes and highlights the questions that remain.
Congenital heart disease (CHD) with Fontan-associated liver disease (FALD) has surpassed noncongenital heart disease as the most common indication for CHLT. In patients with failing Fontan physiology, accurate assessment of recoverability of liver injury remains challenging and requires multifaceted evaluation to determine who would benefit from isolated versus dual organ transplantation. Patient survival has improved over time without significant differences between those with and without a diagnosis of CHD. En bloc surgical technique and best use of intraoperative mechanical circulatory support are topics of interest as the field continues to evolve.
A more refined understanding of appropriate patient selection and indication-specific outcomes will develop as we gain more experience with this complex operation and perform prospective, randomized studies.
We searched for quasars that are ~3 mag fainter than the SDSS quasars in the redshift range 3.7 z 4.7 in the COSMOS field to constrain the faint end of the quasar luminosity function (QLF). Using ...optical photometric data, we selected 31 quasar candidates with 22 < i' < 24 at z ~ 4. We obtained optical spectra for most of these candidates using FOCAS on the Subaru telescope and identified eight low-luminosity quasars at z ~ 4. In order to derive the QLF based on our spectroscopic follow-up campaign, we estimated the photometric completeness of our quasar survey through detailed Monte Carlo simulations. Our QLF at z ~ 4 has a much shallower faint-end slope ( Delta *b = --1.67+0.11 --0.17) than that obtained by other recent surveys in the same redshift. Our result is consistent with the scenario of downsizing evolution of active galactic nuclei inferred by recent optical and X-ray quasar surveys at lower redshifts.
Ice rises situated in the ice‐shelf belt around Antarctica have a spatially confined flow regime with local ice divides. Beneath the divides, ice stratigraphy often develops arches with amplitudes ...that record the divide's horizontal residence time and surface elevation changes. To investigate the evolution of Derwael Ice Rise, Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica, we combine radar and GPS data from three consecutive surveys, with a two‐dimensional, full Stokes, thermomechanically coupled, transient ice‐flow model. We find that the surface mass balance (SMB) is higher on the upwind and lower on the downwind slopes. Near the crest, the SMB is anomalously low and causes arches to form in the shallow stratigraphy, observable by radar. In deeper ice, arches are consequently imprinted by both SMB and ice rheology (Raymond effect). The data show how arch amplitudes decrease as along‐ridge slope increases, emphasizing that the lateral positioning of radar cross sections is important for the arch interpretation. Using the model with three rheologies (isotropic with n=3,4.5 and anisotropic with n=3), we show that Derwael Ice Rise is close to steady state but is best explained using ice anisotropy and moderate thinning. Our preferred, albeit not unique, scenario suggests that the ice divide has existed for at least 5000 years and lowered at approximately 0.03 m a−1 over the last 3400 years. Independent of the specific thinning scenario, our modeling suggests that Derwael Ice Rise has exhibited a local flow regime at least since the Mid‐Holocene.
Key Points
Derwael Ice Rise has maintained a local flow regime over thousands of years
Arches in ice stratigraphy are explicable with anisotropic rheology and thinning
Surface mass balance at the divide is important for modeling ice‐rise evolution
To confirm the ultimate impact-resistant capacity of Prestressed Concrete (PC) rock-sheds constructed over the highways in Japan, prototype impact tests are conducted by using two types of PC ...rock-shed frames: inverted L frame and fully rigid frame. The two types are of equal dimensions: span length=10.1
m, upper flange width=150
cm, column height=4.65
m. The impact tests are performed by iteratively and freely dropping a 3000/5000
kg steel weight onto the center of each frame covered with a 90
cm thick sand cushion. The results obtained from this study are as follows: (1) the fully rigid frame has more than 1.7 times the impact-resistant capacity of the inverted L frame with reference to input impact energy; (2) the fully rigid frame can effectively disperse the sectional forces over the whole structure; (3) the inverted L frame and fully rigid frame PC rock-sheds designed based on allowable stress design procedure have more than three and five times the margin against collapse, respectively.
Background and aims: Many lines of evidence suggest that T helper cell type 1 (Th1) immune responses predominate in Crohn’s disease (CD). Recently, a novel transcription factor T-box expressed in T ...cells (T-bet) has been reported as the master regulator of Th1 development. This study was designed to investigate the role of T-bet and proinflammatory cytokines in Th1 mediated immunopathology in CD. Materials: CD4+ lamina propria mononuclear cells (LPMCs) were isolated from surgically resected specimens (CD, n = 10; ulcerative colitis (UC), n = 10; normal controls (NL), n = 5). Methods: (1) T-bet expression of CD4+ LPMCs was examined by quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction and western blotting. (2) T-bet expression of LPMCs stimulated by interleukin (IL)-12/IL-18 was analysed by western blotting. (3) Interferon γ (IFN-γ) production and T-bet expression of CD4+ peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were examined with or without stimulation by anti-CD3/CD28 monoclonal antibodies and/or IL-12. Results: (1) T-bet expression of CD4+ LPMCs was increased in CD compared with UC and NL. (2) Synergistically, augmentation of IFN-γ production by IL-12/IL-18 was independent of T-bet expression in LPMCs. (3) T-bet was induced by T cell receptor stimulation in CD4+ PBMCs. T-bet induction correlated with IFN-γ production and with augmentation of surface expressed IL-12 receptor β2. Conclusions: T-bet induction by antigenic stimulation and subsequent stimulation by macrophage derived IL-12/IL-18 are important for establishing Th1 mediated immunopathology in CD.
We investigated the treatment of Fe‐Cr‐Al alloy for application in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). The electrical resistance of the Al2O3‐based surface oxide layer on the alloy decreased and was ...stable when La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3 (LSCF), La0.8Sr0.2MnO3 (LSM), LaNi0.6Fe0.4O3 (LNF), or Pr0.8Sr0.2MnO3 (PrSM) were first coated on the alloy and heat treated at 700 °C in air. The activation energy, calculated from the resistance, also suggested that the surface oxide became more conductive with treatment. The surface oxide layer after treatment had a microstructure of columns growing outward in the same direction, containing small amounts of elements such as Sr, Ni, Fe, La, Mn, and Pr. The microstructure consists of polycrystalline γ‐Al2O3 and small amounts of Al compounds with these elements. In the case of the LNF coating, the formation of NiAl2O4 was observed. The enhanced electrical conductivity may have resulted from the arrangement of the columnar structure, along with the electronic conduction path generated by the reaction of γ‐Al2O3 with these elements.
A survey of dinoflagellate resting cysts in surface sediment samples was carried out in Tokyo Bay, Japan, to document their horizontal distribution. At least 21 different cyst types were found. ...Dominant cyst types allowed the recognition of assemblages which form three different dinoflagellate cyst communities: the innermost part of the Bay, the central area and the mouth area. In all stations in Tokyo Bay, heterotrophic dinoflagellate cysts always occupied more than half of the cyst populations. Cysts of Polykrikos schwartzii/kofoidii are the most abundant heterotrophic species. These assemblages may reflect highly nutrient-enriched (hypertrophic) and turbulent water conditions. Among the cyst types found were probable ellipsoidal cysts of Alexandrium tamarense. This is the first record of toxic Alexandrium species cysts in Tokyo Bay sediments.
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