Considering weather in simulation traffic

The impact of weather on traffic and its behavior is not well studied in literature primarily due to lack of integrated traffic and weather data. Weather can significant effect the traffic and traffic management measures developed for fine weather might not be optimal for adverse weather. Simulation is an efficient tool for analyzing traffic management measures even before their actual implementation. Therefore, in order to develop and test traffic management measures for adverse weather condition we need to first analyze the effect of weather on fundamental traffic parameters and thereafter, calibrate the simulation model parameters in order to simulate the traffic under adverse weather conditions. In this paper we first, analyses the impact of weather on motorway traffic flow and drivers’ behaviour with traffic data from Swiss motorways and weather data from MeteoSuisse. Thereafter, we develop methodology to calibrate a microscopic simulation model with the aim to utilize the simulation model for simulating traffic under adverse weather conditions. Here, study is performed using AIMSUN, a microscopic traffic simulator.

Evolution of traffic management measures on road traffic noise

Road traffic noise affects the quality of life in the areas adjoining the road. The effect of traffic noise on people is wide ranging and may include sleep disturbance and negative impact on work efficiency. To address the problem of traffic noise, it is necessary to estimate the noise level. For this, a number of noise estimation models have been developed which can estimate noise at the receptor points, based on simple configuration of buildings. However, for a real world situation we have multiple buildings forming built-up area. In such a situation, it is almost impossible to consider multiple diffractions and reflections in sound propagation from the source to the receptor point. An engineering solution to such a real world problem is needed to estimate noise levels in built-up area.

Occupational therapy students’ contribution to occasions of service during practice placements in health settings

Currently in the Australian higher education sector, the productivity benefits of occupational therapy clinical education placements are a contested issue. This article will report results of a study that developed a methodology for documenting time use during placements and investigated the productivity changes associated with occupational therapy clinical education placements in Queensland, Australia. Supervisors’ and students’ time use during placements and how this changed for supervisors compared to pre- and post-placement is also presented. Methods: Using a cohort survey design, participants were students from two Queensland universities, and their supervisors employed by Queensland Health. Time use was recorded in 30 minute blocks according to particular categories. Results: There was a significant increase in supervisors’ time spent in patient care activities (F = 94.0112,12.37 df, P < 0.001) between pre- and during placement (P < 0.001) and decrease between during and post-placement (P < 0.001). Supervisors’ time spent in all non-patient care activities was also significant (F = 4.5802,16 df, P = 0.027) increasing between pre- and during placement (P = 0.028). There was a significant decrease in supervisors’ time spent in placement activities (F = 5.1332,19.18 df, P = 0.016) from during to post-placement. Students spent more time than supervisors in patient care activities while on placement. Discussion: A novel method for reporting productivity and time-use changes during clinical education programs for occupational therapy has been applied. Supervisors spent considerable time in assessing and managing students and their clinical education role should be seen as core business in standard occupational therapy practice. This paper will contribute to future assessments of the economic.

Benefits and issues of urban network travel time prediction

This paper presents the benefits and issues related to travel time prediction on urban network. Travel time information quantifies congestion and is perhaps the most important network performance measure. Travel time prediction has been an active area of research for the last five decades. The activities related to ITS have increased the attention of researchers for better and accurate real-time prediction of travel time. Majority of the literature on travel time prediction is applicable to freeways where, under non-incident conditions, traffic flow is not affected by external factors such as traffic control signals and opposing traffic flows. On urban environment the problem is more complicated due to conflicting areas (intersections), mid-link sources and sinks etc. and needs to be addressed.

Implications of lipid biology for the pathogenesis of schizophrenia

Objective: Preclinical and clinical data suggest that lipid biology is integral to brain development and neurodegeneration. Both aspects are proposed as being important in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. The purpose of this paper is to examine the implications of lipid biology, in particular the role of essential fatty acids (EFA), for schizophrenia. Methods: Medline databases were searched from 1966 to 2001 followed by the crosschecking of references. Results: Most studies investigating lipids in schizophrenia described reduced EFA, altered glycerophospholipids and an increased activity of a calcium-independent phospholipase A2 in blood cells and in post-mortem brain tissue. Additionally, in vivo brain phosphorus-31 Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (31P-MRS) demonstrated lower phosphomonoesters (implying reduced membrane precursors) in first- and multi-episode patients. In contrast, phosphodiesters were elevated mainly in first-episode patients (implying increased membrane breakdown products), whereas inconclusive results were found in chronic patients. EFA supplementation trials in chronic patient populations with residual symptoms have demonstrated conflicting results. More consistent results were observed in the early and symptomatic stages of illness, especially if EFA with a high proportion of eicosapentaenoic acid was used. Conclusion: Peripheral blood cell, brain necropsy and 31P-MRS analysis reveal a disturbed lipid biology, suggesting generalized membrane alterations in schizophrenia. 31P-MRS data suggest increased membrane turnover at illness onset and persisting membrane abnormalities in established schizophrenia. Cellular processes regulating membrane lipid metabolism are potential new targets for antipsychotic drugs and might explain the mechanism of action of treatments such as eicosapentaenoic acid.

Effect of magnesium depletion and potassium and chlorothiazide on intracellular pH in the rat, studied by 31P NMR

1. Both dietary magnesium depletion and potassium depletion (confirmed by tissue analysis) were induced in rats which were then compared with rats treated with chlorothiazide (250 mg/kg diet) and rats on a control synthetic diet. 2. Brain and muscle intracellular pH was measured by using a surface coil and [31P]-NMR to measure the chemical shift of inorganic phosphate. pH was also measured in isolated perfused hearts from control and magnesium-deficient rats. Intracellular magnesium status was assessed by measuring the chemical shift of β-ATP in brain. 3. There was no evidence for magnesium deficiency in the chlorothiazide-treated rats on tissue analysis or on chemical shift of β-ATP in brain. Both magnesium and potassium deficiency, but not chlorothiazide treatment, were associated with an extracellular alkalosis. 4. Magnesium deficiency led to an intracellular alkalosis in brain, muscle and heart. Chlorothiazide treatment led to an alkalosis in brain. Potassium deficiency was associated with a normal intracellular pH in brain and muscle. 5. Magnesium depletion and chlorothiazide treatment produce intracellular alkalosis by unknown mechanism(s).

Aromatic l-amino acid decarboxylase : histochemical localization in rat kidney and lack of effect of dietary potassium or sodium loading on enzyme distribution

Utilizing a mono-specific antiserum produced in rabbits to hog kidney aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC), the enzyme was localized in rat kidney by immunoperoxidase staining. AADC was located predominantly in the proximal convoluted tubules; there was also weak staining in the distal convoluted tubules and collecting ducts. An increase in dietary potassium or sodium intake produced no change in density or distribution of AADC staining in kidney. An assay of AADC enzyme activity showed no difference in cortex or medulla with chronic potassium loading. A change in distribution or activity of renal AADC does not explain the postulated dopaminergic modulation of renal function that occurs with potassium or sodium loading.

Inhibition of guinea-pig renal [Na + K]-ATPase by normotensive human plasma : effects of a high sodium diet

The effect of plasma taken from normotensive humans, while on a low and high sodium diet, on [Na + K]-ATPase and 3H-ouabain binding was measured in tubules from guinea-pig kidneys. Plasma from the high sodium, compared to the low sodium, diet period: (a) inhibited [Na + K]-ATPase activity; (b) decreased 3H-ouabain affinity for binding sites; (c) increased the number of available 3H-ouabain binding sites; (d) decreased [Na + K]-ATPase turnover (activity/3H-ouabain binding sites). The inhibition of [Na + K]-ATPase suggests an increase in a (possible) natriuretic factor. The decreased affinity of 3H-ouabain binding suggests an endogenous ouabainoid, which may be the natriuretic factor.

A view from the edge of the forest : recent progress in understanding the relationships of the insect orders

Research over the last two decades has significantly increased our understanding of the evolutionary position of the insects among other arthropods, and the relationships among the insect Orders. Many of these insights have been established through increasingly sophisticated analyses of DNA sequence data from a limited number of genes. Recent results have established the relationships of the Holometabola, but relationships among the hemimetabolous orders have been more difficult to elucidate. A strong consensus on the relationships among the Palaeoptera (Ephemeroptera and Odonata) and their relationship to the Neoptera has not emerged with all three possible resolutions supported by different data sets. While polyneopteran relationships generally have resisted significant resolution, it is now clear that termites, Isoptera, are nested within the cockroaches, Blattodea. The newly discovered order Mantophasmatodea is difficult to place with the balance of studies favouring Grylloblattodea as sister-group. While some studies have found the paraneopteran orders (Hemiptera, Thysanoptera, Phthiraptera and Psocoptera) monophyletic, evidence suggests that parasitic lice (Phthiraptera) have evolved from groups within the book and bark lice (Psocoptera), and may represent parallel evolutions of parasitism within two major louse groups. Within Holometabola, it is now clear that Hymenoptera are the sister to the other orders, that, in turn are divided into two clades, the Neuropteroidea (Coleoptera, Neuroptera and relatives) and the Mecopterida (Trichoptera, Lepidoptera, Diptera and their relatives). The enigmatic order Strepsiptera, the twisted wing insects, have now been placed firmly near Coleoptera, rejecting their close relationship to Diptera that was proposed some 15years ago primarily based on ribosomal DNA data. Phylogenomic-scale analyses are just beginning to be focused on the relationships of the insect orders, and this is where we expect to see resolution of palaeopteran and polyneopteran relationships. Future research will benefit from greater coordination between intra and inter-ordinal analyses. This will maximise the opportunities for appropriate outgroup choice at the intraordinal level and provide the background knowledge for the interordinal analyses to span the maximum phylogenetic scope within groups.

Phylogeography of Echinocladius martini Cranston (Diptera: Chironomidae) in closed forest streams of eastern Australia

The eastern Australian rainforests have experienced several cycles of range contraction and expansion since the late Miocene that are closely correlated with global glaciation events. Together with ongoing aridification of the continent, this has resulted in current distributions of native closed forest that are highly fragmented along the east coast. Several closed forest endemic taxa exhibit patterns of population genetic structure that are congruent with historical isolation of populations in discrete refugia and reflect evolutionary histories dramatically affected by vicariance. Currently, limited data are available regarding the impact of these past climatic fluctuations on freshwater invertebrate taxa. The non-biting midge species Echinocladius martini Cranston is distributed along the east coast and inhabits predominantly montane streams in closed forest habitat. Phylogeographic structure in E. martini was resolved here at a continental scale by incorporating data from a previous pilot study and expanding the sampling design to encompass populations in the Wet Tropics of north-eastern Queensland, south-east Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. Patterns of phylogeographic structure revealed several deeply divergent mitochondrial lineages from central and south-eastern Australia that were previously unrecognised and were geographically endemic to closed forest refugia. Estimated divergence times were congruent with late Miocene onset of rainforest contractions across the east coast of Australia. This suggested that dispersal and gene flow among E. martini populations isolated in refugia has been highly restricted historically. Moreover, these data imply, in contrast to existing preconceptions about freshwater invertebrates, that this taxon may be acutely susceptible to habitat fragmentation.

A capability framework visualisation for multiple heterogeneous UAVs : from a mission commander's perspective

There is an increased interested in Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV) operations and research into advanced methods for commanding and controlling multiple heterogeneous UAVs. Research into areas of supervisory control has rapidly increased. Past research has investigated various approaches of autonomous control and operator limitation to improve mission commanders' Situation Awareness (SA) and cognitive workload. The aim of this paper is to address this challenge through a visualisation framework of UAV information constructed from Information Abstraction (IA). This paper presents the concept and process of IA, and the visualisation framework (constructed using IA), the concept associated with the Level Of Detail (LOD) indexing method, the visualisation of an example of the framework. Experiments will test the hypothesis that, the operator will be able to achieve increased SA and reduced cognitive load with the proposed framework.

Fusing loop detector and probe vehicle data to estimate travel time statistics on signalized urban networks

This article presents a methodology that integrates cumulative plots with probe vehicle data for estimation of travel time statistics (average, quartile) on urban networks. The integration reduces relative deviation among the cumulative plots so that the classical analytical procedure of defining the area between the plots as the total travel time can be applied. For quartile estimation, a slicing technique is proposed. The methodology is validated with real data from Lucerne, Switzerland and it is concluded that the travel time estimates from the proposed methodology are statistically equivalent to the observed values.