A generalised background correction algorithm for a Halo Doppler lidar and its application to data from Finland

Current commercially available Doppler lidars provide an economical and robust solution for measuring vertical and horizontal wind velocities, together with the ability to provide co- and cross-polarised backscatter profiles. The high temporal resolution of these instruments allows turbulent properties to be obtained from studying the variation in radial velocities. However, the instrument specifications mean that certain characteristics, especially the background noise behaviour, become a limiting factor for the instrument sensitivity in regions where the aerosol load is low. Turbulent calculations require an accurate estimate of the contribution from velocity uncertainty estimates, which are directly related to the signal-to-noise ratio. Any bias in the signal-to-noise ratio will propagate through as a bias in turbulent properties. In this paper we present a method to correct for artefacts in the background noise behaviour of commercially available Doppler lidars and reduce the signal-to-noise ratio threshold used to discriminate between noise, and cloud or aerosol signals. We show that, for Doppler lidars operating continuously at a number of locations in Finland, the data availability can be increased by as much as 50 % after performing this background correction and subsequent reduction in the threshold. The reduction in bias also greatly improves subsequent calculations of turbulent properties in weak signal regimes.

PCA Tomography: how to extract information from data cubes

Astronomy has evolved almost exclusively by the use of spectroscopic and imaging techniques, operated separately. With the development of modern technologies, it is possible to obtain data cubes in which one combines both techniques simultaneously, producing images with spectral resolution. To extract information from them can be quite complex, and hence the development of new methods of data analysis is desirable. We present a method of analysis of data cube (data from single field observations, containing two spatial and one spectral dimension) that uses Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to express the data in the form of reduced dimensionality, facilitating efficient information extraction from very large data sets. PCA transforms the system of correlated coordinates into a system of uncorrelated coordinates ordered by principal components of decreasing variance. The new coordinates are referred to as eigenvectors, and the projections of the data on to these coordinates produce images we will call tomograms. The association of the tomograms (images) to eigenvectors (spectra) is important for the interpretation of both. The eigenvectors are mutually orthogonal, and this information is fundamental for their handling and interpretation. When the data cube shows objects that present uncorrelated physical phenomena, the eigenvector`s orthogonality may be instrumental in separating and identifying them. By handling eigenvectors and tomograms, one can enhance features, extract noise, compress data, extract spectra, etc. We applied the method, for illustration purpose only, to the central region of the low ionization nuclear emission region (LINER) galaxy NGC 4736, and demonstrate that it has a type 1 active nucleus, not known before. Furthermore, we show that it is displaced from the centre of its stellar bulge.

Performance of GEANT4 in dosimetry applications: Calculation of X-ray spectra and kerma-to-dose equivalent conversion coefficients

In order to validate the Geant4 toolkit for dosimetry applications, simulations were performed to calculate conversion coefficients h(10, alpha) from air kerma free-in-air to personal dose equivalent Hp(10, a). The simulations consisted of two parts: the production of X-rays with radiation qualities of narrow and wide spectra, and the interaction of radiation with ICRU tissue-equivalent and ISO water slab phantoms. The half-value layers of the X-ray spectra obtained by simulation were compared with experimental results. Mean energy, spectral resolution, half-value layers and conversion coefficients were compared with ISO reference values. The good agreement between results from simulation and reference data shows that the Geant4 is suitable for dosimetry applications which involve photons with energies in the range of ten to a few hundreds of keV. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Direct Observation of Millisecond to Second Motions in Proteins by Dipolar CODEX NMR Spectroscopy

We present a site-resolved study of stow (ms to s) motions in a protein in the solid (microcrystalline) state performed with the use of a modified version of the centerband-only detection of exchange (CODEX) NMR experiment. CODEX was originally based on measuring changes in molecular orientation by means of the chemical shift anisotropy (CSA) tensor, and in our modification, angular reorientations of internuclear vectors are observed. The experiment was applied to the study of stow (15)N-(1)H motions of the SH3 domain of chicken a-spectrin. The protein was perdeuterated with partial back-exchange of protons at labile sites. This allowed indirect (proton) detection of (15)N nuclei and thus a significant enhancement of sensitivity. The diluted proton system also made negligible proton-driven spin diffusion between (15)N nuclei, which interferes with the molecular exchange (motion) and hampers the acquisition of dynamic parameters. The experiment has shown that approximately half of the peaks in the 2D (15)N-(1)H correlation spectrum exhibit exchange in a different extent. The correlation time of the slow motion for most peaks is 1 to 3 s. This is the first NMR study of the internal dynamics of proteins in the solid state on the millisecond to second time scale with site-specific spectral resolution that provides both time-scale and geometry information about molecular motions.

Combining Satellite And Gauge Precipitation Data With Co-Kriging Method For Jakarta Region

Jakarta is vulnerable to flooding mainly caused by prolonged and heavy rainfall and thus a robust hydrological modeling is called for. A good quality of spatial precipitation data is therefore desired so that a good hydrological model could be achieved. Two types of rainfall sources are available: satellite and gauge station observations. At-site rainfall is considered to be a reliable and accurate source of rainfall. However, the limited number of stations makes the spatial interpolation not very much appealing. On the other hand, the gridded rainfall nowadays has high spatial resolution and improved accuracy, but still, relatively less accurate than its counterpart. To achieve a better precipitation data set, the study proposes cokriging method, a blending algorithm, to yield the blended satellite-gauge gridded rainfall at approximately 10-km resolution. The Global Satellite Mapping of Precipitation (GSMaP, 0.1⁰×0.1⁰) and daily rainfall observations from gauge stations are used. The blended product is compared with satellite data by cross-validation method. The newly-yield blended product is then utilized to re-calibrate the hydrological model. Several scenarios are simulated by the hydrological models calibrated by gauge observations alone and blended product. The performance of two calibrated hydrological models is then assessed and compared based on simulated and observed runoff.

Análise dos remanescentes de mata atlântica do Estado do Rio Grande do Norte : uma perspectiva em alta resolução

The habitat loss and fragmentation are considered the main threats to the biodiversity. These threats operate at the landscape level, which drives the need to manage entire landscapes, not just its components. Although systematic monitoring of the Atlantic Forest biome has been ongoing since the late eighties, current data on forest fragmentation for the sub-region of Pernambuco are practically nonexistent. This study aimed to map out, with high spatial resolution, the remnants of Atlantic forest in Rio Grande do Norte, and conduct a landscape level analysis. The results show that the landscape is highly fragmented, where about 13.6% to 17% of biome remains. Most of the fragments is less than 10 ha, while a few fragments have area larger than 100 ha. Although the high degree of fragmentation, the average distance between fragments found was small (128 m), this estimate is lower than has been observed for the biome (1440m). There is evidence that abrupt changes in the quantification of landscape structure can occur when one observes the fragmentation at high spatial resolution. The results presented here can be used in management actions, in order to make the scenario more conducive to maintaining biodiversity.

Contribuições para a análise de sinais neuronais e biomédicos

Following the new tendency of interdisciplinarity of modern science, a new field called neuroengineering has come to light in the last decades. After 2000, scientific journals and conferences all around the world have been created on this theme. The present work comprises three different subareas related to neuroengineering and electrical engineering: neural stimulation; theoretical and computational neuroscience; and neuronal signal processing; as well as biomedical engineering. The research can be divided in three parts: (i) A new method of neuronal photostimulation was developed based on the use of caged compounds. Using the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA caged by a ruthenium complex it was possible to block neuronal population activity using a laser pulse. The obtained results were evaluated by Wavelet analysis and tested by non-parametric statistics. (ii) A mathematical method was created to identify neuronal assemblies. Neuronal assemblies were proposed as the basis of learning by Donald Hebb remain the most accepted theory for neuronal representation of external stimuli. Using the Marcenko-Pastur law of eigenvalue distribution it was possible to detect neuronal assemblies and to compute their activity with high temporal resolution. The application of the method in real electrophysiological data revealed that neurons from the neocortex and hippocampus can be part of the same assembly, and that neurons can participate in multiple assemblies. (iii) A new method of automatic classification of heart beats was developed, which does not rely on a data base for training and is not specialized in specific pathologies. The method is based on Wavelet decomposition and normality measures of random variables. Throughout, the results presented in the three fields of knowledge represent qualification in neural and biomedical engineering

Morfologia em alta resolução espacial de estrelas de tipo Mira e R Corenae Borealis

Mira and R Coronae Borealis (R CrB) variable stars are evolved objects surrounded by circumstellar envelopes (CSE) composed of the ejected stellar material. We present a detailed high-spatial resolution morfological study of the CSE of three stars: IRC+10216, the closest and more studied Carbon-Rich Mira; o Ceti, the prototype of the Mira class; and RY Sagitarii (RY Sgr), the brightest R CrB variable of the south hemisphere. JHKL near-infrared adaptive optics images of IRC+10216 with high dynamic range and Vband images with high angular resolution and high depth, collected with the VLT/NACO and VLT/FORS1 instruments, were analyzed. NACO images of o Ceti were also analyzed. Interferometric observations of RY Sgr collected with the VLTI/MIDI instrument allowed us to explore its CSE innermost regions (»20 40 mas). The CSE of IRC+10216 exhibit, in near-infrared, clumps with more complex relative displacements than proposed in previous studies. In V-band, the majority of the non-concentric shells, located in the outer CSE layers, seem to be composed of thinner elongated shells. In a global view, the morphological connection between the shells and the bipolar core of the nebulae, located in the outer layers, together with the clumps, located in the innermost regions, has a difficult interpretation. In the CSE of o Ceti, preliminar results would be indicating the presence of possible clumps. In the innermost regions (.110 UA) of the CSE of RY Sgr, two clouds were detected in different epochs, embedded in a variable gaussian envelope. Based on a rigorous verification, the first cloud was located at »100 R¤ (or »30 AU) from the centre, toward the east-north-east direction (modulo 180o) and the second one was almost at a perpendicular direction, having aproximately 2£ the distance of the first cloud. This study introduces new constraints to the mass-loss history of these kind of variables and to the morphology of their innermost CSE regions

Effect of Combined Digital Imaging Parameters on Endodontic File Measurements

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Development of an AMR-ACB Array for Gastrointestinal Motility Studies

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

The CMS experiment at the CERN LHC

The Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) detector is described. The detector operates at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. It was conceived to study proton-proton (and lead-lead) collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 14 TeV (5.5 TeV nucleon-nucleon) and at luminosities up to 10(34)cm(-2)s(-1) (10(27)cm(-2)s(-1)). At the core of the CMS detector sits a high-magnetic-field and large-bore superconducting solenoid surrounding an all-silicon pixel and strip tracker, a lead-tungstate scintillating-crystals electromagnetic calorimeter, and a brass-scintillator sampling hadron calorimeter. The iron yoke of the flux-return is instrumented with four stations of muon detectors covering most of the 4 pi solid angle. Forward sampling calorimeters extend the pseudo-rapidity coverage to high values (vertical bar eta vertical bar <= 5) assuring very good hermeticity. The overall dimensions of the CMS detector are a length of 21.6 m, a diameter of 14.6 m and a total weight of 12500 t.

Cromatografia gasosa ultrarrápida: uma visão geral sobre parâmetros, instrumentação e aplicações

Since the introduction of GC there has been an ongoing interest in reducing time of analysis resulting in new terms and definitions such as ultra fast gas chromatography (UF-GC). One of the most used definitions describes UF-GC as a technique that combines the employment of short narrow bore column with very fast temperature programming rates producing chromatographic peaks in the range of 50 ms and allowing separations times in 1-2 min or less. This paper summarizes the analytical approaches, the main parameters involved and the instrumentation towards UF-GC.

Inferência espacial para mapeamento de macrófitas submersas: estudo de caso

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Métodos para extração de informações a partir de imagens multiespectrais de escalas grandes

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Formação de imagens multiespectrais por meio de fusão de imagens adquiridas por múltiplas câmaras

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)