Improved Accuracy in Optical Motion Capture Measurements Leads to Increased Sensitivity to Kinematic Changes

Clinical optical motion capture allows us to obtain kinematic and kinetic outcome measures that aid clinicians in diagnosing and treating different pathologies affecting healthy gait. The long term aim for gait centres is for subject-specific analyses that can predict, prevent, or reverse the effects of pathologies through gait retraining. To track the body, anatomical segment coordinate systems are commonly created by applying markers to the surface of the skin over specific, bony anatomy that is manually palpated. The location and placement of these markers is subjective and precision errors of up to 25mm have been reported [1]. Additionally, the selection of which anatomical landmarks to use in segment models can result in large angular differences; for example angular differences in the trunk can range up to 53o for the same motion depending on marker placement [2]. These errors can result in erroneous kinematic outcomes that either diminish or increase the apparent effects of a treatment or pathology compared to healthy data. Our goal was to improve the accuracy and precision of optical motion capture outcome measures. This thesis describes two separate studies. In the first study we aimed to establish an approach that would allow us to independently quantify the error among trunk models. Using this approach we determined if there was a best model to accurately track trunk motion. In the second study we designed a device to improve precision for test, re-test protocols that would also reduce the set-up time for motion capture experiments. Our method to compare a kinematically derived centre of mass velocity to one that was derived kinetically was successful in quantifying error among trunk models. Our findings indicate that models that use lateral shoulder markers as well as limit the translational degrees of freedom of the trunk through shared pelvic markers result in the least amount of error for the tasks we studied. We also successfully reduced intra- and inter-operator anatomical marker placement errors using a marker alignment device. The improved accuracy and precision resulting from the methods established in this thesis may lead to increased sensitivity to changes in kinematics, and ultimately result in more consistent treatment outcomes.

A Framework to Capture and Share Knowledge Using Storytelling and Video Sharing in Global Product Development

In global engineering enterprises, information and knowledge sharing are critical factors that can determine a project’s success. This statement is widely acknowledged in published literature. However, according to some academics, tacit knowledge is derived from a person’s lifetime of experience, practice, perception and learning, which makes it hard to capture and document in order to be shared. This project investigates if social media tools can be used to improve and enable tacit knowledge sharing within a global engineering enterprise. This paper first provides a brief background of the subject area, followed by an explanation of the industrial investigation, from which the proposed knowledge framework to improve tacit knowledge sharing is presented. This project’s main focus is on the improvement of collaboration and knowledge sharing amongst product development engineers in order to improve the whole product development cycle.

Level-resolved quantum statistical theory of electron capture into many-electron compound resonances in highly charged ions

The strong mixing of many-electron basis states in excited atoms and ions with open f shells results in very large numbers of complex, chaotic eigenstates that cannot be computed to any degree of accuracy. Describing the processes which involve such states requires the use of a statistical theory. Electron capture into these “compound resonances” leads to electron-ion recombination rates that are orders of magnitude greater than those of direct, radiative recombination and cannot be described by standard theories of dielectronic recombination. Previous statistical theories considered this as a two-electron capture process which populates a pair of single-particle orbitals, followed by “spreading” of the two-electron states into chaotically mixed eigenstates. This method is similar to a configuration-average approach because it neglects potentially important effects of spectator electrons and conservation of total angular momentum. In this work we develop a statistical theory which considers electron capture into “doorway” states with definite angular momentum obtained by the configuration interaction method. We apply this approach to electron recombination with W²⁰⁺, considering 2×10⁶ doorway states. Despite strong effects from the spectator electrons, we find that the results of the earlier theories largely hold. Finally, we extract the fluorescence yield (the probability of photoemission and hence recombination) by comparison with experiment.

High resolution Thomson Parabola Spectrometer for full spectral capture of multi-species ion beams

We report on the experimental characterisation of laser-driven ion beams using a Thomson Parabola Spectrometer (TPS) equipped with trapezoidally shaped electric plates, proposed by Gwynne et al. [Rev. Sci. Instrum. 85, 033304 (2014)]. While a pair of extended (30 cm long) electric plates was able to produce a significant increase in the separation between neighbouring ion species at high energies, deploying a trapezoidal design circumvented the spectral clipping at the low energy end of the ion spectra. The shape of the electric plate was chosen carefully considering, for the given spectrometer configuration, the range of detectable ion energies and species. Analytical tracing of the ion parabolas matches closely with the experimental data, which suggests a minimal effect of fringe fields on the escaping ions close to the wedged edge of the electrode. The analytical formulae were derived considering the relativistic correction required for the high energy ions to be characterised using such spectrometer.

Mercury capture on a supported chlorocuprate(II) ionic liquid adsorbent studied using operando synchrotron X-ray absorption spectroscopy

Mercury scrubbing from gas streams using a supported 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chlorocuprate(II) ionic liquid ([C4mim]2[Cu2Cl6]) has been studied using operando EXAFS. Initial oxidative capture as [HgCl3]– anions was confirmed, this was then followed by the unanticipated generation of mercury(I) chloride through comproportionation with additional mercury from the gas stream. Combining these two mechanisms leads to net one electron oxidative extraction of mercury from the gas with increased potential capacity and efficiency for supported ionic liquid mercury scrubbers.

Boron uptake in normal melanocytes and melanoma cells and boron biodistribution study in mice bearing B16F10 melanoma for boron neutron capture therapy

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

Incidental Capture of Loggerhead Turtles (Caretta caretta) on Boa Vista (Cape Verde Islands)

[EN] The sea is one of the major natural resources of the Cape Verde Islands, a small archipelago located 500 kilometers off the coast of Senegal (West Africa). This country consists of ten main islands and several islets, and possesses an Exclusive Economical Zone (EEZ) of about 734 square kilometers and a coastal perimeter of nearly 2000 kilometers. The marine shelf, whose limit is the 200 m isobath, is particularly extensive on the island of Boa Vista (Figure 1). lt is likely that most of the loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) that breed in this archipelago are concentrated on this island (López-Jurado et al., 1999).

Relational and reproductive trajectories leading to adolescent pregnancy in Portugal: a national and regional characterization

INTRODUCTION: The current study aimed to describe the relational and reproductive trajectories leading to adolescent pregnancy in Portugal, and to explore whether there were differences in this process according to adolescents' place of residence. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data were collected between 2008 and 2013 in 42 public health services using a self-report questionnaire developed by the researchers. The sample consisted of a nationally representative group of pregnant adolescents (n = 459). RESULTS: Regardless of having had one (59.91%) or multiple sexual partners (40.09%), the majority of adolescents became pregnant in a romantic relationship, using contraception at the time of the conception and knowing the contraceptive failure which led to pregnancy (39.22%). In some regions other trajectories were highly prevalent, reflecting options such as planning the pregnancy (Alentejo Region/ Azores Islands), not using contraception (Centro Region/Madeira Islands) or using it incorrectly, without identifying the contraceptive failure (Madeira Islands). On average, romantic relationships were longer than 19 months and adolescents' partners were older than themselves (> 4 years) and no longer in school (75.16%); these results were particularly significant when the pregnancy was planned. DISCUSSION: The knowledge gained in this study shows that prevention efforts must be targeted according to the adolescents' needs in each region and should include high-risk male groups. CONCLUSION: Our results may enable more efficient health policies to prevent adolescent pregnancy in different country regions and support educators and health care providers on sexual education and family planning efforts.

Developing a Theory of Pervasive Information Capture, Processing, Visualization and Documentation

Developing a theoretical framework for pervasive information environments is an enormous goal. This paper aims to provide a small step towards such a goal. The following pages report on our initial investigations to devise a framework that will continue to support locative, experiential and evaluative data from ‘user feedback’ in an increasingly pervasive information environment. We loosely attempt to outline this framework by developing a methodology capable of moving from rapid-deployment of software and hardware technologies, towards a goal of realistic immersive experience of pervasive information. We propose various technical solutions and address a range of problems such as; information capture through a novel model of sensing, processing, visualization and cognition.

Stressful Life Events and their Trajectories among Midlife Women: Observations from the Seattle Midlife Women's Health Study

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-08

Age-Specific Fertility Dynamics: Sub-Saharan African Fertility in a Global Context

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-08

Thermodynamic efficiency of carbon capture and utilisation in anaerobic batch digestion process

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) in the oil and water industries is becoming common and a significant consumer of energy typically requiring 150–450 °C and or several hundred bar pressure [1] particularly in geological deposition. A biological carbon capture and conversion has been considered in conventional anaerobic digestion processes. The process has been utilised in biological mixed culture, where acetoclastic bacteria and hydrogenophilic methanogens play a major key role in the utilisation of carbon dioxide. However, the bio catalytic microorganisms, hydrogenophilic methanogens are reported to be unstable with acetoclastic bacteria. In this work the biochemical thermodynamic efficiency was investigated for the stabilisation of the microbial process in carbon capture and utilisation. The authors observed that a thermodynamic efficiency of biological carbon capture and utilisation (BCCU) had 32% of overall reduction in yield of carbon dioxide with complimentary increase of 30% in yield of methane, while the process was overall endothermic. Total consumption of energy (≈0.33 MJ l−1) was estimated for the carbonate solubility (0.1 mol l−1) in batched BCCU. This has a major influence on microbial composition in the bioreactor. This thermodynamic study is an essential tool to aid the understanding of the interactions between operating parameters and the mixed microbial culture.

Electric field strengths and ion trajectories in sharp-edge field ionization sources

On the presumption that a sharp edge may be represented by a hyperbola, a conformal transformation method is used to derive electric field equations for a sharp edge suspended above a flat plate. A further transformation is then introduced to give electric field components for a sharp edge suspended above a thin slit. Expressions are deduced for the field strength at the vertex of the edge in both arrangements. The calculated electric field components are used to compute ion trajectories in the simple edge/flat-plate case. The results are considered in relation to future study of ion focusing and unimolecular decomposition of ions in field ionization mass spectrometers.