Two-Level State Estimation With Local Measurement Pre-Processing

This paper presents a two-level state estimation methodology intended to integrate in a simple and efficient manner the results provided by local estimators, handling measurements at the substation level, within the framework of existing EMS. This leads to a paradigm in which raw measurements are locally pre-processed by a linear estimator, in such a way that only a manageable subset of measurements is handled at the second level, significantly reducing the communication bandwidth. Simulation results show that, even when the two steps are centrally carried out, the proposed approach is computationally more efficient than the conventional one, particularly with highly redundant measurement sets.     

Interpersonal victimization patterns and psychopathology among Latino women: Results from the SALAS study.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 3(1) of Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy (see record 2010-26899-001). There were citation errors in the last sentence of the first column of text on page 9, and a reference was omitted from the reference list. The sentence should have read: “This result is consistent with other work that has found support for the anxious and dissociative reaction associated with trauma among Latinos and how it may relate to “ataque de nervios” (Hinton, Chong, Pollack, Barlow, & McNally, 2008; Lewis-Fernandez et al., 2002; Schechter et al., 2000; Tolin, Robinson, Gaztambide, Horowitz, & Blank, 2007).] [Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in of Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy (see record 2010-26899-001). In the original article there were citation errors in the last sentence of the first column of text on page 9, and a reference was omitted from the reference list. The sentence should have read: “This result is consistent with other work that has found support for the anxious and dissociative reaction associated with trauma among Latinos and how it may relate to “ataque de nervios” (Hinton, Chong, Pollack, Barlow, & McNally, 2008; Lewis-Fernandez et al., 2002; Schechter et al., 2000; Tolin, Robinson, Gaztambide, Horowitz, & Blank, 2007).] Research on the victimization of Latino women and the subsequent psychological impact has been limited by focusing on individual forms of victimization, primarily partner violence or sexual assault. Another deficiency includes mainly using convenience and/or geographically restricted samples, which impacts the generalizability of the results. To overcome these research limitations, the Sexual Assault Among Latinas (SALAS) study aimed to evaluate the broader scope of victimization among Latino women. The study surveyed a national sample of 2,000 Latino women using random digit dial methodology. Women were asked about various forms of victimization in childhood and adulthood including physical assaults, sexual assaults, stalking, threats, and witnessed violence, as well as psychological symptomatology including depression, anxiety, anger, and dissociation. This analysis found that victimized women were more likely to experience some form of polyvictimization and/or revictimization throughout their lives, with only 36% of victimized women experiencing one form of victimization in childhood or adulthood alone. Furthermore, multiple victimization experiences significantly increased the proportion of women who experienced psychological distress symptoms in the clinical range. For almost all evaluated symptoms, the multiple forms of victimization or varying victimization patterns significantly predicted clinical levels of psychological distress over any specific form or single incident of victimization. The results suggest that victimized Latino women experience multiple forms of victimization and that the evaluation of a broader spectrum of victimization better accounts for pathological symptomatology. Clinical implications for Latino women and future research directions are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Numerical Model for the Characterization of Retro-reflective Materials Behavior in an Urban Street Canyon

In this work, a preliminary numerical model of the behavior of retro-reflective materials used as envelope coatings on street canyon buildings fa?ades has been tested. Retro-reflective materials have a surface finish that allows to reflect the solar radiation back in the same direction of the incident radiation. In the last years this kind of materials has been studied as buildings envelope coating for their potentials in the reduction of the UHI effect. As a matter of fact, the angular dependence of their optical–radiative response would help to mitigate the phenomenon of radiative entrapment due to the urban fabric environment. For this reason, an urban canyon was selected as the most common urban architecture to perform the analysis. A virtual retroreflective material has been simulated considering its response as almost diffusive but in the same direction of the incident radiation. The assessment of the energy advantages of the adoption of a virtual retro-reflective material as envelope coating is investigated by means of a numerical model developed in MATLAB and based on the Gebhart factors theory. The final purpose of the numerical model is the evaluation of the surfaces solar loads by a comparison between perfectly diffusive materials and RR materials used as fa?ades coating.     

The oral glucose minimal model: estimation of insulin sensitivity from a meal test

Recently, a new approach has been proposed to estimate insulin sensitivity (S(I)) from an oral glucose tolerance test or a meal using an "integral equation". Here, we improve on the "integral equation" by resorting to a "differential equation" approach. The classic glucose kinetics minimal model was used with the addition of a parametric model for the rate of appearance into plasma of oral glucose (Ra). Three behavioral models of Ra were proposed: piecewise-linear (P), spline (S) and dynamic (D). All three models performed satisfactorily allowing a precise estimation of S(I) and a plausible reconstruction of Ra. Mean S(I) estimates were virtually identical: S(I)P = 6.81 +/- 0.87 (SE); S(I)S = 6.53 +/- 0.80; and S(I)D = 6.62 +/- 0.79. S(I) strongly correlated with the integral-equation index (I) S(I)I: r = 0.99, p < 0.01 for models D and S, and r 0.97, p < 0.01 for P. Also, SI compared well with insulin sensitivity estimated from intravenous glucose tolerance test in the same subjects (r = 0.75, p < 0.01; r = 0.71, p < 0.01; r = 0.73, p < 0.01, respectively, for P, S, and D models versus s(I)IVGTT). Finally, the novel approach allows estimation of SI from a shorter test (120 min): model P yielded S(I)R = 7.16 +/- 1.0 (R for reduced) which correlated very well with S(I)P and S(I)I (respectively, r = 0.94, p < 0.01; r = 0.95, p < 0.01) and still satisfactorily with S(I)IVGTT (r = 0.77, p < 0.01).     

Improved regularized phase-tracking technique for the processing of squared-grating deflectograms

We propose a robust procedure based on the regularized phase-tracking (RPT) technique to demodulate squared-grating deflectograms. The use of squared gratings, already reported, lets us multiplex the information of the deflections in two orthogonal directions in a single image, thus avoiding the necessity of rotating the gratings. The good noise-rejection characteristics of the RPT technique are improved by use of a quasi-Newton optimization algorithm and a quality-map-based algorithm for the crystal-growing process.     

Chemical Defenses Against Fish Predation in Three Brazilian Octocorals: 11β,12β-Epoxypukalide as a Feeding Deterrent in Phyllogorgia dilatata

The feeding-deterrence properties of crude extracts of three Brazilian octocoral species, Neospongodes atlantica Kükenthal (Alcyonacea, Nephtheidae), Plexaurella regia Castro (Gorgonacea, Plexauridae), and Phyllogorgia dilatata Esper (Gorgonacea, Gorgoniidae), were investigated. All the extracts were incorporated into food strips at the concentrations occurring in the living organisms. Crude extract and its ethyl acetate fraction obtained from P. dilatata collected in Armação dos Búzios (Rio de Janeiro State), when incorporated into artificial diets and tested in the habitat of origin, reduced consumption of food strips by fishes, relative to controls. Crude extracts from two octocoral species collected at the National Marine Park of Abrolhos (Bahia State), N. atlantica and P. regia, had no apparent feeding-deterrence properties; in fact, they seemed to stimulate feeding. Bioassay-guided fractionation of the bioactive P. dilatata crude extract revealed that the deterrent property was restricted to a medium polarity fraction. Field palatability experiments with two pure compounds isolated from this fraction revealed that the furanocembranolide 11,12-epoxypukalide is a potent feeding deterrent produced by P. dilatata against fish. Apparently, furanocembranolides are a particular class of compounds with feeding deterrent properties, protecting some octocorals from potential fish predator species in both tropical and temperate environments.     

Changes of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase and FoF1 ATP synthase subunits in rat cerebral cortex during aging

The contents of subunits I, II/III, and IV of cytochrome c oxidase and of subunits alpha, beta and gamma of FoF1 ATP synthase in inner mitochondrial membrane proteins purified from cerebral cortex of rat at 2, 6, 12, 18, 24, and 26 months of age were analyzed by western blot. Age-related changes in the content of subunits, either of mitochondrial or nuclear origin, were observed. All the cytochrome c oxidase (COX) subunits examined showed an age-related increase from 2-month-old rats up to 24 months with a decrease at the oldest age (26 months). The same pattern of age-dependent changes was observed for gamma ATP synthase, while the alpha and beta subunits increased progressively up to 26 months.