Retrieval of leaf area index in different vegetation types using high resolution satellite data

With the successful launch of the IKONOS satellite, very high geometric resolution imagery is within reach of civilian users. In the 1-m spatial resolution images acquired by the IKONOS satellite, details of buildings, individual trees, and vegetation structural variations are detectable. The visibility of such details opens up many new applications, which require the use of geometrical information contained in the images. This paper presents an application in which spectral and textural information is used for mapping the leaf area index (LAI) of different vegetation types. This study includes the estimation of LAI by different spectral vegetation indices (SVIs) combined with image textural information and geostatistical parameters derived from high resolution satellite data. It is shown that the relationships between spectral vegetation indices and biophysical parameters should be developed separately for each vegetation type, and that the combination of the texture indices and vegetation indices results in an improved fit of the regression equation for most vegetation types when compared with one derived from SVIs alone. High within-field spatial variability was found in LAI, suggesting that high resolution mapping of LAI may be relevant to the introduction of precision farming techniques in the agricultural management strategies of the investigated area.     

Multirobot motion coordination in space and time

This paper describes a solution to the multirobot motion planning problem based on a decoupled analysis in the space domain and in the time domain. It investigates the practical use of the notion of motion plan quality and of the motion plan robustness measures for computing safe motions. The use of anytime algorithms allows one to evaluate the opportunity of looking for alternative solution paths by generating small variations of robot motions affecting both its geometrical path and its scheduled velocity. By using the concept of plan robustness, several alternative paths are generated and evaluated through various performance indices and impact factors, using heuristic rules. These indices allow one to know how much a variation affects a given plan. Finally, some recent experiments are outlined.     

An Attempt at the Classification of Energy Decaying Schemes for Structural and Multibody Dynamics

This paper analyzes the formulation of energy preserving/decaying schemes for dynamics problems. We argue that any energy preserving/decaying scheme can always be seen as composed of an underlying temporal discretization, that is then slightly modified in order to prove a discrete energy bound within a time step. While the details of the modified scheme depend in a critical way on the governing equations, the underlying discretization can in principle be applied to a variety of models. We review some of the temporal underlying schemes recently proposed in the literature, presenting them with a common notation. We show their similarities and highlight their differences.     

Scaling Laws of Vortex Reconnections

The vortex reconnection rate f plays an important role in the dynamics of a tangle of quantised vortices in superfluid turbulence. The question which we address is how f depends on the vortex line density L. In the case of a homogeneous isotropic tangle of vortices we show that, besides the known regime which scales as f ～ L^5/2, another regime exists which scales as f ～ L². In the case of a polarised vortex confguration, we argue that the scaling law changes and show numerical evidence for it. Finally we construct an idealised model of turbulence decay based on vortex reconnections and discuss its implications. PACS numbers: 67.40.Vs, 67.57.Fg.     

Flow,Thermal and Microstructural Analysis during Cast Rolling of Steel in In‐line Strip Production Process

A mathematical model was developed to describe the in‐line hot rolling deformation and recrystallization behaviour of austenite after the solidification on a thin slab casting plant. The most significant features of the cast rolling process were taken into consideration: through‐thickness thermal gradients, inhomogeneous stress and strain, temperature discontinuity between the strip and the rolls. A HSLA (High Strength Low Alloy) steel has been chosen to perform the experiments of cast rolling. The characteristic constants ruling the microstructural evolution of that steel were computed and integrated into the computational module which manages the structural stress‐strain and strain rate computation. The developed approach is based on the Navier‐Stokes’ equations which were used to compute the speed field in the strip during the deformation. Then a model providing a proper constitutive equation was structured on the basis of the Yada's model based on evolution of the dislocation populations. The use of the Navier‐Stokes’ formalism allows to reach the resolution of the structural problem from the data measured easily during the industrial practice (i.e. speed of the rolled product at the entry and at the exit of a stand, the temperature of the rolled material). The validation of this computational approach was obtained by a comparison between the prior austenite grain size of the strip in different positions of the hot rolling process, as well as by a comparison between the computed deformation power and the measured one provided by the engines moving the rolls.     

Multipurpose modular experimental station for the DiProI beamline of Fermi@Elettra free electron laser

We present a compact modular apparatus with a flexible design that will be operated at the DiProI beamline of the Fermi@Elettra free electron laser (FEL) for performing static and time-resolved coherent diffraction imaging experiments, taking advantage of the full coherence and variable polarization of the short seeded FEL pulses. The apparatus has been assembled and the potential of the experimental setup is demonstrated by commissioning tests with coherent synchrotron radiation. This multipurpose experimental station will be open to general users after installation at the Fermi@Elettra free electron laser in 2011.     

Sodium and ultrafiltration profiling in hemodialysis: A long-forgotten issue revisited

Sodium and ultrafiltration profiling are method of dialysis in which dialysate sodium concentration and ultrafiltration rate are altered during the course of the dialysis session. Sodium and ultrafiltration profiling have been used, commonly simultaneously, to improve hemodynamic stability during hemodialysis. Sodium profiling is particularly effective in decreasing the incidence of intradialytic hypotension, while ultrafiltration profiling is suggested to decrease subclinical repeated end organ ischemia during dialysis. However, complications such as increased interdialytic weight gain and thirst due to sodium excess have prevented widespread use of sodium profiling. Evidence suggest that different sodium profiling techniques may lead to different clinical results, and preferring sodium balance neutral sodium profiling may mitigate adverse effects related to sodium overload. However, evidence is lacking on the long-term clinical outcomes of different sodium profiling methods. Optimal method of sodium profiling as well as the utility of sodium/ultrafiltration profiling in routine practice await further clinical investigation.     

Oxidation,ignition, and combustion of Al·I2 composite powders

Materials combining high energy density of metals with the biocidal activity of halogens are of interest for applications aiming to inactivate harmful aerosolized microorganisms by combined thermal and chemical effects. This effort develops nanocomposite Al-halogen materials to replace pure Al as a fuel additive in energetic formulations. Cryogenic milling of elemental aluminum and iodine is used to prepare powder-like composite materials for laboratory tests. In such materials, iodine is stabilized in aluminum matrix and is released when the materials are heated and ignited. Al·I₂ composite powders with the iodine concentration from 10 to 30 wt.% were prepared. Iodine release by and oxidation of such materials were investigated using thermo-gravimetric analysis. Ignition temperatures of the prepared powders were determined at the heating rates of 1000–22,000 K/s using an electrically heated filament. Composite powders ignite at lower temperatures compared to pure Al powders. Combustion characteristics of the prepared materials were investigated using a constant volume explosion test for aerosolized powders and laser ignition test for individual particles. In both combustion experiments pure Al served as a reference. Higher combustion rate and greater total pressure were observed for the aerosolized clouds of composite powders with 15 and 20 wt.% of iodine. For individual particles, the burn times were slightly longer and flame temperatures were slightly lower compared to those of pure aluminum. Both overall iodine concentration and its stability in the composite powders affected their ignition and combustion characteristics.     

Analyzing the relationship between car generation and severity of motor-vehicle crashes in Denmark

While the number of fatalities on Danish roads has decreased in the last 40 years, research has not investigated the contribution of legislation changes, enforcement measures, technological enhancements, infrastructural improvements and human factors to this reduction. In the context of a Danish car market with remarkably high registration tax that causes potential buyers to hold longer onto old cars, the relationship between technological enhancements of vehicles and severity of crashes requires particular attention.     

Lactate as a Metabolite and a Regulator in the Central Nervous System

More than two hundred years after its discovery, lactate still remains an intriguing molecule. Considered for a long time as a waste product of metabolism and the culprit behind muscular fatigue, it was then recognized as an important fuel for many cells. In particular, in the nervous system, it has been proposed that lactate, released by astrocytes in response to neuronal activation, is taken up by neurons, oxidized to pyruvate and used for synthesizing acetyl-CoA to be used for the tricarboxylic acid cycle. More recently, in addition to this metabolic role, the discovery of a specific receptor prompted a reconsideration of its role, and lactate is now seen as a sort of hormone, even involved in processes as complex as memory formation and neuroprotection. As a matter of fact, exercise offers many benefits for our organisms, and seems to delay brain aging and neurodegeneration. Now, exercise induces the production and release of lactate into the blood which can reach the liver, the heart, and also the brain. Can lactate be a beneficial molecule produced during exercise, and offer neuroprotection? In this review, we summarize what we have known on lactate, discussing the roles that have been attributed to this molecule over time.