High-quality Measurements Research Articles

Development and use of a co-produced short mood survey to collect ground truth in digital footprints research

Introduction & BackgroundTo use digital footprint data for mental health and well-being research we often need to collect concurrent, high-quality measures of ground truth. Delivering frequent surveys to participants using an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) methodology is one way to collect such data. However, existing surveys tend to be long, not focused on momentary states or rely on rating images which are not platform agnostic. Here we present a five-item test-based survey designed with participants and validated for use in EMA studies to collect data about momentary changes in mood. We describe its methodological development and how it has been used to investigate music listening on Spotify as a digital footprint of mood. Objectives & ApproachThe survey is based on the circumplex model of affect. It was co-produced with a participant advisory group (N=5), who gave feedback on the length, content and delivery of the survey. It was then piloted in a group of N=98 participants to assess statistical validity, and congruence with the 20-item Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). Following this it was delivered in a wider sample (N=150) four times a day over a two-week period using an EMA app on participant’s phones. Relevance to Digital FootprintsEMA is an increasingly popular method for collecting ground truth to support the interpretation of digital footprint data. This newly developed and tested mood survey offers an opportunity to reduce participant burden for collecting mood data in EMA studies which will support the collection of high quality and high time-resolution ground truth for digital footprints research. ResultsTogether with participants we selected four emotions across the axes of arousal and valence, as well as rumination which participants considered important in their music listening behaviors. Factor analysis of pilot data showed that the questions represented two factors of positive and negative affect. The ratings on a 0-10 scale of the emotions ‘cheerful’ and ‘relaxed’ explained 44% of the variance in positive affect, and ratings of ‘worried’, ‘sad’ and ‘frustrated’ explained 40% of the variance in negative affect. Delivery of the questionnaire in a wider student sample (N=150) four times per day for two weeks allowed for the opportunity to assess typical response rates in a realistic EMA setting. On average participants completed 3 out of the 4 surveys a day. Conclusions & ImplicationsThe co-created, short mood survey for the collection of ground truth in digital footprint studies was validated across two independent samples, and shown to allow for good response rates in a two week study. Future testing on wider samples will provide opportunities to validate the survey and assess its effectiveness across demographic groups and different sample types.

The EMERGE framework to measure empowerment for health and development

RationaleWomen's empowerment is a UN Sustainable Development Goal and a focus of global health and development but survey measures and data on gender empowerment remain weak. Existing indicators are often disconnected from theory; stronger operationalization is needed. ObjectiveWe present the EMERGE Framework to Measure Empowerment, a framework to strengthen empowerment measures for global health and development. MethodWe initiated development of this framework in 2016 as part of EMERGE – an initiative designed to build the science of survey research and availability of high-quality survey measures and data on gender empowerment. The framework is guided by existing theories of empowerment, evidence, and expert input. We apply this framework to understand women's empowerment in family planning (FP) via review of state of the field measures. ResultsOur framework offers concrete measurable constructs to assess critical consciousness and choice, agency and backlash, and goal achievement as the empowerment process, recognizing its operation at multiple levels-from the individual to the collective. Internal attributes, social norms, and external contexts and resources create facilitators or barriers to the empowerment process. Review of best evidence FP measures assessing empowerment constructs, social norms, and key influencers (e.g., partners and providers) show a strong landscape of measures, including those with women, partners, and providers, but they are limited in assessing translation of choice to agency to achievement of women's self-determined fertility or contraceptive goals, instead relying on assumption of contraceptive use as the goal. We see no measures on collective empowerment toward women's reproductive choice and rights. ConclusionThe EMERGE Framework can guide development and analysis of survey measures on empowerment and is needed as the current state of the field shows limited coverage of empowerment constructs even in areas which have received more study, such as family planning.

The High-Redshift Gas-Phase Mass–Metallicity Relation in FIRE-2

The unprecedented infrared spectroscopic capabilities of JWST have provided high-quality interstellar medium metallicity measurements and enabled characterization of the gas-phase mass–metallicity relation (MZR) for galaxies at z ≳ 5 for the first time. We analyze the gas-phase MZR and its evolution in a high-redshift suite of FIRE-2 cosmological zoom-in simulations at z = 5–12 and for stellar masses M * ∼ 106–1010 M ⊙. These simulations implement a multichannel stellar feedback model and produce broadly realistic galaxy properties, including when evolved to z = 0. The simulations predict very weak redshift evolution of the MZR over the redshift range studied, with the normalization of the MZR increasing by less than 0.01 dex as redshift decreases from z = 12 to z = 5. The median MZR in the simulations is well approximated as a constant power-law relation across this redshift range given by log(Z/Z⊙)=0.37log(M*/M⊙)−4.3 . We find good agreement between our best-fit model and recent observations made by JWST at high redshift. The weak evolution of the MZR at z > 5 contrasts with the evolution at z ≲ 3, where increasing normalization of the MZR with decreasing redshift is observed and predicted by most models. The FIRE-2 simulations predict increasing scatter in the gas-phase MZR with decreasing stellar mass, in qualitative agreement with some observations.

Analyzing the opening and closing of windows in residential for predicting the energy consumption using optimized multi-scale convolution networks

PurposeThis proposal aims to forecast energy consumption in residential buildings based on the effect of opening and closing windows by the deep architecture approach. In this task, the developed model has three stages: (1) collection of data, (2) feature extraction and (3) prediction. Initially, the data for the closing and opening frequency of the window are taken from the manually collected datasets. After that, the weighted feature extraction is performed in the collected data. The attained weighted feature is fed to predict energy consumption. The prediction uses the efficient hybrid multi-scale convolution networks (EHMSCN), where two deep structured architectures like a deep temporal context network and one-dimensional deep convolutional neural network. Here, the parameter optimization takes place with the hybrid algorithm named jumping rate-based grasshopper lemur optimization (JR-GLO). The core aim of this energy consumption model is to predict the consumption of energy accurately based on the effect of opening and closing windows. Therefore, the offered energy consumption prediction approach is analyzed over various measures and attains an accurate performance rate than the conventional techniques.Design/methodology/approachAn EHMSCN-aided energy consumption prediction model is developed to forecast the amount of energy usage during the opening and closing of windows accurately. The emission of CO2 in indoor spaces is highly reduced.FindingsThe MASE measure of the proposed model was 52.55, 43.83, 42.01 and 36.81% higher than ANN, CNN, DTCN and 1DCNN.Originality/valueThe findings of the suggested model in residences were attained high-quality measures with high accuracy, precision and variance.

Vital signs Measurement: A Critical Review of Methods and Quality Improvement Strategies

Accurate measurement of vital signs is crucial for effective patient care and clinical decision-making. This critical review aims to evaluate current methods of vital signs measurement and identify strategies for quality improvement. Traditional methods, such as manual blood pressure cuffs and mercury thermometers, are compared with modern technological advancements, including digital thermometers, automated blood pressure monitors, and wearable devices. The review highlights challenges associated with measurement accuracy, including human factors, technological limitations, and environmental influences. Quality improvement strategies are discussed, emphasizing the importance of training and education, standardization of protocols, technological innovations, and continuous monitoring and feedback systems. Case studies of successful implementations demonstrate the benefits of adopting best practices and advanced technologies. The review concludes with a discussion on the implications for clinical practice and future research directions, underscoring the need for ongoing efforts to enhance the accuracy and reliability of vital signs measurement. Ensuring high-quality vital signs measurement is essential for improving patient outcomes and optimizing healthcare delivery.

Real-world validation of smartphone-based photoplethysmography for heart rate monitoring in atrial fibrillation

Abstract Introduction Photoplethysmography (PPG) based smartphone applications facilitate heart rate monitoring that may enable physicians to guide rate control in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). Despite extensive validation of PPG-derived heart rate, validation studies in the presence of AF are lacking, particularly in unsupervised free-living conditions. Purpose To evaluate the accuracy of PPG-derived heart rate using a smartphone application in patients with an established diagnosis of AF, both during sinus rhythm and AF, in a real-world setting. Methods Consecutive patients undergoing AF ablation were enrolled four weeks prior to the procedure. They were instructed to assess their heart rate twice daily during eight weeks with a one-minute finger-over-the-camera smartphone-PPG recording. The reference heart rate was obtained from two 30-seconds handheld single-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) recordings performed immediately before and after the PPG recording. Measurements were valid if the heart rate did not change by more than 10% between the first and second ECG and maintained sinus rhythm or AF consistently. Results In total, fifty patients (age 63 ±11 years, 68% male) performed 3407 high-quality PPG measurements accompanied with two high-quality ECGs measurements both in sinus rhythm or AF. After excluding 223 measurements due to inconsistent heart rate between the first and second ECG, 3184 measurements remained. The mean heart rate (71.5 ± 17.3 beats per minute (bpm)) was significantly higher during AF (94.7 ± 19.4 bpm) compared to sinus rhythm (65.7 ± 10.7 bpm) (p-value < 0.001). The heart rate assessment was accurate within a 10% margin in 93.8% of PPG measurements. Inaccurate heart rate assessments were more frequent in AF (161/637; 25.3%) compared to sinus rhythm (35/2547; 1.4%) (p-value < 0.001). PPG underestimated the heart rate in sinus rhythm with 0.4 bpm (95% CI: -0.3 to -0.5 bpm) and in AF with 6.6 bpm (95% CI: -5.8 to -7.4 bpm). The deviation of PPG-derived heart rate from the ECG-derived true heart rate was significantly greater during AF (root mean square error (RMSE) = 11.8 bpm) compared to sinus rhythm (RMSE = 2.2 bpm) (p-value < 0.001). The heart rate correlation plots and corresponding Bland-Altman plots demonstrate a skewed underestimation of the heart rate in AF with PPG, particularly for high heart rates. Conclusions Heart rate can accurately be derived from PPG recordings using a smartphone application in real-world conditions. However, PPG measurements may underestimate high heart rates in the presence of AF.Heart Rate in Sinus RhythmHeart Rate in Atrial Fibrillation

Recommended measurement instruments for genitourinary symptoms associated with menopause: the COMMA (Core outcomes in menopause) consortium.

The aim of the study is to identify appropriate definitions and patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for each of the eight core outcomes previously selected for genitourinary symptoms associated with menopause: pain with sex, vulvovaginal dryness, vulvovaginal discomfort or irritation, discomfort or pain when urinating, change in most bothersome symptom, distress, bother or interference of genitourinary symptoms, satisfaction with treatment, and side effects. We conducted a systematic review to identify possible definitions and PROMs, including their measurement properties. Identified definitions and relevant PROMs with acceptable measurement properties were entered into an international consensus process involving 28 participants from 10 countries to achieve final recommendations for each core outcome. A total of 87 publications reporting on 34 PROMs were identified from 21,207 publications screened. Of these 34 PROMs, 29 were not considered to sufficiently map onto the core outcomes, and 26 of these also had insufficient measurement properties. Therefore, only five PROMs corresponding to two core outcomes were considered for recommendation. We recommend the PROMIS Scale v2.0 - Sexual Function and Satisfaction: Vaginal Discomfort with Sexual Activity to measure the outcome of "pain with sexual activity" and the Day-to-Day Impact of Vaginal Aging (DIVA) Questionnaire to measure "distress, bother or interference" from genitourinary symptoms. Six definitions of "side effects" were identified and considered. We recommend that all trials report adverse events in study participants, which is a requirement of Good Clinical Practice. Suitable PROMs and definitions were identified to measure three of eight core outcomes. Because of the lack of existing measures, which align with the core outcomes and have evidence of high-quality measurement properties, future work will focus on developing or validating PROMs for the remaining five core outcomes.

Characterization of the airborne aerosol inlet and transport system used during the A-LIFE aircraft field experiment

Abstract. Atmospheric aerosol particles have a profound impact on Earth's climate by scattering and absorbing solar and terrestrial radiation and by impacting the properties of clouds. Research aircraft such as the Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. (DLR) Falcon are widely used to study aerosol particles in the troposphere and lower stratosphere. However, transporting a representative sample to the instrumentation inside the aircraft remains a challenge due to high airspeeds and changing ambient conditions. In particular, for high-quality coarse-mode aerosol measurements, knowledge about losses or enhancements in the aerosol sampling system is crucial. In this study, the sampling efficiency of the aerosol inlet aboard the Falcon research aircraft is characterized for the first time with state-of-the art in situ measurements including sizing instruments operated behind the Falcon aerosol inlet and mounted at the aircraft wing not affected by the aerosol inlet. Sampling efficiencies were derived for different true airspeed ranges by comparing the in-cabin and ”full”-size-range particle number size distributions during 174 flight sequences with a major contribution of mineral dust particles during the ”Absorbing aerosol layers in a changing climate: aging, lifetime and dynamics” project (A-LIFE). Additionally, experimentally derived Stokes numbers were used to calculate the cutoff diameter of the aerosol sampling system for different particle densities as a function of true airspeed. As expected, the results show that the velocity of the research aircraft has a major impact on the sampling of coarse-mode aerosol particles with in-cabin instruments. For true airspeeds up to about 190 m s−1, aerosol particles larger than about 1 µm are depleted in the sampling system of the Falcon during the A-LIFE project. In contrast, for true airspeeds higher than 190 m s−1, an enhancement of particles up to a diameter of 4 µm is observed. For even larger particles, the enhancement effect at the inlet is still present, but inertial and gravitational particle losses in the transport system get more and more pronounced, which leads to a decreasing overall sampling efficiency. In summary, aerosol particles are either depleted or enhanced in the Falcon aerosol inlet, whereas transport in sampling lines always leads to a loss of particles. Here, we have considered both effects and determined the cutoff diameter for the A-LIFE transport system (i.e., the sampling lines only), the cutoff diameter of the Falcon aerosol inlet (i.e., the effect of the inlet only), and the combined effect of the inlet and sampling lines.

High-performance efficient embedded systems for impedance spectroscopy: Challenges and potentials

Impedance spectroscopy is nowadays in use in a wide range of applications where there is a particular need for efficient embedded measurement systems. Several embedded impedance spectrometers based on Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) have been proposed but have several drawbacks, notably high power consumption, high cost, and complex development frameworks. Meanwhile, microcontrollers have become more powerful, enabling the efficient design of embedded impedance spectrometers. A major challenge, however, is to achieve high measurement performance in terms of accuracy while complying with the conditions for impedance spectroscopy. This paper addresses the potential of microcontroller-based system design for embedded impedance spectrometers and proposes a methodology to comprehensively design compact and efficient microcontroller-based impedance measurement systems. After a review of possible measurement methods, we focus on the optimization of multi-sine excitation signals,the acquisition of current and voltage signals, and the efficient signal analysis, which are key elements in realizing embedded impedance measurement systems that achieve high quality measurements while maintaining linearity and system stability conditions. We demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed design methodology in the two application scenarios of battery diagnosis and bioimpedance spectroscopy.

Parameter selection on a multi-exposure fusion method for measuring surfaces with varying reflectivity in microscope fringe projection profilometry

As industrial and scientific advancements continue, the demand for precise measurement of three-dimensional (3D) shapes and surfaces is steadily increasing. However, accurate 3D measurement of certain surfaces, especially those with varying reflectivities, has always been a challenging issue. Multi-exposure fusion methods have shown stable, high-quality measurement results, but the selection of parameters for these methods has largely been based on experience. To address this issue, this paper has improved the multi-exposure fusion method and introduced a guided approach for parameter selection, significantly enhancing the completeness of measurement results. Additionally, a comparative model is developed to experimentally validate the specific impacts of Gaussian window variance, optimal grayscale range, and attenuation factor variance on the integrity of 3D reconstruction. The experimental results demonstrate that under the guidance of the parameter adjustment method proposed in this paper, the multi-exposure fusion for measuring the 3D topography of high-dynamic surfaces improves the restoration coverage from the original 86% (bright areas) and 50% (dark areas) to over 99%. This provides a selection strategy for parameter adjustment guidance in precise measurements based on the multi-exposure method.

Air quality on UK diesel and hybrid trains

Concentrations of particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5), ultrafine (UFP), particle number (PNC), black carbon (BC), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOX) were measured in train carriages on diesel and bi-mode trains on inter-city and long-distance journeys in the United Kingdom (UK) using a high-quality mobile measurement system. Air quality on 15 different routes was measured using highly-time resolved data on a total of 119 journeys during three campaigns in winter 2020 and summer 2021; this included 13 different train classes. Each journey was sampled 4–10 times with approximatively 11,000 min of in-train concentrations in total. Mean-journey concentrations were 7.552 µg m−3 (PM10); 3.936 µg m−3 (PM2.5); 333–11,300 # cm−3 (PNC); 225–9,131 # cm−3 (UFP); 0.6–11 µg m−3 (BC); 28–201 µg m−3 (NO2); and 130–3,456 µg m−3 (NOX). The impact of different factors on in-train concentrations was evaluated. The presence of tunnels was the factor with the largest impact on the in-train particle concentrations with enhancements by a factor of 40 greater than baseline for BC, and a factor 6 to 7 for PM and PNC. The engine fuel mode was the factor with the largest impact on NO2 with enhancements of up to 14-times larger when the train run on diesel compared to the times running on electric on hybrid trains. Train classes with an age < 10 years observed the lowest in-train PM, BC and NOX concentrations reflecting improvements in aspects of rail technology in recent years. Air quality on UK diesel trains is higher than ambient concentrations but has lower PM2.5 and PNC than most other transport modes, including subway systems, diesel and petrol cars. This paper adds significantly to the evidence on exposure to poor air quality in transport micro-environments and provides the industry and regulatory bodies with reference-grade measurements on which to establish in-train air quality guidelines.

Investigation of gravity waves using measurements from a sodium temperature/wind lidar operated in multi-direction mode

Abstract. A narrow-band sodium lidar provides high temporal and vertical resolution observations of sodium density, atmospheric temperature, and wind that facilitate the investigation of atmospheric waves in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (80–105 km). In order to retrieve full vector winds, such a lidar is usually configured in a multi-direction observing mode, with laser beams pointing to the zenith and several off-zenith directions. Gravity wave events were observed by such a lidar system from 06:30 to 11:00 UT on 14 January 2002 at Maui, Hawaii (20.7° N, 156.3° W). A novel method based on cross-spectrum was proposed to derive the horizontal wave information from the phase shifts among measurements in different directions. At least two wave packets were identified using this method: one with a period of ∼ 1.6 h, a horizontal wavelength of ∼ 438 km, and propagating toward the southwest; and the other one with a ∼ 3.2 h period, a ∼ 934 km horizontal wavelength, and propagating toward the northwest. The background atmosphere states were also fully measured and all intrinsic wave properties of the wave packets were derived. Dispersion and polarization relations were used to diagnose wave propagation and dissipation. It was revealed that both wave packets propagate through multiple thin evanescent layers and are possibly partially reflected but still get a good portion of energy to penetrate higher altitudes. A sensitivity study demonstrates the capability of this method in detecting medium-scale and medium-frequency gravity waves. With continuous and high-quality measurements from similar lidar systems worldwide, this method can be utilized to detect and study the characteristics of gravity waves of specific spatiotemporal scales.

Nanostructure and dynamics of N-truncated copper amyloid-β peptides from advanced X-ray absorption fine structure.

An X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) electrochemical cell was used to collect high-quality XAS measurements of N-truncated Cu:amyloid-β (Cu:Aβ) samples under near-physiological conditions. N-truncated Cu:Aβ peptide complexes contribute to oxidative stress and neurotoxicity in Alzheimer's patients' brains. However, the redox properties of copper in different Aβ peptide sequences are inconsistent. Therefore, the geometry of binding sites for the copper binding in Aβ4-8/12/16 was determined using novel advanced extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) analysis. This enables these peptides to perform redox cycles in a manner that might produce toxicity in human brains. Fluorescence XAS measurements were corrected for systematic errors including defective-pixel data, monochromator glitches and dispersion of pixel spectra. Experimental uncertainties at each data point were measured explicitly from the point-wise variance of corrected pixel measurements. The copper-binding environments of Aβ4-8/12/16 were precisely determined by fitting XAS measurements with propagated experimental uncertainties, advanced analysis and hypothesis testing, providing a mechanism to pursue many similarly complex questions in bioscience. The low-temperature XAS measurements here determine that CuII is bound to the first amino acids in the high-affinity amino-terminal copper and nickel (ATCUN) binding motif with an oxygen in a tetragonal pyramid geometry in the Aβ4-8/12/16 peptides. Room-temperature XAS electrochemical-cell measurements observe metal reduction in the Aβ4-16 peptide. Robust investigations of XAS provide structural details of CuII binding with a very different bis-His motif and a water oxygen in a quasi-tetrahedral geometry. Oxidized XAS measurements of Aβ4-12/16 imply that both CuII and CuIII are accommodated in an ATCUN-like binding site. Hypotheses for these CuI, CuII and CuIII geometries were proven and disproven using the novel data and statistical analysis including F tests. Structural parameters were determined with an accuracy some tenfold better than literature claims of past work. A new protocol was also developed using EXAFS data analysis for monitoring radiation damage. This gives a template for advanced analysis of complex biosystems.

Complete characterization of ocean color radiometers

Verifying and validating waterleaving radiance measurements from space for an accurate derivation of Ocean/Water Colour biogeophysical products is based on concurrent high-quality fiducial reference measurements (FRM) carried out on the ground or water body. The FRM principles established by the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) recommend that in situ Ocean Colour radiometers (OCR) have a documented history of SI traceable calibrations including uncertainty budgets. Furthermore, there can be significant differences between calibration and use of the instruments in the field due to differences in operating temperature, angular variation of the light field (especially for irradiance sensors), the intensity of the measured radiation, and spectral variation of the target, among others. Each of these factors may interact with individual properties of the instrument when deployed in the field, and estimation of such uncertainties requires instrument characterization in addition to the absolute radiometric calibration if expanded uncertainties within ±10% (k = 2) are the aim. The FRM4SOC Phase 2 project - funded by the European Commission in the frame of the Copernicus Programme and implemented by EUMETSAT - contributes to these efforts, aiming at developing an operational and sustained network of radiometric measurements of FRM quality. Within FRM4SOC-2, scientists from the Tartu Observatory (TO) of the University of Tartu performed an unprecedented batch of calibrations and characterizations on a set of 37 hyperspectral field radiometers representative of the most used OCR classes within the OC community. The calibrations and characterizations performed include the determination of radiometric responsivity, long-term stability, the accuracy of the spectral scale, non-linearity and accuracy of integration times, spectral stray light, angular response of irradiance sensors in air, dark signal, thermal sensitivity, polarization sensitivity, and signal-to-noise ratio of individual OCRs. Consistent correction of biases and extended uncertainty analysis procedures of in situ data obtained from different instruments and measurement models need to be clearly defined, which is the objective of this paper.

Correction of stratospheric age of air (AoA) derived from sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) for the effect of chemical sinks

Abstract. Observational monitoring of the stratospheric transport circulation, the Brewer–Dobson circulation (BDC), is crucial to estimate any decadal to long-term changes therein, a prerequisite to interpret trends in stratospheric composition and to constrain the consequential impacts on climate. The transport time along the BDC (i.e. the mean stratospheric age of air, AoA) can best be deduced from trace gas measurements of tracers which increase linearly with time and are chemically passive. The gas sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) is often used to deduce AoA because it has been increasing monotonically since the ∼1950s, and previously its chemical sinks in the mesosphere have been assumed to be negligible for AoA estimates. However, recent studies have shown that the chemical sinks of SF6 are stronger than assumed and become increasingly relevant with rising SF6 concentrations. To adjust biases in AoA that result from the chemical SF6 sinks, we here propose a simple correction scheme for SF6-based AoA estimates accounting for the time-dependent effects of chemical sinks. The correction scheme is based on theoretical considerations with idealized assumptions, resulting in a relation between ideal AoA and apparent AoA which is a function of the tropospheric reference time series of SF6 and of the AoA-dependent effective lifetime of SF6. The correction method is thoroughly tested within a self-consistent data set from a climate model that includes explicit calculation of chemical SF6 sinks. It is shown within the model that the correction successfully reduces biases in SF6-based AoA to less than 5 % for mean ages below 5 years. Tests using only subsampled data for deriving the fit coefficients show that applying the correction scheme even with imperfect knowledge of the sink is far superior to not applying a sink correction. Furthermore, we show that based on currently available measurements, we are not able to constrain the fit parameters of the correction scheme based on observational data alone. However, the model-based correction curve lies within the observational uncertainty, and we thus recommend using the model-derived fit coefficients until more high-quality measurements are able to further constrain the correction scheme. The application of the correction scheme to AoA from satellites and in situ data suggests that it is highly beneficial to reconcile different observational estimates of mean AoA.

A scalable crop yield estimation framework based on remote sensing of solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF)

Projected increases in food demand driven by population growth coupled with heightened agricultural vulnerability to climate change jointly pose severe threats to global food security in the coming decades, especially for developing nations. By providing real-time and low-cost observations, satellite remote sensing has been widely employed to estimate crop yield across various scales. Most such efforts are based on statistical approaches that require large amounts of ground measurements for model training/calibration, which may be challenging to obtain on a large scale in developing countries that are most food-insecure and climate-vulnerable. In this paper, we develop a generalizable framework that is mechanism-guided and practically parsimonious for crop yield estimation. We then apply this framework to estimate crop yield for two crops (corn and wheat) in two contrasting regions, the US Corn Belt US-CB, and India’s Indo–Gangetic plain Wheat Belt IGP-WB, respectively. This framework is based on the mechanistic light reactions (MLR) model utilizing remotely sensed solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) as a major input. We compared the performance of MLR to two commonly used machine learning (ML) algorithms: artificial neural network and random forest. We found that MLR-SIF has comparable performance to ML algorithms in US-CB, where abundant and high-quality ground measurements of crop yield are routinely available (for model calibration). In IGP-WB, MLR-SIF significantly outperforms ML algorithms. These results demonstrate the potential advantage of MLR-SIF for yield estimation in developing countries where ground truth data is limited in quantity and quality. In addition, high-resolution and crop-specific satellite SIF is crucial for accurate yield estimation. Therefore, harnessing the mechanism-guided MLR-SIF and rapidly growing satellite SIF measurements (with high resolution and crop-specificity) hold promise to enhance food security in developing countries towards more effective responses to food crises, agricultural policies, and more efficient commodity pricing.

Health-related quality of life : Concept, measurement and fields of application

Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is the most important patient-reported outcome in clinical trials and patient care. HRQoL is further considered as target variable in treatment guidelines and as outcome indicator in the evaluation of the quality of care. Numerous validated questionnaires are available for the assessment of HRQoL from the perspective of patients with skin diseases. However, many are of inadequate methodological quality, indicating the need for further research in the development of high-quality measurement instruments. The implementation of routine electronic HRQoL assessments is apromising approach.

The Quality of Life in Patients with Spinal Cord Injury: Assessment and Rehabilitation.

Background and Objectives: Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) develops when the spinal cord is damaged and leads to partial or complete loss of motor and/or sensory function, usually below the level of injury. Medical advances in the last few decades have enabled SCI patients to survive after their initial injury and extend their life expectancy. As a result, the need for outcome measures to assess health and Quality of Life (QoL) after rehabilitation is increasing. All QoL assessment measures include implicit or explicit reactions and evaluations of a person's life characteristics. This review aims to investigate QoL and its assessment in patients with SCI and how the instruments that are used may influence rehabilitation. Materials and Methods: Studies were identified from an online search of PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Scopus databases. Studies published between 2013 and 2023 were selected. This review has been registered on OSF (n) 892NY. Results: We found that different psychological and physical aspects can positively or negatively influence the QoL of SCI patients, and the measurement of this aspect, despite the number of tools, is limited due to the lack of a universal definition of this theme and the greater prevalence of quantitative rather than qualitative tools. Conclusions: This review has demonstrated that clinicians and psychologists involved in SCI rehabilitation should consider tools that use high-quality standardized outcome measures to detect and compare potential differences and outcomes of interventions related to HRQoL and their relationship with the personality and functional status of the patient.

Thermal simulations on a spinning rotor gauge to improve systematic uncertainties for viscosity measurements

Experimental values for the viscosity of the radioactive hydrogen isotope tritium (T2) are currently unavailable in literature. The value of this material property over a wide temperature range is of interest for applications in the field of fusion, neutrino physics, as well as to test ab initio calculations. To measure the viscosity of tritium, a measurement setup has been built utilizing a spinning rotor gauge inside a Dewar. Temperature control is of high importance to produce accurate and precise values. To ensure high quality measurement results, prior to the tritium measurements, thermal simulations are done on measurements with protium and deuterium inside the sample gas volume of the spinning rotor gauge.

High-flux bright x-ray source from femtosecond laser-irradiated microtapes

Betatron x-ray sources from laser-plasma interaction are characterized by compactness, ultrashort duration, broadband spectrum and micron source size. However, high-quality measurements with good statistics, especially in a single shot, require fluxes and energies beyond the current capabilities. Here, we propose a method to enhance the flux and brightness of the betatron sources without increasing the laser energy. By irradiating an edge of a microtape target with a femtosecond laser, a strong surface plasma wave (SPW) is excited at the edge and travels along the lateral plasma-vacuum interfaces. Tens of nC of electrons are peeled off and accelerated to superponderomotive energies by the longitudinal field of the SPW, whilst undergoing transverse betatron oscillations, leading to emission of hard x-rays. Via three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations, we demonstrate that a tabletop 100 TW class femtosecond laser can produce an ultrabright hard x-ray pulse with flux up to 107 photons eV−1 and brilliance about 1023 photons s−1 mm−2 mrad−2 0.1%BW−1, paving the way for single-shot x-ray measurements in ultrafast science and high-energy-density physics.