Preliminary Benchmarks Research Articles

Daily and Peak Monitor Independent Movement Summary (MIMS) Values Associated With Metabolic Syndrome: NHANES 2011-12 and 2013-14.

The U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) physical activity monitor datasets for 2011-12 and 2013-14 were released in late 2020. To date, there has been limited interpretation of these nationally representative wrist-worn accelerometer data (summarized and reported in Monitor Independent Movement Summary [MIMS] units) and their relationships with health-related outcomes. This study examined the associations between free-living DailyMIMS (volume), Peak 1MIMS and Peak 30MIMS (intensity), and risk of Metabolic Syndrome (MetS). Data from adults (N=3787; 18-80+ years) in the 2011-12 and 2013-14 NHANES cycles with health examination and accelerometry data were included. Accelerometer data were processed into Peak 1MIMS and Peak 30MIMS (MIMS/min), and DailyMIMS (MIMS/day). Design-based generalized linear and logistic regressions, and a sample-weighted decision tree, were used to examine associations between MIMS variables and MetS risk factors. Lower Peak 1MIMS, Peak 30MIMS, and DailyMIMS were observed for every one-unit increase in the number of risk factors -3.9 [95% CI: -4.3, -3.4] and -2.3 [-2.6, -2.1] MIMS/min, (-672.1 [-772.7, -571.5] MIMS/day, respectively, all p< 0.001). The Decision Tree classified individuals ≥ 46.5 years with a DailyMIMS ≥ 12 245 MIMS/day and a Peak 30MIMS < 45.1 MIMS/min as having MetS (≥ 3 risk factors). Individuals < 46.5 years with a Peak 1MIMS ≥ 62.9 MIMS/min were classified with 0 risk factors. Higher DailyMIMS and PeakMIMS were associated with an absence of MetS risk factors, with a progressive decline as the number of risk factors increased. These findings may be considered as preliminary benchmarks for DailyMIMS and PeakMIMS associated with cardiometabolic risk.

Matching and Rewriting Rules in Object-Oriented Databases

Graph query languages such as Cypher are widely adopted to match and retrieve data in a graph representation, due to their ability to retrieve and transform information. Even though the most natural way to match and transform information is through rewriting rules, those are scarcely or partially adopted in graph query languages. Their inability to do so has a major impact on the subsequent way the information is structured, as it might then appear more natural to provide major constraints over the data representation to fix the way the information should be represented. On the other hand, recent works are starting to move towards the opposite direction, as the provision of a truly general semistructured model (GSM) allows to both represent all the available data formats (Network-Based, Relational, and Semistructured) as well as support a holistic query language expressing all major queries in such languages. In this paper, we show that the usage of GSM enables the definition of a general rewriting mechanism which can be expressed in current graph query languages only at the cost of adhering the query to the specificity of the underlying data representation. We formalise the proposed query language in terms declarative graph rewriting mechanisms described as a set of production rules L→R while both providing restriction to the characterisation of L, and extending it to support structural graph nesting operations, useful to aggregate similar information around an entry-point of interest. We further achieve our declarative requirements by determining the order in which the data should be rewritten and multiple rules should be applied while ensuring the application of such updates on the GSM database is persisted in subsequent rewriting calls. We discuss how GSM, by fully supporting index-based data representation, allows for a better physical model implementation leveraging the benefits of columnar database storage. Preliminary benchmarks show the scalability of this proposed implementation in comparison with state-of-the-art implementations.

Development of Normative Data of the Athletic Skill Track and Development Coordination Disorder Questionnaire in Children

Background: The escalating prevalence of pediatric obesity and the concomitant decline in physical activity levels have underscored the imperative to rigorously assess motor competencies in the younger demographic. The Athletic Skill Track (AST) and Development Coordination Disorder Questionnaire (DCDQ) are pivotal instruments in this context. However, normative benchmarks for these tools, particularly within the Pakistani pediatric milieu, remain inadequately delineated. Objective: This investigation aimed to establish preliminary normative benchmarks for AST and DCDQ among a cohort of children aged 4 to 12 years in Lahore, Pakistan. A secondary objective involved delineating gender disparities in test performance and elucidating the correlation between Body Mass Index (BMI) and test outcomes. Methods: Adopting a cross-sectional study framework, data were collated from an urban-based private school in Lahore, utilizing convenience sampling methods. The participant pool comprised 500 healthy children within the 4-12 age bracket. The research protocol encompassed anthropometric measurements and subsequent administration of AST and DCDQ. Data analysis was executed utilizing SPSS software, version 28.0. Results: The study unveiled a marked gender-based disparity in AST performance, with boys manifesting superior rapidity across all AST tracks (AST 1: Mean=21.84, SD=4.99; AST 2: Mean=22.66, SD=5.083; AST 3: Mean=20.23, SD=4.76). An age-progressive enhancement in test performance was evident, as reflected in the linear decrement in completion times for AST-1 and AST-2 with advancing age. This trend, however, exhibited deviations from extant literature in specific cohorts, particularly in nine-year-old participants. In the realm of DCDQ outcomes, a significant positive correlation with age was observed, suggesting developmental advancements in coordination skills. The gender analysis revealed that boys outperformed girls in DCDQ assessments (Boys: Mean=60.17, SD=5.87; Girls: Mean=57.45, SD=7.09). Conclusion: The present study enriches the extant body of knowledge by providing essential normative data for AST and DCDQ within a Pakistani pediatric population. It underscores notable gender and age-related variances in motor skills and coordination, offering critical insights for the formulation of targeted interventions and early detection strategies in motor skill development.

Preliminary environmental benchmarks for a new Photonic Meta-Concrete based on state of the art radiative cooling materials

The usage of conventional air-conditioners increased due to global warming and the urban heat-island-effect in cities. These systems are responsible for 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions and 10% of the total energy consumption. Radiative Cooling is a passive cooling strategy which tries to mitigate global warming and the urban heat-island-effect by emitting heat through the atmosphere, into outer space. These materials are already studied for several decades, but for the first time a radiative cooling material is under development based on conventional concrete. In order to evaluate the environmental performance of this newly developed material compared to existing cooling materials, environmental benchmarks need to be defined. To determine such benchmark, existing, state of the art, daytime radiative cooling materials are assessed in this paper. Information on these materials is collected through a literature review. The radiative cooling materials are modelled using the generic Ecoinvent v3.6 database and the environmental impact is assessed using the Belgian LCA method for buildings, i.e. the MMG method. This method is in line with the EN15804:A2 and covers 16 environmental impact categories, such as global warming potential, acidification, eutrophication, water scarcity and toxicity. The results show that the production process of the materials, i.e. thin film deposition techniques, are poorly represented in the Ecoinvent database. Assumptions and adaptations are made based on literature and experts’ feedback. A sensitivity analysis is carried out to gain insight in the uncertainty of the assumptions made. Based on the results, preliminary environmental benchmarks are generated and the environmental impact of the first composition of the photonic meta-concrete is assessed against these benchmarks.

Ipie: A Python-Based Auxiliary-Field Quantum Monte Carlo Program with Flexibility and Efficiency on CPUs and GPUs.

We report the development of a python-based auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo (AFQMC) program, ipie, with preliminary timing benchmarks and new AFQMC results on the isomerization of [Cu2O2]2+. We demonstrate how implementations for both central and graphical processing units (CPUs and GPUs) are achieved in ipie. We show an interface of ipie with PySCF as well as a straightforward template for adding new estimators to ipie. Our timing benchmarks against other C++ codes, QMCPACK and Dice, suggest that ipie is faster or similarly performing for all chemical systems considered on both CPUs and GPUs. Our results on [Cu2O2]2+ using selected configuration interaction trials show that it is possible to converge the ph-AFQMC isomerization energy between bis(μ-oxo) and μ-η2:η2 peroxo configurations to the exact known results for small basis sets with 105-106 determinants. We also report the isomerization energy with a quadruple-zeta basis set with an estimated error less than a kcal/mol, which involved 52 electrons and 290 orbitals with 106 determinants in the trial wave function. These results highlight the utility of ph-AFQMC and ipie for systems with modest strong correlation and large-scale dynamic correlation.

Food waste and its management in the foodservice sector of a developing economy: An exploratory and preliminary study of a sample of restaurants in Iraq

The study explores the challenge of food waste in the commercial foodservice sector of a major developing economy in the Middle East, Iraq. It responds to the Food Waste Index report 2021 by the United Nations Environment Programme which has called for more accurate data-based assessments of wastage in national foodservice sectors of developing nations. Via mixed methods research design consisting of direct measurements, in-situ observations and managerial interviews, the study provides first preliminary benchmarks of food waste in three categories of Iraqi restaurants and explains the reasons for discrepancy in estimates. The study showcases national culture as one of the main underlying causes of food waste in Iraqi foodservices. The study highlights the approaches to food waste management that can be categorised as novel/effective for the market of the Middle East. The study elaborates on how intra-sectorial and cross-country adoption of these approaches can be operationalised and promoted.

Establishing preliminary reading fluency benchmarks for Grade 3 students in India

BackgroundThe National Education Policy of India in 2020 indicated a goal that all children will achieve foundational literacy by Grade 3 by 2025. In line with this, the Indian government sets a target of 30 to 35 correct words per minute (cwpm) at Grade 3. However, there are no supporting data for reading fluency targets in the Indian reading literature. Similarly, international benchmarks are used in India, but there are no data examining their appropriateness for the Indian context. The purpose of this study was to develop data‐driven benchmarks for oral reading fluency (ORF) for students in Grade 3 in the Indian context. We compared both international standards and the national targets with our study's benchmarks to assess their suitability for the Indian population.MethodsThis study assessed ORF in English for Grade 3 students from three schools following three different curricula in India. The primary tool employed was Fluency and Benchmarking for Literacy in Education (FABLe), a digital curriculum‐based measurement tool developed specifically for the Indian context. Students were assessed at the beginning and end of the academic year.ResultsThe performance data collected using FABLe when compared with the international benchmarks were significantly skewed, especially for the end of the year. The national Grade 3 fluency target was found to be even lower than the 5th percentile at the end of the year.ConclusionEmploying international tools and benchmarks may lead to an overidentification of the number of students that need support, and the current Indian government target may lead to an under‐identification of the same population of students. This study fills an important research gap by providing schools with a Grade 3 ORF measure developed for the Indian context. The results should be considered a preliminary benchmark in Grade 3 and be used to inform literacy practices.

ExaTN: Scalable GPU-Accelerated High-Performance Processing of General Tensor Networks at Exascale

We present ExaTN (Exascale Tensor Networks), a scalable GPU-accelerated C++ library which can express and process tensor networks on shared- as well as distributed-memory high-performance computing platforms, including those equipped with GPU accelerators. Specifically, ExaTN provides the ability to build, transform, and numerically evaluate tensor networks with arbitrary graph structures and complexity. It also provides algorithmic primitives for the optimization of tensor factors inside a given tensor network in order to find an extremum of a chosen tensor network functional, which is one of the key numerical procedures in quantum many-body theory and quantum-inspired machine learning. Numerical primitives exposed by ExaTN provide the foundation for composing rather complex tensor network algorithms. We enumerate multiple application domains which can benefit from the capabilities of our library, including condensed matter physics, quantum chemistry, quantum circuit simulations, as well as quantum and classical machine learning, for some of which we provide preliminary demonstrations and performance benchmarks just to emphasize a broad utility of our library.

Publisher's Note: “Preliminary benchmarks and analysis of boundary conditions in a trenched microstructured silicon radiation detector” [J. Appl. Phys. 131, 134503 (2022)

Publisher's Note: “Preliminary benchmarks and analysis of boundary conditions in a trenched microstructured silicon radiation detector” [J. Appl. Phys. 131, 134503 (2022)

Preliminary benchmarks and analysis of boundary conditions in a trenched microstructured silicon radiation detector

Microstructured neutron detectors have the benefit of enhanced neutron detection efficiency as compared to planar devices, achieved by etching 6LiF-filled trenches on the top surface of a silicon PIN diode. This sensor geometry results in a complex electric field distribution and depletion characteristics within the diode under reverse bias. For the first time on record, the effects of a fixed oxide charge on the microstructured device depletion characteristics and mobile carrier transport is investigated. Prototype detectors were fabricated with non-conformal surface doping. Capacitance voltage and current voltage measurements were performed for these prototypes and compared with COMSOL Multiphysics simulations. A spectral response from an 241Am alpha particle source was acquired and analyzed. It was found that monoenergetic alpha particles produce three prominent peaks in the pulse height spectrum output by the device. The peaks were confirmed by simulations to correlate with dead layers and incident trajectories into the microstructure. It was also found that significant differences in pulse rise time result, corresponding with events arriving in a low-field region in the fins and a high-field region in the bulk. Geant4 was utilized for radiation transport, interaction modeling, and benchmarking the spectral data. The results of this simulation work provide confidence in the ability to attain and benchmark electrical characteristics and spectral data for semiconductor radiation detectors employing complex microstructures.

The impact of V2X service under local climatic conditions within Canada on EV durability

At present, the percentage of electric vehicles in the global on-road fleet continues to increase. At the same time, there is also a worldwide shift towards sustainable power generation technologies such as solar and wind for electricity. Power generation from such renewable sources is intrinsically unsteady. The electricity stored in the EV fleet is seen as a possible means to provide grid stabilization through V2X applications. Here, V2X is a catch-all for V2G, or vehicle-to-grid. With increasing energy capacity being built into the battery packs of light-duty EVs, newer information emerging on their performance and durability is winning consumer confidence. With preliminary technical benchmarks achieved, more widespread acceptance for EVs will come with positive demonstrations of their performance under more demanding circumstances, and one of key interest is their durability in cold climate regions. In this context, a study by numerical simulation was conceived and conducted to investigate the effects of EV use in a Canadian climatic environment, tracing both the electrochemical and thermal state of the battery pack over the EV lifetime. These scenarios considered two vehicle types, six different cities, two US EPA based drive cycles at 50 km/day, various levels of V2X provision, two charger power levels and two operational sequences. Daily outdoor climatic conditions for a one year period were imposed on the simulation, with a heat transfer model for the pack temperature when the vehicle was not in use. The results of the study are quite detailed, and provide quantitative lifetime estimates derived from tracking battery degradation. Externally supplied energy for heating or cooling before battery operations was also accounted for. In general, colder cities were found to result in shortened service lifetimes, with garage storage of the EVs shown to significantly mitigate climatic effects. • Electrochemical and thermal battery models predicted electric vehicle service life. • Climate data from six different Canadian cities provided a range of cold climate environments. • Newer generation ∼60 kWh capacity EVs significantly outperform older smaller capacity EVs in the cold. • Moderated climates without extreme cold or heat significantly preserve battery SOH. • V2X provision in the cold is possible with minimal lifetime loss with suitable thermal controls.

A Multireference Quantum Krylov Algorithm for Strongly Correlated Electrons.

We introduce a multireference selected quantum Krylov (MRSQK) algorithm suitable for quantum simulation of many-body problems. MRSQK is a low-cost alternative to the quantum phase estimation algorithm that generates a target state as a linear combination of non-orthogonal Krylov basis states. This basis is constructed from a set of reference states via real-time evolution; thus, avoiding the numerical optimization of parameters. An efficient algorithm for the evaluation of the off-diagonal matrix elements of the overlap and Hamiltonian matrices is discussed and a selection procedure is introduced to identify a basis of orthogonal references that ameliorates the linear dependency problem. Preliminary benchmarks on linear H6, H8, and BeH2 indicate that MRSQK can predict the energy of these systems accurately using very compact Krylov bases.

Development And Early Feasibility Testing Of A Mind-Body Physical Activity Program For Patients With Heterogeneous Chronic Pain; The GetActive Study.

BackgroundIncreasing physical function is a challenging, yet imperative goal of pain management programs. Physical activity can improve physical function, but uptake is low due to chronic pain misconceptions, poor pain management skills, and doing too much too soon.PurposeTo increase physical function by 1) adapting an evidence-based, group, mind-body program to address the needs of patients with heterogeneous chronic pain and to facilitate individually tailored quota-based pacing with a Fitbit (GetActive with Fitbit) or without it (GetActive) (phase 1), and 2) assessing preliminary feasibility benchmarks (phase 2).MethodsWe followed evidence based frameworks for developing interventions and for early feasibility testing. In phase 1 we conducted 4 focus groups with 22 patients with heterogeneous chronic pain and adapted the mind-body program. In phase 2 we conducted a nonrandomized pilot trial of the 2 programs (N=7 and 6) with qualitative exit interviews.ResultsFocus groups showed high interest in increasing activity, a preference for walking linked to pleasurable activities, using a Fitbit to track number of steps, and learning skills to manage pain and aid with increased activity. Both programs had good to excellent feasibility markers. Participation in both programs was associated with signal of improvements in physical and emotional function, as well as intervention targets. Exit interviews confirmed high satisfaction and suggested modification.ConclusionResults informed subsequent adaptations of the 2 programs and methodology for an ongoing pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) of the 2 programs, necessary before an efficacy RCT of the 2 programs against an education control.

Perceptual Clinical Features in Exercise-Induced Laryngeal Obstruction (EILO): Toward Improved Diagnostic Approaches

IntroductionAthletes with exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) (previously commonly referred to as paradoxical vocal fold motion disorder, or paradoxical vocal fold motion, among other terms) are often misdiagnosed, resulting in prolonged, and at times inappropriate, clinical management. The high prevalence of misdiagnosis is largely due to a lack of universal consensus of key clinical features indicating EILO and a dearth of validated quantitative approaches to accurately detect episodic laryngeal breathing disorders (ELBD) from other pathologies. Additionally, mechanisms underlying EILO clinical presentation are poorly understood, further confounding identification and management of the condition. Therefore, the objectives of this study were twofold. The first was to identify patient-centered perception of symptoms that could distinguish adolescent athletes with EILO from athletes without the condition, at baseline (rest) and during an exercise challenge (provocation), and to quantify symptom severities for use as preliminary diagnostic benchmarks. The second objective was to investigate the merit of one commonly proposed mechanism in the EILO literature—stress reactivity (temperament)—by comparing personality traits in athletes with and without EILO. MethodsTwelve (12) athletes diagnosed with EILO and 14 healthy athletic volunteers without the condition were asked to rate the severity of their present symptoms using a 0–100 continuous visual analog scale. Participants then underwent an exercise challenge with simultaneous laryngoscopy and were asked to complete the same set of symptom severity ratings experienced during rigorous exercise. Finally, participants completed the Fear subscale on the early adolescent temperament questionnaire—revised (EATQ-R) to measure self-perceived levels of stress reactivity. ResultsThere were significant group differences for inspiratory and expiratory dyspnea with exercise (P = 0.01). Symptoms of stridor (EILO: P = .01; control: P = .001) and throat tightness (EILO: P = .01, control: P = .01) were statistically different between rest and exercise in both groups. However, no group differences were found on these two parameters (P > .05). Other symptoms from the list of previously purported symptoms indicative of ELBD (e.g. cough, dysphonia) were infrequently reported in the exercise variant. Additionally, measurements of stress reactivity on the EATQ-R Fear subscale were similar between the two athletic groups. Interestingly, EATQ-R Fear Subscale scores for both groups were significantly higher compared to typical adolescents in the U.S. population (P < .001, respectively). DiscussionResults suggest dyspnea severity, particularly when experienced during an exercise-induced ELBD (EILO) episode, is the most sensitive symptom parameter to distinguish individuals with EILO from those without the condition. These findings confirm previous literature describing episodic laryngeal breathing disorders in clinical cohorts. Results also showed symptoms of throat tightness and stridor is more prevalent during exercise, compared to rest. However, the level of their severity occurred variably across both groups of athletes and may point to a less robust indication of pathology. Finally, similarities to stress reactivity between the two athletic groups imply certain temperaments historically attributed to patients with EILO may instead better reflect temperaments in competitive young athletes, in general. ConclusionStudy findings highlight the importance of using normative comparisons in the study of episodic laryngeal breathing disorders to prevent overgeneralization of characteristics to clinical cohorts. Results also speak of the clinical utility of exercise challenge to improve specificity of EILO diagnosis.

Certified Graph View Maintenance with Regular Datalog

AbstractWe employ the Coq proof assistant to develop a mechanically-certified framework for evaluating graph queries and incrementally maintaining materialized graph instances, also called views. The language we use for defining queries and views is Regular Datalog (RD) – a notable fragment of non-recursive Datalog that can express complex navigational queries, with transitive closure as native operator. We first design and encode the theory of RD and then mechanize a RD-specific evaluation algorithm capable of fine-grained, incremental graph view computation, which we prove sound with respect to the declarative RD semantics. By using the Coq extraction mechanism, we test an OCaml version of the verified engine on a set of preliminary benchmarks. Our development is particularly focused on leveraging existing verification and notational techniques to: a) define mechanized properties that can be easily understood by logicians and database researchers and b) attain formal verification with limited effort. Our work is the first step towards a unified, machine-verified, formal framework for dynamic graph query languages and their evaluation engines.

Environmental impact efficiency of natural gas combined cycle power plants: A combined life cycle assessment and dynamic data envelopment analysis approach

The energy sector is still dominated by the use of fossil resources. In particular, natural gas represents the third most consumed resource, being a significant source of electricity in many countries. Since electricity production in natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) plants provides some benefits with respect to other non-renewable technologies, it is often seen as a transitional solution towards a future low‑carbon power generation system. However, given the environmental profile and operational variability of NGCC power plants, their eco-efficiency assessment is required. In this respect, this article uses a novel combined Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and dynamic Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach in order to estimate –over the period 2010–2015– the environmental impact efficiencies of 20 NGCC power plants located in Spain. A three-step LCA+DEA method is applied, which involves data acquisition, calculation of environmental impacts through LCA, and the novel estimation of environmental impact efficiency (overall- and term-efficiency scores) through dynamic DEA. Although only 1 out of 20 NGCC power plants is found to be environmentally efficient, all plants show a relatively good environmental performance with overall eco-efficiency scores above 60%. Regarding individual periods, 2011 was –on average– the year with the highest environmental impact efficiency (95%), accounting for 5 efficient NGCC plants. In this respect, a link between high number of operating hours and high environmental impact efficiency is observed. Finally, preliminary environmental benchmarks are presented as an additional outcome in order to further support decision-makers in the path towards eco-efficiency in NGCC power plants.

Social Relations and Health: Comparing "Invisible" Arab Americans to Blacks and Whites.

This paper establishes preliminary benchmarks by comparing average values of social relations and health among Arab Americans, Blacks and Whites. Specifically, we expand traditional racial/ethnic categories to distinguish Arab Americans, historically and legally considered White. Data come from a unique random digit dial (RDD) sample of Arab Americans (N=96), Blacks (N=102) and Whites (N=100) from metro-Detroit collected in 2011, ranging in age from 19-89. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was conducted to compare health, network structure, composition and support quality. Findings established preliminary benchmarks showing that Arab Americans reported more depressive symptoms (7.6) than Whites (5.2), but no difference in physical health. Arab Americans also reported more contact frequency (4.4) than Blacks (4.1) and Whites (4.0), yet lower proportions of networks comprised of the same ethnicity (77%) compared to Blacks (96%) and Whites (97%). Unpacking the White category to identify Arab Americans in a comparative analysis identified benchmarks to show how Arab American health and social relations are distinct from Blacks and Whites, yielding unique avenues for thinking about new ways to conceptualize how race and social relations impact health disparities.

The power of non-ground rules in Answer Set Programming

AbstractAnswer set programming (ASP) is a well-established logic programming language that offers an intuitive, declarative syntax for problem solving. In its traditional application, a fixed ASP program for a given problem is designed and the actual instance of the problem is fed into the program as a set of facts. This approach typically results in programs with comparably short and simple rules. However, as is known from complexity analysis, such an approach limits the expressive power of ASP; in fact, an entire NP-check can be encoded into a single large rule body of bounded arity that performs both a guess and a check within the same rule. Here, we propose a novel paradigm for encoding hard problems in ASP by making explicit use of large rules which depend on the actual instance of the problem. We illustrate how this new encoding paradigm can be used, providing examples of problems from the first, second, and even third level of the polynomial hierarchy. As state-of-the-art solvers are tuned towards short rules, rule decomposition is a key technique in the practical realization of our approach. We also provide some preliminary benchmarks which indicate that giving up the convenient way of specifying a fixed program can lead to a significant speed-up.

Representation of spectro-temporal features of spoken words within the P1-N1-P2 and T-complex of the auditory evoked potentials (AEP)

The purpose of the study was to determine whether P1-N1-P2 and T-complex morphology reflect spectro-temporal features within spoken words that approximate the natural variation of a speaker and whether waveform morphology is reliable at group and individual levels, necessary for probing auditory deficits. The P1-N1-P2 and T-complex to the syllables /pət/ and /sət/ within 70 natural word productions each were examined. EEG was recorded while participants heard nonsense word pairs and performed a syllable identification task to the second word in the pairs. Single trial auditory evoked potentials (AEP) to the first words were analyzed. Results found P1-N1-P2 and T-complex to reflect spectral and temporal feature processing. Also, results identified preliminary benchmarks for single trial response variability for individual subjects for sensory processing between 50 and 600ms. P1-N1-P2 and T-complex, at least at group level, may serve as phenotypic signatures to identify deficits in spectro-temporal feature recognition and to determine area of deficit, the superior temporal plane or lateral superior temporal gyrus.

A multi-region coupling scheme for compressible and incompressible flow solvers for two-phase flow in a numerical wave tank

We present a multi-region coupling procedure based on the finite-volume method and apply it to two-phase hydrodynamic free surface flow problems. The method combines the features of one incompressible and one compressible two-phase flow solvers to obtain a coupled system which is generally superior to either solver alone. The coupling strategy is based on a partitioned approach in which different solvers, pre-defined in different regions of the computational domain, exchange information through interfaces, i.e. areas separating these regions. The interfaces act as boundary conditions passing the information from one region to the other mimicking the finite-volume cell-to-face interpolation procedures. This results in high performance computing coupled simulations whose functionality can be further extended in order to build a generic numerical wave tank accounting for incompressible flow regions as well as compressibility and aeration effects. We select a series of preliminary benchmarks to verify this coupling procedure which includes the simulation of a hydrodynamic dam break, the propagation and reflection of regular waves, the convection of an inviscid vortex, pseudocavitation, a water column free drop in a closed tank and a plunging wave impact at a vertical wall. The obtained results agree well with exact solutions, laboratory experiments and other numerical data.