Real-world Laboratory Research Articles

Characterization of Particulate Matter in Different Bores of a Tunnel with Distinct Vehicle Composition and Concentrated Emissions

P-075 Introduction: Exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM) has been associated to multiple adverse health effects. In urban environments motor vehicles are one major source contributing to ambient PM concentrations. The vehicle fleet is a mixture of vehicle types which make unequal contributions to the ambient PM burden. To explore the differential contribution by vehicle type, we used a real-world laboratory provided by Baltimore's Fort McHenry Tunnel. Sampling stations were set up in the exhaust plenums of 2 different bores of the tunnel. One bore (Bore 4) carries predominately diesel traffic and Bore 3 carries predominately passenger cars with other mixed traffic. Comparisons of the size, concentration, physical and chemical characteristics of particulate matter in both bores were conducted. Methods: Particulate matter samples were collected in each bore using PM10 and PM2.5 impactors. Particle size was determined using an Aerodynamic Particle Sizer (APS) and a multi-staged DRUM sampler. Continuous monitoring was also conducted in each Bore using a ThermoMIE pDR. In addition, bulk airborne dust was collected using a high volume cyclone collector. Once characterized, this bulk dust will be used for in vivo and in vitro testing to assess PM toxicity. Results: Measurements within each tunnel with the MIE pDR show a 1.7 fold difference between bores. PM concentration in Bore 4 was 242% and 250% higher than Bore 3 for PM10 and PM2.5, respectively. Mean PM10 concentration levels for Bore 4 and Bore 3 were 121 ug/m3 (sd 66 ug/m3,) and 50 ug/m3 (sd 13 ug/m3) respectively. PM2.5 mean concentrations were 87 ug/m3 (sd 43 ug/m3) and 34 ug/m3 (sd 11ug/m3) for Bore 4 and Bore 3, respectively. Paired t-test analysis of PM10 and PM2.5 samples indicate a significant difference (P < 0.001). PM concentration in the different tunnel bores was found to be dependent on the overall numbers of vehicles, as well as the number of diesel-powered vehicles. Metal content of the airborne PM also varied significantly between bores and was dependent on vehicle traffic composition. Discussion and Conclusions: The differences in fleet composition between the two bores of the Ft. McHenry Tunnel provide a unique opportunity to evaluate vehicular emissions in a highly concentrated real-world environment. The results of this study provide data on an important source signature, i.e. diesel-powered vehicles. Finally, bulk PM collected inside the tunnel will be used to assess the relative toxicity of PM collected from each of the tunnel bores.

A System for Automated Lexical Mapping

ObjectiveTo automate the mapping of disparate databases to standardized medical vocabularies. BackgroundMerging of clinical systems and medical databases, or aggregation of information from disparate databases, frequently requires a process whereby vocabularies are compared and similar concepts are mapped. DesignUsing a normalization phase followed by a novel alignment stage inspired by DNA sequence alignment methods, automated lexical mapping can map terms from various databases to standard vocabularies such as the UMLS (Unified Medical Language System) and LOINC (Logical Observation Identifier Names and Codes). MeasurementsThis automated lexical mapping was evaluated using three real-world laboratory databases from different health care institutions. The authors report the sensitivity, specificity, percentage correct (true positives plus true negatives divided by total number of terms), and true positive and true negative rates as measures of system performance. ResultsThe alignment algorithm was able to map 57% to 78% (average of 63% over all runs and databases) of equivalent concepts through lexical mapping alone. True positive rates ranged from 18% to 70%; true negative rates ranged from 5% to 52%. ConclusionLexical mapping can facilitate the integration of data from diverse sources and decrease the time and cost required for manual mapping and integration of clinical systems and medical databases.

A Web-Shareable Real-World Imaging Problem for Enhancing an Image-Processing Curriculum

A real-world laboratory exercise is presented for image processing and related curricula. The exercise is a traffic-monitoring problem in which a truck must be tracked as it moves across a bridge and its velocity measured. Sequential images are taken from a dedicated Web camera that views the Smart Composite Bridge on the University of Missouri-Rolla campus. The prototype bridge is a field laboratory for several interdisciplinary courses, including a Machine Vision elective. The Machine Vision image-processing elective uses the traffic-monitoring exercise to give students experience with processing complex images, tracking image markers, and applying theoretical orthographic concepts. The laboratory exercise uses an image sequence acquired during the springtime with multiple potential markers available on the truck for assignment flexibility. A wintertime image sequence with snowy conditions is also available for assignment flexibility. This paper discusses the bridge and camera resources, the traffic-monitoring laboratory exercise description, and the Machine Vision course implementation and evaluation. Two versions of the traffic-monitoring exercise, including two image sequences and orthographic MATLAB code, are available on the bridge Website.

Travel epidemiology: the Saudi perspective

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia occupies four-fifths of the Arabian Peninsula, with a land area of 2 million square kilometres. Saudi Arabia holds a unique position in the Islamic world, as the custodian of the two holiest places of Islam, in Mecca and Medina. Annually, some 2 million Muslims from over 140 countries embark on Hajj. This extraordinary en masse migration is a unique forum for the study of travel epidemiology since the Hajj carries various health risks, both communicable and non-communicable, often on a colossal scale. Non-communicable hazards of the Hajj include stampede and motor vehicle trauma, fire-related burn injuries and accidental hand injury during animal slaughter. Communicable hazards in the form of outbreaks of multiple infectious diseases have been reported repeatedly, during and following the Hajj. Meningococcal meningitis, gastroenteritis, hepatitis A, B and C, and various zoonotic diseases comprise some of the possible infectious hazards at the Hajj. Many of these infectious and non-infectious hazards can be avoided or averted by adopting appropriate prophylactic measures. Physicians and health personnel must be aware of these risks to appropriately educate, immunize and prepare these travellers facing the unique epidemiological challenges of Hajj in an effort to minimize untoward effects.Travel epidemiology related to the Hajj is a new and exciting area, which offers valuable insights to the travel specialist. The sheer scale of numbers affords a rare view of migration medicine in action. As data is continually gathered and both national and international policy making is tailored to vital insights gained through travel epidemiology, the Hajj will be continually safeguarded. Practitioners will gain from findings of travel related epidemiological changes in evolution at the Hajj: the impact of vaccinating policies, infection control policies and public health are afforded a real-world laboratory setting at each annual Hajj, allowing us to learn from this unique phenomenon of migration medicine.

Post-9/11 ‘Symptoms’ Don’t Add Up to Disorders

Post-9/11 ‘Symptoms’ Don’t Add Up to Disorders

A PID servo control system experiment conducted remotely via Internet

The principles of robotics and control are widely taught in engineering subjects, however a common problem concerns the limited availability of expensive equipment with which students can work with, in order to acquire valuable practical `hands on' experience. The MuMaTE virtual robotics and control project on the World Wide Web (www) was launched to evaluate the suitability of virtual learning environments, the Internet, and multimedia technologies within an engineering-based flexible learning program. Students using networked computers can access this facility to study a wide variety of on-line course material and perform a series of interactive experiments with real world laboratory hardware. This paper presents an on-line experiment, which enabled users to successfully control and observe the response of a commercial position servo system. The development of the project web server, interface electronics and control software is also discussed. MuMaTE: http://mumate.lboro.ac.uk

Cudahy high school survey and focus groups: assessment of the needs of a teen population. A community-campus collaboration.

Collaboration between local public health agencies and university schools of nursing can be advantageous to both parties. Students need opportunities to learn aggregate-based care; health officers need community partnerships that expand their potential to accomplish core functions. This article offers a case study to illustrate a collaborative relationship. A high school survey and a plan for teen services were the focus of the joint endeavor. With guidance from faculty, students offered labor and expertise; the agency offered a real world laboratory for learning.

The Occupational Therapist's Role in a Transitional Living Program for Head Injured Clients

The head injured patient typically undergoes a long period of transition, beginning with acute care, moving to a rehabilitation facility, and ending with community re-entry. A key point in the total rehabilitation process is the smooth transition from a hospital- like environment to a home environment. This paper describes the role of the occupational therapist in a transitional living program at a private facility. In this program, various health professionals work with clients in a home-like environment to facilitate community reintegration. The program uses a ''real world laboratory'' to re-train clients in functional daily tasks. The overall structure of the program, types of activities used, and goals of the program are discussed.

The Occupational Therapist's Role in a Transitional Living Program for Head Injured Clients

The head injured patient typically undergoes a long period of transition, beginning with acute care, moving to a rehabilitation facility, and ending with community re-entry. A key point in the total rehabilitation process is the smooth transition from a hospital- like environment to a home environment. This paper describes the role of the occupational therapist in a transitional living program at a private facility. In this program, various health professionals work with clients in a home-like environment to facilitate community reintegration. The program uses a ''real world laboratory'' to re-train clients in functional daily tasks. The overall structure of the program, types of activities used, and goals of the program are discussed.

Occupational Musculoskeletal Disorders

<h3>ABSTRACT</h3> Understanding the major drivers that influence soil bacterial and fungal communities is essential to mitigate the impacts of human activity on vulnerable ecosystems, like those found on the Galápagos Islands. Located ~1000 km off the coast of Ecuador, the volcanically formed islands are situated within distinct oceanic currents, which provide seasonal weather patterns and unique microclimates within small spatial scales across the islands. Although much is known about the impacts of human activity, such as climate change and invasive plant species, on above ground biodiversity of the Galápagos Islands, little is known about the resident soil microbial communities and the drivers that shape these communities. Here, our goal was to investigate the bacterial and fungal communities found in soil located in three distinct microclimates: Mirador (arid), Cerro Alto (semi-arid), and El Junco (humid), and associated with native and invasive plant types. At each site, we collected soil at three depths (rhizosphere, 5 cm, and 15 cm) associated with the invasive plant, <i>Psidium guajava</i> (guava), and native plant types. We determined that the sampling location (microclimate) was the strongest driver of both bacterial and fungal communities (74 and 38%, respectively), with additional minor but significant impacts from plant type and soil depth. This study highlights the continued need to explore microbial communities across diverse environments and demonstrates the weight of different abiotic and biotic factors impacting soil microbial communities across San Cristóbal Island in the Galápagos archipelago. <h3>IMPORTANCE/SIGNIFICANCE</h3> Human activity such as climate change, pollution, introduction of invasive species, and deforestation, poses a huge threat to biodiverse environments. Soil microbiota are an essential component to maintaining healthy ecosystems. However, a greater understanding of factors that alter these microbial communities is needed in order to find ways to mitigate and reverse the impacts imposed by human activity. The Galápagos Islands are a unique real-world laboratory, in that the islands’ biogeography and physical locations in the Pacific Ocean provide distinct microclimates within small geographic distances. Harnessing these distinct environments allowed us to investigate the influence of microclimates, soil depth, and vegetation cover on bacterial and fungal community composition.

Urban Engineering in the University

Problems confronting modern American cities demand integrated, interdisciplinary solution procedures, going beyond traditional approaches to urban issues. Current urban problems are both too vast and inordinately complex to be effectively dealt with by independent professionals working in limited and narrowly-defined disciplines. The ASCE Urban Engineering Study Committee has coined the term urban engineering to denote the new multidisciplinary orientation demanded of urban professionals. Universities are particularly important in fostering a more realistic approach to the city. Innovative curricula and interdisciplinary experiments in the real-world laboratory, which are presently underway at Stanford University, are essential media for preparing students to utilize their expertise in concert with professional from other disciplines in dealing with massive urban issues.