Facilitating transparency in spinal cord injury studies using data standards and ontologies

Progress in developing robust therapies for spinal cord injury （SCI）, trau- matic brain injury （TBI） and peripheral nerve injury has been slow. A great deal has been learned over the past 30 years regarding both the intrinsic factors and the environmental factors that regulate axon growth, but this large body of information has not yet resulted in clinically available thera- peutics. This therapeutic bottleneck has many root causes, but a consensus is emerging that one contributing factor is a lack of standards for experi- mental design and reporting. The absence of reporting standards, and even of commonly accepted definitions of key words, also make data mining and bioinformatics analysis of neural plasticity and regeneration difficult, if not impossible. This short review will consider relevant background and poten- tial solutions to this problem in the axon regeneration domain.

Commentary on:“Facilitating transparency in spinal cord injury studies using data standards and ontologies”

Commentary Most would agree that providing comprehensive detail in scientific reporting is critical for the development of mean- ingful therapies and treatments for diseases. Such stellar practices 1） allow for reproduction of experiments to con- firm results, 2） promote thorough analyses of data, and 3） foster the incremental advancement of valid approaches. Unfortunately, most would also agree we have far to go to reach this vital goal （Hackam and Redelmeier, 2006; Prinz et al., 2011; Baker et al., 2014）.

Studies of Earthquake Hazard Using Microseismicity Data in Modern Times

This paper selects some representative regions to obtain their G-R relation curves according to their seismicity characteristics,by using ML≥2.0 microseismicity data(1970~1993)in North China.The annual occurrence rate of events of each magnitude can be inferred from the G-R relation.At the same tune,the actual annual occurrence rate of earthquakes of higher magnitudes can be calculated from historical earthquakes(1300-1993)recorded in the same region.It seems that both results are almost the same.Therefore,the rate of events of higher magnitudes can be obtained by using microseismicity data when the proper region is selected.However,two points should be noticed:(1)The method can only give the annual occurrence rate in a seismicity system and estimate the whole situation of the system.(2)When there is a very large earthquake in and near the period in which the microseismicity data are applied,the actual occurrence rate of the system,including this larger earthquake,cannot be obtained by this method.

Analysis of Stopping Behavior at Rural T-Intersections Using Naturalistic Driving Study Data

Rural intersections account for around 30% of crashes in rural areas and 6% of all fatal crashes, representing a significant but poorly understood safety problem. Crashes at rural intersections are also problematic since high speeds on intersection approaches are present which can exacerbate the impact of a crash. Additionally, rural areas are often underserved with EMS services which can further contribute to negative crash outcomes. This paper describes an analysis of driver stopping behavior at rural T-intersections using the SHRP 2 Naturalistic Driving Study data. Type of stop was used as a safety surrogate measure using full/rolling stops compared to non-stops. Time series traces were obtained for 157 drivers at 87 unique intersections resulting in 1277 samples at the stop controlled approach for T-intersections. Roadway (i.e. number of lanes, presence of skew, speed limit, presence of stop bar or other traffic control devices), driver (age, gender, speeding), and environmental characteristics (time of day, presence of rain) were reduced and included as independent variables. Results of a logistic regression model indicated drivers were less likely to stop during the nighttime. However presence of intersection lighting increased the likelihood of full/rolling stops. Presence of intersection skew was shown to negatively impact stopping behavior. Additionally drivers who were traveling over the posted speed limit upstream of the intersection approach were less likely to stop at the approach stop sign.

Comparative Study and Spatial-Temporal Distribution of Regolith and Rock Geochemical Data from Xingmeng-North China

1 Introduction Geochemical mapping at national and continental scales continues to present challenges worldwide due to variations in geologic and geotectonic units.Use of the proper sampling media can provide rich information on

Detecting Climate Change in Using Extreme Data from Two Surface Weather Stations: Case Study Valle of Comitan and La Esperanza, Chiapas, Mexico

The study area is located between the cities of Comitan (16°10'43"N and 92°04'20''W) a city with 150,000 inhabitants and La Esperanza (16°9'15''N and 91°52'5''W) a town with 3000 inhabitants. Both weather stations are 30 km from each other in the Chiapas State, México. 54 years of daily records of the series of maximum (tmax) and minimum temperatures (tmin) of the weather station 07205 Comitan that is on top of a house and 30 years of daily records of the weather station 07374 La Esperanza were analyzed. The objective is to analyze the evidence of climate change in the Comitan valley. 2.07% and 19.04% of missing data were filled, respectively, with the WS method. In order to verify homogeneity three methods were used: Standard Normal Homogeneity Test (SNHT), the Von Neumann method and the Buishand method. The heterogeneous series were homogenized using climatol. The trends of tmax and tmin for both weather stations were analyzed by simple linear regression, Sperman’s rho and Mann-Kendall tests. The Mann-Kendal test method confirmed the warming trend at the Comitan station for both variables with ZMK statistic values equal to 1.57 (statistically not significant) and 4.64 (statistically significant). However, for the Esperanza station, it determined a cooling trend for tmin and a slight non-significant warming for tmax with a ZMK statistic of -2.27 (statistically significant) and 1.16 (statistically not significant), for a significance level α = 0.05.

Similarities and differences of city-size distributions in three main urban agglomerations of China from 1992 to 2015： A comparative study based on nighttime light data

Comparing the city-size distribution at the urban agglomeration（UA） scale is important for understanding the processes of urban development. However, comparative studies of city-size distribution among China＇s three largest UAs, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei agglomeration（BTHA）, the Yangtze River Delta agglomeration（YRDA）, and the Pearl River Delta agglomeration（PRDA）, remain inadequate due to the limitation of data availability. Therefore, using urban data derived from time-series nighttime light data, the common characteristics and distinctive features of city-size distribution among the three UAs from 1992 to 2015 were compared by the Pareto regression and the rank clock method. We identified two common features. First, the city-size distribution became more even. The Pareto exponents increased by 0.17, 0.12, and 0.01 in the YRDA, BTHA, and PRDA, respectively. Second, the average ranks of small cities ascended, being 0.55, 0.08 and 0.04 in the three UAs, respectively. However, the average ranks of large and medium cities in the three UAs experienced different trajectories, which are closely related to the similarities and differences in the driving forces for the development of UAs. Place-based measures are encouraged to promote a coordinated development among cities of differing sizes in the three UAs.

Study on the performance of data fusion system for sonar signal detection

The mathematical model and fusion algorithm for multisensor data fusion are presented, and applied to integrate the decisions obtained by multiple sonars in a distributed detection system. Assuming that all the sonars and the fusion system operate at the same false alarm probability, the expression for the detection probability of the fusion system is obtained. Computer simulations reveals that the detection probability and detection range of the fusion system are significantly improved compared to the original distributed detection system.