We employ direct numerical simulations to investigate the heat transfer and flow structures in turbulent Rayleigh–Bénard convection in both cylindrical cells and laterally periodic domains, spanning an unprecedentedly wide range of aspect ratios $0.075 \leqslant \varGamma \leqslant 32$. We focus on Prandtl number ${Pr}=1$ and Rayleigh numbers ${{Ra}}=2\times 10^7$ and ${{Ra}}=10^8$. In both cases, with increasing aspect ratio, the heat transfer first increases, then reaches a maximum (which is more pronounced for the cylindrical case due to confinement effects), and then slightly goes down again before it finally saturates at the large aspect ratio limit, which is achieved already at $\varGamma \approx 4$. Already for $\varGamma \gtrsim 0.75$, the heat transfers in both cylindrical and laterally periodic domains become identical. The large-$\varGamma$ limit for the volume-integrated Reynolds number and the boundary layer thicknesses are also reached at $\varGamma \approx 4$. However, while the integral flow properties converge at $\varGamma \approx 4$, the confinement of a cylindrical domain impacts the temperature and velocity variance distributions up to $\varGamma \approx 16$, as thermal superstructures cannot form close to the sidewall.

Previous work has proposed various mechanisms by which the environment may affect the emergence of linguistic features. For example, dry air may cause careful control of pitch to be more effortful, and so affect the emergence of linguistic distinctions that rely on pitch such as lexical tone or vowel inventories. Criticisms of these proposals point out that there are both historical and geographic confounds that need to be controlled for. We take a causal inference approach to this problem to design the most detailed test of the theory to date. We analyse languages from the Bantu language family, using a prior geographic–phylogenetic tree of relationships to establish where and when languages were spoken. This is combined with estimates of humidity for those times and places, taken from historical climate models. We then estimate the strength of causal relationships in a causal path model, controlling for various influences of inheritance and borrowing. We find no evidence to support the previous claims that humidity affects the emergence of lexical tone. This study shows how using causal inference approaches lets us test complex causal claims about the cultural evolution of language.

Our understanding of the material organization of complex fluid flows has benefited recently from mathematical developments in the theory of objective coherent structures. These methods have provided a wealth of approaches that identify transport barriers in three-dimensional (3-D) turbulent flows. Specifically, theoretical advances have been incorporated into numerical algorithms that extract the most influential advective, diffusive and active barriers to transport from data sets in a frame-indifferent fashion. To date, however, there has been very limited investigation into these objectively defined transport barriers in 3-D unsteady flows with complicated spatiotemporal dynamics. Similarly, no systematic comparison of advective, diffusive and active barriers has been carried out in a 3-D flow with both thermally driven and mechanically modified structures. In our study, we utilize simulations of turbulent rotating Rayleigh–Bénard convection to uncover the interplay between advective transport barriers (Lagrangian coherent structures), material barriers to diffusive heat transport, and objective Eulerian barriers to momentum transport. For a range of (inverse) Rossby numbers, we identify each type of barrier and find intriguing relationships between momentum and heat transport that can be related to changes in the relative influence of mechanical and thermal forces. Further connections between bulk behaviours and structure-specific behaviours are also developed.

Moderate rotation and moderate horizontal confinement similarly enhance the heat transport in Rayleigh–Bénard convection (RBC). Here, we systematically investigate how these two types of flow stabilization together affect the heat transport. We conduct direct numerical simulations of confined-rotating RBC in a cylindrical set-up at Prandtl number $\textit {Pr}=4.38$, and various Rayleigh numbers $2\times 10^{8}\leqslant {\textit {Ra}}\leqslant 7\times 10^{9}$. Within the parameter space of rotation (given as inverse Rossby number $0\leqslant {\textit {Ro}}^{-1}\leqslant 40$) and confinement (given as height-to-diameter aspect ratio $2\leqslant \varGamma ^{-1}\leqslant 32$), we observe three heat transport maxima. At lower $ {\textit {Ra}}$, the combination of rotation and confinement can achieve larger heat transport than either rotation or confinement individually, whereas at higher $ {\textit {Ra}}$, confinement alone is most effective in enhancing the heat transport. Further, we identify two effects enhancing the heat transport: (i) the ratio of kinetic and thermal boundary layer thicknesses controlling the efficiency of Ekman pumping, and (ii) the formation of a stable domain-spanning flow for an efficient vertical transport of the heat through the bulk. Their interfering efficiencies generate the multiple heat transport maxima.

Introduction: When presenting to the Emergency Department (ED), the care of elderly patients residing in Long Term Care (LTC) can be complicated by threats to patient safety created by ineffective transitions of care. Though standardized inpatient handover tools exist, there has yet to be a universal tool adopted for transfers to the ED. In this study, we surveyed relevant stakeholders and identified what information is essential in the transitions of care for this vulnerable population. Methods: We performed a descriptive, cross sectional electronic survey that was distributed to physicians and nurses in ED and LTC settings, paramedics, and patient advocates in two Canadian cities. The survey was kept open for a one month period with weekly formal reminders sent. Questions were generated after performing a literature review which sought to assess the current landscape of transitional care in this population. These were either multiple choice or free text entry questions aimed at identifying what information is essential in transitional periods. Results: A total of 191 health care providers (HCP) and 22 patient advocates (PA) responded to the survey. Within the HCPs, 38% were paramedics, 38% worked in the ED, and 24% were in LTC. In this group, only 41% of respondents were aware of existing handover protocols. Of the proposed informational items in transitional care, 100% of the respondents within both groups indicated that items including reason for transfer and advanced care directives were essential. Other areas identified as necessary were past medical history and baseline functional status. Furthermore, the majority of PAs identified that items such as primary language, bowel and bladder incontinence and spiritual beliefs should be included. Conclusion: This survey demonstrated that there is a need for an improved handover culture to be established when caring for LTC patients in the ED. Education needs to be provided surrounding existing protocols to ensure that health care providers are aware of their existence. Furthermore, we identified what information is essential to transitional care of these patients according to HCPs and PAs. These findings will be used to generate a simple, one page handover form. The next iteration of this project will pilot this handover form in an attempt to create safer transitions to the ED in this at-risk population.

The chromosome 8q24 region (specifically, 8q24.21.a) is known to harbor variants associated with risk of breast, colorectal, prostate, and bladder cancers. In 2008, variants rs10505477 and rs6983267 in this region were associated with increased risk of invasive ovarian cancer (p < 0.01); however, three subsequent ovarian cancer reports of 8q24 variants were null. Here, we used a multi-site case-control study of 940 ovarian cancer cases and 1,041 controls to evaluate associations between these and other single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in this 8q24 region, as well as in the 9p24 colorectal cancer associated-region (specifically, 9p24.1.b). A total of 35 SNPs from previous reports and additional tagging SNPs were assessed using an Illumina GoldenGate array and analyzed using logistic regression models, adjusting for population structure and other potential confounders. We observed no association between genotypes and risk of ovarian cancer considering all cases, invasive cases, or invasive serous cases. For example, at 8q24 SNPs rs10505477 and rs6983267, analyses yielded per-allele invasive cancer odds ratios of 0.95 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.82–1.09, p trend 0.46) and 0.97 (95% CI 0.84–1.12, p trend 0.69), respectively. Analyses using an approach identical to that of the first positive 8q24 report also yielded no association with risk of ovarian cancer. In the 9p24 region, no SNPs were associated with risk of ovarian cancer overall or with invasive or invasive serous disease (all p values > 0.10). These results indicate that the SNPs studied here are not related to risk of this gynecologic malignancy and that the site-specific nature of 8q24.21.a associations may not include ovarian cancer.

A detector that looks promising for advanced imaging modalities—such as X-ray absorption contrast imaging, X-ray fluorescence imaging, and diffraction-enhanced imaging—is the controlled-drift detector (CDD). The CDD is a novel two-dimensional X-ray imager with energy resolving capability of spectroscopic quality. It is built on a fully depleted silicon wafer and features fast readout while being operated at or near room temperature. The use of CDDs in the aforementioned applications allows translating these techniques from synchrotron-based experiments to laboratory-size experiments using polychromatic X-ray generators. We have built a dedicated and versatile detection module based on a 36 mm2 CDD chip featuring pixels of 180 × 180 μm2, and we evaluated the system performance in different X-ray imaging applications both with synchrotron-based experiments and in the laboratory environment.

We have investigated the extent to which the emission wavelength of self-assembled InAs/GaAs quantum dots can be controlled by growth parameters using conventional solid source MBE. Changing from conventionally high growth rates to a very low growth rate (LGR) and a relatively high substrate temperature, tunes the photoluminescence (PL) emission from 1.1 μm to 1.3 μm at room temperature. Atomic force micrographs obtained from uncapped samples reveal that these LGRQDs are larger, lower in density and extremely uniform in size. The improved size uniformity is reflected in the reduction of the PL linewidth from 78 meV to 22 meV. Under conditions of high excitation, emission from the ground and two excited states each separated by ∼70 meV is observed. This implies a parabolic confining potential. Time resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) measurements of dots grown under the various growth conditions yield radiative lifetimes which reflect the depth of the confining potential. A comparison of the decay times measured for the excited states show that the relaxation of carriers within the dots cannot be ascribed to phonon effects.

The onset of copious milk secretion (lactogenesis II) in women occurs between 1 and 3 d after birth, and during this period the composition of breast milk changes. During the first 5 d of lactation we measured the concentrations of total, diffusible and ionized Ca (Catot, Cad, Ca2+), diffusible phosphate (Pid), diffusible citrate (Citd) and lactose in the breast milk. On day 1 after birth the concentrations (mean ± SEM) were Catot, 5·71±0·30 mM; Cad, 2·66±0·19 mM; Ca2+, 2·90 ±0·18 mM; Pid, 0·26±0·16 mM; Citd, 0·25±0·03 mai and lactose, 76±11 mM. Between day 1 and day 4 the concentration of Catot increased 1·7-fold to 9·56 ±0·39 mai, Cad increased 1·8-fold to 4·75±0·26 mM, Ca2+ decreased by 20% to 2·33 ± 0·13 mM, Pid increased 6·6-fold to 1·69±0·11 mM, Citd increased 20-fold to 5·06±0·21 mM, and lactose increased 2·3-fold to 173±4 mM. A high correlation has been found between [Cad] and [Citd] in the milk of both ruminant and non-ruminant species, which show a wide range in concentrations of [Cad] and [Citd], and the data fit a simple physicochemical model of ion equilibria in the aqueous phase of milk. The results of the present study confirm the relationship between [Cad] and [Citd] in human milk, even during lactogenesis II when the composition of the milk is changing very rapidly.