Is it possible to create a thermal model of warm-up? Monitoring of the training process in athletic decathlon

The aim of the present study was to define if the athletes may vary their warm-up according to the specific demands of event they are preparing for and that higher-level athletes may differ in their thermal responses than lower-level athletes. Ten top level Polish male decathletes (19.9 ± 3.0 yr, 187.9 ± 4.7 cm, 82.7 ± 6.7 kg) who participated in the study were examined with a thermographic camera. Thermal imaging of each athlete was undertaken three times: at rest before the warm-up began, immediately after the general warm-up, and immediately after the specific warm-up.As significant changes in skin surface temperatures were observed between rest and both general and specific warm-ups (p < 0.001) it seems that athletes are able to vary their warm-up according to the decathlon event. Moving from rest to the general warm-up was characterized by decrease of the body surface temperature within the decathletes as a cohort. Interestingly, correlation was found between decathlon result measured by points and decrease of temperatures after commencing the general or specific warm-up exercises (r = 0.62; p < 0.05). However, the higher-performing competitors were characterized by a higher variability of skin temperatures depending on the event being prepared for.The present findings suggest that in sporting competitions characterized by the need for specificity of warm-up of different muscular segments, thermal imaging can be useful observe thermoregulatory responses. Due to these observed individual thermal reactions to the physical effort of warm-up, the present findings suggest it is possible to individually adapt the warm-up to the needs of both the event being prepared for and the level of athlete.     

A statistical process control approach to selecting a warm-up period for a discrete-event simulation

The selection of a warm-up period for a discrete-event simulation continues to be problematic. A variety of selection methods have been devised, and are briefly reviewed. It is apparent that no one method can be recommended above any other. A new approach, based upon the principles of statistical process control, is described (SPC method). Because simulation output data are often highly autocorrelated and potentially non-normal, the batch means method is employed in constructing the control chart. The SPC method is tested on seven data sets and encouraging results are obtained concerning its accuracy. The approach is also discussed with respect to its ease of implementation, simplicity, generality of use and requirements for parameter estimation.     

What happens during vocal warm-up?

Most singers prefer to warm up their voices before performing. Although the subjective effect is often considerable, the underlying physiological effects are largely unknown. Because warm-up tends to increase blood flow in muscles, it seems likely that vocal warm-up might induce decreased viscosity in the vocal folds. According to the theory of vocal-fold vibration, such a decrease should lead to a lower phonation threshold pressure. In this investigation the effect of vocal warm-up on the phonation threshold pressure was examined in a group of male and female singers. The effect varied considerably between subjects, presumably because the vocal-fold viscosity was not a dominating factor for the phonation-threshold pressure.     

Effects of a vocally fatiguing task and systemic hydration on phonation threshold pressure

Phonation threshold pressure (PTP), effort for speaking, and vibratory closure pattern were assessed in 4 women with normal untrained voices after 2 hours of loud reading. PTP generally increased after this vocally fatiguing task at conversational pitch and 10%, 50%, and especially 80% of the pitch range. Increased systemic hydration by drinking water appeared to attenuate and/or delay the elevation of PTP for 3 subjects, at least at the highest pitch tested. Effort for speaking increased consistently throughout the loud reading task and subsequently decreased after 15 minutes of vocal silence. Upon videostroboscopic examination of the larynx, 3 subjects demonstrated spindle-shaped vibratory closure patterns on occasion after loud reading. The results provide preliminary support for increasing water consumption to reduce or delay some vocal-function changes after prolonged loud phonation in untrained speakers.     

Time-of-day effects on voice range profile performance in young, vocally untrained adult females

Time-of-day effects on voice range profile performance were investigated in 20 vocally healthy untrained women between the ages of 18 and 35 years. Each subject produced two complete voice range profiles: one in the morning and one in the evening, about 36 hours apart. The order of morning and evening trials was counterbalanced across subjects. Dependent variables were (1) average minimum and average maximum intensity, (2) Voice range profile area and (3) center of gravity (median semitone pitch and median intensity). In this study, the results failed to reveal any clear evidence of time-of-day effects on voice range profile performance, for any of the dependent variables. However, a reliable interaction of time-of-day and trial order was obtained for average minimum intensity. Investigation of other subject populations, in particular trained vocalists or those with laryngeal lesions, is required for any generalization of the results.     

超导四极磁体降温和升温过程的数值模拟

 超导四极(SCQ)磁体是北京正负电子对撞机重大升级改造中的新增关键设备之一，在磁体降温和升温过程中，温度梯度引起的过大热应力有可能毁坏磁体。从SCQ磁体安全运行角度来研究该磁体降温和升温过程，提出了SCQ磁体降温和升温的数值模型。利用该模型计算得到降温和升温时间分别为120 min和150 min。考察了氦流进出磁体温度、压力、磁体上最高温度和最低温度以及最大温差的变化过程。降温过程中磁体上的最大温差为46.5 K，升温过程中磁体上的最大温差为47.3 K。降温过程中氦流最大压力为0.39 MPa，升温过程最大压力为0.41 MPa。为保证磁体安全运行，应小心调节混合气的温度，尽量使磁体上的温度分布均匀后再注入4.5 K或300 K的氦气。     

Objective Analysis of Vocal Warm-Up with Special Reference to Ergonomic Factors

Vocal warm-up was studied in terms of changes in voice parameters during a 45-minute vocal loading session in the morning. The voices of a randomly chosen group of 40 female and 40 male young students were loaded by having them read a novel aloud. The exposure groups (5 females and 5 males per cell) consisted of eight combinations of the following factors: (1) low (25 +/- 5%) or high (65 +/- 5%) relative humidity of ambient air; (2) low [< 65 dB(SPL)] or high [> 65 dB(SPL)] speech output level during vocal loading; (3) sitting or standing posture during vocal loading. Two sets of voice samples were recorded: a resting sample before the loading session and a loading sample after the loading session. The material recorded consisted of /pa:ppa/ words produced normally, as softly and as loudly as possible in this order by all subjects. The long /a/ vowel of the test word was inverse-filtered to obtain the glottal flow waveform. Time domain parameters of the glottal flow [open quotient (OQ), closing quotient (CQ), speed quotient (SQ), fundamental frequency (F0)], amplitude domain parameters of the glottal flow [glottal flow (fAC) and its logarithm, minimum of the first derivative of the glottal flow (dpeak) and its logarithm, amplitude quotient (AQ), and a new parameter, CQAQ], intraoral pressure (p), and sound pressure level (SPL) values of the phonations were analyzed. Voice range profiles (VRP) and the singer's formant (g/G, a/A, cl/c, e1/e, g1/g for females/males) of the loud phonation were also measured. Statistically significant differences between the preloading and postloading samples could be seen in many parameters, but the differences depended on gender and the type of phonation. In females the values of CQ, AQ, and CQAQ decreased and the values of SQ and p increased in normal phonations; the values of fAC, dpeak, and SPL increased in soft phonations; the values of AQ and CQAQ decreased in loud phonations; the harmonic energy in the singer's formant region increased significantly at every pitch. In males the values of OQ and AQ decreased and the values of dpeak, F0, p, and SPL increased in normal phonations; the values of fAC and p increased in soft phonations. The changes could be interpreted as signs of a shift toward hyperfunctional voice production. Low humidity was associated with more hyperfunctional changes than high humidity. High output was associated with more hyperfunctional changes than low output. Sitting position was associated with an increasing trend at both margins of male VRP, whereas the case was the opposite for standing position.