Reduced System Complexity of Heart Rate Dynamics in Patients with Hyperthyroidism: A Multiscale Entropy Analysis

Studying heart rate dynamics would help understand the effects caused by a hyperkinetic heart in patients with hyperthyroidism. By using a multiscale entropy (MSE) analysis of heart rate dynamics derived from one-channel electrocardiogram recording, we aimed to compare the system complexity of heart rate dynamics between hyperthyroid patients and control subjects. A decreased MSE complexity index (CI) computed from MSE analysis reflects reduced system complexity. Compared with the control subjects (n = 37), the hyperthyroid patients (n = 37) revealed a significant decrease (p < 0.001) in MSE CI (hyperthyroid patients 10.21 ± 0.37 versus control subjects 14.08 ± 0.21), sample entropy for each scale factor (from 1 to 9), and high frequency power (HF) as well as a significant increase (p < 0.001) in low frequency power (LF) in normalized units (LF%) and ratio of LF to HF (LF/HF). In conclusion, besides cardiac autonomic dysfunction, the system complexity of heart rate dynamics is reduced in hyperthyroidism. This finding implies that the adaptability of the heart rate regulating system is impaired in hyperthyroid patients. Additionally, it might explain the exercise intolerance experienced by hyperthyroid patients. In addition, hyperthyroid patients and control subjects could be distinguished by the MSE CI computed from MSE analysis of heart rate dynamics.     

Theoretical Model of Possible Disturbances in the Nighttime Mid-Latitude Ionospheric D Region over an Area of Strong-Earthquake Preparation

We present a theoretical model of possible electron-density disturbances in the nighttime mid-latitude ionospheric D region, preceding strong earthquakes. It is found that the electron density in the nighttime D region over an earthquake epicentral zone can considerably increase before severe earthquakes. The horizontal size of the area of disturbed electron density is about 300 km. The disturbance effect is expected to be more pronounced if a powerful VLF transmitter operates in the vicinity of an imminent earthquake epicentral zone. In this case, a very dense ionization layer of daytime D-layer type can be formed at the altitudes of the upper nighttime mesosphere and can give rise to the effect of strong absorption of HF radio waves propagating over the earthquake preparation area.     

Amplitude scintillations of ATS-6 radio beacon signals within the equatorial electrojet region (Ootacamund,dip 4° N)

The recordings of the amplitudes of radio beacon signals on 40, 140 and 360 MHz from ATS-6 (at 34° E longitude) recorded at Ootacamund, India (11.43° N, 76.70°E, dip 4°N, elevation angle 41°) have revealed largest occurrence of scintillations for about 60% of cases around 2200 hr during the nighttime, and two secondary peaks (25% of cases) around 0900 hr and 1400 hr during the daytime. During the daytime, the scintillation decreases approximately as the inverse of the frequency for higher frequencies while for lower frequencies the law is valid till scintillation index at 40 MHz does not exceed 0.9. The temporal variation of daytime scintillation shows impulsive character, the duration of activity lasts for 1–2 hours at a time. During the nighttime, the scintillation decreases inversely with frequency for weak and moderate scintillation activity. The scintillation index at 360 MHz becomes independent of that at 140 MHz when the index at 140 MHz exceeds 0.85. For the set of frequencies 40–140 MHz, on some occasions scintillation index at 40 MHz is seen to be less than that at 140 MHz. The nighttime scintillations are in general stronger and remain so for extended length of time. The daytime scintillations are suggested to be due to blanketing or some other non-q type of sporadicE layer. The nighttime scintillations are most probably due to spreadF condition and the abnormal frequency variation of the scintillations may be due to multiple scattering layer during periods of intense spreadF.     

应用多尺度化的基本尺度熵分析心率变异性

本文采用多尺度化的基本尺度熵方法,针对心率变异性信号进行了分析,研究发现多尺度化的基本尺度熵可以区分不同生理病理信号,包括健康人、充血性心力衰竭患者和房颤心律失常患者的心率变异性信号,以及健康人白天黑夜的心率变异性信号.通过对健康人代理数据的分析,发现房颤心律失常患者与代理数据的熵值趋势相似,研究结果表明房颤心律失常患者的心率变异性信号更多的是反映生理信号的线性特征,而对环境变化不能很好的进行自我调节. 关键词： 多尺度化的基本尺度熵 心率变异性 充血性心力衰竭 房颤心律失常     

Low Earth orbit satellite-to-ground optical scintillation: comparison of experimental observations and theoretical predictions

Scintillation measurements of a 1064 nm laser at a 5 kHz sampling rate were made by an optical ground station at the European Space Agency observatory in Tenerife, Spain while tracking a low Earth orbit satellite during the spring and summer of 2010. The scintillation index (SI), the variance of irradiance normalized to the square of the mean, and power spectra measurements were compared to theoretical predictions based on the Kolmogorov spectrum, the Maui3 nighttime turbulence profile, weak scintillation finite-beam wave theory, included receiver, and source aperture averaging with no free-fitting parameters. Good agreement was obtained, not only for the magnitude of the observed fluctuations, but also for the corresponding elevation angle dependence and shape of the power spectra. Little variation was seen for the SI between daytime and nighttime links. For all elevation angles, ascending and descending, the observed scintillation over extensive regions of the atmosphere is consistent with log-normal statistics. Additionally, it appears from the results presented here that the nighttime turbulence profile for the atmosphere above the observatory in Tenerife is similar to that above Haleakala in Maui, Hawaii.     

Sounding of the ionosphere disturbed by the “Sura” heating facility radiation using signals of the GPS satellites

We present the results of experimental studies of the properties of the plasma-density disturbances created during heating of the ionospheric F₂ region by high-power HF radio waves radiated by the “Sura” heating facility (Radiophysical Research Institute, Nizhny Novgorod). These experiments are specific in that they were performed in a sunlit (daytime) ionosphere when the generation of ionospheric turbulence has specific features and the turbulence intensity level is low enough. The plasma-density disturbances induced by high-power HF radio emission were sounded by signals of the GPS satellites, the line of sight to which crossed different parts of the disturbed ionosphere region. Threshold powers of the excitation of artificial plasma-density variations as well as spatial, temporal, spectral, and energy characteristics of the generated disturbances are determined.     

24 h continuous observation of sodium layer over Wuhan by lidar

Based on the dual-wavelength lidar we have developed, the 24 h continuous ob- servation has been realized in its sodium channel by using Faraday atomic filter technology and other relevant technologies. This will facilitate the continuous ob- servation of the sodium layer and the relevant upper atmosphere over Wuhan. A result of about 50 h observation indicates that the daytime column density of so- dium layer over Wuhan is slightly increased compared to that during the nighttime, and the characteristics of the sporadic sodium layer occurring during the daytime are compared with that during the nighttime.     

Study of small variations of troposphere parameters by the radioacoustic sounding method

We consider a method based on the study of signal amplitude and phase variations in the radioacoustic sounding (RAS) of the atmosphere for the diagnostics of dynamical and wave processes in the troposphere. We give experimental data on phase variations of the RAS signal from scan to scan in daytime and nighttime sessions. Variations of the signal phase with characteristic time greater than 40 min are likely due to the passage of internal gravity waves (IGW) through the sounding region. The experimental data are in good agreement with the results of computer simulation of IGW propagation. Radiophysical Research Institute, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia. Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Radiofizika, Vol. 40, No. 11, pp. 1355–1364, November, 1997.     

心率变异性分析在新生儿疼痛检测中的应用

为了研究疼痛暴露对新生儿自主神经系统的影响,并建立基于心率变异性(heart rate variability,HRV)指标的新生儿疼痛检测模型,采用时域、频域和非线性方法对40名新生儿疼痛暴露前后的心电数据进行短时HRV分析,Wilcoxon符号秩检验用于统计分析,支持向量机(support vector machine,SVM)用于建立检测模型.结果表明,RR间期均值a RR、低频段功率LF、高频段功率HF等3个线性指标和近似熵Ap En、样本熵Samp En、递归率REC等9个非线性指标在疼痛前后具有统计学差异;基于a RR、相邻两个RR间期对差值大于50 ms的百分比p NN50,Ap En,关联维D2和REC等5个指标和SVM的疼痛检测模型检测正确率达到83.75%.HRV的相关指标可反映新生儿自主神经系统对疼痛暴露的应答,基于HRV指标和SVM的模型可用于新生儿疼痛检测.     

Comparative characterization of two-electron wavefunctions using information-theory measures

Information-theory measures, in particular the Shannon entropy, Fisher information and statistical complexity, are used to discuss the variations among several commonly encountered model two-electron correlated wavefunctions. The Hookean, Moshinsky, and three-parameter Chandrasekhar wavefunctions are considered in real and momentum space, with further comparisons to the Hookean-Hartree-Fock (HF) wavefunction of Ragot, the numerical HF limit, and the hydrogenic (pure Coulomb) limit. The purpose of the study is to quantitatively analyze the effect of different models for inclusion of electron-electron correlation on information-theoretical measures, including statistical complexity, which characterize the electron distribution in position and momentum space.     

北京城市公园冬季声景特征

北京地区冬季气候寒冷干燥,植被郁闭度降低,地球物理声增加,生物声减少。为探测北京冬季声景变化基本特征,根据地图“十字型”筛选10个城市公园,记录分析绿地内冬季声景的构成情况和昼夜变化规律。结果表明：城市公园冬季声景中人工声较多,生物声明显著少于其他季节,而且人工声昼间少于夜间,生物声昼间多于夜间;在公园人工声源分类中,机械电子声最多,其次是话语声,活动声最少;冬季人工声峰值普遍存在于清晨6:00–7:00时,在昼间的波动变化明显,于夜间趋于稳定,生物声峰值出现在上午8:00–9:00时,谷值出现在凌晨3:00时左右;人工声与公园面积、公园年龄和时刻变化未见显著相关性,生物声与公园面积呈显著负相关。实验发现城市公园冬季声景呈现出与其他季节声景的显著不同,生物的节律性变化导致冬季声景产生了较为显著的变化。     

Mixing Bandt-Pompe and Lempel-Ziv approaches: another way to analyze the complexity of continuous-state sequences

In this paper, we propose to mix the approach underlying Bandt-Pompe permutation entropy with Lempel-Ziv complexity, to design what we call Lempel-Ziv permutation complexity. The principle consists of two steps: (i) transformation of a continuous-state series that is intrinsically multivariate or arises from embedding into a sequence of permutation vectors, where the components are the positions of the components of the initial vector when re-arranged; (ii) performing the Lempel-Ziv complexity for this series of ‘symbols’, as part of a discrete finite-size alphabet. On the one hand, the permutation entropy of Bandt-Pompe aims at the study of the entropy of such a sequence; i.e., the entropy of patterns in a sequence (e.g., local increases or decreases). On the other hand, the Lempel-Ziv complexity of a discrete-state sequence aims at the study of the temporal organization of the symbols (i.e., the rate of compressibility of the sequence). Thus, the Lempel-Ziv permutation complexity aims to take advantage of both of these methods. The potential from such a combined approach – of a permutation procedure and a complexity analysis – is evaluated through the illustration of some simulated data and some real data. In both cases, we compare the individual approaches and the combined approach.     

戈壁地区折射率结构常数高度分布的统计特性

通过以系留气球和探空气球为平台的方式, 搭载温度脉动仪在戈壁地区对大气折射率结构常数开展长期测量。对获取的实验数据开展统计分析, 探讨了在白天与夜间折射率结构常数的平均情况、高度分布、偏度与峰度、季节的强弱特性等四个方面的内容, 结果表明:在测量地区, 随高度分布的大气折射率结构常数在白天和夜间的算术平均值和对数平均值的比值会有较大的差异, 并且白天和夜间的对数平均值和标准差系数随高度分布各有其特点, 表现在随高度整体减小的同时会有起伏出现, 尤其是夜间;白天和夜间的偏度与峰度主要表现出右偏和尖峰特性, 在高度分布上有所不同;季节变化对湍流的强弱分布产生明显影响, 集中体现在中性湍流和弱湍流分布情况随高度发生交互变化。     

Latitudinal structure of the longitudinal effect in the nighttime ionosphere during the summer and winter solstice

The paper reports the basic morphological characteristics of the longitudinal variations of the electron density in the nighttime F region of the ionosphere at different latitudes obtained from data collected by the Intercosmos-19 satellite and from the results of calculations within the framework of the Global Self-Consistent Model of the Thermosphere, Ionosphere, and Protonosphere (GSM TIP). Based on the Intercosmos-19 satellite data for a high solar activity, spatial distributions of the critical frequency foF2 of the F2 layer for near-midnight hours of the local time are plotted. The study revealed the main features of the mechanisms of the formation of longitudinal features of the nighttime ionosphere at various latitudes during the summer and winter solstices, as well as two reasons for their occurrence. In particular, we consider (1) the mechanisms of the formation of the nighttime peaks at the longitudes of the Yakutsk anomaly and Weddell Sea anomaly, (2) manifestations of longitudinal variations of the main ionospheric trough, and (3) the longitudinal dependence of the disappearance of the equatorial anomaly during the June and December solstices.     

Determination of largest lyapunov exponents of vocal signal: Application to unilateral laryngeal paralysis

It has been shown that voice signal abnormalities, particularly in unilateral laryngeal paralysis (ULP), are not always randomly distributed and that "statistical" indexes of regularity, such as jitter and shimmer, may be unreliable in these cases. The techniques of nonlinear dynamics, particularly phase portraits, have been used to demonstrate that some of the abnormalities observed were the consequence of nonlinearity of glottic function. From a theoretical point of view, determination of Lyapunov exponents allows quantification of the complexity of the phase portraits. The authors studied vocal signals recorded in 12 normal subjects and 26 patients with ULP and calculated the largest Lyapunov exponent (LLE). In normal subjects, LLE mean value was 0.380 (SD = 0.182). In patients with ULP, LLE mean value was 0.570 (SD = 0.337). The difference is significant at P = 0.031. Determination of LLE was compared to more "classical" indexes such as jitter and oral airflow during phonation. A principal component analysis showed that information contained in LLE was not redundant but complementary to the other parameters.     

Effects of HearFones on speaking and singing voice quality

HearFones (HF) have been designed to enhance auditory feedback during phonation. This study investigated the effects of HF (1) on sound perceivable by the subject, (2) on voice quality in reading and singing, and (3) on voice production in speech and singing at the same pitch and sound level.

Test 1: Text reading was recorded with two identical microphones in the ears of a subject. One ear was covered with HF, and the other was free. Four subjects attended this test. Tests 2 and 3: A reading sample was recorded from 13 subjects and a song from 12 subjects without and with HF on. Test 4: Six females repeated [pa:p:a] in speaking and singing modes without and with HF on same pitch and sound level.

Long-term average spectra were made (Tests 1–3), and formant frequencies, fundamental frequency, and sound level were measured (Tests 2 and 3). Subglottic pressure was estimated from oral pressure in [p], and simultaneously electroglottography (EGG) was registered during voicing on [a:] (Test 4). Voice quality in speech and singing was evaluated by three professional voice trainers (Tests 2–4).

HF seemed to enhance sound perceivable at the whole range studied (0–8 kHz), with the greatest enhancement (up to ca 25 dB) being at 1–3 kHz and at 4–7 kHz. The subjects tended to decrease loudness with HF (when sound level was not being monitored). In more than half of the cases, voice quality was evaluated “less strained” and “better controlled” with HF. When pitch and loudness were constant, no clear differences were heard but closed quotient of the EGG signal was higher and the signal more skewed, suggesting a better glottal closure and/or diminished activity of the thyroarytenoid muscle.     

Behavioral fractality in marine copepods: Endogenous rhythms versus exogenous stressors

The presence of endogenous rhythms in the swimming behavior of five common species of copepods (i.e. minute marine crustaceans) was investigated through comparisons of the scaling properties of their three-dimensional trajectories and cumulative probability distribution functions of move lengths recorded during the day and at night. Beside clear inter-specific differences in their behavioral scaling properties, the five species exhibited an increase in path tortuosity at night, consistent with an increase in food foraging activity. Given the absence of food under all experimental conditions, this suggests the presence of an endogenous swimming rhythm consistent with the widely reported pattern of ascent at dusk resulting in copepods entering the food-rich surface layer at night. The impact of the stress exerted on swimming behavior by changes in the light regime (i.e. light and dark conditions respectively experienced at night and during the day) and the related copepod behavioral adaptivity was also investigated. The low and high fractal dimensions respectively observed during daytime in the dark and during night-time under conditions of simulated daytime indicate that these organisms have the ability to adjust the complexity of their swimming path depending on exogenous factors, independent of their actual endogenous rhythms. The scaling exponents of the cumulative probability distribution function of move lengths exhibit a significant decrease during daylight hours under simulated night-time conditions and during the night under simulated daytime conditions, suggesting an increase in the stress levels experienced by the five species considered. It is finally shown that the stress exerted on endogenous behavioral diel variability by exogenous cues has a species-specific effect on copepods.     

Noise levels in Johns Hopkins Hospital

This article presents the results of a noise survey at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD. Results include equivalent sound pressure levels (L(eq)) as a function of location, frequency, and time of day. At all locations and all times of day, the L(eq) indicate that a serious problem exists. No location is in compliance with current World Health Organization Guidelines, and a review of objective data indicates that this is true of hospitals throughout the world. Average equivalent sound levels are in the 50-60 dB(A) range for 1 min, 1/2, and 24 h averaging time periods. The spectra are generally flat over the 63-2000 Hz octave bands, with higher sound levels at lower frequencies, and a gradual roll off above 2000 Hz. Many units exhibit little if any reduction of sound levels in the nighttime. Data gathered at various hospitals over the last 45 years indicate a trend of increasing noise levels during daytime and nighttime hours. The implications of these results are significant for patients, visitors, and hospital staff.     

Relationship between visual counts and call detection rates of gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) in Laguna San Ignacio, Mexico

Daily acoustic calling rates of Eastern North Pacific (ENP) gray whales were measured on 6 days during 1 mo of their 2008 breeding season in the sheltered coastal lagoon of Laguna San Ignacio in Baja California, Mexico. Visual counts of whales determined that the numbers of single animals in the lower lagoon more than tripled over the observation period. All call types showed production peaks in the early morning and evening with minimum rates generally detected in the early afternoon. For four of the five observation days, the daily number of "S1"-type calls increased roughly as the square of the number of the animals in the lower lagoon during both daytime and nighttime. This relationship persisted when raw call counts were adjusted for variations in background noise level, using a simple propagation law derived from empirical measurements. The one observation day that did not fit the square-law relationship occurred during a week when the group size in the lagoon increased rapidly. These results suggest that passive acoustic monitoring does not measure gray whale group size directly but monitors the number of connections in the social network, which rises as roughly M(2)/2 for a group size M.     

机载海洋激光测深系统参量设计与最大探测深度能力分析

详细讨论了机载海洋激光测深系统最大测量深度与相关因子之间的关系，并利用最小可探测信噪比为判据，对机载海洋激光测深系统在白天和晚上工作进行了数值模拟，通过比较最大测量深度与激光脉冲峰值功率、接收视场角、接收口径和光谱接收带宽等关系，确定了系统的主要参量。以确定的参量建立的系统具有白天49m和晚上65m的最大测深能力，可完全满足在沿岸带以及岛礁的测量要求。