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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

A Model Based Approach to Extract Health Information from Textual Data

In current nuclear power plants (NPPs) a large amount of condition-based data is being generated and stored to assess and monitor component health and performance. The format of this data can be either numeric (e.g., pump vibration data) or textual (e.g., condition report which assess component health). While assessing component health from numeric data can be performed with a large variety of methods, the extraction of information from textual data still remains a challenge. Natural language processing (NLP) methods are starting to be deployed in current NPPs mainly to filter out incident reports (IRs) that are not safety related by employing supervised machine learning methods. However, these methods do not really provide the quantitative information that might be contained in IRs. This paper presents an approach to extract information from textual data (e.g., from IRs, maintenance reports) that is based on NLP data analytics methods coupled with model-based system engineer (MBSE) models. NLP methods are employed to perform syntactic and semantic analyses. Syntactic analysis analyzes the grammatical structure of a sentence; such analysis includes: part of speech (POS) tagging (i.e., identification of grammatic elements of each string - e.g., nouns, verbs), named entity recognition (i.e., identification of text entities - e.g., names, dates, events), and relation extraction (e.g., coreference resolution). On the other hand, semantic analysis is designed to analyze the logic structure of a sentence. Through a specific set of rules, our methods can identify whether a sentence contains health information of a component (e.g., degraded performance, anomaly behavior) or the causal relationship between two events (i.e., a cause-effect pair). An innovative element of our approach is that semantic analysis relies on MBSE models to identify links between textual elements. MBSE are diagrams designed to represent system and component dependencies (from both a form and functional point of view). In our approach, MBSE models emulate system engineer knowledge about component/system architecture. This paper presents in detail how the integration of NLP methods and MBSE models is performed. Few analysis examples focusing on centrifugal pumps are presented.

97 - MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Shifting temporal dynamics of human mobility in the United States

In this paper we analyze the average hourly temporal dynamics of human mobility in the United States from 2019 to 2020. We discuss how large decreases in human mobility nonuniformly effect the daily temporal dynamics of aggregate human behavior. The data used are weekly activity patterns for POIs from 2019 to 2020 in the United States, provided by SafeGraph and made openly available to academic and research institutions. We use clustering methods to create metrics describing how human activity changes throughout the day/week at the county and national levels. In response to significant mobility reductions starting March 2020, daily temporal patterns of human activity changed nonuniformly. Morning activity started later, and evening activity started earlier in 2020 compared to 2019, and temporal behavioral patterns on weekdays began to look more similar to weekends. The changes in daily temporal behavior persisted throughout the year even as total mobility levels recovered. The results provide insights on the changes in human behavior in response covid-19 policies and illustrate influences on social systems, health, and transportation networks.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Gut microbiome partially mediates and coordinates the effects of genetics on anxiety-like behavior in Collaborative Cross mice

Abstract Growing evidence suggests that the gut microbiome (GM) plays a critical role in health and disease. However, the contribution of GM to psychiatric disorders, especially anxiety, remains unclear. We used the Collaborative Cross (CC) mouse population-based model to identify anxiety associated host genetic and GM factors. Anxiety-like behavior of 445 mice across 30 CC strains was measured using the light/dark box assay and documented by video. A custom tracking system was developed to quantify seven anxiety-related phenotypes based on video. Mice were assigned to a low or high anxiety group by consensus clustering using seven anxiety-related phenotypes. Genome-wide association analysis (GWAS) identified 141 genes (264 SNPs) significantly enriched for anxiety and depression related functions. In the same CC cohort, we measured GM composition and identified five families that differ between high and low anxiety mice. Anxiety level was predicted with 79% accuracy and an AUC of 0.81. Mediation analyses revealed that the genetic contribution to anxiety was partially mediated by the GM. Our findings indicate that GM partially mediates and coordinates the effects of genetics on anxiety.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

The modeling of risk perception in the use of structural health monitoring information for optimal maintenance decisions

This paper proposes an approach to select a maintenance strategy from a predefined set of choices considering the decision maker’s behavioral risk profile. It is assumed that the damage state is characterized by a continuous state parameter probabilistically inferred from observable sensor data. This work applies an engineering application of consequence-based decision-making incorporating the acceptable risk intensity of the decision-maker, i.e., the decision-maker’s (individual or an organization) valuation of the outcome of a decision, using a risk profile model. The utility of a decision-maker is subjective, and this paper considers the fact that different decision-makers mentally assign a different importance factor (the utility) to the seriousness or urgency to take necessary actions with the increasing intensity of structural damage. The approach herein incorporates a layer of human psychology on selecting appropriate maintenance strategies that not only depend on the posterior distribution of unmeasurable damage state but also consider the behavioral risk profile of the decision-maker. Further, the collective decision-making of an organization consisting of many individuals is also investigated. The approach is exemplified in a case study involving life cycle monitoring of a miter gate, part of a lock system enabling navigation of inland waterways.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

A surrogate-model-based approach for estimating the first and second-order moments of offshore wind power

Power curve, the functional relationship that governs the process of converting a set of weather variables experienced by a wind turbine into electric power, is widely used in the wind industry to estimate power output for planning and operational purposes. Existing methods for power curve estimation have three main limitations: (i) they mostly rely on wind speed as the sole input, thus ignoring the secondary, yet possibly significant effects of other environmental factors, (ii) they largely overlook the complex marine environment in which offshore turbines operate, potentially compromising their value in offshore wind energy applications, and (ii) they solely focus on the first-order properties of wind power, with little (or null) information about the variation around the mean behavior, which is important for ensuring reliable grid integration, asset health monitoring, and energy storage, among others. In light of that, this study investigates the impact of several wind-and wave-related factors on offshore wind power variability, with the ultimate goal of accurately predicting its first two moments. Further, our approach couples OpenFAST—a multi-physics wind turbine simulator—with Gaussian Process (GP) regression to reveal the underlying relationships governing offshore weather-to-power conversion. We first find that a multi-input power curve which captures the combined impact of wind speed, direction, and air density, can provide double-digit improvements, in terms of prediction accuracy, relative to univariate methods which rely on wind speed as the sole explanatory variable (e.g. the standard method of bins). Wave-related variables are found not important for predicting the average power output, but interestingly, appear to be extremely relevant in describing the fluctuation of the offshore power around its mean. Tested on real-world data collected at the New York/New Jersey bight, our proposed multi-input models demonstrate a high explanatory power in predicting the first two moments of offshore wind generation, testifying their potential value to the offshore wind industry.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Protecting building occupants against the inhalation of outdoor-origin aerosols

During normal operations, buildings can protect their occupants from outdoor airborne particle hazards of all types, including airborne pollutants. A long-term international research effort has advanced our knowledge of building protection physics. Recently we have developed an operationally efficient, regional-scale methodology - Regional Shelter Analysis - to account for both building protection effects and the typical distribution of people in and among buildings. To provide input to this capability, we estimate here the degree of protection afforded by the currently existing US building stock. Here, we first assemble and summarize the published literature relevant to indoor particle losses including (a) deposition to indoor surfaces, (b) losses that occur when particles penetrate through the building envelope, and (c) heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system filtration efficiencies as well as general building operating conditions. Building protection against inhaling particulate hazards varies strongly, by orders of magnitude, according to particle size, airborne particle loss rate, and to a lesser extent building use (occupancy). Protection increases modestly as particle size increases from 0.1 to 1 μm and significantly as particle size increases from 1 to 10 μm. Model results are placed in context with previously reported measurements. Suggestions for future work, including enhanced validation datasets are provided.

63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTAN↗
DOE OSTI2021

Genetic background influences the effect of thirdhand smoke exposure on anxiety and memory in Collaborative Cross mice

Growing evidence indicates that thirdhand smoke (THS) exposure induces many adverse health effects. However, it is unclear how THS exposure affects behavior and how host genetic background modulates phenotypic changes. Here we used the Collaborative Cross (CC) mouse population-based model to assess behavioral alterations immediately after THS exposure from 4 to 9 weeks of age. We first measured anxiety-like behavior in six strains using light/dark box combined with a custom multivariate mouse tracking system. We developed an anxiety risk scoring system based on anxiety-related traits and then evaluated the THS impact on them. THS exposure significantly decreased anxiety risk in CC019 ( P = 0.002) and CC051 ( P = 0.009), but increased anxiety risk in CC036 ( P < 0.001), while the other three strains did not show significant changes in anxiety-related traits. Such differences were driven by female mice for the six measures of anxiety-like behavior. Memory potential was measured in the same cohort of mice using the passive avoidance assay. Both THS-exposed male and female CC019 mice displayed significant memory loss compared to controls while no significant changes were found in the other five strains. This study provides strong evidence that THS exposure leads to strain-dependent changes in anxiety-like behavior and memory, suggesting that host genetic variations play a critical role in individual susceptibility to THS-induced effects.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

Near-infrared nanosensors enable optical imaging of oxytocin with selectivity over vasopressin in acute mouse brain slices

Oxytocin plays a critical role in regulating social behaviors, yet our understanding of its function in both neurological health and disease remains incomplete. Real-time oxytocin imaging probes with spatiotemporal resolution relevant to its endogenous signaling are required to fully elucidate oxytocin’s role in the brain. Herein, we describe a near-infrared oxytocin nanosensor (nIROXT), a synthetic probe capable of imaging oxytocin in the brain without interference from its structural analogue, vasopressin. nIROXT leverages the inherent tissue-transparent fluorescence of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) and the molecular recognition capacity of an oxytocin receptor peptide fragment to selectively and reversibly image oxytocin. We employ these nanosensors to monitor electrically stimulated oxytocin release in brain tissue, revealing oxytocin release sites with a median size of 3 µm in the paraventricular nucleus of C57BL/6 mice, which putatively represents the spatial diffusion of oxytocin from its point of release. These data demonstrate that covalent SWCNT constructs, such as nIROXT, are powerful optical tools that can be leveraged to measure neuropeptide release in brain tissue.

Science & Technology - Other Topics↗
DOE OSTI2026

Corn grown on dredged sediments alters rat behavior in the elevated plus maze via the gut mycobiome

The use of marginal lands for growing food has increased worldwide. Many of these lands are supplemented with soil amendments to enhance their productivity, but they may also introduce contaminants depending on their origin. The use of sediments dredged from commercial waterways as a soil amendment has increased in recent years. However, there is significant concern regarding their potential to negatively affect public health by transferring contaminants, like metals, to the food supply. This study examined the behavior, microbiome and physiology of rats fed corn grown on dredged sediments with rats fed commercial feed corn and related those metrics to kernel metal content. Metal content did not differ between kernels grown on dredged sediments and feed corn for most metals except iron which was greater in commercial feed corn. Although there is some variability by animal response, animals fed corn grown on dredged sediments had a gut microbial community that generally promoted anxiety-like behavior while animals fed feed corn had a gut microbial community that promoted a more typical response. These findings suggest the effect of corn grown on dredged sediments on public health is complex and highlights the need for further investigation.

Rua, Megan [Wright State University, Dayton, OH]↗
DOE OSTI2024

The relationship between stress, anxiety and eating behavior among Chinese students: a cross-sectional study

Background The expansion of higher education and the growing number of college students have led to increased awareness of mental health issues such as stress, anxiety, and eating disorders. In China, the educational system and cultural expectations contribute to the stress experienced by college students. This study aims to clarify the role of anxiety as a mediator in the relationship between stress and eating behaviors among Chinese college students. Methods This study utilized data from the 2021 Psychology and Behavior Investigation of Chinese Residents, which included 1,672 college students under the age of 25. The analysis methods comprised descriptive statistics, t -tests, Pearson correlation analyses, and mediation effect analysis. Results The findings indicate that Chinese college students experience high levels of stress, with long-term stress slightly exceeding short-term stress. Both types of stress were positively correlated with increased anxiety and the adoption of unhealthy eating behaviors. Anxiety was identified as a significant mediator, accounting for 28.3% of the relationship between long-term stress and eating behavior (95% CI = 0.058–0.183). The mediation effect of short-term stress on eating behavior through anxiety was also significant, explaining 61.4% of the total effect (95% CI = 0.185–0.327). Conclusion The study underscores the importance of stress management and mental health services for college students. It recommends a comprehensive approach to reducing external pressures, managing anxiety, and promoting healthy eating behaviors among college students. Suggestions include expanding employment opportunities, providing career guidance, enhancing campus and societal support for holistic development, strengthening mental health services, leveraging artificial intelligence technologies, educating on healthy lifestyles, and implementing targeted health promotion programs.

Chai, Yulin↗
DOE OSTI2020

Applicability for MELCOR Accident Code System (MACCS) to Model the Atmospheric Transport of Biological Contaminants

Characterization of airborne transmission behavior for biological contaminants is a critical aspect in developing public health guidelines in the event of an outbreak. Guidelines such as safe separation distances and physical protections (mask and face-shields) are heavily influenced by the particular biological airborne transmission risk, which depends on a multitude of factors and is not easily or readily determined, therefore potentially lagging behind the time sensitive need to inform effective public health guidelines. Herein is proposed a means to leverage the substantial investment over the last three decades of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in the MACCS code suite developed at Sandia National Laboratories. This work includes augmenting the MACCS code to represent biological rather than radioactive contaminants in the atmosphere, therefore characterizing the airborne transmission risk for such contaminants and helping to inform critical and time sensitive public health guidelines.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Physics-Informed Machine Learning for Epidemiological Models

One challenge of using compartmental SEIR models for public health planning is the difficulty in manually tuning parameters to capture behavior reflected in the real-world data. This team conducted initial, exploratory analysis of a novel technique to use physics-informed machine learning tools to rapidly develop data-driven models for physical systems. This machine learning approach may be used to perform data assimilation of compartment models which account for unknown interactions between geospatial domains (i.e. diffusion processes coupling across neighborhoods/counties/states/etc.). Results presented here are early, proof-of-concept ideas that demonstrate initial success in using a physically informed neural network (PINN) model to assimilate data in a compartmental epidemiology model. The results demonstrate initial success and warrant further research and development.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Battery data integrity and usability: Navigating datasets and equipment limitations for efficient and accurate research into battery aging

A tremendous commitment of resources is needed to acquire, understand and apply battery data in terms of performance and aging behavior. There are many state of performance (SOP) and state of health (SOH) metrics that are useful to guide alignment of batteries to end-use, yet how these metrics are measured or extracted can make the difference between usable, valuable datasets versus data that lacks the necessary integrity to meet baseline confidence levels for SOP/SOH quantification. This work will speak to 1) types of data that support SOP and SOH evaluations on mechanistic terms, 2) measurement conditions needed to assure high data integrity, 3) equipment limitations that can compromise data high fidelity, and 4) the impact of cell polarization on data quality. A common goal in battery research and field use is to work from a data platform that supports economical paths of data capture while minimizing down-time for battery diagnostics. An ideal situation would be to utilize data obtained during normal daily use (“pulses or cycles of convenience”) without stopping the daily duty cycles to perform dedicated SOP/SOH diagnostic routines. However, difficulties arise in trying to make use of daily duty cycle data (denoted as cycle-by-cycle, CBC) that underscores the need for standardization of conditions: temperature and duty cycles can vary over the course of a day and throughout a week, month and year; polarization can develop within an immediate cycle and throughout successive cycles as a hysteresis. If CBC data is envisioned as a data source to determine performance and aging trends, it should be recognized that polarization is a frequent consequence of CBC and thus makes it difficult to separate reversible and irreversible components to metrics such as capacity loss and resistance increase over aging. Since CBC conditions can have a major impact on data usability, we will devote part of this paper to CBC data conditioning and management. Differential analyses will also be discussed as a means to detect changing trends in data quality. Our target cell chemistries will be lithium-ion types NMC/graphite and LMO/LTO.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Preliminary Evidence for Sex-Specific Trends in Probiotic Modulation of Gut Saccharibacteria in Familial Mediterranean Fever Patients: Effects of Lactobacillus acidophilus INMIA 9602 Er 317/402 and Escherichia coli M-17

Candidate Phyla Radiation bacteria are emerging members of the human microbiota, particularly in oral and gut environments. Saccharibacteria were previously identified in the gut microbiota of healthy individuals and women diagnosed with familial Mediterranean fever (FMF), a monogenic autoinflammatory disorder prevalent in the eastern Mediterranean region, including Armenia. This study aimed to assess the prevalence and diversity of Saccharibacteria spp. and its basebiont Schaalia odontolytica in FMF patients, explore gender differences, and evaluate the modulation potential of two locally produced probiotics: Lactobacillus acidophilus INMIA9602 Er317/402 (Narine®, VITAMAX-E, Yerevan, Armenia) and Escherichia coli M-17 (Colibacteron®, VITAMAX-E, Yerevan, Armenia). The abundance and behavior of saccharibacteria and S. odontolytica appear to vary depending on health status and sex. Placebo administration caused both quantitative and qualitative shifts, suggesting a possible interaction between Candidatus saccharibacteria spp. and Schaalia odontolytica, though the underlying biological significance remains to be clarified. Narine administration appeared to increase the abundance of Candidatus saccharibacteria operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in FMF women and S. odontolytica OTUs in FMF men, whereas Colibacteron selectively decreased certain OTUs, predominantly in FMF women. These findings underscore the need to further investigate saccharibacteria’s role in systemic inflammation and probiotic-mediated modulation of the gut microbiota.

Biochemistry & Molecular Biology↗
DOE OSTI2022

Conflicting Information and Compliance With COVID-19 Behavioral Recommendations

The prevalence of COVID-19 is shaped by behavioral responses to recommendations and warnings. Available information on the disease determines the population’s perception of danger and thus its behavior; this information changes dynamically, and different sources may report conflicting information. We study the feedback between disease, information, and stay-at-home behavior using a hybrid agent-based-system dynamics model that incorporates evolving trust in sources of information. We use this model to investigate how divergent reporting and conflicting information can alter the trajectory of a public health crisis. The model shows that divergent reporting not only alters disease prevalence over time, but also increases polarization of the population’s behaviors and trust in different sources of information.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2026

Plug Load Management Through Occupant Engagement at Washington State University

To decrease costs and improve building occupant safety, Washington State University (WSU) began planning a plug load management campaign in 2020, with implementation beginning in 2021. This case study describes the campaign's goals, approach, and results over the past 5 years, ultimately showing that occupant- and behavior-focused strategies can meaningfully reduce plug load energy use while improving health and safety.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Cross‐Cultural Validation of the Binge Eating Disorder Screener‐7 ( BEDS ‐7) Across 42 Countries

ABSTRACT Objective This study aimed to evaluate the reliability and validity of the Binge Eating Disorder Screener‐7 (BEDS‐7) across 42 countries and 26 languages, assessing its reliability and validity as a screening tool for binge‐eating disorder (BED) in diverse cultural contexts. Specifically, it sought to enhance early recognition of BED symptoms in primary care settings globally, contributing to a standardized framework for assessing BED. Method The International Sex Survey, a cross‐sectional online study, was conducted in 42 countries and 26 languages. A diverse community sample of 82,243 participants, aged 18 years or older, completed the BEDS‐7 and measures of sexuality, mental health, substance use, and sociodemographic characteristics. Confirmatory factor analyses and tests of measurement invariance were employed to evaluate the reliability and validity of the BEDS‐7 across languages, countries, genders, and sexual orientations. Results The BEDS‐7 demonstrated scalar factorial invariance across languages and countries, indicating consistent factor loadings and item intercepts. In contrast, the screener showed residual invariance across gender and sexual orientation groups, supporting its robustness across these demographics. Kruskal–Wallis tests revealed significant differences in BED symptoms across languages, countries, genders, and sexual orientations, with the highest BED scores observed among queer, pansexual, and gender‐diverse individuals. The BEDS‐7 also demonstrated adequate reliability (Cronbach's alpha > 0.80) and moderate criterion validity. Discussion The findings provide further evidence of the reliability and validity of the BEDS‐7 as a potential screening tool for identifying probable cases of BED globally, facilitating early intervention in primary care settings.

Gewirtz‐Meydan, Ateret [School of Social Work, Fac↗
DOE OSTI2021

Addressing Parental Vaccine Hesitancy and Other Barriers to Childhood/Adolescent Vaccination Uptake During the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic

Routine childhood immunizations are proven to be one of the most effective public health interventions at controlling numerous deadly diseases. Therefore, the CDC recommends routine immunizations for children and adolescent populations against vaccine-preventable diseases e.g., tetanus, pertussis, diphtheria, etc. This current review sought to examine barriers to pediatric vaccine uptake behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic. We also explored the implications for parental vaccine hesitancy/delay during an ongoing health crisis and proposed recommendations for increasing vaccine confidence and compliance. Our review determined that the receipt for vaccinations steadily improved in the last decade for both the United States and Tennessee. However, this incremental progress has been forestalled by the COVID-19 pandemic and other barriers i.e. parental vaccine hesitancy, social determinants of health (SDoH) inequalities, etc. which further exacerbate vaccination disparities. Moreover, non-compliance to routine vaccinations could cause an outbreak of diseases, thereby, worsening the ongoing health crisis and already strained health care system. Healthcare providers are uniquely positioned to offer effective recommendations with presumptive languaging to increase vaccination rates, as well as, address parental vaccine hesitancy. Best practices that incorporate healthcare providers’ quality improvement coaching, vaccination reminder recall systems, adherence to standardized safety protocols (physical distancing, hand hygiene practices, etc.), as well as, offer telehealth and outdoor/drive-through/curbside vaccination services, etc. are warranted. Additionally, a concerted effort should be made to utilize public health surveillance systems to collect, analyze, and interpret data, thereby, ensuring the dissemination of timely, accurate health information for effective health policy decision-making e.g., vaccine distribution, etc.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗