A hybrid estimator of the log-spectral density of a stationary time series is proposed. First, a multiple taper estimate is performed, followed by kernel smoothing the log-multiple taper estimate. This procedure reduces the expected mean square error by (π 2 4) 4/5 over simply smoothing the log tapered periodogram. A data adaptive implementation of a variable bandwidth kernel smoother is given.

BACKGROUND: This study examined muscle deoxygenation trends before and after a 7-day taper using non-invasive near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). METHODS: Eleven cyclists performed an incremental cycle ergometer test to determine maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max = 4.68 +/- 0.57 L.min-1) prior to the study, and then completed two or three high intensity (85-90% VO2max) taper protocols after bei...

In this paper we study the performance of the low-variance multi-taper Mel-frequency cepstral coefficient (MFCC) and perceptual linear prediction (PLP) features in a state-ofthe-art i-vector speaker verification system. The MFCC and PLP features are usually computed from a Hamming-windowed periodogram spectrum estimate. Such a singletapered spectrum estimate has large variance, which can be red...

Twenty eight patients treated with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors /venlafaxine were randomized to a three-day (short) or 14-day (longer) anti-depressant taper and openly assessed after a five to seven day drug-free washout, and again after seven days treatment with a new anti-depressant of the treating clinician's choice. A 'discontinuation syndrome' ( > or = 3 new symptoms on the Disc...

Objective The purpose of this study was to measure the temperature of the plugger tip of 3 cordless heat carriers set at 200°C. Materials and Methods Pluggers of the same taper (0.06, 0.08, 0.10) and similar tip sizes (sizes of 50 and 55) from 3 cordless heat carriers, namely SuperEndo-α2 (B & L Biotech), Friendo (DXM), and Dia-Pen (Diadent), were used and an electric heat carrier, System B (...

Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) is the most important commercial tree species in southern China. The objective of this study was to develop a variable taper equation for Chinese fir, and to quantify the effects of stand planting density on stem taper in Chinese fir. Five equations were fitted or evaluated using the diameter-height data from 293 Chinese fir trees sampled from stands with f...

AIMS To identify dose-tapering strategies associated with sustained success following methadone maintenance treatment (MMT). DESIGN Population-based retrospective cohort study. SETTING Linked administrative medication dispensation data from British Columbia, Canada. PARTICIPANTS From 25 545 completed MMT episodes, 14 602 of which initiated a taper, 4183 individuals (accounting for 4917 MM...

We demonstrate a compact power-referenced fiber-optic accelerometer using a weakly tilted fiber Bragg grating (TFBG) combined with an abrupt biconical taper. The electric-arc-heating induced taper is located a short distance upstream from the TFBG and functions as a bridge to recouple the TFBG-excited lower-order cladding modes back into the fiber core. This recoupling is extremely sensitive to...