field project was conducted in Oklahoma City and was the largest urban dispersion experiment ever in North America. Because the focus of JU2003 was on atmospheric processes within the urban environment, an extremely dense network of instrumentation was deployed in and around the central business district (CBD) both prior to and during the field experiment. Among the variables collected were high-resolution observations of air temperature from various instrument sources. Additional observations of air temperature were also collected at Oklahoma Mesonet stations in the rural areas surrounding Oklahoma City. Using an index value, the diurnal cycle of the urban heat island (UHI) for Oklahoma City, with respect to the surrounding rural terrain, was quantified. The results revealed a consistent mean nocturnal UHI greater than 1.5°C at both 2 and 9 m. However, observations at 2 m during JU2003 revealed a significant urban ''cool'' island during the convective portion of the day. The mean variability of temperature within the urban core of Oklahoma City increased significantly after sunrise, increased to a maximum near solar noon, and decreased following sunset. These results were inconsistent with the rural observations wherein the variability among sites was maximized during the nocturnal period. Finally, the vertical temperature gradient between 2 and 9 m demonstrated a clear and strong diurnal trend at the rural locations, whereas observations from the urban environment were nearly isothermal and consistent with near-neutral conditions throughout JU2003.

ABSTRACT:The Oklahoma City Micronet (OKCNET) is an operational surface observing network designed to improve atmospheric monitoring across the Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, metropolitan area. The 40 station network consists of 4 Oklahoma Mesonet stations and 36 micronet stations mounted on traffic signals at an average station spacing of approximately 3 km. Using several technical innovations as well as existing infrastructure in Oklahoma City, data are collected and quality assured in near real-time at an interval of 1 min for the traffic signal sites and 5 min for the Mesonet sites. Because OKCNET also spans a land use gradient from rural to urban, the spatial and temporal densities of OKCNET observations have shed new insights on atmospheric processes (e.g. the urban heat island, severe thunderstorm evolution) across the Oklahoma City metropolitan area.

The lateral collateral ligament is the primary varus stabilizer of the tibiofemoral joint. Diagnosing an injury to this ligament can be challenging in the setting of multiligamentous trauma; however, failure to recognize these injuries can result in instability of the knee and unsatisfactory outcomes after cruciate ligament reconstruction. Recent literature exploring the anatomy and biomechanics of the lateral collateral ligament has enhanced our understanding and improved diagnosis and management of these injuries. Physical examination and imaging studies also are important in diagnosis and can facilitate classification of lateral collateral ligament tears, which affects treatment decisions. Nonsurgical, reparative, and reconstructive techniques can all be used to manage lateral collateral ligament injury about the knee; the optimal treatment is selected on the basis of injury severity.