International standardization has become a strategic tool for global firms since new industrial policies emerged in developed countries in the 1980s, which allow firms to easily form a consortium to set industry-wide standards. This standardization has created many consensus standards that change the distribution of added value internationally, and has induced transformation in the international division of labor among the developed and developing countries. Platform business is most eminent in the resulting business ecosystem. It harnesses consensus standards to earn global competitive advantages, based on two practices: adjusting the scope of their knowledge and selecting new business partners who adopt the standards.   

International standards for lexicon formats are in preparation. To a certain extent, the proposed formats converge with prior results of standardization projects. However, their adequacy for (i) lexicon management and (ii) lexicon-driven applications have been little debated in the past, nor are they as a part of the present standardization effort. We examine these issues. IGM has developed XML formats compatible with the emerging international standards, and we report experimental results on large-coverage lexica.

The development of an international growth standard for the screening, surveillance, and monitoring of school-aged children and adolescents has been motivated by 2 contemporaneous events, the global surge in childhood obesity, and the release of a new international growth standard for infants and pr...

The significance of standards in international agricultural trade is continuously rising. Due to their complexity, especially private industry standards are often expected to have a negative impact on agricultural export sectors in developing countries. The successful adoption of standards by a broa...

American National Standards (ANSI Standards) developed by Accredited Standards Committees S1, S2, S3, and S12 in the areas of acoustics, mechanical vibration and shock, bioacoustics, and noise, respectively, are published by the Acoustical Society of America (ASA). In addition to these standards, ASA publishes catalogs of Acoustical Standards, both National and International. To receive copies of the latest Standards catalogs, please contact Susan B. Blaeser.Comments are welcomed on all material in Acoustical Standards News.This Acoustical Standards News section in JASA, as well as the National and International Catalogs of Acoustical Standards, and other information on the Standards Program of the Acoustical Society of America, are available via the ASA home page: http://acousticalsociety.org. PMID:23145639

In accordance with general principles recommended by the International Committee for Standardization in Haematology (1982, Journal of Clinical Pathology 35, 1320-1322), the authors have developed statistical methods for the analysis of red cell volume dis...

A rapid method for estimating polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) concentrations in contaminated soils and sediments has been developed by coupling static subcritical water extraction with solid-phase microextraction (SPME). Soil, water, and internal standards are placed in a seale...

Cryopreservation of plant tissues in liquid nitrogen is now used for long-term conservation of vegetatively-propagated crops. Development of standard techniques for cryopreservation is important to the international plant-conservation community for successful implementation of storage protocols in ...

...Administration Consensus Standards, Light-Sport Aircraft AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration...of the Sport Pilot and Light-Sport Aircraft rule issued July 16, 2004, and effective...International Committee F37 on Light Sport Aircraft developed the new and revised...

The Society of Automotive Engineers' (SAE) Aerospace Recommended Practice (ARP) No. 866A (866A), and a procedure utilizing pure-tone absorption equations developed in support of the International Organization for Standardization's (ISO) 9613-1 and the Ame...

AbstractIntroduction and Hypothesis A terminology and standardized classification has yet to be developed for those complications related to native tissue female pelvic floor surgery. Methods This report on the terminology and classification combines the input of members of the Standardization and Terminology Committees of two International Organizations, the International Urogynecological Association (IUGA) and the International Continence Society (ICS) and a Joint IUGA/ICS Working Group on Complications Terminology, assisted at intervals by many external referees. A process of rounds of internal and external review took place with decision-making by collective opinion (consensus). Results A terminology and classification of complications related to native tissue female pelvic floor surge...

Introduction and hypothesis A terminology and standardized classification has yet to be developed for those complications related to native tissue female pelvic floor surgery. Methods This report on the terminology and classification combines the input of members of the Standardization and Terminology Committees of two International Organizations, the International Urogynecological Association (IUGA) and the International Continence Society (ICS) and a Joint IUGA/ICS Working Group on Complications Terminology, assisted at intervals by many external referees. A process of rounds of internal and external review took place with decision making by collective opinion (consensus). Results A terminology and classification of complications related to native tissue female pelvic floor surgery has b...

American national standards for the evaluation of educational programs were developed by the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation in 1994. This paper describes the Joint Committee's standard setting process. The Joint Committee is a coalition of professional organizations concerned with the quality of evaluations in education. The operating procedures of the Joint Committee have been accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The following standard setting procedures of the Joint Committee have been accepted by the ANSI: (1) initiation of projects by Committee approval; (2) development of a first draft through a national panel; (3) the formation of national and international review panels; (4) field test of the standards; (5) national public hearings; (6) finalization of the standards developed; and (7) consideration of views and opinions. The Joint Committee's standard setting process provides an open consensus process for professionals to use in setting and maintaining evaluation standards. A list of sponsoring organizations is attached. (SLD)

A reference collection of specialized information discussions on areas critical to the acid rain issue: problem definition, impact of legislation, emissions standards, international perspective, cost scenarios, and engineering solutions. The text is reinforced with 130 illustrations and about 50 tables. Contents: International mitigation programs. Emissions reduction: before combustion; during combustion; after combustion. Engineering solutions under development.

The experts met last month in Denver at an International Symposium on the Management of Wastes from the LWR fuel cycle. Development of nuclear power and reprocessing of the resulting waste in the European countries and the U.S. are discussed. The need for international cooperation and standards is pointed out. Decommissioning of old reactors and facilities is also considered. (DLC)

This paper provides an overview of hydrogen codes and standards with an emphasis on the national effort supported and managed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). With the help and cooperation of standards and model code development organizations, industry, and other interested parties, DOE has established a coordinated national agenda for hydrogen and fuel cell codes and standards. With the adoption of the Research, Development, and Demonstration Roadmap and with its implementation through the Codes and Standards Technical Team, DOE helps strengthen the scientific basis for requirements incorporated in codes and standards that, in turn, will facilitate international market receptivity for hydrogen and fuel cell technologies.

This paper addresses international standards which can be applied to the requirements for accelerator personnel safety systems. Particular emphasis is given to standards which specify requirements for safety interlock systems which employ programmable electronic subsystems. The work draws on methodologies currently under development for the medical, process control, and nuclear industries.

Cryptographic techniques are an important means by which security of information and info-communication networks is ensured. Yet it was not until the mid-2000s that the world's largest developer of standards, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), issued ISO/IEC 18033 on encryption algorithms.The purpose of this article is to explore a relatively understudied aspect of international standardization by focusing on demand for encryption standards. Drawing on the global governance literature, it argues that the demand for cryptographic standards may be generated not only to address the coordinating problem of technological compatibility but also to address the common problem of information security.It is assumed that the demand for international cryptographic standards will be generated by the businesses, particularly those engaged in electronic commerce, as they are interested in enhancing the security of the network where they hold transactions. It is also assumed that on-line privacy advocates will support the standardization of encryption techniques. However, the commercial interests in cryptographic standardization may be in conflict with national security interests. Just as encryption technology can be used to protect financial information and personal data, it can be used to protect confidential information of foreign governments and other organizations. Therefore, spread of cryptographic techniques through standardization can be detrimental to national security activities.Indeed, ISO's early attempt to establish encryption algorithm standard was frustrated by the objection raised by the US government, which was concerned with the standard's implication to national security. In the 1990s, however, the international business community began to pressure government hard to liberalize cryptographic use so that they could take full advantage of the commercial opportunities provided by the exponential growth to the Internet. The commercial interests succeeded in having its preferences reflected in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Guideline for Cryptographic Policy of 1997. The guideline, in turn, provided the ISO with an opportunity to launch once-prohibited standardization of encryption technology as it recommended the setting of standards for cryptographic methods at national and international levels. The ISO eventually produced ISO/IEC 18033 to promote the deployment of “state-of-the-art” encryption technology worldwide.Standards and standardization are often dismissed as technological details in the study of International Relations. However, international standardization of encryption sheds light on the new security dilemma in the information age. Most important of all, the evolution of international cryptographic standards highlights the changing balance between national security and commercial interests in encryption.   

Recent events and developments in the global wind energy scene relating to safety and emergence of specific individual national technical criteria and standards like in India have raised the need for having an international standardization and harmonization for wind turbines. There have been attempts by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) globally and European Union`s European Wind Turbine Standards (EWTS) project regionally, to develop international standards for wind turbines. Some leading nations in wind energy development like Germany, Netherlands and Denmark in Europe have their own national standards and policies. Other leading nations like the USA and India are moving towards having national legal and technical requirements. Against this backdrop, the paper examines the features of various national requirements for wind turbines existing in the leading countries viz. USA, Germany, India, Denmark and Netherlands. The initiatives towards international standardization like the IEC initiative and the EWTS project are also examined. An attempt is also made to evaluate the need for such common international standards vis-a-vis individual national technical and legal requirements.

Canada`s role in the development of standards for photovoltaic systems through its participation in the International Electrotechnical Commission`s (IEC) Committee on Solar Photovoltaics (TC82) was discussed. The relationships of standards in general in helping to prepare the way for business opportunities around the world, and their role in creating a stable technical framework within which business can be conducted, were reviewed. Standards currently under development by TC82`s Working Group (WG) No.3, the reasons for them, their relationship to commerce, and their importance in the development of the photovoltaic industry and technology world-wide, were scrutinized. The general conclusion was that Canada has significant impact on the development of international standards and is well served by those who represent Canada to ensure that these standards fit Canadian conditions and practices. 3 refs., 3 figs.

The SPICE Project was established in 1993 to support the development, validation and transition into use of an International Standard for software process assessment. Its efforts have resulted in the publication of a five-part Standard for Process Assessment, ISO/IEC 15504. This paper reviews the evolution of the Standard, and reflects on the parallel achievements of the SPICE Project and the standardisation effort in advancing the state of the art in process assessment and improvement.

Abstract Wide spread variation in measurement results of total 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) confounds international efforts to develop evidence-based clinical guidelines. Accordingly, NIH Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) in collaboration with CDC National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Ghent University established the Vitamin D Standardization Program (VDSP) in November 2010. VDSP objectives include: (1) standardize 25(OH)D concentration measurements in national health surveys around the world, (2) evaluate survey differences, (3) extend standardization efforts to assay manufacturers, and to clinical, commercial, and research laboratories, (4) promote standardization of emerging metabolites of vitamin D status, and (5) ...

AT and T has played a major role in the development of national and international standards for 32-kb/s adaptive differential pulse code modulation (ADPCM). This paper highlights the process leading to the standards on 32-kb/s ADPCM recognized by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the International Telephone and Telegraph Consultative Committee (CCITT). The paper briefly describes the algorithm itself and it performance. It concludes with a discussion of applications of ADPCM and the AT and T products and services that utilize ADPCM.

Since 1999, several widely used building energy efficiency standards, including ASHRAE 90.1, ASHRAE 90.2, the International Energy Conservation Code, and California's Title 24 have adopted cool roof credits or requirements. We review the technical development of cool roof provisions in the ASHRAE 90.1, ASHRAE 90.2, and California Title 24 standards, and discuss the treatment of cool roofs in other standards and energy-efficiency programs. The techniques used to develop the ASHRAE and Title 24 cool roof provisions can be used as models to address cool roofs in building energy standards worldwide.

Globalisation has given birth to medical tourism. Health and medical tourism are the fastest growing segments in not only developed nations but in developing countries too. India has become a hot destination, as the Indian medical standards match up to the highly prescribed international standards at a very low cost. However, it is an unmixed blessing; along with advantages, it has many unintended side effects also. PMID:12437040

This presentation provided a definition of electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), reviewed disturbances, such as flicker, overvoltage, harmonics, imbalance, dips and sags, and relevant standards, outlined a scheme of how electromagnetic standards should be applied, discussed target areas, including the environment, emissions, immunity, the International Electrotechnical Commission`s (IEC) 61000 standards structure, the status of EMC standards in Canada, Hydro-Quebec standards and EMC, and other relevant standards on EMC. The lack of compatibility and the differences in acceptance levels of the various standards have been identified as a major source of the problems and the increasing cost incurred by industry as a result of lost production. The importance of EMC standards is that they have been developed specifically to provide the information needed to obtain an appropriate level of compatibility between electricity supply and demand. Existing problems could be resolved if everyone played their respective parts. figs.

Overseas experiences provide educators with exceptional opportunities to incorporate field study, firsthand experiences, and tangible artifacts into the classroom. Despite this potential, teachers must consider curricular standards that direct how such international endeavors can be integrated. Furthermore, geography curriculum development is more relevant when teachers link tangible local processes and events with those occurring in distant world regions. As such, this article demonstrates how a structured international field experience for K-12 educators incorporated geography curricular standards, and population geography as a common theme, to develop widely transferable curricular materials that advance students' understanding of Chile and Latin American area studies. (Contains 2 tables, 1 figure and 3 notes.)

Quality systems, established to internationally accepted standards, are one mechanism that can assist in evaluations of the sustainability of technology transfer, the proficiency of the user, and the reliability and comparability of data generated, resulting in potential enhancement of laboratory credibility. The means of interpreting existing standards and implementing quality systems in developing country veterinary diagnostic laboratories has become a significant adjunct to the technology transfer element within the Food and Agriculture/ International Atomic Energy Agency, FAO/IAEA programme. The FAO/IAEA External Quality Assurance Programme (EQAP) is given as an example for an initial step towards enhancing the ?quality?? culture in developing country veterinary laboratories. In 1995 t...

Numerous regulations and standards, both national and international, apply to the packaging and transportation of radioactive material. These are legal and technical prerequisites to practically every action that a designer or user of a radioactive material transportation package will perform. The identity and applicability of these requirements and the bodies that formulate them are also not readily understood. This paper addresses the roles that various international bodies play in developing and implementing the various regulations and standards. It uses the US regulatory and standards-making bodies to illustrate how international requirements feed the domestic control of packaging and transport. It explains the scope and interactions between domestic and international regulatory and standards agencies and summarizes the status and major standards activities at the international level. The overview provided by this paper will be valuable to designers and users of radioactive material packages for better understanding and use of both standards and regulations, and for complying with regulatory requirements in the radioactive materials transportation field. 11 refs., 2 figs.

Spread/expansion of the radio frequency identification (RFID) system application technologies needs the international standards. In order to internationally promote spread/expansion of the RFID system application technologies, Japan has established the examination promotion organization with the participation of the advanced Japanese makers in development of the RFID technologies, representative application users of the distribution logistics and RFID technology standardization deliberative council. The elementary and application RFID technologies are studied and developed, and the results are demonstrated. The organization plans to propose the application requirement profile (ARP) specification drafts to WD (WI/18001) of the ARP, currently deliberated by ISO/IEC JTC1/SC31/WG4/ARP of International Standardization Organization. The organization also plans to submit the Air Interface specification drafts with frequencies of 125kHz and 2.54GHz to the WD (WI/18000) of JTC1/SC31/WG4/SG3. (NEDO)

The development of a set of safety codes and standards for hydrogen facilities is necessary to ensure they are designed and operated safely. To help ensure that a hydrogen facility meets an acceptable level of risk, code and standard development organizations (SDOs) are utilizing risk-informed concepts in developing hydrogen codes and standards. Two SDOs, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) through its Technical Committee (TC) 197 on hydrogen technologies have been developing standards for gaseous hydrogen facilities that specify the facilities have certain safety features, use equipment made of material suitable for a hydrogen environment, and have specified separation distances. Under Department of Energy funding, S...

Purpose - This paper attempts to combine the developments in the accounting area with those in the auditing area. More specifically, it presents the effects of International Accounting Standards (IAS) on the auditor findings and report. Design/methodology/approach - International Standards on Auditing (ISA) are revised in order to be accepted by the European Union as the common and formal auditing standards of the member states. The introduction of IAS has been one of the most significant developments in the history of the financial statements preparation and presentation. The effects of the application of these standards are present both on the valuation of the firm and on the presentation of its "true and fair view". An extended analysis of the financial statements and the auditor report...

Facing the development of the 21st century, Chinese government and CE Providers have realized the importance and the urgency of continuing engineering education. China has over 50000 continuing education institutions of various scales and levels. The education quality and teaching measures of those institutions are varied and there is a big gap comparing with developed countries. Such weaknesses as the insufficient investment from the government, incompetence of the teachers, irregular standards for the execution and the inadequate quality evaluation have seriously restricted the development. Evaluation of various continuing education institutions in some Latin and European countries have been conducted in the past few years by adopting different executive models and evaluation standards. China is seeking ways to start such evaluation by collaborating with international organizations. We intend to explore and establish proper evaluation system and evaluation standards, which are suitable to China and inconsistent with the development of China, and to help Chinese CE providers reach international criteria step by step.   

The Ministry of International Trade and Industry Agency of Industrial Science and Technology would carry out development research of the standardization of test evaluation method of fine ceramics for the organism as research and development business of the international standardization promotion plan since this fiscal year. The fine ceramics becomes not possible material of lacking as alternative material of the organism. The public standard which appropriately evaluates the quality material in the other has not been established. JIS in the home of the result which there is Japan Fine Ceramics Association standard (test methods such as porosity and specific gravity, grain size, pore distribution, specific surface, Vickers hardness, crystal structure, bending strength, compressive strength, elastic modulus, fracture toughness, effluent of the bioceramics) JIS has not been instituted. It is present state that it becomes the Europe and America initiative artificial joint artificial bone expert committee TC-150 surgical internal burying agent ISO (ISO) and takes the one step delay. And, security of the reliability is necessary in order to fulfil the popularization in the market. The standardization must be hurried up. Research and development of test evaluation method of fine ceramics for the organism was carried out in order to attempt market expansion taking the reliability of fine ceramics material performance for the organism in our country as a sure thing, and standardizing into JIS and international standardization would be systematically advanced. Efforts would be made in fiscal 99 for research and development of evaluation method on abrasion resistance of artificial bone member subject, mechanical property such as strength degradation and biocompatibility. The technical committee of the industry-government-university from the specialist which consists in this inside is founded, and the deliberation for plan execution of this study development is got and will be effectively propelled. By lumping together, the development research will be entrusted in the foundation fine ceramics center. (translated by NEDO)

In many countries of the world, standards of anaesthesiology are poor. Even the most modern equipment cannot be used properly without people who are able to work and deal with it. So education is a crucial requirement. Since 1955, the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists (WFSA) trains anaethesiologists worldwide to improve the standards of medicine in developing countries. The society works closely with WHO, ESA, FEEA and other international societies. Its aim: to make surgery safer throughout the world. PMID:18792867

Communications standards for smart grid programs were discussed. Standards are used to reduce integration costs and prevent single vendor lock-ins. Successful standards must have mature specifications and undergo certification and revision processes before being marketed and implemented. International standards associations use time-tested processes known to be both fair and open. Standards are now being developed for real time simulations, wide-area reliability, network optimization, and customer participation. Smart grid standards domains include wide area and field area networks, distributed resources, consumers, control centers, and commercial enterprises. Standards have been developed for control centres, power systems, distribution management interfaces, and common information models. Many transmission and distribution wide-area networks are becoming obsolete. Open standards have not yet been developed for many field area networks. Utilities are also concerned about standards for the integration of distributed generation resources. Common object models are needed, as well as stricter standards for transmission and distribution networks. More bandwidth is also required in order to fully merge IT with utility operations. An appendix of networking standards was included. tabs., figs.

A new method based on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry has been developed for simultaneous determination of 14 quinolones (QNs) residues, including ciprofloxacin, danofloxacin, difloxacin, enoxacin, enrofloxacin, flumequine, lomefloxacin, marbofloxacin, norfloxacin, orbifloxacin, ofloxacin, pipemidic acid, pefloxacin, and sarafloxacin in royal jelly. The proposed analytical procedure involves extraction of the QNs from samples by 0.1 M sodium hydroxide aqueous solution, a step for clean-up and preconcentration of the analytes by anion-exchange solid-phase extraction (SPE) and liquid chromatographic separation with mass spectrometric detection. Internal standard calibration was applied with norfloxacin-D5 as internal standard (I.S.). Satisfactory recovery (from 64% to 113...

Food safety is a complex policy domain: it involves a variety of stakeholders, touches upon a variety of issues and disciplines, and has an important international dimension. While countries are free to set their own standards, their policy autonomy in the process of regulating food safety is restricted by a number of factors. The EU and each member state are confronted with two aspects of compliance: the power of alignment with Codex standards, and the drive towards convergence with standards developed by trading partners. The importance attributed to the WTO and its reference organization, the Codex Alimentarius Commission, sheds light on the institutional constraints inherent in the international framework governing food safety while revealing the indirect power of alignment with intern...

A liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) has been developed and validated to determine the concentration of armillarisin succinate ester in mouse plasma and tissues, used for preclinical evaluation. Bavachin was employed as the internal standard. Separation was performed on a 3.5?µm Zorbax SB-C(18) column (30?×?2.1?mm), with a mobile phase consisting of methanol and aqueous 20?mm ammonium acetate. Both analyte and internal standard were determined using electrospray ionization and the MS data acquisition was via selected ion monitoring in negative scanning mode. Quantification was performed using the transitions m/z 333???233 and 323???221 for armillarisin succinate ester and internal standard, respectively. The method was validated with respect to linearity, accuracy, precision, recovery and stability. This assay has been successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic and tissue distribution study after intravenous injection of ASE in mouse in a dose of 10?mg/kg. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. PMID:22674750

This project on national standards and accreditation of career practitioners is set against a background of unprecedented interest by governments nationally and internationally in the provision of career guidance services. Currently more is known about the policy and delivery of career guidance than at any other time in history. There is growing interest in the relationship between career guidance and public policy because the benefits of career guidance to individuals, society and the economy have been recognised. In this regard, strategic alliances are being formed between career guidance practitioners and policy makers in order that policy commitments relating to the provision of quality career services are enhanced. Such an alliance is evidenced in the collaboration between the Department of Education, Science and Training and the Career Industry Council of Australia on this project. This project constitutes a very necessary step in a move towards a quality industry. The purpose of this scoping paper is to: (1) identify current standards guiding career practitioners in Australia; (2) review international work on standards including examples of best practice and advise on how this work might be relevant to the development of national standards and accreditation in the Australian context; (3) be informed by outcomes of national workshops, forums, and conferences 2000-2004; (4) identify the current membership requirements of professional career associations and bodies both nationally and internationally; (5) assess how prior learning or qualifications might be recognised and developed to fit within and meet the requirements of the quality standards; and (6) identify the issues that need to be addressed in the development of national standards. To achieve this purpose, this paper is structured around four main sections--international quality standards, national quality standards, standards guiding Australian professions, and the Australian career industry. Following this a number of themes related to the development and implementation of quality standards will be elaborated. A number of issues relating to the development and implementation of quality standards and accreditation in the Australian career industry will then be raised. Appended are: (1) Glossary of terms; (2) Table of Comparative Competencies; (3) Entry-level Qualifications of Australian Career Practitioner Associations; (4) Standards of Australian Career Practitioner Associations; and (5) Comparison of Quality Standards Across Career Case Studies.

We develop a new methodology to estimate abnormal performance and risk exposure of non-traded assets from cash flows. Our methodology extends the standard internal rate of return approach to a dynamic setting. The small-sample properties are validated using a simulation study. We apply the method to...

This paper presents the ISO (International Standard Organization) Norm no. 6704, developed by the CTI (Italian Thermotechnical Committee), to regulate the classification of the main types (e.g., float, thermostatic and thermodynamic) of automatic steam traps in relation to the systems in which they operate.

Reference Products and WHO International Standards/Reference Reagents have roles to play in the development and characterization of similar biological products (SBPs). However, these roles are distinct and non-interchangeable. The uses of these materials and their limitations are considered in this paper.

A selective and sensitive high performance liquid chromatography with UV detector (HPLC-UV) method was developed and validated from human plasma. Nevirapine and internal standard (IS) zidovudine were extracted from human plasma by liquid-liquid extraction process using methyl tert-butyl ether. The s...

The SPICE Project was formed in 1993 to support the development of an international standard for software process assessment. The work of the project has led eventually to the finalisation of ISO/IEC 15504 - Process Assessment, and its complete publication represented a climax for the work of the pr...

From late last century there has been a great development of international standards and tools on environment, sustainability and corporate responsibility issues. This has been along with the globalization of economy and politics, as well as a shift in the social responsibilities of the private vis-...

An analytical method based on high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection (245 nm) was developed for the determination of actarit in human plasma. Coumarin was used as an internal standard. Chromatographic separation was achieved with a C8 column using a mobile phase of methano...

The Agreement on Internal Trade (“AIT”) is an agreement between the federal, provincial and territorial governments signed by the First Ministers on July 18, 1994. AIT is relevant to the mandate of chiropractic regulatory bodies to develop standards of admission to the profession, conduct examinatio...

An ionspray ionization mass-spectrometric method for the determination of N1,N12-diacetylspermine (Ac2Spm) was developed using 15N-labeled Ac2Spm as the internal standard. Concentrations of Ac2Spm in the urine obtained from 17 cancer patients measured by the present method correlated well with those measured by ELISA, showing the usefulness of the two methods.   

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) under its mandate of developing and applying standards of radiation safety has initiated a number of activities in recent years on radiation protection in interventional cardiology. These activities are implemented through four mechanisms, namely trainin...

The international trade in animals and animal products has become a sensitive issue for both developed and developing countries by posing an important risk for the international spread of animal and human pathogens whilst at the same time being an essential activity to ensure world-wide food security and food safety. The OIE has since its founding in 1924, applied a democratic and transparent decision-making process to continuously develop and review international standards for animal health and zoonoses to facilitate trade in animals and animal products. The role of the OIE is also mandated by the World Trade Organization (WTO) as international reference point for standards related to animal health. In support of its overall objective of promoting animal health world-wide, the OIE has also launched several other initiatives such as the improvement of the governance of veterinary services within its member countries and territories and to enhance the availability of diagnostic and scientific expertise on a more even global geographical distribution. Several trade facilitating concepts such as country, zonal and compartment freedom from disease as well the trade in disease free commodities has been introduced to enhance the trade in animals and animal products for all its members including those from developing and transitional countries who are still in the process of enhancing to full compliance with international sanitary standards. PMID:19967940

The purpose of the Decontamination, Decommissioning, and Reutilization (DDR) Division of the American Nuclear Society (ANS) is to advance the technology of decontamination, decommissioning, and reutilization of nuclear and former nuclear installations, materials, facilities, and sites [1]. This includes sharing collective decommissioning experiences and lessons learned with others in the industry. An integral part of the work of the DDR Division is the preparation of voluntary decommissioning standards through its recently re-established DDR Standards Committee. This Committee intends to support development of various standards with other divisions of the ANS. The Committee also intends to participate with external organizations to disseminate information and lessons learned regarding decontamination activities, and participate in the development of voluntary decommissioning standards. External organizations, such as ASTM International, are involved in the development of consensus standards for nuclear decommissioning work. This paper describes the work of the DDR Standards Committee on a new co-operative initiative with ASTM International to develop voluntary consensus standards for nuclear decommissioning work.

A case of an iatrogenic direct carotid cavernous fistula in a patient with a history of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and multiple aneurysms is reported. The fistula developed after unsuccessful surgical thrombectomy and revision of an occluded interposition graft inserted to treat a right internal carotid artery aneurysm. Direct puncture of the right internal carotid artery at the level of the skull base was performed to close the fistula. This case shows that direct puncture at the highest cervical segment of the internal carotid artery is another option for treatment of a direct carotid cavernous fistula when a standard transarterial or transvenous approach is not feasible. PMID:22131435

With the increasing use of anaesthesia information management systems (AIMS) there is the opportunity for different institutions to aggregate and share information both nationally and internationally. Potential uses of such aggregated data include outcomes research, benchmarking and improvement in clinical practice and patient safety. However, these goals can only be achieved if data contained in records from different sources are truly comparable and there is semantic inter-operability. This paper describes the development of a standard terminology for anaesthesia and also a Domain Analysis Model and implementation guide to facilitate a standard representation of AIMS records as extensible markup language documents that are compliant with the Health Level 7 Version 3 clinical document architecture. A representation of vital signs that is compliant with the International Standards Organization 11073 standard is also discussed. PMID:22614336

In relation to the color image management, the basic technology was researched/developed for the purpose of creating the standards in Japan. As to the standardization of the method to regulate color space, various color spaces were studied from a visual aspect. In the study and trial development of light sources for color reproduction/evaluation, developed was D 50, a common use light source using fluorescent lump. Concerning the color standard input/output interface, proposed was a new chromatic adaptation model, S-LMS, for correction of chromatic adaptation. In the development of standard data on high accurate/fine images, made were high-quality image data which can be a candidate to be proposed from Japan to ISO/TC130 doing activities for the international standardization of images. Besides, the following development/R and D were made: spectral characteristic database for evaluating color reproducing ability of the color image input device, technology to evaluate color reproducing ability of digital camera, technology to evaluate color reproducing ability of color scanner, standard data for the diversification of international information exchanges, etc. 167 refs., 268 figs., 86 tabs.

The International Energy Agency: Subject Thesaurus contains the standard vocabulary of indexing terms (descriptors) developed and structured to build and maintain energy information databases. Involved in this cooperative task are (1) the technical staff of the USDOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) in cooperation with the member countries of the International Energy Agency`s Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDE) and (2) the International Atomic Energy Agency`s International Nuclear Information System (INIS) staff representing the more than 100 countries and organizations that record and index information for the international nuclear information community. ETDE member countries are also members of INIS. Nuclear information prepared for INIS by ETDE member countries is included in the ETDE Energy Database, which contains the online equivalent of the printed INIS Atomindex. Indexing terminology is therefore cooperatively standardized for use in both information systems. This structured vocabulary reflects thscope of international energy research, development, and technological programs. The terminology of this thesaurus aids in subject searching on commercial systems, such as ``Energy Science & Technology`` by DIALOG Information Services, ``Energy`` by STN International and the ``ETDE Energy Database`` by SilverPlatter. It is also the thesaurus for the Integrated Technical Information System (ITIS) online databases of the US Department of Energy.

A capacitor or a condenser is one of the most basic electrical devices and is used in various electrical equipments. Recently the electrical equipment industry has been requesting the quality of capacitors to be compatible with international standards; among other things, it is strongly demanded that the traceability of a capacitance standard should be consistent with the national standards. To respond to this need from the industry, we have developed a new national standard of capacitance based on the quantized Hall resistance and also established its traceability system in cooperation with the accredited calibration businesses. A remote calibration system of capacitance has also been developed to disseminate the standard quickly and to reduce calibration costs.   

This is an update of the standards developed by the International Task Force on Anesthesia Safety, which were adopted by the World Federation of Societies of Anesthesiologists (WFSA) on 13 June 1992. These standards incorporate and elaborate upon the core components of the Safe Anesthesia part of the 2008 World Health Organization's World Alliance for Patient Safety "Safe Surgery Saves Lives" global initiative. These WFSA standards are intended to provide guidance and assistance to anesthesia professionals, their professional societies, hospital and facility administrators, and governments for improving and maintaining the quality and safety of anesthesia care. PMID:20101790

Geography Markup Language (GML) is an XML application that provides a standard way to represent geographic information. GML is developed and maintained by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC), which is an international consortium consisting of more than 250 members from industry, government, and university departments. Many of the conceptual models described in the ISO 19100 series of geomatics standards have been implemented in GML, and it is itself en route to becoming an ISO Standard (TC/211 CD 19136). An overview of GML together with its implications for the geospatial web is given in this paper.   

In these years, standards to build a Virtual Observatory (VO) data service have been established with the efforts in the International Virtual Observatory Alliance (IVOA). We applied these newly established standards (SSAP, TAP) to our VO service toolkit which was developed to implement earlier VO standards SIAP and (deprecated) SkyNode. The toolkit can be easily installed and provides a GUI interface to construct and manage VO service. In this paper, we describes the architecture of our toolkit and how it is used to start hosting VO service.

In response to concerns over the need for a scientifically literate workforce, increasing the STEM pipeline, and aging science standards documents, the scientific and science education communities are embarking on the development of a new conceptual framework for science, led by the National Research Council (NRC), and aligned next generation science standards, led by Achieve. The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) are also key partners in this effort. Leaders have called for U.S. standards to be internationally benchmarked--reflective of the expectations that other leading nations have set for their students. To that end, Achieve examined 10 sets of international standards with the intent of informing the development of both the conceptual framework and new U.S. science standards. Achieve selected countries based on their strong performance on international assessments and/or their economic, political, or cultural importance to the United States. The overall goal of Achieve's study on international standards is to inform the development of the NRC framework and next-generation science standards. Through a quantitative analysis of international standards, Achieve's reviewers discovered four key findings: (1) All countries require participation in integrated science instruction through Lower Secondary and seven of 10 countries continue that instruction through Grade 10, providing a strong foundation in scientific literacy; (2) Physical science content standards (physics and chemistry content taken together) receive far more attention in lower primary through lower secondary. Other countries dedicate the greatest proportion of their standards to biology and physics content and the least to Earth and space science; (3) Other countries' standards focus life science instruction strongly on human biology, and relationships among living things in a way that highlights the personal and social significance of life science for students and citizens. However, in the U.S., virtually all states also have a requirement for health and physical education from lower primary to lower secondary which could explain the difference in focus; and (4) Cross-cutting content common to all of the sciences such as the nature of science, nature of technology and engineering receives considerable attention. Inquiry skills in Primary are stressed more than in Lower Secondary. However, advanced inquiry skills receive increasing attention in Lower Secondary. (Contains 3 charts, 6 figures, 15 tables, and 62 footnotes.) [For the accompanying appendix, see ED512107.

PURPOSE: To enhance patient safety through contemporaneous and comprehensive standards for a safe practice of anesthesia that augment, enhance, and support similar standards already published by various countries and that provide a resource for countries that have yet to formulate such standards. STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT: The Safe Anesthesia Working Group of the World Health Organization's "Safe Surgery Saves Lives" global initiative updated the 1992 International Standards for the Safe Practice of Anaesthesia (Standards) through an iterative process of literature review, consultation, debate, drafting, and refinement. These Standards address, in detail, the organization, support, practices, and infrastructure for anesthesia care. The Standards are grounded in the fundamental principle of safety in anesthesia, i.e., the continuous presence of an appropriately trained, vigilant anesthesia professional. In effect, the use of pulse oximetry during anesthesia is now considered mandatory, with acknowledgement that compromise may be unavoidable in emergencies. At the World Congress of Anaesthesiologists in 2008, drafts were presented for comment, further refinements were made, and the Revised Standards were adopted by the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists (WFSA). These Revised Standards were posted on the WFSA website for further feedback, and minor revisions followed. The International Standards for a Safe Practice of Anesthesia 2010 were endorsed by the Executive Committee of the WFSA in March 2010. Ongoing periodic revision is planned. CONCLUSION: While they are universally applicable, the 2010 Standards primarily target lesser-resourced areas. They are designed particularly for regions that have yet to formulate or adopt their own standards so as to promote optimum patient outcomes in every anesthetizing location in the world. PMID:20857255

The use of atomic clocks as frequency standards for maintaining accurate international time-keeping, is examined. The choice of the cesium atom to provide the frequency standard, using the very precise changes between two energy states of the atom, the provision of international calibration standards, and the international coordination of time scales, are discussed.

The DOE Technical Standards Program has been structured to provide guidance and assistance for the development, adoption, and use of voluntary standards within the Department. OMB Circular A-119, ``Federal Participation in the Development and Use of Voluntary Standards`` establishes the policy to be followed in working with voluntary standards bodies, and in adopting and using voluntary standards whenever feasible. The DOE Technical Standards Program is consistent with this policy and is dedicated to the task of promoting its implementation. The theme of this year`s workshop is ``Standards Initiatives in Environmental Management fostering the development and use of industry standards for safe, environmentally responsible operations.`` The objective of the workshop is to increase the participant`s awareness of the standardization activities taking place nationally and internationally and the impact of these activities on their efforts, and to facilitate the exchange of experiences, processes, and tools for implementing the program. Workshop sessions will include presentations by industry and Government notables in the environment, safety, and health arena with ample opportunity for everyone to ask questions and share experiences. There will be a breakout session which will concentrate on resolution of issues arising from the implementation of the DOE Technical Standards Program and a plenary session to discuss the plans developed by the breakout groups. Many organizations provide services and products which support the development, processing, distribution, and retrieval of standards. Those organizations listed at the end of the agenda will have exhibits available for your perusal throughout the workshop. Last year`s workshop was very successful in stimulating an understanding of an interest in the standards program. This year, we hope to build on that success and provide an environment for the synergism of ideas to enhance the program and advance its implementation.

Laser Ablation - Inductively Coupled Plasma - Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) is a powerful analytical technique for the direct elemental analysis of solid samples, with spatial resolution down to a few microns. However, calibration remains the limiting factor in obtaining quantitative analysis by LA-ICP-MS for a wide range of sample types. No universal method exists as yet and the ones that are currently used tend to employ matrix-matched solid standards. Matrix-matched solid standards are not available for many types of sample, such as polymers, biological materials, fluid inclusions, etc. The need for a universal method of calibration that involves standards that are easy to prepare and suitable for any type of sample is required. Additional to matrix-matching, internal standards are widely used in LA-ICP-MS for quantitative analyses. The internal standard compensates for the different ablation yields from the sample and the standard and for the laser shot-to-shot variation. Given that the use of an internal standard is required to obtain reliable results, the need for matrix-matching might be regarded as questionable. This project has focused on the development and application of a new method of calibration for LA-ICP-MS. It involves the use of aqueous standards whose absorption characteristics are modified by the addition of a chromophore to the solution. Additives were selected for ablation with KrF excimer, and Nd:YAG lasers. The influence of the additive concentration on the ablation yield was investigated for different laser energies. Response curves were obtained showing that as the additive concentration was increased, less energy was required to ablate the modified standard solutions efficiently. A general procedure was then defined for the preparation and use of the modified standard solutions for a given sample. The new method of calibration was used for the quantitative analysis of different sample types: low density polyethylene (LDPE), polyketone (PK), polyethylene thin film as well as gels contained in the thin film, and stainless steel. (author)

The new ILO-2006-convention and the EU Commission's strategic objectives for the EU maritime transport policy 2008-2018, mentions the necessity of a modern health and safety system for maritime transportation. However, there is no specific strategy for the development of maritime health and safety. The area is regulated by international standards based on international research-based knowledge on health and safety. Moreover, many of the world's seafarers come from developing countries with specific disease problems like HIV and no possibility of independent maritime health research. The international maritime health research is sparse, and an increase in such research is necessary to help benefit needed shipping as a highly globalized industry. This paper presents an example of such research, accompanied by a discussion of methods and opportunities to increase international maritime health research.

Discusses in general terms development of international standards for determining luminous reflectivity of vitrinites in bituminous coal and anthracite and development of systems for assessing coal quality according to degree of coalification. Describes history of applied coal petrology in Czechoslovakia and use of vitrinite reflectivity for coal ranking, with reference to equipping laboratories with microphotometric apparatus and providing them with experienced staff. Concludes that more petrological laboratories capable of microphotometry are required in Czechoslovakia, particularly in the Ostrava-Karvina coalfield. 6 refs.

The Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures of the World Trade Organization specifically recognises the international standards developed by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC). OIE standards focus on animal health and zoonoses and those of the CAC on food safety, but since zoonoses can affect food safety, it is vital that the two organisations cooperate closely to avoid duplication of effort, gaps and conflicting standards. The OIE has established an Animal Production Food Safety Working Group to promote cooperation with the CAC and to act as a steering committee for the OIE's work programme on the development of standards aimed at protecting consumers from foodborne hazards arising from animals at the production level of the food chain. This paper describes briefly how standards are developed by the OIE and the CAC and gives examples of how the tasks and standards of the two organisations complement each other in helping to assure food safety. The areas covered include meat hygiene, the identification and traceability of live animals, model certificates for international trade, antimicrobial resistance, veterinary drugs, animal feed, and salmonellosis. PMID:17094713

Purpose - Over the last decade, multiple initiatives have been undertaken to learn how to capture the carbon footprint of a supply chain at a product level. The purpose of this paper is to focus on the process of standardization to secure consistency of product carbon footprinting (PCF) and to outline how the current developments in PCF support the need for a standardized method to measure and report environmental performance in supply chains. Design/methodology/approach - This paper is based on a literature review and a review of international standards for PCF which brings knowledge of PCF to the existing literature of green supply chain management. Findings - The multiple initiatives for standardization each improve the understanding of standardized methods of conducting PCF. At the sam...

Current internal dosimetric estimations are based on the M.I.R.D. formalism and used standard mathematical models. These standard models are often far from a given patient morphology and do not allow to perform patient-specific dosimetry. The aim of this study was to develop a personalized dosimetric tool, which takes into account real patient morphology, composition and densities. This tool, called O.E.D.I.P.E., a French acronym of Tool for the Evaluation of Personalized Internal Dose, is a user-friendly graphical interface. O.E.D.I.P.E. allows to create voxel-based patient-specific geometries and associates them with the M.C.N.P.X. Monte Carlo code. Radionuclide distribution and absorbed dose calculation can be performed at the organ and voxel scale. O.E.D.I.P.E. can be used in nuclear medicine for targeted radiotherapy and in radiation protection in case of internal contamination. (author)

A strategy is being developed whereby the current set of internationally standardized space data communications protocols can be incrementally evolved so that a first version of an operational "Interplanetary Internet" is feasible by the end of the decade. This paper describes its architectural concepts, discusses the current set of standard space data communications capabilities that exist to support Mars exploration and reviews proposed new developments. We also speculate that these current capabilities can grow to support future scenarios where human intelligence is widely distributed across the Solar System and day-to-day communications dialog between planets is routine. PMID:14649259

Background, aim, and scope The increasing gasoline price, the depletion of fossil resources, and the negative environmental consequences of driving with petroleum fuels have driven the development of alternative transport fuels. Bioethanol, which is converted from cellulosic feedstocks, has attracted increasing attention as one such alternative. This study assesses the environmental impact of using ethanol from switchgrass as transport fuel and compares the results with the ones of gasoline to analyze the potential of developing switchgrass ethanol as an environmentally sustainable transport fuel. Methods The standard framework of life cycle assessment from International Standards Organization was followed. To compare the environmental impact of driving with E10 and E85 with gasoline, ?pow...

PulseNet is a national molecular subtyping network for foodborne disease surveillance composed of public health and food regulatory agencies. Participants employ molecular subtyping of foodborne pathogens using a standardized method of pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) for conducting laboratory-based surveillance of foodborne pathogens. The PulseNet standardized PFGE protocols are developed through a comprehensive testing process. The reproducibility of the protocol undergoes an internal evaluation at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and an external evaluation in multiple PulseNet laboratories. Here we describe the development and evaluation of a rapid PFGE protocol for subtyping Vibrio parahaemolyticus for use in PulseNet activities. The protocol was derived from the e...

A standard material containing chrysotile asbestos for the validation of x-ray diffractometric quantitation was developed using an asbestos-containing building material i.e., perlite board. The board as the base material was crushed, pulverized, and homogenized. The homogeneity of the powder of perlite board was estimated by analysis of variance. The diffraction intensity values of the crystalline phases and the concentrations of elements determined by x-ray diffractometry and x-ray fluorescence analysis were used for analysis of variance. There is no significant difference between the within-bottle variance and the between-bottle variance, indicating that the powdered perlite board was sufficiently homogenous. The concentration of chrysotile in the material was determined using two methods: an internal standard/x-ray diffractometry method and the x-ray diffractometry/Rietveld refinement. The concentration of chrysotile in the material was determined by an internal standard/x-ray diffractometry method and the material had a chrysotile concentration of 24.1 ± 0.2 mass%.   

A method using a calibrated mixture of isotopes /sup 233/U and /sup 236/U has been developed in order to correct the isotopic fractionation which limits the accuracy of isotopic analysis by thermal ionization mass spectrometry. The 236/233 internal standard ratio is calibrated against the 235/238 ratios of uranium isotopic standards. To perform the analysis of the unknown sample, the latter is mixed with the internal standard, the differences between the true value and the observed values of the 236/233 ratio allows the determination of a correction factor, which is applied to the measured 235/238 ratio values. Since 1978, /sup 235/U abundance measurements on a series of samples have been performed, using this technique; data are obtained with an accuracy better than 0.05%. It is intended to apply this method for precise determination of 238/233 ratio in the case of uranium concentration measurements by isotope dilution.

A simple and highly sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography method for the determination of pipecolic acid in mouse brain areas was developed. After homogenization of brain and pretreatment with o-phthalaldehyde, the pipecolic acid and (2S,3S)-3-methylpyrrolidine-2-carboxylic acid (internal standard) were derivatized with 4-(5,6-dimethoxy-2-phthalimidinyl)-2-methoxyphenylsulfonyl chloride at 70 °C for 15 min in basic medium (pH 9.0). The fluorescent derivatives of pipecolic acid and internal standard were separated on a reversed-phase column by stepwise elution using acetic acid (30 mM)–acetonitrile at 50 °C and detected by fluorescence measurement at 316 nm (excitation) and 403 nm (emission). The detection limit (signal-to-noise ratio=3) of pipecolic acid was 13 fmol per injection. The recovery was about 106.7%. The precision (relative standard deviation) was 3.2%.   

A new internal standard method for activation analysis has been developed. In this method a suitable element present originally in the sample is used as an internal standard and the comparative standard is prepared by applying the standard addition method to the duplicated sample. The present method has the great advantages that the comparative standard spiked with the element of interest has the same matrix as the sample, and then the amount of the element to be determined in the sample can be evaluated easily by using a very simple equation even though the sample and comparative standard are irradiated separately by particles with different flux. Neither correction of the inhomogeneities of flux between the sample and comparative standard, nor that of the self-shielding effects are necessary for the present method. The usefulness of the method was examined through the determination of Co, Ni, Rb and Sr in pepperbush by means of photon activation, and the precision and accuracy of the method were proved to be valid. 29 refs.

The International Cooperation on Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Registration of Veterinary Medicinal Products (VICH) is an international tripartite cooperation programme that brings together regulatory authorities and industry representatives from the European Union, Japan and the United States, with Australia, New Zealand and Canada as observers. VICH aims to improve international coordination and cooperation to achieve greater harmonisation of the requirements for veterinary product registration in the regions concerned. VICH develops harmonised data requirements, i.e., standards for the scientific studies on quality, safety and efficacy that are required to obtain a marketing authorisation for a veterinary medicinal product. It does this by publishing guidelines that provide uniform and consistent guidance for sponsors to follow in developing data for application dossiers as well as for post-marketing safety monitoring of veterinary medicinal products. Of the 49 VICH guidelines that have been developed so far, two guidelines in particular address issues related to antimicrobial resistance. PMID:22849284

Nærværende artikel behandler efteruddannelseskravene for revisorer. Først præsenteres kravene for godkendte revisorer i afsnit 1 om de kompetencekrav, der stilles for at opnå godkendelse, og i afsnit 2 om efteruddannelseskravene, som de med virkning fra 1.1. 2009 er udmøntet i revisorloven (RL), efteruddannelsesbekendtgørelsen og en uddybende vejledning. Et særligt fokusområde i afsnit 2 er kravene til indberetning og især til dokumentation. I afsnit 3 behandles der særlige forhold ved deponering af godkendelse, mens afsnit 4 fremfører synspunkter på reglernes betydning i intern revision, herunder afsmitning på revisionschefer, der ikke er godkendte revisorer, samt på medarbejdere. IIA har egne retningslinjer for efteruddannelse, nr. 1230 under Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing, der forpligter interne revisorer til "Continuing Professional Development" uden specificerede krav. Hvis intern revisor har en af specialistuddannelserne - CIA m.v. - er der derimod sådanne krav, der dog ikke behandles her. Udgivelsesdato: April 2010

The International Virtual Observatory Alliance (IVOA) developed numerous interoperability standards during the last several years. Most of them are quite simple to implement from the technical point of view and even contain “SIMPLE” in the title. Does it mean that it is also simple to build a working VO resource using those standards? Yes and no. “Yes” because the standards are indeed simple, and “no” because usually one needs to implement a lot more than it was thought in the beginning of the project so the time management of the team becomes difficult. In our presentation we will start with a basic case of a simple spectral data collection. Then we will describe several examples of “small” technologically advanced VO resources built in CDS and VO-Paris and will show that many standards are hidden from managers' eyes at the initial stage of the project development. The projects will be: (1) the GalMer database providing access to the results of numerical simulations of galaxy interactions; (2) the full spectrum fitting service that allows one to extract internal kinematics and stellar populations from spectra of galaxies available in the VO. We conclude that: (a) with the existing set of IVOA standards one can already build very advanced VO-enabled archives and tools useful for scientists; (b) managers have to be very careful when estimating the project development timelines for VO-enabled resources.

In an effort to locate potential law enforcement-related standards that support incident management, a team from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) contacted representatives from the National Institute of Standards-Office of Law Enforcement Standards (NIST-OLES), National Institute of Justice (NIJ), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Secret Service, ASTM International committees that have a law enforcement focus, and a variety of individuals from local and regional law enforcement organizations. Discussions were held with various state and local law enforcement organizations. The NIJ has published several specific equipment-related law enforcement standards that were included in the review, but it appears that law enforcement program and process-type standards are developed principally by organizations that operate at the state and local level. Input is provided from state regulations and codes and from external non-government organizations (NGOs) that provide national standards. The standards that are adopted from external organizations or developed independently by state authorities are available for use by local law enforcement agencies on a voluntary basis. The extent to which they are used depends on the respective jurisdictions involved. In some instances, use of state and local disseminated standards is mandatory, but in most cases, use is voluntary. Usually, the extent to which these standards are used appears to depend on whether or not jurisdictions receive certification from a “governing” entity due to their use and compliance with the standards. In some cases, these certification-based standards are used in principal but without certification or other compliance monitoring. In general, these standards appear to be routinely used for qualification, selection for employment, and training. In these standards, the term “Peace Officer” is frequently used to refer to law enforcement personnel. This technical review of national law enforcement standards and guides identified the following four guides as having content that supports incident management: • TE-02-02 Guide to Radio Communications Interoperability Strategies and Products • OSHA 335-10N Preparing and Protecting Security Personnel in Emergencies • NIJ 181584 Fire and Arson Scene Evidence: A Guide for Public Safety Personnel • NIJ 181869 A Guide for Explosion and Bombing Scene Investigation In conversations with various state and local law enforcement officials, it was determined that the following National Fire Protection Association (NPFA) standards are generally recognized and tend to be universally used by law enforcement organizations across the country: • NFPA 1600 Standard on Disaster/Emergency Management and Business Continuity Programs • NFPA 1561 Standard on Fire Department Incident Management Systems • NFPA 472 Standard for Competence of Responders to Hazardous Materials/Weapons of Mass Destruction Incidents (2008 Edition) • NFPA 473 Standard for Competencies for EMS Personnel Responding to Hazardous Materials/Weapons of Mass Destruction Incidents (2008 Edition)

A single global market for procurement is of crucial importance to the E and P industry. The resulting benefits, including cost reductions and shorter delivery times, could even be the key to the economic development of marginal fields. International Standards that cater for the needs of users, manufacturers and the public at large can provide a common basis for companies to procure and provide goods and services that will deliver the required performance throughout the field life. The savings to industry could be billions of dollars per year. The E and P Forum, on behalf of the industry, has developed proposals to increase the efficiency of this managerial procedure and to speed up the ``internationalization`` of selected standards. Details are given at the end of the paper. It is argued that the E and P industry should rally to the cause of international standardization. Companies should lend their full support by committing their valuable expert resources. It is in the interests of the industry to do this for, without suitably skilled expert representation in ISO and the elimination of duplication as well as waste of resources through performing similar work at company or national level, the large potential benefits of international standardization will elude the E and P industry.

In relation to the basic study of the standardization for hydrogen energy technology and ISO/TC197, the results of the fiscal 1997 survey were summarized. From fiscal 1994 through 1996, in the wide-range field related to hydrogen energy technology, the survey of the present situation of the related standards/laws was made and the needs/subjects of standardization to be studied in the future were extracted. At the present stage, however, it is still early to enter into the stage of discussing the standardization. Therefore, in this fiscal year, only in the field of the storage/transportation/handling of liquid hydrogen, standards/laws abroad and in Japan were comparatively investigated for the basic study toward the standardization. Further, concerning ISO/TC197, studies were proceeded with of the liquid hydrogen land vehicle fueling system interface/fuel tanks/transportation containers/hydrogen fuel product specifications/airport hydrogen fueling facilities. Some are at the stage of drafting the international standard. Three drafts for the new standard were added such as gaseous hydrogen/hydrogen blend vehicular fuel systems, gaseous hydrogen fuel tanks, and basic requirements for safety of hydrogen systems. The standardization is indispensable to introducing the developed technology to the commercialization. 9 refs., 5 figs., 13 tabs.

This paper presents a variational-based modeling and computational implementation of the non-linear, rate-dependent response of piezoceramics under electro-mechanical loading. The point of departure is a general internal variable formulation that describes the hysteretic electro-mechanical response of the material as a standard dissipative solid. Consistent with this type of dissipative continua, we develop a variational formulation of the coupled electro-mechanical boundary-value-problem based on incremental potentials for the stresses and the electric displacement. We specify the variational formulation to a model that describes time-dependent, electric polarizations accompanied by remanent strains. It is governed by a dual dissipation function formulated in terms of the internal driving...

This paper provides a synopsis of the salient results from the ISP(International Standard Problem)-39 exercise promoted by OECD-CSNI in the frame of the NEA activities aimed at fostering international cooperation in reactor safety research and development. ISP-39 has been conceived to benchmark the predictive capabilities of computer codes used in the evaluation of FCI and quenching phenomenologies of relevance in water cooled reactors severe accidents safety analysis. The ISP-39 reference case is FARO test L-14, a non-energetic FCI test performed in the FARO experimental installation under realistic melt composition and prototypical test conditions. (author)

A neutron beam with an energy spectrum resembling that of atmospheric neutron radiation has been developed at the 1000-MeV synchrocyclotron of the Petersburg Nuclear Physics Institute. The beam is intended for testing the radiation resistance of electronics and meets the requirements of the JEDEC international standard. The only test facility in which the neutron spectrum is close to the standard in the energy range of 0.1?750 MeV has been developed at the Los Alamos National Laboratory on the basis the LAMPF linear proton accelerator and used by aviation and space companies of the United States, Europe, and Asia to test their electronic equipment. In contrast to the test facilities in Los Alamos and Uppsala (Sweden), the method of neutron production on an internal accelerator target is us...

A simple and robust liquid chromatographic-tandem mass spectrometric method was developed and validated for the direct quantification of the structural isomers morphine-3-glucuronide (M3G), morphine-6-glucuronide (M6G), and morphine in urine. Method development showed that dilution of the urine samples was mandatory to obtain reproducible chromatography and that the use of deuterated internal standards was needed to compensate for ion suppression. Sample preparation consisted of a 20-fold dilution of urine into the internal standard solution. Chromatography was performed on a C8-column using gradient conditions. The mobile phase consisted of water/methanol, both containing 0.1 % acetic acid and 1 mM ammonium acetate. Calibration curves were constructed between 0.05 and 2 ?g/ml. Validat...

Oklahoma State University and the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association (IGSHPA) are active in providing technical support to government and industry through technology transfer, technology development, technical assistance, and business development support. Technology transfer includes geothermal heat pump (GHP) system training for installers and architects and engineers, national teleconferences, brochures, and other publications. Technology development encompasses design software development, GLHEPRO, in-situ thermal conductivity testing methods and verification of data reduction techniques, and specifications and standards for GHP systems. Examples of technical assistance projects are a Navy officers quarters and a NASA Visitors Center which required design assistance and supporting information in reducing the life cycle cost to make them viable projects.

In November 2008, the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management (INMM) and the European Safeguards Research and Development Association (ESARDA) co-hosted the International Workshop on Gamma Spectrometry Analysis Codes for U and Pu Isotopics at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). This workshop was conducted in response to needs expressed by the international safeguards community to understand better the capabilities and limitations of the codes; to ensure these codes are sustained; and to ensure updates or revisions are performed in a controlled manner. The workshop was attended by approximately 100 participants. The participants included code developers, code suppliers, safeguards specialists, domestic and international inspectors, process operators, regulators, and programme sponsors from various government agencies. The workshop provided a unique opportunity for code developers, commercial distributors and end users to interact in a hands-on laboratory environment to develop solutions for programmatic and technical issues associated with the various codes. The workshop also provided an international forum for discussing development of an internationally accepted standard test method. This paper discusses the organization of the workshop, its goals and objectives and feedback received from the participants. The paper also describes the significance of the working group's contribution to improving codes that are commonly used during inspections to verify that nuclear facilities are compliant with treaty obligations that ensure nuclear fuel cycle facilities are used for peaceful purposes.

Following the Engineering Design Activity of ITER, joint implementation towards construction has been made among the international partners. To this end, in Japan, efforts have been made to develop a fundamental approach for ensuring safety and establishing associated codes and standards for structural and seismic integrity in licensing preparation. This paper gives an outline of a safety approach and presents an outline of technical codes for the integrity of unique ITER components. (author)

The Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) Monte Carlo N-Particle radiation transport code, MCNP, has become an international standard for a wide spectrum of neutron, photon, and electron radiation transport applications. The latest version of the code, MCNP 4C, was released to the Radiation Safety Information Computational Center (RSICC) in February 2000. This paper describes the code development philosophy, new features and capabilities, applicability to various problems, and future directions.

An analytical method for the calculation of ferrite magnets demagnetization in brush-less motors equipped with surface-mounted magnets is developed. This method takes into account the internal field in the magnet. It's based on the resolution in polar coordinates of the governing field equations in the air-gap and the magnet regions. The obtained results are compared with standard demagnetization measurements like done in the automotive motors industry. (author)

The Pillard company has developed, in cooperation with GDF (the French national gas utility), the GR-LONOxFLAM burner concept for reducing NOx emission levels and solid combustion products. The concept consists, for gaseous fuels, in the combination of an internal recirculation and a gas staging process; for liquid fuels, a separated flame process and air staging are combined. These concepts allow for an important reduction in NOx and non-burned residues, even with standard-size burners

A double-faced tandem ionization chamber system was developed at the Calibration Laboratory of IPEN. It has different collecting electrode materials: aluminium and graphite. The response repeatability and reproducibility and the energy dependence test of this tandem ionization chamber were evaluated. The chamber response stability is within the {+-}3% limit recommended in international standards. The energy dependence test of the ionization chamber system using the tandem curve obtained, presented agreement with literature results. (author)

ABSTRACT: Developing countries can generate effective solutions for today's global health challenges. This paper reviews relevant literature to construct the case for international cooperation, and in particular, developed-developing country partnerships. Standard database and web-based searches were conducted for publications in English between 1990 and 2010. Studies containing full or partial data relating to international cooperation between developed and developing countries were retained for further analysis. Of 227 articles retained through initial screening, 65 were included in the final analysis. The results were two-fold: some articles pointed to intangible benefits accrued by developed country partners, but the majority of information pointed to developing country innovations that can potentially inform health systems in developed countries. This information spanned all six WHO health system components. Ten key health areas where developed countries have the most to learn from the developing world were identified and include, rural health service delivery; skills substitution; decentralisation of management; creative problem-solving; education in communicable disease control; innovation in mobile phone use; low technology simulation training; local product manufacture; health financing; and social entrepreneurship. While there are no guarantees that innovations from developing country experiences can effectively transfer to developed countries, combined developed-developing country learning processes can potentially generate effective solutions for global health systems. However, the global pool of knowledge in this area is virgin and further work needs to be undertaken to advance understanding of health innovation diffusion. Even more urgently, a standardized method for reporting partnership benefits is needed-this is perhaps the single most immediate need in planning for, and realizing, the full potential of international cooperation between developed and developing countries. PMID:22709651

The demand for calibration services and quality control in diagnostic radiology has grown in the country since the publication of the governmental regulation 453, issued by the Ministry of Health in 1998. At that time, to produce results facing the new legislation, many laboratories used different standards and radiation qualities, some of which could be inadequate. The international standards neither supplied consistent radiation qualities and standardization for the different types of equipment available. This situation changed with the publication of the new edition of the IEC 61267 standard, published in 2005. A metrology network was created, but it is not yet accredited by the accreditation organism of the country, INMETRO. The objective of this work was to implement the standardization of the air kerma for the un attenuated qualities (RQR) of IEC 61267, and to develop a requirement proposal for instruments calibration laboratories. Results of interlaboratory comparisons demonstrate that the quantity is standardized and internationally traceable. A laboratory requirement proposal was finalized and it shall be submitted to INMETRO to be used as auxiliary normative document in laboratory accreditation. (author)

The petrochemical complex of Camacari, BA, Brazil, involves 40 companies, responsible for 55% of brazilian production. The companies were installed using the most modern techniques related to quality available at that time, strongly centered in quality control. The new industrial policy towards reducing import taxes and allowing the entrance of foreign products at competitive prices, besides the quality exigencies of international market, induced the companies to develop new techniques for quality management based in the ISO 9000 standards. The paper shows the stage of implementation of these standards in 30 companies, corresponding to 90% of global sales of all the complex. (author)

The VNIIPTuglemash institute developed and tested a new type of self-locking nut for joining links of haulage chains on chain conveyors used for coal haulage in underground mining. Standard nuts used in the USSR are equipped with special plastic inserts on the internal thread. The standard nuts are in short supply and expensive to manufacture. The self-locking nuts tested by the institute are spray coated with polyamides. Tests show that polyamide-coated nuts are superior to self-locking nuts with plastic inserts.

A gas chromatographic method was developed for simultaneous determination of nine pyrethroids (permethrin, transallethrin, beta-cypermethrin, prallethrin, tetramethrin, transfluthrin, cyphenothrin, phenothrin, imiprothrin) in indoor insecticide products using dibutyl phthalate and iso-octyl phthalate as two internal standards. Parameters affecting the extraction and separation efficiency were investigated. Good linear fit curves were obtained in a range of 0.4-900mg/l with correlation coefficients >0.999. The proposed method was successfully applied for the determination of pyrethroids in mosquito coils and two aerosol products. The recovery of transallethrin in mosquito coils at three spiked levels was 96.8% with relative standard deviation less than 2.7%. The recoveries of transallethrin...

This paper explored the key factors affecting catching up through technology standard development by studying the evolution of TD-SCDMA, one of the three international standards of 3G mobile communications, in China. It was found that this was a complex co-evolution process between firm strategy and government policy aimed mainly at solving the challenges of late-comer disadvantages. The paper also examined the unique features of this co-evolution process, including the importance of the informal social network of non-customer stakeholders, and discussed the theoretical and practical implications of the key findings.

Accurate testing of an instrument by phantoms requires a tissue-mimicking material that has the acoustic velocity and density defined in the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standard, and furthermore the tissue-mimicking material must be stable over time. To achieve the tissue-mimicking materials with the desired acoustic velocity and density defined in the IEC standard, new materials have been developed. The form of tissue-mimicking materials reported comprised polystyrene and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) particles dispersed in segmented polyurethane gel. They were stable over a period of 40 days and the changes in weight and acoustic velocity did not exceed 0.5%.

In the field of international standards such as IEC standards, safety is generally explained with risk. In the risk analysis process, it is a very important task to calculate the reliability of large-scale systems which include equipment and operators. As for the railway risk analysis, there are many cases that conventional techniques, such as event trees (ETs), and fault trees (FTs), which are broadly used as practical tools, can not be applied adequately. This is because, for the railway system, there are a number of subsystems with complicated dependencies. Then, we developed a new network-type reliability evaluation model, Typed State Influence Diagram (TSID), which can explicitly express such a complicated dependency.   

Need The rates of health care-associated infections (HAIs) and bacterial resistance in developing countries are 3 to 5 times higher than international standards. HAIs increase length of stay (10 days), costs (US $5000 to US $12,000), and mortality (by a factor of 2 to 3). Organization The International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium (INICC), founded in 1998, is the only source of aggregated international data on the epidemiology of device-associated infections (DAIs). Its advisory board includes 12 representatives from developed countries, who help guide INICCs activities, and 8 country coordinators. The INICC network has about 5400 active researchers in 98 intensive care units (ICUs) in 18 countries on 4 continents that conduct infection control research and surveillance using st...

Activities of development of new maintenance standards for operating nuclear power plant in Japan are described. The work of drafting the standards has been done by the Committee of Nuclear Plant Operation and Maintenance Standards (POMS), that was organized in the Japan Power Engineering and Inspection Corporation under the entrustment from the Ministry of International Trade and Industry. The articles of ASME Section XI related to inspection, flaw evaluation and repair have been examined and modified, if necessary, so as to introduce latest Japanese database and technological knowledge. In the area of repairs, many repair techniques verified in recent years in Japan were incorporated i n addition to those specified in ASME Section XI. Finally major differences between ASME Section XI and the draft of the standards are listed.

With the resurgence of nuclear power and increased interest in advanced nuclear reactors as an option to supply abundant energy without the associated greenhouse gas emissions of the more conventional fossil fuel energy sources, there is a need to establish internationally recognized standards for the verification and validation (V&V) of software used to calculate the thermal-hydraulic behavior of advanced reactor designs for both normal operation and hypothetical accident conditions. To address this need, ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) Standards and Certification has established the V&V 30 Committee, under the jurisdiction of the V&V Standards Committee, to develop a consensus standard for verification and validation of software used for design and analysis of advanced re...

The classification of flammable gas mixtures is based on either testing or calculation methods proposed by the revised international standard ISO 10156. This standard is used for classification of physical hazards in Chapters 2.2 and 2.4 of the UN Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) and in the UN Recommendations on Transport of Dangerous Goods (TDG). The test methods of flammability and oxidizing potential in this standard were developed by BAM. Earlier versions of this standard are not based on triangular diagrams and on the reference combustible substance ''ethane''. The old material characteristics, especially in case of oxidizing potential, are based mostly on practical experience without any quantifiable test results. First time it is possible...

An automated controlled-potential coulometer has been developed at the Savannah River Site (SRS) for the determination of plutonium for use at the International Atomic Energy Agency`s (IAEA) Safeguards Analytical Laboratory in Siebersdorf, Austria. The system is functionally the same as earlier systems built for use at the Savannah River Site`s Analytical Laboratory. All electronic circuits and printed circuits boards have been upgraded with state-of-the-art components. A higher amperage potentiostat with improved control stability has been developed. The system achieves electronic calibration accuracy and linearity of better than 0.01 percent, with a precision and accuracy better than 0.1 percent has been demonstrated. This coulometer features electrical calibration of the integration system, electrolysis current background corrections, and control-potential adjustment capabilities. These capabilities allow application of the system to plutonium measurements without chemical standards, achieving traceability to the international measurement system through electrical standards and Faraday`s constant. the chemist is provided with the capability to perform measurements without depending upon chemical standards, which is a significant advantage for applications such as characterization of primary and secondary standards. Additional benefits include reducing operating cost to procure, prepare and measure calibration standards and the corresponding decrease in radioactive waste generation. The design and documentation of the automated instrument are provided herein. Each individual module`s operation, wiring, layout, and alignment are described. Interconnection of the modules and system calibration are discussed. A complete set of prints and a list of associated parts are included.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has moved rapidly toward electronic production, management, and dissemination of scientific and technical information. The World-Wide Web (WWW) has become a primary means of information dissemination. Electronic commerce (EC) is becoming the preferred means of procurement. DOE, like other government agencies, depends on and encourages the use of international standards in data communications. Like most government agencies, DOE has expressed a preference for openly developed standards in preference to proprietary designs promoted as "standards" by vendors. In particular, there is a preference for standards developed by organizations such as the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) that use open, public processes to develop their standards. Among the most widely adopted international standards is the Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML, ISO 8879:1986, FIPS 152), which DOE has selected as the basis of its electronic management of documents. Besides the official commitment, which has resulted in several specialized projects, DOE makes heavy use of coding derived from SGML, and its use is likely to increase in the future. Most documents on the WWW are coded in HTML ("Hypertext Markup Language"), which is an application of SGML. The World-Wide Web Consortium (W3C), with the backing of major software houses like Microsoft, Adobe, and Netscape, is promoting XML ("eXtensible Markup Language"), a class of SGML applications, for the future of the WWW and the basis for EC. W3C has announced its intention of discontinuing future development of HTML and replacing it with XHTML, an application of XML. In support of DOE's use of these standards, I have served since 1985 as Chairman of the international committee responsible for SGML and related standards, ISO/IEC JTC1/SC34 (SC34) and its predecessor organizations. During my April 1999 trip, I convened the spring 1999 meeting of SC34 in Granada, Spain. I also attended a major conference on the use of SGML and XML. SC34 maintains and continues to enhance several standards. In addition to SGML, which is the basis of HTML and XML, SC34 also works on the Document Style Semantics and Specification Language (DSSSL), which is the basis for W3C's XSL ("eXtensible Style Language," to be used with XML) and the Hypermedia/Time-based Document Structuring Language (HyTime), which is a major influence on W3C's XLink ("XML Linking Language"). SC34 is also involved in work with ISO's TC184, Industrial Data, on the linking of STEP (the standard for the interchange of product model data) with SGML. In addition to the widespread use of the WWW among DOE's plants and facilities in Oak Ridge and among DOE sites across the nation, there are several SGML-based projects at the Y-12 Plant. My project team in Information Technology Services developed an SGML-based publications system that has been used for several major reports at the Y-12 Plant and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). SGML is a component of the Weapons Records Archiving and Preservation (WRAP) project at the Y-12 Plant and is the format for catalog metadata chosen for weapons records by the Nuclear Weapons Information Group (NWIG). Supporting standards development allows DOE and the Y-12 plant both input into the process and the opportunity to benefit from contact with some of the leading experts in the subject matter. Oak Ridge has been for some years the location to which other DOE sites turn for expertise in SGML and related topics.

The American Institute of Aeronautics Astronautics (AIAA) Modeling and Simulation Technical Committee is in final preparation of a new standard for the exchange of flight dynamics models. The standard will become an ANSI standard and is under consideration for submission to ISO for acceptance by the international community. The standard has some aspects that should provide benefits to the simulation training community. Use of the new standard by the training simulation community will reduce development, maintenance and technical refresh investment on each device. Furthermore, it will significantly lower the cost of performing model updates to improve fidelity or expand the envelope of the training device. Higher flight fidelity should result in better transfer of training, a direct benefit to the pilots under instruction. Costs of adopting the standard are minimal and should be paid back within the cost of the first use for that training device. The standard achieves these advantages by making it easier to update the aerodynamic model. It provides a standard format for the model in a custom eXtensible Markup Language (XML) grammar, the Dynamic Aerospace Vehicle Exchange Markup Language (DAVE-ML). It employs an existing XML grammar, MathML, to describe the aerodynamic model in an input data file, eliminating the requirement for actual software compilation. The major components of the aero model become simply an input data file, and updates are simply new XML input files. It includes naming and axis system conventions to further simplify the exchange of information.

Wide spread variation in measurement results of total 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) confounds international efforts to develop evidence-based clinical guidelines. Accordingly, NIH Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) in collaboration with CDC National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Ghent University established the Vitamin D Standardization Program (VDSP) in November 2010. VDSP objectives include: (1) standardize 25(OH)D concentration measurements in national health surveys around the world, (2) evaluate survey differences, (3) extend standardization efforts to assay manufacturers, and to clinical, commercial, and research laboratories, (4) promote standardization of emerging metabolites of vitamin D status, and (5) enable the use of standardized data in patient care and public health. An interlaboratory comparison study is being conducted to assess measurement variability among current assays. Participants include national health surveys from Australia, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, South Korea, UK and USA, 15 assay manufacturers, and two external quality assurance programs. CDC will implement a formal laboratory certification program. Standardization activities will use single-donor, fresh-frozen serum collected using the CLSI C37 protocol. Initial assay performance criteria, based on biological variability data, are ? 10 % imprecision and ? 5 % bias in relation to the reference values. An ancillary study on commutability of NIST SRM 972a, external quality assurance testing materials is included. To increase the comparability of existing data from different national surveys, master equations will be developed to facilitate the conversion of already existing national survey data to the NIST-Ghent University reference measurement procedures. PMID:22536760

In the last decades the focus on expectation gap issues has resolved many fundamental discrepancies between best-practice standards and the expectations stated by the primary users of audit services. Maybe the most important discrepancy has been between the view on internal control as formulated in the auditing standards and the concept of internal control as understood by company management. In the US, this was realized in the Treadway report on fraudulent financial reporting, which stated the need for at common reference point on the content of internal control. Since this need was explicitly stated in the late eighties, the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission decided to develop an integrated framework on internal control. The resulting attempt to provide a framework was published in the COSO-report in 1992. Although the primary scope of this report was a message concerning internal controls intended for management directors, it provides a framework which explicitly deals with the interests of all parties involved (including auditors, board of directors and regulating bodies). The auditors took this into account by updating the particular auditing standard on internal control (the replacement of SAS 55 with SAS 78 "Consideration of the Internal Control Structure in a Financial Statement Audit"). The purpose of this paper is to examine to what extent realized discrepancies has been narrowed in, or completely resolved, by the joint efforts from COSO and the standard setters. Realized discrepancies are identified and related to the necessary features of an integrated framework. The necessary features include (1) the definition of internal controls, (2) the components of internal control, (3) the criteria for evaluating internal control as stated by the auditors (4) the criteria for evaluating internal controls as stated by management, and (5) the integration of internal control evaluations from management and auditors. The paper provides evidence from an in-depth contents analysis comparing SAS No. 55 from 1988 with the COSO-report from 1992 and SAS No. 78 from 1995. The analysis is a longitudinal approach used on these essential documents, which represent the promulgation of best practice in the area in the United States. Each of the features is examined in turn in order to assess the contribution to an overall framework of internal control. Overall, the findings suggest that the auditors have not made the needed effort to close a realized expectation gap. One perspective of these findings can be related to the need for future regulation initiatives. An integrated framework should integrate the auditor, that is, the auditor has to disclose the extent of internal control evaluations in light of the expectations from the primary users, namely that they always conduct such evaluations. The conclusion is that a major discrepancy still needs to be resolved. Another perspective is to avoid an exact replication of the described efforts to close the realized expectation gaps as performed by othernational (European) practices in the standard setting efforts concerning internal control

It is usual to consider that standards generate mixed feelings among scientists. They are often seen as not really reflecting the state of the art in a given domain and a hindrance to scientific creativity. Still, scientists should theoretically be at the best place to bring their expertise into standard developments, being even more neutral on issues that may typically be related to competing industrial interests. Even if it could be thought of as even more complex to think about developping standards in the humanities, we will show how this can be made feasible through the experience gained both within the Text Encoding Initiative consortium and the International Organisation for Standardisation. By taking the specific case of lexical resources, we will try to show how this brings about new ideas for designing future research infrastructures in the human and social sciences.

In this commentary, we advocate building a richer set of descriptions about our invaluable and exponentially growing collection of genomes and metagenomic datasets through the construction of consensus-driven data capture and exchange mechanisms. Standardization activities must proceed within the auspices of open-access and international working bodies, and to tackle the issues surrounding the development of better descriptions of genomic investigations we have formed the Genomic Standards Consortium (GSC). Here, we introduce the 'Minimum Information about a Genome Sequence' specification in the hopes of gaining wider participation in its development and discuss the resources that will be required to support it (standardization of annotations through the use of ontologies and mechanisms of metadata capture, exchange). As part of its wider goals, the GSC also strongly supports improving the 'transparency' of the information contained in existing genomic databases that contain calculated analyses and genomic annotations.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to present a comparative study between two low-cost turbidimeter designs using a multi purpose Optical Fiber NIR System (OF-NIRS), Optical Fiber NIR System-Modified (OF-NIRS-M) and High Sensitivity NIR System (HS-NIRS) conducted in the development of a turbidimeter by closely replicating the existing standard design guideline. Optical method is a typical measuring technique that has been applied intensively for the measurement of water turbidity. Design/methodology/approach - Comprehensive guidelines for the development of turbidimeter have been stated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA Method 180.1) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO 7027) and have been used as standards by instrument's manufacturers wo...

The purpose of this paper is to examine the major factors surrouding and contributing to the creation (and success) of Europe's 2nd generation 'GSM' cellular system, and compare and contrast it to key events and recent developments in 3rd generation 'IMT-2000' systems. The objective is to ascertain whether lessons from the development of one system can be applied to the other, and what implications 2G has for the development and assessment of 3G technologies. Among the major themes incorporated into this assessment is the concept of cooperation, and its role in bringing about the collaboration and integration necessary to support the success of an international cellular standard.

Inter- and non-governmental anglophone Commonwealths have advocated democracy and development in both formal and informal networks, symbolised by their provision of five of the first chairs of the counter-conflict diamonds Kimberley Process. Given the character of civil society-corporate as well as state-economy relations throughout the Commonwealths, they have been central to the definition and development of standard-setting norms and agencies through extensive heterogeneous coalitions such as the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. Klaus Dingwerth has recently characterised such certification, compacts, processes as 'private transnational governance'. This paper analyses the roles of the Commonwealths in advancing such 'global governance' through the Small Island Developing States ...

The ISDS National Center of the Deutsche Bibliothek is outlined. The structure, function and purpose of the international Standard Serial Number (ISSN), and the conception, organization, and working method of the International Serials Data System (ISDS) a...

Abstract. The International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) is the international standard for the ... description of the low-latitude bottomside thickness, (2) inclusion of a model for storm-time ..... and modeled B,, values for day and night for a winter ...

A thermospray interface between a HPLC system and a mass spectrometer has been used to develop an assay for pyridostigmine bromide measuring plasma concentrations down to 1 ng ml-1 on a routine basis. Plasma is loaded onto an AASP reversed-phase cartridge, injected onto a HPLC system connected to a Finnigan 4500 mass spectrometer via a thermospray interface and the molecular ion monitored. A deuterated internal standard is used, but calculations with and without the internal standard show its use does not materially improve the quantitation. The precision and accuracy at the limit of quantitation is less than +/- 5% and 95-105%, respectively. The method is used to analyse samples from a bioavailability study by fully automated unattended overnight sample analysis. PMID:2100621

A screening procedure was developed for the simultaneous detection of mephedrone, six amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS), ketamine and its two metabolites with electrospray ionization flow injection analysis tandem mass spectrometry (FIA–MS-MS). Urine samples were fortified with deuterated analogues as internal standards, extracted with ethyl acetate and analyzed with FIA–MS-MS. The mass analyzer was operated in multiple reaction monitoring mode. Two product ions were monitored for each drug and internal standards. For each analyte, the limit of detection was less than 4 µg/L, within-day and between-day precisions (percent coefficient of variation) at three different concentrations were less than 7.3% and bias was between –17.3 and 11.8%. Total anal...

In order to support the progress and international activity of a Japanese welfare industry, research was made on a concrete approach to establishment of a Japanese international cooperation system on the basis of the activity trend of welfare organizations and groups in North European countries and Japan. Introduction of standards and a mark system for welfare equipment is under investigation in North European countries, and movement for unified standards is also becoming active among these countries. TIDE project called socioeconomic integrated engineering already exists for handicapped and aged persons in Europe, while a rehabilitation act was enforced in the U.S.A. in 1973. Japan participated in ISO and IEC for promotion of a welfare equipment industry. Rehabilitation Engineering Society of Japan (RESJA) for equipment development and technical support, and Japan Wellness and Welfare Industry Association (JWA) for promotion of the related industries were also established. In Europe, North America and Australia, rehabilitation engineering associations are already in action. 8 figs., 17 tabs.

We have developed a new internal standard method for the determination of the concentration of captopril (CAP) through surface-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (SALDI-MS) using gold nanoparticles (Au NPs). This approach provided linearity for CAP over the concentration range 2.5–25 ?M (R2 = 0.987), with a limit of detection (signal-to-noise ratio = 3) of 1.0 ?M. The spot-to-spot variations in the concentration of CAP through SALDI-MS analyses performed in the absence and presence of the internal standard were 26% and 9%, respectively (15 measurements). This approach provides simplicity, accuracy, precision, and great reproducibility to the determination of the levels of CAP in human urine samples.

A method for the accurate determination of volatile organic compounds (VOC) in milk samples has been developed and tested. It combines multiple dynamic headspace extraction with GC-MS. Absolute amounts of VOC in the liquid phase are obtained by determining the first order kinetic dependence of the stepwise extraction of the analytes and internal standards from the liquid matrix. Compounds released from milk were collected on a train of traps filled with different solid sorbents to cover all components having a number of carbon atoms ranging from 4 to 15. They were analysed by GC-MS after thermal desorption of VOC from the collecting traps. Quantification of VOC in milk was performed using deuterated compounds as internal standards. The method was used to follow seasonal variations of monoterpenes in goat milk and to detect the impact of air pollution on the quality of milk. PMID:15506617

Cyanide is a powerful chemical asphyxiant found in some forensic cases following voluntary (suicide) or involuntary ingestion (fire, accidental exposure). A quantification method for cyanide that is specifically suited to post-mortem forensic purposes was developed. Determination was performed by headspace gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry using a GS-GASPRO column on an HP-6890 gas chromatograph with an HP-5973N mass detector. The biological sample was treated with an internal standard, frozen, glacial acetic acid was added and the sample was then incubated at 60^oC for 15min. The headspace was sampled with a disposable syringe, and analyzed to quantify hydrogen cyanide. Isotopically labeled cyanide (^1^3C^1^5N) was used as the internal standard to minimize matrix effect and ...

Global warming represents one of the most critical internationally perceived environmental issues. The growing, and increasingly global, wine sector is one of the industries which is under increasing pressure to adopt approaches for environmental assessment and reporting of product-related greenhouse gas emissions. The International Organization for Vine and Wine has recently recognized the need to develop a standard and objective methodology and a related tool for calculating carbon footprint (CF). This study applied this tool to a wine previously analyzed using the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. The objective was to test the tool as regards both its potential and possible limitations, and thus to assess its suitability as a standard tool. Despite the tool?s user-friendliness, a...

In France, despite efforts on the part of the authorities, grade repetition continues to be practised in schools. Internationally, there is a great diversity of pratice in this area, both in Europe and in the rest of the world. In European countries that use repetition, such as Belgium, France and Switerland, teachers affirm their confidence in the positive results of the practice. Much research, however, indicates that repetition is not beneficial to the pupil concerned. Furthermore, it is possible, using standardized tests developed by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement, to demonstrate that countries which have abandoned grade repetition have not suffered a lowering of educational standards, nor have they incurred extra costs. One way to reduce the need for repetition would be to give teachers better information on the real potentialities of each pupil, thus helping them to practice a more individualized form of pedagogy.

The objective of this study is to devise a proper measure for international publicity and technology export strategy. Analysed and summaries in detail are other countries nuclear policy trend and the current technology development status of Korea Standard Nuclear Plant that we developed on our own technology, design and construction technology for research reactor, System-integrated Modular Advanced Reactor of which design is in progress, Direct use of Spent PWR Fuel in CANDU Reactors, and Radioisotopes. Based on that, the measures are proposed for the export industrialization of nuclear technology and establishment of the export basis. Also the international nuclear cooperation and publicity strategy are suggested to support the technology export basis. By surveying the world nuclear status, the direction for the international cooperation and publicity is settled and the specific publicity strategy is proposed for the cooperation with IAEA and multi-countries and the establishment of the nuclear technology export basis. As part of this project, the panel on major technologies such as Korea Standard Nuclear Plant, HANARO, and System-integrated Modular Advanced Reactor was displayed successfully at the IAEA meeting, which contribute much to the publicity of our nuclear technology to the international nuclear society. (author)

This paper examines the influence that marketing capabilities developed in international new ventures can have on their international performance and international geographical diversification. Rapid entry in foreign markets is also highlighted as a factor contributing to the development of marketin...

Technological development is in progress at present for the intelligent transport system for example that uses a microwave frequency range of 60GHz or 90GHz toward the practical use, with a demand increasing for measuring the electrical properties of fine ceramics (FC) to be used in the communication equipment of the system. The measuring method in the microwave frequency range of 30GHz or less is about to be standardized in IEC TC49/WG10; however, the method above 30GHz has not yet been examined for the standardization internationally. The subject research is intended to establish the method of measuring electrical properties such as the dielectric constant of FC for a high-frequency/ultra high-frequency wave range, dielectric loss and surface resistivity, to standardize the principle of their measuring methods, measuring tools, adjusting method of samples, procedures of measurement, etc., and to aim at the international standardization. This year, investigation and examination were carried out on various measuring methods including overseas examinations in the U.S., extracting the Fabry-Perot resonator method and a conductive cylindrical dielectric cavity resonator perturbation method for example, and evaluating the specifications of standard reference materials. In addition, a morphological technique was established for measuring sample surfaces affecting measurements, by means of an accurate measuring instrument for thin film surfaces. (NEDO)

This study was conducted to standardize the chemical analysis and non-destructive inspection methods for pure titanium metals of industrial grade. These methods are among those serving bases for international standardization of products. The chemical analysis is aimed at quantitative analysis of trace impurities, in particular, present in pure titanium metals of industrial grade by developing and standardizing the inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy, known for its low detectable limit, and, at the same time, spark and glow discharged atomic emission spectrometry as the improved routine analysis methods. These methods, although being used by, e.g., steel makers, have not been standardized because the effects of titanium-peculiar matrix are not elucidated. The non-destructive testing is aimed at standardization of the techniques useful for automatic production lines. More concretely, these include optical methods aided by a laser or CCD camera for plate surface defect inspection, ultrasonic methods for plate internal defect inspection, and pressure differential methods for air-tightness of welded pipes. They have not been used yet for automatic production lines. (NEDO)

This file is divided in two parts:the first one concerns the progress in internal dosimetry. This part gives an overview on new model developments by ICRP, the series of age dependent doses for members of the public was continued by biokinetic and dosimetric models for the embryo and foetus due to activity intake by the mother (ICRP,2001) and for the infant via consumption of mother's milk after activity intake by the mother (ICRP, 2004). In both publications dose coefficients for the embryo and foetus as well the infant were given for various intake scenarios by mother. The present model development work of ICRP is a revision of Publications 30, 54, 68, and 78 based on the new human Alimentary tract model (H.A.T.M.) of ICRP (ICRP, 2006), a revision of absorption parameters for the human respiratory tract model (ICRP, 1994a), new systemic models as well as new dosimetric parameters derived with new Voxel models for the reference male and female adult. The second part concerns the progress in workers monitoring for radionuclide intake. The initiatives to improve the situation are the guidelines published by the International Atomic Energy Agency (2004), giving guidance for the assessment of occupational exposures due to intakes of radionuclides, research project funded by the European Commission: the objective of O.M.I.N.E.X. was the improvement of monitoring programmes, taking into account the uncertainties of biokinetic models and data, the programme I.D.E.A. tried to improve measuring techniques and I.D.E.A.S derives rules for the evaluation of measured activity values in terms of exposure. Standardization projects by the International Standardization Organization I.S.O.: I.S.O. (2001) published a standard defining the requirements for bioassay laboratories, which will soon followed by a second part giving the rationale behind these rules., presently the final version (I.S.O. 2005) of a standard is circulating among the I.S.O. member states which guidance on the design of monitoring programmes, and the draft of another standard will be presented this summer, standardizing the methods to assess exposures on the basis of measured activities (in vivo or in vitro). The I.S.O. standards presently under development try to integrate all these developments and efforts as far as their results were available. Therefore, the following discussion of various aspects of monitoring is based on the I.S.O. 2005 standard. (N.C.)

In the late 1970s, national and international attention began to focus on energy issues. Efforts were initiated to design and test analytical tools that could be used to assist energy planners in evaluating energy systems, particularly in developing countries. In 1984, the United States Department of Energy (DOE) commissioned Argonne National Laboratory`s Decision and Information Sciences Division (DIS) to incorporate a set of analytical tools into a personal computer-based package for distribution in developing countries. The package developed by DIS staff, the ENergy and Power Evaluation Program (ENPEP), covers the range of issues that energy planners must face: economic development, energy demand projections, supply-and-demand balancing, energy system expansion, and environmental impact analysis. Following the original DOE-supported development effort, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), with the assistance from the US Department of State (DOS) and the US Department of Energy (DOE), provided ENPEP training, distribution, and technical support to many countries. ENPEP is now in use in over 60 countries and is an international standard for energy planning tools. More than 500 energy experts have been trained in the use of the entire ENPEP package or some of its modules during the international training courses organized by the IAEA in collaboration with Argonne`s Decision and Information Sciences (DIS) Division and the Division of Educational Programs (DEP). This report contains the ENPEP program which can be download from the internet. Described in this report is the description of ENPEP Program, news, forums, online support and contacts.

This CTI (Italian Thermotechnical Committee) norm establishes, based on the ISO (International Standard Organization) Norm no. 6552, standardized terminology to be used in the design and fabrication of automatic steam traps.

...0938-AQ13 Administrative Simplification: Adoption of a Standard for a Unique Health Plan...titled ``Administrative Simplification: Adoption of a Standard for a Unique Health Plan...page 54674, in our discussion of the adoption of the International Organization...

The present paper deals with international quality standardization and safety connected to offshore installations and ships by ISM certification. Quality assurance by standardization from the series ISO 9000 is discussed in this connection

...SAFETY TRANSPORTATION OF NATURAL AND OTHER GAS BY PIPELINE...that does not have an internal corrosion resistant lining may not...9/m3 ) under standard conditions. Standard conditions refers to 60 °F and...

ASTM Reference Radiographs have been essential in defining industry`s material defect grade levels for many years. ASTM Reference Radiographs are used extensively as even the American Society for Metals Nondestructive Inspection and Quality Control Metals Handbook, Volume 11, eighth edition refers to ASTM Standard Reference Radiographs. The recently published E 1648 Standard Reference Radiographs for Examination of Aluminum Fusion Welds is a prime example of the on-going need for these references. To date, 14 Standard Reference Radiographs have been published to characterize material defects. Standard Reference Radiographs do not adequately address film-less radiologic methods. There are differences in mediums to content with. On a computer CRT defect indications appear differently when compared to indications viewed in a radiograph on a view box. Industry that uses non-film radiologic methods of inspection can be burdened with additional time and money developing internal standard reference radiologic images. These references may be deemed necessary for grading levels of product defects. Because there are no ASTM Standard Reference Radiologic data files for addressing this need in the industry, the authors of this paper suggested implementing a method for their creation under ASTM supervision. ASTM can assure continuity to those users making the transition from analog radiographic images to digital image data by swiftly addressing the requirements for reference digital image standards. The current status and possible future activities regarding a method to create digital data files is presented in this paper summary.

Integrating communications helps utilities realize the full potential of communications facilities for providing deversified new business opportunities, increasing operational efficiency, improving productivity, and enhancing customer service. This volume, the forth of six volumes, serves as the standard reference for the development and acquisition of communications systems and services that are intended to be compliant with EPRI's Utility Communications Architecture (UCA). The project team identified electric utility information requirements and conducted a series of interviews with 14 diverse US utilities. The work was reviewed and modified based on an EPRI workshop. Two host utilities, Houston Lighting Power Company and Pacific Gas Electric Company, confirmed information requirements and provided associated communications requirements. Teams of industry experts in each of six defined utility functional areas reviewed the communications requirements and broadened them to reflect an industrywide perspective. In subsequent project phases, the team assessed open communication standards in light of the communications requirements and selected standards for inclusion in this specification. They also incorporated feedback from briefings and several workshops. This specification provides a standard reference for the development and acquisition of UCA-compliant communication systems, equipment, and services. It specifies international communications standards that meet the industry's communications requirements. It assumes a high degree of familiarity with standards documentation.

The maintenance of a NASA policy, is consistent with international agreements. The planetary protection policy management in OSS, with Field Center support. The advice from internal and external advisory groups (NRC, NAC/Planetary Protection Task Force). The technology research and standards development in bioload characterization. The technology research and development in bioload reduction/sterilization. This presentation focuses on: forward contamination - research on the potential for Earth life to exist on other bodies, improved strategies for planetary navigation and collision avoidance, and improved procedures for sterile spacecraft assembly, cleaning and/or sterilization; and backward contamination - development of sample transfer and container sealing technologies for Earth return, improvement in sample return landing target assessment and navigation strategy, planning for sample hazard determination requirements and procedures, safety certification, (liaison to NEO Program Office for compositional data on small bodies), facility planning for sample recovery system, quarantine, and long-term curation of 4 returned samples.

Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) and the Russian Federal Nuclear Center-All Russian Research Institute for Experimental Physics (VNIIEF)(also know as Arzamas-16) are collaborating on ways to assure the highest standards on safety, security, and international accountability of fissile material. This includes systems used to reduce the need for human access to fissile material, reduce radiation exposure, and provide prompt safety-related information, and provide continuous international accountability information while reducing the need for intrusive, on-site visits. This paper will report on the ongoing SNL/VNIIEF efforts to develop technologies and monitoring systems to meet these goals. Specific topics covered will include: the Smart Bolt tag/seal development, development and testing of electronic sensor platforms (U.S. T-1 ESP and VNIIEF Radio Tag) for monitoring and transportation applications, the ''Magazine-to-Magazine'' remote monitoring system field test, and the ''Facility-to-Facility'' storage monitoring system field trial.

The operative treatment of bone fractures using plates and screws is a standard successful technique. Internal fixation with plates and screws leads to additional trauma and disturbance of the bone blood supply, which increases the risk of delayed union and infection. However, problems also are encountered in the fixation of osteoporotic bone. The locked internal fixator technique is an approach to optimize internal fixation. It aims at flexible elastic fixation to imitate spontaneous healing, including induction of callus formation. The technology supports what is currently called "minimally invasive plate osteosynthesis" (MIPO), which provides priority to biology over mechanics. An implant system called "Locking Compression Plate (LCP)" was developed, based on many years of experience with compression plating and good clinical results obtained with internal fixators, such as the Less Invasive Stabilization Systems (LISS). It combines the two treatment methods (ie, the compression plating and locked internal fixation methods) into one system. This chapter describes the basic principles of locked internal fixators and some clinical results with the LISS and LCP systems to illustrate the potential of these new systems. PMID:15455337

In the context of the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) programme to create a corpus of internationally accepted Radioactive Waste Safety Standards (RADWASS), focus is currently being placed on establishing standards for the 'geological disposal of radioactive waste'. This is a challenging task and to help the standards development process there is a need to stimulate discussion of some of the associated scientific and technical issues. A number of position papers developed in recent years by a subgroup of the Waste Safety Standards Committee (WASSC), the subgroup on Principles and Criteria for Radioactive Waste Disposal, address many of the relevant issues. These include a common safety based framework for radioactive waste disposal, appropriate time frames for safety assessment, different possible indicators of long-term safety, the safety implications of reversibility and retrievability, the assessment of possible human intrusion into the repository, the role and limitations of institutional control, establishing reference critical groups and biospheres for long-term assessment, and what is meant by 'compliance' with the standards. These papers will be discussed at a Specialists Meeting to be held at the IAEA in June 2001 as a means of establishing the extent to which they enjoy the general support of experts. In order to broaden that consensus, the conclusions reached at the Specialists Meeting on the issues listed above will be presented and discussed with participants at a number of international meetings. Later this year, a draft safety standard on the geological disposal of radioactive waste which takes account of the consensus positions reached through the various consultations will be submitted for the consideration of Waste Safety Standards Committee (WASSC), the officially approved body within the IAEA for the review and approval of waste safety standards. The Committee is made up of government appointed radioactive waste regulators. Subsequent steps include the provision of formal comments by governments, final approval by WASSC, and by the IAEA's Commission on Safety Standards (CSS) and finally by the IAEA's Board of Governors. (author)

Whole cell pertussis vaccine is still widely used in many countries. An International Standard is needed for its potency control. The Third International Standard for Pertussis Vaccine was prepared about 40 years ago and its replacement was recommended by the Expert Committee for Biological Standardisation (ECBS) of the WHO. Material in ampoules coded 94/532 was prepared as a candidate replacement and has been evaluated in international collaborative studies which consisted of two parts. The first part, to assess the suitability of the candidate standard by comparing it with the Second International Standard for Pertussis Vaccine (IS2) involved 14 laboratories in 11 countries. The second part to compare the candidate standard with the Third International Standard for Pertussis Vaccine (IS3...

This Fact Book has been compiled in an effort to provide: (1) an overview of worldwide nuclear power and fuel cycle programs; and (2) current data concerning fuel cycle and waste management facilities, R and D programs, and key personnel in countries other than the United States. Additional information on each country's program is available in the International Source Book: Nuclear Fuel Cycle Research and Development, PNL-2478, Rev. 2. The Fact Book is organized as follows: (1) Overview section - summary tables which indicate national involvement in nuclear reactor, fuel cycle, and waste management development activities; (2) national summaries - a section for each country which summarizes nuclear policy, describes organizational relationships and provides addresses, names of key personnel, and facilities information; (3) international agencies - a section for each of the international agencies which has significant fuel cycle involvement; (4) energy supply and demand - summary tables, including nuclear power projections; (5) fuel cycle - summary tables; and (6) travel aids international dialing instructions, international standard time chart, passport and visa requirements, and currency exchange rate.

TWSTFT (Two Way Satellite Time and Frequency Transfer) has been developed for a long time, and has become one of the most precise and accurate techniques for comparison of the frequency standards located at remote sites. Since 1999, TWSTFT has been used in TAI (International Atomic Time) generation. More than two-thirds of TAI clocks and almost all the primary frequency standards are transferred using TWSTFT. To increase the time transfer precision and stability, several calibration methods were developed and the possible instability sources were investigated. Due to the high redundancy of the time transfer links and quick developments of independent time transfer techniques (e.g. GPS), much utilization was proposed to enhance the robustness, to reduce the uncertainty, and to reduce the di...

This abstract summarises the licensing regime applied to nuclear installations in the UK, and explains the historical development of the NII's health and safety standards for such installations. The impact of two major public inquiries (Sizewell ''B'' and Hinkley Point ''C'') is discussed in terms of the development of NII's 'Safety Assessment Principles' and HSE's 'Tolerability of Risk from Nuclear Power Stations'. The role of international organisations (IAEA, ICRP, OECD/NEA and the EC) in developing nuclear and radiation safety standards is discussed. The paper concludes with some thoughts about how closer harmonisation might be achieved in the future. (author).

Air conditioners and refrigerator-freezers are major energy users in a household environment and hence efficiency improvement of these appliances can be considered as an important step to reduce their energy consumption along with environmental pollution prevention. Energy efficiency standards and labels are commonly used tools to reduce the energy uses for household appliances for many countries around the world. The first step towards adopting energy efficiency standards is to establish a test procedure for rating and testing of an appliance. It may be mentioned that an energy test procedure is the technical foundation for energy efficiency standards, energy labels, and other related programs. This paper reviews requirements and specifications of various international test standards for testing and rating of room air conditioners and refrigerators. A review on the development of the energy efficiency standards has been provided as well. Finally, energy labels that provide some useful information for identifying energy efficient products have been reviewed for these appliances. It may be stated that the review will be useful for the developing countries who wish to develop these energy savings strategies. It is also expected to be useful to revise the existing strategies for a few selected countries who already implemented these strategies earlier. (author)

Abstract in english Herbal drugs have been used since ancient times as medicines for the treatment of various diseases. Especially in countries like India many of herbal drugs and formulations are used in different practices of treatment like Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani. It is estimated that about 25% of all modern medicines are directly or indirectly derived from plants sources. The contribution of developing countries in global herbal business is very poor due to lack of quality control and (more) standardization measures. There is lack of common standards and appropriate methods for evaluating Traditional Medicine to ensure the safety, efficacy and quality control. This indicates the importance and necessity to develop a standard operational procedure for the standardization of herbal drugs and formulations. Benchmarking the evaluation protocols including both quality control and quality assurance of herbal drugs would play a major role in providing highly reliable and effective herbals drugs and to attract international trade, thus generating revenue. The article highlights various problems being faced by developing countries and suggests a unique approach for the preparation of SOP/guidelines for the standardization of all herbal based formulations, also there is a need for systematic clinical trials of traditional plant based medicines to enhance global acceptance

Papers on classification and subject cataloging which were presented at the 1983 International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) conference include: (1) "PRECIS: Basic Principles, Function, and Use," in which Derek Austin (United Kingdom) describes the automated subject indexing system developed for use in the "British National Bibliography"; (2) "The PRECIS Project of the Deutsche Bibliothek [at] Frankfurt am Main," in which Bernd Maassen (West Germany) outlines project background and activities as well as criticisms of PRECIS; (3) "Computer-Aided Subject Cataloguing at the Deutsche Bibliothek in Frankfurt am Main," a review by Barbara Kelm (West Germany) of indexing principles, computer-generated indexing aids, central information services of the Deutsche Bibliothek, and possibilities for cooperative subject cataloging; (4) "Waiting for Technology: An Overview of Bibliographic Services in the Third World," in which Dorothy Anderson discusses the introduction of information technology and library development in the Third World; (5) "Problems in the Cataloguing of the Products of Rapidly Changing Technologies: With Special Reference to Machine-Readable Files" by Lenore Coral (United States), which discusses different methods for cataloging machine readable databases; and (6) "International Bibliographic Filing Principles and Rules" by Ernst Kohl (West Germany), which describes standardization of bibliographic filing rules and the development of International Standard ISO 7154. (ESR)

One of the barriers in bringing advanced composites to market is the inability to demonstrate adherence to specifications of the material properties of materials designed by standardized procedures with standardized tools. This paper describes the Advanced Materials Professional (AMPro) database approach that provides (1) uniform and standardized records of material property tests, (2) easy transfer of data and metadata from development to industrial use, and (3) the ability to explore relationships between material design parameters and the resulting material properties. The AMPro database uses 19 internal material-related databases to tie together all of the information needed to provide a full pedigree for the thermomechanical data on composite parts and samples. Systematic data entry procedures provide for easy data input that nonetheless prompts for all required metadata. Powerful query procedures then provide detailed search capabilities for materials that meet specific conditions. Query results are directable to reports, graphs, and other software.

The requirements for conformance of a process model to the international standard for process assessment, ISO/IEC 15504, cover a broad range. The most significant of these is the need to establish a complete and unambiguous mapping between the Process Assessment Model and the relevant Process Reference Model and the Measurement Framework described in the Standard. This is required to support the development of a mechanism for translating the outputs from an assessment using the Process Assessment Model into the standard process profiles defined in ISO/IEC 15504. This article reports the results of an analysis of the relationship between CMMI, as a `candidate conformant Process Assessment Model', relative to the Measurement Framework defined in ISO/IEC 15504-2, and the Process Reference Mod...

The application of PIXE method was developed for determination of concentration of different elements in river water and bottom slime. The internal standard technique was applied for quantitative evaluation of contents of different elements. In case of river water yttrium standard was used in form of yttrium nitrate solution. The measurements for bottom slime was performed with external beam using standards with predetermined concentration of different elements. The concentration of following elements: S, Cl, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Se, Br, Rb, Sr, Zr, Hg, Pb was determined with the described procedure. The estimated concentration of elements ranged from about 0.05 to about 200 ppm for water samples and from about 1.5 to about 30000 ppm in bottom slime samples.

Although numerous models have been developed for occupational and medical internal dosimetry, they may not be applicable to an accident situation. Published dose coefficients relate effective dose to intake, but if acute deterministic effects are possible, effective dose is not a useful parameter. Consequently, dose rates to the organs of interest need to be computed from first principles. Standard bioassay methods may be used to assess body contents, but, again, the standard models for bioassay interpretation may not be applicable because of the circumstances of the accident and the prompt initiation of decorporation therapy. Examples of modifications to the standard methodologies include adjustment of biological half-times under therapy, such as in the Goiania accident, and the same effect, complicated by continued input from contaminated wounds, in the Hanford {sup 241}Am accident. (author)

(p, ?, T) data of standard seawater with practical salinity S?35 (corresponding to an absolute salinity SA?35.16504 g/kg) measured at T=(273.14 to 468.06) K and pressures up to p=140 MPa are reported with an estimated experimental relative combined standard uncertainty of 0.006% in density. The measurements were made with a newly constructed vibration-tube densimeter. The system was calibrated using double-distilled water, methanol and aqueous NaCl solutions. An empirical correlation for the density of standard seawater has been developed as a function of pressure and temperature. This equation of state was used to calculate other volumetric properties such as isothermal compressibility, isobaric thermal expansibility, differences in isobaric and isochoric heat capacities, thermal pressure coefficient, internal pressure and secant bulk modulus. The results can be used to extend the present equation of state of seawater to higher temperature as a function of pressure.

Background: In order to be comprehensible and comparable scientific data should be reported according to a certain standard. One example is the 'STAndards for Reporting of Diagnostic Accuracy (STARD) Statement', a 25-item checklist for the appropriate conduct and reporting of diagnostic studies. Usually such scientific standards are published in English. The International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcome Research (ISPOR) has developed guidelines for the translation and cultural adaptation of written medical instruments. The aim was to apply these ISPOR criteria to the German translation of the STARD Statement in order to allow for authorisation to be conferred by the original authors. Methods: In cooperation with the original authors the STARD statement was translated according to...