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Sample records for analysis round-robin experiment

Plutonium Round Robin Test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dudder, G.B.; Herbillon, G.H.

2001-01-01

Full text: The goal of nuclear forensics is to develop a preferred approach to illicit trafficking investigations. This approach must be widely understood and acceptable as credible. The principle objectives of the Round Robin Test are to prioritize the forensic techniques and methods, evaluate attribution capabilities, and examine the utility of database. The Plutonium Round Robin has made a tremendous contribution to fulfilling these goals through a collaborative learning experience that resulted from the outstanding efforts of the six participating international laboratories. A prioritize list of techniques and methods has been developed based on this exercise. Future work will focus on a Highly Enriched Round Robin and extent to which the techniques and methods can be generalized. The Plutonium Round Robin demonstrated a rather high level of capability to determine the important characteristics of the materials and processes using analytical methods. When this capability to was combined with the appropriate knowledge and database, it resulted in a demonstrated capability to attribute the source of the materials to a specific nuclear fuel, reactor, and reprocessing facility. A number of shortfalls were also identified in our current capabilities. These included alternative dating techniques. Light Water Reactor discrimination techniques, and the lack of a comprehensive network of data/knowledge bases. The result of the Round Robin will be used to develop guidelines or a 'recommended protocol' to be made available to the interested authorities and countries to use in real cases. The poster will present a summary of the results of the Plutonium Round Robin and describe the plans the subsequent Highly Enriched Uranium Round Robin Test. (author)
Japanese round robin analysis for probabilistic fracture mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yagawa, G.; Yoshimura, S.; Handa, N.

1991-01-01

Recently attention is focused on the probabilistic fracture mechanics, a branch of fracture mechanics with probability theory for a rational mean to assess the strength of components and structures. In particular, the probabilistic fracture mechanics is recognized as the powerful means for quantitative investigation of significance of factors and rational evaluation of life on problems involving a number of uncertainties, such as degradation of material strength, accuracy and frequency of inspection. Comparison with reference experiments are generally employed to assure the analytical accuracy. However, accuracy and reliability of analytical methods in the probabilistic fracture mechanics are hardly verified by experiments. Therefore, it is strongly needed to verify the probabilistic fracture mechanics through the round robin analysis. This paper describes results from the round robin analysis of flat plate with semi-elliptic cracks on the surface, conducted by the PFM Working Group of LE Subcommittee of the Japan Welding Society under the contract of the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute and participated by Tokyo University, Yokohama National University, the Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Corporation, Tokyo Electric Power Co. Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry, Toshiba Corporation, Kawasaki Heavy Industry Co. and Mitsubishi Heavy Industry Co. (author)
ROUND-ROBIN ATOM-PROBE EXPERIMENT : PRELIMINARY RESULTS IN JAPAN

OpenAIRE

Nakamura , S.

1986-01-01

A round-robin experiment were to be carried out by 6 laboratories in Japan (Nishikawa ; Tokyo Inst. Tech., Sakurai and Igata ; Univ. of Tokyo, Ishikawa ; Hitachi, Tanino ; Nippon Steel Corp. and Nakamura ; Osaka Univ.) under the normal operating condition (T < l00 °K,. pulse fraction ~ 15% ~, P < 10-9 torr). Fe-Cr-Al and W-25%Re alloys, which are divided from a single wire were chosen as the specimen materials. A preliminary analysis of the W-Re alloy of the laboratory concerned show the good...
Recommended Protocol for Round Robin Studies in Additive Manufacturing

Science.gov (United States)

Moylan, Shawn; Brown, Christopher U.; Slotwinski, John

2016-01-01

One way to improve confidence and encourage proliferation of additive manufacturing (AM) technologies and parts is by generating more high quality data describing the performance of AM processes and parts. Many in the AM community see round robin studies as a way to generate large data sets while distributing the cost among the participants, thereby reducing the cost to individual users. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has conducted and participated in several of these AM round robin studies. While the results of these studies are interesting and informative, many of the lessons learned in conducting these studies concern the logistics and methods of the study and unique issues presented by AM. Existing standards for conducting interlaboratory studies of measurement methods, along with NIST’s experience, form the basis for recommended protocols for conducting AM round robin studies. The role of round robin studies in AM qualification, some of the limitations of round robin studies, and the potential benefit of less formal collaborative experiments where multiple factors, AM machine being only one, are varied simultaneously are also discussed. PMID:27274602
International Technical Working Group Round Robin Tests

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dudder, Gordon B.; Hanlen, Richard C.; Herbillion, Georges M.

2003-01-01

The goal of nuclear forensics is to develop a preferred approach to support illicit trafficking investigations. This approach must be widely understood and accepted as credible. The principal objectives of the Round Robin Tests are to prioritize forensic techniques and methods, evaluate attribution capabilities, and examine the utility of database. The HEU (Highly Enriched Uranium) Round Robin, and previous Plutonium Round Robin, have made tremendous contributions to fulfilling these goals through a collaborative learning experience that resulted from the outstanding efforts of the nine participating internal laboratories. A prioritized list of techniques and methods has been developed based on this exercise. Current work is focused on the extent to which the techniques and methods can be generalized. The HEU Round Robin demonstrated a rather high level of capability to determine the important characteristics of the materials and processes using analytical methods. When this capability is combined with the appropriate knowledge/database, it results in a significant capability to attribute the source of the materials to a specific process or facility. A number of shortfalls were also identified in the current capabilities including procedures for non-nuclear forensics and the lack of a comprehensive network of data/knowledge bases. The results of the Round Robin will be used to develop guidelines or a ''recommended protocol'' to be made available to the interested authorities and countries to use in real cases
International Technical Working Group Round Robin Tests

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dudder, Gordon B.; Hanlen, Richard C.; Herbillion, Georges M.

2003-02-01

The goal of nuclear forensics is to develop a preferred approach to support illicit trafficking investigations. This approach must be widely understood and accepted as credible. The principal objectives of the Round Robin Tests are to prioritize forensic techniques and methods, evaluate attribution capabilities, and examine the utility of database. The HEU (Highly Enriched Uranium) Round Robin, and previous Plutonium Round Robin, have made tremendous contributions to fulfilling these goals through a collaborative learning experience that resulted from the outstanding efforts of the nine participating internal laboratories. A prioritized list of techniques and methods has been developed based on this exercise. Current work is focused on the extent to which the techniques and methods can be generalized. The HEU Round Robin demonstrated a rather high level of capability to determine the important characteristics of the materials and processes using analytical methods. When this capability is combined with the appropriate knowledge/database, it results in a significant capability to attribute the source of the materials to a specific process or facility. A number of shortfalls were also identified in the current capabilities including procedures for non-nuclear forensics and the lack of a comprehensive network of data/knowledge bases. The results of the Round Robin will be used to develop guidelines or a ''recommended protocol'' to be made available to the interested authorities and countries to use in real cases.
Nordic numerical round robin for a side-grooved ct-specimen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Talja, H.

1989-11-01

The reliability of fracture mechanics assessments based on finite element method calculations has to be confirmed before making safety assessments for critical components like nuclear pressure vessels. Calculations for simulation of fracture mechanics tests and numerical round robin programmes are useful methods in such verification. In this report the results of Nordic finite element round robin calculations for a side-grooved CT-specimen are presented and compared with experimental results. The round robin consisted of two parts. In the first part two-dimensional calculations assuming plane strain and plane stress behaviour were made. In the second part extensive three-dimensional calculations were performed for best-estimate analysis of the specimen behaviour. The differences between the solutions were comparatively small. Only one two-dimensional solution, where lower order finite elements were used, deviated clearly from the other ones. A good agreement was seen between two-dimensional plane strain results and experimental results. Three-dimensional calculations corresponded very accurately with each others and the experiment
U-value measurements on ISO round Robin window

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Duer, Karsten

1997-01-01

9 laboratories in 6 european and 2 north american countries have participated in a round robin U-value test of a standard facade window. The objective of the round robin test was to verify that the ISO/CEN proposals for U-value measurement standard is robust.......9 laboratories in 6 european and 2 north american countries have participated in a round robin U-value test of a standard facade window. The objective of the round robin test was to verify that the ISO/CEN proposals for U-value measurement standard is robust....
Characterisation of neutron irradiation damage in zirconium alloys - a 'Round Robin' experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kelly, P.M.; Blake, R.G.; Jostsons, A.

1977-01-01

The nature of the damage structure in the neutron-irradiated zirconium specimens supplied as part of an international 'Round Robin' experiment has been studied using transmission electron microscopy. The damage structure consists entirely of a/3 dislocation loops and no evidence has been found for c component loops. Both vacancy and interstitial loops were found in specimens where inside/outside contrast analysis was possible. Quantitative measurements of loop size distributions and loop concentrations are reported. All specimens exhibited corduroy contrast to varying degress. (author)
A calculational round robin in elastic-plastic fracture mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larsson, L.H.

Eighteen organizations participated in this round robin which treated the same three-point bend problem as an ASTM round robin four years earlier. Overall deformation, J, CTOD and crack profile were the main results required using plane strain elastic-plastic finite element analysis for a monotonically increasing load up to a maximum deformation which was far beyond the elastic regime. All elastic solutions were accurate to within a few percent. In the elastic-plastic regime, however, there was a large scatter of the results, increasing with increasing plastic deformation and roughly of the same order as in the ASTM round robin which contained ten solutions. Apparently no significant progress has taken place in the state of the art of numerical EPFM analysis in four years time. The paper discusses the reasons for this scatter and draws tentative conclusions on the most suitable numerical analysis methods in EPFM. (Auth.)
A calculational round robin in elastic-plastic fracture mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larsson, L.H.

1983-01-01

Eighteen organisations participated in this elastic-plastic fracture mechanics (EPFM) numerical analysis round robin which treated the same three-point bend problem as a similar round robin conducted by ASTM four years earlier. The work involved the calculation of overall deformation, J, CTOD and crack profile using plane strain elastic-plastic finite element analysis for a monotonically increasing load up to a maximum deformation which was far beyond the elastic regime. It was found that all of the elastic solutions were accurate to within a few per cent. In the elastic-plastic regime, however, there was a large scatter of the results, increasing with increasing plastic deformation and roughly of the same order as in the ASTM round robin which contained ten solutions. No significant progress has taken place in the state of the art of numerical EPFM analysis over the four-year interval. The reasons for this scatter and tentative conclusions on the most suitable numerical analysis methods in EPFM are discussed. (author)
Summary of results from the IPIRG-2 round-robin analyses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rahman, S.; Olson, R.; Rosenfield, A.; Wilkowski, G.

1996-02-01

This report presents a summary of the results from three one-day international round-robin workshops which were organized by Battelle in conjunction with the Second International Piping Integrity Research Group (IPIRG-2) Program. The objective of these workshops was to develop a consensus in handling difficult analytical problems in leak-before-break and pipe flaw evaluations. The workshops, which were held August 5, 1993, March 4, 1994, and October 21, 1994 at Columbus, Ohio, involved various technical presentations on the related research efforts by the IPIRG-2 member organizations and solutions to several round-robin problems. Following review by the IPIRG-2 members, four sets of round-robin problems were developed. They involved: (1) evaluations of fracture properties and pipe loads, (2) crack-opening and leak-rate evaluations, (3) dynamic analysis of cracked pipes, and (4) evaluations of elbows. A total of 18 organizations from the United States, Japan, Korea, and Europe solved these round-robin problems. The analysis techniques employed by the participants included both finite element and engineering methods. Based on the results from these analyses, several important observations were made concerning the predictive capability of the current fracture-mechanics and thermal-hydraulics models for their applications in nuclear piping and piping welds
Joining U.S. NRC international round robin for weld residual stress analysis. Stress analysis and validation in PWSCC mitigation program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maekawa, Akira; Serizawa, Hisashi; Murakawa, Hidekazu

2012-01-01

It is necessary to establish properly reliable weld residual stress analysis methods for accurate crack initiation and growth assessment of primary water stress corrosion cracking (PWSCC), which may occur in nickel-based dissimilar metal welds in pressurized water reactors. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission conducted an international round robin for weld residual stress analysis to improve stress analysis methods and to examine the uncertainties involved in the calculated stress values. In this paper, the results from the authors' participation in the round robin were reported. In the round robin, the weld residual stress in a nickel-based dissimilar metal weld of a pressurizer surge nozzle mock-up was computed under various analysis conditions. Based on these residual stress analysis results, a welding simulation code currently being developed that uses the iterative substructure method was validated and affecting factors on the analysis results were identified. (author)
The First SeaWiFS HPLC Analysis Round-Robin Experiment (SeaHARRE-1)

Science.gov (United States)

Hooker, Stanford B. (Editor); Firestone, Elaine R. (Editor); Claustre, Herve; Ras, Josephine; VanHeukelem, Laurie; Berthon, Jean-Francois; Targa, Cristina; vanderLinde, Dirk; Barlow, Ray; Sessions, Heather

2001-01-01

Four laboratories, which had contributed to various aspects of SeaWiFS calibration and validation activities, participated in the first SeaWiFS HPLC Analysis Round-Robin Experiment (SeaHARRE-1): Horn Point Laboratory (USA), the Joint Research Centre (Italy), the Laboratoire de Physique et Chimie Marines (France), and the Marine and Coastal Management group (South Africa). The analyses of the data are presented in Chapter 1 and the individual methods of the four groups are presented in Chapters 2-5. The average (or overall) conclusions of the round-robin are derived from 12 in situ stations occupied during a cruise in the Mediterranean Sea, although, only 11 stations are used in the analyses. The data set is composed of 12 replicates taken during each sampling opportunity with 3 replicates going to each of the 4 laboratories. The average (or overall) results from the intercomparison of 15 pigments or pigment associations are as follows (in some cases, data subsets that exclude pigments which were not analyzed by all the laboratories, or that had unusually large variances, are used to exclude a variety of problematic pigments): a) the accuracy of the four methods in determining the concentration of total chlorophyll a is 7.9%, (one method did not separate mono- and divinyl chlorophyll a, and if the samples containing significant divinyl chlorophyll a concentrations are ignored, the four methods have an accuracy of 6.7%); b) the accuracy in determining the full set of pigments is 19.1%; c) there is a reduction in accuracy of approximately - 12.2% for every decade (factor of 10) decrease in concentration (based on a data subset); d) the precision of the four methods using a subset data is 8.617( 6.2% for an edited subset); e) the repeatability of the four methods using the subset data is 9.2% (7.2%; for an edited subset, and f) the reproducibility of the four methods using the subset data is 21.31% (15.0% for an edited subset).
Round Robin Posttest analysis of a 1/10-scale Steel Containment Vessel Model Test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Komine, Kuniaki; Konno, Mutsuo

1999-01-01

NUPEC and U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) have been jointly sponsoring 'Structural Behavior Test' at Sandia National Laboratory (SNL) in Cooperative Containment Research Program'. As one of the test, a test of a mixed scaled SCV model with 1/10 in the geometry and 1/4 in the shell thickness. Round Robin analyses of a 1/10-scale Steel Containment Vessel (SCV) Model Test were carried out to obtain an adequate analytical method among seven organizations belonged to five countries in the world. As one of sponsor, Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC) filled the important role of a posttest analysis of SCV model. This paper describes NUPEC's analytical results in the round robin posttest analysis. (author)
Preliminary outcomes of the IUCR CPD round robin on quantitative phase analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madsen, I.

1999-01-01

Full text: The International Union for Crystallography - Commission on Powder Diffraction is currently sponsoring a round robin on quantitative phase analysis (QPA). The round robin is focusing on the analysis of powder diffraction data, namely laboratory X-ray, synchrotron X-ray and neutron diffraction data for the derivation of phase abundances. The general goals of the round robin include the following: 1. To document the methods and strategies commonly employed in quantitative phase analysis, especially those involving powder diffraction. 2. To assess (i) levels of accuracy and precision, and (ii) lower limits of detection of methods used in QPA. 3. To identify specific problem areas and develop practical solutions. 4. To formulate recommended procedures for QPA using diffraction data. 5. To create a standard set of samples for future reference. The samples used in the study consist of mixtures of major and minor components covering a wide range of analytical complexity. Initial samples are synthetic mixtures of crystallographically 'simple' materials and should present little problem to the analyst. Additional samples introduce problems such as preferred orientation, microabsorption and amorphous content to assess the degree to which these problems affect QPA. Several very complex materials have also been included in the sample suite including a natural granodiorite, synthetic bauxite and a mixture of pharmaceutical phases. These last three samples represent a significant analytical challenge as they exhibit preferred orientation, microabsorption and grain size effects in addition to severe peak overlap. The round robin was tailored to allow variation in the level of participation including (i) analysis of 'standard' data sets supplied by the CPD, (ii) collection and analysis of data from at least two of the samples supplied by the CPD and (iii) selection of additional samples at the discretion of the participant. At the time of writing this abstract, some 130
Round Robin Posttest analysis of a 1/10-scale Steel Containment Vessel Model Test

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Komine, Kuniaki [Nuclear Power Engineering Corp., Tokyo (Japan); Konno, Mutsuo

1999-07-01

NUPEC and U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) have been jointly sponsoring 'Structural Behavior Test' at Sandia National Laboratory (SNL) in Cooperative Containment Research Program'. As one of the test, a test of a mixed scaled SCV model with 1/10 in the geometry and 1/4 in the shell thickness. Round Robin analyses of a 1/10-scale Steel Containment Vessel (SCV) Model Test were carried out to obtain an adequate analytical method among seven organizations belonged to five countries in the world. As one of sponsor, Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC) filled the important role of a posttest analysis of SCV model. This paper describes NUPEC's analytical results in the round robin posttest analysis. (author)
Piping inspection round robin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heasler, P.G.; Doctor, S.R.

1996-04-01

The piping inspection round robin was conducted in 1981 at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) to quantify the capability of ultrasonics for inservice inspection and to address some aspects of reliability for this type of nondestructive evaluation (NDE). The round robin measured the crack detection capabilities of seven field inspection teams who employed procedures that met or exceeded the 1977 edition through the 1978 addenda of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Section 11 Code requirements. Three different types of materials were employed in the study (cast stainless steel, clad ferritic, and wrought stainless steel), and two different types of flaws were implanted into the specimens (intergranular stress corrosion cracks (IGSCCs) and thermal fatigue cracks (TFCs)). When considering near-side inspection, far-side inspection, and false call rate, the overall performance was found to be best in clad ferritic, less effective in wrought stainless steel and the worst in cast stainless steel. Depth sizing performance showed little correlation with the true crack depths
Round-Robin Test of Paraffin Phase-Change Material

Science.gov (United States)

Vidi, S.; Mehling, H.; Hemberger, F.; Haussmann, Th.; Laube, A.

2015-11-01

A round-robin test between three institutes was performed on a paraffin phase-change material (PCM) in the context of the German quality association for phase-change materials. The aim of the quality association is to define quality and test specifications for PCMs and to award certificates for successfully tested materials. To ensure the reproducibility and comparability of the measurements performed at different institutes using different measuring methods, a round-robin test was performed. The sample was unknown. The four methods used by the three participating institutes in the round-robin test were differential scanning calorimetry, Calvet calorimetry and three-layer calorimetry. Additionally, T-history measurements were made. The aim of the measurements was the determination of the enthalpy as a function of temperature. The results achieved following defined test specifications are in excellent agreement.
Reactor Pressure Vessel P-T Limit Curve Round Robin

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jang, C.H.; Moon, H.R.; Jeong, I.S. [Korea Electric Power Research Institute, Taejon (Korea)

2002-07-01

This report is the summary of the analysis results for the P-T Limit Curve construction which have been subjected to the round robin analysis. The purpose of the round robin is to compare the procedure and method used in various organizations to construct P-T limit curve to prevent brittle fracture of reactor pressure vessel of nuclear power plants. Each Participant used its own approach to construct the P-T limit curve and submitted the results, By analyzing the results, the reference procedure for the P-T limit curve could be established. This report include the results of the comparison of the procedure and method used by the participants, and sensitivity study of the key parameters. (author) 23 refs, 88 figs, 17 tabs.

Enhanced round robin CPU scheduling with burst time based time quantum

Science.gov (United States)

Indusree, J. R.; Prabadevi, B.

2017-11-01

Process scheduling is a very important functionality of Operating system. The main-known process-scheduling algorithms are First Come First Serve (FCFS) algorithm, Round Robin (RR) algorithm, Priority scheduling algorithm and Shortest Job First (SJF) algorithm. Compared to its peers, Round Robin (RR) algorithm has the advantage that it gives fair share of CPU to the processes which are already in the ready-queue. The effectiveness of the RR algorithm greatly depends on chosen time quantum value. Through this research paper, we are proposing an enhanced algorithm called Enhanced Round Robin with Burst-time based Time Quantum (ERRBTQ) process scheduling algorithm which calculates time quantum as per the burst-time of processes already in ready queue. The experimental results and analysis of ERRBTQ algorithm clearly indicates the improved performance when compared with conventional RR and its variants.
Round robin scheduling - a survey

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Rasmus Vinther; Trick, Michael A.

2008-01-01

This paper presents a comprehensive survey on the literature considering round robin tournaments. The terminology used within the area has been modified over time and today it is highly inconsistent. By presenting a coherent explanation of the various notions we hope that this paper will help to ...
Domestic round robin exercise on analysis of uranium for nuclear material handling facilities in Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kato, Yoshiyasu; Nagai, Kohta; Handa, Takamitsu; Inoue, Shin-ichi; Sato, Yoshihiro

2016-01-01

Interlaboratory comparison programme as well as internal quality control system is an effective tool for an analytical laboratory responsible to nuclear material accountancy of a nuclear facility to maintain and enhance its capability for analysis. However, it is a burden on nuclear material handling facilities in Japan to attend interlaboratory comparison programme run by overseas institutions because of high costs and complicated procedure for importing nuclear materials, and therefore facilities which can participate in such international programme would be limited. Nuclear Material Control Center has hence started and organised an annual domestic round robin exercise on analysis of uranium standard materials, funded by the Japan Safeguards Office of the Nuclear Regulation Authority, since 2008 to enhance analytical capability of Japanese Facilities. The outline of the round robin exercise will be given and the results of uranium isotopic and concentration analysis reported by participant facilities from 2008 to 2015 will be summarised in the presentation. (author)
Evaluation of interlaboratory round robin study (2000-2003) in Japan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shiozaki, T. [Japan Environmental Sanitation Center, Kawasaki, Kanagawa (Japan); Takasuga, T. [Shimadzu Techno Research (Japan); Iwaki, K. [Ebara Research (Japan); Mochizuki, T. [Kokan Keisoku (Japan); Miyazaki, T. [Nittech Research (Japan); Tanaka, K. [Toray Research Center (Japan)

2004-09-15

Inter-laboratory round robin is available for maintaining dioxin analytical quality/skills by testing or certified laboratories. There are over 150 dioxin testing laboratories available in Japan consequently, Ministry of Environment (MOE) and Ministry of Economy Trade and Industry (METI) have began to investigate quality of dioxin testing laboratory and to upgrade their skills with in 4 years. On the other hands, Research Group for Dioxin Analysis which have technical experts from 33 private dioxin testing laboratories had carried out inter-laboratory round robin 4 times since 1998. These studies has been transferred to new research group namely, Research Group on Ultra trace Analyses (UTA) which is accompanied organization of Japan Environmental Measurement and Chemical Analysis Association (JEMCA) in 2003. The UTA consists 83 private dioxin testing laboratories and has been subjected to grow up the technical potential for not only dioxins but other trace level analysis of well known persistent organic pollutants (POPs), endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and ubiquitous contaminants in the environment. Former research group had run final round (4{sup th}) and new UTA carried out first round studies in 2001 And 2003, respectively. Percentage relative standard deviations (RSD) for each polychlorinated dibenzo-pdioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (DL-PCBs) have become smaller than past studies.
Scheduling double round-robin tournaments with divisional play using constraint programming

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carlsson, Mats; Johansson, Mikael; Larson, Jeffrey

2017-06-01

We study a tournament format that extends a traditional double round-robin format with divisional single round-robin tournaments. Elitserien, the top Swedish handball league, uses such a format for its league schedule. We present a constraint programming model that characterizes the general double round-robin plus divisional single round-robin format. This integrated model allows scheduling to be performed in a single step, as opposed to common multistep approaches that decompose scheduling into smaller problems and possibly miss optimal solutions. In addition to general constraints, we introduce Elitserien-specific requirements for its tournament. These general and league-specific constraints allow us to identify implicit and symmetry-breaking properties that reduce the time to solution from hours to seconds. A scalability study of the number of teams shows that our approach is reasonably fast for even larger league sizes. The experimental evaluation of the integrated approach takes considerably less computational effort to schedule Elitserien than does the previous decomposed approach. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved
The EWGRD Round Robin Measurement Exercise

Science.gov (United States)

Thornton, D. A.; Wagemans, J.; Fernandes, A. C.; Girard, J. M.; Kis, D. P.; Klupák, V.; Mutnuru, R.; Philibert, H.; Rousseau, G.; Santos, J. P.; Serén, T.; Zsolnay, E. M.

2016-02-01

This paper presents the results of a round robin exercise carried out to compare specific activity measurements performed by eight European organisations on a set of ten neutron activation detectors containing the radio-nuclides 110mAg, 60Co, 54Mn, 46Sc and 94Nb. The purpose of the exercise was to demonstrate the level of consistency between the participating organisations in blind tests of measurements relevant to reactor metrology. The samples used were selected from a stock of pre-existing irradiated material held at SCK•CEN. Taking turns over a period of approximately 9 months, the participating organisations received the samples, measured them and provided their results to an independent referee who collated and compared the data. The inter-comparison has demonstrated good agreement between the participants with standard deviations for each dosimeter varying between 1.6% and 3.1%. The paper provides results of the EWGRD Round Robin in an anonymised form together with discussion and conclusions which may be drawn from the exercise.
A tabu-search for minimising the carry-over effects value of a round-robin tournament

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MP Kidd

2010-12-01

Full Text Available A player b in a round-robin sports tournament receives a carry-over effect from another player a if some third player opposes a in round i and b in round i+1. Let γ(ab denote the number of times player b receives a carry-over effect from player a during a tournament. Then the carry-over effects value of the entire tournament T on n players is given by Γ(T=ΣΣγ(ij^2. Furthermore, let Γ(n denote the minimum carry-over effects value over all round-robin tournaments on n players. A strict lower bound on Γ(n is n(n-1 (in which case there exists a round-robin tournament of order n such that each player receives a carry-over effect from each other player exactly once, and it is known that this bound is attained for n=2^r or n=20,22. It is also known that round-robin tournaments can be constructed from so-called starters; round-robin tournaments constructed in this way are called cyclic. It has previously been shown that cyclic round-robin tournaments have the potential of admitting small values for Γ(T, and in this paper a tabu-search is used to find starters which produce cyclic tournaments with small carry-over effects values. The best solutions in the literature are matched for n<=22, and new upper bounds are established on Γ(n for 24<=n<=40.
An XPS round robin investigation on analysis of wood pulp fibres and filter paper

Science.gov (United States)

Johansson, Leena-Sisko; Campbell, J. M.; Fardim, Pedro; Hultén, Anette Heijnesson; Boisvert, Jean-Philippe; Ernstsson, Marie

2005-06-01

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) has been applied to pulp and paper research for decades. However, there has been no attempt to standardise or even systematically compare experimental and analysis procedures, even though it is known that fibrous, nature-derived and insulating fibre materials pose remarkable challenges to reliable surface analysis. The experimental problems are mainly linked with neutralisation, energy resolution, contamination and X-ray induced degradation. We have tested applicability, reliability and reproducibility of XPS analysis on real pulp samples with varying lignin and extractives contents in a small round robin investigation. We also tested the instrumental set-ups with an acetone-extracted filter paper, used as a reference sample. The data, collected at four different laboratories with state-of-the-art instruments indicate that reproducible results can be obtained, despite minor differences in experimental and analysis procedures. However, we found that a specified sample handling procedure and limited X-ray exposure are crucial for reproducible, reliable data. Based on the round robin data we recommend dose restricted monochromatic measurements, a cellulosic in situ reference and a consistent sample handling procedure. The data confirms that a paper-based reference material and the correlation of high-resolution C 1s data with O/C atomic ratios can be used in testing instruments and experimental set-ups for pulp and paper materials.
International Round-Robin Testing of Bulk Thermoelectrics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Hsin [ORNL; Porter, Wallace D [ORNL; Bottner, Harold [Fraunhofer-Institute, Freiburg, Germany; Konig, Jan [Fraunhofer-Institute, Freiburg, Germany; Chen, Lidong [Chinese Academy of Sciences; Bai, Shengqiang [Chinese Academy of Sciences; Tritt, Terry M. [Clemson University; Mayolett, Alex [Corning, Inc; Smith, Charlene [Corning, Inc; Harris, Fred [ZT-Plus; Sharp, Jeff [Marlow Industries, Inc; Lo, Jason [CANMET - Materials Technology Laboratory, Natural Resources of Canada; Keinke, Holger [University of Waterloo, Canada; Kiss, Laszlo I. [University of Quebec at Chicoutimi

2011-11-01

Two international round-robin studies were conducted on transport properties measurements of bulk thermoelectric materials. The study discovered current measurement problems. In order to get ZT of a material four separate transport measurements must be taken. The round-robin study showed that among the four properties Seebeck coefficient is the one can be measured consistently. Electrical resistivity has +4-9% scatter. Thermal diffusivity has similar +5-10% scatter. The reliability of the above three properties can be improved by standardizing test procedures and enforcing system calibrations. The worst problem was found in specific heat measurements using DSC. The probability of making measurement error is great due to the fact three separate runs must be taken to determine Cp and the baseline shift is always an issue for commercial DSC. It is suggest the Dulong Petit limit be always used as a guide line for Cp. Procedures have been developed to eliminate operator and system errors. The IEA-AMT annex is developing standard procedures for transport properties testing.
Round robin 'Impurities in uranium matrix': a success for CETAMA and IAEA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Granier, Guy; Roudil, Daniele; Balsley, Steven Devry; Bulyha, Siarhei; Aregbe, Yetunde

2012-01-01

The safeguard of nuclear material is of paramount importance to the IAEA which increasingly uses this information for characterization purposes in order to strengthen the verification of declared nuclear material and to identify the origin of samples from mines. IAEA tasked CETAMA to conduct a round robin with objective to evaluate the capability of laboratories to measure impurities in uranium with concentration levels between 1 and 500 ppm relative to uranium. This round robin was attended by 17 international laboratories from the nuclear industry and safeguards community. The results are mainly obtained by ICP-MS and ICP-AES. The synthesis of this round robin were helpful in identifying anomalies and will allow the IAEA to better set realistic measurement performance targets for ICP-MS and ICP-AES. (authors)
Round robin performance testing of organic photovoltaic devices

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gevorgyan, Suren; Zubillaga, Oihana; de Seoane, José María Vega

2014-01-01

This study addresses the issue of poor intercomparability of measurements of organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices among different laboratories. We present a round robin performance testing of novel OPV devices among 16 laboratories, organized within the framework of European Research Infrastructure...
Fingerprinting analysis of oil samples for inter-laboratory Round Robin, 2007

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yang, C.; Wang, Z.; Hollebone, B.; Brown, C.E.; Landriault, M. [Environment Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada). Emergencies Science and Technology Division, Science and Technology Branch, Environmental Science and Technology Centre; Shang, D. [Environment Canada, North Vancouver, BC (Canada). Pacific Environmental Science Centre; Losier, R.; Cook, A. [Environment Canada, Moncton, NB (Canada). Environmental Science Centre

2008-07-01

The oil from an oil spill must undergo a complete chemical characterization in order to determine the source of the oil, to distinguish the spilled oil from background hydrocarbons and to evaluate the extent of impact. A study was conducted to determine the ability of international analytical laboratories to independently conduct forensic oil analysis and identification. A Round Robin study was conducted in which advanced chemical fingerprinting and data interpretation techniques were used to differentiate the types and sources of spilled oils. The participants of the Round Robin exercise were the Institute of Inland Water Management and Waste Water Treatment (RIZA) in the Netherlands and the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) in Germany. In May 2007, 6 oil samples were distributed to the participants. In the artificial oil spill scenario, 2 oil samples were considered as candidate sources and the other 4 samples were labeled as spilled oils. No other information about these oils was provided before submission of final results. Chemical fingerprinting was carried out using gas chromatography, flame ionization detection and mass spectrometry along with statistical data to determine the source of the spill. N-alkanes, alkylated polyaromatic hydrocarbons, biomarker terpanes and steranes and triaromatic steranes were normalized to C{sub 30} 17{alpha}(H)21{beta}(H)-hopane and then semi-quantitated. Thirty diagnostic ratios of target compounds were calculated from their peak heights and areas at selected ions. Results of the 2 source samples were compared with 4 spill samples. Tiered fingerprinting analysis revealed that source oil 1 was a non-match with spill samples 3 and 4, but a probable match with spill samples 5 and 6. Source sample 2 did not match any of the 4 spilled oils. A lack of background information essential to oil spill identification made it impossible to draw an unambiguous conclusion. 14 refs., 4 tabs., 6 figs.
Fingerprinting analysis of oil samples for inter-laboratory Round Robin, 2007

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, C.; Wang, Z.; Hollebone, B.; Brown, C.E.; Landriault, M.; Shang, D.; Losier, R.; Cook, A.

2008-01-01

The oil from an oil spill must undergo a complete chemical characterization in order to determine the source of the oil, to distinguish the spilled oil from background hydrocarbons and to evaluate the extent of impact. A study was conducted to determine the ability of international analytical laboratories to independently conduct forensic oil analysis and identification. A Round Robin study was conducted in which advanced chemical fingerprinting and data interpretation techniques were used to differentiate the types and sources of spilled oils. The participants of the Round Robin exercise were the Institute of Inland Water Management and Waste Water Treatment (RIZA) in the Netherlands and the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) in Germany. In May 2007, 6 oil samples were distributed to the participants. In the artificial oil spill scenario, 2 oil samples were considered as candidate sources and the other 4 samples were labeled as spilled oils. No other information about these oils was provided before submission of final results. Chemical fingerprinting was carried out using gas chromatography, flame ionization detection and mass spectrometry along with statistical data to determine the source of the spill. N-alkanes, alkylated polyaromatic hydrocarbons, biomarker terpanes and steranes and triaromatic steranes were normalized to C 30 17α(H)21β(H)-hopane and then semi-quantitated. Thirty diagnostic ratios of target compounds were calculated from their peak heights and areas at selected ions. Results of the 2 source samples were compared with 4 spill samples. Tiered fingerprinting analysis revealed that source oil 1 was a non-match with spill samples 3 and 4, but a probable match with spill samples 5 and 6. Source sample 2 did not match any of the 4 spilled oils. A lack of background information essential to oil spill identification made it impossible to draw an unambiguous conclusion. 14 refs., 4 tabs., 6 figs
SCK-CEN Contribution to the IAEA Round Robin Exercise on WWER-440 RPV Weld Material Irradiation, Annealing and Re-Embrittlement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Walle, E.; Chaouadi, R.; Puzzolante, J.L.; Fabry, A.; Van de Velde, J.

1998-01-01

The contribution of the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN to the IAEA Round Robin Exercise on WWER-440 RPV weld material is reported. The objective of this contribution is twofold: (1) to gain experience in the field of the testing of WWER-440 steels; (2) to analyse the round-robin data according to in-house developed on used models in order to check their validity and applicability. Results from testing on unirradiated material are reported including data obtained from chemical analysis, Charpy-V impact testing, tensile testing and fracture toughness determination. Finally, irradiation strategies that can be used in the program to obtain irradiated, irradiated-annealed and irradiated-annealed-reirradiated conditions are outlined
Round robin test for zirconium alloys in 400 deg C steam: results from EDF

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blat, M.

1994-01-01

The EDF Material Studies Branch has participated in the Round Robin program of uniform corrosion on zirconium alloys. The objectives of these Round Robin corrosion tests are to generate new uniform corrosion weight gain date utilizing modern zirconium alloy products and to improve the International and ASTM standards. (author). 2 tabs., 7 appendix., 2 refs
First Total Reflection X-Ray Fluorescence round-robin test of water samples: Preliminary results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Borgese, Laura; Bilo, Fabjola [Chemistry for Technologies Laboratory, University of Brescia, Brescia (Italy); Tsuji, Kouichi [Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka City University, Osaka (Japan); Fernández-Ruiz, Ramón [Servicio Interdepartamental de Investigación (SIdI), Laboratorio de TXRF, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid (Spain); Margui, Eva [Department of Chemistry, University of Girona, Girona (Spain); Streli, Christina [TU Wien, Atominstitut,Radiation Physics, Vienna (Austria); Pepponi, Giancarlo [Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Povo, Trento (Italy); Stosnach, Hagen [Bruker Nano GmbH, Berlin (Germany); Yamada, Takashi [Rigaku Corporation, Takatsuki, Osaka (Japan); Vandenabeele, Peter [Department of Archaeology, Ghent University, Ghent (Belgium); Maina, David M.; Gatari, Michael [Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of Nairobi, Nairobi (Kenya); Shepherd, Keith D.; Towett, Erick K. [World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Nairobi (Kenya); Bennun, Leonardo [Laboratorio de Física Aplicada, Departamento de Física, Universidad de Concepción (Chile); Custo, Graciela; Vasquez, Cristina [Gerencia Química, Laboratorio B025, Centro Atómico Constituyentes, San Martín (Argentina); Depero, Laura E., E-mail: laura.depero@unibs.it [Chemistry for Technologies Laboratory, University of Brescia, Brescia (Italy)

2014-11-01

Total Reflection X-Ray Fluorescence (TXRF) is a mature technique to evaluate quantitatively the elemental composition of liquid samples deposited on clean and well polished reflectors. In this paper the results of the first worldwide TXRF round-robin test of water samples, involving 18 laboratories in 10 countries are presented and discussed. The test was performed within the framework of the VAMAS project, interlaboratory comparison of TXRF spectroscopy for environmental analysis, whose aim is to develop guidelines and a standard methodology for biological and environmental analysis by means of the TXRF analytical technique. - Highlights: • The discussion of the first worldwide TXRF round-robin test of water samples (18 laboratories of 10 countries) is reported. • Drinking, waste, and desalinated water samples were tested. • Data dispersion sources were identified: sample concentration, preparation, fitting procedure, and quantification. • The protocol for TXRF analysis of drinking water is proposed.
Security proof for round robin differential phase shift QKD

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Leermakers, D.; Skoric, B.

2017-01-01

We give the first information-theoretic security proof of the `Round Robin Differential Phase Shift' Quantum Key Distribution scheme. Our proof consists of the following steps. We construct an EPR variant of the scheme. We identify Eve's optimal way of coupling an ancilla to an EPR qudit pair under
Progress report on a NDT round robin on austenitic circumferential pipe welds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brast, G.; Maier, H.J.; Knoch, P.; Mletzko, U.

1998-01-01

The objective of the project is establish on the basis of Round Robin tests the current state of efficiency of various, defined testing methods, so that required or achievable optimizations can be defined and made. The project work up to date encompasses mon-destructive examinations of 15 austenitic welds with nominal widths DN 150/200/250 and wall thicknesses from 8 to 18 mm. Except for one test piece, (elbow/elbow), the joining welds are straight pipe to elbow welds. The results of the Round Robin tests show that the NDE detection limits for the fault examined (intercrystalline stress corrosion cracking) are in the range assumed so far, i.e. from about 20 to 25% of the wall thickness to be examined. The defect detection rates of the ultrasonic test methods applied are approx. 70% and thus are about equal in achievement with comparable international Round Robin tests (PISC; ASME/PDI, ENIQ, etc.). Clearly better are the fault detection rates of radiography. Evaluation of the individual results indicates the detection limits can be improved, by 1. reducing the misalignment of edges, 2. grinding of welds, 3. avoiding sharp notches at the root, 4. producing coaxial surfaces. (orig./CB) [de
Results of the International Energy Agency Round Robin on Fast Pyrolysis Bio-oil Production

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Elliott, Douglas C.; Meier, Dietrich; Oasmaa, Anja; van de Beld, Bert; Bridgwater, Anthony V.; Marklund, Magnus

2017-04-06

An international round robin study of the production of fast pyrolysis bio-oil was undertaken. Fifteen institutions in six countries contributed. Three biomass samples were distributed to the laboratories for processing in fast pyrolysis reactors. Samples of the bio-oil produced were transported to a central analytical laboratory for analysis. The round robin was focused on validating the pyrolysis community understanding of production of fast pyrolysis bio-oil by providing a common feedstock for bio-oil preparation. The round robin included: •distribution of 3 feedstock samples from a common source to each participating laboratory; •preparation of fast pyrolysis bio-oil in each laboratory with the 3 feedstocks provided; •return of the 3 bio-oil products (minimum 500 ml) with operational description to a central analytical laboratory for bio-oil property determination. The analyses of interest were: density, viscosity, dissolved water, filterable solids, CHN, S, trace element analysis, ash, total acid number, pyrolytic lignin, and accelerated aging of bio-oil. In addition, an effort was made to compare the bio-oil components to the products of analytical pyrolysis through GC/MS analysis. The results showed that clear differences can occur in fast pyrolysis bio-oil properties by applying different reactor technologies or configurations. The comparison to analytical pyrolysis method suggested that Py-GC/MS could serve as a rapid screening method for bio-oil composition when produced in fluid-bed reactors. Furthermore, hot vapor filtration generally resulted in the most favorable bio-oil product, with respect to water, solids, viscosity, and total acid number. These results can be helpful in understanding the variation in bio-oil production methods and their effects on bio-oil product composition.
Statistically based reevaluation of PISC-II round robin test data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heasler, P.G.; Taylor, T.T.; Doctor, S.R.

1993-05-01

This report presents a re-analysis of an international PISC-II (Programme for Inspection of Steel Components, Phase 2) round-robin inspection results using formal statistical techniques to account for experimental error. The analysis examines US team performance vs. other participants performance,flaw sizing performance and errors associated with flaw sizing, factors influencing flaw detection probability, performance of all participants with respect to recently adopted ASME Section 11 flaw detection performance demonstration requirements, and develops conclusions concerning ultrasonic inspection capability. Inspection data were gathered on four heavy section steel components which included two plates and two nozzle configurations

Round robin analysis on stress intensity factor of inner surface cracks in welded stainless steel pipes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Han, Chang Gi; Chang, Yoon Suk [Dept. of Nuclear Engineering, College of Engineering, Kyung Hee University, Yongin (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Jong Sung [Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Sunchon National University, Sunchon (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Maan Won [Central Research Institute, Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Company, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-12-15

Austenitic stainless steels (ASSs) are widely used for nuclear pipes as they exhibit a good combination of mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. However, high tensile residual stresses may occur in ASS welds because postweld heat treatment is not generally conducted in order to avoid sensitization, which causes a stress corrosion crack. In this study, round robin analyses on stress intensity factors (SIFs) were carried out to examine the appropriateness of structural integrity assessment methods for ASS pipe welds with two types of circumferential cracks. Typical stress profiles were generated from finite element analyses by considering residual stresses and normal operating conditions. Then, SIFs of cracked ASS pipes were determined by analytical equations represented in fitness-for-service assessment codes as well as reference finite element analyses. The discrepancies of estimated SIFs among round robin participants were confirmed due to different assessment procedures and relevant considerations, as well as the mistakes of participants. The effects of uncertainty factors on SIFs were deducted from sensitivity analyses and, based on the similarity and conservatism compared with detailed finite element analysis results, the R6 code, taking into account the applied internal pressure and combination of stress components, was recommended as the optimum procedure for SIF estimation.
Wind Turbine Gearbox Condition Monitoring Round Robin Study - Vibration Analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sheng, S.

2012-07-01

The Gearbox Reliability Collaborative (GRC) at the National Wind Technology Center (NWTC) tested two identical gearboxes. One was tested on the NWTCs 2.5 MW dynamometer and the other was field tested in a turbine in a nearby wind plant. In the field, the test gearbox experienced two oil loss events that resulted in damage to its internal bearings and gears. Since the damage was not severe, the test gearbox was removed from the field and retested in the NWTCs dynamometer before it was disassembled. During the dynamometer retest, some vibration data along with testing condition information were collected. These data enabled NREL to launch a Wind Turbine Gearbox Condition Monitoring Round Robin project, as described in this report. The main objective of this project was to evaluate different vibration analysis algorithms used in wind turbine condition monitoring (CM) and find out whether the typical practices are effective. With involvement of both academic researchers and industrial partners, the project sets an example on providing cutting edge research results back to industry.
Calibration of straight TXRF analysis - results of an European Round Robin test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rink, I.; Wortelboer, R.; Gendt, S. de; Horn, M.; Steiner, J.; Neumann, C.; Knoth, J.; Schwenke, H.; Dobler, M.; Erdmann, V.; Rostam-Khani, P.; Kolbesen, B.O.; Metz, S.; Pahlke, S.; Fabry, L.; Gonchond, J.P.; Weiss, C.; Comin, F.

2000-01-01

Calibration of spot measurements pose in general less problems than calibration of straight TXRF measurements as several Round Robin tests show. This is at least matter of discussion for those TXRF users who apply a droplet standard for straight TXRF measurements at the angle of incident where particle and film-type contamination show the same fluorescence intensity - the so-called iso-angle. In order to gain more insight in the differences between several TXRF-equipment types and calibration methods we started an European Round Robin test in 1998 in which twelve firms participated using twenty different TXRF-tools, one RBS- and one Synchrotron-TXRF equipment. In contrast to earlier global Round Robin tests e.g. in 1996 (ISO/TC201/WG2) direct comparison of measurements of the same wafers is possible, because the same wafers were sent to several participants and additional reference measurements were performed at Philips as well. Wafer preparation has been performed by spin-coating of Ni (5 concentrations) and by dipping in Fe-spiked SCI-solution (1 blank, 2 spiking concentrations). From this eight sets were formed containing eight wafers with varying Ni-and Fe-concentrations. All wafers were firstly measured at Philips as reference and then sent to certain participant-groups. The results of this first measurement show that the sets were almost comparable to each other with a standard deviation of < 15 % for the variants Ni-3, Ni-4, Ni-5 and Fe-2, with exception of few single concentrations of some sets. After normalization it is possible to compare all results of these variants with one reference value. The results can be divided in three groups with similar results and one extreme outlier: group 1: RBS-results and those results based on correction with Fit-program from GKSS, calibration with spin-coated wafers (RBS, Radio tracer) and results of one XSA 8000 and of one Rigaku 3750; group 2: Results of all Atomika TXRF 8030, three Atomika TXRF 8010, one TREX630S
Results of the LIRES Round Robin test on high temperature reference electrodes for LWR applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bosch, R.W. [SCK.CEN, Nuclear Research Centre Belgium, Boeretang 200, B-2400 Mol (Belgium); Nagy, G. [Magyar Tudomanyos Akademia KFKI Atomenergia Kutatointezet, AEKI, Konkoly Thege ut 29-33, 1121 Budapest (Hungary); Feron, D. [CEA Saclay, 91191 Gif-Sur-Yvette Cedex (France); Navas, M. [CIEMAT, Edificio 30, Dpto. Fision Nuclear, Avda. Complutense 22, 28040 Madrid, (Spain); Bogaerts, W. [KU Leuven, Kasteelpark Arenberg 31, B-3001 Leuven (Belgium); Karnik, D. [Nuclear Research Institute, NRI, Rez (Czech Republic); Dorsch, T. [Framatone ANP, Inc., Charlotte, North Carolina (United States); Molander, A. [Studsvik AB SE-611 82 Nykoeping (Sweden); Maekelae, K. [Materials and Structural Integrity, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Kemistintie 3, P.O. Box 1704, FIN-02044 VTT (Finland)

2004-07-01

A European sponsored research project has been started on 1 October 2000 to develop high temperature reference electrodes that can be used for in-core electrochemical measurements in Light Water Reactors (LWR's). This LIRES-project (Development of Light Water Reactor Reference Electrodes) consists of 9 partners (SCK-CEN, AEKI, CEA, CIEMAT, KU Leuven, NRI Rez, Framatone ANP, Studsvik Nuclear and VTT) and will last for four years. The main objective of this LIRES project is to develop a reference electrode, which is robust enough to be used inside a LWR. Emphasize is put on the radiation hardness of both the mechanical design of the electrode as the proper functioning of the electrode. A four steps development trajectory is foreseen: (1) To set a testing standard for a Round Robin, (2) To develop different reference electrodes, (3) To perform a Round Robin test of these reference electrodes followed by selection of the best reference electrode(s), (4) To perform irradiation tests under appropriate LWR conditions in a Material Test Reactor (MTR). Four different high temperature reference electrodes have been developed and are being tested in a Round Robin test. These electrodes are: A Ceramic Membrane Electrode (CME), a Rhodium electrode, an external Ag/AgCl electrode and a Palladium electrode. The presentation will focus on the results obtained with the Round Robin test. (authors)
The Fourth SeaWiFS HPLC Analysis Round-Robin Experiment (SeaHARRE-4)

Science.gov (United States)

Hooker, Stanford B.; Thomas, Crystal S.; van Heukelem, Laurie; Schlueter, louise; Russ, Mary E.; Ras, Josephine; Claustre, Herve; Clementson, Lesley; Canuti, Elisabetta; Berthon, Jean-Francois;

2010-01-01

Ten international laboratories specializing in the determination of marine pigment concentrations using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) were intercompared using in situ samples and a mixed pigment sample. Although prior Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) Round-Robin Experiment (SeaHARRE) activities conducted in open-ocean waters covered a wide dynamic range in productivity, and some of the samples were collected in the coastal zone, none of the activities involved exclusively coastal samples. Consequently, SeaHARRE-4 was organized and executed as a strictly coastal activity and the field samples were collected from primarily eutrophic waters within the coastal zone of Denmark. The more restrictive perspective limited the dynamic range in chlorophyll concentration to approximately one and a half orders of magnitude (previous activities covered more than two orders of magnitude). The method intercomparisons were used for the following objectives: a) estimate the uncertainties in quantitating individual pigments and higher-order variables formed from sums and ratios; b) confirm if the chlorophyll a accuracy requirements for ocean color validation activities (approximately 25%, although 15% would allow for algorithm refinement) can be met in coastal waters; c) establish the reduction in uncertainties as a result of applying QA procedures; d) show the importance of establishing a properly defined referencing system in the computation of uncertainties; e) quantify the analytical benefits of performance metrics, and f) demonstrate the utility of a laboratory mix in understanding method performance. In addition, the remote sensing requirements for the in situ determination of total chlorophyll a were investigated to determine whether or not the average uncertainty for this measurement is being satisfied.

Multi-Level Round-Robin Multicast Scheduling with Look-Ahead Mechanism

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yu, Hao; Ruepp, Sarah Renée; Berger, Michael Stübert

2011-01-01

constructs the Traffic Matrix before each cell transmission based on the fan-out vectors of the cells in the queues. A scheduling pointer independently moves on each column of the Traffic Matrix in a round-robin fashion and returns the decision to the Decision Matrix. The sync procedure is carried out...
A TXRF round robin study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roberts, R.F.; Holmes, R.J.; Florimonte, M.C. De

2000-01-01

Total reflection x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (TXRF) is used extensively to measure the quantity of ultra trace metal contamination on wafer surfaces for manufacture monitoring, tool and material qualification and process development in the semiconductor industry. It has been noted, however, that issues with TXRF instrument calibration using reference wafers may lead to difficulty in comparison of TXRF areal density results from different laboratories. In order to cross-calibrate TXRF instruments within Lucent Technologies, a set of reference wafers was produced and characterized. The reference wafers were then measured, in round robin fashion, on various TXRF instruments, internal and external to Lucent Technologies, and the results compared. The results will be discussed as well as implications for instances where TXRF data from different facilities must be compared in a meaningful manner. (author)
Preliminary results of the round-robin testing of F82H

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shiba, K.; Yamanouchi, N.; Tohyama, A.

1996-10-01

Preliminary results of metallurgical, physical and mechanical properties of low activation ferritic steel F82H (IEA heat) were obtained in the round-robin test in Japan. The properties of IEA heat F82H were almost the same as the original F82H.
Fracture Toughness Round Robin Test International in pressure tube materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Villagarcia, M.P.; Liendo, M.F.

1993-01-01

Part of the pressure tubes surveillance program of CANDU type reactors is to determine the fracture toughness using a special fracture specimen and test procedure. Atomic Energy of Canada Limited decided to hold a Round Robin Test International and 9 laboratories participated worldwide in which several pressure tube materials were selected: Zircaloy-2, Zr-2.5%Nb cold worked and Zr-2.5%Nb heat treated. The small specimens used held back the thickness and curvature of the tube. J-R curves at room temperature were obtained and the crack extension values were determined by electrical potential drop techniques. These values were compared with results generated from other laboratories and a bid scatter was founded. It could be due to slight variations in the test method or inhomogeneity of the materials and a statistical study must be done to see if there is any pattern. The next step for the Round Robin Test would be to make some modifications in the test method in order to reduce the scatter. (Author)
The Second SeaWiFS HPLC Analysis Round-Robin Experiment (SeaHARRE-2)

Science.gov (United States)

2005-01-01

Eight international laboratories specializing in the determination of marine pigment concentrations using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) were intercompared using in situ samples and a variety of laboratory standards. The field samples were collected primarily from eutrophic waters, although mesotrophic waters were also sampled to create a dynamic range in chlorophyll concentration spanning approximately two orders of magnitude (0.3 25.8 mg m-3). The intercomparisons were used to establish the following: a) the uncertainties in quantitating individual pigments and higher-order variables (sums, ratios, and indices); b) an evaluation of spectrophotometric versus HPLC uncertainties in the determination of total chlorophyll a; and c) the reduction in uncertainties as a result of applying quality assurance (QA) procedures associated with extraction, separation, injection, degradation, detection, calibration, and reporting (particularly limits of detection and quantitation). In addition, the remote sensing requirements for the in situ determination of total chlorophyll a were investigated to determine whether or not the average uncertainty for this measurement is being satisfied. The culmination of the activity was a validation of the round-robin methodology plus the development of the requirements for validating an individual HPLC method. The validation process includes the measurements required to initially demonstrate a pigment is validated, and the measurements that must be made during sample analysis to confirm a method remains validated. The so-called performance-based metrics developed here describe a set of thresholds for a variety of easily-measured parameters with a corresponding set of performance categories. The aggregate set of performance parameters and categories establish a) the overall performance capability of the method, and b) whether or not the capability is consistent with the required accuracy objectives.
Manipulating Tournaments in Cup and Round Robin Competitions

OpenAIRE

Russell, Tyrel; Walsh, Toby

2009-01-01

In sports competitions, teams can manipulate the result by, for instance, throwing games. We show that we can decide how to manipulate round robin and cup competitions, two of the most popular types of sporting competitions in polynomial time. In addition, we show that finding the minimal number of games that need to be thrown to manipulate the result can also be determined in polynomial time. Finally, we show that there are several different variations of standard cup competitions where mani...
Results of the round robin exercise on IV-measurements of classic Si-solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Van der Borg, N.J.C.M. [ECN Solar Energy, Petten (Netherlands)

2012-12-15

A round robin exercise was performed on IV measurements and spectral response measurements of solar cells. Seven partners participated in the exercise. The aim of the round robin was to enable the verification of their measurement facilities and procedures for IV-measurements on 'classic' Si-solar cells by comparing their measurement data with the other participants. In this way possible flaws in the equipment or procedures can be found and corrected for or the measurement uncertainties can be reassessed. The differences between the measurement results of the various partners were more or less within the expected measurement uncertainty although one or more partners may decide to use the results to reexamine their facilities or procedures.
Laboratory investigation of bitumen based on round robin DSC and AFM tests

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Soenen, H.; Besamusca, J.; Fischer, H.R.; Poulikakos, L.D.; Planche, J.P.; Das, P.K.; Kringos, N.; Grenfell, J.R.A.; Lu, X.; Chailleux, E.

2014-01-01

In the past years a wide discussion has been held among asphalt researchers regarding the existence and interpretation of observed microstructures on bitumen surfaces. To investigate this, the RILEM technical committee on nano bituminous materials 231-NBM has conducted a round robin study combining
Preparation of irritant polymer samples for an in vitro round robin study.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Coleman, Kelly P; Grailer, Thomas P; McNamara, Lori R; Rollins, Beau L; Christiano, Nicholas J; Kandárová, Helena; De Jong, Wim H

2018-01-01

A round robin study using reconstructed human epidermis (RhE) tissues was conducted to test medical device polymer extracts for skin irritation potential. Test samples were four irritant and three non-irritant medical device polymers. Five of these polymer samples were developed and two were
Characterization of ASTM round-robin tungsten-powder samples

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slettevold, C.A.; Biermann, A.H.

1975-01-01

The Lawrence Livermore Laboratory Particle Characterization Laboratory Group has participated in an industry-wide round-robin investigation on characterization of tungsten powder. sponsored by the ASTM Subcommittee on Refractory-Metal Powders (B-09.3). The analyses performed at the suggestion of the ASTM subcommittee included measurements of tap density, apparent density, true density, average particle size, and surface area. Determinations of particle-weight and size distributions were also performed and particle inspection conducted by microscopy. This report describes the equipment and procedures used and summarizes the results of these analyses. (9 tables, 17 fig) (U.S.)
Results of eddy current test for second round robin by Halden reactor project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iwai, Takashi; Souzawa, Shizuo; Miyata, Seiichi; Sakai, Haruyuki; Sakakura, Atsushi

1986-08-01

JMTR Hot Laboratory has executed the eddy current test of two PWR type zircaloy cladding tubes for the second round robin by Halden Reactor Project. Defects manufactured on the test specimen were revealed on a fair way to success as a function of local position, phase character and size. Influence of the fatigue crack between the two different tubes was studied through the phase angle analysis. More effort should be needed for detecting rather smaller internal defect when it was combined with external and other various type of defects. (author)
Pretest round robin analysis of 1:4-scale prestressed concrete containment vessel model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hessheimer, M.F.; Luk, V.K.; Klamerus, E.W.; Shibata, S.; Mitsugi, S.; Costello, J.F.

2001-01-01

The work reported herein represents, arguably, the state of the art in the numerical simulation of the response of a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) model to pressure loads up to failure. A significant expenditure of time and money on the part of the sponsors, contractors, and Round Robin participants was required to meet the objectives. While it is difficult to summarize the results of this extraordinary effort in a few paragraphs, the following observations are offered for the reader's consideration: almost half the participants used ABAQUS as the primary computational tool for performing the pretest analyses. The other participants used a variety of codes, most of which were developed ''in house''. (author)
Initiating round robins in the L2 classroom - preliminary observations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mortensen, Kristian; Hazel, Spencer

2011-01-01

Complementing recent interactional research on the contingent operation of online task accomplishment, this paper deals with a specific way of organizing and managing tasks in plenary L2 classrooms – namely the round robin. This may seem like a “traditional” and rigid form of classroom organizati...... and artefacts and graphic structures that are used not only as mediating tools in the (supposed) learning relevant activity, but also as structurally relevant features to organize the ongoing interaction, in which these activities emerge....
Nudging Fledgling Teen Readers from the Nest: From Round Robin to Real Reading

Science.gov (United States)

Fair, Ginni Chase; Combs, Dorie

2011-01-01

Middle and Secondary teachers often find it difficult to help their students read textbooks and other instructional materials. In order to ensure they read the text, teachers may rely on "round robin reading" and other ineffective strategies. In this article, the authors explain why this strategy hinders comprehension, fluency and development of…
Round robin test programmes in the reliability of thick section ultrasonic inspections: state of the art report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watkins, B.

1987-03-01

Inspection reliability is firstly defined and it is shown how difficult it is to be assessed as the influence of such factors as human performance, equipment malfunction and intrinsic technique capability are difficult to quantify. The manufacture of round robin test specimens is then considered: types of flaw, fabrication of test samples. The results of various round robin test programmes that have been carried out to determine both the capability and reliability of NDE to detect and size flaws in steel section for thick sections directly relevant to the requirements of the nuclear industry, are then reviewed and discussed: US Pressure Vessel research committee programme, PISC I Programme, the defect detection trials, and PISC II Programme

Notch toughness variability in A542 steel used in the European Group on Fracture Jsub(1c) round robin programme

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Druce, S.G.

1983-04-01

The through thickness variability of toughness in a 2 1/4 Cr 1Mo steel plate used in the EGF Jsub(1c) round robin has been evaluated using the Charpy impact testing. The results indicate that the toughness properties at the mid thickness position are inferior to those +- 50 mm from this position and that a comparatively large degree of scatter is present at all depth locations. The relevance of these findings to the Jsub(1c) round robin assessment is briefly discussed. (author)
Korean round-robin result for new international program to assess the reliability of emerging nondestructive techniques

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Kyung Cho; Kim, Jin Gyum; Kang, Sung Sik; Jhung, Myung Jo [Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2017-04-15

The Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, as a representative organization of Korea, in February 2012 participated in an international Program to Assess the Reliability of Emerging Nondestructive Techniques initiated by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The goal of the Program to Assess the Reliability of Emerging Nondestructive Techniques is to investigate the performance of emerging and prospective novel nondestructive techniques to find flaws in nickel-alloy welds and base materials. In this article, Korean round-robin test results were evaluated with respect to the test blocks and various nondestructive examination techniques. The test blocks were prepared to simulate large-bore dissimilar metal welds, small-bore dissimilar metal welds, and bottom-mounted instrumentation penetration welds in nuclear power plants. Also, lessons learned from the Korean round-robin test were summarized and discussed.
Round Robin/collaborative programme [cyclic crack growth in low alloy steel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, R.L.; Hurst, P.; Scott, P.M.

1989-01-01

During the 10 years of its existence International Cooperative Group on Cyclic Crack Growth the (ICCGR) has undertaken five collaborative efforts related to cyclic crack growth and stress corrosion susceptibility in reactor pressure vessel steels. The initial collaborative effort, a data reduction exercise, identified and reconciled several important procedural differences and led to confidence that, given the same crack length versus cycles data, the Group members could all derive similar plots of da/dN versus δK. Subsequently, a low-R testing round robin highlighted the importance of a number of comparatively subtle aspects of the methods used for cyclic crack growth testing in water environments and led to confidence that the various laboratories could generate similar test data, given the same test material and a sufficiently precise and detailed test specification. The results of a high-R test programme support the conclusion that the state of the art of cyclic crack growth testing has now advanced to a point at which coordinated, multilaboratory test programmes are feasible and indeed, such a programme covering the influence of temperature is currently under way. The slow strain rate round robin has highlighted important test variables, notably the electrochemical potential, which must be carefully controlled in assessing the conditions under which pressure vessel steels may suffer from stress corrosion cracking. (author)
Results of ASTM round robin testing for mode 1 interlaminar fracture toughness of composite materials

Science.gov (United States)

Obrien, T. Kevin; Martin, Roderick H.

1992-01-01

The results are summarized of several interlaboratory 'round robin' test programs for measuring the mode 1 interlaminar fracture toughness of advanced fiber reinforced composite materials. Double Cantilever Beam (DCB) tests were conducted by participants in ASTM committee D30 on High Modulus Fibers and their Composites and by representatives of the European Group on Fracture (EGF) and the Japanese Industrial Standards Group (JIS). DCB tests were performed on three AS4 carbon fiber reinforced composite materials: AS4/3501-6 with a brittle epoxy matrix; AS4/BP907 with a tough epoxy matrix; and AS4/PEEK with a tough thermoplastic matrix. Difficulties encountered in manufacturing panels, as well as conducting the tests are discussed. Critical issues that developed during the course of the testing are highlighted. Results of the round robin testing used to determine the precision of the ASTM DCB test standard are summarized.
Round Robin Test for Performance Demonstration System of Ultrasound Examination Personnel in Nuclear Power Plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Young Ho; Yang, Seung Han; Kim, Yong Sik; Yoon, Byung Sik; Lee, Hee Jong

2005-01-01

Ultrasound testing performance during in-service inspection for the main components of NPPs is strongly affected by each examination person. Therefore, ASME established a more strict qualification requirement in Sec. XI Appendix VIII for the ultrasound testing personnel in nuclear power plants. The Korean Performance Demonstration (KPD) System according to the ASME code for the ultrasonic testing personnel, equipments, and procedures to apply to the Class 1 and 2 piping ultrasound examination of nuclear power plants in Korea was established. And a round robin test was conducted in order to verify the effectiveness of PD method by comparing the examination results from the method of Performance Demonstration (PD) and a traditional ASME code dB-drop method. The round robin test shows that the reliability of the PD method is better than that of the dB-drop method. As a result, application of the PD method to the in-service inspection of the nuclear power plants will improve the performance of ultrasound testing
Evaluation of NDE Round-Robin Exercises Using the NRC Steam Generator Mockup at Argonne National Laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muscara, Joseph; Kupperman, David S.; Bakhtiari, Sasab; Park, Jang-Yul; Shack, William J.

2002-01-01

This paper discusses round-robin exercises using the NRC steam generator (SG) mock-up at Argonne National Laboratory to assess inspection reliability. The purpose of the round robins was to assess the current reliability of SG tubing inservice inspection, determine the probability of detection (POD) as function of flaw size or severity, and assess the capability for sizing of flaws. For the round robin and subsequent evaluation completed in 2001, eleven teams participated. Bobbin and rotating coil mock-up data collected by qualified industry personnel were evaluated. The mock-up contains hundreds of cracks and simulations of artifacts such as corrosion deposits and tube support plates that make detection and characterization of cracks more difficult in operating steam generators than in most laboratory situations. An expert Task Group from industry, Argonne National Laboratory, and the NRC have reviewed the signals from the laboratory-grown cracks used in the mock-up to ensure that they provide reasonable simulations of those obtained in the field. The mock-up contains 400 tube openings. Each tube contains nine 22.2-mm (7/8-in.) diameter, 30.5-cm (1-ft) long, Alloy 600 test sections. The flaws are located in the tube sheet near the roll transition zone (RTZ), in the tube support plate (TSP), and in the free-span. The flaws are primarily intergranular stress corrosion cracks (axial and circumferential, ID and OD) though intergranular attack (IGA) wear and fatigue cracks are also present, as well as cracks in dents. In addition to the simulated tube sheet and TSP the mock-up has simulated sludge and magnetite deposits. A multiparameter eddy current algorithm, validated for mock-up flaws, provided a detailed isometric plot for every flaw and was used to establish the reference state of defects in the mock-up. The detection results for the 11 teams were used to develop POD curves as a function of maximum depth, voltage and the parameter m p, for the various types of
PENGUKURAN KINERJA ROUND-ROBIN SCHEDULER UNTUK LINUX VIRTUAL SERVER PADA KASUS WEB SERVER

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Royyana Muslim Ijtihadie

2005-07-01

Full Text Available Normal 0 false false false IN X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Dengan meningkatnya perkembangan jumlah pengguna internet dan mulai diadopsinya penggunaan internet dalam kehidupan sehari-hari, maka lalulintas data di Internet telah meningkat secara signifikan. Sejalan dengan itu pula beban kerja server-server yang memberikan service di Internet juga mengalami kenaikan yang cukup signifikan. Hal tersebut dapat mengakibatkan suatu server mengalami kelebihan beban pada suatu saat. Untuk mengatasi hal tersebut maka diterapkan skema konfigurasi server cluster menggunakan konsep load balancing. Load balancing server menerapkan algoritma dalam melakukan pembagian tugas. Algoritma round robin telah digunakan pada Linux Virtual Server. Penelitian ini melakukan pengukuran kinerja terhadap Linux Virtual Server yang menggunakan algoritma round robin untuk melakukan penjadwalan pembagian beban terhadap server. Penelitian ini mengukur performa dari sisi client yang mencoba mengakses web server.performa yang diukur adalah jumlah request yang bisa diselesaikan perdetik (request per second, waktu untuk menyelesaikan per satu request, dan throughput yang dihasilkan. Dari hasil percobaan didapatkan bahwa penggunaan LVS bisa meningkatkan performa, yaitu menaikkan jumlah request per detik
Round Robin Analyses on Stress Intensity Factors of Inner Surface Cracks in Welded Stainless Steel Pipes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chang-Gi Han

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Austenitic stainless steels (ASSs are widely used for nuclear pipes as they exhibit a good combination of mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. However, high tensile residual stresses may occur in ASS welds because postweld heat treatment is not generally conducted in order to avoid sensitization, which causes a stress corrosion crack. In this study, round robin analyses on stress intensity factors (SIFs were carried out to examine the appropriateness of structural integrity assessment methods for ASS pipe welds with two types of circumferential cracks. Typical stress profiles were generated from finite element analyses by considering residual stresses and normal operating conditions. Then, SIFs of cracked ASS pipes were determined by analytical equations represented in fitness-for-service assessment codes as well as reference finite element analyses. The discrepancies of estimated SIFs among round robin participants were confirmed due to different assessment procedures and relevant considerations, as well as the mistakes of participants. The effects of uncertainty factors on SIFs were deducted from sensitivity analyses and, based on the similarity and conservatism compared with detailed finite element analysis results, the R6 code, taking into account the applied internal pressure and combination of stress components, was recommended as the optimum procedure for SIF estimation.
PSI contribution to the CASTOC round robin on EAC of low-alloy RPV steels under BWR conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seifert, H.P.; Ritter, S.

2001-08-01

Within the CASTOC-project (5th EU FW programme), the environmentally-assisted crack growth (EAC) behaviour of low-alloy reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels is experimentally investigated under simulated transient and steady-state BWR power operation conditions by 6 European laboratories. The present report contains a summary of the PSI contribution to the Working Package 1 (WP1) of this project. WP1 is an interlaboratory round robin EAC test in simulated BWR/NWC environment under cyclic and static loading conditions. The round robin shall demonstrate the applicability of the used advanced test technique and establishes the technical basis for the decision of test conditions in the other working packages. In the first part of the report, the PSI testing facility/measurement instruments and the applied test and evaluation procedure are discussed in detail. In the second part, the exact test conditions and test results with detailed post-test fractographical evaluation in the SEM are presented. The test results are compared with other PSI results, literature data and nuclear codes. Stable and stationary test conditions within the specified range could be achieved in the PSI test during the whole conditioning and experimental phase. The cyclic crack growth rate results agree well with recent PSI results at a higher dissolved oxygen content of 8 ppm and are slightly below the 'high-sulphur line' of the PLEDGE-model. The crack growth rates are significantly above the ASME XI 'wet' curve. Compared to fatigue crack growth rates in air under otherwise identical test conditions, the effect of the high-temperature water environment resulted in an acceleration of crack growth by a factor of 150-250 under these low-cyclic loading conditions. The test results at constant load confirm the extremely low susceptibility to SCC crack growth under static load at 288 o C observed in tests at MPA, PSI and in a European Round Robin. They agree well with the RPV operating experience
Practical round-robin differential-phase-shift quantum key distribution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Zhen; Yuan, Xiao; Cao, Zhu; Ma, Xiongfeng

2017-01-01

The security of quantum key distribution (QKD) relies on the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, with which legitimate users are able to estimate information leakage by monitoring the disturbance of the transmitted quantum signals. Normally, the disturbance is reflected as bit flip errors in the sifted key; thus, privacy amplification, which removes any leaked information from the key, generally depends on the bit error rate. Recently, a round-robin differential-phase-shift QKD protocol for which privacy amplification does not rely on the bit error rate (Sasaki et al 2014 Nature 509 475) was proposed. The amount of leaked information can be bounded by the sender during the state-preparation stage and hence, is independent of the behavior of the unreliable quantum channel. In our work, we apply the tagging technique to the protocol and present a tight bound on the key rate and employ a decoy-state method. The effects of background noise and misalignment are taken into account under practical conditions. Our simulation results show that the protocol can tolerate channel error rates close to 50% within a typical experiment setting. That is, there is a negligible restriction on the error rate in practice. (paper)
PENDEKATAN BRAINSTORMINGROUND-ROBIN UNTUK MENINGKATKAN KEMAMPUAN KOMUNIKASIMATEMATIS SISWA SMP

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maya Siti Rohmah

2015-07-01

Full Text Available ABSTRAK Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui peningkatan kemampuan komunikasi matematis siswa yang pembelajarannya menggunakan Brainstorming Round-Robin dibandingkan dengan siswa yang pembelajarannya konvensional. Penelitian kuasi eksperimen ini mengambil populasi siswa kelas VII pada salah satu SMP di kabupaten Bandung Barat dengan sampel 2 kelas. Dari dua kelas yang dipilih dalam penelitian ini, salah satunya digunakan sebagai kelas eksperimen yang memperoleh pembelajaran dengan pendekatan Brainstorming Round-Robin, sedangkan kelas lainnnya sebagai kelas kontrol yang pembelajarannya konvensional. Kedua kelompok diberikan pretes dan postes kemampuan komunikasi matematis. Data N-gain yang diperoleh diuji secara kuantitatif dengan uji perbedaan rerata nonparametrik Mann-Whitney. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa peningkatan kemampuan komunikasi matematis siswa yang mendapat pembelajaran dengan menggunakan pendekatan Brainstorming Round-Robin lebih baik daripada siswa yang pembelajarannya konvensional. Kata Kunci : Brainstorming Round-Robin, KomunikasiMatematis ABSTRACT The aims of these research are to determine anincrease in mathematics communication of students who obtain learning using Round-Robin Brainstormingbetter thanstudents who receivedconventional learning. This quasi experimental take population all students at class VII in one of public secondary school in West Bandung district with 2 classes as sample. From this 2 classes choosen in this research, one of them as an experimental classthatacquirelearningwithRound-Robin Brainstormingapproach, and the other one as acontrol class that receive conventional learning. Both groups weregiven thepretest and posttest of mathematics communication. N-gain data obtainedquantitatively,testedwitha meandifference testnonparametricMann-Whitney. The results showedthat an achievement and increase inmathematics communication of students thatgetslearning usingRound-Robin
Acoustic noise measurements on a wind turbine performed in the frame of the NIWT round robin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van der Borg, N.J.C.M.; Vink, P.W.

1996-11-01

A round robin acoustic measurement campaign has been performed by five project partners using one and the same wind turbine (WT). The measurement procedure for the round robin exercise was agreed to be in compliance with the IEA-recommended practices on WT-noise emission measurements and the measured characteristics were agreed to be the apparent sound power level and the tonality, both measured at the reference measurement position. The measurements performed by ECN resulted in an A-weighted sound power level of the TACKE TW500/37 wind turbine in Hooksiel, Germany, of 95.8 dB(A) at a wind speed of 5.5 m/s at reference conditions. The tonality assessment of the sound pressure at 50 m down wind of the turbine resulted in a difference between the maximum tone level and the masking noise level of 2.4 dB. This characterizes the noise as 'prominent'. 2 refs
SCK-CEN Contribution to the IAEA Round Robin Exercise on WWER-440 RPV Weld Metal Irradiation Embrittlement, annealing and Re-Embrittlement. Second Progress Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Walle, E.; Chaouadi, R.; Scibetta, M.; Lucon, E.; Weber, M.

1999-07-01

The report gives the actual status of the contribution of the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN to the IAEA Round Robin Exercise on WWER-440 RPV Weld Material Irradiation, Annealing and Re-Embrittlement. Results from the reference testing of unirradiated material as well as the results of the CHIVAS-7 experiment are discussed
Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) round robin benchmark for a pressurized water reactor (PWR) rod bundle

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kang, Shin K., E-mail: paengki1@tamu.edu; Hassan, Yassin A.

2016-05-15

Highlights: • The capabilities of steady RANS models were directly assessed for full axial scale experiment. • The importance of mesh and conjugate heat transfer was reaffirmed. • The rod inner-surface temperature was directly compared. • The steady RANS calculations showed a limitation in the prediction of circumferential distribution of the rod surface temperature. - Abstract: This study examined the capabilities and limitations of steady Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) approach for pressurized water reactor (PWR) rod bundle problems, based on the round robin benchmark of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes against the NESTOR experiment for a 5 × 5 rod bundle with typical split-type mixing vane grids (MVGs). The round robin exercise against the high-fidelity, broad-range (covering multi-spans and entire lateral domain) NESTOR experimental data for both the flow field and the rod temperatures enabled us to obtain important insights into CFD prediction and validation for the split-type MVG PWR rod bundle problem. It was found that the steady RANS turbulence models with wall function could reasonably predict two key variables for a rod bundle problem – grid span pressure loss and the rod surface temperature – once mesh (type, resolution, and configuration) was suitable and conjugate heat transfer was properly considered. However, they over-predicted the magnitude of the circumferential variation of the rod surface temperature and could not capture its peak azimuthal locations for a central rod in the wake of the MVG. These discrepancies in the rod surface temperature were probably because the steady RANS approach could not capture unsteady, large-scale cross-flow fluctuations and qualitative cross-flow pattern change due to the laterally confined test section. Based on this benchmarking study, lessons and recommendations about experimental methods as well as CFD methods were also provided for the future research.
A round robin study of flexible large-area roll-to-roll processed polymer solar cell modules

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Krebs, Frederik C; Gevorgyan, Suren; Gholamkhass, Bobak

2009-01-01

A round robin for the performance of roll-to-roll coated flexible large-area polymer solar-cell modules involving 18 different laboratories in Northern America, Europe and Middle East is presented. The study involved the performance measurement of the devices at one location (Risø DTU) followed b...
Learning Multirobot Hose Transportation and Deployment by Distributed Round-Robin Q-Learning.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Borja Fernandez-Gauna

Full Text Available Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning (MARL algorithms face two main difficulties: the curse of dimensionality, and environment non-stationarity due to the independent learning processes carried out by the agents concurrently. In this paper we formalize and prove the convergence of a Distributed Round Robin Q-learning (D-RR-QL algorithm for cooperative systems. The computational complexity of this algorithm increases linearly with the number of agents. Moreover, it eliminates environment non sta tionarity by carrying a round-robin scheduling of the action selection and execution. That this learning scheme allows the implementation of Modular State-Action Vetoes (MSAV in cooperative multi-agent systems, which speeds up learning convergence in over-constrained systems by vetoing state-action pairs which lead to undesired termination states (UTS in the relevant state-action subspace. Each agent's local state-action value function learning is an independent process, including the MSAV policies. Coordination of locally optimal policies to obtain the global optimal joint policy is achieved by a greedy selection procedure using message passing. We show that D-RR-QL improves over state-of-the-art approaches, such as Distributed Q-Learning, Team Q-Learning and Coordinated Reinforcement Learning in a paradigmatic Linked Multi-Component Robotic System (L-MCRS control problem: the hose transportation task. L-MCRS are over-constrained systems with many UTS induced by the interaction of the passive linking element and the active mobile robots.
Comparison of experimental techniques for measuring fracture toughness of austenitic stainless steels by performance of a comparative round-robin test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huthmann, H.; Akhurst, K.N.; Bethmont, M.; Picker, C.; Rongen, H.J.M. van; Soulat, P.

1987-01-01

The CEC fast breeder coordinating committee, activities group 3 Materials of the working group for codes and standards, has recently examined existing data on the fracture toughness of austenitic stainless steels. As a result, the committee decided to sponsor a round robin test programme aimed at comparing experimental techniques and assisting in establishing a standard test method for these steels. The contract for this programme was placed with Interatom, who have subcontracted with CEA-Saclay, CEGB-Leatherhead, TNO-Apeldoorn and UKAEA-Risley. Additionally CISE/ENEL-Milano and EdF-Les Renardieres took part in the round robin. This final report presents a common evaluation and discussion of the results gained by the different laboratories
Round robin: Quantitative lateral resolution of PHI XPS microprobes Quantum 2000/Quantera SXM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scheithauer, Uwe; Kolb, Max; Kip, Gerard A.M.; Naburgh, Emile; Snijders, J.H.M.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • The quantitative lateral resolution of 7 PHI XPS microprobes has been estimated in a round robin. • An ellipsoidally shaped quartz crystal monochromatizes the Alkα radiation and refocuses it from the Al anode to the sample surface. • The long tail contributions of the X-ray beam intensity distribution were measured using a new and innovative approach. • This quantitative lateral resolution has a significantly larger value than the nominal X-ray beam diameter. • The quantitative lateral resolution follows a trend in time: The newer the monochromator so much the better the quantitative lateral resolution. - Abstract: The quantitative lateral resolution is a reliable measure for the quality of an XPS microprobe equipped with a focused X-ray beam. It describes the long tail contributions of the X-ray beam intensity distribution. The knowledge of these long tail contributions is essential when judging on the origin of signals of XPS spectra recorded on small-sized features. In this round robin test the quantitative lateral resolution of 7 PHI XPS microprobes has been estimated. As expected, the quantitative lateral resolution has significantly larger values than the nominal X-ray beam diameter. The estimated values of the quantitative lateral resolution follow a trend in time: the newer the monochromator of an XPS microprobe so much the better the quantitative lateral resolution.
Round robin: Quantitative lateral resolution of PHI XPS microprobes Quantum 2000/Quantera SXM

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scheithauer, Uwe, E-mail: scht.uhg@googlemail.com [82008 Unterhaching (Germany); Kolb, Max, E-mail: max.kolb@airbus.com [Airbus Group Innovations, TX2, 81663 Munich (Germany); Kip, Gerard A.M., E-mail: G.A.M.Kip@utwente.nl [Universiteit Twente, MESA+ Nanolab, Postbus 217, 7500AE Enschede (Netherlands); Naburgh, Emile, E-mail: e.p.naburgh@philips.com [Materials Analysis, Philips Innovation Services, High Tech Campus 11, 5656 AE Eindhoven (Netherlands); Snijders, J.H.M., E-mail: j.h.m.snijders@philips.com [Materials Analysis, Philips Innovation Services, High Tech Campus 11, 5656 AE Eindhoven (Netherlands)

2016-07-15

Highlights: • The quantitative lateral resolution of 7 PHI XPS microprobes has been estimated in a round robin. • An ellipsoidally shaped quartz crystal monochromatizes the Alkα radiation and refocuses it from the Al anode to the sample surface. • The long tail contributions of the X-ray beam intensity distribution were measured using a new and innovative approach. • This quantitative lateral resolution has a significantly larger value than the nominal X-ray beam diameter. • The quantitative lateral resolution follows a trend in time: The newer the monochromator so much the better the quantitative lateral resolution. - Abstract: The quantitative lateral resolution is a reliable measure for the quality of an XPS microprobe equipped with a focused X-ray beam. It describes the long tail contributions of the X-ray beam intensity distribution. The knowledge of these long tail contributions is essential when judging on the origin of signals of XPS spectra recorded on small-sized features. In this round robin test the quantitative lateral resolution of 7 PHI XPS microprobes has been estimated. As expected, the quantitative lateral resolution has significantly larger values than the nominal X-ray beam diameter. The estimated values of the quantitative lateral resolution follow a trend in time: the newer the monochromator of an XPS microprobe so much the better the quantitative lateral resolution.
PSI contribution to the CASTOC round robin on EAC of low-alloy RPV steels under BWR conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seifert, H.P.; Ritter, S

2001-08-01

Within the CASTOC-project (5th EU FW programme), the environmentally-assisted crack growth (EAC) behaviour of low-alloy reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels is experimentally investigated under simulated transient and steady-state BWR power operation conditions by 6 European laboratories. The present report contains a summary of the PSI contribution to the Working Package 1 (WP1) of this project. WP1 is an interlaboratory round robin EAC test in simulated BWR/NWC environment under cyclic and static loading conditions. The round robin shall demonstrate the applicability of the used advanced test technique and establishes the technical basis for the decision of test conditions in the other working packages. In the first part of the report, the PSI testing facility/measurement instruments and the applied test and evaluation procedure are discussed in detail. In the second part, the exact test conditions and test results with detailed post-test fractographical evaluation in the SEM are presented. The test results are compared with other PSI results, literature data and nuclear codes. Stable and stationary test conditions within the specified range could be achieved in the PSI test during the whole conditioning and experimental phase. The cyclic crack growth rate results agree well with recent PSI results at a higher dissolved oxygen content of 8 ppm and are slightly below the 'high-sulphur line' of the PLEDGE-model. The crack growth rates are significantly above the ASME XI 'wet' curve. Compared to fatigue crack growth rates in air under otherwise identical test conditions, the effect of the high-temperature water environment resulted in an acceleration of crack growth by a factor of 150-250 under these low-cyclic loading conditions. The test results at constant load confirm the extremely low susceptibility to SCC crack growth under static load at 288 {sup o}C observed in tests at MPA, PSI and in a European Round Robin. They agree well with the RPV

Round-Robin Studies on Roll-Processed ITO-free Organic Tandem Solar Cells Combined with Inter-Laboratory Stability Studies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Livi, Francesco; Søndergaard, Roar R.; Andersen, Thomas Rieks

2015-01-01

Roll-processed, indium tin oxide (ITO)-free, flexible, organic tandem solar cells and modules have been realized and used in round-robin studies as well as in parallel inter-laboratory stability studies. The tandem cells/modules show no significant difference in comparison to their single...
Data development for ASTM E24.06.02 round robin program on instability prediction

Science.gov (United States)

Mccabe, D. E.

1979-01-01

Basis data for use in an ASTM E24.06.02 task group round robin activity was developed. Compact specimens were made of 2024-T351, 7075-T651 aluminum alloys, and 304 stainless steel. All were 12.7 mm thick and planar dimension variables incorporated were for 1T, 2T and 4T sizes. Representative raw data for each material and specimen size are contained herein. R-curves plotted in terms of delta a physical and delta a effective are plotted for each material.
Testing round robin on cyclic crack growth of low and medium sulfur A533-B steels in LWR environments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kitagawa, H.; Komai, K.; Nakajima, H.; Higuchi, M.

1987-01-01

After the facts of environmentally assisted crack growth of low alloy steel was first observed when cyclically loaded in high temperature water. The subject has been extensively studied in connection with the evaluation of the integrity of LWR pressure boundary materials. In 1977, International Cooperative Group on Cyclic Crack Growth Rate Testing Evaluation (the ICCGR group) was organized for more systematic and effective solution of the problem. Successful results have been reported on the programs of the ICCGR activity, particularly in the promotion of a couple of programs of testing round robin and the associated research. JAERI also organized a domestic group of 15 organizations as the Corrosion Fatigue Subcommittee(JCF) of the LWR Safety Research Committee to carry out the similar test program. The group has been evaluating the behavior of steels representing the range of quality for the existing Japanese LWR plants. This paper describes the present status of the Japanese domestic testing round robin and related research especially focused on the test methodology
Round robin test for zirconium alloys in 400 deg C steam: results from EDF; Essais interlaboratoires de corrosion generalisee en milieu vapeur a 400 deg C d`alliages de zirconium: resultats d`EDF

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Blat, M.

1994-01-01

The EDF Material Studies Branch has participated in the Round Robin program of uniform corrosion on zirconium alloys. The objectives of these Round Robin corrosion tests are to generate new uniform corrosion weight gain date utilizing modern zirconium alloy products and to improve the International and ASTM standards. (author). 2 tabs., 7 appendix., 2 refs.
Round robin tests of Tc and Ic on YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimura, Y.; Higuchi, N.; Meguro, S.; Takahashi, K.; Uyeda, K.; Ishihara, T.; Inukai, E.; Umeda, M.

1989-01-01

In the author's research and development of oxide superconducting material, methods for measuring the critical properties such as critical temperature and critical current were investigated and studied by way of round robin tests. The investigation was carried out through the steps of (1) decision on the specifications of common samples and measuring methods, (2) preparation and characterization of common samples, (3) distribution of samples to ten member research organs of Super-GM, (4) experimental measurement in the respective research organs, and (5) analysis of measurement results. The measurement of critical temperature and critical current were made mainly using the 4-probe method, and partially the magnetization method. The results were found to disperse, depending on the measurement methods and definitions of Tc and lc. Data analysis with these factors clarified is important
Statistical reliability assessment of UT round-robin test data for piping welds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, H.M.; Park, I.K.; Park, U.S.; Park, Y.W.; Kang, S.C.; Lee, J.H.

2004-01-01

Ultrasonic NDE is one of important technologies in the life-time maintenance of nuclear power plant. Ultrasonic inspection system is consisted of the operator, equipment and procedure. The reliability of ultrasonic inspection system is affected by its ability. The performance demonstration round robin was conducted to quantify the capability of ultrasonic inspection for in-service. Several teams employed procedures that met or exceeded with ASME sec. XI code requirements detected the piping of nuclear power plant with various cracks to evaluate the capability of detection and sizing. In this paper, the statistical reliability assessment of ultrasonic nondestructive inspection data using probability of detection (POD) is presented. The result of POD using logistic model was useful to the reliability assessment for the NDE hit or miss data. (orig.)
An Integrated Constraint Programming Approach to Scheduling Sports Leagues with Divisional and Round-robin Tournaments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carlsson, Mats; Johansson, Mikael; Larson, Jeffrey

2014-01-01

Previous approaches for scheduling a league with round-robin and divisional tournaments involved decomposing the problem into easier subproblems. This approach, used to schedule the top Swedish handball league Elitserien, reduces the problem complexity but can result in suboptimal schedules. This paper presents an integrated constraint programming model that allows to perform the scheduling in a single step. Particular attention is given to identifying implied and symmetry-breaking constraints that reduce the computational complexity significantly. The experimental evaluation of the integrated approach takes considerably less computational effort than the previous approach.
Cluster Server IPTV dengan Penjadwalan Algoritma Round Robin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Didik Aribowo

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Perkembangan teknologi informasi yang pesat, otomatis seiring juga dengan meningkatnya para pengguna yang terhubung pada jaringan internet. Berawal dari sebuah single server yang selalu mendapatkan request dari banyak user, perlahan tapi pasti akan terjadi overload dan crash sehingga berdampak pada request yang tidak dapat dilayani oleh single server. Desain arsitektur cluster dapat dibangun dengan menggunakan konsep network load balancing yang memungkinkan proses pengolahan data di share ke dalam beberapa komputer. Dalam penelitian ini menggunakan algoritma penjadwalan round robin sebagai solusi alternatif mengatasi permasalah overload data pada server yang dapat mempengaruhi kinerja sistem IPTV. Untuk jumlah request yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah 5000, 15000, 25000, dan 50000 request. Dengan metode tersebut, maka performansi algoritma penjawalan dapat diamati dengan menekankan pada parameter sebagai berikut, yaitu throughput, respon time, reply connection, dan error connection sehingga didapatkan algoritma penjadwalan terbaik dalam rangka optimalisasi cluster server IPTV. Secara otomatis dalam proses load balancing mampu mengurangi beban kerja setiap server sehingga tidak ada server yang overload dan memungkinkan server menggunakan bandwidth yang tersedia secara lebih efektif serta menyediakan akses yang cepat ke web browser yang dihosting. Implementasi webserver cluster dengan skema load balancing dapat memberikan alvalaibilitas sistem yang tetap terjaga dan skalabilitas yang cukup untuk dapat tetap melayani setiap request dari pengguna
Round Robin test for the determination of nitrogen concentration in solid Lithium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Favuzza, P.; Antonelli, A.; Furukawa, T.; Groeschel, F.; Hedinger, R.; Higashi, T.; Hirakawa, Y.; Iijima, M.; Ito, Y.; Kanemura, T.; Knaster, J.; Kondo, H.; Miccichè, G.; Nitti, F.S.; Ohira, S.; Severi, M.; Sugimoto, M.; Suzuki, A.; Traversi, R.; Wakai, E.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Nitrogen contained in solid Lithium is converted into Ammonium ion. • Ammonium ion is suitably quantified by ionic chromatograph or by Ammonia sensor. • Good agreement of the partner’s results has been achieved. • Maximum operative reproducibility and blank subtraction are necessary. - Abstract: Three different partners, ENEA, JAEA ed University of Tokyo, have been involved during 2014–2015 in the Round Robin experimentation for the assessment of the soundness of the analitycal procedure for the determination of the Nitrogen impurities contained inside a solid Lithium sample. Two different kinds of Lithium samples, differing by about an order of magnitude in Nitrogen concentration (∼230 wppm; ∼20–30 wppm), have been selected for this cross analysis. The agreement of the achieved results appears very good for what concerns the most concentrated Lithium and indicates each partner’s procedure is appropriate and intrinsecally able to lead to meaningful values, characterized by a relative uncertainty of just few %. The smaller agreement in the case of the less concentrated Lithium anyway points out that particular attention must be paid to reduce as much as possible any source of external contamination and highlights the importance of the proper blank subtraction.
Round Robin test for the determination of nitrogen concentration in solid Lithium

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Favuzza, P., E-mail: paolo.favuzza@enea.it [ENEA Center, Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Italy); Antonelli, A. [ENEA Research Center, Brasimone, 40035, Camugnano (Italy); Furukawa, T. [JAEA Research Center, Tokai-mura, Ibaraki (Japan); Groeschel, F. [KIT Research Center, Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1,76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany); Hedinger, R. [F4E Research Center, Boltzmannstraße 2, 85748 Garching (Germany); Higashi, T. [University of Tokyo (Japan); Hirakawa, Y.; Iijima, M.; Ito, Y.; Kanemura, T. [JAEA Research Center, Tokai-mura, Ibaraki (Japan); Knaster, J. [IFMIF-EVEDA Project Team, Rokkasho (Japan); Kondo, H. [JAEA Research Center, Tokai-mura, Ibaraki (Japan); Miccichè, G.; Nitti, F.S. [ENEA Research Center, Brasimone, 40035, Camugnano (Italy); Ohira, S. [JAEA Research Center, Tokai-mura, Ibaraki (Japan); Severi, M. [University of Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Italy); Sugimoto, M. [JAEA Research Center, Rokkasho (Japan); Suzuki, A. [University of Tokyo (Japan); Traversi, R. [University of Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Italy); Wakai, E. [JAEA Research Center, Tokai-mura, Ibaraki (Japan)

2016-06-15

Highlights: • Nitrogen contained in solid Lithium is converted into Ammonium ion. • Ammonium ion is suitably quantified by ionic chromatograph or by Ammonia sensor. • Good agreement of the partner’s results has been achieved. • Maximum operative reproducibility and blank subtraction are necessary. - Abstract: Three different partners, ENEA, JAEA ed University of Tokyo, have been involved during 2014–2015 in the Round Robin experimentation for the assessment of the soundness of the analitycal procedure for the determination of the Nitrogen impurities contained inside a solid Lithium sample. Two different kinds of Lithium samples, differing by about an order of magnitude in Nitrogen concentration (∼230 wppm; ∼20–30 wppm), have been selected for this cross analysis. The agreement of the achieved results appears very good for what concerns the most concentrated Lithium and indicates each partner’s procedure is appropriate and intrinsecally able to lead to meaningful values, characterized by a relative uncertainty of just few %. The smaller agreement in the case of the less concentrated Lithium anyway points out that particular attention must be paid to reduce as much as possible any source of external contamination and highlights the importance of the proper blank subtraction.
Results from an International Measurement Round Robin of III-V Triple Junction Solar Cells under Air Mass Zero

Science.gov (United States)

Jenkins, Phillip; Scheiman, Chris; Goodbody, Chris; Baur, Carsten; Sharps, Paul; Imaizumi, Mitsuru; Yoo, Henry; Sahlstrom, Ted; Walters, Robert; Lorentzen, Justin;

2006-01-01

This paper reports the results of an international measurement round robin of monolithic, triple-junction, GaInP/GaAs/Ge space solar cells. Eight laboratories representing national labs, solar cell vendors and space solar cell consumers, measured cells using in-house reference cells and compared those results to measurements made where each lab used the same set of reference cells. The results show that most of the discrepancy between laboratories is likely due to the quality of the standard cells rather than the measurement system or solar simulator used.

Identification of alginite and bituminite in rocks other than coal. 2006, 2009 and 2011 round robin exercises of the ICCP Identification of Dispersed Organic Matter Working Group

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Kus, J.; Araujo, C.V.; Borrego, A.G.; Flores, D.; Hackley, P.C.; Hámor-Vidó, M.; Kalaitzidis, S.; Kommeren, C.J.; Kwiecinska, B.; Mastalerz, M.; Mendonca Filho, J.G.; Menezes, T.R.; Misz-Kennan, M.; Nowak, G.J.; Petersen, H.I.; Rallakis, D.; Suárez-Ruiz, I.; Sýkorová, Ivana; Životič, D.

2017-01-01

Roč. 178, JUN 1 (2017), s. 26-38 ISSN 0166-5162 Institutional support: RVO:67985891 Keywords : ICCP * alginite * lamalginite * telalginite * maceral * round robin exercises * bituminite Subject RIV: DD - Geochemistry OBOR OECD: Geology Impact factor: 4.783, year: 2016
Highly Efficient Multi Channel Packet Forwarding with Round Robin Intermittent Periodic Transmit for Multihop Wireless Backhaul Networks

Science.gov (United States)

Furukawa, Hiroshi

2017-01-01

Round Robin based Intermittent Periodic Transmit (RR-IPT) has been proposed which achieves highly efficient multi-hop relays in multi-hop wireless backhaul networks (MWBN) where relay nodes are 2-dimensionally deployed. This paper newly investigates multi-channel packet scheduling and forwarding scheme for RR-IPT. Downlink traffic is forwarded by RR-IPT via one of the channels, while uplink traffic and part of downlink are accommodated in the other channel. By comparing IPT and carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) for uplink/downlink packet forwarding channel, IPT is more effective in reducing packet loss rate whereas CSMA/CA is better in terms of system throughput and packet delay improvement. PMID:29137164
ESA's Ice Sheets CCI: validation and inter-comparison of surface elevation changes derived from laser and radar altimetry over Jakobshavn Isbræ, Greenland – Round Robin results

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fredenslund Levinsen, Joanna; Khvorostovsky, K.; Ticconi, F.

2013-01-01

method for determining each parameter. This work describes the SEC Round Robin and the subsequent conclusions leading to the creation of a method for determining GrIS SEC values. The participants used either Envisat radar or ICESat laser altimetry over Jakobshavn Isbræ drainage basin, and the submissions...
Stainless Steel Round Robin Test: Centrifugally cast stainless steel screening phase

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bates, D J; Doctor, S R; Heasler, P G; Burck, E

1987-10-01

This report presents the results of the Centrifugally Cast Stainless Steel Round Robin Test (CCSSRRT). The CCSSRRT is the first phase of an effort to investigate and improve the capability and reliability of NDE inspections of light water reactor piping systems. This phase was a screening test to identify the most promising procedures presently available for CCSS. The next phase will be an in-depth program to evaluate the capability and reliability of inservice inspections (ISI) for piping. In the CCSSRRT, 15 centrifugally cast stainless steel pipe sections containing welds and laboratory-grown thermal fatigue cracks in both columnar and equiaxed base material were used. These pipe specimens were inspected by a total of 18 teams from Europe and the United States using a variety of NDE techniques, mostly ultrasonic (UT). The inspections were carried out at the team's facilities and included inspections from both sides of the weld and inspections restricted to one side of the weld. The results of the CCSSRRT make it apparent that a more detailed study on the capability and reliability of procedures to inspect stainless steel materials is needed to better understand the specific material and flaw properties and how they affect the outcome of an inspection.
Progress report on a NDT round robin on austenitic circumferential pipe welds; Fortschrittsbericht ueber einen ZfP-Ringversuch an austenitischen Rohrleitungs-Rundschweissnaehten

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brast, G [Preussische Elektrizitaets-AG (Preussenelektra), Hannover (Germany); Maier, H J; Knoch, P; Mletzko, U [Stuttgart Univ. (Germany). Staatliche Materialpruefungsanstalt

1998-11-01

The objective of the project is establish on the basis of Round Robin tests the current state of efficiency of various, defined testing methods, so that required or achievable optimizations can be defined and made. The project work up to date encompasses mon-destructive examinations of 15 austenitic welds with nominal widths DN 150/200/250 and wall thicknesses from 8 to 18 mm. Except for one test piece, (elbow/elbow), the joining welds are straight pipe to elbow welds. The results of the Round Robin tests show that the NDE detection limits for the fault examined (intercrystalline stress corrosion cracking) are in the range assumed so far, i.e. from about 20 to 25% of the wall thickness to be examined. The defect detection rates of the ultrasonic test methods applied are approx. 70% and thus are about equal in achievement with comparable international Round Robin tests (PISC; ASME/PDI, ENIQ, etc.). Clearly better are the fault detection rates of radiography. Evaluation of the individual results indicates the detection limits can be improved, by 1. reducing the misalignment of edges, 2. grinding of welds, 3. avoiding sharp notches at the root, 4. producing coaxial surfaces. (orig./CB) [Deutsch] Ein Ziel des Vorhabens ist es, mit Ringversuchen den derzeitigen Stand der Leistungsfaehigkeit einzelner Pruefverfahren und -techniken zu erkennen, um moeglicherweise notwendige Optimierungen vornehmen zu koennen. Das Vorhaben umfasst bis jetzt zerstoerungsfreie Pruefungen an 15 austenitischen Naehten mit Nennweiten DN 150/200/250 und Wandstaerken zwischen 8 und 18 mm. Mit einer Ausnahme (Bogen/Bogen) handelt es sich um Verbindungen Geradrohr/Bogen. Die Ergebnisse des Ringversuches weisen darauf hin, dass die Nachweisgrenzen der ZfP fuer den vorliegenden Fehlertyp (Interkristalline Spannungsrisskorrosion) in der bisher schon angenommenen Groessenordnung von ca. 20-25% der geprueften Wanddicke liegen. Die Fehlerauffind-Raten der US-Pruefung liegen mit ca. 70% im Rahmen
Round-robin activities on finite element analyses of elastic-plastic fracture in Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shimakawa, T.; Takahashi, Y.; Yagawa, G.

1989-01-01

The establishment of the leak-before-break (LBB) concept requires a method to evaluate the fracture characteristics. The finite element method can be used for this purpose but the solution is more or less influenced by the method employed. In this study, two round-robin analyses are performed for three-dimensional crack problems. The first problem is for surface crack growth in a carbon steel plate subjected to tension loading. Ten solutions are obtained by ten participants, and calculated results are compared with each other as to the applied load, displacement and J-integral. Though the relation between applied load and displacement is affected by modeling of the stress-strain curve, fairly good agreement is obtained between the solutions. The second problem is for a circumferential part-through crack in a carbon steel pipe subjected to a bending moment. Nine solutions are obtained by eight participants. The difference between the solutions is relatively significant as to the relation between J-integral and load-point displacement. A discussion is made about the sources of difference between each solution. (orig.)
A round robin test of the uncertainty on the measurementof the thermoelectric dimensionless figure of merit of Co.sub.0.97./sub.Ni.sub.0.03./sub.Sb.sub.3./sub..

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Alleno, E.; Bérardan, D.; Byl, C.; Candolfi, C.; Daou, R.; Decourt, R.; Guilmeau, E.; Hébert, S.; Hejtmánek, Jiří; Lenoir, B.; Masschelein, P.; Ohorodnichuk, V.; Pollet, M.; Populoh, S.; Ravot, D.; Rouleau, O.; Soulier, M.

2015-01-01

Roč. 86, č. 1 (2015), "011301-1"-"011301-8" ISSN 0034-6748 Institutional support: RVO:68378271 Keywords : thermoelectricity * thermoelectric metrology * round robin test Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 1.336, year: 2015
Enhanced first-in-first-out-based round-robin multicast scheduling algorithm for input-queued switches

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yu, Hao; Ruepp, Sarah Renée; Berger, Michael Stübert

2011-01-01

This study focuses on the multicast scheduling for M × N input-queued switches. An enhanced first-in-first-out -based round-robin multicast scheduling algorithm is proposed with a function of searching deeper into queues to reduce the head-of-line (HOL) blocking problem and thereby the multicast...... out on the decision matrix to reduce the number of transmission for each cell. To reduce the HOL blocking problem, a complement matrix is constructed based on the traffic matrix and the decision matrix, and a process of searching deeper into the queues is carried out to find cells that can be sent...... to the idle outputs. Simulation results show that the proposed function of searching deeper into the queues can alleviate the HOL blocking and as a result reduce the multicast latency significantly. Under both balanced and unbalanced multicast traffic, the proposed algorithm is able to maintain a stable...
Nonlinear model updating applied to the IMAC XXXII Round Robin benchmark system

Science.gov (United States)

Kurt, Mehmet; Moore, Keegan J.; Eriten, Melih; McFarland, D. Michael; Bergman, Lawrence A.; Vakakis, Alexander F.

2017-05-01

We consider the application of a new nonlinear model updating strategy to a computational benchmark system. The approach relies on analyzing system response time series in the frequency-energy domain by constructing both Hamiltonian and forced and damped frequency-energy plots (FEPs). The system parameters are then characterized and updated by matching the backbone branches of the FEPs with the frequency-energy wavelet transforms of experimental and/or computational time series. The main advantage of this method is that no nonlinearity model is assumed a priori, and the system model is updated solely based on simulation and/or experimental measured time series. By matching the frequency-energy plots of the benchmark system and its reduced-order model, we show that we are able to retrieve the global strongly nonlinear dynamics in the frequency and energy ranges of interest, identify bifurcations, characterize local nonlinearities, and accurately reconstruct time series. We apply the proposed methodology to a benchmark problem, which was posed to the system identification community prior to the IMAC XXXII (2014) and XXXIII (2015) Conferences as a "Round Robin Exercise on Nonlinear System Identification". We show that we are able to identify the parameters of the non-linear element in the problem with a priori knowledge about its position.

Solid fuels - A round robin test of solid residual products from heating plants. Fasta braenslen - cirkelanalys av fasta restprodukter fraan foerbraenningsanlaeggningar

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Burwall, J; Samuelsson, R [Sveriges Lanbruksuniversitet, Enheten foer Biomassa, Energi- och Fibergroedor, Umeaa (Sweden)

1992-03-01

A round robin test, where six ashes (three coal ashes and three bioashes) were analyzed with respect to 'fuelspecific' parameters, major and minor elements and trace elements, has been carried out. Thirteen laboratories from Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway participated and the purpose of the investigation was to compare and evaluate common methods of analysis for ashes. The standard deviation of the used methods was compared to the precision calculated from the reported reproducability in corresponding standard methods for fuels. The results show that, without taking the significant outliers into account, the precision of the analysis of moisture content, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulfur and the predominant part of major and minor elements was of the order of the corresponding analysis for fuels. The analysis of carbon and calorific value showed a variation somewhat higher than that for fuel analysis, while the results for volatile matter and the tracer elements were considerably less precise. The result for the amount of unburned matter showed significant groupings, not only between the ashes but also between the laboratories. The groupings were explained mainly by the different experimental parameters used during the ashing step. (au) (5 refs., 10 figs., 38 tabs.).
Solid fuels - A round robin test of solid residual products from heating plants; Fasta braenslen - cirkelanalys av fasta restprodukter fraan foerbraenningsanlaeggningar

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Burwall, J; Samuelsson, R [Sveriges Lanbruksuniversitet, Enheten foer Biomassa, Energi- och Fibergroedor, Umeaa (Sweden)

1992-03-01

A round robin test, where six ashes (three coal ashes and three bioashes) were analyzed with respect to `fuelspecific` parameters, major and minor elements and trace elements, has been carried out. Thirteen laboratories from Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway participated and the purpose of the investigation was to compare and evaluate common methods of analysis for ashes. The standard deviation of the used methods was compared to the precision calculated from the reported reproducability in corresponding standard methods for fuels. The results show that, without taking the significant outliers into account, the precision of the analysis of moisture content, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulfur and the predominant part of major and minor elements was of the order of the corresponding analysis for fuels. The analysis of carbon and calorific value showed a variation somewhat higher than that for fuel analysis, while the results for volatile matter and the tracer elements were considerably less precise. The result for the amount of unburned matter showed significant groupings, not only between the ashes but also between the laboratories. The groupings were explained mainly by the different experimental parameters used during the ashing step. (au) (5 refs., 10 figs., 38 tabs.).
Validation and inter-comparison of surface elevation changes derived from altimetry over the Jakobshavn Isbræ drainage basin, Greenland – Round Robin results from ESA's Ice_Sheets_CCI (ID #EGU2013-6007)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fredenslund Levinsen, Joanna; Khvorostovsky, Kirill; Ticconi, Francesca

elevation changes (SEC), surface velocities, calving front locations, and grounding line locations. This work focuses on SEC, and the goal is to develop the best routine for estimating this by means of radar altimetry. In order to find the most optimal approach we have completed a Round Robin experiment (RR......In order to ensure long-term climate records, ESA has launched the Climate Change Initiative (ESA CCI), which puts focus on 13 different Essential Climate Variables, one of them being Ice Sheets. In this program, four selected key parameters will be determined for the Greenland Ice Sheet: Surface...
System upgradation for surface mode negative ion beam extraction experiments in ROBIN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pandya, Kaushal; Bansal, Gourab; Soni, Jignesh

2015-01-01

ROBIN (Replica Of BATMAN source in India) is a replica of BATMAN source of IPP, Garching. Plasma production (inductively coupled, RF produced plasma), plasma diagnostic (langmuir probe, optical emission spectroscopy), negative ion beam extraction in volume mode with reduced extraction area of 2 cm 2 (4 apertures) using small bench top type power supply (10kV, 400mA), with increase extraction area of 73 cm 2 (146 apertures) and using actual power supplies (Extraction Power Supply System, EPSS (11kV, 35A), and Accelerator Power Supply System, APSS (35kV, 15A)) and beam diagnostic etc have been performed successfully in ROBIN. This paper will describe the details of the system upgradation for surface mode negative ion experiments and its performance in ROBIN
Round robin test on quantification of amyloid-β 1-42 in cerebrospinal fluid by mass spectrometry.

Science.gov (United States)

Pannee, Josef; Gobom, Johan; Shaw, Leslie M; Korecka, Magdalena; Chambers, Erin E; Lame, Mary; Jenkins, Rand; Mylott, William; Carrillo, Maria C; Zegers, Ingrid; Zetterberg, Henrik; Blennow, Kaj; Portelius, Erik

2016-01-01

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) amyloid-β 1-42 (Aβ42) is an important biomarker for Alzheimer's disease, both in diagnostics and to monitor disease-modifying therapies. However, there is a great need for standardization of methods used for quantification. To overcome problems associated with immunoassays, liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) has emerged as a critical orthogonal alternative. We compared results for CSF Aβ42 quantification in a round robin study performed in four laboratories using similar sample preparation methods and LC-MS instrumentation. The LC-MS results showed excellent correlation between laboratories (r(2) >0.98), high analytical precision, and good correlation with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (r(2) >0.85). The use of a common reference sample further decreased interlaboratory variation. Our results indicate that LC-MS is suitable for absolute quantification of Aβ42 in CSF and highlight the importance of developing a certified reference material. Copyright © 2016 The Alzheimer's Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
First report on a European round robin for slope measuring profilers

Science.gov (United States)

Rommeveaux, Amparo; Thomasset, Muriel; Cocco, Daniele; Siewert, Frank

2005-08-01

In the framework of the European COoperation in the field of Scientific and Technical research action on "X-ray and Neutron Optic" (COST P7) and following the decision announced in the last International Workshop on Metrology for X-ray and neutron optic (Grenoble, April 2004), the metrology facilities of four European synchrotrons, Bessy, Elettra, ESRF and Soleil, have decided and started a program of instrument inter-comparison. Other synchrotrons are joining us and further interested Institutions are invited to participate in this open measurement comparison. The metrology instruments involved are different kinds of direct slope measurement devices, like the well known Long Trace Profiler (in house made or modified) and the Bessy N.O.M.. The Round Robin was started with 2 flat and 2 spherical mirrors (three made of Zerodur and one of fused silica) made available by Bessy and Elettra. A short radius of curvature spherical mirror of Silicon from SOLEIL was later added. First results show a very close match between the measurements of all facilities provided that the same procedures are followed. In particular, a special attention has to be given to the way of supporting the reference objects, as it will be illustrated by some examples. Another important issue is the characterization of the systematic errors of the different instruments and how they can be reduced or eliminated. The paper expects to open a discussion on the performances of different commercial and custom made or modified profilometers, and over standard procedures for calibration testing, including the definition of standard reference surfaces.
SeaWiFS technical report series. Volume 26: Results of the SeaWiFS Data Analysis Round-Robin, July 1994 (DARR-1994)

Science.gov (United States)

Hooker, Stanford B. (Editor); Firestone, Elaine R. (Editor); Siegel, David A.; Obrien, Margaret C.; Sorensen, Jen C.; Konnoff, Daniel A.; Brody, Eric A.; Mueller, James L.; Davis, Curtiss O.; Rhea, W. Joseph

1995-01-01

The accurate determination of upper ocean apparent optical properties (AOP's) is essential for the vicarious calibration of the sea-viewing wide field-of-view sensor (SeaWiFS) instrument and the validation of the derived data products. To evaluate the role that data analysis methods have upon values of derived AOP's, the first Data Analysis Round-Robin (DARR-94) workshop was sponsored by the SeaWiFS Project during 21-23 July, 1994. The focus of this intercomparison study was the estimation of the downwelling irradiance spectrum just beneath the sea surface, E(sub d)(0(sup -), lambda); the upwelling nadir radiance just beneath the sea surface, L(sub u)(0(sup -), lambda); and the vertical profile of the diffuse attenuation coefficient spectrum, K(sub d)(z, lambda). In the results reported here, different methodologies from four research groups were applied to an identical set of 10 spectroradiometry casts in order to evaluate the degree to which data analysis methods influence AOP estimation, and whether any general improvements can be made. The overall results of DARR-94 are presented in Chapter 1 and the individual methods of the four groups are presented in Chapters 2-5. The DARR-94 results do not show a clear winner among data analysis methods evaluated. It is apparent, however, that some degree of outlier rejection is required in order to accurately estimate L(sub u)(0(sup -), lambda) or E(sub d)(0(sup -), lambda). Furthermore, the calculation, evaluation and exploitation of confidence intervals for the AOP determinations needs to be explored. That is, the SeaWiFS calibration and validation problem should be recast in statistical terms where the in situ AOP values are statistical estimates with known confidence intervals.
Reliability of case definitions for public health surveillance assessed by Round-Robin test methodology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Claus Hermann

2006-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Case definitions have been recognized to be important elements of public health surveillance systems. They are to assure comparability and consistency of surveillance data and have crucial impact on the sensitivity and the positive predictive value of a surveillance system. The reliability of case definitions has rarely been investigated systematically. Methods We conducted a Round-Robin test by asking all 425 local health departments (LHD and the 16 state health departments (SHD in Germany to classify a selection of 68 case examples using case definitions. By multivariate analysis we investigated factors linked to classification agreement with a gold standard, which was defined by an expert panel. Results A total of 7870 classifications were done by 396 LHD (93% and all SHD. Reporting sensitivity was 90.0%, positive predictive value 76.6%. Polio case examples had the lowest reporting precision, salmonellosis case examples the highest (OR = 0.008; CI: 0.005–0.013. Case definitions with a check-list format of clinical criteria resulted in higher reporting precision than case definitions with a narrative description (OR = 3.08; CI: 2.47–3.83. Reporting precision was higher among SHD compared to LHD (OR = 1.52; CI: 1.14–2.02. Conclusion Our findings led to a systematic revision of the German case definitions and build the basis for general recommendations for the creation of case definitions. These include, among others, that testable yes/no criteria in a check-list format is likely to improve reliability, and that software used for data transmission should be designed in strict accordance with the case definitions. The findings of this study are largely applicable to case definitions in many other countries or international networks as they share the same structural and editorial characteristics of the case definitions evaluated in this study before their revision.
IAEA co-ordinated research program. 'Round Robin' on measuring the velocity of delayed hydride cracking (DHC)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grigoriev, V.; Jakobsson, R.

1999-09-01

The International Atomic Agency (IAEA) has initiated a new Co-ordinated Research Programme (CRP) on Hydrogen and hydride induced degradation of the mechanical and physical properties of Zirconium-based alloys. In the first phase of this CRP the methodology for measuring the velocity of Delayed Hydride Cracking (DHC) should be established and participating laboratories from about nine countries around the world carry out identical tests in 'round robin'. The objective of the present work is to establish at Studsvik laboratory the method of a constant load cracking test on unirradiated Zr-2.5Nb and attain a comparison of results between laboratories. Constant load tests are performed on specimens cut from unirradiated CANDU Zr-2.5Nb pressure tube and the rate of crack propagation is determined in each test. Pre-hydrided specimens for testing are supplied from the host laboratory. Six specimens have been tested for delayed hydride cracking (DHC) at 250 deg C. The axial crack growth velocities measured in the tests are within the interval of 8.62x10 -8 - 1.06x10 -7 m/s. The results obtained agree well with the earlier published data for similar materials and test conditions
EC static high-temperature leach test. Summary report of an European Community interlaboratory round robin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koennecke, R.; Kirsch, J.

1985-01-01

The results of an interlaboratory static high-temperature leach test conducted by the Commission of the European Communities in 1983 over a period of 9 months are compiled and statistically evaluated. A total of 12 laboratories - 10 from Member States of the EC and one from Finland and the USA - provided information concerning the test method and the analytical test results in the frame of a round robin test (RRT). All together these laboratories tested 366 waste from specimens of the borosilicate glass UK 209 containing simulated high-level radioactive waste. Leach tests were performed on the basis of the ''Document on the EC static high-temperature leach test method'' in autoclaves at leaching temperatures of 90 0 C, 110 0 C, 150 0 C, and 190 0 C over time periods of 3,7,14,28 and 56 days using dionized water as leachant. The resulting leachates were analysed for the elemental concentrations of Si,B,Sr,Nd and Cs by all laboratories and for the concentrations of the optional elements Na, Al,Ce,Mo,Cr,Fe,Li,Mg and Zn by some of the participating laboratories. Additionally, the F content of the blank leachates was analysed by all laboratories
The ward round--patient experiences and barriers to participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Swenne, Christine Leo; Skytt, Bernice

2014-06-01

Patients' participation is essential to their well-being and sense of coherence, as well as to their understanding of and adherence to prescribed treatments. Ward rounds serve as a forum for sharing information between patient and caregiver. The purpose of the ward round is to obtain information and plan medical and nursing care through staff-patient communication. The aim and objective of this study was to investigate patients' experiences during the ward round and their ability to participate in their care. The study was qualitative and descriptive in design. Fourteen inpatients at a cardiovascular ward were interviewed. Qualitative content analysis was used for the analysis. The ethics of scientific work were adhered to. Each study participant gave his/her informed consent based on verbal and written information. The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee at Uppsala University. The analysis revealed one theme and three subthemes related to patients' experiences of ward rounds. The main theme was handling of information from the daily ward round while waiting for private consultation. The subthemes were making the best of the short time spent on ward rounds; encountering traditional roles and taking comfort in staff competency; and being able to choose the degree to which one participates in the decision-making process. Several aspects of traditional ward round routines could be improved in regard to the two-way information exchange process between caregivers and patient. Patients' and caregivers' ability to communicate their goals and the environment in which the communication occurs are of great importance. The information provided by nurses is easier to understand than that provided by physicians. The atmosphere must be open; the patient should be treated with empathy by staff; and patients' right to participate must be acknowledged by all healthcare professionals involved. © 2013 Nordic College of Caring Science.
Methods used by Elsam for monitoring precision and accuracy of analytical results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hinnerskov Jensen, J [Soenderjyllands Hoejspaendingsvaerk, Faelleskemikerne, Aabenraa (Denmark)

1996-12-01

Performing round robins at regular intervals is the primary method used by ELsam for monitoring precision and accuracy of analytical results. The firs round robin was started in 1974, and today 5 round robins are running. These are focused on: boiler water and steam, lubricating oils, coal, ion chromatography and dissolved gases in transformer oils. Besides the power plant laboratories in Elsam, the participants are power plant laboratories from the rest of Denmark, industrial and commercial laboratories in Denmark, and finally foreign laboratories. The calculated standard deviations or reproducibilities are compared with acceptable values. These values originate from ISO, ASTM and the like, or from own experiences. Besides providing the laboratories with a tool to check their momentary performance, the round robins are vary suitable for evaluating systematic developments on a long term basis. By splitting up the uncertainty according to methods, sample preparation/analysis, etc., knowledge can be extracted from the round robins for use in many other situations. (au)
Transport Properties of Bulk Thermoelectrics—An International Round-Robin Study, Part I: Seebeck Coefficient and Electrical Resistivity

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Hsin; Porter, Wallace D.; Böttner, Harald; König, Jan; Chen, Lidong; Bai, Shengqiang; Tritt, Terry M.; Mayolet, Alex; Senawiratne, Jayantha; Smith, Charlene; Harris, Fred; Gilbert, Patricia; Sharp, Jeff W.; Lo, Jason; Kleinke, Holger; Kiss, Laszlo

2013-04-01

Recent research and development of high-temperature thermoelectric materials has demonstrated great potential for converting automobile exhaust heat directly into electricity. Thermoelectrics based on classic bismuth telluride have also started to impact the automotive industry by enhancing air-conditioning efficiency and integrated cabin climate control. In addition to engineering challenges of making reliable and efficient devices to withstand thermal and mechanical cycling, the remaining issues in thermoelectric power generation and refrigeration are mostly materials related. The dimensionless figure of merit, ZT, still needs to be improved from the current value of 1.0 to 1.5 to above 2.0 to be competitive with other alternative technologies. In the meantime, the thermoelectric community could greatly benefit from the development of international test standards, improved test methods, and better characterization tools. Internationally, thermoelectrics have been recognized by many countries as a key component for improving energy efficiency. The International Energy Agency (IEA) group under the Implementing Agreement for Advanced Materials for Transportation (AMT) identified thermoelectric materials as an important area in 2009. This paper is part I of the international round-robin testing of transport properties of bulk thermoelectrics. The main foci in part I are the measurement of two electronic transport properties: Seebeck coefficient and electrical resistivity.
Wild North Island Robins (Petroica longipes respond to Prey Animacy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexis Garland

2014-08-01

Full Text Available North Island robins of New Zealand are a food hoarding species, which is unique in that they almost exclusively cache highly perishable hunted insects for later retrieval. In order to do so, they either kill and dismember or paralyze their prey for caching, depending on the prey size and kind. The present study comprises two experiments, using a Violation of Expectancy (VoE paradigm to examine variation in search behavior response to different prey conditions. The first experiment presents three different types of prey (mealworms, earthworms and locusts in expected (present and unexpected (absent conditions. The second experiment presents prey in varying states of animacy (alive and whole, dead and whole, dead and halved, and an inanimate stick and reveals prey in expected (same state or unexpected (differing state conditions. While robins did not respond with differential search times to different types of unexpectedly missing prey in Experiment 1, in Experiment 2 robins searched longer in conditions where prey was found in a differing state of animacy than initially shown. Robins also searched longer for prey when immediately consuming retrieved prey than when caching retrieved prey. Results indicate that North Island robins may be sensitive to prey animacy upon storage and retrieval of insect prey; such information could play a role in storage, pilfering and retrieval strategies of such a perishable food source.
Deficit Round Robin with Fragmentation Scheduling to Achieve Generalized Weighted Fairness for Resource Allocation in IEEE 802.16e Mobile WiMAX Networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chakchai So-In

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Deficit Round Robin (DRR is a fair packet-based scheduling discipline commonly used in wired networks where link capacities do not change with time. However, in wireless networks, especially wireless broadband networks, i.e., IEEE 802.16e Mobile WiMAX, there are two main considerations violate the packet-based service concept for DRR. First, the resources are allocated per Mobile WiMAX frame. To achieve full frame utilization, Mobile WiMAX allows packets to be fragmented. Second, due to a high variation in wireless channel conditions, the link/channel capacity can change over time and location. Therefore, we introduce a Deficit Round Robin with Fragmentation (DRRF to allocate resources per Mobile WiMAX frame in a fair manner by allowing for varying link capacity and for transmitting fragmented packets. Similar to DRR and Generalized Processor Sharing (GPS, DRRF achieves perfect fairness. DRRF results in a higher throughput than DRR (80% improvement while causing less overhead than GPS (8 times less than GPS. In addition, in Mobile WiMAX, the quality of service (QoS offered by service providers is associated with the price paid. This is similar to a cellular phone system; the users may be required to pay air-time charges. Hence, we have also formalized a Generalized Weighted Fairness (GWF criterion which equalizes a weighted sum of service time units or slots, called temporal fairness, and transmitted bytes, called throughput fairness, for customers who are located in a poor channel condition or at a further distance versus for those who are near the base stations, or have a good channel condition. We use DRRF to demonstrate the application of GWF. These fairness criteria are used to satisfy basic requirements for resource allocation, especially for non real-time traffic. Therefore, we also extend DRRF to support other QoS requirements, such as minimum reserved traffic rate, maximum sustained traffic rate, and traffic priority. For real
Evaluation of liquid droplet impingement erosion by micro-scale fracture analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kitajima, Yasumi; Hagiwara, Tsuyoshi; Jimbo, Masakazu; Endo, Tetsuo

2008-01-01

Several estimation methods based on round-robin experiments and/or actual plant experiences have been used to estimate erosion by liquid drop impingement (LDI). However, in recent years, due to developments on computer technology, it is possible to utilize large scale computational analyses. This study proposes a method for the evaluation of LDI erosion by means of computational fracture analysis using results (diameters, velocity, or speed of drops) of fluid dynamics analysis. (author)
IAEA co-ordinated research program. 'Round Robin' on measuring the velocity of delayed hydride cracking (DHC)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grigoriev, V.; Jakobsson, R. [Studsvik Material AB, Nykoeping (Sweden)

1999-09-01

The International Atomic Agency (IAEA) has initiated a new Co-ordinated Research Programme (CRP) on Hydrogen and hydride induced degradation of the mechanical and physical properties of Zirconium-based alloys. In the first phase of this CRP the methodology for measuring the velocity of Delayed Hydride Cracking (DHC) should be established and participating laboratories from about nine countries around the world carry out identical tests in 'round robin'. The objective of the present work is to establish at Studsvik laboratory the method of a constant load cracking test on unirradiated Zr-2.5Nb and attain a comparison of results between laboratories. Constant load tests are performed on specimens cut from unirradiated CANDU Zr-2.5Nb pressure tube and the rate of crack propagation is determined in each test. Pre-hydrided specimens for testing are supplied from the host laboratory. Six specimens have been tested for delayed hydride cracking (DHC) at 250 deg C. The axial crack growth velocities measured in the tests are within the interval of 8.62x10{sup -8} - 1.06x10{sup -7} m/s. The results obtained agree well with the earlier published data for similar materials and test conditions.
Robin Sharma : juhtimine on lihtne / Robin Sharma ; intervjueerinud Nelli Pello

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Sharma, Robin

2008-01-01

Eestit külastanud maailma tunnustatumaid koolitajaid Robin Sharma, kes viis läbi seminari "Eestvedamise meistriklass", vastab küsimustele Eesti-muljete ja juhtimise kohta. Lisa: Robin Sharma mõtteteri. Kommenteerivad: Indrek Pertelson, Anne Samlik
The Round robin test of the PISC-2 programme: plates and ultrasonic procedures used PISC 2 report N.2. Final issue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-09-01

Ultrasonic testing is widely used for detecting, locating and sizing defects in primary circuit elements at various stages of plant life. The successive PISC projects have together made up a most notable sustained international effort to assess the effectiveness of these inspection techniques. The Plate Inspection Steering Committee (PISC-I) programme (1976-1980) was intended to establish the capabilities of manual ultrasonic procedure based on the 1974 ASME Code Section XI Procedure. The Programme for the Inspection of Steel Components (PISC-II, 1981-1986) constitutes a broader based evaluation of the best performance obtainable by modern ultrasonic techniques under optimal conditions. The present paper is the second in a series of reports currently being issued which describe the results of the PISC-II studies. Included are descriptions of the four round robin test plates and of the ultrasonic procedures applied to them by the participating inspection teams. The report also lists the participating organisations and gives the time schedule of the tests and an indication of the costs incurred
Sampling and analysis methods for geothermal fluids and gases

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shannon, D. W.

1978-01-01

The data obtained for the first round robin sample collected at Mesa 6-2 wellhead, East Mesa Test Site, Imperial Valley are summarized. Test results are listed by method used for cross reference to the analytic methods section. Results obtained for radioactive isotopes present in the brine sample are tabulated. The data obtained for the second round robin sample collected from the Woolsey No. 1 first stage flash unit, San Diego Gas and Electric Niland Test Facility are presented in the same manner. Lists of the participants of the two round robins are given. Data from miscellaneous analyses are included. Summaries of values derived from the round robin raw data are presented. (MHR)

Preliminary Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Uranium on Environmental Swipe Materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheong, Chang-Sik; Jeong, Youn-Joong; Ryu, Jong-Sik; Shin, Hyung-Seon; Cha, Hyun-Ju; Ahn, Gil-Hoon; Park, Il-Jin; Min, Gyung-Sik

2006-01-01

It is well-known that uranium and plutonium isotopic compositions of safeguards samples are very useful to investigate the history of nuclear activities. To strengthen the capabilities of environmental sampling analysis in the ROK through MOST/DOE collaboration, round robin test for uranium and plutonium was designed in 2003. As the first round robin test, a set of dried uranium-containing solutions (∼35ng and (∼300ng) was distributed to the participating laboratories in November of 2003, with results reported in April of 2004. The KBSI (Korea Basic Science Institute) and ORNL (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) are currently in the process of analyzing uranium on cotton swipes for the second round robin test. As a preliminary test for the second round, KBSI intends to analyze home-made swipe samples into which international uranium standards are added. Here we describe technical steps of sample preparation and mass spectrometry at KBSI, and report some results of the preliminary test
Procedure and results of a systematic comparative round robin estimation of the uncertainties of emission measurements in Germany and Switzerland during the summer and fall 1998

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Morkowski, J.S.

2000-08-01

During summer and fall 1998, 75 sample takers and 20 employees of laboratories of 26 institutes measuring emissions in Germany and Switzerland estimated the uncertainty of measuring results of 5 selected DVI-standard emission measuring methods. The applied method of systematic comparative estimation showed that the estimated total uncertainties U{sub T} of the investigated measuring methods range between 12% and 21%. The results of the round robin estimation for one of the methods (dust measuring 2066 Part 7) with U{sub T}=15.4% are equal to those of the system for simulation of emissions (HLfU Kassel) with 15.5%. This confirms the expectation of the initiators of the project that the systematic comparative estimation is useful for the characterization of test methods and hence for the validation of methods. (orig.)
Juhtimisguru Robin Sharma naudib vaikusehetki / Robin Sharma ; interv. Kristo Kiviorg

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Sharma, Robin

2008-01-01

Ilmunud ka: Delovõje Vedomosti 5. märts lk. 12. Juhtimisguru Robin Sharma leiab, et inimesed peaksid leidma päevas tunni iseenese jaoks, sest see aitab leida õiged perspektiivid ning loob eelduse heade ideede tekkeks. Lisa: Robin S. Sharma. Kommenteerivad Kadri Arula ja Asko Talu
The Dirichlet-to-Robin Transform

CERN Document Server

Bondurant, J D

2004-01-01

A simple transformation converts a solution of a partial differential equation with a Dirichlet boundary condition to a function satisfying a Robin (generalized Neumann) condition. In the simplest cases this observation enables the exact construction of the Green functions for the wave, heat, and Schrodinger problems with a Robin boundary condition. The resulting physical picture is that the field can exchange energy with the boundary, and a delayed reflection from the boundary results. In more general situations the method allows at least approximate and local construction of the appropriate reflected solutions, and hence a "classical path" analysis of the Green functions and the associated spectral information. By this method we solve the wave equation on an interval with one Robin and one Dirichlet endpoint, and thence derive several variants of a Gutzwiller-type expansion for the density of eigenvalues. The variants are consistent except for an interesting subtlety of distributional convergence that affec...
An Embedded Real-Time System on ATLAS ROBIN

OpenAIRE

Yu, Maoyuan

2012-01-01

ATLAS is the largest particle detector at the Large Hadron Collider for high energy physics experiments that produces over 40 TB/s event data. The ATLAS Readout Buffer INput(ROBIN) subsystem is an essential device to buffer and reduce the data, which has a IBM PowerPC core for the control functionalities. This dissertation addresses the software design of an embedded real-time system centering on the PowerPC micro-controller, as the management core of the ROBIN. A page-based solution is pr...
Análise de convergência espacial dos repasses da Lei Robin Hood Spatial convergence analysis of tax transfers from the Robin Hood Act

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Noé Gonçalves Maranduba Júnior

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Alega-se que a Lei Robin Hood tem permitido uma melhor distribuição dos valores do ICMS devidos aos municípios do estado de Minas Gerais. O objetivo deste artigo é investigar se essa lei, entre os anos de 2001 e 2005, realmente foi eficaz, isto é, se, em termos relativos, municípios pobres receberam mais dessas transferências do que os municípios ricos. Para fazer isso metodologicamente, implementa-se uma análise exploratória de dados espaciais e uma análise de convergência, para verificar se as disparidades nos repasses diminuíram com o passar do tempo. Os resultados mostraram que os efeitos espaciais importaram nas análises e que não houve um efeito redistributivo dos repasses, considerando-se que o coeficiente indicador de convergência não foi significativo.One alleges that the Robin Hood Act has allowed one better distribution of the values of ICMS to municipalities of the state of Minas Gerais. The paper is aimed at verifying if the Robin Hood Act has actually revealed a redistributive effect in tax transfers to municipalities in the state over the period 2001-2005, that is, if, in relative terms, poor municipalities have received more these transfers than rich ones. In doing methodologically so, an exploratory spatial data analysis and a convergence analysis are implemented to verify if the disparities of tax redistribution have diminished over the time. The findings showed that the spatial effects were important in the analysis as well as there was no redistributive effect in the period because the convergence coefficient was not significant.
Inspection qualification programme for VVER reactors and review of round robin test results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horacek, L.; Zdarek, J.

1998-01-01

Experience obtained, especially from in-service inspections of VVER 440-type reactor pressure vessels and from the Czech round test trials with international participation of ultrasonic teams, has highlighted the need for an in-service inspection qualification programme in the Czech Republic focused on NDT procedures, equipment and personnel. Recently, several national and international regional projects included in the PHARE programme (projects 4.1.2/93 and 1.02/94), briefly described, have been initiated. These projects are to cover step by step the programme of the in-service inspection qualification in view of technical justification as well as of practical assessment-performance demonstration-for all the main VVER-type primary circuit components. (orig.)
Seqüência de Robin: protocolo único de tratamento Robin sequence: a single treatment protocol

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ilza L. Marques

2005-02-01

Full Text Available OBJETIVO: Apresentar protocolo único que possa atender tanto às dificuldades respiratórias como às dificuldades alimentares dos neonatos e lactentes com seqüência de Robin. FONTE DE DADOS: O artigo foi desenvolvido tomando como base as publicações mais recentes disponíveis em bancos de dados bibliográficos e livros que discutem o tratamento da seqüência de Robin, em especial os estudos realizados no Hospital de Reabilitação de Anomalias Craniofaciais da Universidade de São Paulo (HRAC/USP. SÍNTESE DE DADOS: O artigo apresenta os aspectos morfológicos e genéticos da seqüência de Robin e conceitos sobre nasofaringoscopia e suas implicações clínicas, discute o tratamento das dificuldades respiratórias e alimentares e apresenta um protocolo único para atender a todos os casos de seqüência de Robin, independentemente de sua gravidade e complexidade. CONCLUSÕES: A seqüência de Robin não é somente uma patologia obstrutiva anatômica para ser resolvida com procedimentos cirúrgicos, mas os conhecimentos sobre crescimento e desenvolvimento devem ser aplicados por uma equipe multidisciplinar, porque possibilitam a rápida recuperação da permeabilidade das vias aéreas e da capacidade de alimentação oral, evitando-se, muitas vezes, os procedimentos cirúrgicos e seus riscos, principalmente quando realizados em neonatos e lactentes pequenos.OBJECTIVE: To present a single protocol that might cover both the respiratory and feeding difficulties of neonates and infants with Robin sequence. SOURCES OF DATA: The article was prepared on the basis of the most recent publications available in bibliographic databases and in books that discuss the treatment of Robin sequence, especially the studies conducted at the Hospital for Rehabilitation of Craniofacial Anomalies of Universidade de São Paulo (HRAC/USP. SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS: We present the morphological and genetic aspects of Robin sequence and concepts about
The ATLAS ROBIN – A High-Performance Data-Acquisition Module

CERN Document Server

Kugel, Andreas

2009-01-01

This work presents the re-configurable processor ROBIN, which is a key element of the data-acquisition-system of the ATLAS experiment, located at the new LHC at CERN. The ATLAS detector provides data over 1600 channels simultaneously towards the DAQ system. The ATLAS dataflow model follows the “PULL” strategy in contrast to the commonly used “PUSH” strategy. The data volume transported is reduced by a factor of 10, however the data must be temporarily stored at the entry to the DAQ system. The input layer consists of approx. 160 ROS read-out units comprising 1 PC and 4 ROBIN modules. Each ROBIN device acquires detector data via 3 input channels and performs local buffering. Board control is done via a 64-bit PCI interface. Event selection and data transmission runs via PCI in the baseline bus-based ROS. Alternatively, a local GE interface can take over part or all of the data traffic in the switch-based ROS, in order to reduce the load on the host PC. The performance of the ROBIN module stems from the...
Negative ion beam extraction in ROBIN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bansal, Gourab; Gahlaut, Agrajit; Soni, Jignesh; Pandya, Kaushal; Parmar, Kanu G.; Pandey, Ravi; Vuppugalla, Mahesh; Prajapati, Bhavesh; Patel, Amee; Mistery, Hiren; Chakraborty, Arun; Bandyopadhyay, Mainak; Singh, Mahendrajit J.; Phukan, Arindam; Yadav, Ratnakar K.; Parmar, Deepak

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► A RF based negative hydrogen ion beam test bed has been set up at IPR, India. ► Ion source has been successfully commissioned and three campaigns of plasma production have been carried out. ► Extraction system (35 kV) has been installed and commissioning has been initiated. Negative ion beam extraction is immediate milestone. -- Abstract: The RF based single driver −ve ion source experiment test bed ROBIN (Replica Of BATMAN like source in INDIA) has been set up at Institute for Plasma Research (IPR), India in a technical collaboration with IPP, Garching, Germany. A hydrogen plasma of density 5 × 10 12 cm −3 is expected in driver region of ROBIN by launching 100 kW RF power into the driver by 1 MHz RF generator. The cesiated source is expected to deliver a hydrogen negative ion beam of 10 A at 35 kV with a current density of 35 mA/cm 2 as observed in BATMAN. In first phase operation of the ROBIN ion source, a hydrogen plasma has been successfully generated (without extraction system) by coupling 80 kW RF input power through a matching network with high power factor (cos θ > 0.8) and different plasma parameters have been measured using Langmuir probes and emission spectroscopy. The plasma density of 2.5 × 10 11 cm −3 has been measured in the extraction region of ROBIN. For negative hydrogen ion beam extraction in second phase operation, extraction system has been assembled and installed with ion source on the vacuum vessel. The source shall be first operated in volume mode for negative ion beam extraction. The commissioning of the source with high voltage power supply has been initiated
System upgradation for surface mode negative ion beam extraction experiments in ROBIN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pandya, Kaushal; Bansal, Gourab; Gahlaut, Agrajit; Soni, Jignesh; Yadav, Ratnakar K.; Mahesh, Vuppugalla; Tyagi, Himanshu; Parmar, KanuG.; Mistri, Hiren; Bhagora, Jighesh; Prajapati, Bhavesh; Patel, Kartik; Bhuyan, Manas; Gouswami, Mehul; Bandyopadhyay, Mainak; Chakraborty, Arun K.

2017-01-01

Operational commissioning of ROBIN forms an important milestone in the Indian programme on the R&D on negative ion beams. The commissioning activity has been effected in sequence, in synchronisation with the availability of High voltage Power Supply (HVPS) systems and routine operation has now been established in the cesiated, surface mode. Significant efforts have been placed in upgrading the system to initiate the surface mode operation. These include incorporation of a temperature controlled Cesium (Cs) delivery system, spectroscopic diagnostics for detection of Cs lines, installation of plasma grid heating and closed loop warm water circuit for source components heating and Doppler Shift Spectroscopy (DSS) system. The specific design and integration features for these upgrades are discussed and preliminary results obtained from the operation of ROBIN in the surface mode are presented.
System upgradation for surface mode negative ion beam extraction experiments in ROBIN

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pandya, Kaushal, E-mail: kpandya@ipr.res.in [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar, 382428, Gujarat (India); Bansal, Gourab; Gahlaut, Agrajit; Soni, Jignesh [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar, 382428, Gujarat (India); Yadav, Ratnakar K. [ITER-India, Institute for Plasma Research, Gandhinagar, Gujarat (India); Mahesh, Vuppugalla [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar, 382428, Gujarat (India); Tyagi, Himanshu [ITER-India, Institute for Plasma Research, Gandhinagar, Gujarat (India); Parmar, KanuG.; Mistri, Hiren [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar, 382428, Gujarat (India); Bhagora, Jighesh [ITER-India, Institute for Plasma Research, Gandhinagar, Gujarat (India); Prajapati, Bhavesh; Patel, Kartik [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar, 382428, Gujarat (India); Bhuyan, Manas [ITER-India, Institute for Plasma Research, Gandhinagar, Gujarat (India); Gouswami, Mehul [Bhakti Management Services, Gandhinagar, 382007, Gujarat (India); Bandyopadhyay, Mainak [ITER-India, Institute for Plasma Research, Gandhinagar, Gujarat (India); Chakraborty, Arun K. [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar, 382428, Gujarat (India)

2017-01-15

Operational commissioning of ROBIN forms an important milestone in the Indian programme on the R&D on negative ion beams. The commissioning activity has been effected in sequence, in synchronisation with the availability of High voltage Power Supply (HVPS) systems and routine operation has now been established in the cesiated, surface mode. Significant efforts have been placed in upgrading the system to initiate the surface mode operation. These include incorporation of a temperature controlled Cesium (Cs) delivery system, spectroscopic diagnostics for detection of Cs lines, installation of plasma grid heating and closed loop warm water circuit for source components heating and Doppler Shift Spectroscopy (DSS) system. The specific design and integration features for these upgrades are discussed and preliminary results obtained from the operation of ROBIN in the surface mode are presented.
The ATLAS ROBIN. A high-performance data-acquisition module

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kugel, Andreas

2009-08-19

This work presents the re-configurable processor ROBIN, which is a key element of the data-acquisition-system of the ATLAS experiment, located at the new LHC at CERN. The ATLAS detector provides data over 1600 channels simultaneously towards the DAQ system. The ATLAS dataflow model follows the ''PULL'' strategy in contrast to the commonly used ''PUSH'' strategy. The data volume transported is reduced by a factor of 10, however the data must be temporarily stored at the entry to the DAQ system. The input layer consists of approx. 160 ROS read-out units comprising 1 PC and 4 ROBIN modules. Each ROBIN device acquires detector data via 3 input channels and performs local buffering. Board control is done via a 64-bit PCI interface. Event selection and data transmission runs via PCI in the baseline bus-based ROS. Alternatively, a local GE interface can take over part or all of the data traffic in the switch-based ROS, in order to reduce the load on the host PC. The performance of the ROBIN module stems from the close cooperation of a fast embedded processor with a complex FPGA. The efficient task-distribution lets the processor handle all complex management functionality, programmed in ''C'' while all movement of data is performed by the FPGA via multiple, concurrently operating DMA engines. The ROBIN-project was carried-out by and international team and comprises the design specification, the development of the ROBIN hardware, firmware (VHDL and C-Code), host-code (C++), prototyping, volume production and installation of 700 boards. The project was led by the author of this thesis. The hardware platform is an evolution of a FPGA processor previously designed by the author. He has contributed elementary concepts of the communication mechanisms and the ''C''-coded embedded application software. He also organised and supervised the prototype and series productions including the various design reports and presentations. The results show that the ROBIN-module is able to meet
The ATLAS ROBIN. A high-performance data-acquisition module

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kugel, Andreas

2009-01-01

This work presents the re-configurable processor ROBIN, which is a key element of the data-acquisition-system of the ATLAS experiment, located at the new LHC at CERN. The ATLAS detector provides data over 1600 channels simultaneously towards the DAQ system. The ATLAS dataflow model follows the ''PULL'' strategy in contrast to the commonly used ''PUSH'' strategy. The data volume transported is reduced by a factor of 10, however the data must be temporarily stored at the entry to the DAQ system. The input layer consists of approx. 160 ROS read-out units comprising 1 PC and 4 ROBIN modules. Each ROBIN device acquires detector data via 3 input channels and performs local buffering. Board control is done via a 64-bit PCI interface. Event selection and data transmission runs via PCI in the baseline bus-based ROS. Alternatively, a local GE interface can take over part or all of the data traffic in the switch-based ROS, in order to reduce the load on the host PC. The performance of the ROBIN module stems from the close cooperation of a fast embedded processor with a complex FPGA. The efficient task-distribution lets the processor handle all complex management functionality, programmed in ''C'' while all movement of data is performed by the FPGA via multiple, concurrently operating DMA engines. The ROBIN-project was carried-out by and international team and comprises the design specification, the development of the ROBIN hardware, firmware (VHDL and C-Code), host-code (C++), prototyping, volume production and installation of 700 boards. The project was led by the author of this thesis. The hardware platform is an evolution of a FPGA processor previously designed by the author. He has contributed elementary concepts of the communication mechanisms and the ''C''-coded embedded application software. He also organised and supervised the prototype and series productions including the various design reports and presentations. The results show that the ROBIN-module is able to meet
Aerosol retrieval experiments in the ESA Aerosol_cci project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. Holzer-Popp

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Within the ESA Climate Change Initiative (CCI project Aerosol_cci (2010–2013, algorithms for the production of long-term total column aerosol optical depth (AOD datasets from European Earth Observation sensors are developed. Starting with eight existing pre-cursor algorithms three analysis steps are conducted to improve and qualify the algorithms: (1 a series of experiments applied to one month of global data to understand several major sensitivities to assumptions needed due to the ill-posed nature of the underlying inversion problem, (2 a round robin exercise of "best" versions of each of these algorithms (defined using the step 1 outcome applied to four months of global data to identify mature algorithms, and (3 a comprehensive validation exercise applied to one complete year of global data produced by the algorithms selected as mature based on the round robin exercise. The algorithms tested included four using AATSR, three using MERIS and one using PARASOL. This paper summarizes the first step. Three experiments were conducted to assess the potential impact of major assumptions in the various aerosol retrieval algorithms. In the first experiment a common set of four aerosol components was used to provide all algorithms with the same assumptions. The second experiment introduced an aerosol property climatology, derived from a combination of model and sun photometer observations, as a priori information in the retrievals on the occurrence of the common aerosol components. The third experiment assessed the impact of using a common nadir cloud mask for AATSR and MERIS algorithms in order to characterize the sensitivity to remaining cloud contamination in the retrievals against the baseline dataset versions. The impact of the algorithm changes was assessed for one month (September 2008 of data: qualitatively by inspection of monthly mean AOD maps and quantitatively by comparing daily gridded satellite data against daily averaged AERONET sun
RILEM technical committee 195-DTD recommendation for test methods for AD and TD of early age concrete Round Robin documentation report : program, test results and statistical evaluation

CERN Document Server

Bjøntegaard, Øyvind; Krauss, Matias; Budelmann, Harald

2015-01-01

This report presents the Round-Robin (RR) program and test results including a statistical evaluation of the RILEM TC195-DTD committee named “Recommendation for test methods for autogenous deformation (AD) and thermal dilation (TD) of early age concrete”. The task of the committee was to investigate the linear test set-up for AD and TD measurements (Dilation Rigs) in the period from setting to the end of the hardening phase some weeks after. These are the stress-inducing deformations in a hardening concrete structure subjected to restraint conditions. The main task was to carry out an RR program on testing of AD of one concrete at 20 °C isothermal conditions in Dilation Rigs. The concrete part materials were distributed to 10 laboratories (Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and USA), and in total 30 tests on AD were carried out. Some supporting tests were also performed, as well as a smaller RR on cement paste. The committee has worked out a test procedure recommenda...
The ATLAS ROBIN. A high-performance data-acquisition module

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kugel, Andreas

2009-08-19

This work presents the re-configurable processor ROBIN, which is a key element of the data-acquisition-system of the ATLAS experiment, located at the new LHC at CERN. The ATLAS detector provides data over 1600 channels simultaneously towards the DAQ system. The ATLAS dataflow model follows the ''PULL'' strategy in contrast to the commonly used ''PUSH'' strategy. The data volume transported is reduced by a factor of 10, however the data must be temporarily stored at the entry to the DAQ system. The input layer consists of approx. 160 ROS read-out units comprising 1 PC and 4 ROBIN modules. Each ROBIN device acquires detector data via 3 input channels and performs local buffering. Board control is done via a 64-bit PCI interface. Event selection and data transmission runs via PCI in the baseline bus-based ROS. Alternatively, a local GE interface can take over part or all of the data traffic in the switch-based ROS, in order to reduce the load on the host PC. The performance of the ROBIN module stems from the close cooperation of a fast embedded processor with a complex FPGA. The efficient task-distribution lets the processor handle all complex management functionality, programmed in ''C'' while all movement of data is performed by the FPGA via multiple, concurrently operating DMA engines. The ROBIN-project was carried-out by and international team and comprises the design specification, the development of the ROBIN hardware, firmware (VHDL and C-Code), host-code (C++), prototyping, volume production and installation of 700 boards. The project was led by the author of this thesis. The hardware platform is an evolution of a FPGA processor previously designed by the author. He has contributed elementary concepts of the communication mechanisms and the ''C''-coded embedded application software. He also organised and supervised the prototype and series productions including the various design
The effects of orchard pesticide applications on breeding robins

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, E.V.; Mack, G.L.; Thompson, D.Q.

1976-01-01

From 1966 through 1968, robins reproduced successfully in commercial apple orchards which were periodically sprayed with DDT, dieldrin, and other pesticides. Observations by a Z-man team using walkie-talkies revealed that breeding robins obtained essentially all food for themselves and nestlings from unsprayed areas adjacent to the orchards. Invertebrate trapping in sprayed and unsprayed areas showed that these food items were 5 or 6 times more abundant in unsprayed habitat. Worms forced to live in sprayed orchard soil displayed significantly greater mortality than controls. Mean robin clutch sizes in the study orchards were lower than those reported for robins in other studies, perhaps because of food shortage and/or increased foraging distances. Levels of DDT and its analogs in food items from robin foraging areas did not exceed 8 ppm wet weight basis. From late April to July, adult robins showed small but significant increases in DDE levels in all tissues examined, as well as an increase in dieldrin in brains. Pesticides sprayed on the farm had no direct demonstrable adverse effects on the robins; productivity was high and adult mortality low. The situation was in large measure fortuitous, since any changes in orchard management practices which resulted in the presence or availability of invertebrates under orchard trees would be expected to result in robin mortality and/or reduced breeding success.
ROBINS-I

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sterne, Jonathan A C; Hernan, M. A.; Reeves, B. C.

2016-01-01

Non-randomised studies of the effects of interventions are critical to many areas of healthcare evaluation, but their results may be biased. It is therefore important to understand and appraise their strengths and weaknesses. We developed ROBINS-I ("Risk Of Bias In Non-randomised Studies - of Int...
A round-robin gamma stereotactic radiosurgery dosimetry interinstitution comparison of calibration protocols

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Drzymala, R. E., E-mail: drzymala@wustl.edu [Department of Radiation Oncology, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri 63110 (United States); Alvarez, P. E. [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Houston, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77030 (United States); Bednarz, G. [Radiation Oncology Department, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15232 (United States); Bourland, J. D. [Department of Radiation Oncology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27157 (United States); DeWerd, L. A. [Department of Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53705 (United States); Ma, L. [Department of Radiation Oncology, University California San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143 (United States); Meltsner, S. G. [Department of Radiation Oncology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710 (United States); Neyman, G. [Department of Radiation Oncology, The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio 44195 (United States); Novotny, J. [Medical Physics Department, Hospital Na Homolce, Prague 15030 (Czech Republic); Petti, P. L. [Gamma Knife Center, Washington Hospital Healthcare System, Fremont, California 94538 (United States); Rivard, M. J. [Department of Radiation Oncology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts 02111 (United States); Shiu, A. S. [Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90033 (United States); Goetsch, S. J. [San Diego Medical Physics, Inc., La Jolla, California 92037 (United States)

2015-11-15

Purpose: Absorbed dose calibration for gamma stereotactic radiosurgery is challenging due to the unique geometric conditions, dosimetry characteristics, and nonstandard field size of these devices. Members of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) Task Group 178 on Gamma Stereotactic Radiosurgery Dosimetry and Quality Assurance have participated in a round-robin exchange of calibrated measurement instrumentation and phantoms exploring two approved and two proposed calibration protocols or formalisms on ten gamma radiosurgery units. The objectives of this study were to benchmark and compare new formalisms to existing calibration methods, while maintaining traceability to U.S. primary dosimetry calibration laboratory standards. Methods: Nine institutions made measurements using ten gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units in three different 160 mm diameter spherical phantoms [acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) plastic, Solid Water, and liquid water] and in air using a positioning jig. Two calibrated miniature ionization chambers and one calibrated electrometer were circulated for all measurements. Reference dose-rates at the phantom center were determined using the well-established AAPM TG-21 or TG-51 dose calibration protocols and using two proposed dose calibration protocols/formalisms: an in-air protocol and a formalism proposed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) working group for small and nonstandard radiation fields. Each institution’s results were normalized to the dose-rate determined at that institution using the TG-21 protocol in the ABS phantom. Results: Percentages of dose-rates within 1.5% of the reference dose-rate (TG-21 + ABS phantom) for the eight chamber-protocol-phantom combinations were the following: 88% for TG-21, 70% for TG-51, 93% for the new IAEA nonstandard-field formalism, and 65% for the new in-air protocol. Averages and standard deviations for dose-rates over all measurements relative to the TG-21 + ABS

First results from negative ion beam extraction in ROBIN in surface mode

Science.gov (United States)

Pandya, Kaushal; Gahlaut, Agrajit; Yadav, Ratnakar K.; Bhuyan, Manas; Bandyopadhyay, Mainak; Das, B. K.; Bharathi, P.; Vupugalla, Mahesh; Parmar, K. G.; Tyagi, Himanshu; Patel, Kartik; Bhagora, Jignesh; Mistri, Hiren; Prajapati, Bhavesh; Pandey, Ravi; Chakraborty, Arun. K.

2017-08-01

ROBIN, the first step in the Indian R&D program on negative ion beams has reached an important milestone, with the production of negative ions in the surface conversion mode through Cesium (Cs) vapor injection into the source. In the present set-up, negative hydrogen ion beam extraction is effected through an extraction area of ˜73.38 cm2 (146 apertures of 8mm diameter). The three grid electrostatic accelerator system of ROBIN is fed by high voltage DC power supplies (Extraction Power Supply System: 11kV, 35A and Acceleration Power Supply System: 35kV, 15A). Though, a considerable reduction of co-extracted electron current is usually observed during surface mode operation, in order to increase the negative ion current, various other parameters such as plasma grid temperature, plasma grid bias, extraction to acceleration voltage ratio, impurity control and Cs recycling need to be optimized. In the present experiments, to control and to understand the impurity behavior, a Cryopump (14,000 l/s for Hydrogen) is installed along with a Residual Gas Analyzer (RGA). To characterize the source plasma, two sets of Langmuir probes are inserted through the diagnostic flange ports available at the extraction plane. To characterize the beam properties, thermal differential calorimeter, Doppler Shift Spectroscopy and electrical current measurements are implemented in ROBIN. In the present set up, all the negative ion beam extraction experiments have been performed by varying different experimental parameters e.g. RF power (30-70 kW), source operational pressure (0.3 - 0.6Pa), plasma grid bias voltage, extraction & acceleration voltage combination etc. The experiments in surface mode operation is resulted a reduction of co-extracted electron current having electron to ion ratio (e/i) ˜2 whereas the extracted negative ion current density was increased. However, further increase in negative ion current density is expected to be improved after a systematic optimization of the
West Nile virus infection in American Robins: new insights on dose response.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kaci K VanDalen

Full Text Available West Nile virus (WNV is a vector-borne pathogen that was first detected in the United States in 1999. The natural transmission cycle of WNV involves mosquito vectors and avian hosts, which vary in their competency to transmit the virus. American robins are an abundant backyard species in the United States and appear to have an important role in the amplification and dissemination of WNV. In this study we examine the response of American robins to infection with various WNV doses within the range of those administered by some natural mosquito vectors. Thirty American robins were assigned a WNV dosage treatment and needle inoculated with 10(0.95 PFU, 10(1.26 PFU, 10(2.15 PFU, or 10(3.15 PFU. Serum samples were tested for the presence of infectious WNV and/or antibodies, while oral swabs were tested for the presence of WNV RNA. Five of the 30 (17% robins had neutralizing antibodies to WNV prior to the experiment and none developed viremia or shed WNV RNA. The proportion of WNV-seronegative birds that became viremic after WNV inoculation increased in a dose dependent manner. At the lowest dose, only 40% (2/5 of the inoculated birds developed productive infections while at the highest dose, 100% (7/7 of the birds became viremic. Oral shedding of WNV RNA followed a similar trend where robins inoculated with the lower two doses were less likely to shed viral RNA (25% than robins inoculated with one of the higher doses (92%. Viremia titers and morbidity did not increase in a dose dependent manner; only two birds succumbed to infection and, interestingly, both were inoculated with the lowest dose of WNV. It is clear that the disease ecology of WNV is a complex interplay of hosts, vectors, and viral dose delivered.
PROCESSING AND ANALYSIS OF DATA OF natural experiment FOR DETERMINING THE tragectory CHARACTERISTICS OF A ROUND PARACHUTE AT HIGH ALTITUDES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. V. Zhurin

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the analysis of the trajectory parameters obtained during the flight experiment at the start of meteo-rocket MMP-06, to determine major parameters of motion of a round parachute at subsonic speeds in the range of altitudes from 0 to 60 km. The Reynolds number is changed in the range from 104 to1,5·106.The main parameters of the trajectory were obtained according to the experimental data. Only laboratory research on a model parachute systems in such a wide range of Reynolds numbers are found in the literature on parachute subjects. This article obtained results of flight experiment.
PROCESSING AND ANALYSIS OF Fligh experiment DATA FOR DETERMINING THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MOTION OF A ROUND PARACHUTE on a spiral trajectory AT HIGH ALTITUDES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. V. Zhurin

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The article is addressed to the analysis of the trajectory parameters and videos obtained during the flight experiment at the launch of meteo-rocket MMP-06 with the purpose to determine major parameters of motion of a round parachute at subsonic speeds in the range of altitudes from 0 to 40 km. The data analysis showed that the trajectory of the parachute represents spiral "stretched" by the wind in the horizontal direction and disturbed by random factors of a non-stationary flow around the parachute. The main parameters of the trajectory are obtained according to the experimental data. Only qualitative analysis of spiral motion paths for round parachutes may be found in the publications on parachute subjects. This article presents the quantitative characteristics of this process.
The Third SeaWiFS HPLC Analysis Round-Robin Experiment (SeaHARRE-3)

Science.gov (United States)

Hooker, Stanford B.; VanHeukelem, Laurei; Thomas, Crystal S.; Claustre, Herve; Ras, Josephine; Schluter, Louise; Clementson, Lesley; vanderLinde, Dirk; Eker-Develi, Elif; Berthon, Jean-Francois;

2009-01-01

Seven international laboratories specializing in the determination of marine pigment concentrations using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) were intercompared using in situ samples and a mixed pigment sample. The field samples were collected primarily from oligotrophic waters, although mesotrophic and eutrophic waters were also sampled to create a dynamic range in chlorophyll concentration spanning approximately two orders of magnitude (0.020 1.366 mg m^{-3}) The intercomparisons were used to establish the following: a) the uncertainties in quantitating individual pigments and higher-order variables (sums, ratios, and indices); b) the reduction in uncertainties as a result of applying quality assurance (QA) procedures; c) the importance of establishing a properly defined referencing system in the computation of uncertainties; d) the analytical benefits of performance metrics, and e) the utility of a laboratory mix in understanding method performance. In addition, the remote sensing requirements for the in situ determination of total chlorophyll a were investigated to determine whether or not the average uncertainty for this measurement is being satisfied.

Quality assurance in a radiation oncology unit: the chart round experience

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fogarty, G.B.; Peters, L.J.; Hornby, C.; Ferguson, H.M.

2001-01-01

Quality assurance ensures that planned treatments eventuate. Programmes must include feedback loops to promptly correct any shortfall in predetermined standards. In March 1999, a weekly Chart Round was introduced to verify that certain items relevant to quality care were being completed for patients of the Head and Neck Radiotherapy Unit at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute. The experience was reviewed after 1 year and it was found that the initiation of Chart Rounds has assisted in raising the level of item completion from 80% to 99% in similar groups of patients treated before and after the initiation of the Chart Round. Initiation of the Chart Round has also provided a useful forum for in-house peer-review, education and effective real-time communication between medical and allied health personnel, all of which has further added to the quality of patient care. Copyright (2001) Blackwell Science Pty Ltd
Generalized Robin Boundary Conditions, Robin-to-Dirichlet Maps, and Krein-Type Resolvent Formulas for Schr\\"odinger Operators on Bounded Lipschitz Domains

OpenAIRE

Gesztesy, Fritz; Mitrea, Marius

2008-01-01

We study generalized Robin boundary conditions, Robin-to-Dirichlet maps, and Krein-type resolvent formulas for Schr\\"odinger operators on bounded Lipschitz domains in $\\bbR^n$, $n\\ge 2$. We also discuss the case of bounded $C^{1,r}$-domains, $(1/2)
Early postnatal development of the mandible in children with isolated cleft palate and children with nonsyndromic Robin sequence

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Eriksen, J.; Hermann, N.V.; Darvann, Tron Andre

2006-01-01

Objective: Analysis of early postnatal mandibular size and growth velocity in children with untreated isolated cleft palate (ICP), nonsyndromic Robin sequence (RS), and a control group of children with unilateral incomplete cleft lip (UICL). Material: 114 children (66 isolated cleft palate, 7 Robin...... and mandibular growth velocity (mm/year) was calculated. Cleft width was measured on the casts at 2 months of age. Results: Mean mandibular length and posterior height were significantly smaller in isolated cleft palate and Robin sequence, compared with unilateral incomplete cleft lip. Mandibular length in Robin...... sequence was also significantly shorter, compared with isolated cleft palate. No significant difference was found between mean mandibular growth velocities in the three groups. No significant correlation was found between mandibular length and cleft width in either isolated cleft palate or Robin sequence...
Differences by Ending Rounds and Other Rounds in Time-Motion Analysis of Mixed Martial Arts: Implications for Assessment and Training.

Science.gov (United States)

Miarka, Bianca; Brito, Ciro J; Moreira, Danilo G; Amtmann, John

2018-02-01

Miarka, B, Brito, CJ, Moreira, DG, and Amtmann, J. Differences by ending rounds and other rounds in time-motion analysis of mixed martial arts: implications for assessment and training. J Strength Cond Res 32(2): 534-544, 2018-This study aimed to support training program development through the comparison of performance analysis of professionals mixed martial art (MMA) athletes in the bouts that were not finished by points. Using digital recordings of each bout, we analyzed 1,564 rounds (678 bouts) which were separated by ending and other rounds. Our results indicated that knockout/technical knockout is the main outcome that defines the ending round (≈60%); however, there is a higher frequency of ending by submission on the first and second rounds (>30%). Bouts ending during the first or second rounds had shorter total time and standing combat with low intensity than ending in the third round (91.5 ± 71.4, 93.4 ± 67.5, and 143.2 ± 87.4; for low intensity in the first, second, and third rounds, respectively; p ≤ 0.05), whereas standing combat time with high intensity was longer in the last round in comparison to bouts that finished in the first or second rounds (7.4 ± 9.2, 9.7 ± 18.0, and 17.7 ± 29.1 for high intensity in the first, second, and third rounds, respectively; p ≤ 0.05). The lower time dedicated to low-intensity stand-up combat actions, regardless of round, and forcefulness of the actions in groundwork in the first and second rounds seem to be elements that increase the probability of success in professional MMA bouts; these factors have essential implications related to training program design.
Preparation of Simulated LBL Defects for Round Robin Experiment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baldwin, Charles A [ORNL; Hunn, John D [ORNL; Montgomery, Fred C [ORNL

2016-01-01

A critical characteristic of the TRISO fuel design is its ability to retain fission products. During reactor operation, the TRISO layers act as barriers to release of fission products not stabilized in the kernel. Each component of the TRISO particle and compact construction plays a unique role in retaining select fission products, and layer performance is often interrelated. The IPyC, SiC, and OPyC layers are barriers to the release of fission product gases such as Kr and Xe. The SiC layer provides the primary barrier to release of metallic fission products not retained in the kernel, as transport across the SiC layer is rate limiting due to the greater permeability of the IPyC and OPyC layers to many metallic fission products. These attributes allow intact TRISO coatings to successfully retain most fission products released from the kernel, with the majority of released fission products during operation being due to defective, damaged, or failed coatings. This dominant release of fission products from compromised particles contributes to the overall source term in reactor; causing safety and maintenance concerns and limiting the lifetime of the fuel. Under these considerations, an understanding of the nature and frequency of compromised particles is an important part of predicting the expected fission product release and ensuring safe and efficient operation.
Development of TRU waste mobile analysis methods for RCRA-regulated metals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahan, C.A.; Villarreal, R.; Drake, L.; Figg, D.; Wayne, D.; Goldstein, S.

1998-01-01

This is the final report of a one-year, Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) project at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). Glow-discharge mass spectrometry (GD-MS), laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), dc-arc atomic-emission spectroscopy (DC-ARC-AES), laser-ablation inductively-coupled-plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), and energy-dispersive x-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) were identified as potential solid-sample analytical techniques for mobile characterization of TRU waste. Each technology developers was provided with surrogate TRU waste samples in order to develop an analytical method. Following successful development of the analytical method, five performance evaluation samples were distributed to each of the researchers in a blind round-robin format. Results of the round robin were compared to known values and Transuranic Waste Characterization Program (TWCP) data quality objectives. Only two techniques, DC-ARC-AES and EDXRF, were able to complete the entire project. Methods development for GD-MS and LA-ICP-MS was halted due to the stand-down at the CMR facility. Results of the round-robin analysis are given for the EDXRF and DCARC-AES techniques. While DC-ARC-AES met several of the data quality objectives, the performance of the EDXRF technique by far surpassed the DC-ARC-AES technique. EDXRF is a simple, rugged, field portable instrument that appears to hold great promise for mobile characterization of TRU waste. The performance of this technique needs to be tested on real TRU samples in order to assess interferences from actinide constituents. In addition, mercury and beryllium analysis will require another analytical technique because the EDXRF method failed to meet the TWCP data quality objectives. Mercury analysis is easily accomplished on solid samples by cold vapor atomic fluorescence (CVAFS). Beryllium can be analyzed by any of a variety of emission techniques
Analysis of the Mean Absolute Error (MAE) and the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) in Assessing Rounding Model

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Weijie; Lu, Yanmin

2018-03-01

Most existing Collaborative Filtering (CF) algorithms predict a rating as the preference of an active user toward a given item, which is always a decimal fraction. Meanwhile, the actual ratings in most data sets are integers. In this paper, we discuss and demonstrate why rounding can bring different influences to these two metrics; prove that rounding is necessary in post-processing of the predicted ratings, eliminate of model prediction bias, improving the accuracy of the prediction. In addition, we also propose two new rounding approaches based on the predicted rating probability distribution, which can be used to round the predicted rating to an optimal integer rating, and get better prediction accuracy compared to the Basic Rounding approach. Extensive experiments on different data sets validate the correctness of our analysis and the effectiveness of our proposed rounding approaches.
Prevalence of filarioid nematodes and trypanosomes in American robins and house sparrows, Chicago USA.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamer, Gabriel L; Anderson, Tavis K; Berry, Garrett E; Makohon-Moore, Alvin P; Crafton, Jeffrey C; Brawn, Jeffrey D; Dolinski, Amanda C; Krebs, Bethany L; Ruiz, Marilyn O; Muzzall, Patrick M; Goldberg, Tony L; Walker, Edward D

2013-12-01

Hosts are commonly infected with a suite of parasites, and interactions among these parasites can affect the size, structure, and behavior of host-parasite communities. As an important step to understanding the significance of co-circulating parasites, we describe prevalence of co-circulating hemoparasites in two important avian amplification hosts for West Nile virus (WNV), the American robin (Turdus migratorius) and house sparrow (Passer domesticus), during the 2010-2011 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Rates of nematode microfilariemia were 1.5% of the robins (n = 70) and 4.2% of the house sparrows (n = 72) collected during the day and 11.1% of the roosting robins (n = 63) and 0% of the house sparrows (n = 11) collected at night. Phylogenetic analysis of nucleotide sequences of the 18S rRNA and cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) genes from these parasites resolved two clades of filarioid nematodes. Microscopy revealed that 18.0% of American robins (n = 133) and 16.9% of house sparrows (n = 83) hosted trypanosomes in the blood. Phylogenetic analysis of nucleotide sequences from the 18s rRNA gene revealed that the trypanosomes fall within previously described avian trypanosome clades. These results document hemoparasites in the blood of WNV hosts in a center of endemic WNV transmission, suggesting a potential for direct or indirect interactions with the virus.
Designing of Vague Logic Based 2-Layered Framework for CPU Scheduler

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Supriya Raheja

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Fuzzy based CPU scheduler has become of great interest by operating system because of its ability to handle imprecise information associated with task. This paper introduces an extension to the fuzzy based round robin scheduler to a Vague Logic Based Round Robin (VBRR scheduler. VBRR scheduler works on 2-layered framework. At the first layer, scheduler has a vague inference system which has the ability to handle the impreciseness of task using vague logic. At the second layer, Vague Logic Based Round Robin (VBRR scheduling algorithm works to schedule the tasks. VBRR scheduler has the learning capability based on which scheduler adapts intelligently an optimum length for time quantum. An optimum time quantum reduces the overhead on scheduler by reducing the unnecessary context switches which lead to improve the overall performance of system. The work is simulated using MATLAB and compared with the conventional round robin scheduler and the other two fuzzy based approaches to CPU scheduler. Given simulation analysis and results prove the effectiveness and efficiency of VBRR scheduler.
Revisiting the round bottom flask rainbow experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Selmke, Markus; Selmke, Sarah

2018-01-01

A popular demonstration experiment in optics uses a round-bottom flask filled with water to project a circular rainbow on a screen with a hole through which the flask is illuminated. We show how the vessel's wall shifts the first- and second-order bows towards each other and consequently reduces the width of Alexander's dark band. We address the challenge this introduces in observing Alexander's dark band, and explain the importance of a sufficient distance between the flask and the screen. The wall-effect also introduces a splitting of the bows that can easily be misinterpreted.
Bound states in waveguides with complex Robin boundary conditions

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Novák, Radek

2016-01-01

Roč. 96, 3-4 (2016), s. 251-281 ISSN 0921-7134 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-06818S Institutional support: RVO:61389005 Keywords : non-self-adjointness * waveguide * Robin boundary conditions * spectral analysis * essential spectrum * weak coupling * Birman-Schwinger principle * reality of the spectrum Subject RIV: BE - Theoretical Physics Impact factor: 0.933, year: 2016
Prevalence of filarioid nematodes and trypanosomes in American robins and house sparrows, Chicago USA☆

Science.gov (United States)

Hamer, Gabriel L.; Anderson, Tavis K.; Berry, Garrett E.; Makohon-Moore, Alvin P.; Crafton, Jeffrey C.; Brawn, Jeffrey D.; Dolinski, Amanda C.; Krebs, Bethany L.; Ruiz, Marilyn O.; Muzzall, Patrick M.; Goldberg, Tony L.; Walker, Edward D.

2012-01-01

Hosts are commonly infected with a suite of parasites, and interactions among these parasites can affect the size, structure, and behavior of host–parasite communities. As an important step to understanding the significance of co-circulating parasites, we describe prevalence of co-circulating hemoparasites in two important avian amplification hosts for West Nile virus (WNV), the American robin (Turdus migratorius) and house sparrow (Passer domesticus), during the 2010–2011 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Rates of nematode microfilariemia were 1.5% of the robins (n = 70) and 4.2% of the house sparrows (n = 72) collected during the day and 11.1% of the roosting robins (n = 63) and 0% of the house sparrows (n = 11) collected at night. Phylogenetic analysis of nucleotide sequences of the 18S rRNA and cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) genes from these parasites resolved two clades of filarioid nematodes. Microscopy revealed that 18.0% of American robins (n = 133) and 16.9% of house sparrows (n = 83) hosted trypanosomes in the blood. Phylogenetic analysis of nucleotide sequences from the 18s rRNA gene revealed that the trypanosomes fall within previously described avian trypanosome clades. These results document hemoparasites in the blood of WNV hosts in a center of endemic WNV transmission, suggesting a potential for direct or indirect interactions with the virus. PMID:24533314
Crack initiation life analysis in notched pipe under cyclic bending loads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Joon Seong; Kwak, Sang Log; Kim, Young Jin; Park, Youn Won

2001-01-01

In order to improve leak-before-break methodology, more precisely the crack growth evaluation, a round robin analysis was proposed by the CEA Saclay. The aim of this analysis was to evaluate the crack initiation life, penetration life and shape of through wall crack under cyclic bending loads. The proposed round robin analysis is composed of three main topic; fatigue crack initiation, crack propagation and crack penetration. This paper deals with the first topic, crack initiation in a notched pipe under four point bending. Both elastic-plastic finite element analysis and Neuber's rule were used to estimate the crack initiation life and the finite element models were verified by mesh-refinement, stress distribution and global deflection. In elastic-plastic finite element analysis, crack initiation life was determined by strain amplitude at the notch tip and strain-life curve of the material. In the analytical method, Neuber's rule with the consideration of load history and mean stress effect, was used for the life estimation. The effect of notch tip radius, strain range, cyclic hardening rule were examined in this study. When these results were compared with the experimental ones, the global deformation was a good agreement but crack initiation cycle was higher than the experimental result
Surry steam generator - examination and evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clark, R.A.; Doctor, P.G.; Ferris, R.H.

1985-10-01

This report summarizes research conducted during the fourth year of the five year Steam Generator Group Project. During this period the project conducted numerous nondestructive examination (NDE) round robin inspections of the original Surry 2A steam generator. They included data acquisition/analysis and analysis-only round robins using multifrequency bobbin coil eddy current tests. In addition, the generator was nondestructively examined by alternate or advanced techniques including ultrasonics, optical fiber, profilometry and special eddy current instrumentation. The round robin interpretation data were compared. To validate the NDE results and for tube integrity testing, a selection of tubing samples, determined to be representative of the generator, was designated for removal. Initial sample removals from the generator included three sections of tube sheet, two sections of support plate and encompassed tubes, and a number of straight and U-bend tubing sections. Metallographic examination of these sections was initiated. Details of significant results are presented in the following paper. 13 figs
Surry steam generator - examination and evaluation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Clark, R A; Doctor, P G; Ferris, R H

1987-01-01

This report summarizes research conducted during the fourth year of the five year Steam Generator Group Project. During this period the project conducted numerous nondestructive examination (NDE) round robin inspections of the original Surry 2A steam generator. They included data acquisition/analysis and analysis-only round robins using multifrequency bobbin coil eddy current tests. In addition, the generator was nondestructively examined by alternate or advanced techniques including ultrasonics, optical fiber, profilometry and special eddy current instrumentation. The round robin interpretation data were compared. To validate the NDE results and for tube integrity testing, a selection of tubing samples, determined to be representative of the generator, was designated for removal. Initial sample removals from the generator included three sections of tube sheet, two sections of support plate and encompassed tubes, and a number of straight and U-bend tubing sections. Metallographic examination of these sections was initiated. Details of significant results are presented in the following paper.

Anomalia Pierre Robin: cuidados

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Irene Bachega

1985-12-01

Full Text Available A anomalia de Pierre Robin, ocupa papel relevante nas ações de saúde do Hospital de Pesquisa e Reabilitação de Lesões Lábio-Palatais (HPRLLP, pelas suas características peculiares (micrognatia, glossoptose, palato hiperarqueado ou fissurado, língua ocupando posição retraída, ocasionando cianose, tiragem, opistotomo e pneumonias de aspiração, exigindo, portanto, cuidados médicos e de enfermagem específicos. Dentre as malformações associadas a fissura lábio-palatal, a anomalia de Pierre Robin é a que apresenta maior freqüência, exigindo maiores cuidados, daí a importância de podermos relatar a Pesquisa realizada em nosso serviço, fornecendo aos profissionais de saúde, subsídios para que possam delinear uma abordagem eficaz, orientando os cuidados referentes ao posicionamento da criança, técnica de alimentação, e assistência pré e pós-operatória.
"Ameeriklane" Robin Hood / Timo Diener

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Diener, Timo

2005-01-01

Mängufilmi "Robin Hood : varaste prints" võtetest. Režissöör Kevin Reynolds, peaosas Kevin Costner, USA 1991. Järg: Teleleht nr. 14, 11. aprill 2005, lk. 38 : ill ja Teleleht nr. 15, 18. aprill 2005, lk. 38 : ill
Medical academia clinical experiences of Ward Round Teaching curriculum.

Science.gov (United States)

Haghani, Fariba; Arabshahi, Seyed Kamran Soltani; Bigdeli, Shoaleh; Alavi, Mousa; Omid, Athar

2014-01-01

Medical students spend most of their time in hospital wards and it is necessary to study clinical educational opportunities. This study was aimed to explore faculty members' experience on Ward Round Teaching content. This qualitative study was conducted by purposive sampling with the maximum variation of major clinical departments faculty members in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences (n = 9). Data gathering was based on deep and semi-structured interviews. Data gathering continued till data saturation. Data was analyzed through the Collaizzi method and validated. Strategies to ensure trustworthiness of data (credibility, dependability, conformability, transferability) were employed (Guba and Lincoln). Basic codes extracted from the analyzed data were categorized into two main themes and related subthemes, including (1) tangible teachings (analytic intelligence, technical intelligence, legal duties) and (2) implied teachings (professionalism, professional discipline, professional difficulties). Ward round teaching is a valuable opportunity for learners to learn not only patient care aspects but also ethical values. By appropriate planning, opportunities can be used to teach capabilities that are expected of general practitioners.
Medical academia clinical experiences of Ward Round Teaching curriculum

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fariba Haghani

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Medical students spend most of their time in hospital wards and it is necessary to study clinical educational opportunities. This study was aimed to explore faculty members′ experience on Ward Round Teaching content. Methods and Materials: This qualitative study was conducted by purposive sampling with the maximum variation of major clinical departments faculty members in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences (n = 9. Data gathering was based on deep and semi-structured interviews. Data gathering continued till data saturation.Data was analyzed through the Collaizzi method and validated. Strategies to ensure trustworthiness of data (credibility, dependability, conformability, transferability were employed (Guba and Lincoln. Results: Basic codes extracted from the analyzed data were categorized into two main themes and related subthemes, including (1 tangible teachings (analytic intelligence, technical intelligence, legal duties and (2 implied teachings (professionalism, professional discipline, professional difficulties. Conclusion: Ward round teaching is a valuable opportunity for learners to learn not only patient care aspects but also ethical values. By appropriate planning, opportunities can be used to teach capabilities that are expected of general practitioners.
Ultrasonic inspection reliability for intergranular stress corrosion cracks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Heasler, P G; Taylor, T T; Spanner, J C; Doctor, S R; Deffenbaugh, J D [Pacific Northwest Lab., Richland, WA (USA)

1990-07-01

A pipe inspection round robin entitled Mini-Round Robin'' was conducted at Pacific Northwest Laboratory from May 1985 through October 1985. The research was sponsored by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research under a program entitled Evaluation and Improvement of NDE Reliability for Inservice Inspection of Light Water Reactors.'' The Mini-Round Robin (MRR) measured the intergranular stress corrosion (GSC) crack detection and sizing capabilities of inservice inspection (ISI) inspectors that had passed the requirements of IEB 83-02 and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) sizing training course. The MRR data base was compared with an earlier Pipe Inspection Round Robin (PIRR) that had measured the performance of inservice inspection prior to 1982. Comparison of the MRR and PIRR data bases indicates no significant change in the inspection capability for detecting IGSCC. Also, when comparing detection of long and short cracks, no difference in detection capability was measured. An improvement in the ability to differentiate between shallow and deeper IGSCC was found when the MRR sizing capability was compared with an earlier sizing round robin conducted by the EPRI. In addition to the pipe inspection round robin, a human factors study was conducted in conjunction with the Mini-Round Robin. The most important result of the human factors study is that the Relative Operating Characteristics (ROC) curves provide a better methodology for describing inspector performance than only probability of detection (POD) or single-point crack/no crack data. 6 refs., 55 figs., 18 tabs.
Family participation during intensive care unit rounds: attitudes and experiences of parents and healthcare providers in a tertiary pediatric intensive care unit.

Science.gov (United States)

Stickney, Carolyn A; Ziniel, Sonja I; Brett, Molly S; Truog, Robert D

2014-02-01

To compare the experiences and attitudes of healthcare providers and parents regarding parental participation in morning rounds, in particular to evaluate for differences in perception of parental comprehension of rounds content and parental comfort with attendance, and to identify subgroups of parents who are more likely to report comfort with attending rounds. Cross-sectional survey of 100 parents and 131 healthcare providers in a tertiary care pediatric medical/surgical intensive care unit. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze survey responses; univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to compare parent and healthcare provider responses. Of parents, 92% reported a desire to attend rounds, and 54% of healthcare providers reported a preference for parental presence. There were significant discrepancies in perception of understanding between the 2 groups, with healthcare providers much less likely to perceive that parents understood both the format (30% vs 73%, P parents. Analysis of parent surveys did not reveal characteristics correlated with increased comfort or desire to attend rounds. A majority of parents wish to participate in morning rounds, whereas healthcare provider opinions are mixed. Important discrepancies exist between parent and healthcare provider perceptions of parental comfort and comprehension on rounds, which may be important in facilitating parental presence. Copyright © 2014 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.
Socioeconomic inequalities in informal payments for health care: An assessment of the 'Robin Hood' hypothesis in 33 African countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Kankeu, Hyacinthe Tchewonpi; Ventelou, Bruno

2016-02-01

In almost all African countries, informal payments are frequently made when accessing health care. Some literature suggests that the informal payment system could lead to quasi-redistribution among patients, with physicians playing a 'Robin Hood' role, subsidizing the poor at the expense of the rich. We empirically tested this assumption with data from the rounds 3 and 5 of the Afrobarometer surveys conducted in 18 and 33 African countries respectively, from 2005 to 2006 for round 3 and from 2011 to 2013 for round 5. In these surveys, nationally representative samples of people aged 18 years or more were randomly selected in each country, with sizes varying between 1048 and 2400 for round 3 and between 1190 and 2407 for round 5. We used the 'normalized' concentration index, the poor/rich gap and the odds ratio to assess the level of inequality in the payment of bribes to access care at the local public health facility and implemented two decomposition techniques to identify the contributors to the observed inequalities. We obtained that: i) the socioeconomic gradient in informal payments is in favor of the rich in almost all countries, indicating a rather regressive system; ii) this is mainly due to the socioeconomic disadvantage itself, to poor/rich differences in supply side factors like lack of medicines, absence of doctors and long waiting times, as well as regional disparities. Although essentially empirical, the paper highlights the need for African health systems to undergo substantial country-specific reforms in order to better protect the worse-off from financial risk when they seek care. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Robin Cook tundis Eestis kodusoojust / Kaarel Kaas

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Kaas, Kaarel, 1978-

1999-01-01

Suurbritannia välisministri Robin Cooki visiit kulmineerus uue saatkonna ametliku avamisega. Kommentaar kahe riigi suhetest : A. Tarand, S. Lõoke, A. Laaneots, G. Aarma. Lisa : Välisriikide ametnike visiidid Eestisse 1996-1999
Robin Hoodist Oidipuseni / Pille-Riin Purje

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Purje, Pille-Riin, 1963-

1996-01-01

'Ugala' külalisetendused Tallinnas: David Neilsoni 'Robin Hood' (lav. Peeter Tammearu); Mihhail Bulgakovi 'Poolearuline Jourdain' (lav. Üllar Saaremäe); Tirso de Molina 'Kadunud sõrmus' (lav. Andres Noormets); Talvo Pabuti 'Oidipuse kompleks' (lav. Andres Lepik); Anton Tshehhovi 'Kirsiaed' (lav. Kaarin Raid)
Genetics Home Reference: isolated Pierre Robin sequence

Science.gov (United States)

... or Free article on PubMed Central Mackay DR. Controversies in the diagnosis and management of the Robin ... Site Map Subscribe Customer Support USA.gov Copyright Privacy Accessibility FOIA Viewers & Players U.S. Department of Health & ...
Developing non-technical ward-round skills.

Science.gov (United States)

Harvey, Rachel; Mellanby, Edward; Dearden, Effie; Medjoub, Karima; Edgar, Simon

2015-10-01

Conducting clinical 'rounds' is one of the most onerous and important duties that every junior doctor is expected to perform. There is evidence that newly qualified doctors are not adequately prepared by their undergraduate experiences for this task. The aim of this study was to analyse the challenges pertaining to non-technical skills that students would face during ward rounds, and to create a model that facilitates the transition from medical student to doctor. A total of 217 final-year medical students completed a simulated ward round. Free-text responses were analysed using template analysis applying an a priori template developed from the literature by the research team. This drew on the generic categories of non-technical skills suggested by Flin et al. Ninety-seven per cent of students agreed or strongly agreed that the simulated ward round improved their insight into the challenges of ward rounds and their perceived ability to work efficiently as an active member of the ward round. The responding students (206) submitted written feedback describing the learning that they planned to use: 800 learning points were recorded, and all could be categorised into one of seven non-technical skills. Conducting clinical 'rounds' is one of the most onerous and important duties that every junior doctor is expected to perform We believe that improved task efficiency and insight into the challenges of the ward round gained by medical students will lead to an enhancement in performance during clinical rounds, and will have a positive impact on patient safety. We would suggest that undergraduate medical schools consider this model in the preparation for the clinical practice element of the curriculum. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Analysis of the PISC II trials results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haines, N.

1988-01-01

The paper presents the analysis scheme of the Programme for the Inspection of Steel Components PISC II trial results. The objective of the PISC II exercise is to evaluate the effectiveness of current and advanced NDT techniques for inspection of reactor pressure vessel components. The analysis scheme takes data from the Round Robin Trial (RRT) and Destructive Examination, then reduces it to a manageable form in order to present useful conclusions on the effectiveness of NDT. A description is given of the data provided by RRT, the data analysis scheme, the definition of analysis parameters, and the main methods of data presentation. (U.K.)
Analysis of a yearly multi-round, multi-period, multi-product transmission rights auction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ziogos, N.P.; Bakirtzis, A.G.

2008-01-01

A yearly multi-round, multi-period, multi-product transmission rights (TR) auction issuing both point-to-point Financial Transmission Rights (FTRs) and Flow-Gate Rights (FGRs) is studied in this paper. In each round the TR market participants (buyers or sellers) submit their bid or offer prices based on past energy market performance. A Locational Marginal Pricing (LMP) based energy market is assumed. The TR market participants' bid or offer prices reflect their expectation of the average annual LMP differences between withdrawal and injections points for FTRs and of the transmission link capacity prices for FGRs. The TR auction is performed in four rounds; in each round 25% of the entire system capability is awarded. TRs that are awarded in one round are modeled as fixed injections in subsequent rounds. Market participants that have acquired TRs in one round can sell them in subsequent rounds. A market participant can submit bids or offers for on-peak, off-peak or 24-h TRs. A three-area, nine-bus test system with six TR market participants is used for the analysis of the TR auction. (author)
IGSCC crack propagation rate measurement in BWR environments. Executive summary of a Round Robin study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Andresen, Peter L.

1998-01-01

Five of the world's best laboratories at performing stress corrosion crack growth studies - ABB Atom AB, AEA Technology, GE Corporate Research and Development Center, Studsvik Material AB, and VTT Manufacturing Technology, were selected to participate in a round robin to evaluate the quality and reproducibility of testing conditions and resulting stress corrosion crack growth rates in sensitized type 304 stainless steel in 288 deg C water. Heat treated, machined and fatigue pre-cracked specimens were provided to all laboratories, and detailed test procedures prescribed the use of active loading, reversed dc potential drop crack monitoring, a common reference electrode supplied to all laboratories by GE CRD (to be used along side each laboratory's own reference electrode), and highly specified water chemistry conditions. The ability of each laboratory to achieve optimal testing conditions varied, although all laboratories achieved an impressive standard of testing control. The most significant laboratory-to-laboratory differences were associated with their ability to achieve high purity autoclave outlet water, reproduce accurate measurements of corrosion potential on the test specimen, and provide high resolution crack following using a reversed dc potential drop. However, the most notable outcome of the program is the consistent observation by all laboratories that initiating and sustaining stress corrosion crack growth at constant load in sensitized type 304 stainless steel is difficult, despite the use of a moderately high stress intensity, and high dissolved oxygen and corrosion potential conditions. Concerns for specimen machining and pre-cracking were identified, although these factors were not the sole cause of difficulty in initiating and sustaining stress corrosion cracking. It was shown that many phases of specimen preparation and testing can have a large influence on the measured SCC response. Even under the best test conditions it is critical to ensure
IGSCC crack propagation rate measurement in BWR environments. Executive summary of a Round Robin study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Andresen, Peter L. [GE Corporate Research and Development, Schenectady, NY (United States)

1998-12-31

Five of the world`s best laboratories at performing stress corrosion crack growth studies - ABB Atom AB, AEA Technology, GE Corporate Research and Development Center, Studsvik Material AB, and VTT Manufacturing Technology, were selected to participate in a round robin to evaluate the quality and reproducibility of testing conditions and resulting stress corrosion crack growth rates in sensitized type 304 stainless steel in 288 deg C water. Heat treated, machined and fatigue pre-cracked specimens were provided to all laboratories, and detailed test procedures prescribed the use of active loading, reversed dc potential drop crack monitoring, a common reference electrode supplied to all laboratories by GE CRD (to be used along side each laboratory`s own reference electrode), and highly specified water chemistry conditions. The ability of each laboratory to achieve optimal testing conditions varied, although all laboratories achieved an impressive standard of testing control. The most significant laboratory-to-laboratory differences were associated with their ability to achieve high purity autoclave outlet water, reproduce accurate measurements of corrosion potential on the test specimen, and provide high resolution crack following using a reversed dc potential drop. However, the most notable outcome of the program is the consistent observation by all laboratories that initiating and sustaining stress corrosion crack growth at constant load in sensitized type 304 stainless steel is difficult, despite the use of a moderately high stress intensity, and high dissolved oxygen and corrosion potential conditions. Concerns for specimen machining and pre-cracking were identified, although these factors were not the sole cause of difficulty in initiating and sustaining stress corrosion cracking. It was shown that many phases of specimen preparation and testing can have a large influence on the measured SCC response. Even under the best test conditions it is critical to ensure
Implementing iRound: A Computer-Based Auditing Tool.

Science.gov (United States)

Brady, Darcie

Many hospitals use rounding or auditing as a tool to help identify gaps and needs in quality and process performance. Some hospitals are also using rounding to help improve patient experience. It is known that purposeful rounding helps improve Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems scores by helping manage patient expectations, provide service recovery, and recognize quality caregivers. Rounding works when a standard method is used across the facility, where data are comparable and trustworthy. This facility had a pen-and-paper process in place that made data reporting difficult, created a silo culture between departments, and most audits and rounds were completed differently on each unit. It was recognized that this facility needed to standardize the rounding and auditing process. The tool created by the Advisory Board called iRound was chosen as the tool this facility would use for patient experience rounds as well as process and quality rounding. The success of the iRound tool in this facility depended on several factors that started many months before implementation to current everyday usage.
Robin sequence associated with karyotypic mosaicism involving chromosome 22 abnormalities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Salinas, C.F.; Jastrzab, J.M.; Centu, E.S. [Medical Univ. of South Carolina, Charleston, SC (United States)

1994-09-01

Robin sequence is characterized by cleft palate, hypoplastic mandible, glossoptosis and respiratory difficulties. The Robin sequence may be observed as an isolated defect or as part of about 33 syndromes; however, to our knowledge, it has never been reported associated with chromosome 22 abnormalities. We examined a two-month-old black boy with a severe case of Robin sequence. Exam revealed a small child with hypoplastic mandible, glossoptosis, high palate and respiratory difficulty with continuous apnea episodes resulting in cyanotic lips and nails. In order to relieve the upper airway obstruction, his tongue was attached to the lower lip. Later a tracheostomy was performed. On follow-up exam, this patient was found to have developmental delay. Cytogenetic studies of both peripheral blood and fibroblast cells showed mosaicism involving chromosome 22 abnormalities which were designated as follows: 45,XY,-22/46,XY,-22,+r(22)/46,XY. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) studies confirmed the identity of the r(22) and showed the presence of the DiGeorge locus (D22575) but the absence of the D22539 locus which maps to 22q13.3. Reported cases of r(22) show no association with Robin sequence. However, r(22) has been associated with flat bridge of the nose, bulbous tip of the nose, epicanthus and high palate, all characteristics that we also observed in this case. These unusual cytogenetic findings may be causally related to the dysmorphology found in the patient we report.
Robin Huws Jones (United Kingdom, President 1976- 1980

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

2008-07-01

Full Text Available Robin Huws Jones, President of the International Association of Schools of Social Work from 1976 to 1980, lived a life of challenge and change. Born in Wales in 1909, he often remarked that learning to speak Welsh at age two was such a challenge that he didn’t bother to learn English until he was six. The death of his mother when he was three led to the first of many changes in a life that was not easy in the formative years. Robin remained in the care of his father while his sister became the ward of two aunts. With his father, a draper’sassistant, he left Wales to live in a crowded boarding house in Liverpool.
The Robin, Erithacus Rubecula (Passeriformes, Turdidae, as a Component of Heterotrophic Consortia of Forest Cenoses, Northeast Ukraine. Part 2

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chaplygina A. B.

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The role of the robin as a determinant of heterotrophic consortia is considered. The robin is a consort of determinants of autotrophic consortia, which core is represented mostly by dominating species of deciduous trees (Quercus robur Linnaeus, 1753, Tilia cordata Miller, 1768, Acer platanoides Linnaeus, 1753, Acer campestre Linnaeus, 1753, and also by sedges (Carex sp. and grasses (Poaceae, connected with the determinants by fabric links. The robin also belongs to the concentr of the second and higher orders as a component of forest biogeocenoses and it is also the main determinant in species composition of the insects inhabiting bird nests. As a result of the taxonomic analysis of invertebrates in the robin nests, it has been found out that the most numerous class was Insecta (9 orders and 27 families, with the dominance of Coleoptera (30.7 %. The nidicolous fauna of the robin (38 species was dominated by zoophages along with parasites and hematophages such as Hippoboscidae (46.4 %. The percentage of phytophages and saprophages among the invertebrate nest inhabitants was somewhat less (21 % each, then followed necrophages (12 %. Zoophages and parasites also dominated according to the number of objects in the nests (42 %; n = 150, the less was the portion of phytophages (34 %, saprophages (18 %, and necrophages (6 %. The highest number of species and objects of zoophages was recorded for climax and mature biocenoses (oak forests in NNP “HL” and pine cenoses in NNP “H””.
Creep of granulated loose-fill insulation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Torben Valdbjørn

This report presents a proposal for a standardised method for creep tests and the necessary theoretical framework that can be used to describe creep of a granulated loose-fill material. Furthermore results from a round robin test are shown. The round robin test was carried out in collaboration...... with SP-Building Physics in Sweden and VTT Building Technology in Finland. For the round robin test a cellulosic fibre insulation material was used. The proposed standardised method for creep tests and theories are limited to cases when the granulated loose-fill material is exposed to a constant...

Medical Student Self-Efficacy with Family-Centered Care during Bedside Rounds

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Henry N.; Schumacher, Jayna B.; Moreno, Megan A.; Brown, Roger L.; Sigrest, Ted D.; McIntosh, Gwen K.; Schumacher, Daniel J.; Kelly, Michelle M.; Cox, Elizabeth D.

2012-01-01

Purpose Factors that support self-efficacy must be understood in order to foster family-centered care (FCC) during rounds. Based on social cognitive theory, this study examined (1) how 3 supportive experiences (observing role models, having mastery experiences, and receiving feedback) influence self-efficacy with FCC during rounds and (2) whether the influence of these supportive experiences was mediated by self-efficacy with 3 key FCC tasks (relationship building, exchanging information, and decision making). Method Researchers surveyed 184 students during pediatric clerkship rotations during the 2008–2011 academic years. Surveys assessed supportive experiences and students’ self-efficacy with FCC during rounds and with key FCC tasks. Measurement models were constructed via exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Composite indicator structural equation (CISE) models evaluated whether supportive experiences influenced self-efficacy with FCC during rounds and whether self-efficacy with key FCC tasks mediated any such influences. Results Researchers obtained surveys from 172 eligible students who were 76% (130) White and 53% (91) female. Observing role models and having mastery experiences supported self-efficacy with FCC during rounds (each pFCC tasks, relationship building and decision making (each p FCC during rounds. Conclusions Observing role models and having mastery experiences foster students’ self-efficacy with FCC during rounds, operating through self-efficacy with key FCC tasks. Results suggest the importance of helping students gain self-efficacy in key FCC tasks before the rounds experience and helping educators implement supportive experiences during rounds. PMID:22534602
Round-Robin Streaming with Generations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Li, Yao; Vingelmann, Peter; Pedersen, Morten Videbæk

2012-01-01

We consider three types of application layer coding for streaming over lossy links: random linear coding, systematic random linear coding, and structured coding. The file being streamed is divided into sub-blocks (generations). Code symbols are formed by combining data belonging to the same...
VAMAS Nb3Sn test conductor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1994-01-01

A bronze-process Nb 3 Sn conductor was measured as part of the second VAMAS (Versailles Project on Advanced Materials and Standards) international critical-current round robin. The conductor specifications are given in Table 15. The critical current was measured as a function of magnetic field and axial tensile strain. The measured data are presented in Table 16 and in Figs. 23 and 24. The I c and J c values are based on an electric field criterion (E c ) of 1 μV/cm. In the first VAMAS round robin tests, differences in the test specimens' axial strain, caused by variations in the thermal contraction of different test fixtures, was a major source of interlaboratory variation in the critical-current data. Consequently, electromechanical characterization of the test specimen is important for data interpretation and error analysis. In the second round robin, the test apparatus and procedure were more rigidly specified. This increased experimental control reduced the critical-current variation by a factor of 3.5. The results of our measurements will be published in the final VAMAS report
Anesthesiology leadership rounding: identifying opportunities for improvement.

Science.gov (United States)

Gravenstein, Dietrich; Ford, Susan; Enneking, F Kayser

2012-01-01

Rounding that includes participation of individuals with authority to implement changes has been advocated as important to the transformation of an institution into a high-quality and safe organization. We describe a Department of Anesthesiology's experience with leadership rounding. The Department Chair or other senior faculty designate, a quality coordinator, up to four residents, the ward charge nurse, and patient nurses participated in rounds at bedsides. During a 23-month period, 14 significant opportunities to improve care were identified. Nurses identified 5 of these opportunities, primary team physicians 2, the rounding team 4, and patients or their family members another 3. The anesthesiology service had sole or shared responsibility for 10 improvements. A variety of organizations track specific measures across all phases of the patient experience to gauge quality of care. Chart auditing tools for detecting threats to safety are often used. These measures and tools missed opportunities for improvement that were discovered only through rounding. We conclude that the introduction of leadership rounding by an anesthesiology service can identify opportunities for improving quality that are not captured by conventional efforts.
Riding on the Back of a Giant: Adding Malta to the "5 Cultures" Study by Robin Alexander

Science.gov (United States)

Peresso, Randolph

2017-01-01

This paper focuses on the methodology adopted for Malta+5, which builds on Robin Alexander's work by comparing the five pedagogical cultures he studied to the one in Malta. It reflects critically on the research process adopted in this study, and shows how, despite the very limited experience and resources, applying the methodology, frameworks and…
Status of Photovoltaic Calibration and Measurement Standards

Science.gov (United States)

Baraona, Cosmo; Bailey, Sheila; Curtis, Henry; Brinker, David; Jenkins, Phillip; Scheiman, David

2001-01-01

The 7th International Workshop on Space Solar Cell Calibration and Measurement was held on September 25-27, 2000 in Girdwood, Alaska. Representatives from eight countries discussed international standards for single and multijunction solar cell measurement and calibration methods, round robin intercomparisons, and irradiation test methods for space solar cells. Progress toward adoption of an ISO standard on single junction cells was made. Agreement was reached to begin work on new standards for multijunction cells and irradiation testing. Progress on present single junction round robin measurements was discussed and future multijunction round robins were planned. The next workshop will be held in Germany in October 2001.
The PISC programme on defective steam generator tubes inspection. A status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Birac, C.; Comby, R.; Maciga, G.; Von Estorff, U.; Zanella, G.L.

1994-06-01

The general objective of the PISC Program (Programme for the Inspection of Steel Components) is to assess experimentally procedures and techniques in use for the in-service inspection of pressure components. The program is mainly a round robin test, the results of which are compared with real characteristics of the flaws obtained by destructive analysis. Materials tested are INCONEL 600 tubes, diameter 22.22 mm, wall thickness 1.27 mm. The technique applied is eddy current testing. The program of capability tests on loose tubes was started in 1990, the round robin tests ended in 1993. The preliminary results are presented. (R.P.). 8 refs., 9 figs., 4 tabs
Development of a robotics system for automated chemical analysis of sediments, sludges, and soils

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McGrail, B.P.; Dodson, M.G.; Skorpik, J.R.; Strachan, D.M.; Barich, J.J.

1989-01-01

Adaptation and use of a high-reliability robot to conduct a standard laboratory procedure for soil chemical analysis are reported. Results from a blind comparative test were used to obtain a quantitative measure of the improvement in precision possible with the automated test method. Results from the automated chemical analysis procedure were compared with values obtained from an EPA-certified lab and with results from a more extensive interlaboratory round robin conducted by the EPA. For several elements, up to fivefold improvement in precision was obtained with the automated test method
Fuel quality control: Five years of activity in laboratories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bettinelli, M.; Cimini, G.; Durello, G.; Lucchesi, P.L.

1991-01-01

A description of how ENEL (Italian National Electricity Board) carries out the activity of fuel quality control is given, and the results of the Round Robin circuit which has been operating for five years in laboratories regulary performing the control analyses of these products are reported. The laboratories taking part in the Round Robin circuit are 41 (out of which 35 are ENEL laboratories and 6 are owned by external companies) and they are situated throughout Italy; the controlled parameters are the following: heat of combustion (PCS), sulphur (S), vanadium (V) and asphaltenes (ASF); the adopted methods are the official ASTM or IP ones. The statistical analysis of the results has permitted, for every parameter, the calculation of the repeatability and the reproducibility which, in most cases, have turned out to be in keeping with the values provided for in the regulations. Among the collateral initiatives promoted in the framework of this Round Robin, the following are reported: preparation of standards of fuel oil with a known content of a sulphur and vanadium; expediting visits to all the ENEL laboratories participating in the RRT; publication of a handbook of the adopted analysis methods (in Italian); definition of guide-lines on the right selection of new automatic equipment
Avaliação polissonográfica e de videoendoscopia da deglutição de pacientes portadores da sequência de Pierre-Robin Polysomnography evaluation and swallowing endoscopy of patients with Pierre Robin sequence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carlos Diógenes Pinheiro Neto

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Asequência de Pierre Robin é caracterizada por micrognatia, glossoptose e obstrução das vias aéreas superiores. A gravidade dos sintomas é muito variável, o que torna o tratamento destes pacientes um desafio. OBJETIVOS: Identificar a presença de apneia-hipopneia obstrutiva do sono e avaliar a presença de alterações da deglutição em pacientes portadores da sequência de Pierre-Robin. MATERIAL E MÉTODOS: Estudo retrospectivo em que foram avaliadas 14 crianças com sequência de Pierre-Robin, sendo oito do sexo feminino. As crianças foram submetidas à videoendoscopia da deglutição e polissonografia. RESULTADO: Oito pacientes foram incluídos no estudo. Seis apresentaram polissonografia normal e apenas 1 paciente apresentou apneia-hipopneia leve de origem central. A videoendoscopia da deglutição mostrou-se normal em cinco pacientes e disfagia moderada foi detectada em três pacientes sendo submetidos à gastrostomia. A distração da mandíbula foi realizada em quatro pacientes que também foram submetidos à traqueostomia no mesmo tempo cirúrgico. CONCLUSÕES: Disfagia foi mais prevalente do que a apneia do sono. A videoendoscopia da deglutição mostrou ser um exame dinâmico e eficaz na detecção de distúrbios alimentares em pacientes com a sequência de Pierre Robin.The Pierre Robin sequence is characterized by micrognathia, glossoptosis and upper airway obstruction. Symptom severity varies, and this makes the treatment of these patients a true challenge. AIM: to identify the presence of sleep hypopneaapnea in patients with Pierre-Robin sequence. MATERIALS AND METHODS: retrospective study in which we assessed 14 children with Pierre-Robin sequence, eight girls. The children were submitted to swallowing video-endoscopy study and polysomnography. RESULTS: eight patients were included in this study. Six had normal polysomnography and only one patient had mild central hypopnea-apnea. Swallowing video-endoscopy was normal in
A Giant Heart Tumor in Neonate with Clinical Signs of Pierre - Robin Syndrome

OpenAIRE

Bejiqi, Ramush; Retkoceri, Ragip; Xhema-Bejiqi, Hana; Bejiqi, Rinor; Maloku, Arlinda

2017-01-01

Introduction: Pierre Robin syndrome is a congenital condition of facial abnormalities in humans. The three main features are: cleft palate, retrognathia and glossoptosis. Rarely heart tumors are associated with syndromes, mostly are isolated. Case report: In this presentation we describe a 3-weeks-old girl with Pierre-Robin syndrome and giant left ventricle tumor, diagnosed initially by transthoracic echocardiography. The purpose of this report is to review the literature on the fetuses and n...
Spectral distribution of scalar particles created by a moving boundary with Robin boundary condition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mintz, B.; Farina, C; Maia Neto, P.A.; Rodrigues, R.B.

2006-01-01

We consider a massless scalar field in 1+1 dimensions satisfying a Robin boundary condition (BC) at a non-relativistic boundary. By deriving a Bogoliubov transformation between the input and output bosonic field operators, we calculate the spectral distribution of created particles. The particular cases of Dirichlet and Neumann BC may be obtained from our result as limiting cases, yielding equal spectra (this result is valid only in this space-time dimensionality). The creation effect for the field under Dirichlet BC turns out to be an upper bound for the spectra derived for Robin BC. Also, we show that the particle creation phenomenon with Robin conditions can be considerably reduced (with respect to the Dirichlet or Neumann cases) by selecting a particular mechanical oscillation frequency of the moving boundary. (author)
Ethics rounds: An appreciated form of ethics support.

Science.gov (United States)

Silén, Marit; Ramklint, Mia; Hansson, Mats G; Haglund, Kristina

2016-03-01

Ethics rounds are one way to support healthcare personnel in handling ethically difficult situations. A previous study in the present project showed that ethics rounds did not result in significant changes in perceptions of how ethical issues were handled, that is, in the ethical climate. However, there was anecdotal evidence that the ethics rounds were viewed as a positive experience and that they stimulated ethical reflection. The aim of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of how the ethics rounds were experienced and why the intervention in the form of ethics rounds did not succeed in improving the ethical climate for the staff. An exploratory and descriptive design with a qualitative approach was adopted, using individual interviews. A total of 11 healthcare personnel, working in two different psychiatry outpatient clinics and with experience of participating in ethics rounds, were interviewed. The study was based on informed consent and was approved by one of the Swedish Regional Ethical Review Boards. The participants were generally positive about the ethics rounds. They had experienced changes by participating in the ethics rounds in the form of being able to see things from different perspectives as well as by gaining insight into ethical issues. However, these changes had not affected daily work. A crucial question is whether or not increased reflection ability among the participants is a good enough outcome of ethics rounds and whether this result could have been measured in patient-related outcomes. Ethics rounds might foster cooperation among the staff and this, in turn, could influence patient care. By listening to others during ethics rounds, a person can learn to see things from a new angle. Participation in ethics rounds can also lead to better insight concerning ethical issues. © The Author(s) 2014.
Don Quixote, Machiavelli, and Robin Hood: public health practice, past and present.

Science.gov (United States)

Mullan, F

2000-05-01

Since the mid-19th century, when the first formal health departments were established in the United States, commissioners, directors, and secretaries of public health have functioned as senior members of the staffs of public executives, mayors, governors, and presidents. They have provided important political, managerial, and scientific leadership to agencies of government that have played increasingly important roles in national life, from the sanitary revolution of the 19th century to the prevention of HIV/AIDS and the control of tobacco use today. Although public health officials come from a variety of backgrounds and oversee agencies of varied size and composition, there are philosophical themes that describe and define the commonality of their work. These themes are captured metaphorically by 3 celebrated figures: Don Quixote, Machiavelli, and Robin Hood. By turns, the public health official functions as a determined idealist (Don Quixote), a cunning political strategist (Machiavelli), and an agent who redistributes resources from the wealthier sectors of society to the less well off (Robin Hood.) All 3 personae are important, but, it is argued, Robin Hood is the most endangered.
Trajectory Correction and Locomotion Analysis of a Hexapod Walking Robot with Semi-Round Rigid Feet

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Yaguang; Jin, Bo; Wu, Yongsheng; Guo, Tong; Zhao, Xiangmo

2016-01-01

Aimed at solving the misplaced body trajectory problem caused by the rolling of semi-round rigid feet when a robot is walking, a legged kinematic trajectory correction methodology based on the Least Squares Support Vector Machine (LS-SVM) is proposed. The concept of ideal foothold is put forward for the three-dimensional kinematic model modification of a robot leg, and the deviation value between the ideal foothold and real foothold is analyzed. The forward/inverse kinematic solutions between the ideal foothold and joint angular vectors are formulated and the problem of direct/inverse kinematic nonlinear mapping is solved by using the LS-SVM. Compared with the previous approximation method, this correction methodology has better accuracy and faster calculation speed with regards to inverse kinematics solutions. Experiments on a leg platform and a hexapod walking robot are conducted with multi-sensors for the analysis of foot tip trajectory, base joint vibration, contact force impact, direction deviation, and power consumption, respectively. The comparative analysis shows that the trajectory correction methodology can effectively correct the joint trajectory, thus eliminating the contact force influence of semi-round rigid feet, significantly improving the locomotion of the walking robot and reducing the total power consumption of the system. PMID:27589766
EGFR T790M mutation testing of non-small cell lung cancer tissue and blood samples artificially spiked with circulating cell-free tumor DNA: results of a round robin trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Fassunke, Jana; Ihle, Michaela Angelika; Lenze, Dido; Lehmann, Annika; Hummel, Michael; Vollbrecht, Claudia; Penzel, Roland; Volckmar, Anna-Lena; Stenzinger, Albrecht; Endris, Volker; Jung, Andreas; Lehmann, Ulrich; Zeugner, Silke; Baretton, Gustavo; Kreipe, Hans; Schirmacher, Peter; Kirchner, Thomas; Dietel, Manfred; Büttner, Reinhard; Merkelbach-Bruse, Sabine

2017-10-01

The European Commision (EC) recently approved osimertinib for the treatment of adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harboring EGFR T790M mutations. Besides tissue-based testing, blood samples containing cell-free circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) can be used to interrogate T790M status. Herein, we describe the conditions and results of a round robin trial (RRT) for T790M mutation testing in NSCLC tissue specimens and peripheral blood samples spiked with cell line DNA mimicking tumor-derived ctDNA. The underlying objectives of this two-staged external quality assessment (EQA) approach were (a) to evaluate the accuracy of T790M mutations testing across multiple centers and (b) to investigate if a liquid biopsy-based testing for T790M mutations in spiked blood samples is feasible in routine diagnostic. Based on a successfully completed internal phase I RRT, an open RRT for EGFR T790M mutation testing in tumor tissue and blood samples was initiated. In total, 48 pathology centers participated in the EQA. Of these, 47 (97.9%) centers submitted their analyses within the pre-defined time frame and 44 (tissue), respectively, 40 (plasma) successfully passed the test. The overall success rates in the RRT phase II were 91.7% (tissue) and 83.3% (blood), respectively. Thirty-eight out of 48 participants (79.2%) successfully passed both parts of the RRT. The RRT for blood-based EGFR testing initiated in Germany is, to the best of our knowledge, the first of his kind in Europe. In summary, our results demonstrate that blood-based genotyping for EGFR resistance mutations can be successfully integrated in routine molecular diagnostics complementing the array of molecular methods already available at pathology centers in Germany.
Piezosurgery an Asset in Treatment of Pierre Robin Sequence.

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Divya; Gadre, Pushkar; Gadre, Kiran; Ramanojam, Shandilya

2017-03-01

Pierre Robin sequence (formerly a syndrome) is named after the French stomatologist who, in 1923 and 1934, described the problems associated with micrognathia in newborn. It comprises mandibular micrognathia, U-shaped cleft palate, and glossoptosis. The typical symptoms are hypoxaemia, noisy breathing, snoring, stridor, cyanosis, bradycardia, feeding difficulties, and failure to thrive. Distraction osteogenesis has recently been considered as a surgical option for early intervention to lengthen the mandible and relieve respiratory problems. Piezosurgery offers a modality to make precise bone cuts preserving vital structures, minimizing the invasiveness of the surgical procedure, and offering bloodless field. We present case of 1-year-old male malnourished child with Pierre Robin sequence and tracheostomy in situ since day 11 of his birth. The staged treatment plan involving mandibular lengthening in which mandibular osteotomies were performed with the piezoelectric scalpel followed by decannulation of tracheostomy, which has been described in detail in this article.
Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibition and health benefits: The Robin Hood effect.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalra, Sanjay; Jain, Arpit; Ved, Jignesh; Unnikrishnan, A G

2016-01-01

This review discusses two distinct, yet related, mechanisms of sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibition: Calorie restriction mimicry (CRM) and pro-ketogenic effect, which may explain their cardiovascular benefits. We term these adaptive CRM and pro-ketogenic effects of SGLT2 inhibition, the Robin Hood hypothesis. In English history, Robin Hood was a "good person," who stole from the rich and helped the poor. He supported redistribution of resources as he deemed fit for the common good. In a similar fashion, SGLT2 inhibition provides respite to the overloaded glucose metabolism while utilizing lipid stores for energy production.
Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibition and health benefits: The Robin Hood effect

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sanjay Kalra

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This review discusses two distinct, yet related, mechanisms of sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2 inhibition: Calorie restriction mimicry (CRM and pro-ketogenic effect, which may explain their cardiovascular benefits. We term these adaptive CRM and pro-ketogenic effects of SGLT2 inhibition, the Robin Hood hypothesis. In English history, Robin Hood was a "good person," who stole from the rich and helped the poor. He supported redistribution of resources as he deemed fit for the common good. In a similar fashion, SGLT2 inhibition provides respite to the overloaded glucose metabolism while utilizing lipid stores for energy production.
On Round-off Error for Adaptive Finite Element Methods

KAUST Repository

Alvarez-Aramberri, J.

2012-06-02

Round-off error analysis has been historically studied by analyzing the condition number of the associated matrix. By controlling the size of the condition number, it is possible to guarantee a prescribed round-off error tolerance. However, the opposite is not true, since it is possible to have a system of linear equations with an arbitrarily large condition number that still delivers a small round-off error. In this paper, we perform a round-off error analysis in context of 1D and 2D hp-adaptive Finite Element simulations for the case of Poisson equation. We conclude that boundary conditions play a fundamental role on the round-off error analysis, specially for the so-called ‘radical meshes’. Moreover, we illustrate the importance of the right-hand side when analyzing the round-off error, which is independent of the condition number of the matrix.

On Round-off Error for Adaptive Finite Element Methods

KAUST Repository

Alvarez-Aramberri, J.; Pardo, David; Paszynski, Maciej; Collier, Nathan; Dalcin, Lisandro; Calo, Victor M.

2012-01-01

Round-off error analysis has been historically studied by analyzing the condition number of the associated matrix. By controlling the size of the condition number, it is possible to guarantee a prescribed round-off error tolerance. However, the opposite is not true, since it is possible to have a system of linear equations with an arbitrarily large condition number that still delivers a small round-off error. In this paper, we perform a round-off error analysis in context of 1D and 2D hp-adaptive Finite Element simulations for the case of Poisson equation. We conclude that boundary conditions play a fundamental role on the round-off error analysis, specially for the so-called ‘radical meshes’. Moreover, we illustrate the importance of the right-hand side when analyzing the round-off error, which is independent of the condition number of the matrix.
Round robin testing of thermal conductivity reference materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hulstrom, L.C.; Tye, R.P.; Smith, S.E.

1985-07-01

The Basalt Waste Isolation Project (BWIP), operated by Rockwell Hanford Operations, has a need to determine the thermal properties of basalt in the region being considered for a nuclear waste repository in basalt. Experimental data on thermal conductivity and its variation with temperature are information required for the characterization of basalt. To establish thermal conductivity values for the reference materials, an interlaboratory measurements program was undertaken. The program was planned to meet the objectives of performing an experimental characterization of the new stock and providing a detailed analysis of the results such that reference values of thermal conductivity could be determined. This program of measurements of the thermal conductivity of Pyrex 7740 and Pyroceram 9606 has produced recommended values that are within +- 1% of those accepted previously. These measurements together with those of density indicate that the present lots of material are similar to those previously available. Pyrex 7740 and Pyroceram 9606 can continue to be used with confidence as thermal conductivity reference materials for studies on rocks and minerals and other materials of similar thermal conductivity. The uncertainty range for Pyrex 7740 and Pyroceram 9606 up to 300 0 C is +- 10.3% and +- 5.6%, respectively. This range is similar to that indicated for the previously recommended values proposed some 18 years ago. It would appear that the overall state of the art in thermal conductivity measurements for materials in this range has changed little in the intervening years. The above uncertainties, which would have been greater had not three data sets been eliminated, are greater than those which are normally claimed for each individual method. Analyses of these differences through refinements in techniques and additional measurements to higher temperatures are required. 13 refs., 7 figs., 4 tabs
A complex method for the neutron activation analysis of biological materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ordogh, M.

1978-05-01

The destructive and nondestructive approach of neutron activation analysis used by the author is reviewed to determine some trace elements in biological materials: Ca, Cl, Co, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Rb, Sb, Sc, V and Zn. Bowen's kale was used to determine the accuracy and reliability. The parameters obtained were confirmed by participating in round robins organized by the IAEA: in which potato powder and animal bone have been analyzed for Zn, Co, Fe, Cr, Mn, Rb, Na, K and Cu. Tabulated results are given and compared with recommended values and literature data. Gamma spectra are shown. (T.G.)
A Giant Heart Tumor in Neonate with Clinical Signs of Pierre - Robin Syndrome

Science.gov (United States)

Bejiqi, Ramush; Retkoceri, Ragip; Xhema-Bejiqi, Hana; Bejiqi, Rinor; Maloku, Arlinda

2017-01-01

Introduction: Pierre Robin syndrome is a congenital condition of facial abnormalities in humans. The three main features are: cleft palate, retrognathia and glossoptosis. Rarely heart tumors are associated with syndromes, mostly are isolated. Case report: In this presentation we describe a 3-weeks-old girl with Pierre-Robin syndrome and giant left ventricle tumor, diagnosed initially by transthoracic echocardiography. The purpose of this report is to review the literature on the fetuses and neonates with cardiac tumors in an attempt to determine the various ways which cardiac tumors differ clinically and morphologically in this age group. PMID:28790548
Laryngeal mask airway guided tracheal intubation in a neonate with the Pierre Robin syndrome

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Tom Giedsing; Joensen, Henning; Henneberg, Steen Winther

1995-01-01

Endotracheal intubation in infants with the Pierre Robin syndrome may sometimes be impossible to accomplish by conventional means. To aid difficult tracheal intubation many different techniques have been described. We present a case, in which we successfully intubated a small-for-date newborn boy...... with the Pierre Robin syndrome by using a modified laryngeal mask airway (no. 1) as a guide for the endotracheal tube. The technique is easy to perform, less traumatic and less time-consuming than multiple attempts at laryngoscopy or blind tracheal intubation....
Parental responses to involvement in rounds on a pediatric inpatient unit at a teaching hospital: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Latta, Linda C; Dick, Ronald; Parry, Carol; Tamura, Glen S

2008-03-01

In pediatric teaching hospitals, medical decisions are traditionally made by the attending and resident physicians during rounds that do not include parents. This structure limits the ability of the medical team to provide "family-centered care" and the attending physician to model communication skills. The authors thus set out to identify how parents responded to participation in interdisciplinary teaching rounds conducted in a large tertiary care children's teaching hospital. A qualitative descriptive study was conducted using data from semistructured interviews of parents who had participated in rounds on the inpatient medical unit of a large academic children's hospital. From December 2004 to April 2005, 18 parents were interviewed after their participation in rounds. Questions assessed their experiences, expectations, preferred communication styles, and suggestions for improvement. Transcripts of the interviews were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Being able to communicate, understand the plan, and participate with the team in decision making about their child's care were the most frequently cited outcomes of importance to parents. All 18 participants described the overall experience as positive, and 17 of 18 described themselves as "comfortable" with inclusion in rounds. Use of lay terminology and inclusion of nurses in rounds were preferred. Including parents on ward rounds at a teaching hospital was viewed positively by parents. Specific themes of particular importance to parents were identified. Further study is needed to assess the impact of inclusion of parents on rounds on patient outcomes and the resident experience.
A large-scale soil-structure interaction experiment. Pt. 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, Y.K.; Kassawara, R.P.; Tang, H.T.; Srinivasan, M.G.; Kot, C.A.

1987-01-01

The round-robin SSI method validation program provides a unique opportunity for the industry practitioners as well as method developers to evaluate and assess various SSI methodologies in a systematic and independent fashion. Since blind predictions are essential to this effort and are currently being performed by the program participants, no measured data and analysis results are reported in this paper. A workshop is planned in which all the results and findings will be presented and discussed. The results of the program are expected to form the basis for evaluating various SSI methods as to their conservatism and sensitivity to various assumptions and procedures. Ultimately the conclusions of these assessments will form the basis for modification to the USNRC Standard Review Plan and hence a more realistic SSI practice and improved plant licensing procedures. (orig.)
Evaluation of Failure Probability of BWR Vessel Under Cool-down and LTOP Transient Conditions Using PROFAS-RV PFM Code

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Jong-Min; Lee, Bong-Sang [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-10-15

The round robin project was proposed by the PFM Research Subcommittee of the Japan Welding Engineering Society to Asian Society for Integrity of Nuclear Components (ASINCO) members, which is designated in Korea as Phase 2 of A-Pro2. The objective of this phase 2 of RR analysis is to compare the scheme and results related to the assessment of structural integrity of RPV for the events important to safety in the design consideration but relatively low fracture probability. In this study, probabilistic fracture mechanics analysis was performed for the round robin cases using PROFAS-RV code. The effects of key parameters such as different transient, fluence level, Cu and Ni content, initial RT{sub NDT} and RT{sub NDT} shift model on the failure probability were systematically compared and reviewed. These efforts can minimize the uncertainty of the integrity evaluation for the reactor pressure vessel.
Rounding errors in weighing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeach, J.L.

1976-01-01

When rounding error is large relative to weighing error, it cannot be ignored when estimating scale precision and bias from calibration data. Further, if the data grouping is coarse, rounding error is correlated with weighing error and may also have a mean quite different from zero. These facts are taken into account in a moment estimation method. A copy of the program listing for the MERDA program that provides moment estimates is available from the author. Experience suggests that if the data fall into four or more cells or groups, it is not necessary to apply the moment estimation method. Rather, the estimate given by equation (3) is valid in this instance. 5 tables
Round robin analyses of hydrogen isotope thin films standards

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Banks, J.C. E-mail: jcbanks@sandia.gov; Browning, J.F.; Wampler, W.R.; Doyle, B.L.; LaDuca, C.A.; Tesmer, J.R.; Wetteland, C.J.; Wang, Y.Q

2004-06-01

Hydrogen isotope thin film standards have been manufactured at Sandia National Laboratories for use by the materials characterization community. Several considerations were taken into account during the manufacture of the ErHD standards, with accuracy and stability being the most important. The standards were fabricated by e-beam deposition of Er onto a Mo substrate and the film stoichiometrically loaded with hydrogen and deuterium. To determine the loading accuracy of the standards two random samples were measured by thermal desorption mass spectrometry and atomic absorption spectrometry techniques with a stated combined accuracy of {approx}1.6% (1{sigma}). All the standards were then measured by high energy RBS/ERD and RBS/NRA with the accuracy of the techniques {approx}5% (1{sigma}). The standards were then distributed to the IBA materials characterization community for analysis. This paper will discuss the suitability of the standards for use by the IBA community and compare measurement results to highlight the accuracy of the techniques used.
Round Robin computer simulation of ejection probability in sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sigmund, P.; Hautala, M.; Yamamura, Y.; Hosaka, S.; Ishitani, T.; Shulga, V.I.; Harrison, D.E. Jr.; Chakarov, I.R.; Karpuzov, D.S.; Kawatoh, E.; Shimizu, R.; Valkealahti, S.; Nieminen, R.M.; Betz, G.; Husinsky, W.; Shapiro, M.H.; Vicanek, M.; Urbassek, H.M.

1989-01-01

We have studied the ejection of a copper atom through a planar copper surface as a function of recoil velocity and depth of origin. Results were obtained from six molecular dynamics codes, four binary collision lattice simulation codes, and eight Monte Carlo codes. Most results were found with a Born-Mayer interaction potential between the atoms with Gibson 2 parameters and a planar surface barrier, but variations on this standard were allowed for, as well as differences in the adopted cutoff radius for the interaction potential, electronic stopping, and target temperature. Large differences were found between the predictions of the various codes, but the cause of these differences could be determined in most cases. A fairly clear picture emerges from all three types of codes for the depth range and the angular range for ejection at energies relevant to sputter ejection, although a quantitative discussion would have to include an analysis of replacement collision events which has been left out here. (orig.)
Numerical simulation of turbulent flows past the RoBin helicopter with a four-bladed rotor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xu, H.; Mamou, M.; Khalid, M. [National Research Council, Inst. for Aerospace Research, Ottawa, Ontario (Canada)]. E-mail: Hongyi.Xu@nrc.ca

2003-07-01

The current paper presents a turbulent flow simulation study past a generic helicopter RoBin with a four-bladed rotor using the Chimera moving grid approach. The aerodynamic performance of the rotor blades and their interactions with the RoBin fuselage are investigated using the k - {omega} SST turbulence model contained in the WIND code. The rotor is configured as a Chimera moving grid in a quasisteady flow field. The rotor blades are rectangular, untapered, linearly twisted and are made from NACA 0012 airfoil profile. The blade motion (rotation and cyclic pitching) schedule is specified in the NASA wind tunnel testing of a generic helicopter RoBin. The aerodynamic radial load distributions in the rotor plane are generated by integrating the pressure on each blade surfaces along the blade chordwise direction. The rotor flow interacts strongly with the flow coming off from the fuselage and thus has a significant impact on helicopter aerodynamic performance. (author)
Transient Three-Dimensional Side Load Analysis of Out-of-Round Film Cooled Nozzles

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ten-See; Lin, Jeff; Ruf, Joe; Guidos, Mike

2010-01-01

The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of nozzle out-of-roundness on the transient startup side loads at a high altitude, with an anchored computational methodology. The out-of-roundness could be the result of asymmetric loads induced by hardware attached to the nozzle, asymmetric internal stresses induced by previous tests, and deformation, such as creep, from previous tests. The rocket engine studied encompasses a regeneratively cooled thrust chamber and a film cooled nozzle extension with film coolant distributed from a turbine exhaust manifold. The computational methodology is based on an unstructured-grid, pressure-based computational fluid dynamics formulation, and a transient inlet history based on an engine system simulation. Transient startup computations were performed with the out-of-roundness achieved by four different degrees of ovalization: one perfectly round, one slightly out-of-round, one more out-of-round, and one significantly out-of-round. The results show that the separation-line-jump is the peak side load physics for the round, slightly our-of-round, and more out-of-round cases, and the peak side load increases as the degree of out-of-roundness increases. For the significantly out-of-round nozzle, however, the peak side load reduces to comparable to that of the round nozzle and the separation line jump is not the peak side load physics. The counter-intuitive result of the significantly out-of-round case is found to be related to a side force reduction mechanism that splits the effect of the separation-line-jump into two parts, not only in the circumferential direction and most importantly in time.
Robins Air Force Base integrated resource assessment. Volume 3, Resource assessment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sullivan, G.P.; Keller, J.M.; Stucky, D.J.; Wahlstrom, R.R.; Larson, L.L.

1993-10-01

The US Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) has tasked the US Department of Energy (DOE) Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP), supported by the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL), to identify, evaluate, and assist in acquiring all cost-effective energy projects at Robins Air Force Base (AFB). This is part of a model program that PNL is designing to support energy-use decisions in the federal sector. This report provides the results of the fossil fuel and electric energy resource opportunity (ERO) assessments performed by PNL at the AFMC Robins AFB facility located approximately 15 miles south of Macon, Georgia. It is a companion report to Volume 1, Executive Summary, and Volume 2, Baseline Detail. The results of the analyses of EROs are presented in 13 common energy end-use categories (e.g., boilers and furnaces, service hot water, and building lighting). A narrative-description of each ERO is provided, including information on the installed cost, energy and dollar savings; impacts on operation and maintenance (O&M); and, when applicable, a discussion of energy supply and demand, energy security, and environmental issues. A description of the evaluation methodologies and technical and cost assumptions is also provided for each ERO. Summary tables present the cost-effectiveness of energy end-use equipment before and after the implementation of each ERO and present the results of the life-cycle cost (LCC) analysis indicating the net present value (NPV) and savings to investment ratio (SIR) of each ERO.
Lq-solution of the Robin problem for the Oseen system

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Medková, Dagmar

2016-01-01

Roč. 142, č. 1 (2016), s. 61-79 ISSN 0167-8019 Institutional support: RVO:67985840 Keywords : Oseen equations * Robin problem * single layer potential Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics Impact factor: 0.702, year: 2016 http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10440-015-0014-5
Primary water stress corrosion cracks in nickel alloy dissimilar metal welds: Detection and sizing using established and emerging nondestructive examination techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Braatz, B.G.; Doctor, S.R.; Cumblidge, S.E.; Prokofiev, I.G.

2012-01-01

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has established the Program to Assess the Reliability of Emerging Nondestructive Techniques (PARENT) as a follow-on to the international cooperative Program for the Inspection of Nickel Alloy Components (PINC). The goal of PINC was to evaluate the capabilities of various nondestructive evaluation (NDE) techniques to detect and characterize surface-breaking primary water stress corrosion cracks in dissimilar-metal welds (DMW) in bottom-mounted instrumentation (BMI) penetrations and small-bore (∼400-mm diameter) piping components. A series of international blind round-robin tests were conducted by commercial and university inspection teams. Results from these tests showed that a combination of conventional and phased-array ultrasound techniques provided the highest performance for flaw detection and depth sizing in dissimilar metal piping welds. The effective detection of flaws in BMIs by eddy current and ultrasound shows that it may be possible to reliably inspect these components in the field. The goal of PARENT is to continue the work begun in PINC and apply the lessons learned to a series of open and blind international round-robin tests that will be conducted on a new set of piping components including large-bore (∼900-mm diameter) DMWs, small-bore DMWs, and BMIs. Open round-robin testing will engage universities and industry worldwide to investigate the reliability of emerging NDE techniques to detect and accurately size flaws having a wide range of lengths, depths, orientations, and locations. Blind round-robin testing will invite testing organizations worldwide, whose inspectors and procedures are certified by the standards for the nuclear industry in their respective countries, to investigate the ability of established NDE techniques to detect and size flaws whose characteristics range from easy to very difficult to detect and size. This paper presents highlights of PINC and reports on the plans and progress for
Primary Water Stress Corrosion Cracks in Nickel Alloy Dissimilar Metal Welds: Detection and Sizing Using Established and Emerging Nondestructive Examination Techniques

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Braatz, Brett G.; Cumblidge, Stephen E.; Doctor, Steven R.; Prokofiev, Iouri

2012-12-31

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has established the Program to Assess the Reliability of Emerging Nondestructive Techniques (PARENT) as a follow-on to the international cooperative Program for the Inspection of Nickel Alloy Components (PINC). The goal of PINC was to evaluate the capabilities of various nondestructive evaluation (NDE) techniques to detect and characterize surface-breaking primary water stress corrosion cracks in dissimilar-metal welds (DMW) in bottom-mounted instrumentation (BMI) penetrations and small-bore (≈400-mm diameter) piping components. A series of international blind round-robin tests were conducted by commercial and university inspection teams. Results from these tests showed that a combination of conventional and phased-array ultrasound techniques provided the highest performance for flaw detection and depth sizing in dissimilar metal piping welds. The effective detection of flaws in BMIs by eddy current and ultrasound shows that it may be possible to reliably inspect these components in the field. The goal of PARENT is to continue the work begun in PINC and apply the lessons learned to a series of open and blind international round-robin tests that will be conducted on a new set of piping components including large-bore (≈900-mm diameter) DMWs, small-bore DMWs, and BMIs. Open round-robin testing will engage universities and industry worldwide to investigate the reliability of emerging NDE techniques to detect and accurately size flaws having a wide range of lengths, depths, orientations, and locations. Blind round-robin testing will invite testing organizations worldwide, whose inspectors and procedures are certified by the standards for the nuclear industry in their respective countries, to investigate the ability of established NDE techniques to detect and size flaws whose characteristics range from easy to very difficult to detect and size. This paper presents highlights of PINC and reports on the plans and progress for
Virtual radiology rounds: adding value in the digital era

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fefferman, Nancy R.; Strubel, Naomi A.; Prithiani, Chandan; Chakravarti, Sujata; Caprio, Martha; Recht, Michael P.

2016-01-01

To preserve radiology rounds in the changing health care environment, we have introduced virtual radiology rounds, an initiative enabling clinicians to remotely review imaging studies with the radiologist. We describe our initial experience with virtual radiology rounds and referring provider impressions. Virtual radiology rounds, a web-based conference, use remote sharing of radiology workstations. Participants discuss imaging studies by speakerphone. Virtual radiology rounds were piloted with the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and the Congenital Cardiovascular Care Unit (CCVCU). Providers completed a survey assessing the perceived impact and overall value of virtual radiology rounds on patient care using a 10-point scale. Pediatric radiologists participating in virtual radiology rounds completed a survey assessing technical, educational and clinical aspects of this methodology. Sixteen providers responded to the survey; 9 NICU and 7 CCVCU staff (physicians, nurse practitioners and fellows). Virtual radiology rounds occurred 4-5 sessions/week with an average of 6.4 studies. Clinicians rated confidence in their own image interpretation with a 7.4 average rating for NICU and 7.5 average rating for CCVCU. Clinicians unanimously rated virtual radiology rounds as adding value. NICU staff preferred virtual radiology rounds to traditional rounds and CCVCU staff supported their new participation in virtual radiology rounds. Four of the five pediatric radiologists participating in virtual radiology rounds responded to the survey reporting virtual radiology rounds to be easy to facilitate (average rating: 9.3), to moderately impact interpretation of imaging studies (average rating: 6), and to provide substantial educational value for radiologists (average rating: 8.3). All pediatric radiologists felt strongly that virtual radiology rounds enable increased integration of the radiologist into the clinical care team (average rating: 8.8). Virtual radiology rounds are a
Virtual radiology rounds: adding value in the digital era

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fefferman, Nancy R.; Strubel, Naomi A.; Prithiani, Chandan; Chakravarti, Sujata; Caprio, Martha; Recht, Michael P. [New York University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, New York, NY (United States)

2016-11-15

To preserve radiology rounds in the changing health care environment, we have introduced virtual radiology rounds, an initiative enabling clinicians to remotely review imaging studies with the radiologist. We describe our initial experience with virtual radiology rounds and referring provider impressions. Virtual radiology rounds, a web-based conference, use remote sharing of radiology workstations. Participants discuss imaging studies by speakerphone. Virtual radiology rounds were piloted with the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and the Congenital Cardiovascular Care Unit (CCVCU). Providers completed a survey assessing the perceived impact and overall value of virtual radiology rounds on patient care using a 10-point scale. Pediatric radiologists participating in virtual radiology rounds completed a survey assessing technical, educational and clinical aspects of this methodology. Sixteen providers responded to the survey; 9 NICU and 7 CCVCU staff (physicians, nurse practitioners and fellows). Virtual radiology rounds occurred 4-5 sessions/week with an average of 6.4 studies. Clinicians rated confidence in their own image interpretation with a 7.4 average rating for NICU and 7.5 average rating for CCVCU. Clinicians unanimously rated virtual radiology rounds as adding value. NICU staff preferred virtual radiology rounds to traditional rounds and CCVCU staff supported their new participation in virtual radiology rounds. Four of the five pediatric radiologists participating in virtual radiology rounds responded to the survey reporting virtual radiology rounds to be easy to facilitate (average rating: 9.3), to moderately impact interpretation of imaging studies (average rating: 6), and to provide substantial educational value for radiologists (average rating: 8.3). All pediatric radiologists felt strongly that virtual radiology rounds enable increased integration of the radiologist into the clinical care team (average rating: 8.8). Virtual radiology rounds are a
The state of nuclear forensics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kristo, Michael J.; Tumey, Scott J.

2013-01-01

Nuclear terrorism has been identified as one of the most serious security threats facing the world today. Many countries, including the United States, have incorporated nuclear forensic analysis as a component of their strategy to prevent nuclear terrorism. Nuclear forensics involves the laboratory analysis of seized illicit nuclear materials or debris from a nuclear detonation to identify the origins of the material or weapon. Over the years, a number of forensic signatures have been developed to improve the confidence with which forensic analysts can draw conclusions. These signatures are validated and new signatures are discovered through research and development programs and in round-robin exercises among nuclear forensic laboratories. The recent Nuclear Smuggling International Technical Working Group Third Round Robin Exercise and an on-going program focused on attribution of uranium ore concentrate provide prime examples of the current state of nuclear forensics. These case studies will be examined and the opportunities for accelerator mass spectrometry to play a role in nuclear forensics will be discussed.

The state of nuclear forensics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kristo, Michael J. [Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, P.O. Box 808, L-186, Livermore, CA 94551 (United States); Tumey, Scott J., E-mail: tumey2@llnl.gov [Center for Accelerator Mass Spectrometry, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, P.O. Box 808, L-397, Livermore, CA 94551 (United States)

2013-01-15

Nuclear terrorism has been identified as one of the most serious security threats facing the world today. Many countries, including the United States, have incorporated nuclear forensic analysis as a component of their strategy to prevent nuclear terrorism. Nuclear forensics involves the laboratory analysis of seized illicit nuclear materials or debris from a nuclear detonation to identify the origins of the material or weapon. Over the years, a number of forensic signatures have been developed to improve the confidence with which forensic analysts can draw conclusions. These signatures are validated and new signatures are discovered through research and development programs and in round-robin exercises among nuclear forensic laboratories. The recent Nuclear Smuggling International Technical Working Group Third Round Robin Exercise and an on-going program focused on attribution of uranium ore concentrate provide prime examples of the current state of nuclear forensics. These case studies will be examined and the opportunities for accelerator mass spectrometry to play a role in nuclear forensics will be discussed.
Experimental Evaluation of Multi-Round Matrix Multiplication on MapReduce

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ceccarello, Matteo; Silvestri, Francesco

2015-01-01

required by reduce functions. Then, we present an extensive study of this library on an in-house cluster and on Amazon Web Services aiming at showing its performance and at comparing monolithic and multi-round approaches. The experiments show that, even without a low level optimization, it is possible...... not be the best approach in cloud systems. Indeed, multi-round algorithms may exploit some features of cloud platforms by suitably setting the round number according to the execution context. In this paper we carry out an experimental study of multi-round MapReduce algorithms aiming at investigating...... the performance of the multi-round approach. We use matrix multiplication as a case study. We first propose a scalable Hadoop library, named M3, for matrix multiplication in the dense and sparse cases which allows to tradeoff round number with the amount of data shuffled in each round and the amount of memory...
Asymptotic eigenvalue estimates for a Robin problem with a large parameter

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Exner, Pavel; Minakov, A.; Parnovski, L.

2014-01-01

Roč. 71, č. 2 (2014), s. 141-156 ISSN 0032-5155 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-06818S Institutional support: RVO:61389005 Keywords : Laplacian * Robin problem * eigenvalue asymptotics Subject RIV: BE - Theoretical Physics Impact factor: 0.250, year: 2014
On solving wave equations on fixed bounded intervals involving Robin boundary conditions with time-dependent coefficients

Science.gov (United States)

van Horssen, Wim T.; Wang, Yandong; Cao, Guohua

2018-06-01

In this paper, it is shown how characteristic coordinates, or equivalently how the well-known formula of d'Alembert, can be used to solve initial-boundary value problems for wave equations on fixed, bounded intervals involving Robin type of boundary conditions with time-dependent coefficients. A Robin boundary condition is a condition that specifies a linear combination of the dependent variable and its first order space-derivative on a boundary of the interval. Analytical methods, such as the method of separation of variables (SOV) or the Laplace transform method, are not applicable to those types of problems. The obtained analytical results by applying the proposed method, are in complete agreement with those obtained by using the numerical, finite difference method. For problems with time-independent coefficients in the Robin boundary condition(s), the results of the proposed method also completely agree with those as for instance obtained by the method of separation of variables, or by the finite difference method.
Evaluation of the response of a round hole scintillation camera collimator by the Fourier analysis method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hernandez, A.; Millan, S.; Yzuel, M.J.

1986-01-01

The Fourier analysis method was used to investigate the response of scintillation camera collimators with parallel holes. This method which takes into account the septal penetration was applied to the case of round hole collimators having a hexagonal distribution. Modulation transfer functions, MTF have been determined to verify the accuracy of the computed Fourier coefficients of the collimator function. Comparisons between the geometric and the penetrating plus geometric transfer function are shown for round and hexagonal holes. (author)
Stabilization of flow past a rounded cylinder

Science.gov (United States)

Samtaney, Ravi; Zhang, Wei

2016-11-01

We perform global linear stability analysis on low-Re flow past a rounded cylinder. The cylinder corners are rounded with a radius R, normalized as R+ = R / D where D is the cylinder diameter, and its effect on the flow stability characteristics is investigated. We compute the critical Reynolds number (Recr) for the onset of first instability, and quantify the perturbation growth rate for the super-critical flows. It is found that the flow can be stabilized by partially rounding the cylinder. Compared with the square and circular cylinders, the partially rounded cylinder has a higher Recr , attaining a maximum at around R+ = 0 . 30 , and the perturbation growth rate of the super-critical flows is reduced for Re R+ -> 0 . 00), while only the near-wake backflow is crucial for circular-like cylinders (R+ -> 0 . 50). The stability analysis results are also verified with those of the direct simulations and very good agreement is achieved. Supported by the KAUST Office of Competitive Research Funds under Award No. URF/1/1394-01. The supercomputer Shaheen at KAUST was utilized for the simulations.
Vapor phase treatment–total reflection X-ray fluorescence for trace elemental analysis of silicon wafer surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takahara, Hikari; Mori, Yoshihiro; Shibata, Harumi; Shimazaki, Ayako; Shabani, Mohammad B.; Yamagami, Motoyuki; Yabumoto, Norikuni; Nishihagi, Kazuo; Gohshi, Yohichi

2013-01-01

Vapor phase treatment (VPT) was under investigation by the International Organization for Standardization/Technical Committee 201/Working Group 2 (ISO/TC201/WG2) to improve the detection limit of total reflection X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (TXRF) for trace metal analysis of silicon wafers. Round robin test results have confirmed that TXRF intensity increased by VPT for intentional contamination with 5 × 10 9 and 5 × 10 10 atoms/cm 2 Fe and Ni. The magnification of intensity enhancement varied greatly (1.2–4.7 in VPT factor) among the participating laboratories, though reproducible results could be obtained for average of mapping measurement. SEM observation results showed that various features, sizes, and surface densities of particles formed on the wafer after VPT. The particle morphology seems to have some impact on the VPT efficiency. High resolution SEM observation revealed that a certain number of dots with SiO 2 , silicate and/or carbon gathered to form a particle and heavy metals, Ni and Fe in this study were segregated on it. The amount and shape of the residue should be important to control VPT factor. - Highlights: • This paper presents a summary of study results of VPT–TXRF using ISO/TC201/WG2. • Our goal is to analyze the trace metallic contamination on silicon wafer with concentrations below 1 × 10 10 atoms/cm 2 . • The efficiency and mechanism of VPT are discussed under several round robin tests and systematic studies
Quantitative phase analysis by neutron diffraction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Chang Hee; Song, Su Ho; Lee, Jin Ho; Shim, Hae Seop [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea)

1999-06-01

This study is to apply quantitative phase analysis (QPA) by neutron diffraction to the round robin samples provided by the International Union of Crystallography(IUCr). We measured neutron diffraction patterns for mixed samples which have several different weight percentages and their unique characteristic features. Neutron diffraction method has been known to be superior to its complementary methods such as X-ray or Synchrotron, but it is still accepted as highly reliable under limited conditions or samples. Neutron diffraction has strong capability especially on oxides due to its scattering cross-section of the oxygen and it can become a more strong tool for analysis on the industrial materials with this quantitative phase analysis techniques. By doing this study, we hope not only to do one of instrument performance tests on our HRPD but also to improve our ability on the analysis of neutron diffraction data by comparing our QPA results with others from any advanced reactor facilities. 14 refs., 4 figs., 6 tabs. (Author)
A comparison of the nesting success of mourning doves and American robins in conventionally managed and organic orchards

Science.gov (United States)

Fluetsch, K.M.

1992-01-01

A comparative study was undertaken to document more closely the effects of operational pesticide use on non-target avian species. Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) and American Robin (Turdus migratorius) nesting activity was monitored in three organic and three conventional orchards during two breeding seasons. Surveys were conducted to characterize the avian community within orchards under both management practices. Organophosphorus (OP) and carbamate pesticides, known to be extremely toxic to birds, were repeatedly sprayed during the peaks in dove and robin breeding activity. Spray card tests revealed that OP pesticides were deposited on 85.5% of the nests tested during routine spray operations. The threat of direct pesticide exposure to eggs, nestlings, and adult birds was considerable. Nest daily survival rates (DSRs) for both doves and robins, were significantly higher in the organic orchards than in the conventional orchards in 1991 and years combined (P < 0.05). Species diversity was significantly greater in the organic orchards (H = 2.43) than in the conventional orchards (H = 1.79). Results suggest that repeated applications of pesticides, within the conventional orchards, directly or indirectly, affected the reproductive success of doves and robins, as well as influenced species diversity within the treated orchards. Organic orchards appear to provide more favorable nesting and foraging habitat for birds than conventional orchards.
Transient Side Load Analysis of Out-of-Round Film-Cooled Nozzle Extensions

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ten-See; Lin, Jeff; Ruf, Joe; Guidos, Mike

2012-01-01

There was interest in understanding the impact of out-of-round nozzle extension on the nozzle side load during transient startup operations. The out-of-round nozzle extension could be the result of asymmetric internal stresses, deformation induced by previous tests, and asymmetric loads induced by hardware attached to the nozzle. The objective of this study was therefore to computationally investigate the effect of out-of-round nozzle extension on the nozzle side loads during an engine startup transient. The rocket engine studied encompasses a regeneratively cooled chamber and nozzle, along with a film cooled nozzle extension. The computational methodology is based on an unstructured-grid, pressure-based computational fluid dynamics formulation, and transient inlet boundary flow properties derived from an engine system simulation. Six three-dimensional cases were performed with the out-of-roundness achieved by three different degrees of ovalization, elongated on lateral y and z axes: one slightly out-of-round, one more out-of-round, and one significantly out-of-round. The results show that the separation line jump was the primary source of the peak side loads. Comparing to the peak side load of the perfectly round nozzle, the peak side loads increased for the slightly and more ovalized nozzle extensions, and either increased or decreased for the two significantly ovalized nozzle extensions. A theory based on the counteraction of the flow destabilizing effect of an exacerbated asymmetrical flow caused by a lower degree of ovalization, and the flow stabilizing effect of a more symmetrical flow, created also by ovalization, is presented to explain the observations obtained in this effort.
Improving assessment of personality disorder traits through social network analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Clifton, Allan; Turkheimer, Eric; Oltmanns, Thomas F

2007-10-01

When assessing personality disorder traits, not all judges make equally valid judgments of all targets. The present study uses social network analysis to investigate factors associated with reliability and validity in peer assessment. Participants were groups of military recruits (N=809) who acted as both targets and judges in a round-robin design. Participants completed self- and informant versions of the Multisource Assessment of Personality Pathology. Social network matrices were constructed based on reported acquaintance, and cohesive subgroups were identified. Judges who shared a mutual subgroup were more reliable and had higher self-peer agreement than those who did not. Partitioning networks into two subgroups achieved more consistent improvements than multiple subgroups. We discuss implications for multiple informant assessments.
Boarding ICU patients: Are our rounding practices subpar?

Science.gov (United States)

Nunn, Andrew M; Hatchimonji, Justin S; Holena, Daniel N; Seamon, Mark J; Smith, Brian P; Kaplan, Lewis J; Martin, Niels D; Reilly, Patrick M; Schwab, C William; Pascual, Jose L

2018-04-01

Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) patients "boarding" in ICUs other than the designated home unit have been shown to suffer increased rates of complications. We hypothesized that ICU rounding practices are different when SICU patients are housed in home vs. boarding ICUs. SICU rounds were observed at an academic quaternary medical center. Individual patient rounding time and order seen on rounds along with patient data and demographics were recorded. Multivariable regression analysis was used for comparison between patients. Non-boarders were older, observed on a later post ICU admission day and were more likely to be mechanically ventilated. Boarded patients were often seen at the end of rounds and for less time. Not being a boarder, age, APACHE II score on admission, vasopressor use, and positive pressure ventilation all predicted increased rounding time. Surgical ICU patients boarding in non-preferred units are often seen at the end of rounds, result in a greater reliance upon telephone communication, and receive less bedside attention from ICU provider teams. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Reviving post-take surgical ward round teaching.

Science.gov (United States)

Force, Jade; Thomas, Ian; Buckley, Frances

2014-04-01

Learning in the clinical environment is an important feature of medical education. Ward-round teaching leads to relevant, applied and lasting learning of knowledge, skills and attitudes; however, on fast-paced ward rounds in specialties such as general surgery, the student experience is often suboptimal, and teaching can be overlooked. Clinical teaching fellows (CTFs) are postgraduate doctors ranging from foundation year-2 (FY2) level through to specialty trainees, who have elected to spend up to 2 years out of the programme to teach medical undergraduates. This article explores whether CTFs can successfully support the regular delivery of undergraduate medical teaching on the busy post-take surgical ward round (PTSWR). The CTFs at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness, planned and facilitated weekly, structured teaching sessions to accompany the PTSWR. This educational intervention was evaluated using pre- and post-intervention student questionnaires. The questionnaires focused on student enjoyment and depth of learning using Likert scales and free-text components. Students were also asked about barriers to learning on typical PTSWRs. The consultant surgeons leading on these rounds were issued separate questionnaires, to gauge their evaluation of CTF support. The main barrier to effective undergraduate ward round teaching was a lack of time on the part of clinical staff. Ward rounds accompanied by CTF support significantly increased student enjoyment (p student satisfaction, and was welcomed by clinical staff. CTF support could be widened to other busy ward rounds, e.g. acute medical takes, to enhance student learning and reduce the teaching burden on clinical faculty staff. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Resonant alteration of propagation in guiding structures with complex Robin parameter and its magnetic-field-induced restoration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Olendski, O.

2011-01-01

Highlights: → Solutions of the wave equation are analyzed for the confined circular geometry with complex Robin boundary conditions. → Sharp extremum is found in the energy dependence on the imaginary part of the extrapolation length. → Nonzero real part of the Robin length or/and magnetic field wipe out the resonance. - Abstract: Solutions of the scalar Helmholtz wave equation are derived for the analysis of the transport and thermodynamic properties of the two-dimensional disk and three-dimensional infinitely long straight wire in the external uniform longitudinal magnetic field B under the assumption that the Robin boundary condition contains extrapolation length Λ with nonzero imaginary part Λ i . As a result of this complexity, the self-adjointness of the Hamiltonian is lost, its eigenvalues E become complex too and the discrete bound states of the disk characteristic for the real Λ turn into the corresponding quasibound states with their lifetime defined by the eigenenergies imaginary parts E i . Accordingly, the longitudinal flux undergoes an alteration as it flows along the wire with its attenuation/amplification being E i -dependent too. It is shown that, for zero magnetic field, the component E i as a function of the Robin imaginary part exhibits a pronounced sharp extremum with its magnitude being the largest for the zero real part Λ r of the extrapolation length. Increasing magnitude of Λ r quenches the E i - Λ i resonance and at very large Λ r the eigenenergies E approach the asymptotic real values independent of Λ i . The extremum is also wiped out by the magnetic field when, for the large B, the energies tend to the Landau levels. Mathematical and physical interpretations of the obtained results are provided; in particular, it is shown that the finite lifetime of the disk quasibound states stems from the Λ i -induced currents flowing through the sample boundary. Possible experimental tests of the calculated effect are discussed; namely
Round-robin testing of low-scatter optics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bennett, J.M.; Stowell, W.K.

1985-01-01

For high quality laser optics it is important to compare measurements of surface quality made in different laboratories, determine how scattering levels of silver coatings produced by different groups compare, and what effects, if any, are introduced by stripping the silver coatings and by handling and transporting samples between laboratories. Fourteen very low-scatter, optically polished synthetic fused silica (Suprasil) and natural fused quartz (Homosil) samples were purchased from Robert M. Silva of VTI, Dayton, Ohio. Angular scattering, i.e., bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF), was measured on all the uncoated samples and three silver-coated samples at AFWAL using a variable angle scatterometer. Eleven additional samples were silver coated at NWC, and total integrated scattering (TIS) was measured on all silver-coated samples. Transmission electron micrographs were made of the surfaces (silvered and also stripped) of two samples, and selected coated and uncoated samples were profiled. TIS was then measured on the instrument at AFWL
Kniest disease with Pierre Robin syndrome and hydrocephalus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silengo, M.C.; Davi, G.F.; Bianco, R.; DeMarco, A.; Franceschini, P.

1983-01-01

A 3-month-old male infant with clinical and radiological features of Kniest disease is reported. Additional findings were severe Pierre Robin syndrome and external hydrocephalus. The patient was retarded in mental and motor development. He died at 4 months of age from the complications of tracheostomy. The parents were both normal clinically and radiologically, thus the disease in the child was presumably due to a new mutation. The reported familial cases of Kniest disease suggest autosomal dominant inheritance. The differential diagnosis is discussed in detail. (orig.)
Bounds and extremal domains for Robin eigenvalues with negative boundary parameter

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Antunes, P. R. S.; Freitas, P.; Krejčiřík, David

2017-01-01

Roč. 10, č. 4 (2017), s. 357-379 ISSN 1864-8258 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-06818S Institutional support: RVO:61389005 Keywords : Eigenvalue optimisation * Robin Laplacian * negative boundary parameter * Bareket's conjecture Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics OBOR OECD: Pure mathematics Impact factor: 1.182, year: 2016
Interrelationships between morphometric variables and rounded fish body yields evaluated by path analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rafael Vilhena Reis Neto

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study was to verify which morphometric measures and ratios are more directly associated with the weight and body yields of rounded fish. A total of 225 specimens of rounded fish (59 pacus, 61 tambaquis, 52 tambacus and 53 paquis with average weight of 972.43 g (±115.52 g were sampled, stunned, slaughtered, weighed, measured, and processed for morphometric and processing yield analysis. The morphometric measures taken were: standard length (CP; head length (CC; head height (AC; body height (A1; and body width (L1. For completeness, the following morphometric ratios were calculated: CC/CP, AC/CP, A1/CP, L1/CP, CC/A1, AC/A1, L1/A1, CC/AC and L1/CC. The yields of carcass, filet, rib and filet with rib were estimated after processing. Initially, a "stepwise" procedure was performed in order to eliminate multicollinearity problems among the morphometric variables, and the phenotypic correlations were then calculated for the dependent variables (weight and body yields and independent variables (morphometric measurements and ratios. These correlations were later deployed in direct and indirect effects through path analysis, and the direct and indirect contributions of each variable were measured in percentage terms. The CC and A1 measures were important for determining the weight of rounded fish. The CC/A1 ratio was the variable most directly associated with carcass yield. For filet, filet with rib and rib yields, the L1/CC ratio was found to be more appropriate and can be used directly.
The Wheels of Stress Go 'Round and 'Round

Science.gov (United States)

Brey, Rebecca A.; Clark, Susan E.

2012-01-01

"The Wheels of Stress Go Round and Round" teaching idea uses three activity wheels to reinforce stress-related content and concepts. After presenting a definition of stress, the instructor assists students in identifying stressors, and aids in formulating a list of negative, reactive behaviors and a list of positive coping mechanisms. Using…
Participation of the GRS in the 'Degraded piping program' of the USNRC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Azodi, D.; Hoefler, A.; Sievers, J.

1989-01-01

During the course of the Degraded Piping Program, Battelle was the organizer of three round-robin activities for advanced elasto-plastic fracture mechanics calculations (e.g. finite element method and J-estimation scheme). GRS participated in all of them and submitted finite element and J-estimation scheme results. As a main result of round-robin on elasto-plastic fracture mechanics calculations: Based on finite element calculations, the J-integral method (energy release rate) provided the ability to describe the fracture behaviour of flawed piping even in a very ductile material. (orig./HP) [de

Post irradiation examination technology exchange

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sozawa, Shizuo; Ito, Masayasu; Taguchi, Taketoshi; Nakagawa, Tetsuya; Lee, Hyung-Kwon

2012-01-01

Under the KAERI and JAEA agreement, in a part of the program 18 (Post Irradiation Examination (PIE) and Evaluation Technique of Irradiated Materials), an eddy current test was proposed as a round robin test, and it has been being progressed in both organizations in order to enhance the post irradiation examination technology. Up to now, several data are obtained by both PIE facilities. In this paper, the round robin test program is shown, and also shown obtained data with discussion from applicability as a nondestructive test in the hot cell. (author)
Round atelectases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hanke, R.; Kretzschmar, R.

1983-01-01

a) For several reasons Sinner's paper calls for critical remarks: His term ''Pleuroma'' for a neither pleural nor tumorous but intrapulmonary and atelectatic mass lesion lacks any anatomical and histological basis and is misleading at that because it pretends a tumor of the pleura; his statement in the summary that atelectatic pseudotumors of the lung show a tumorcell-like cytoarchitecture is surprising without being further discussed by the author; he encourages risky invasive diagnostical procedures even in cases where the radiological diagnosis of round atelectasis is unmistakable; already known radiologic features of round atelectases are presented by him as hitherto undescribed; his conceptions of the formal development of round atelectases and of their most characteristic features can not be agreed with. b) The different forms of round atelectases and their residuals are presented with tomograms and with diagrams of their formal development from our point of view. (orig.) [de
The impact of a lean rounding process in a pediatric intensive care unit.

Science.gov (United States)

Vats, Atul; Goin, Kristin H; Villarreal, Monica C; Yilmaz, Tuba; Fortenberry, James D; Keskinocak, Pinar

2012-02-01

Poor workflow associated with physician rounding can produce inefficiencies that decrease time for essential activities, delay clinical decisions, and reduce staff and patient satisfaction. Workflow and provider resources were not optimized when a pediatric intensive care unit increased by 22,000 square feet (to 33,000) and by nine beds (to 30). Lean methods (focusing on essential processes) and scenario analysis were used to develop and implement a patient-centric standardized rounding process, which we hypothesize would lead to improved rounding efficiency, decrease required physician resources, improve satisfaction, and enhance throughput. Human factors techniques and statistical tools were used to collect and analyze observational data for 11 rounding events before and 12 rounding events after process redesign. Actions included: 1) recording rounding events, times, and patient interactions and classifying them as essential, nonessential, or nonvalue added; 2) comparing rounding duration and time per patient to determine the impact on efficiency; 3) analyzing discharge orders for timeliness; 4) conducting staff surveys to assess improvements in communication and care coordination; and 5) analyzing customer satisfaction data to evaluate impact on patient experience. Thirty-bed pediatric intensive care unit in a children's hospital with academic affiliation. Eight attending pediatric intensivists and their physician rounding teams. Eight attending physician-led teams were observed for 11 rounding events before and 12 rounding events after implementation of a standardized lean rounding process focusing on essential processes. Total rounding time decreased significantly (157 ± 35 mins before vs. 121 ± 20 mins after), through a reduction in time spent on nonessential (53 ± 30 vs. 9 ± 6 mins) activities. The previous process required three attending physicians for an average of 157 mins (7.55 attending physician man-hours), while the new process required two
Study the effect of elevated dies temperature on aluminium and steel round deep drawing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lean, Yeong Wei; Azuddin, M.

2016-01-01

Round deep drawing operation can only be realized by expensive multi-step production processes. To reduce the cost of processes while expecting an acceptable result, round deep drawing can be done at elevated temperature. There are 3 common problems which are fracture, wrinkling and earing of deep drawing a round cup. The main objective is to investigate the effect of dies temperature on aluminium and steel round deep drawing; with a sub-objective of eliminate fracture and reducing wrinkling effect. Experimental method is conducted with 3 different techniques on heating the die. The techniques are heating both upper and lower dies, heating only the upper dies, and heating only the lower dies. 4 different temperatures has been chosen throughout the experiment. The experimental result then will be compared with finite element analysis software. There is a positive result from steel material on heating both upper and lower dies, where the simulation result shows comparable as experimental result. Heating both upper and lower dies will be the best among 3 types of heating techniques. (paper)
Impact of near-peer teaching rounds on student satisfaction in the basic surgical clerkship.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Joseph A; Farrow, Norma; Lindeman, Brenessa M; Lidor, Anne O

2017-06-01

Teaching rounds are rarely featured in the surgery clerkship. Senior students interested in surgery are suited to precept teaching rounds. Near-peer teaching can provide benefits to both learners and preceptors. Near-peer teaching rounds consisted of senior student-precetors leading groups of 3 clerkship students on teaching rounds once during the clerkship. We prospectively surveyed student satisfaction before and after instituting near-peer teaching rounds. We retrospectively gathered qualitative narratives from student-preceptors. The survey response rate was 93% before near-peer teaching rounds were instituted and 85% after. Satisfaction with the learning environment and the quality and amount of small-group teaching were significantly higher after the institution of near-peer teaching rounds (P ≤ .001 for all 3). Satisfaction with the overall clerkship and baseline interest in surgery were not significantly different. Student-preceptors reported gaining valuable experience for future roles in academia as residents and attending surgeons. Student satisfaction with small-group teaching and the learning environment increased after the institution of near-peer teaching rounds in the surgery clerkship. Student-preceptors gained early experience for careers in academic surgery. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Studies of turbulent round jets through experimentation, simulation, and modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Keedy, Ryan

This thesis studies the physics of the turbulent round jet. In particular, it focuses on three different problems that have the turbulent round jet as their base flow. The first part of this thesis examines a compressible turbulent round jet at its sonic condition. We investigate the shearing effect such a jet has when impinging on a solid surface that is perpendicular to the flow direction. We report on experiments to evaluate the jet's ability to remove different types of explosive particles from a glass surface. Theoretical analysis revealed trends and enabled modeling to improve the predictability of particle removal for various jet conditions. The second part of thesis aims at developing a non-intrusive measurement technique for free-shear turbulent flows in nature. Most turbulent jet investigations in the literature, both in the laboratory and in the field, required specialized intrusive instrumentation and/or complex optical setups. There are many situations in naturally-occurring flows where the environment may prove too hostile or remote for existing instrumentation. We have developed a methodology for analyzing video of the exterior of a naturally-occurring flow and calculating the flow velocity. We found that the presence of viscosity gradients affects the velocity analysis. While these effects produce consistent, predictable changes, we became interested in the mechanism by which the viscosity gradients affect the mixing and development of the turbulent round jet. We conducted a stability analysis of the axisymmetric jet when a viscosity gradient is present. Finally, the third problem addressed in this thesis is the growth of liquid droplets by condensation in a turbulent round jet. A vapor-saturated turbulent jet issues into a cold, dry environment. The resulting mixing produces highly inhomogeneous regions of supersaturation, where droplets grow and evaporate. Non-linear interactions between the droplet growth rate and the supersaturation field make
Bittersweet Findings: Round Cups Fail to Induce Sweeter Taste

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Casparus J. A. Machiels

2018-02-01

Full Text Available An increasing body of literature demonstrates that consumers associate visual information with specific gustatory elements. This phenomenon is better known as cross-modal correspondence. A specific correspondence that has received attention of late is the one between round forms and sweet taste. Research indicates that roundness (as opposed to angularity is consistently associated with an increased sweetness perception. Focusing on two different cup forms (round versus angular, two studies tested this association for a butter milk drink and a mate-based soft drink. Results, however, were not able to corroborate the frequently suggested correspondence effect, but a correspondence was found between the angular cup and a more bitter taste for the soft drink. These results are discussed in light of previous findings matching sweetness with roundness and bitterness with angularity, hopefully aiding researchers in this field in conducting future experiments.
Over-pressure test on BARCOM pre-stressed concrete containment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Parmar, R.M.; Singh, Tarvinder; Thangamani, I.; Trivedi, Neha; Singh, Ram Kumar, E-mail: rksingh@barc.gov.in

2014-04-01

Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Trombay has organized an International Round Robin Analysis program to carry out the ultimate load capacity assessment of BARC Containment (BARCOM) test model. The test model located in BARC facilities Tarapur; is a 1:4 scale representation of 540 MWe Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) pre-stressed concrete inner containment structure of Tarapur Atomic Power Station (TAPS) unit 3 and 4. There are a large number of sensors installed in BARCOM that include vibratory wire strain gauges of embedded and spot-welded type, surface mounted electrical resistance strain gauges, dial gauges, earth pressure cells, tilt meters and high resolution digital camera systems for structural response, crack monitoring and fracture parameter measurement to evaluate the local and global behavior of the containment test model. The model has been tested pneumatically during the low pressure tests (LPTs) followed by proof test (PT) and integrated leakage rate test (ILRT) during commissioning. Further the over pressure test (OPT) has been carried out to establish the failure mode of BARCOM Test-Model. The over-pressure test will be completed shortly to reach the functional failure of the test model. Pre-test evaluation of BARCOM was carried out with the results obtained from the registered international round robin participants in January 2009 followed by the post-test assessment in February 2011. The test results along with the various failure modes related to the structural members – concrete, rebars and tendons identified in terms of prescribed milestones are presented in this paper along with the comparison of the pre-test predictions submitted by the registered participants of the Round Robin Analysis for BARCOM test model.
Challenges of the ward round teaching based on the experiences of medical clinical teachers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kamran Soltani Arabshahi

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Holding educational sessions in a clinical environment is a major concern for faculty members because of its special difficulties and restrictions. This study attempts to recognize the challenges of the ward round teaching through investigating the experiences of clinical teachers in 2011. Materials and Methods: This qualitative research is carried out through purposive sampling with maximum variation from among the clinical teachers of major departments in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences (9 persons. The sampling continued until data saturation. Data were collected through semi-structured interview and analyzed through Collaizzi method. Data reliability and validity was confirmed through the four aspects of Lincoln and Guba method (credibility, conformability, transferability, and dependability. Results: Three major themes and their related sub-themes (minor themes were found out including the factors related to the triad of clinical teaching (patient, learner, and clinical teacher (concern about patient′s welfare, poor preparation, lack of motivation, ethical problems, factors related to the educational environment (stressful environment, humiliating environment and poor communication and the factors related to the educational system of the clinical environment (poor organizing and arrangement of resources, poor system′s monitoring, bad planning and inadequate resource. Conclusion: Ward round teaching has many concerns for teachers, and this should be recognized and resolved by authorities and teachers. If these problems are not resolved, it would affect the quality of clinical teaching.
Challenges of the ward round teaching based on the experiences of medical clinical teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Arabshahi, Kamran Soltani; Haghani, Fariba; Bigdeli, Shoaleh; Omid, Athar; Adibi, Peyman

2015-03-01

Holding educational sessions in a clinical environment is a major concern for faculty members because of its special difficulties and restrictions. This study attempts to recognize the challenges of the ward round teaching through investigating the experiences of clinical teachers in 2011. This qualitative research is carried out through purposive sampling with maximum variation from among the clinical teachers of major departments in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences (9 persons). The sampling continued until data saturation. Data were collected through semi-structured interview and analyzed through Collaizzi method. Data reliability and validity was confirmed through the four aspects of Lincoln and Guba method (credibility, conformability, transferability, and dependability). Three major themes and their related sub-themes (minor themes) were found out including the factors related to the triad of clinical teaching (patient, learner, and clinical teacher) (concern about patient's welfare, poor preparation, lack of motivation, ethical problems), factors related to the educational environment (stressful environment, humiliating environment and poor communication) and the factors related to the educational system of the clinical environment (poor organizing and arrangement of resources, poor system's monitoring, bad planning and inadequate resource). Ward round teaching has many concerns for teachers, and this should be recognized and resolved by authorities and teachers. If these problems are not resolved, it would affect the quality of clinical teaching.
INTRODUCTION Outline of Round Tables Outline of Round Tables

Science.gov (United States)

Abarzhi, Snezhana I.; Sreenivasan, Katepalli R.

2010-12-01

to strengthen links between experiments, simulations and theories and to augment these links with modern approaches in statistics, stochastic processes and data analysis. They further noted that the TMB community has a proven record of first-rate expertise in solving formidable and long-standing scientific problems, and discussed at length how to use this expertise in educational programs for graduate and professional education in science, mathematics and technology, and in other community outreach programs. The Round Tables put forward the following action items for the TMB Organizing Committee. (1) In close interaction with participants of TMB-2007 and TMB-2009, the Organizing Committee was requested to finalize a list of a few representative problems [deep enough and specific enough] useful for a variety of TMB-related themes. (2) The Organizing Committee was requested to organize a collaborative computing environment to maintain the information flux in the community, to share research tools, methodologies and data, including application of modern computational approaches for data sharing, annotation, transfer, analysis and visualization. The goal of the environment is to provide an infrastructure and to enhance quantitative criteria estimating the quality and information capacity of experimental and numerical data sets, and for the evaluation of predictive capabilities of theories and models. (3) The participants recommended contacting funding agencies with a pre-proposal (white paper) for the community project, and the National Academies of Sciences with a proposal to launch a decade of study of non-equilibrium turbulent processes. (4) The Organising Committee was requested to organize the 3rd International Conference 'Turbulent Mixing and Beyond', TMBW-2011, in the summer of 2011. To summarize, non-canonical turbulent processes are most representative processes in natural and artificial systems. These processes are characterized by non-equilibrium heat and mass
Prevention of catastrophic failure in pressure vessels and pipings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rintamaa, R.; Wallin, K.; Ikonen, K.; Toerroenen, K.; Talja, H.; Keinaenen, H.; Saarenheimo, A.; Nilsson, F.; Sarkimo, M.; Waestberg, S.; Debel, C.

1989-01-01

The fracture resistance and integrity of pressure-loaded components have been assessed in a Nordic research programme. Experiments were performed to validate the computational fracture assessment analysis. Two tests were also conducted on a large decommissioned pressure vessel from an oil refinery plant. Different fracture assessment methods were developed and subsequently applied to the tested components. Interlaboratory round robin programmes with the participation of several laboratories were arranged to examine elastic-plastic finit element calculations and fracture mechanics testing. The transferability of material parameters derived from small specimens with simple crack geometries to more realistic crack geometries in real components has been verified. (author)
Use of electrical barriers to deter movement of round goby

Science.gov (United States)

Savino, Jacqueline F.; Jude, David J.; Kostich, Melissa J.; Coutant, Charles C.

2001-01-01

An electrical barrier was chosen as a possible means to deter movement of round goby Neogobius melanostomus. Feasibility studies in a 2.1-m donut-shaped tank determined the electrical parameters necessary to inhibit round goby from crossing the 1-m stretch of the benthic, electrical barrier. Increasing electrical pulse duration and voltage increased effectiveness of the barrier in deterring round goby movement through the barrier. Differences in activity of round goby during daytime and nocturnal tests did not change the effectiveness of the barrier. In field verification studies, an electrical barrier was placed between two blocking nets in the Shiawassee River, Michigan. The barrier consisted of a 6-m wide canvas on which were laid four cables carrying the electrical current. Seven experiments were conducted, wherein 25 latex paint-marked round goby were introduced upstream of the electrical barrier and recovered 24 h later upstream, on, and downstream of the barrier. During control studies, round goby moved across the barrier within 20 min from release upstream. With the barrier on and using the prescribed electrical settings shown to inhibit passage in the laboratory, the only marked round goby found below the barrier were dead. At reduced pulse durations, a few round goby (mean one/test) were found alive, but debilitated, below the barrier. The electrical barrier could be incorporated as part of a program in reducing movement of adult round goby through artificial connections between watersheds.
The second level trigger of the L3 experiment. Pt. 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beingessner, S.P.; Blaising, J.J.; Chollet-Le Flour, F.; Degre, A.; Dromby, G.; Goy, C.; Lecoq, J.; Morand, R.; Moynot, M.; Perrot, G.; Rosier-Lees, S.; Forconi, G.

1993-07-01

The events recorded by the L3 Data Acquisition System are selected by three levels of trigger. The event filtering performed by software at the second trigger level is described. First coded offline in FORTRAN, the filtering software is microcoded for online execution in a farm of 3 XOP processors operating in a round robin mode. It identifies and rejects background events. Depending on running conditions and trigger type, rejection factors ranging from 45% to 80% are obtained on first level energy, muon and tec triggers. Selection efficiencies greater than 99.95% are achieved. (authors). 14 refs., 3 figs., 2 tabs
BCR: a service to quality assurance in analytical chemistry - some experiences and achievements with regard to reference material preparation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Griepink, B. (Commission of the European Communities, Measurements and Testing Programme (BCR), Brussels (Belgium)); Quevauviller, P. (Commission of the European Communities, Measurements and Testing Programme (BCR), Brussels (Belgium)); Maier, E.A. (Commission of the European Communities, Measurements and Testing Programme (BCR), Brussels (Belgium)); Vandendriessche, S. (Commission of the European Communities, Measurements and Testing Programme (BCR), Brussels (Belgium))

Despite all efforts to improve the quality of results of measurements, intercomparisons demonstrate a considerable discrepancy. This fact was also shown by many of the round robins organised by the BCR (Commission of the European Communities) on inorganic, speciation, and organic determinations in various environmental matrices. It is clear that further efforts have to be made to improve the state of the art of a wide variety of analyses. This means that the demand for certified reference materials (CRMs) is and will be in constant increase. RMs are required for the validation of methods, for proficiency testing or for training purposes. The production of RMs and CRMs resembling the composition of real matrices poses difficult problems for some compounds and is a challenge for the producers. This paper presents some recent experiences and achievements of the BCR in special cases. (orig.)
Optical properties of the human round window membrane

Science.gov (United States)

Höhl, Martin; DeTemple, Daphne; Lyutenski, Stefan; Leuteritz, Georg; Varkentin, Arthur; Schmitt, Heike Andrea; Lenarz, Thomas; Roth, Bernhard; Meinhardt-Wollweber, Merve; Morgner, Uwe

2017-10-01

Optical techniques are effective tools for diagnostic applications in medicine and are particularly attractive for the noninvasive analysis of biological tissues and fluids in vivo. Noninvasive examinations of substances via a fiber optic probe need to consider the optical properties of biological tissues obstructing the optical path. This applies to the analysis of the human perilymph, which is located behind the round window membrane. The composition of this inner ear liquid is directly correlated to inner ear hearing loss. In this work, experimental methods for studying the optical properties of the human round window membrane ex vivo are presented. For the first time, a comprehensive investigation of this tissue is performed, including optical transmission, forward scattering, and Raman scattering. The results obtained suggest the application of visible wavelengths (>400 nm) for investigating the perilymph behind the round window membrane in future.
Syndrome of round shadow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ginzburg, M.A.; Kinoshenko, Yu.T.

1987-01-01

Syndrome of round shadow is a traditional determination for a group of spherical, ovoid and similar volumetric formations of more than 1 cm. Differential roentgenodiagnosis of most typical diseases presented by a round shadow as well as dynamics of X-ray pattern of some round formations are presented. Radiological signs of the lung formations and similar ones in diaphragm and mediastinum thoracic wall are given. Ethiology, pathogenesis and pathomorphology of round formations, their clinical picture and investigation methods are discussed
Prospects for higher spatial resolution quantitative X-ray analysis using transition element L-lines

Science.gov (United States)

Statham, P.; Holland, J.

2014-03-01

Lowering electron beam kV reduces electron scattering and improves spatial resolution of X-ray analysis. However, a previous round robin analysis of steels at 5 - 6 kV using Lα-lines for the first row transition elements gave poor accuracies. Our experiments on SS63 steel using Lα-lines show similar biases in Cr and Ni that cannot be corrected with changes to self-absorption coefficients or carbon coating. The inaccuracy may be caused by different probabilities for emission and anomalous self-absorption for the La-line between specimen and pure element standard. Analysis using Ll(L3-M1)-lines gives more accurate results for SS63 plausibly because the M1-shell is not so vulnerable to the atomic environment as the unfilled M4,5-shell. However, Ll-intensities are very weak and WDS analysis may be impractical for some applications. EDS with large area SDD offers orders of magnitude faster analysis and achieves similar results to WDS analysis with Lα-lines but poorer energy resolution precludes the use of Ll-lines in most situations. EDS analysis of K-lines at low overvoltage is an alternative strategy for improving spatial resolution that could give higher accuracy. The trade-off between low kV versus low overvoltage is explored in terms of sensitivity for element detection for different elements.
Preventing Out-of-Sequence for Multicast Input-Queued Space-Memory-Memory Clos-Network

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yu, Hao; Ruepp, Sarah Renée; Berger, Michael Stübert

2011-01-01

This paper proposes an out-of-sequence (OOS) preventative cell dispatching algorithm, the multicast flow-based round robin (MFRR), for multicast input-queued space-memory-memory (IQ-SMM) Clos-network architecture. Independently treating each incoming cell, such as the desynchronized static round...
The Robin, Erithacus Rubecula (Passeriformes, Turdidae, As a Component of Autotrophic Consortia of Forest Cenoses, Northeast Ukraine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chaplygina A. B.

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The role of the robin, Erithacus rubecula Linnaeus, 1758 as a consort of autotrophic consortia is considered. It has been found that representatives of 9 higher taxa of animals (Mammalia, Aves, Gastropoda, Insecta, Arachnida, Acarina, Malacostraca, Diplopoda, Clitellata have trophic and topical links with the robin. At the same time, the robin is a consort of determinants of autotrophic consortia, which core is represented mostly by dominating species of deciduous trees (Quercus robur Linnaeus, 1753 (24.6 %, Tilia cordata Miller, 1768 (17.5 %, Acer platanoides Linnaeus, 1753 (22.8 %, Acer campestre Linnaeus, 1753, and also by sedges (Carex sp. and grasses (Poaceae. The robin also belongs to the concentre of the second and higher orders as a component of forest biogeocenoses and forms a complex trophic system. In the diet of its nestlings, there have been found 717 objects from 32 invertebrate taxa, belonging to the phylums Arthropoda (99.2 %, 31 species and Annelida (0.8 %, 1 species. The phylum Arthropoda was represented by the most numerous class Insecta (76.9 %, in which 10 orders (Lepidoptera (46.8 % dominates and 20 families were recorded, and also by the classes Arachnida (15.0 %, Malacostraca (5.3 % and Diplopoda (1.9 %. The invertebrate species composition was dominated by representatives of a trophic group of zoophages (14 species; 43.8 %; the portion of phytophages (7 species; 21.9 %, saprophages (18.7 %, and necrophages (15.6 % was the less. The highest number of food items was represented by phytophages (N = 717; 51 %, followed by zoophages (34 %, saprophages (12 %, and necrophages (3 %. The difference among study areas according to the number of food items and the number of species in the robin nestling diet is shown. In NNP “HF”, the highest number of food items was represented by phytophages - 47 % (N = 443, whereas zoophages were the most species-rich group (43.3 %, 13 species. In NNP “H”, phytophages also prevailed in

Anomalous diffusion in the evolution of soccer championship scores: Real data, mean-field analysis, and an agent-based model

Science.gov (United States)

da Silva, Roberto; Vainstein, Mendeli H.; Gonçalves, Sebastián; Paula, Felipe S. F.

2013-08-01

Statistics of soccer tournament scores based on the double round robin system of several countries are studied. Exploring the dynamics of team scoring during tournament seasons from recent years we find evidences of superdiffusion. A mean-field analysis results in a drift velocity equal to that of real data but in a different diffusion coefficient. Along with the analysis of real data we present the results of simulations of soccer tournaments obtained by an agent-based model which successfully describes the final scoring distribution [da Silva , Comput. Phys. Commun.CPHCBZ0010-465510.1016/j.cpc.2012.10.030 184, 661 (2013)]. Such model yields random walks of scores over time with the same anomalous diffusion as observed in real data.
Improving nurse-physician teamwork through interprofessional bedside rounding.

Science.gov (United States)

Henkin, Stanislav; Chon, Tony Y; Christopherson, Marie L; Halvorsen, Andrew J; Worden, Lindsey M; Ratelle, John T

2016-01-01

Teamwork between physicians and nurses has a positive association with patient satisfaction and outcomes, but perceptions of physician-nurse teamwork are often suboptimal. To improve nurse-physician teamwork in a general medicine inpatient teaching unit by increasing face-to-face communication through interprofessional bedside rounds. From July 2013 through October 2013, physicians (attendings and residents) and nurses from four general medicine teams in a single nursing unit participated in bedside rounding, which involved the inclusion of nurses in morning rounds with the medicine teams at the patients' bedside. Based on stakeholder analysis and feedback, a checklist for key patient care issues was created and utilized during bedside rounds. To assess the effect of bedside rounding on nurse-physician teamwork, a survey of selected items from the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ) was administered to participants before and after the implementation of bedside rounds. The number of pages to the general medicine teams was also measured as a marker of physician-nurse communication. Participation rate in bedside rounds across the four medicine teams was 58%. SAQ response rates for attendings, residents, and nurses were 36/36 (100%), 73/73 (100%), and 32/73 (44%) prior to implementation of bedside rounding and 36 attendings (100%), 72 residents (100%), and 14 (19%) nurses after the implementation of bedside rounding, respectively. Prior to bedside rounding, nurses provided lower teamwork ratings (percent agree) than residents and attendings on all SAQ items; but after the intervention, the difference remained significant only on SAQ item 2 ("In this clinical area, it is not difficult to speak up if I perceive a problem with patient care", 64% for nurses vs 79% for residents vs 94% for attendings, P=0.02). Also, resident responses improved on SAQ item 1 ("Nurse input is well received in this area", 62% vs 82%, P=0.01). Increasing face-to-face communication through
Comparison of NDT techniques to evaluate CFRP. Results obtained in a MAIzfp round robin test

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grosse, Christian U. [Technische Univ. Muenchen (Germany). Chair of Non-destructive Testing; Goldammer, Matthias; Grager, Jan-Carl [Siemens AG Corporate Technology, Muenchen (Germany); and others

2016-10-01

Fiber reinforced polymeric materials are used for lightweight constructions and are an integral part of cars, airplanes or rotor blades of wind turbines. Nondestructive testing (NDT) methods play an increasing role concerning the manufacturing process and the inspection during lifetime. The selection of the best NDT technique for a certain application depends - of course - on many factors including the type, position and size of the defect to be detected but also on secondary issues like accessibility, automation, testing costs, reliability and resolution to mention only some. For the more technical-scientific part of these issues, the determination of the probability of detection (PoD) plays a significant role. Early in the design process questions should be raised concerning the probability with which certain attribute of interest (a defect that has an effect on the structural behavior) can be detected (and localized) in a certain construction. Several defect types have been identified to be critical like impact damages, undulations and porosity. Test samples out of differently processed Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymers (CFRP) as used in the automotive or aeronautical industry have been produced including defects of different type and size. In order to determine the PoD and to check whether a technique is applicable the different partners applied a broad variety of selected NDT techniques including Micro CT, Ultrasound (including phased-array and air-coupled UT), Active Thermography, Eddy Current, Vibration and Visual Analysis and Local Acoustic Resonance Spectroscopy (LARS). The presentation will summarize some of the results of the experiments and ongoing data analysis.
Comparison of NDT techniques to evaluate CFRP. Results obtained in a MAIzfp round robin test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grosse, Christian U.

2016-01-01

Fiber reinforced polymeric materials are used for lightweight constructions and are an integral part of cars, airplanes or rotor blades of wind turbines. Nondestructive testing (NDT) methods play an increasing role concerning the manufacturing process and the inspection during lifetime. The selection of the best NDT technique for a certain application depends - of course - on many factors including the type, position and size of the defect to be detected but also on secondary issues like accessibility, automation, testing costs, reliability and resolution to mention only some. For the more technical-scientific part of these issues, the determination of the probability of detection (PoD) plays a significant role. Early in the design process questions should be raised concerning the probability with which certain attribute of interest (a defect that has an effect on the structural behavior) can be detected (and localized) in a certain construction. Several defect types have been identified to be critical like impact damages, undulations and porosity. Test samples out of differently processed Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymers (CFRP) as used in the automotive or aeronautical industry have been produced including defects of different type and size. In order to determine the PoD and to check whether a technique is applicable the different partners applied a broad variety of selected NDT techniques including Micro CT, Ultrasound (including phased-array and air-coupled UT), Active Thermography, Eddy Current, Vibration and Visual Analysis and Local Acoustic Resonance Spectroscopy (LARS). The presentation will summarize some of the results of the experiments and ongoing data analysis.
Palliative medicine Death Rounds: small group learning on a vital subject.

Science.gov (United States)

Kitzes, Judith A; Kalishman, Summers; Kingsley, Darra D; Mines, Jan; Lawrence, Elizabeth

The medical student's experience with patients' dying and death has profound impact on personal and professional development. Death Rounds at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine is a small group educational model that promotes student self-reflection, metacognition, professional growth, and collegial support. To describe the implementation and evaluation activities of a third year clerkship Death Rounds which are a structured, institutionally supported resource for helping students to understand the clinical, ethical, legal, professional, cultural, and spiritual aspects of death. Medical students attend 2 to 3 small group palliative medicine Death Rounds sessions, facilitated by the attending clerkship director, chief residents, and a palliative care physician. The students' assessment of their palliative medicine knowledge and skills in 5 categories before and after participation in Death Rounds rated their skills after Death Rounds higher with effect sizes ranging from 0.9 to 1.9. Evidence from both the Death Rounds Questionnaire and Facilitators' Logs demonstrates that multiple issues and topics were addressed and all associated with the School of Medicine's 6 core competencies. Death Rounds minimally affect on clerkship time and faculty resources.
Pediatric Round Pneumonia

OpenAIRE

Liu, Yen-Lin; Wu, Ping-Sheng; Tsai, Li-Ping; Tsai, Wen-Hsin

2014-01-01

“Round pneumonia” or “spherical pneumonia” is a well-characterized clinical entity that seems to be less addressed by pediatricians in Taiwan. We herein report the case of a 7-year-old boy who presented with prolonged fever, cough, and chest X-rays showing a well-demarcated round mass measuring 5.9 × 5.6 × 4.3 cm in the left lower lung field, findings which were typical for round pneumonia. The urinary pneumococcal antigen test was positive, and serum anti-Mycoplasma pneumoniae antibody titer...
Schur Complement Reduction in the Mixed-Hybrid Approximation of Darcy's Law: Rounding Error Analysis

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Maryška, Jiří; Rozložník, Miroslav; Tůma, Miroslav

2000-01-01

Roč. 117, - (2000), s. 159-173 ISSN 0377-0427 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA2030706; GA ČR GA201/98/P108 Institutional research plan: AV0Z1030915 Keywords : potential fluid flow problem * symmetric indefinite linear systems * Schur complement reduction * iterative methods * rounding error analysis Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics Impact factor: 0.455, year: 2000
Medical ward round competence in internal medicine - an interview study towards an interprofessional development of an Entrustable Professional Activity (EPA).

Science.gov (United States)

Wölfel, Teresa; Beltermann, Esther; Lottspeich, Christian; Vietz, Elisa; Fischer, Martin R; Schmidmaier, Ralf

2016-07-11

The medical ward round is a central but complex activity that is of relevance from the first day of work. However, difficulties for young doctors have been reported. Instruction of ward round competence in medical curricula is hampered by the lack of a standardized description of the procedure. This paper aims to identify and describe physicians' tasks and relevant competences for conducting a medical ward round on the first day of professional work. A review of recent literature revealed known important aspects of medical ward rounds. These were used for the development of a semi-structured interview schedule. Medical ward round experts working at different hospitals were interviewed. The sample consisted of 14 ward physicians (M = 8.82 years of work experience) and 12 nurses (M = 14.55 years of work experience) working in different specializations of internal medicine. All interviews were audiotaped, fully transcribed, and analyzed using an inductive-deductive coding scheme. Nine fields of competences with 18 related sub-competences and 62 observable tasks were identified as relevant for conducting a medical ward round. Over 70 % of the experts named communication, collaborative clinical reasoning and organization as essential competences. Deeper analysis further unveiled the importance of self-management, management of difficult situations, error management and teamwork. The study is the first to picture ward round competences and related tasks in detail and to define an EPA "Conducting an internal medicine ward round" based on systematic interprofessional expert interviews. It thus provides a basis for integration of ward round competences in the medical curricula in an evidence based manner and gives a framework for the development of instructional intervention studies and comparative studies in other medical fields.
Round-Table Meeting on China and Uzbekistan Strategic Partnership

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Wen; Guangmei

2013-01-01

<正>Round-table meeting—"Strategic Partnership between China and Uzbekistan:experience,present condition and future"—jointly sponsored by the CPAFFC,China Foundation for International Studies(CFIS),the Center
Security Analysis of 7-Round MISTY1 against Higher Order Differential Attacks

Science.gov (United States)

Tsunoo, Yukiyasu; Saito, Teruo; Shigeri, Maki; Kawabata, Takeshi

MISTY1 is a 64-bit block cipher that has provable security against differential and linear cryptanalysis. MISTY1 is one of the algorithms selected in the European NESSIE project, and it has been recommended for Japanese e-Government ciphers by the CRYPTREC project. This paper shows that higher order differential attacks can be successful against 7-round versions of MISTY1 with FL functions. The attack on 7-round MISTY1 can recover a partial subkey with a data complexity of 254.1 and a computational complexity of 2120.8, which signifies the first successful attack on 7-round MISTY1 with no limitation such as a weak key. This paper also evaluates the complexity of this higher order differential attack on MISTY1 in which the key schedule is replaced by a pseudorandom function. It is shown that resistance to the higher order differential attack is not substantially improved even in 7-round MISTY1 in which the key schedule is replaced by a pseudorandom function.
Round table discussion during session 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mays, C.

2004-01-01

The round table discussions of the second session of the FSC Belgium Workshop addressed the following questions: - Do local stakeholders have, internally or externally, all the expertise they need in order to address the issues raised by radioactive waste management projects? - Do institutional stakeholders have all the expertise they need to take local impacts into account? - What kinds of expert input are sought and attained by the different stakeholders? - Were any formal methods used to aid local partnerships perform technology assessments? Or other types of assessment? - How to maintain the knowledge and expertise achieved by the stakeholders? Discussion took place after the plenary presentations, at tables grouping Belgian stakeholders and FSC delegates. As in Session I, most of the round table discussion focussed specifically on the experience of the local partnerships. Many insights were shared about the nature and role of expertise in complex decision making. They are summarised below, on the basis of the feedback provided to the plenary by each round table. Some of these insights can be generalised to other contexts. All in all, a profile emerged of the local partnerships as a unique and effective tool to deal with knowledge issues in managing risk. (author)
Analysis on the roundness of bulb turbine generator based on the unbalanced magnetic

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Z G; Yang, F Y; Chen, J H; Si, G L

2012-01-01

Because of design, manufacture, installation and operation, there are some relatively eccentric in bulb tubular turbine units under operating condition. It easily caused uneven air gap, unbalanced magnetic field, unbalanced magnetic pull and torque. It could also increase the bending and torsion vibration of generator,at the same time, the roundness of stator and rotor would be aggravated which often caused by accidents such as generator sweep chamber. In this paper, basing on the design, installation and operation experience, the reasons of the unbalanced magnetic pull, mechanism and operation research were analyzed by theoretical calculation and the prototype test.
Gloss uniformity measurement update for ISO/IEC 19751

Science.gov (United States)

Ng, Yee S.; Cui, Chengwu; Kuo, Chunghui; Maggard, Eric; Mashtare, Dale; Morris, Peter

2005-01-01

To address the standardization issues of perceptually based image quality for printing systems, ISO/IEC JTC1/SC28, the standardization committee for office equipment chartered the W1.1 project with the responsibility of drafting a proposal for an international standard for the evaluation of printed image quality1. An ISO draft Standard2, ISO/WD 19751-1, Office Equipment - Appearance-based image quality standards for printers - Part 1: Overview, Procedure and Common Methods, 2004 describes the overview of this multi-part appearance-based image quality standard. One of the ISO 19751 multi-part Standard"s tasks is to address the appearance-based gloss and gloss uniformity issues (in ISO 19751-2). This paper summarizes the current status and technical progress since the last two updates3, 4. In particular, we will be discussion our attempt to include 75 degree gloss (G75) objective measurement5 in differential gloss and within-page gloss uniformity. The result for a round-robin experiment involving objective measurement of differential gloss using G60 and G75 gloss measurement geometry is described. The results for two perceptual-based round-robin experiments relating to haze effect on the perception of gloss, and gloss artifacts (gloss streaks/bands, gloss graininess/mottle) are discussed.
All-Round Marketing Increases Hospital Popularity.

Science.gov (United States)

Ziqi, Tao

2015-06-01

Xuzhou Center Hospital is in a competing medical market in Xuzhou city. This hospital has been dedicating to improve the medical skills and provide professional and individualized service to the patients in order to improve the patient's experience and increase the patient's satisfaction. On the other side, this hospital has provided an all-round marketing campaign to build up the social influence and public reputation through public-praise marketing, web marketing, media marketing, and scholar marketing. Besides, this hospital has been cooperating with foreign medical institutions and inviting foreign medical specialists to academic communication. With the combined effects of improving medical service and all-round marketing, the hospital's economic performance has been enhanced significantly and laid a solid foundation for its ambition to become the first-class hospital in Huaihai Economic Zone.
Using a classic paper by Robin Fahraeus and Torsten Lindqvist to teach basic hemorheology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Toksvang, Linea Natalie; Berg, Ronan M G

2013-01-01

"The viscosity of the blood in narrow capillary tubes" by Robin Fåhraeus and Torsten Lindqvist (Am J Physiol 96: 562-568, 1931) can be a valuable opportunity for teaching basic hemorheological principles in undergraduate cardiovascular physiology. This classic paper demonstrates that a progressive...
Round Two for Three ALICE Industrial Awards

CERN Multimedia

2004-01-01

Excellency in industrial collaboration with the LHC experimental teams is one important contribution to the successful development and realization of the experiments. A few weeks ago the ALICE collaboration presented a second round of awards to industrial collaborators for their novel and remarkable contributions to major detector systems.
A Survey of Rounding Practices in Canadian Adult Intensive Care Units.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jessalyn K Holodinsky

Full Text Available To describe rounding practices in Canadian adult Intensive Care Units (ICU and identify opportunities for improvement.Mixed methods design. Cross sectional survey of Canadian Adult ICUs (n = 180 with purposefully sampled follow-up interviews (n = 7.Medical directors representing 111 ICUs (62% participated in the survey. Rounding practices varied across ICUs with the majority reporting the use of interprofessional rounds (81% that employed an open (94% and collaborative (86% approach, occurred at the patient's bedside (82%, and started at a standard time (79% and standard location (56%. Most participants reported that patients (83% and family members (67% were welcome to attend rounds. Approximately half of ICUs (48% used tools to facilitate rounds. Interruptions during rounds were reported to be common (i.e., ≥ 1 interruption for ≥ 50% of patients in 46% of ICUs. Four themes were identified from qualitative analysis of participant responses to open-ended survey questions and interviews: multidisciplinarity, patient and family involvement, factors influencing productivity, and teaching and learning.There is considerable variation in current rounding practices in Canadian medical/surgical ICUs. Opportunities exist to improve ICU rounds including ensuring the engagement of essential participants, clearly defining participant roles, establishing a standardized approach to the rounding process, minimizing interruptions, modifying the role of teaching, utilizing a structured rounding tool, and developing a metric for measuring rounding quality.
Topology-based hierarchical scheduling using deficit round robin

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yu, Hao; Yan, Ying; Berger, Michael Stubert

2009-01-01

according to the topology. The mapping process could be completed through the network management plane or by manual configuration. Based on the knowledge of the network, the scheduler can manage the traffic on behalf of other less advanced nodes, avoid potential traffic congestion, and provide flow...... protection and isolation. Comparisons between hierarchical scheduling, flow-based scheduling, and class-based scheduling schemes have been carried out under a symmetric tree topology. Results have shown that the hierarchical scheduling scheme provides better flow protection and isolation from attack...
Pierre Robin sequence: case report, the relevance of autopsy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristiano C. Oliveira

2015-10-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACTPierre Robin sequence is a neonatal disorder characterized by micrognathism, glossoptosis and cleft palate. We reported an autopsy case of a child whose malformations of the oropharynx were identified only at birth. The child was extremely preterm with severe neonatal depression and poor recovery, and the orofacial alterations prevented the correct treatment. There was facial disorder characterized by micrognathia associated with cleft palate and posterior displacement of the tongue, compressing the vallecula, structurally compatible with glossoptosis. This autopsy surpassed the scientific and epidemiological relevance, allowing the family genetic counseling and close monitoring of a subsequent pregnancy.
Características acústicas da oclusiva glotal associada à sequência de Pierre Robin: estudo de caso Acoustic characteristics of glottal stop associated to Pierre Robin Sequence: case study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Viviane Cristina de Castro Marino

2013-04-01

voiceless. Acoustic parameters of glottal stop for /k/ and /g/ produced by a 5 year-old girl with cleft palate repaired in association with Pierre Robin Sequence were analyzed. For this study, we used six words consisting of velar stops in the initial word position combining the vowels /a/, /i/ e /u/ in the stressed position were selected. There was total agreement (100% as for the presence of the glottal stop for both intra and inter-judges. Inspection of the data via spectrogram showed variability of spectral parameters (burst and formant transition, and variations could also be computed, separately considering the vowels. Statistical analysis revealed a statistical difference between the two velar consonants (/k/ and /g/ in spectral (burst, temporal (VOT and duration of occlusion on the word parameters and those relating to the acoustic features of vowels adjacent to stops (stationary period of F3. The acoustic features of glottal stop suggest that the child may have used strategies to set out phonic contrasts in the language, but these strategies did not have enough magnitude to be perceived by the listener.

Características acústicas da oclusiva glotal associada à sequência de Pierre Robin: estudo de caso Acoustic characteristics of glottal stop associated to Pierre Robin Sequence: case study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Viviane Cristina de Castro Marino

2012-01-01

voiceless. Acoustic parameters of glottal stop for /k/ and /g/ produced by a 5 year-old girl with cleft palate repaired in association with Pierre Robin Sequence were analyzed. For this study, we used six words consisting of velar stops in the initial word position combining the vowels /a/, /i/ e /u/ in the stressed position were selected. There was total agreement (100% as for the presence of the glottal stop for both intra and inter-judges. Inspection of the data via spectrogram showed variability of spectral parameters (burst and formant transition, and variations could also be computed, separately considering the vowels. Statistical analysis revealed a statistical difference between the two velar consonants (/k/ and /g/ in spectral (burst, temporal (VOT and duration of occlusion on the word parameters and those relating to the acoustic features of vowels adjacent to stops (stationary period of F3. The acoustic features of glottal stop suggest that the child may have used strategies to set out phonic contrasts in the language, but these strategies did not have enough magnitude to be perceived by the listener.
Fluid Structure Interaction in a Cold Flow Test and Transient CFD Analysis of Out-of-Round Nozzles

Science.gov (United States)

Ruf, Joseph; Brown, Andrew; McDaniels, David; Wang, Ten-See

2010-01-01

This viewgraph presentation describes two nozzle fluid flow interactions. They include: 1) Cold flow nozzle tests with fluid-structure interaction at nozzle separated flow; and 2) CFD analysis for nozzle flow and side loads of nozzle extensions with various out-of-round cases.
Strategies for improving family engagement during family-centered rounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Michelle M; Xie, Anping; Carayon, Pascale; DuBenske, Lori L; Ehlenbach, Mary L; Cox, Elizabeth D

2013-04-01

Family-centered rounds (FCR) are recommended as standard practice in the pediatric inpatient setting; however, limited data exist on best practices promoting family engagement during rounds. To identify strategies to enhance family engagement during FCR using a recognized systems engineering approach. In this qualitative study, stimulated recall interviews using video-recorded rounding sessions were conducted with participants representing the various stakeholders on rounds (15 parents/children and 22 healthcare team [HCT] members) from 4 inpatient services at a children's hospital in Wisconsin. On video review, participants were asked to provide strategies that would increase family engagement on FCR. Qualitative content analysis of interview transcripts was performed in an iterative process. We identified 21 categories of strategies corresponding to 2 themes related to the structure and process of FCR. Strategies related to the structure of FCR were associated with all five recognized work system elements: people (HCT composition), tasks (HCT roles), organization (scheduling of rounds and HCT training), environment (location of rounds and HCT positioning), and tools and technologies (computer use). Strategies related to the FCR process were associated with three rounding phases: before (HCT and family preparation), during (eg, introductions, presentation content, communication style), and after (follow-up) FCR. We identified a range of strategies to enhance family engagement during FCR. These strategies both confirm prior work on the importance of the content and style of communication on rounds and highlight other factors within the hospital work system, like scheduling and computer use, which may affect family engagement in care. Copyright © 2013 Society of Hospital Medicine.
Growth and prevalence of feeding difficulties in children with Robin sequence : a retrospective cohort study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Paes, Emma C.; de Vries, Iris A C; Penris, Wouter M.; Hanny, Karlijn H.; Lavrijsen, Selma W.; van Leerdam, Elselien K.; Rademaker, Maaike M.; Veldhoen, Esther S.; Eijkemans, Rene M J C; Kon, Moshe; Breugem, Corstiaan C.

Objectives: In addition to breathing problems, patients with Robin sequence (RS) often encounter feeding difficulties (FD). Data regarding the occurrence of FD and possible influencing factors are scarce. The study aim was to elucidate these factors to improve treatment strategies. Material and
ROBIN, a Telepresence Robot to Support Older Users Monitoring and Social Inclusion: Development and Evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Cortellessa, Gabriella; Fracasso, Francesca; Sorrentino, Alessandra; Orlandini, Andrea; Bernardi, Giulio; Coraci, Luca; De Benedictis, Riccardo; Cesta, Amedeo

2018-02-01

This article describes an enhanced telepresence robot named ROBIN, part of a telecare system derived from the GIRAFFPLUS project for supporting and monitoring older adults at home. ROBIN is integrated in a sensor-rich environment that aims to continuously monitor physical and psychological wellbeing of older persons living alone. The caregivers (formal/informal) can communicate through it with their assisted persons. Long-term trials in real houses highlighted several user requirements that inspired improvements on the robotic platform. The enhanced telepresence robot was assessed by users to test its suitability to support social interaction and provide motivational feedback on health-related aspects. Twenty-five users (n = 25) assessed the new multimodal interaction capabilities and new communication services. A psychophysiological approach was adopted to investigate aspects like engagement, usability, and affective impact, as well as the possible role of individual differences on the quality of human-robot interaction. ROBIN was overall judged usable, the interaction with/through it resulted pleasant and the required workload was limited, thus supporting the idea of using it as a central component for remote assistance and social participation. Open-minded users tended to have a more positive interaction with it. This work describes an enabling technology for remote assistance and social communication. It highlights the importance of being compliant with users' needs to develop solutions easy to use and able to foster their social connections. The role of personality appeared to be relevant for the interaction, underscoring a clear role of the service personalization.
Technology round and management of technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Yong Tae

1994-04-01

This book deals with beginning of technology round with background of it, change of scientific technique paradigm with economy, management and policy, change of international political environment globalization of technical and economic environment, formation of strategic alliance, intensifying regionalism, new GATT system, UR and technology round, new international technique regulation and technology round of OECD, feature and meaning of technology round, assignment and scientific technique of Korea, past and present of scientific technology in Korea, correspondence for technology round.
Optimisation of the Lowest Robin Eigenvalue in the Exterior of a Compact Set

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Krejčiřík, David; Lotoreichik, Vladimir

2018-01-01

Roč. 25, č. 1 (2018), s. 319-337 ISSN 0944-6532 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA17-01706S Institutional support: RVO:61389005 Keywords : Robin Laplacian * negative boundary parameter * exterior of a convex set * spectral isoperimetric inequality * spectral isochoric inequality * parallel coordinates Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics OBOR OECD: Pure mathematics Impact factor: 0.496, year: 2016
Year-Round Use Of Thermography In House Doctoring

Science.gov (United States)

Gadsby, Kenneth J.; Harrje, David T.; Dutt, Gautam S.

1983-03-01

There have been many presentations of thermographic residential building analyses at the past ThermosInse conferences. A number of these papers have dealt with evaluation of insulation voids and more recently a few have described air leakage detection 2,3 during the colder winter months. This paper will focus on the thermographic application in the House Doctor instrumented energy analysis approach as developed by Princeton University. The central theme will be the application to a year-round research or commercial activity. Some of the conditions that could create thermographic problems, as well as techniques that may be used to lessen these difficulties, thereby extending the thermographic "season" is discussed. Our experiences in summer thermography with and without the use of a building pressurization system is also covered.
Anatomy of the ward round.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

O'Hare, James A

2008-07-01

The ward round has been a central activity of hospital life for hundreds of years. It is hardly mentioned in textbooks. The ward round is a parade through the hospital of professionals where most decision making concerning patient care is made. However the traditional format may be intimidating for patients and inadequate for communication. The round provides an opportunity for the multi-disciplinary team to listen to the patient\\'s narrative and jointly interpret his concerns. From this unfolds diagnosis, management plans, prognosis formation and the opportunity to explore social, psychological, rehabilitation and placement issues. Physical examination of the patient at the bedside still remains important. It has been a tradition to discuss the patient at the bedside but sensitive matters especially of uncertainty may better be discussed elsewhere. The senior doctor as round leader must seek the input of nursing whose observations may be under-appreciated due to traditional professional hierarchy. Reductions in the working hours of junior doctors and shortened length of stay have reduced continuity of patient care. This increases the importance of senior staff in ensuring continuity of care and the need for the joint round as the focus of optimal decision making. The traditional round incorporates teaching but patient\\'s right to privacy and their preferences must be respected. The quality and form of the clinical note is underreported but the electronic record is slow to being accepted. The traditional multi-disciplinary round is disappearing in some centres. This may be regrettable. The anatomy and optimal functioning of the ward round deserves scientific scrutiny and experimentation.
Features of Virchow-Robin spaces in newly diagnosed multiple sclerosis patients

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Etemadifar, Masoud [Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, Division of Neurology, San Luigi Gonzaga School of Medicine, Orbassano (Torino), Turin (Italy); Department of Neurology, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Isfahan Research Committee of Multiple Sclerosis (IRCOMS), Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Hekmatnia, Ali; Tayari, Nazila [Department of Radiology, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Kazemi, Mojtaba [Department of Neurology, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Ghazavi, Amirhossein [Department of Radiology, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Akbari, Mojtaba [Department of Epidemiology and Statistics, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Maghzi, Amir-Hadi, E-mail: maghzi@edc.mui.ac.ir [Isfahan Research Committee of Multiple Sclerosis (IRCOMS), Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Neuroimmunology Unit, Centre for Neuroscience and Trauma, Blizard Institute of Cell and Molecular Science, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London (United Kingdom); Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2011-11-15

Background: Virchow-Robin spaces (VRSs) are perivascular pia-lined extensions of the subarachnoid space around the arteries and veins as they enter the brain parenchyma. These spaces are responsible for inflammatory processes within the brain. Objectives: This study was designed to shed more light on the location, size and shape of VRSs on 3 mm slice thickness, 1.5 Tesla MRI scans of newly diagnosed MS patients in Isfahan, Iran and compare the results with healthy age- and sex-matched controls. Methods: We evaluated MRI scans of 73 MS patients obtained within 3 months of MS onset and compared them with MRI scans from 73 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers. Three mm section proton density, T2W and FLAIR MR images were obtained for all subjects. The location, size and shape of VRSs were compared between the two groups. Results: The total number of VRSs was significantly more in the MS group (p < 0.001). The distribution of VRSs were significantly more located in the high convexity areas in the MS group (p < 0.001), while there was no significant differences in other regions. The round shaped VRSs were significantly more detected on MRI scans of MS patients, and curvilinear shapes were significantly more frequently observed in healthy volunteers, however there were no significant differences for oval shaped VRSs between the two groups. The number of VRSs with the size over than 2 mm were significantly more observed in the MS groups compared to controls. We also observed some differences in the characteristics of VRSs between the genders in the MS group. Conclusion: The results of this study shed more light on the usefulness of VRSs as an MRI marker for the disease. In addition, according to our results VRSs might also have implication to determine the prognosis of the disease. However, larger studies with more advanced MRI techniques are required to confirm our results.
Features of Virchow-Robin spaces in newly diagnosed multiple sclerosis patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Etemadifar, Masoud; Hekmatnia, Ali; Tayari, Nazila; Kazemi, Mojtaba; Ghazavi, Amirhossein; Akbari, Mojtaba; Maghzi, Amir-Hadi

2011-01-01

Background: Virchow-Robin spaces (VRSs) are perivascular pia-lined extensions of the subarachnoid space around the arteries and veins as they enter the brain parenchyma. These spaces are responsible for inflammatory processes within the brain. Objectives: This study was designed to shed more light on the location, size and shape of VRSs on 3 mm slice thickness, 1.5 Tesla MRI scans of newly diagnosed MS patients in Isfahan, Iran and compare the results with healthy age- and sex-matched controls. Methods: We evaluated MRI scans of 73 MS patients obtained within 3 months of MS onset and compared them with MRI scans from 73 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers. Three mm section proton density, T2W and FLAIR MR images were obtained for all subjects. The location, size and shape of VRSs were compared between the two groups. Results: The total number of VRSs was significantly more in the MS group (p < 0.001). The distribution of VRSs were significantly more located in the high convexity areas in the MS group (p < 0.001), while there was no significant differences in other regions. The round shaped VRSs were significantly more detected on MRI scans of MS patients, and curvilinear shapes were significantly more frequently observed in healthy volunteers, however there were no significant differences for oval shaped VRSs between the two groups. The number of VRSs with the size over than 2 mm were significantly more observed in the MS groups compared to controls. We also observed some differences in the characteristics of VRSs between the genders in the MS group. Conclusion: The results of this study shed more light on the usefulness of VRSs as an MRI marker for the disease. In addition, according to our results VRSs might also have implication to determine the prognosis of the disease. However, larger studies with more advanced MRI techniques are required to confirm our results.
Quantum dots for a high-throughput Pfu polymerase based multi-round polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

Science.gov (United States)

Sang, Fuming; Zhang, Zhizhou; Yuan, Lin; Liu, Deli

2018-02-26

Multi-round PCR is an important technique for obtaining enough target DNA from rare DNA resources, and is commonly used in many fields including forensic science, ancient DNA analysis and cancer research. However, multi-round PCR is often aborted, largely due to the accumulation of non-specific amplification during repeated amplifications. Here, we developed a Pfu polymerase based multi-round PCR technique assisted by quantum dots (QDs). Different PCR assays, DNA polymerases (Pfu and Taq), DNA sizes and GC amounts were compared in this study. In the presence of QDs, PCR specificity could be retained even in the ninth-round amplification. Moreover, the longer and more complex the targets were, the earlier the abortion happened in multi-round PCR. However, no obvious enhancement of specificity was found in multi-round PCR using Taq DNA polymerase. Significantly, the fidelity of Pfu polymerase based multi-round PCR was not sacrificed in the presence of QDs. Besides, pre-incubation at 50 °C for an hour had no impact on multi-round PCR performance, which further authenticated the hot start effect of QDs modulated in multi-round PCR. The findings of this study demonstrated that a cost-effective and promising multi-round PCR technique for large-scale and high-throughput sample analysis could be established with high specificity, sensibility and accuracy.
Design of roundness measurement model with multi-systematic error for cylindrical components with large radius.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Chuanzhi; Wang, Lei; Tan, Jiubin; Zhao, Bo; Tang, Yangchao

2016-02-01

The paper designs a roundness measurement model with multi-systematic error, which takes eccentricity, probe offset, radius of tip head of probe, and tilt error into account for roundness measurement of cylindrical components. The effects of the systematic errors and radius of components are analysed in the roundness measurement. The proposed method is built on the instrument with a high precision rotating spindle. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by experiment with the standard cylindrical component, which is measured on a roundness measuring machine. Compared to the traditional limacon measurement model, the accuracy of roundness measurement can be increased by about 2.2 μm using the proposed roundness measurement model for the object with a large radius of around 37 mm. The proposed method can improve the accuracy of roundness measurement and can be used for error separation, calibration, and comparison, especially for cylindrical components with a large radius.
Conservation genetics of the critically endangered Round Island bottle palm, Hyophorbe lagenicaulis (Arecaceae)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lange, Conny Bruun Asmussen; Maunder, Michael; Fay, Michael F.

2011-01-01

The amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) technique was used to examine genetic variation among old and newly emerged individuals of Hyophorbe lagenicaulis (the Round Island bottle palm) on Round Island to assess surviving levels of diversity in the wild population and to evaluate...... monomorphic bands. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) and Shannon’s indices showed a high level of genetic variation within the wild population on Round Island and a smaller amount of genetic variation among cultivated individuals. A neighbor joining analysis resulted in an unrooted network of genetic...... distances in which the five Hyophorbe spp. were separated and much variation within H. lagenicaulis was recovered. The Round Island populations of H. lagenicaulis contain representatives of the genetic variation found within the species as a whole. However, a few individuals, both wild and cultivated...
How river rocks round: resolving the shape-size paradox.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabor Domokos

Full Text Available River-bed sediments display two universal downstream trends: fining, in which particle size decreases; and rounding, where pebble shapes evolve toward ellipsoids. Rounding is known to result from transport-induced abrasion; however many researchers argue that the contribution of abrasion to downstream fining is negligible. This presents a paradox: downstream shape change indicates substantial abrasion, while size change apparently rules it out. Here we use laboratory experiments and numerical modeling to show quantitatively that pebble abrasion is a curvature-driven flow problem. As a consequence, abrasion occurs in two well-separated phases: first, pebble edges rapidly round without any change in axis dimensions until the shape becomes entirely convex; and second, axis dimensions are then slowly reduced while the particle remains convex. Explicit study of pebble shape evolution helps resolve the shape-size paradox by reconciling discrepancies between laboratory and field studies, and enhances our ability to decipher the transport history of a river rock.
The effect of elevated die temperature on deformation of deep drawn round metal cup

Science.gov (United States)

Basril, M. A. M.; Hafsyam, Y. M.; Azuddin, M.; Choudhury, I. A.

2017-06-01

One of the major considerations in the current deep drawing practice is the product quality. In this research, the effect of heating temperature on the drawability of the round metal cup has been investigated. Firstly, round metal cups of aluminium and mild steel were drawn from the blank diameters of 60 mm, 65 mm and 70 mm. The experiment conducted at room temperature first, then at 50°C and 100°C. The elongation of the major and minor strains along the cup profile after the process is measured and analysed. On the other hand, the defects from the experiment output and ABAQUS/CAE simulation are compared. The result from experiment shows that the highest major elongation is 11.64 mm and it is happened to a deep drawn aluminium round cup with LDR of 1.69 at temperature of 100°C. On the other hand, for deep drawn mild steel round cup, shows highest major elongation of 12.44 mm for a cup with LDR of 1.56 at 100°C. Both of these statements indicates that the higher temperature could improve the formability of the deep drawn parts besides reducing the probability of the defect to be happened.
A time-motion study of inpatient rounds using a family-centered rounds model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bhansali, P.; Birch, S.; Campbell, J.K.; Agrawal, D.; Hoffner, W.; Manicone, P.; Shah, K.; Krieger, E.; Ottolini, M.

2013-01-01

OBJECTIVE: Family-centered rounds (FCR) have become increasingly prevalent in pediatric hospital settings. The objective of our study was to describe time use and discrete events during pediatric inpatient rounds by using a FCR model. METHODS: We conducted a prospective observational study at
$L^q$-solution of the Neumann, Robin and transmission problem for the scalar Oseen equation

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Medková, Dagmar

2018-01-01

Roč. 291, č. 4 (2018), s. 682-698 ISSN 0025-584X R&D Projects: GA ČR GA16-03230S Institutional support: RVO:67985840 Keywords : generalized jump problem * Neumann problem * Robin problem Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics OBOR OECD: Pure mathematics Impact factor: 0.742, year: 2016
The Periodic Round Table (by Gary Katz)

Science.gov (United States)

Rodgers, Reviewed By Glen E.

2000-02-01

Unwrapping and lifting the Periodic Round Table out of its colorful box is an exciting experience for a professional chemist or a chemistry student. Touted as a "new way of looking at the elements", it is certainly thatat least at first blush. The "table" consists of four sets of two finely finished hardwood discs each with the following elemental symbols and their corresponding atomic numbers pleasingly and symmetrically wood-burned into their faces. The four sets of two discs are 1 1/2, 3, 4 1/2, and 6 in. in diameter, each disc is 3/4 in. thick, and therefore the entire "round table" stands 6 in. high and is 6 in. in diameter at its base. The eight beautifully polished discs (represented below) are held together by center dowels that allow each to be rotated separately.
Measurement Rounding Errors in an Assessment Model of Project Led Engineering Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francisco Moreira

2009-11-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes the rounding errors that occur in the assessment of an interdisciplinary Project-Led Education (PLE process implemented in the Integrated Master degree on Industrial Management and Engineering (IME at University of Minho. PLE is an innovative educational methodology which makes use of active learning, promoting higher levels of motivation and students’ autonomy. The assessment model is based on multiple evaluation components with different weights. Each component can be evaluated by several teachers involved in different Project Supporting Courses (PSC. This model can be affected by different types of errors, namely: (1 rounding errors, and (2 non-uniform criteria of rounding the grades. A rigorous analysis of the assessment model was made and the rounding errors involved on each project component were characterized and measured. This resulted in a global maximum error of 0.308 on the individual student project grade, in a 0 to 100 scale. This analysis intended to improve not only the reliability of the assessment results, but also teachers’ awareness of this problem. Recommendations are also made in order to improve the assessment model and reduce the rounding errors as much as possible.

Improvement of the European thermodynamic database NUCLEA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brissoneau, L.; Journeau, C.; Piluso, P. [CEA Cadarache, DEN, F-13108 St Paul Les Durance (France); Bakardjieva, S. [Acad Sci Czech Republic, Inst Inorgan Chem, CZ-25068 Rez (Czech Republic); Barrachin, M. [Inst Radioprotect and Surete Nucl, St Paul Les Durance (France); Bechta, S. [NITI, Aleksandrov Res Inst Technol, Sosnovyi Bor (Russian Federation); Bottomley, D. [Commiss European Communities, Joint Res Ctr, Inst Transuranium Elements, D-76125 Karlsruhe (Germany); Cheynet, B.; Fischer, E. [Thermodata, F-38400 St Martin Dheres (France); Kiselova, M. [Nucl Res Inst UJV, Rez 25068 (Czech Republic); Mezentseva, L. [Russian Acad Sci, Inst Silicate Chem, St Petersburg (Russian Federation)

2010-07-01

Modelling of corium behaviour during a severe accident requires knowledge of the phases present at equilibrium for a given corium composition, temperature and pressure. The thermodynamic database NUCLEA in combination with a Gibbs Energy minimizer is the European reference tool to achieve this goal. This database has been improved thanks to the analysis of bibliographical data and to EU-funded experiments performed within the SARNET network, PLINIUS as well as the ISTC CORPHAD and EVAN projects. To assess the uncertainty range associated with Energy Dispersive X-ray analyses, a round-robin exercise has been launched in which a UO{sub 2}-containing corium-concrete interaction sample from VULCANO has been analyzed by three European laboratories with satisfactorily small differences. (authors)
Viewpoint held by the -Robin des bois- environment protection association regarding radioactive waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bonnemains, J.

2011-01-01

For twenty years, the 'Robin des Bois' association has held the belief that every country must manage the hazardous waste, including radioactive waste, that it produces. The vehemence of German anti-nuclear activists in rejecting the return of waste produced by recycling irradiated fuel from German nuclear power plants runs counter to the principles of responsibility and proximity to which ecologists claim to adhere. There are more reasonable means available than refusing to manage end-of-cycle nuclear waste, such as blockading power plants or the uranium enrichment plant in Gronau which supplies the nuclear power industry worldwide. In Lower Saxony, the La Hague plant located on this West European headland is therefore thought of as the ideal hideaway for this waste. It is true that the list of radioactive scrap, hospital waste, asbestos from the steamer, the Norway, and WEEE exported by Germany is long. Robin des Bois is against recycling irradiated fuel as it facilitates the proliferation and dispersion of plutonium and other radionuclides into the environment. The association has revealed many scandals and lies related to recycling in areas other than the nuclear industry, which have been concealed behind the false good ecological and systematically positive image of recycling. (author)
Bioresorbable distraction device for the treatment of airway problems for infants with Robin sequence.

Science.gov (United States)

Breugem, Corstiaan; Paes, Emma; Kon, Moshe; Mink van der Molen, Aebele B; van der Molen, Aebele B Mink

2012-08-01

Pierre Robin sequence is a well known craniofacial entity. There are numerous ways to treat the respiratory insufficiency, but sometimes surgical intervention is needed. Tracheotomy could be associated with morbidity, and distraction osteogenesis has been established as a stable method to obtain a safe airway. Distraction osteogenesis has traditionally been performed with an external device. In this manuscript we describe the feasibility of an internal bioresorbable device. Retrospective descriptive study was performed in a tertiary academic children's hospital. After multidisciplinary team consultation, 12 consecutive patients with Robin sequence were treated with this internal distraction device. The mean age at surgery was 32 days, and the average amount of mandibular distraction was 18 mm. All patients were extubated after an average of 7.5 days after the surgery. The average length of stay in the hospital was 17 days after surgery. There were no major surgical complications. A tracheotomy was prevented in all our patients, and complications were limited. Long-term studies are needed to evaluate the influence that internal distraction has on the growth of the mandible and teeth. The internal distraction system seems safe for infants with micrognathia and has certain benefits when compared to the external distractor.
Impact of Quality Assurance Rounds in a Canadian Radiation Therapy Department

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lefresne, Shilo; Olivotto, Ivo A.; Joe, Howard; Blood, Paul A.; Olson, Robert A.

2013-01-01

Purpose: Quality assurance (QA) programs aim to identify inconsistencies that may compromise patient care. Radiation treatment planning is a well-documented source of variation in radiation oncology, leading many organizations to recommend the implementation of QA rounds in which radiation therapy plans are peer reviewed. This study evaluates the outcome of QA rounds that have been conducted by a radiation therapy department since 2004. Methods and Materials: Prospectively documented records of QA rounds, from 2004 to 2010, were obtained. During rounds, randomly selected radiation therapy plans were peer reviewed and assigned a grade of A (adequate), B (minor suggestions of change to a plan for a future patient), or C (significant change required before the next fraction). The proportion of plans that received each recommendation was calculated, and the relationship between recommendations for each plan, tumor site, and mean years of experience of the radiation oncologist (RO) were explored. Chart reviews were performed for each plan that received a C. Results: During the study period, 1247 plans were evaluated; 6% received a B and 1% received a C. The mean RO years of experience were lower for plans graded C versus those graded A (P=.02). The tumor sites with the highest proportion of plans graded B or C were gastrointestinal (14%), lung (13%), and lymphoma (8%). The most common reasons for plans to receive a grade of C were inadequate target volume coverage (36%), suboptimal dose or fractionation (27%), errors in patient setup (27%), and overtreatment of normal tissue (9%). Conclusions: This study demonstrated that QA rounds are feasible and an important element of a radiation therapy department's QA program. Through peer review, plans that deviate from a department's expected standard can be identified and corrected. Additional benefits include identifying patterns of practice that may contribute to inconsistencies in treatment planning and the continuing
Round Earthen Towers in Zhangzhou

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

1992-01-01

The round earthen towers inZhangzhou,Fujifan Province,have long been famous a-round the world.Built of rammedearth,each tower consists uf four tofive stories and Is nearly 100 metersin diameter and 17 to 18meters high.Scatteredaround the mountains,valleys and plains insouthwestern Fujian,thetowers look very muchlike round castles.SomeChinese and foreign ar-chitercts,historians andfolk-custom researcherscall them“flyng sau-cers”from outer spaceor“mushrooms”fromearth.They represent,indeed,a unique archi-tectural style in theworld.
Multiple lines of evidence risk assessment of American robins exposed to polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFS) and polychlorinated dibenzo-P-dioxins (PCDDS) in the Tittabawassee River floodplain, Midland, Michigan, USA.

Science.gov (United States)

Tazelaar, Dustin L; Fredricks, Timothy B; Seston, Rita M; Coefield, Sarah J; Bradley, Patrick W; Roark, Shaun A; Kay, Denise P; Newsted, John L; Giesy, John P; Bursian, Steven J; Zwiernik, Matthew J

2013-06-01

Concentrations of polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) in Tittabawassee River floodplain soils and biota downstream of Midland, Michigan, USA, are greater than regional background concentrations. From 2005 to 2008, a multiple lines of evidence approach was utilized to evaluate the potential for effects of PCDD/DFs on American robins (Turdus migratorius) breeding in the floodplains. A dietary-based assessment indicated there was potential for adverse effects for American robins predicted to have the greatest exposures. Conversely, a tissue-based risk assessment based on site-specific PCDD/DF concentrations in American robin eggs indicated minimal potential for adverse effects. An assessment based on reproductive endpoints indicated that measures of hatch success in study areas were significantly less than those of reference areas. However, there was no dose-response relationship between that endpoint and concentrations of PCDD/DF. Although dietary-based exposure and reproductive endpoint assessments predicted potential for adverse effects to resident American robins, the tissue-based assessment indicates minimal to no potential for adverse effects, which is reinforced by the fact the response was not dose related. It is likely that the dietary assessment is overly conservative given the inherent uncertainties of estimating dietary exposure relative to direct tissue-based assessment measures. Based on the available data, it can be concluded that exposure to PCDD/DFs in the Tittabawassee River floodplain would not likely result in adverse population-level effects to American robins. Copyright © 2013 SETAC.
When thinking is beneficial and when it is not : The effects of thin and round advertising models

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Häfner, M.; Trampe, D.

2009-01-01

This study addresses the advertising effectiveness of round and thin models. Integrating previous findings and theories, the authors predict and find that impulsive and reflective product evaluations as responses to thin and round advertisement models diverge. Specifically, four experiments indicate
Multiple and sign-changing solutions for discrete Robin boundary value problem with parameter dependence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Long Yuhua

2017-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we study second-order nonlinear discrete Robin boundary value problem with parameter dependence. Applying invariant sets of descending flow and variational methods, we establish some new sufficient conditions on the existence of sign-changing solutions, positive solutions and negative solutions of the system when the parameter belongs to appropriate intervals. In addition, an example is given to illustrate our results.
Commentary: Wild psychometrics: Evidence for ‘general’ cognitive performance in wild New Zealand robins, Petroica longipes

OpenAIRE

Hackett, Paul M. W.

2017-01-01

A commentary on\\ud Wild psychometrics: Evidence for ‘general’ cognitive performance in wild New Zealand robins, Petroica longipes\\ud \\ud by Shaw, R. C., Boogert, N. J., Clayton, N. S., and Burns, K. C. (2015). Anim. Behav. 109, 101–111. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2015.08.001
A WORLD-SYSTEMS PERSPECTIVE OF THE WTO DOHA DEVELOPMENT ROUND

OpenAIRE

Panagakou Georgopoulou, Ilia

2013-01-01

The following study is an historical analysis of the WTO Doha Round negotiations using a world-systems perspective. The thesis tries to answer the following research question: why is the Doha Development Round not producing the desired and expected results? To answer this question, this study has used primary material from the WTO online archives, especially from the biennial sessions of the Ministerial Conference, in order to assess WTO member states’ positions on the topics discussed, as we...
A round robin on numerical analyses for impact problems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yagawa, G.; Ohtsubo, H.; Toi, Y.; Aizawa, T.; Ikushima, T.

1984-01-01

In this paper, two types of numerical tests are performed using several general- and special-purpose computer codes to understand dynamic behaviors of CASK for nuclear fuel shipping under the impact onto rigid floor due to the accidental fall from the height of 9 m. Discussed are the efficiency and the validity of direct time integration schemes and the effects of material and geometric nonlinearities and contact conditions on the numerical data. (orig.)
Efficient round-robin multicast scheduling for input-queued switches

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Anders; Yu, Hao; Ruepp, Sarah Renée

2014-01-01

The input-queued (IQ) switch architecture is favoured for designing multicast high-speed switches because of its scalability and low implementation complexity. However, using the first-in-first-out (FIFO) queueing discipline at each input of the switch may cause the head-of-line (HOL) blocking...... problem. Using a separate queue for each output port at an input to reduce the HOL blocking, that is, the virtual output queuing discipline, increases the implementation complexity, which limits the scalability. Given the increasing link speed and network capacity, a low-complexity yet efficient multicast...... by means of queue look-ahead. Simulation results demonstrate that this FIFO-based IQ multicast architecture is able to achieve significant improvements in terms of multicast latency requirements by searching through a small number of cells beyond the HOL cells in the input queues. Furthermore, hardware...
NDE Techniques Used in PARENT Open Round Robin Testing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Meyer, Ryan M. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

2014-11-05

This is a draft technical letter report for NRC client describing the NDE techniques used in the open testing portion of the Program to Assess the Reliability of Emerging Nondestructive Techniques (PARENT).
Characterization of the Low Level Waste Reference Glass (LRM)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peeler, D.

1999-01-01

'The Savannah River Technology Center (SRTC) has participated in a round robin testing program which was conducted under the auspices of the Department of Energy''s (DOE) Tanks Focus Area (TFA) for Immobilization.'
About application during lectures on protection of the information and information security of the method of "the round table"

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simon Zh. Simavoryan

2011-05-01

Full Text Available In article the analysis of one of passive methods of transfer of knowledge – lecture is resulted. Experience of teaching of a subject on protection of the information and information security shows that students acquire a teaching material if during lecture to apply an active method of transfer of knowledge – a method of "a round table" is better.
Life fraction rules

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maile, K.

1989-01-01

Evaluations for lifetime estimation of high temperature loaded HTR-components under creep fatigue load had been performed. The evaluations were carried out on the basis of experimental data of strain controlled fatigue tests with respectively without hold times performed on material NiCr 22 Co 12 Mo (Inconel 617). Life prediction was made by means of the linear damage accumulation rule. Due to the high temperatures no realistic estimates of creep damage can be obtained with this rule. Therefore the rule was modified. The modifications consist in a different analysis of the relaxation curve including different calculation of the creep damage estimate resp. in an extended rule, taking into consideration the interaction between creep and fatigue. In order to reach a better result transparency and to reduce data set dependent result scattering a round robin with a given data set was carried out. The round robin yielded that for a given test temperature of T = 950deg C realistic estimate of damage can be obtained with each modification. Furthermore a reduction of resulting scatterbands in the interaction diagram can be observed, i.e. the practicability of the rule has been increased. (orig.)
Choroidal Round Hyporeflectivities in Geographic Atrophy.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eleonora Corbelli

Full Text Available In geographic atrophy (GA, choroidal vessels typically appear on structural optical coherence tomography (OCT as hyperreflective round areas with highly reflective borders. We observed that some GA eyes show choroidal round hyporeflectivities with highly reflective borders beneath the atrophy, and futher investigated the charcteristcs by comparing structural OCT, indocyanine green angiography (ICGA and OCT angiography (OCT-A.Round hyporeflectivities were individuated from a pool of patients with GA secondary to non-neovascular age-related macular degeneration consecutively presenting between October 2015 and March 2016 at the Medical Retina & Imaging Unit of the University Vita-Salute San Raffaele. Patients underwent a complete ophthalmologic examination including ICGA, structural OCT and OCT-A. The correspondence between choroidal round hyporeflectivities beneath GA on structural OCT and ICGA and OCT-A imaging were analyzed.Fifty eyes of 26 consecutive patients (17 females and 9 males; mean age 76.8±6.2 years with GA were included. Twenty-nine round hyporeflectivities have been found by OCT in choroidal layers in 21 eyes of 21 patients (42.0%; estimated prevalence of 57.7%. All 29 round hyporeflectivities showed constantly a hyperreflective border and a backscattering on structural OCT, and appeared as hypofluorescent in late phase ICGA and as dark foci with non detectable flow in the choroidal segmentation of OCT-A. Interestingly, the GA area was greater in eyes with compared to eyes without round hyporeflectivities (9.30±5.74 and 5.57±4.48mm2, respectively; p = 0.01.Our results suggest that most round hyporeflectivities beneath GA may represent non-perfused or hypo-perfused choroidal vessels with non-detectable flow.
Choroidal Round Hyporeflectivities in Geographic Atrophy.

Science.gov (United States)

Corbelli, Eleonora; Sacconi, Riccardo; De Vitis, Luigi Antonio; Carnevali, Adriano; Rabiolo, Alessandro; Querques, Lea; Bandello, Francesco; Querques, Giuseppe

2016-01-01

In geographic atrophy (GA), choroidal vessels typically appear on structural optical coherence tomography (OCT) as hyperreflective round areas with highly reflective borders. We observed that some GA eyes show choroidal round hyporeflectivities with highly reflective borders beneath the atrophy, and futher investigated the charcteristcs by comparing structural OCT, indocyanine green angiography (ICGA) and OCT angiography (OCT-A). Round hyporeflectivities were individuated from a pool of patients with GA secondary to non-neovascular age-related macular degeneration consecutively presenting between October 2015 and March 2016 at the Medical Retina & Imaging Unit of the University Vita-Salute San Raffaele. Patients underwent a complete ophthalmologic examination including ICGA, structural OCT and OCT-A. The correspondence between choroidal round hyporeflectivities beneath GA on structural OCT and ICGA and OCT-A imaging were analyzed. Fifty eyes of 26 consecutive patients (17 females and 9 males; mean age 76.8±6.2 years) with GA were included. Twenty-nine round hyporeflectivities have been found by OCT in choroidal layers in 21 eyes of 21 patients (42.0%; estimated prevalence of 57.7%). All 29 round hyporeflectivities showed constantly a hyperreflective border and a backscattering on structural OCT, and appeared as hypofluorescent in late phase ICGA and as dark foci with non detectable flow in the choroidal segmentation of OCT-A. Interestingly, the GA area was greater in eyes with compared to eyes without round hyporeflectivities (9.30±5.74 and 5.57±4.48mm2, respectively; p = 0.01). Our results suggest that most round hyporeflectivities beneath GA may represent non-perfused or hypo-perfused choroidal vessels with non-detectable flow.
China Energy Efficiency Round Robin Testing Results for Room Air Conditioners

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou, Nan; Fridley, David; Zheng, Nina; Pierrot, Andre

2010-06-07

In recent years China's energy consumption has increased rapidly. The problem of high energy consumption intensity and low energy utilization efficiency is serious, and the contradiction between economic development and energy and environmental resources has become increasingly acute, making energy conservation and consumption reduction an important society-wide concern. At the same time, global climate change has and will continue to have profound impacts on human survival and development, and is another major challenge to all countries. In order to accelerate China's energy conservation and emission reduction work, the National Leading Group to Address Climate Change, Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction was founded with Premier Wen Jiabao as the head, and the 'Comprehensive Work Program of Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction' and 'China's National Program of Addressing Climate Change' were issued, under which China's energy conservation and emission reduction work has been fully deployed. Efforts to promote energy efficiency have been further strengthened in all levels of government, and various policies and measures have progressively been issued and implemented. In addition, based on China's experience with implementing energy-saving priority strategies over the past 20+ years, our government established a goal of a 20% decrease in energy consumption per unit GDP in the 'Eleventh Five-year Development Plan'. Furthermore, in November 2009, in order to support global greenhouse gas emission reduction activities and promote China's low carbon economic development, the government established a further 40-50% reduction in energy consumption per unit GDP by 2020 compared to the year 2005. Improving energy utilization efficiency by scientific and technological progress will undoubtedly play an important role in achieving the above stated objectives. The improvement of energy efficiency of energy
High-precision reflectivity measurements: improvements in the calibration procedure

Science.gov (United States)

Jupe, Marco; Grossmann, Florian; Starke, Kai; Ristau, Detlev

2003-05-01

The development of high quality optical components is heavily depending on precise characterization procedures. The reflectance and transmittance of laser components are the most important parameters for advanced laser applications. In the industrial fabrication of optical coatings, quality management is generally insured by spectral photometric methods according to ISO/DIS 15386 on a medium level of accuracy. Especially for high reflecting mirrors, a severe discrepancy in the determination of the absolute reflectivity can be found for spectral photometric procedures. In the first part of the CHOCLAB project, a method for measuring reflectance and transmittance with an enhanced precision was developed, which is described in ISO/WD 13697. In the second part of the CHOCLAB project, the evaluation and optimization for the presented method is scheduled. Within this framework international Round-Robin experiment is currently in progress. During this Round-Robin experiment, distinct deviations could be observed between the results of high precision measurement facilities of different partners. Based on the extended experiments, the inhomogeneity of the sample reflectivity was identified as one important origin for the deviation. Consequently, this inhomogeneity is also influencing the calibration procedure. Therefore, a method was developed that allows the calibration of the chopper blade using always the same position on the reference mirror. During the investigations, the homogeneity of several samples was characterized by a surface mapping procedure for 1064 nm. The measurement facility was extended to the additional wavelength 532 nm and a similar set-up was assembled at 10.6 μm. The high precision reflectivity procedure at the mentioned wavelengths is demonstrated for exemplary measurements.

Positioning a thin-wall round wrapper within a heavy wall out-of-round shell of a heat exchanger

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hargrove, H.G.; Thompson, E.G.; Bayless, J.R.

1983-01-01

A thin-wall, generally round wrapper is installed within a heavy wall, rolled heat exchanger shell which has greater out-of-round tolerances than the wrapper and the wrapper is maintained in its round state by utilizing a plurality of jacks disposed adjacent spaced tube support plates within the wrapper. (author)
An Analysis of Burnout Conditions for Flow of Boiling Water in Vertical Round Ducts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Becker, Kurt M; Persson, P

1963-06-15

A method of predicting the burnout conditions for flow of boiling water in vertical round ducts is presented. The analysis predicts that the burnout conditions are independent of the L/d-ratio and the inlet temperature, and that the burnout steam quality decreases with increasing surface heat flux and increasing mass velocity. It was also found that the burnout steam quality at low pressures increases with the pressure and reaches a maximum at approximately 70 kg/cm, and thereafter decreases with a further increase of the pressure. The theoretical result compares very well with experimental data from different sources.
An Analysis of Burnout Conditions for Flow of Boiling Water in Vertical Round Ducts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Becker, Kurt M.; Persson, P.

1963-06-01

A method of predicting the burnout conditions for flow of boiling water in vertical round ducts is presented. The analysis predicts that the burnout conditions are independent of the L/d-ratio and the inlet temperature, and that the burnout steam quality decreases with increasing surface heat flux and increasing mass velocity. It was also found that the burnout steam quality at low pressures increases with the pressure and reaches a maximum at approximately 70 kg/cm, and thereafter decreases with a further increase of the pressure. The theoretical result compares very well with experimental data from different sources
Plasma cholinesterase inhibition in the clay-colored robin (Turdus grayi) exposed to diazinon in maradol papaya crops in Yucatan, Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Cobos, V.M.; Mora, M.A.; Escalona, G.

2006-01-01

The use of organophosphorous pesticides in agriculture can result in intoxication of birds foraging in sprayed crops. Effects on birds resulting from pesticide intoxication are varied and include behavioral and reproductive effects, including death. One widely used insecticide in Maradol papaya crops is diazinon which has been associated with various incidents of intoxication and death of wild birds. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of diazinon application to papaya crops on plasma cholinesterase activity of the clay-colored robin (Turdus grayi). We captured clay-colored robins foraging in a papaya crop the following day after the field had been sprayed with diazinon at a dose of 1.5 kg/ha during March and May, respectively. We took a blood sample from the brachialis vein of the birds captured and measured plasma enzymatic activity. The plasma samples from birds used as controls were taken during the same time period and were analyzed in a similar way. Enzymatic activity of males was greater than that of females (53,52%) and mean cholinesterase inhibition was 49.43%. Cholinesterase inhibition was greater during May than in March probably due to more continuous exposure and ingestion of the insecticide through food and possible absorption through the skin. This degree of enzymatic inhibition is possibly affecting the behavior of the clay-colored robin and could result in death in severe cases.
A new 2D mesh routing approach for networks on chip Une nouvelle ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

a modified XY routing and a communication load-based clustering technique. We show that our .... (TDMA), Round-Robin and fixed priority. B. routing. Figure.3: Router ..... Algorithms for Wireless Sensor Networks,” Computer. Communications ...
In the Round: Supporting Teachers' Authentic Professional Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Strand, Matt

2013-01-01

This is a study of teachers' authentic professional learning at a public school in Poudre School District in northern Colorado. At Polaris Expeditionary Learning School, teachers and administrators have developed a form of school-based instructional rounds referred to herein as PLC rounds (professional learning community rounds). In PLC rounds,…
Probabilistic fracture mechanics of nuclear structural components. Consideration of transition from embedded crack to surface crack

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yagawa, Genki; Yoshimura, Shinobu; Kanto, Yasuhiro

1998-01-01

This paper describes a probabilistic fracture mechanics (PFM) analysis of aged nuclear reactor pressure vessel (RPV) material. New interpolation formulas are first derived for both embedded elliptical surface cracks and semi-elliptical surface cracks. To investigate effects of transition from embedded crack to surface crack in PFM analyses, one of PFM round-robin problems set by JSME-RC111 committee, i.e. 'aged RPV under normal and upset operating conditions' is solved, employing the interpolation formulas. (author)
Impact of Quality Assurance Rounds in a Canadian Radiation Therapy Department

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lefresne, Shilo; Olivotto, Ivo A.; Joe, Howard; Blood, Paul A. [Radiotherapy Department, BC Cancer Agency, Vancouver Island Centre, Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada); Radiotherapy Department, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada); Olson, Robert A., E-mail: rolson2@bccancer.bc.ca [Radiotherapy Department, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada); Radiotherapy Department, BC Cancer Agency, Centre for the North, Prince George, British Columbia (Canada)

2013-03-01

Purpose: Quality assurance (QA) programs aim to identify inconsistencies that may compromise patient care. Radiation treatment planning is a well-documented source of variation in radiation oncology, leading many organizations to recommend the implementation of QA rounds in which radiation therapy plans are peer reviewed. This study evaluates the outcome of QA rounds that have been conducted by a radiation therapy department since 2004. Methods and Materials: Prospectively documented records of QA rounds, from 2004 to 2010, were obtained. During rounds, randomly selected radiation therapy plans were peer reviewed and assigned a grade of A (adequate), B (minor suggestions of change to a plan for a future patient), or C (significant change required before the next fraction). The proportion of plans that received each recommendation was calculated, and the relationship between recommendations for each plan, tumor site, and mean years of experience of the radiation oncologist (RO) were explored. Chart reviews were performed for each plan that received a C. Results: During the study period, 1247 plans were evaluated; 6% received a B and 1% received a C. The mean RO years of experience were lower for plans graded C versus those graded A (P=.02). The tumor sites with the highest proportion of plans graded B or C were gastrointestinal (14%), lung (13%), and lymphoma (8%). The most common reasons for plans to receive a grade of C were inadequate target volume coverage (36%), suboptimal dose or fractionation (27%), errors in patient setup (27%), and overtreatment of normal tissue (9%). Conclusions: This study demonstrated that QA rounds are feasible and an important element of a radiation therapy department's QA program. Through peer review, plans that deviate from a department's expected standard can be identified and corrected. Additional benefits include identifying patterns of practice that may contribute to inconsistencies in treatment planning and the
Algeria schedules onshore licensing round

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1992-01-01

This paper reports that Algeria's Sonatrach will conduct its first international onshore exploration licensing round in a move designed to triple drilling activity in the country. A second round will follow next April. Sonatrach plans to drill 200 wells during 1991-95, which will require the current level of 37/year to be almost trebled toward the end of the period. To this end foreign operators are being courted in an open exploration bidding round. Deadline for bid submittal in Nov. 30. Companies may enter singly or in groups to form partnerships with Sonatrach. Foreign licensees will be able to take a maximum 49% of production under Algerian law
Exploring the adoption of Schwartz Center Rounds as an organisational innovation to improve staff well-being in England, 2009-2015.

Science.gov (United States)

Robert, Glenn; Philippou, Julia; Leamy, Mary; Reynolds, Ellie; Ross, Shilpa; Bennett, Laura; Taylor, Cath; Shuldham, Caroline; Maben, Jill

2017-01-05

Schwartz Center Rounds ('Rounds') are a multidisciplinary forum in which healthcare staff within an organisation discuss the psychological, emotional and social challenges associated with their work in a confidential and safe environment. Implemented in over 375 North American organisations, since 2009, they have been increasingly adopted in England. This study aimed to establish how many and what types of organisations have adopted Rounds in England, and to explore why they did so. Public healthcare organisations in England. Secondary data analysis was used to map and profile all 116 public healthcare organisations that had adopted Rounds in England by July 2015. Semistructured telephone interviews were conducted with 45 Round coordinators within adopting organisations. The rate of adoption increased after a major national report in 2013. Rounds were typically adopted in order to improve staff well-being. Adopting organisations scored better on staff engagement than non-adopters; among adopting organisations, those performing better on patient experience were more likely to adopt earlier. Most adoption decision-making processes were straightforward. A confluence of factors-a generally favourable set of innovation attributes (including low cost), advocacy from opinion leaders in different professional networks, active dissemination by change agents and a felt need to be seen to be addressing staff well-being-initially led to Rounds being seen as 'an idea whose time had come'. More recent adoption patterns have been shaped by the timing of charitable and other agency funding in specific geographical areas and sectors, as well as several forms of 'mimetic pressure'. The innate attributes of Rounds, favourable circumstances and the cumulative impact of a sequence of distinct informal and formal social processes have shaped the pattern of their adoption in England. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a
Performances of One-Round Walks in Linear Congestion Games

Science.gov (United States)

Bilò, Vittorio; Fanelli, Angelo; Flammini, Michele; Moscardelli, Luca

We investigate the approximation ratio of the solutions achieved after a one-round walk in linear congestion games. We consider the social functions {Stextsc{um}}, defined as the sum of the players’ costs, and {Mtextsc{ax}}, defined as the maximum cost per player, as a measure of the quality of a given solution. For the social function {Stextsc{um}} and one-round walks starting from the empty strategy profile, we close the gap between the upper bound of 2+sqrt{5}≈ 4.24 given in [8] and the lower bound of 4 derived in [4] by providing a matching lower bound whose construction and analysis require non-trivial arguments. For the social function {Mtextsc{ax}}, for which, to the best of our knowledge, no results were known prior to this work, we show an approximation ratio of Θ(sqrt[4]{n^3}) (resp. Θ(nsqrt{n})), where n is the number of players, for one-round walks starting from the empty (resp. an arbitrary) strategy profile.
Agricultural Liberalization in the Doha Round

OpenAIRE

Messerlin , Patrick

2005-01-01

The analysis of agricultural liberalization reveals very large potential gains for both developed and developing countries that will come especially from own-country liberalization as well as from inter-country trade, significant benefits that may be realized by the poorest developing countries, and limited benefits from existing preferential agricultural arrangements. An ideal program for agricultural liberalization in the Doha Round would involve substantial reductions in the high tariffs t...
Why Might the Doha Round Fail?

OpenAIRE

Gifford, Michael N.; McCalla, Alex F.

2008-01-01

There are a number of factors working against a successful Doha Round conclusion. Several of these affect the linkages and trade-offs between the main elements of the Doha Round negotiating agenda, particularly agriculture, non-agricultural market access (NAMA), services, and rules. For most of the past six years, the negotiating difficulties in agriculture were regarded as the main constraint to concluding the Doha Round. However, in recent months, as the shape of the agricultural package be...
Stable and unstable crack growth in Type 304 stainless steel plate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yagawa, G.

1984-01-01

Experimental and theoretical results on stable as well as unstable fractures for Type 304 stainless steel plates with a central crack subjected to tension force are given. In the experiment using a testing machine with a special spring for high compliance, the transition points from the stable to the unstable crack growth are observed and comparisons are made between the test results and the finite element solutions. A round robin calculation for the elastic-plastic stable crack growth using one of the specimens mentioned above is also given. (orig.)
16 CFR 460.11 - Rounding off R-values.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 16 Commercial Practices 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Rounding off R-values. 460.11 Section 460.11... INSULATION § 460.11 Rounding off R-values. R-values shown in labels, fact sheets, ads, or other promotional materials must be rounded to the nearest tenth. However, R-values of 10 or more may be rounded to the...
Contingency table analysis of pebble lithology and roundness: A case study of Huangshui River, China and comparison to rivers in the Rocky Mountains, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Miao, X.; Lindsey, D.A.; Lai, Z.; Liu, Xiuying

2010-01-01

Contingency table analysis of pebble lithology and roundness is an effective way to identify the source terrane of a drainage basin and to distinguish changes in basin size, piracy, tectonism, and other events. First, the analysis to terrace gravel deposited by the Huangshui River, northeastern Tibet Plateau, China, shows statistically contrasting pebble populations for the oldest terrace (T7, Dadongling, 1.2. Ma) and the youngest terraces (T0-T3, ?. 0.15. Ma). Two fluvial processes are considered to explain the contrast in correlation between lithology and roundness in T7 gravel versus T0-T3 gravel: 1) reworking of T7 gravel into T0-T3 gravel and 2) growth in the size of the river basin between T7 and T0-T3 times. We favor growth in basin size as the dominant process, from comparison of pebble counts and contingency tables. Second, comparison of results from Huangshui River of China to three piedmont streams of the Rocky Mountains, USA highlights major differences in source terrane and history. Like Rocky Mountain piedmont gravel from Colorado examples, the Huangshui gravels show a preference (observed versus expected frequency) for rounded granite. But unlike Rocky Mountain gravel, Huangshui gravel shows a preference for angular quartzite and for rounded sandstone. In conclusion, contrasting behavior of lithologies during transport, not always apparent in raw pebble counts, is readily analyzed using contingency tables to identify the provenance of individual lithologies, including recycled clasts. Results of the analysis may help unravel river history, including changes in basin size and lithology. ?? 2009.
Epidemiological Aspects and Differential Diagnosis of the Cutaneous Round Cell Tumors in Dogs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roxana CORA

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Round cell neoplasms (RCNs are frequent cutaneous lesions in dogs, with high percentages among skin tumors. In this category are included histiocytoma, mast cell tumor, plasmacytoma, lymphoma and transmissible venereal tumor. The aim of the study was to perform an epidemiological study with reference to the cutaneous round cell tumors in a period of 10 years in the Department of Pathology (Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Additionally, in the recorded cases with round cell tumors (mast cell tumor, histiocytoma and lymphoma we described the main histological and cytological features. The epidemiological data were collected from the records of Pathology Department between 2005-2014. The investigation included dogs diagnosed with cutaneous round cell neoplasms, following necropsy analysis or assessment of biopsies or cytological samples. All collected specimens were analyzed by histopathological and/or cytological techniques. The staining used for histological investigation were Hematoxylin-eosin, Massonâ€™s trichrome and Toluidine blue, whereas Diff Quik and Wright methods were utilized in cytological specimens. The distribution of the cutaneous round cell tumors in relation to age, breed and sex was also assessed. The most frequent round cell tumor type was the mast cell tumor (19.54% followed by histiocytoma (11.33% and lymphoma (1.98%. The round cell tumors recorded were equally distributed in both males and females. Concerning the distribution of cutaneous RCNs by age (average age, histiocytoma occurred in 5 years old subjects, mast cell tumor in 11.9 years old subjects, and lymphoma in 6 years old subjects. Mast cell tumor was more frequent in stray dogs and Boxer breed, while histiocytoma occurred more commonly in stray dogs. Histological and cytological analysis was mandatory to perform the differential diagnosis between RCNs. Microscopic details concerning cytoplasm and nucleus of tumoral cells, together with the
Characterising the Actual Thermal Performance of Buildings: Current Results of Common Exercises Performed in the Framework of the IEA EBC Annex 58-Project

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Roels, Staf; Bacher, Peder; Bauwens, Geert

2015-01-01

Several studies have shown that actual thermal performance of buildings after construction may deviate significantly from that anticipated at design stage. As a result, there is growing interest in full scale testing of components and whole buildings. The IEA EBC Annex 58-project ‘Reliable Building...... Energy Performance Characterisation Based on Full Scale Dynamic Measurements’ is developing the necessary knowledge and tools to achieve reliable in-situ dynamic testing and data analysis methods that can be used to characterise the actual thermal performance and energy efficiency of building components...... and whole buildings. The research within this project is driven by case studies. As a first simple case, an experiment on testing and data analysis is performed on a round robin test box. This test box can be seen as a scale model of a building, built by one of the participants, with fabric properties...
Characterization of Analytical Reference Glass-1 (ARG-1)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, G.L.

1993-12-01

High-level radioactive waste may be immobilized in borosilicate glass at the West Valley Demonstration Project, West Valley, New York, the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF), Aiken, South Carolina, and the Hanford Waste Vitrification Project (HWVP), Richland, Washington. The vitrified waste form will be stored in stainless steel canisters before its eventual transfer to a geologic repository for long-term disposal. Waste Acceptance Product Specifications (WAPS) (DOE 1993), Section 1.1.2 requires that the waste form producers must report the measured chemical composition of the vitrified waste in their production records before disposal. Chemical analysis of glass waste forms is receiving increased attention due to qualification requirements of vitrified waste forms. The Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) has been supporting the glass producers' analytical laboratories by a continuing program of multilaboratory analytical testing using interlaboratory ''round robin'' methods. At the PNL Materials Characterization Center Analytical Round Robin 4 workshop ''Analysis of Nuclear Waste Glass and Related Materials,'' January 16--17, 1990, Pleasanton, California, the meeting attendees decided that simulated nuclear waste analytical reference glasses were needed for use as analytical standards. Use of common standard analytical reference materials would allow the glass producers' analytical laboratories to calibrate procedures and instrumentation, to control laboratory performance and conduct self-appraisals, and to help qualify their various waste forms
Ball mounting fixture for a roundness gage

Science.gov (United States)

Gauler, Allen L.; Pasieka, Donald F.

1983-01-01

A ball mounting fixture for a roundness gage is disclosed. The fixture includes a pair of chuck assemblies oriented substantially transversely with respect to one another and mounted on a common base. Each chuck assembly preferably includes a rotary stage and a wobble plate affixed thereto. A ball chuck affixed to each wobble plate is operable to selectively support a ball to be measured for roundness, with the wobble plate permitting the ball chuck to be tilted to center the ball on the axis of rotation of the rotary stage. In a preferred embodiment, each chuck assembly includes a vacuum chuck operable to selectively support the ball to be measured for roundness. The mounting fixture enables a series of roundness measurements to be taken with a conventional rotating gagehead roundness instrument, which measurements can be utilized to determine the sphericity of the ball.

Integrated safety assessment of Indian nuclear power plants for ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

to minimize release of radioactivity and avoid serious impact in public domain. A .... a large number of experimental programs, round robin exercises, benchmarks ...... numerical codes with BARCOM test data in terms of the loss of pre-stress in.
Planetary Taxonomy: Label Round Bodies "Worlds"

Science.gov (United States)

Margot, Jean-Luc; Levison, H. F.

2009-05-01

The classification of planetary bodies is as important to Astronomy as taxonomy is to other sciences. The etymological, historical, and IAU definitions of planet rely on a dynamical criterion, but some authors prefer a geophysical criterion based on "roundness". Although the former criterion is superior when it comes to classifying newly discovered objects, the conflict need not exist if we agree to identify the subset of "round" planetary objects as "worlds". This addition to the taxonomy would conveniently recognize that "round" objects such as Earth, Europa, Titan, Triton, and Pluto share some common planetary-type processes regardless of their distance from the host star. Some of these worlds are planets, others are not. Defining how round is round and handling the inevitable transition objects are non-trivial tasks. Because images at sufficient resolution are not available for the overwhelming majority of newly discovered objects, the degree of roundness is not a directly observable property and is inherently problematic as a basis for classification. We can tolerate some uncertainty in establishing the "world" status of a newly discovered object, and still establish its planet or satellite status with existing dynamical criteria. Because orbital parameters are directly observable, and because mass can often be measured either from orbital perturbations or from the presence of companions, the dynamics provide a robust and practical planet classification scheme. It may also be possible to determine which bodies are dynamically dominant from observations of the population magnitude/size distribution.
Administrative Problems in the Single-Track Year-Round High Schools: Research Findings and Guidelines.

Science.gov (United States)

Holt, Laura L.; Karr-Kidwell, PJ

An analysis of the problems pertaining to the adoption of a year-round calendar for high schools, along with the advantages of year-round education (YRE), are examined. It provides a literary review (including historical contexts), types of calendars, benefits, administrative problems, and societal benefits. For the study, 28 schools responded to…
ROBIN: a platform for evaluating automatic target recognition algorithms: I. Overview of the project and presentation of the SAGEM DS competition

Science.gov (United States)

Duclos, D.; Lonnoy, J.; Guillerm, Q.; Jurie, F.; Herbin, S.; D'Angelo, E.

2008-04-01

The last five years have seen a renewal of Automatic Target Recognition applications, mainly because of the latest advances in machine learning techniques. In this context, large collections of image datasets are essential for training algorithms as well as for their evaluation. Indeed, the recent proliferation of recognition algorithms, generally applied to slightly different problems, make their comparisons through clean evaluation campaigns necessary. The ROBIN project tries to fulfil these two needs by putting unclassified datasets, ground truths, competitions and metrics for the evaluation of ATR algorithms at the disposition of the scientific community. The scope of this project includes single and multi-class generic target detection and generic target recognition, in military and security contexts. From our knowledge, it is the first time that a database of this importance (several hundred thousands of visible and infrared hand annotated images) has been publicly released. Funded by the French Ministry of Defence (DGA) and by the French Ministry of Research, ROBIN is one of the ten Techno-vision projects. Techno-vision is a large and ambitious government initiative for building evaluation means for computer vision technologies, for various application contexts. ROBIN's consortium includes major companies and research centres involved in Computer Vision R&D in the field of defence: Bertin Technologies, CNES, ECA, DGA, EADS, INRIA, ONERA, MBDA, SAGEM, THALES. This paper, which first gives an overview of the whole project, is focused on one of ROBIN's key competitions, the SAGEM Defence Security database. This dataset contains more than eight hundred ground and aerial infrared images of six different vehicles in cluttered scenes including distracters. Two different sets of data are available for each target. The first set includes different views of each vehicle at close range in a "simple" background, and can be used to train algorithms. The second set
Mesothelial cell proliferation in the scala tympani: a reaction to the rupture of the round window membrane.

Science.gov (United States)

Sone, M

1998-10-01

The inner layer of the round window membrane is composed of mesothelial cells and this mesothelial cell layer extends to the scala tympani. This study describes the histopathologic findings of temporal bone analysis from a patient with bilateral perilymphatic fistula of the round window membrane. The left ear showed proliferation of mesothelial cells in the scala tympani of the basal turn adjoining the round window membrane. This cell proliferation is thought to be a reaction to the rupture of the round window membrane.
NORDTEST Project on Moisture Buffer Value of Materials

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rode, Carsten; Peuhkuri, Ruut Hannele; Hansen, Kurt Kielsgaard

2005-01-01

Building materials and furnishing used in contact with indoor air have some effect to moderate the variations of indoor humidity in occupied buildings. Very low humidity can be alleviated in winter, as well as can high indoor humidity in summer and during high occupancy loads. Thus, materials can...... have been carried out on various typical building materials. The paper gives an account on the definition of the Moisture Buffer Value, it outlines the content of the test protocol, and it gives some examples of results from the Round Robin Tests....... being completed, to develop a definition, and to declare it in the form of a NORDTEST method. Apart from the definition of the term Moisture Buffer Value, the project also declares a test protocol which expresses how materials should be tested. Finally as a part of the project, some Round Robin Tests...
Experiences with Railway Regulation in Great Britain and the Czech Republic – Round Table Report1

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nash Chris

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of the Round Table was to compare British and Czech experiences with railway regulation and competition introduction and to determine which lessons can be learnt. Special attention was paid to the question of whether the very complex British reform can be an inspiration for further liberalisation of the railway sector in the Czech Republic or whether there are any reform mistakes that are best avoided. Based on two introductory presentations and subsequent plenary discussion, some consensus emerged. The participants agreed that there is no one-size-fits-all solution to railway regulation and that the introduction of competition should take into account the different circumstances of a particular country. Franchising in passenger operations in Britain successfully stimulated demand but also increased costs to the industry, so its implementation should be completed with care. It seems very unlikely that open-access competition would be a viable solution for the whole passenger rail market because it is limited to a few commercially attractive routes, and as Czech experience suggests, it creates many new problems. Finally, it was confirmed that a strong and dedicated regulator is needed in a newly liberalised environment in order to solve many emerging conflicts and disputes.
Development of life evaluation technology for nuclear power plant components

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Young Jin [Sungkyunkwan Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Kwon, J. D. [Yeungnam Univ., Gyeongsan (Korea, Republic of); Kang, K. J. [Chonnam National Univ., Gwangju (Korea, Republic of)] (and others)

2001-03-15

This research focuses on development of reliable life evaluation technology for nuclear power plant (NPP) components, and is divided into two parts, development of life evaluation systems for pressurized components and evaluation of applicability of emerging technology to operating plants. For the development of life evaluation system for nuclear pressure vessels, the following seven topics are covered: development of expert systems for integrity assessment of pressurized components, development of integrity evaluation systems of steam generator tubes, prediction of failure probability for NPP components based on probabilistic fracture mechanics, development of fatigue damage evaluation technique for plant life extension, domestic round robin analysis for pressurized thermal shock of reactor vessels, domestic round robin analysis of constructing P--T limit curves for reactor vessels, and development of data base for integrity assessment. For evaluation of applicability of emerging technology to operating plants, on the other hand, the following eight topics are covered: applicability of the Leak-Before-Break analysis to Cast S/S piping, collection of aged material tensile and toughness data for aged Cast S/S piping, finite element analyses for load carrying capacity of corroded pipes, development of Risk-based ISI methodology for nuclear piping, collection of toughness data for integrity assessment of bi-metallic joints, applicability of the Master curve concept to reactor vessel integrity assessment, measurement of dynamic fracture toughness, and provision of information related to regulation and plant life extension issues.
Probabilistic fracture mechanics of nuclear structural components: consideration of transition from embedded crack to surface crack

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yagawa, G.; Yoshimura, S.

1999-01-01

This paper describes a probabilistic fracture mechanics (PFM) analysis of aged nuclear reactor pressure vessel (RPV) material. New interpolation formulas of three-dimensional stress intensity factors are presented for both embedded elliptical surface cracks and semi-elliptical surface cracks. To investigate effects of transition from embedded crack to surface crack in PFM analyses, one of the PFM round-robin problems set by JSME-RC111 committee (i.e. aged RPV under normal and upset operating conditions) is solved, employing the interpolation formulas. (orig.)
Environmental Assessment for Developing Renewable Energy Enhanced Use Lease Facilities at Robins Air Force Base

Science.gov (United States)

2013-12-15

geothermal sources were eliminated because of insufficient sources of energy. Wind power using turbines was eliminated because the average wind speed in...Warner Robins, Georgia is 8 kph (5 mph), and wind turbines are typically not cost-effective in areas with average wind speeds below 12.9-16.1 kph (8...20 Table 3-2. Bird Species of Pine and Pine/Mixed Hardwood Habitats ...................... 31 Table 3-3. Archaeological Sites
40 CFR 73.12 - Rounding Procedures.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 16 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Rounding Procedures. 73.12 Section 73.12 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) SULFUR DIOXIDE ALLOWANCE SYSTEM Allowance Allocations § 73.12 Rounding Procedures. (a) Calculation...
Rounded atelectasis of the lung: A pictorial review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sobocińska, Magdalena; Sobociński, Bartosz; Jarzemska, Agnieszka; Serafin, Zbigniew

2014-01-01

Rounded atelectasis of the lung is well described in medical literature, but still difficult to diagnose. Since lesions give no clinical symptoms in patients, radiologists are often the first to recognize the round lesion in an X-ray picture or a CT scan. Rounded atelectasis is an atypical form of lung collapse that usually occurs adjacent to scarred pleura and can be mistaken for lung cancer. Patients with rounded atelectasis have a history of asbestos exposure or pleural effusion due to various causes. When characteristic imaging findings are present, the diagnosis is rarely dubious and no further investigation is necessary. However, differential diagnosis of rounded atelectasis poses a challenge to pulmonary specialists and radiologists
Rounded atelectasis of the lung: A pictorial review.

Science.gov (United States)

Sobocińska, Magdalena; Sobociński, Bartosz; Jarzemska, Agnieszka; Serafin, Zbigniew

2014-01-01

Rounded atelectasis of the lung is well described in medical literature, but still difficult to diagnose. Since lesions give no clinical symptoms in patients, radiologists are often the first to recognize the round lesion in an X-ray picture or a CT scan. Rounded atelectasis is an atypical form of lung collapse that usually occurs adjacent to scarred pleura and can be mistaken for lung cancer. Patients with rounded atelectasis have a history of asbestos exposure or pleural effusion due to various causes. When characteristic imaging findings are present, the diagnosis is rarely dubious and no further investigation is necessary. However, differential diagnosis of rounded atelectasis poses a challenge to pulmonary specialists and radiologists.
Multi-Laboratory Validation of Estrone (E1) ELISA Methods

Science.gov (United States)

This project is a round-robin evaluation of commercially available Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) technology to quantitatively or qualitatively measure the hormone estrone (E1) in combined animal feeding operation (CAFO) receiving streams. ELISA is meant to be a simpl...
VLSI IMPLEMENTATION OF NOVEL ROUND KEYS GENERATION SCHEME FOR CRYPTOGRAPHY APPLICATIONS BY ERROR CONTROL ALGORITHM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B. SENTHILKUMAR

2015-05-01

Full Text Available A novel implementation of code based cryptography (Cryptocoding technique for multi-layer key distribution scheme is presented. VLSI chip is designed for storing information on generation of round keys. New algorithm is developed for reduced key size with optimal performance. Error Control Algorithm is employed for both generation of round keys and diffusion of non-linearity among them. Two new functions for bit inversion and its reversal are developed for cryptocoding. Probability of retrieving original key from any other round keys is reduced by diffusing nonlinear selective bit inversions on round keys. Randomized selective bit inversions are done on equal length of key bits by Round Constant Feedback Shift Register within the error correction limits of chosen code. Complexity of retrieving the original key from any other round keys is increased by optimal hardware usage. Proposed design is simulated and synthesized using VHDL coding for Spartan3E FPGA and results are shown. Comparative analysis is done between 128 bit Advanced Encryption Standard round keys and proposed round keys for showing security strength of proposed algorithm. This paper concludes that chip based multi-layer key distribution of proposed algorithm is an enhanced solution to the existing threats on cryptography algorithms.
Phytoremediated marine sediments as suitable peat-free growing media for production of red robin photinia (Photinia x fraseri).

Science.gov (United States)

Mattei, Paola; Gnesini, Alessandro; Gonnelli, Cristina; Marraccini, Chiara; Masciandaro, Grazia; Macci, Cristina; Doni, Serena; Iannelli, Renato; Lucchetti, Stefano; Nicese, Francesco P; Renella, Giancarlo

2018-06-01

Sediments dredged by an industrial port, slightly contaminated by heavy metals and petroleoum hydrocarbons, were phytoremediated and used as peat-free growing media for the red robin photinia (Photinia x fraseri L.). Plants were grown on sediment only (S), sediment mixed with composted pruning residues (S + PR), sediment fertilized with controlled release fertilizers (S + F) and peat-based growing media as control (C). Plant elongation and dry weight, leaf contents of chlorophyll, malondialdehyde (MDA), macronutrients and heavy metals were determined at the end of one growing season. Environmental impact related to the use of sediment-based as compared to peat-based growing media was assessed by the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA). Sediment-based growing media presented significantly higher bulk density, pH and electrical conductivity values, lower C and N contents, and significantly higher total and available P. Red robin photinia grown on S + F growing media showed morphological and chemical parameters similar to those of control plants (C), whereas plants grown on S and S + PR showed lower growth. Leaf concentration of nutrients and heavy metals varied depending on the considered element and growing media, but were all within the common values for ornamental plants, whereas the highest MDA concentrations were found in plants grown on traditional growing media. The LCA indicated the use of sediments as growing media reduced the C footprint of ornamental plant production and the contribute of growing media to the environmental impact per produced plant. We concluded that sediments phytoremediation and use in plant nursery is a practical alternative re-use option for dredged sediments. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Destructive analysis capabilities for plutonium and uranium characterization at Los Alamos National Laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tandon, Lav; Kuhn, Kevin J.; Drake, Lawrence R.; Decker, Diana L.; Walker, Laurie F.; Colletti, Lisa M.; Spencer, Khalil J.; Peterson, Dominic S.; Herrera, Jaclyn A.; Wong, Amy S.

2010-01-01

Los Alamos National Laboratory's (LANL) Actinide Analytical Chemistry (AAC) group has been in existence since the Manhattan Project. It maintains a complete set of analytical capabilities for performing complete characterization (elemental assay, isotopic, metallic and non metallic trace impurities) of uranium and plutonium samples in different forms. For a majority of the customers there are strong quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) objectives including highest accuracy and precision with well defined uncertainties associated with the analytical results. Los Alamos participates in various international and national programs such as the Plutonium Metal Exchange Program, New Brunswick Laboratory's (NBL' s) Safeguards Measurement Evaluation Program (SME) and several other inter-laboratory round robin exercises to monitor and evaluate the data quality generated by AAC. These programs also provide independent verification of analytical measurement capabilities, and allow any technical problems with analytical measurements to be identified and corrected. This presentation will focus on key analytical capabilities for destructive analysis in AAC and also comparative data between LANL and peer groups for Pu assay and isotopic analysis.
Round Ligament Varicosities During Pregnancy: Case Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baek, Chang Kyu; Oh, Young Taik; Jung, Dae Chul

2011-01-01

There are various causes of a painful palpable mass in the groin during pregnancy. The differential diagnoses of an inguinal mass include hernia, lymphadenopathy, mesothelial cyst, cystic lymphangioma, neoplasms (lipoma, leiomyoma and sarcoma), endometriosis, embryonic remnants and round ligament varicosities. Among them, round ligament varicosities can be easily misdiagnosed as an inguinal hernia in a pregnant woman. These lesions should be managed conservatively because they resolve spontaneously during the postpartum period. Ultrasonography can help make the diagnosis of round ligament varicosities and so prevent unnecessary surgical intervention and the associated morbidity. Herein we report on a case of round ligament varicosities that presented during pregnancy and this condition was readily diagnosed via Doppler sonography
Round Ligament Varicosities During Pregnancy: Case Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baek, Chang Kyu; Oh, Young Taik; Jung, Dae Chul [Yonsei University Health System, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2011-12-15

There are various causes of a painful palpable mass in the groin during pregnancy. The differential diagnoses of an inguinal mass include hernia, lymphadenopathy, mesothelial cyst, cystic lymphangioma, neoplasms (lipoma, leiomyoma and sarcoma), endometriosis, embryonic remnants and round ligament varicosities. Among them, round ligament varicosities can be easily misdiagnosed as an inguinal hernia in a pregnant woman. These lesions should be managed conservatively because they resolve spontaneously during the postpartum period. Ultrasonography can help make the diagnosis of round ligament varicosities and so prevent unnecessary surgical intervention and the associated morbidity. Herein we report on a case of round ligament varicosities that presented during pregnancy and this condition was readily diagnosed via Doppler sonography
The regeneration of a multi-ethnic mixed-use area: The case of Robin Hood Chase

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ian Bentley

1997-01-01

Full Text Available Urban designers show increasing interest in promoting community participation in urban regeneration and especially housing regeneration. However, effective participation has proved difficult in multi-ethnic mixed-use areas, with their wide range of different (and often conflicting interest groups. This paper, presented in case-study form, analyses a project in one such area: the Robin Hood Chase local centre in St. Ann’s area of Nottingham. It pays particular attention to the identification of different interest groups and their associated institutions, the use of local media and social events to involve these groups in the urban design process, the use of rearrangeable models in a process of “enquiry by design”, and the production of a widely acceptable urban design strategy for the area. Analysis of feedback from participants indicates a high level of satisfaction both with the final physical design proposal and with the process itself; and also identifies directions for further development in the approach and techniques employed.

Response of round gobies, Neogobius melanostomus, to conspecific sounds

Science.gov (United States)

Isabella-Valenzi, Lisa

A useful model group to examine reproductive plasticity in acoustic responsiveness is the family Gobiidae. Male round gobies Neogobius melanostomus emit calls and females respond to these calls with high specificity. The current study investigates differential attraction between reproductive morphologies of the goby to conspecific calls and explores the use of calls to develop a bioacoustic trap. Behavioural responsiveness to conspecific calls was tested using playback experiments in the lab and field. Females showed a strong attraction to the grunt call in both the lab and field, while nonreproductive and sneaker males preferred the drum call in the lab, but favoured the grunt call in the field. By determining the relationship between reproductive state and auditory responsiveness to conspecific calls, I am further elucidating the function of acoustic communication in the round goby and may be essential when creating control strategies to prevent the spread of the invasive species.
EIR, KfK joint heat transfer experiment on a single rod, roughened with trapezoidal rounded ribs and cooled by various gases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hudina, M.; Huggenberger, M.; Dalle Donne, M.; Meyer, L.; Rehme, K.

1978-10-01

Heat transfer and pressure drop experiments with an identical fuel rod simulator have been performed at the two Research Establishments in Wuerenlingen and in Karlsruhe. The rod was artificially roughened with 'two-dimensional' ribs of trapezoidal shape and with rounded edges. The experiments at EIR were performed with CO 2 and the rough rod was contained in a smooth tube and centered by special spacers. The experiments at KfK were performed using helium and nitrogen in the same test section (rod and outer smooth tube with spacers) and air with the rod mounted in another outer smooth tube and with spacers located farther away from the measuring positions. The global measured friction factors and Stanton numbers for different gases agree reasonably well. The differences between the roughness parameters R and G are larger. The possible reasons for the uncertainties in the reduction of these parameters are discussed. It is recommended to perform further experiments with helium in a test section with spacers far apart, to investigate the effect of the temperature ratio on heat transfer and to check if the unfavourable data obtained by the experiment with air are too pessimistic for GCFR application. (orig.) [de
The Robin Hood method - A novel numerical method for electrostatic problems based on a non-local charge transfer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lazic, Predrag; Stefancic, Hrvoje; Abraham, Hrvoje

2006-01-01

We introduce a novel numerical method, named the Robin Hood method, of solving electrostatic problems. The approach of the method is closest to the boundary element methods, although significant conceptual differences exist with respect to this class of methods. The method achieves equipotentiality of conducting surfaces by iterative non-local charge transfer. For each of the conducting surfaces, non-local charge transfers are performed between surface elements, which differ the most from the targeted equipotentiality of the surface. The method is tested against analytical solutions and its wide range of application is demonstrated. The method has appealing technical characteristics. For the problem with N surface elements, the computational complexity of the method essentially scales with N α , where α < 2, the required computer memory scales with N, while the error of the potential decreases exponentially with the number of iterations for many orders of magnitude of the error, without the presence of the Critical Slowing Down. The Robin Hood method could prove useful in other classical or even quantum problems. Some future development ideas for possible applications outside electrostatics are addressed
ROBINS-I: a tool for assessing risk of bias in non-randomised studies of interventions

OpenAIRE

Sterne, Jonathan AC; Hern?n, Miguel A; Reeves, Barnaby C; Savovi?, Jelena; Berkman, Nancy D; Viswanathan, Meera; Henry, David; Altman, Douglas G; Ansari, Mohammed T; Boutron, Isabelle; Carpenter, James R; Chan, An-Wen; Churchill, Rachel; Deeks, Jonathan J; Hr?bjartsson, Asbj?rn

2016-01-01

Non-randomized studies of the effects of interventions are critical to many areas of health care evaluation, but their results may be biased. It is therefore important to understand and appraise their strengths and weaknesses. We developed ROBINS-I (“Risk Of Bias In Non-randomized Studies - of Interventions”), a new tool for evaluating risk of bias in estimates of the comparative effectiveness (harm or benefit) of interventions from studies that did not use randomization to allocate units (in...
Medical and surgical ward rounds in teaching hospitals of Kuwait University: students’ perceptions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

AlMutar S

2013-09-01

teaching experience for their students. Keywords: ward rounds, bedside teaching, undergraduate, medical students, medical education
Exploring the adoption of Schwartz Center Rounds as an organisational innovation to improve staff well-being in England, 2009–2015

Science.gov (United States)

Philippou, Julia; Leamy, Mary; Reynolds, Ellie; Ross, Shilpa; Bennett, Laura; Taylor, Cath; Shuldham, Caroline; Maben, Jill

2017-01-01

Objectives Schwartz Center Rounds (‘Rounds’) are a multidisciplinary forum in which healthcare staff within an organisation discuss the psychological, emotional and social challenges associated with their work in a confidential and safe environment. Implemented in over 375 North American organisations, since 2009, they have been increasingly adopted in England. This study aimed to establish how many and what types of organisations have adopted Rounds in England, and to explore why they did so. Setting Public healthcare organisations in England. Participants Secondary data analysis was used to map and profile all 116 public healthcare organisations that had adopted Rounds in England by July 2015. Semistructured telephone interviews were conducted with 45 Round coordinators within adopting organisations. Results The rate of adoption increased after a major national report in 2013. Rounds were typically adopted in order to improve staff well-being. Adopting organisations scored better on staff engagement than non-adopters; among adopting organisations, those performing better on patient experience were more likely to adopt earlier. Most adoption decision-making processes were straightforward. A confluence of factors—a generally favourable set of innovation attributes (including low cost), advocacy from opinion leaders in different professional networks, active dissemination by change agents and a felt need to be seen to be addressing staff well-being—initially led to Rounds being seen as ‘an idea whose time had come’. More recent adoption patterns have been shaped by the timing of charitable and other agency funding in specific geographical areas and sectors, as well as several forms of ‘mimetic pressure’. Conclusions The innate attributes of Rounds, favourable circumstances and the cumulative impact of a sequence of distinct informal and formal social processes have shaped the pattern of their adoption in England. PMID:28057662
Idiosyncratic versus social consensus approaches to personality : Self-view, perceived, and peer-view similarity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Zalk, M.H.W.; Denissen, J.J.A.

2015-01-01

In the current studies, the authors examined how peers influence friendship choices through individuals' perceptions of similarity between their own and others' Big Five traits. Self-reported and peer-reported data were gathered from 3 independent samples using longitudinal round-robin designs.
Views of parents and health-care providers regarding parental presence at bedside rounds in a neonatal intensive care unit.

Science.gov (United States)

Grzyb, M J; Coo, H; Rühland, L; Dow, K

2014-02-01

To examine the views of parents and health-care providers regarding parental presence during neonatal intensive care rounds. Cross-sectional survey of parents whose children were admitted to a tertiary-care neonatal intensive care unit (n=81). Medical trainees (n=67) and nurses (n=28) were also surveyed. The majority of parents reported that attending rounds reduced their anxiety and increased their confidence in the health-care team. Nurses were more likely than medical trainees to support parental presence at rounds (P=0.02). About three-quarters of medical trainees and nurses thought discussion is inhibited and 69% of trainees felt teaching is decreased when parents attend rounds. Most parents who attended rounds found the experience beneficial, but medical trainees' views were mixed. The positive impact on parents, and the learning opportunities created in family-centered care and communication when parents are present on rounds, should be highlighted for trainees and other neonatal intensive care personnel.
Experimental and Numerical Analysis of Steel Joints in Round Wood

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mikolášek David

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The paper analyses a drawn steel joint in round logs for which several types of reinforcements have been proposed. The load-carrying capacity of the reinforcements have been tested in laboratories. At the same time, numerical modelling has been performed - it has focused, in particular, on rigidity of the joints during the loading process. Physical and geometrical nonlinearities have been taken into account. The Finite Element Method and 3D computation models have been used in the numerical calculations.
Evidence for predatory control of the invasive round goby

Science.gov (United States)

Madenjian, C.P.; Stapanian, M.A.; Witzel, L.D.; Einhouse, D.W.; Pothoven, S.A.; Whitford, H.L.

2011-01-01

We coupled bioenergetics modeling with bottom trawl survey results to evaluate the capacity of piscivorous fish in eastern Lake Erie to exert predatory control of the invading population of round goby Neogobius melanostomus. In the offshore (>20 m deep) waters of eastern Lake Erie, burbot Lota lota is a native top predator, feeding on a suite of prey fishes. The round goby invaded eastern Lake Erie during the late 1990s, and round goby population size increased dramatically during 1999–2004. According to annual bottom trawl survey results, round goby abundance in offshore waters peaked in 2004, but then declined during 2004–2008. Coincidentally, round goby became an important component of burbot diet beginning in 2003. Using bottom trawling and gill netting, we estimated adult burbot abundance and age structure in eastern Lake Erie during 2007. Diet composition and energy density of eastern Lake Erie burbot were also determined during 2007. This information, along with estimates of burbot growth, burbot mortality, burbot water temperature regime, and energy densities of prey fish from the literature, were incorporated into a bioenergetics model application to estimate annual consumption of round goby by the adult burbot population. Results indicated that the adult burbot population in eastern Lake Erie annually consumed 1,361 metric tons of round goby. Based on the results of bottom trawling, we estimated the biomass of yearling and older round goby in offshore waters eastern Lake Erie during 2007–2008 to be 2,232 metric tons. Thus, the adult burbot population was feeding on round goby at an annual rate equal to 61% of the estimated round goby standing stock. We concluded that the burbot population had high potential to exert predatory control on round goby in offshore waters of eastern Lake Erie.
Two ways factorial design for round robin test of anemometers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cuerva, A.

1998-01-01

This work presents a way to carry out an inter-comparison between different cup anemometers that are tested in different wind tunnels. The method applied is known as Factorial design and allows determining the influence in the test of different factors in this case the anemometer itself and the wind tunnel where it is tested. (Author) 4 refs
The major results of the PISC II Round Robin test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crutzen, S.

1987-01-01

The objectives of the PISC-II programme were: - To evaluate the effectiveness of NDT techniques either in use or being developed for the inspection of reactor pressure vessel components, with regard mainly to detecting and charaterising service-induced flaws. - To identify techniques for acceptance tests, pre-service inspection (PSI) and in-service inspection (ISI) which could be generally accepted, and - to bring the conclusions of the programme to the attention of the Code, Standard and Regulatory Bodies concerned with ISI. (orig./HP)
Two Ways Factorial Design for round robin test of anemometers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cuerva, A.

1998-07-01

This work presents a way to carry out an inter-comparison between different cup anemometers that are tested in different wind tunnels. The method applied is known as Factorial design and allows determining the influence in the test of different factors in this case the anemometer itself and the wind tunnel where it is tested. (Author) 4 refs.
Validation of Weld Residual Stress Modeling in the NRC International Round Robin Study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mullins, Jonathan; Gunnars, Jens

2013-01-01

Weld residual stresses (WRS) have a large influence on the behavior of cracks growing under normal operation loads and on the leakage flow from a through-wall crack. Accurate prediction on weld residual stresses is important to make proper decisions when cracks in weld joints are detected. During the latest years, there has been a strong development in both analytical procedures to numerically determine WRS and experimental measurements of WRS. The USNRC (United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission) has formed a program for validation of WRS predictions through comparison of numerically calculated residual stress fields in dissimilar welds measured by different methods. The present report describes the results of the project with special focus on the contribution from Inspecta Technology. Objectives: The principal objective of the project is to compare different WRS predictions for a dissimilar pipe weld with careful measurements on a mock-up weld. The results of the project will make it possible to make recommendations on computational procedures for WRS in dissimilar metal welds. Results: It is concluded that numerical analysis of weld residual stresses using the finite element method is very useful for the estimation of weld residual stresses in complex geometries and dissimilar metal welds. The validation study increases the understanding of uncertainties associated with different modeling approaches and helps to identify the most sensitive parameters
Dynamic fracture analysis of a transverse wedge-loaded compact specimen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Urabe, Yoshio; Funada, Tatsuo; Hojo, Kiminobu; Baba, Kinji

1986-01-01

The J-integral method cannot be applied to the elastic plastic dynamic crack propagation, because unloading and inertia force may take place. From this point of view dynamic elastic plastic scheme using J-integral is developed. Using this dynamic finite element program an MRL type specimen is analyzed. As the result, the property of path-independence of the J-integral under the existence of inertia force and unloading is confirmed. Dynamic effects are considerably small in the MRL type specimen. Also the influence of plastic zone on the crack arrest toughness is shown. Finally the present result is compared with the request of ASTM 2nd round robin test program for crack arrest toughness. (orig.)
Transcriptome analysis reveals the time of the fourth round of genome duplication in common carp (Cyprinus carpio)

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

Background Common carp (Cyprinus carpio) is thought to have undergone one extra round of genome duplication compared to zebrafish. Transcriptome analysis has been used to study the existence and timing of genome duplication in species for which genome sequences are incomplete. Large-scale transcriptome data for the common carp genome should help reveal the timing of the additional duplication event. Results We have sequenced the transcriptome of common carp using 454 pyrosequencing. After assembling the 454 contigs and the published common carp sequences together, we obtained 49,669 contigs and identified genes using homology searches and an ab initio method. We identified 4,651 orthologous pairs between common carp and zebrafish and found 129,984 paralogous pairs within the common carp. An estimation of the synonymous substitution rate in the orthologous pairs indicated that common carp and zebrafish diverged 120 million years ago (MYA). We identified one round of genome duplication in common carp and estimated that it had occurred 5.6 to 11.3 MYA. In zebrafish, no genome duplication event after speciation was observed, suggesting that, compared to zebrafish, common carp had undergone an additional genome duplication event. We annotated the common carp contigs with Gene Ontology terms and KEGG pathways. Compared with zebrafish gene annotations, we found that a set of biological processes and pathways were enriched in common carp. Conclusions The assembled contigs helped us to estimate the time of the fourth-round of genome duplication in common carp. The resource that we have built as part of this study will help advance functional genomics and genome annotation studies in the future. PMID:22424280
Inter-comparison of ice sheet mass balance products from GRACE: ESA CCI Round Robin results

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Groth, A.; Horwath, M.; Horvath, A.

-term satellite-based data products are generated for selected ECVs. Since ice sheet mass balance is an ECV parameter of highest interest, both the AIS_cci and the GIS_cci project will provide mass balance products based on satellite gravimetry data: (a) time series of monthly mass changes for individual drainage...... basins, and (b) gridded mass changes covering the entire ice sheet.Gravimetry Mass Balance (GMB) products are derived from data acquired by the GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) mission. Although GRACE data have the advantage of being directly sensitive to mass changes, their limited...... drainage basins the GMB time series are compared to independent mass balance products based on satellite altimetry and firn densification information from a regional climate model. This inter-comparison has aided the algorithm definition for the operational ECV production....
3D analysis of thermal exchange in finned batteries. A comparison between round and elliptical tubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valdiserri, P.

2001-01-01

In this paper a numerical 3D analysis of the thermal exchange in air-cooled finned batteries has been carried out. Speed and temperature values in each hub of the numerical simulation domain have been reckoned both at different air flows and with different shapes of the tubes. The thermal power exchanged between tubes and air is obtained by the simulation of a numerical model of a finned battery with round section tubes and is compared to the values obtained for three batteries with elliptical section tubes. The comparison has been performed for different values of the air input speed [it
Improved meet-in-the-middle attacks on reduced-round Piccolo

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liu, Ya; Cheng, Liang; Liu, Zhiqiang

2018-01-01

Piccolo is a lightweight block cipher that adopts a generalized Feistel network structure with 4 branches, each of which is 16 bit long. The key length is 80 or 128 bit, denoted by Piccolo-80 and Piccolo-128, respectively. In this paper, we mounted meet-in-the-middle attacks on 14-round Piccolo-80...... and at the end, respectively. Based on this structure, we mounted an attack on 14-round Piccolo-80 from the 5th round to the 18th round. The data, time, and memory complexities were 252 chosen plaintexts, 267.44 encryptions, and 264.91 blocks, respectively. For Piccolo-128, we built a 7-round distinguisher...... to attack 18-round Piccolo-128 from the 4th round to the 21st round. The data, time, and memory complexities were 252 chosen plaintexts, 2126.63 encryptions, and 2125.29 blocks, respectively. If not considering results on biclique cryptanalysis, these are currently the best public results on this reduced...
Rounding behavior in the reporting of headache frequency complicates headache chronification research.

Science.gov (United States)

Houle, Timothy T; Turner, Dana P; Houle, Thomas A; Smitherman, Todd A; Martin, Vincent; Penzien, Donald B; Lipton, Richard B

2013-06-01

To characterize the extent of measurement error arising from rounding in headache frequency reporting (days per month) in a population sample of headache sufferers. When reporting numerical health information, individuals tend to round their estimates. The tendency to round to the nearest 5 days when reporting headache frequency can distort distributions and engender unreliability in frequency estimates in both clinical and research contexts. This secondary analysis of the 2005 American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention study survey characterized the population distribution of 30-day headache frequency among community headache sufferers and determined the extent of numerical rounding ("heaping") in self-reported data. Headache frequency distributions (days per month) were examined using a simplified version of Wang and Heitjan's approach to heaping to estimate the probability that headache sufferers round to a multiple of 5 when providing frequency reports. Multiple imputation was used to estimate a theoretical "true" headache frequency. Of the 24,000 surveys, headache frequency data were available for 15,976 respondents diagnosed with migraine (68.6%), probable migraine (8.3%), or episodic tension-type headache (10.0%); the remainder had other headache types. The mean number of headaches days/month was 3.7 (standard deviation = 5.6). Examination of the distribution of headache frequency reports revealed a disproportionate number of responses centered on multiples of 5 days. The odds that headache frequency was rounded to 5 increased by 24% with each 1-day increase in headache frequency (odds ratio: 1.24, 95% confidence interval: 1.23 to 1.25), indicating that heaping occurs most commonly at higher headache frequencies. Women were more likely to round than men, and rounding decreased with increasing age and increased with symptoms of depression. Because of the coarsening induced by rounding, caution should be used when distinguishing between episodic and chronic

Rounding, work intensification and new public management.

Science.gov (United States)

Willis, Eileen; Toffoli, Luisa; Henderson, Julie; Couzner, Leah; Hamilton, Patricia; Verrall, Claire; Blackman, Ian

2016-06-01

In this study, we argue that contemporary nursing care has been overtaken by new public management strategies aimed at curtailing budgets in the public hospital sector in Australia. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 15 nurses from one public acute hospital with supporting documentary evidence, we demonstrate what happens to nursing work when management imposes rounding as a risk reduction strategy. In the case study outlined rounding was introduced across all wards in response to missed care, which in turn arose as a result of work intensification produced by efficiency, productivity, effectiveness and accountability demands. Rounding is a commercially sponsored practice consistent with new public management. Our study illustrates the impact that new public management strategies such as rounding have on how nurses work, both in terms of work intensity and in who controls their labour. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Critical-temperature inhomogeneities and resistivity rounding in copper oxide superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maza, J.; Vidal, F.

1991-01-01

By using effective-medium approaches, we obtain the onset of the electrical-resistivity rounding, above the normal-superconducting transition, associated with inhomogeneities of the mean-field critical temperature T c0 at scales larger than the superconducting correlation length. These results are compared with available data in single-crystal and single-phase (to within 4%) polycrystalline YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7-δ samples. This comparison shows that the measured resistivity rounding cannot be explained by these types of local T c0 inhomogeneities. Complementarily, our calculations allow us to check some proposals on T c0 inhomogeneities associated with local sample strains or oxygen-content variations. The interplay between T c0 inhomogeneities and superconducting order-parameter fluctuations (SCOPF) leads to the conclusion that in the mean-field-like region (MFR) above the superconducting transition, the T c0 inhomogeneity contribution to the measured resistivity rounding in high-quality (single-phase) cuprate oxide superconductors is negligible. In contrast, our analysis confirms that in the MFR these effects may be explained quantitatively on the grounds of the Lawrence-Doniach theory for SCOPF
Introducing a short measure of shared servant leadership impacting team performance through team behavioral integration

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M. Sousa (Milton); D. van Dierendonck (Dirk)

2016-01-01

textabstractThe research reported in this paper was designed to study the influence of shared servant leadership on team performance through the mediating effect of team behavioral integration, while validating a new short measure of shared servant leadership. A round-robin approach was used to
Application of artificial neural networks in analysis of CHF experimental data in round tubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang Yanping; Chen Bingde; Lang Xuemei; Wang Xiaojun; Shan Jianqiang; Jia Dounan

2004-01-01

Artificial neural networks (ANNs) are applied successfully to analyze the critical heat flux (CHF) experimental data from some round tubes in this paper. A set of software adopting artificial neural network method for predicting CHF in round tube and a set of CHF database are gotten. Comparing with common CHF correlations and CHF look-up table, ANN method has stronger ability of allow-wrong and nice robustness. The CHF predicting software adopting artificial neural network technology can improve the predicting accuracy in a wider parameter range, and is easier to update and to use. The artificial neural network method used in this paper can be applied to some similar physical problems. (authors)
Association Between ICU Admission During Morning Rounds and Mortality

Science.gov (United States)

Gajic, Ognjen; Morales, Ian J.; Keegan, Mark T.; Peters, Steve G.; Hubmayr, Rolf D.

2009-01-01

Background: No previous study has evaluated the association between admission to ICUs during round time and patient outcome. The objective of this study was to determine the association between round-time ICU admission and patient outcome. Methods: This retrospective study included 49,844 patients admitted from October 1994 to December 2007 to four ICUs (two surgical, one medical, and one multispecialty) of an academic medical center. Of these patients, 3,580 were admitted to the ICU during round time (8:00 am to 10:59 am) and 46,264 were admitted during nonround time (from 1:00 pm to 6:00 am). The medical ICU had 24-h/7-day per week intensivist coverage during the last 2 years of the study. We compared the baseline characteristics and outcome of patients admitted to the ICU between the two groups. Data were abstracted from the acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE) III database. Results: The round-time and non-round-groups were similar in gender, ethnicity, and age. The predicted hospital mortality rate of the round time group was higher (17.4% vs 12.3% predicted, respectively; p < 0.001). The hospital length of stay was similar between the two groups. The round-time group had a higher hospital mortality rate (16.2% vs 8.8%, respectively; p < 0.001). Most of the round-time ICU admissions and deaths occurred in the medical ICU. Round-time admission was an independent risk factor for hospital death (odds ratio, 1.321; 95% CI, 1.178 to 1.481). This independent association was present for the whole study period except for the last 2 years. Conclusions: Patients admitted to the ICU during morning rounds have higher severity of illness and mortality rates. PMID:19505985
Rating competitors before tournament starts: How it's affecting team progression in a soccer tournament

Science.gov (United States)

Yusof, Muhammad Mat; Sulaiman, Tajularipin; Khalid, Ruzelan; Hamid, Mohamad Shukri Abdul; Mansor, Rosnalini

2014-12-01

In professional sporting events, rating competitors before tournament start is a well-known approach to distinguish the favorite team and the weaker teams. Various methodologies are used to rate competitors. In this paper, we explore four ways to rate competitors; least squares rating, maximum likelihood strength ratio, standing points in large round robin simulation and previous league rank position. The tournament metric we used to evaluate different types of rating approach is tournament outcome characteristics measure. The tournament outcome characteristics measure is defined by the probability that a particular team in the top 100q pre-tournament rank percentile progress beyond round R, for all q and R. Based on simulation result, we found that different rating approach produces different effect to the team. Our simulation result shows that from eight teams participate in knockout standard seeding, Perak has highest probability to win for tournament that use the least squares rating approach, PKNS has highest probability to win using the maximum likelihood strength ratio and the large round robin simulation approach, while Perak has the highest probability to win a tournament using previous league season approach.
India and the Tokyo round

OpenAIRE

André Sapir; Robert Baldwin

1983-01-01

The paper attempts to quantify the gains and the losses for India from the changes in import tariffs decided during the Tokyo Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations. The study focuses on exports to the ECCC, Japan, and the US. It is conducted at the tariff line level and uses the actual tariffs resulting from the Tokyo Round. The evaluation is in terms of the static effect of the tariff changes. The results indicate that the gains for India from most-favoured nation tariff cuts far outweigh...
Robot Assisted Surgical Ward Rounds: Virtually Always There

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stefanie M. Croghan

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Background: While an explosion in technological sophistication has revolutionized surgery within the operating theatre, delivery of surgical ward-based care has seen little innovation. Use of telepresence allowing off-site clinicians communicate with patients has been largely restricted to outpatient settings or use of complex, expensive, static devices. We designed a prospective study to ascertain feasibility and face validity of a remotely controlled mobile audiovisual drone (LUCY to access inpatients. This device is, uniquely, lightweight, freely mobile and emulates ‘human’ interaction by swiveling and adjusting height to patients’ eye-level. Methods: Robot-assisted ward rounds(RASWR were conducted over 3 months. A remotely located consultant surgeon communicated with patients/bedside teams via encrypted audiovisual telepresence robot (DoubleRoboticstm, California USA. Likert-scale satisfaction questionnaires, incorporating free-text sections for mixed-methods data collection, were disseminated to patient and staff volunteers following RASWRs. The same cohort completed a linked questionnaire following conventional (gold-standard rounds, acting as control group. Data were paired, and non-parametric analysis performed. Results: RASWRs are feasible (>90% completed without technical difficulty. The RASWR(n=52 observations demonstrated face validity with strong correlations (r>0.7; Spearman, p-value <0.05 between robotic and conventional ward rounds among patients and staff on core themes, including dignity/confidentiality/communication/satisfaction with management plan. Patients (96.08%, n=25 agreed RASWR were a satisfactory alternative when consultant physical presence was not possible. There was acceptance of nursing/NCHD cohort (100% (n=11 willing to regularly partake in RASWR. Conclusion: RASWRs receive high levels of patient and staff acceptance, and offer a valid alternative to conventional ward rounds
Robot Assisted Surgical Ward Rounds: Virtually Always There.

Science.gov (United States)

Croghan, Stefanie M; Carroll, Paul; Reade, Sarah; Gillis, Amy E; Ridgway, Paul F

2018-05-02

While an explosion in technological sophistication has revolutionized surgery within the operating theatre, delivery of surgical ward-based care has seen little innovation. Use of telepresence allowing off-site clinicians communicate with patients has been largely restricted to outpatient settings or use of complex, expensive, static devices. We designed a prospective study to ascertain feasibility and face validity of a remotely controlled mobile audiovisual drone (LUCY) to access inpatients. This device is, uniquely, lightweight, freely mobile and emulates 'human' interaction by swiveling and adjusting height to patients' eye-level. METHODS: Robot-assisted ward rounds(RASWR) were conducted over 3 months. A remotely located consultant surgeon communicated with patients/bedside teams via encrypted audiovisual telepresence robot (DoubleRoboticstm, California USA). Likert-scale satisfaction questionnaires, incorporating free-text sections for mixed-methods data collection, were disseminated to patient and staff volunteers following RASWRs. The same cohort completed a linked questionnaire following conventional (gold-standard) rounds, acting as control group. Data were paired, and non-parametric analysis performed. RESULTS: RASWRs are feasible (>90% completed without technical difficulty). The RASWR(n=52 observations) demonstrated face validity with strong correlations (r>0.7; Spearman, p-value <0.05) between robotic and conventional ward rounds among patients and staff on core themes, including dignity/confidentiality/communication/satisfaction with management plan. Patients (96.08%, n=25) agreed RASWR were a satisfactory alternative when consultant physical presence was not possible. There was acceptance of nursing/NCHD cohort (100% (n=11) willing to regularly partake in RASWR). CONCLUSION: RASWRs receive high levels of patient and staff acceptance, and offer a valid alternative to conventional ward rounds when a consultant cannot be
Development of a consensus taxonomy of sedentary behaviors (SIT: report of Delphi Round 1.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sebastien Francois Martin Chastin

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Over the last decade, sedentary behaviors have emerged as a distinctive behavioral paradigm with deleterious effects on health independent of physical activity. The next phase of research is to establish dose response between sedentary behaviors and health outcomes and improve understanding of context and determinants of these behaviors. Establishing a common taxonomy of these behaviors is a necessary step in this process. AIM: The Sedentary behavior International Taxonomy project was developed to establish a classification of sedentary behaviors by use of a formal consensus process. METHODS: The study follows a Delphi process in three Rounds. A preparatory stage informed the development of terms of reference documents. In Round 1, experts were asked to make statements about the taxonomy; 1 its purpose and use ; 2 the domains, categories or facets that should be consider and include; 3 the structure/architecture to arrange and link these domains and facets. In Round 2 experts will be presented with a draft taxonomy emerging from Round 1 and invited to comment and propose alterations. The taxonomy will then be finalised at the outset of this stage. RESULTS: Results of Round 1 are reported here. There is a general consensus that a taxonomy will help advances in research by facilitating systematic and standardised: 1 investigation and analysis; 2 reporting and communication; 3 data pooling, comparison and meta-analysis; 4 development of measurement tools; 4 data descriptions, leading to higher quality in data querying and facilitate discoveries. There is also a consensus that such a taxonomy should be flexible to accommodate diverse purposes of use, and future advances in the field and yet provide a cross-disciplinary common language. A consensual taxonomy structure emerged with nine primary facets (Purpose, Environment, Posture, Social, Measurement, Associated behavior, Status, Time, Type and the draft structure presented here for
Assessment of Ultimate Load Capacity for Pre-Stressed Concrete Containment Vessel Model of PWR Design With BARC Code ULCA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basha, S.M.; Singh, R.K.; Patnaik, R.; Ramanujam, S.; Kushwaha, H.S.; Venkat Raj, V.

2002-01-01

Ultimate load capacity assessment of nuclear containments has been a thrust research area for Indian Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) power programme. For containment safety assessment of Indian PHWRs a finite element code ULCA was developed at BARC, Trombay. This code has been extensively benchmarked with experimental results. The present paper highlights the analysis results for Prestressed Concrete Containment Vessel (PCCV) tested at Sandia National Labs, USA in a Round Robin analysis activity co-sponsored by Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC), Japan and the U.S Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Three levels of failure pressure predictions namely the upper bound, the most probable and the lower bound (all with 90% confidence) were made as per the requirements of the round robin analysis activity. The most likely failure pressure is predicted to be in the range of 2.95 Pd to 3.15 Pd (Pd= design pressure of 0.39 MPa for the PCCV model) depending on the type of liners used in the construction of the PCCV model. The lower bound value of the ultimate pressure of 2.80 Pd and the upper bound of the ultimate pressure of 3.45 Pd are also predicted from the analysis. These limiting values depend on the assumptions of the analysis for simulating the concrete-tendon interaction and the strain hardening characteristics of the steel members. The experimental test has been recently concluded at Sandia Laboratory and the peak pressure reached during the test is 3.3 Pd that is enveloped by our upper bound prediction of 3.45 Pd and is close to the predicted most likely pressure of 3.15 Pd. (authors)
In-situ roundness measurement and correction for pin journals in oscillating grinding machines

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Hongxiang; Xu, Mengchen; Zhao, Jie

2015-01-01

In the mass production of vehicle-engine crankshafts, pin chasing grinding using oscillating grinding machines is a widely accepted method to achieve flexible and efficient performance. However, the eccentric movement of pin journals makes it difficult to develop an in-process roundness measurement scheme for the improvement of contour precision. Here, a new in-situ roundness measurement strategy is proposed with high scanning speed. The measuring mechanism is composed of a V-block and an adaptive telescopic support. The swing pattern of the telescopic support and the V-block is analysed for an equal angle-interval signal sampling. Hence roundness error signal is extracted in frequency domain using a small-signal model of the V-block roundness measurement method and the Fast Fourier Transformation. To implement the roundness data in the CNC coordinate system of an oscillating grinding machine, a transformation function is derived according to the motion model of pin chasing grinding methodology. Computer simulation reveals the relationship between the rotational position of the crankshaft component and the scanning angle of the displacement probe on the V-block, as well as the influence introduced by the rotation centre drift. Prototype investigation indicates the validity of the theoretical analysis and the feasibility of the new strategy.
Agricultural Trade Barriers 10 years later Uruguay Round Trade Agreement Signature

OpenAIRE

Mahia, R.; Arce, Rafael de; Escribano, Gonzalo

2005-01-01

In this paper, an analysis of current state of agricultural trade barriers is carried out alter ten years of Uruguay Round Agricultural Trade Agreement Signature The descriptive analysis showed that small advances in trade barriers removing have been taken out. About the heterogeneity in tariff applications, tariff progresivity and peak tariffs, the same situation is pointed out.
Leadership rounds to reduce health care-associated infections.

Science.gov (United States)

Knobloch, Mary Jo; Chewning, Betty; Musuuza, Jackson; Rees, Susan; Green, Christopher; Patterson, Erin; Safdar, Nasia

2018-03-01

Evidence-based guidelines exist to reduce health care-associated infections (HAIs). Leadership rounds are one tool leaders can use to ensure compliance with guidelines, but have not been studied specifically for the reduction of HAIs. This study examines HAI leadership rounds at one facility. We explored unit-based HAI leadership rounds led by 2 hospital leaders at a large academic hospital. Leadership rounds were observed on 19 units, recorded, and coded to identify themes. Themes were linked to the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research and used to guide interviews with frontline staff members. Staff members disclosed unit-specific problems and readily engaged in problem-solving with top hospital leaders. These themes appeared over 350 times within 22 rounds. Findings revealed that leaders used words that demonstrated fallibility and modeled curiosity, 2 factors associated with learning climate and psychologic safety. These 2 themes appeared 115 and 142 times, respectively. The flexible nature of the rounds appeared to be conducive for reflection and evaluation, which was coded 161 times. Each interaction between leaders and frontline staff can foster psychologic safety, which can lead to open problem-solving to reduce barriers to implementation. Discovering specific communication and structural factors that contribute to psychologic safety may be powerful in reducing HAIs. Published by Elsevier Inc.
iPad use at the bedside: a tool for engaging patients in care processes during ward rounds?

Science.gov (United States)

Baysari, M T; Adams, K; Lehnbom, E C; Westbrook, J I; Day, R O

2014-10-01

Previous work has examined the impact of technology on information sharing and communication between doctors and patients in general practice consultations, but very few studies have explored this in hospital settings. To assess if, and how, senior clinicians use an iPad to share information (e.g. patient test results) with patients during ward rounds and to explore patients' and doctors' experiences of information sharing events. Ten senior doctors were shadowed on ward rounds on general wards during interactions with 525 patients over 77.3 h, seven senior doctors were interviewed and 180 patients completed a short survey. Doctors reported that information sharing with patients is critical to the delivery of high-quality healthcare, but were not seen to use the iPad to share information with patients on ward rounds. Patients did not think the iPad had impacted on their engagement with doctors on rounds. Ward rounds were observed to follow set routines and patient interactions were brief. Although the iPad potentially creates new opportunities for information sharing and patient engagement, the ward round may not present the most appropriate context for this to be done. © 2014 The Authors; Internal Medicine Journal © 2014 Royal Australasian College of Physicians.
Team Ward Rounds for Quality Improvement in Patient-Centred ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In this paper we describe a clinical practice change for evaluation and continuous quality improvement of in-patient services in our ACE unit, such as daily geriatrics (multi disciplinary) team ward rounds preceding traditional ward rounds by other managing teams. The geriatrics team rounds enabled the identification of ...
Inter-laboratory comparison of medical computed tomography (CT) scanners for industrial applications in the slaughterhouses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Lars Bager; Angel, Jais Andreas Breusch

2013-01-01

differences in CT performance. The presented Round Robin scheme has demonstrated its potential as such a method. The benefit of the phantom set is that it provides a convenient way of comparing volume determination between different CT scanners. The suggested phantoms are mimicking important carcass features...
Analytical methods for lignin characterization - Differential scanning calorimetry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koullas, D.P.; Koukios, E.G.; Avgerinos, E.; Abaecherli, A.; Gosselink, R.; Vasile, C.; Lehnen, R.; Saake, B.; Suren, J.

2006-01-01

Results of a round robin on lignin thermal analyses are reported. Six laboratories have conducted thermal analyses of four lignin types to determine their cp values and softening points, and to study the thermal behaviour, materials endo- and exotherms included. The lignin types examined were wood
Out-of-Sequence Preventative Cell Dispatching for Multicast Input-Queued Space-Memory-Memory Clos-Network

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yu, Hao; Ruepp, Sarah Renée; Berger, Michael Stübert

2011-01-01

This paper proposes two out-of-sequence (OOS) preventative cell dispatching algorithms for the multicast input-queued space-memory-memory (IQ-SMM) Clos-network switch architecture, i.e. the multicast flow-based DSRR (MF-DSRR) and the multicast flow-based round-robin (MFRR). Treating each cell...
Niobium ore OKA-1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steger, H.F.; Bowman, W.S.

1981-01-01

A 287-kg sample of a niobium ore, OKA-1, from Oka, Quebec, was prepared as a compositional reference material. OKA-1 was ground to minus 74 μm, blended in one lot, tested for homogeneity by X-ray fluorescence and chemical methods and bottled in 200-g units. In a 'free-choice' round-robin analytical program, 22 laboratories contributed results for niobium in each of two bottles of OKA-1. A statistical analysis of the data gave a recommended value of 0.37 +- 0.01% for niobium

Roundness and straightness measurement of ceramic beam ducts for the 3 GeV-synchrotron

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nishizawa, Daiji; Kinsho, Michikazu; Kanazawa, Kenichiro [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment; Kubo, Tomio; Sato, Yoshihiro; Saito, Yoshio [High Energy Accelerator Research Organization, Tsukuba, Ibaraki (Japan)

2001-12-01

Large aperture ({phi}200 - {phi}250) cylindrical beam ducts consisting of alumina ceramics will be used in the 3 GeV-synchrotron of High Intensity Proton Accelerator Facility. In particular, bending magnet sections require the large length ({approx}3500 mm) ceramic beam duct connecting several unit ducts whose length is around 500-1000 mm by metallizing and glazing. Therefore it is very important to evaluate roundness and straightness of ceramic ducts because we have to compensate contact area large and have to minimize misalignment of ducts connected. We developed an apparatus for measuring roundness and straightness, and we completed data analysis method using general application software Excel as well as measuring method. Then we have taken data, and have evaluated value of roundness and straightness for the first time about 7 pieces (3 kinds) of ceramic beam duct. At last we have found out that unit ceramic ducts can be made after sintering without polishing with roundness several hundred micron ({mu}m) and straightness around 0.2-1 mm, and that straightness has a tendency to become large as duct length increases as well as roundness increases directly proportional to the maximum oblateness. (author)
Obstructive Hydrocephalus Secondary to Enlarged Virchow-Robin Spaces: A Rare Cause of Pulsatile Tinnitus.

Science.gov (United States)

Donaldson, Christopher; Chatha, Gurkirat; Chandra, Ronil V; Goldschlager, Tony

2017-05-01

Obstructive hydrocephalus secondary to enlarged Virchow-Robin Spaces (VRS) is a rare entity, with only a few cases reported in the literature. Presenting symptoms vary widely from headaches to dizziness. We report a case of a 31-year-old man who presented with pulsatile tinnitus and magnetic resonance imaging showing obstructive hydrocephalus secondary to tumefactive VRS. After a cerebrospinal fluid diversion procedure in the form of an endoscopic third ventriculostomy, he had almost complete resolution of his symptoms. This is the first case of obstructive hydrocephalus secondary to enlarged VRS, presenting with pulsatile tinnitus. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Load balancing prediction method of cloud storage based on analytic hierarchy process and hybrid hierarchical genetic algorithm.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Xiuze; Lin, Fan; Yang, Lvqing; Nie, Jing; Tan, Qian; Zeng, Wenhua; Zhang, Nian

2016-01-01

With the continuous expansion of the cloud computing platform scale and rapid growth of users and applications, how to efficiently use system resources to improve the overall performance of cloud computing has become a crucial issue. To address this issue, this paper proposes a method that uses an analytic hierarchy process group decision (AHPGD) to evaluate the load state of server nodes. Training was carried out by using a hybrid hierarchical genetic algorithm (HHGA) for optimizing a radial basis function neural network (RBFNN). The AHPGD makes the aggregative indicator of virtual machines in cloud, and become input parameters of predicted RBFNN. Also, this paper proposes a new dynamic load balancing scheduling algorithm combined with a weighted round-robin algorithm, which uses the predictive periodical load value of nodes based on AHPPGD and RBFNN optimized by HHGA, then calculates the corresponding weight values of nodes and makes constant updates. Meanwhile, it keeps the advantages and avoids the shortcomings of static weighted round-robin algorithm.
Discretization vs. Rounding Error in Euler's Method

Science.gov (United States)

Borges, Carlos F.

2011-01-01

Euler's method for solving initial value problems is an excellent vehicle for observing the relationship between discretization error and rounding error in numerical computation. Reductions in stepsize, in order to decrease discretization error, necessarily increase the number of steps and so introduce additional rounding error. The problem is…
Approximate controllability of a semilinear elliptic problem with Robin condition in a periodically perforated domain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nikita Agarwal

2017-07-01

Full Text Available In this article, we study the approximate controllability and homegenization results of a semi-linear elliptic problem with Robin boundary condition in a periodically perforated domain. We prove the existence of minimal norm control using Lions constructive approach, which is based on Fenchel-Rockafeller duality theory, and by means of Zuazua's fixed point arguments. Then, as the homogenization parameter goes to zero, we link the limit of the optimal controls (the limit of fixed point of the controllability problems with the optimal control of the corresponding homogenized problem.
A t (11; 22 (p13; q12 EWS-WT 1 positive desmoplastic small round cell tumor of the maxilla: An unusual case indicating the role of molecular diagnosis in round cell sarcomas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rekhi B

2010-01-01

Full Text Available A desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT is an uncommon tumor characterized by polyphenotypic expression and a specific reciprocal translocation t (11; 22 (p13; q12. It has been rarely identified in the head and neck region. Herein, we describe a DSRCT in the maxilla of a young man, who was initially diagnosed with a primitive neuroectodermal tumor (PNET, based on histopathological appearance of a round cell tumor, with MIC2 and -FLI-1 positivity, on immunohistochemistry (IHC. Diagnosis of a DSRCT was confirmed on molecular analysis with positive -RT-PCR and sequencing results for EWS-WT1 transcript and negativity for EWS-FL1. The case is presented to highlight the value of molecular diagnosis in round cell sarcomas at uncommon sites, especially when similar IHC markers can be expressed in a PNET and a DSRCT. An exact diagnosis of a round cell sarcoma has a therapeutic relevance.
Imaging of round pneumonia and mimics in children

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Restrepo, Ricardo; Palani, Rajaneeshankar; Matapathi, Uma M.; Wu, Yen-Ying [Miami Children' s Hospital, Department of Radiology, Miami, FL (United States)

2010-12-15

Various diseases in the pediatric age group can present as an intrathoracic rounded opacity on a chest radiograph. The purpose of this pictorial essay is to emphasize the imaging appearance of round pneumonia, an entity that occurs especially in the pediatric population. Additional pathologies with similar chest radiographic appearances are also presented. The diagnosis of round pneumonia should be made in children who have the typical clinical presentation along with chest radiographs demonstrating the characteristic findings. (orig.)
Oberbeck–Boussinesq free convection of water based nanoliquids in a vertical channel using Dirichlet, Neumann and Robin boundary conditions on temperature

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nur Asiah Mohd Makhatar

2016-09-01

Full Text Available A numerical investigation is carried out into the flow and heat transfer within a fully-developed mixed convection flow of water–alumina (Al2O3–water, water–titania (TiO2–water and water–copperoxide (CuO–water in a vertical channel by considering Dirichlet, Neumann and Robin boundary conditions. Actual values of thermophysical quantities are used in arriving at conclusions on the three nanoliquids. The Biot number influences on velocity and temperature distributions are opposite in regions close to the left wall and the right wall. Robin condition is seen to favour symmetry in the flow velocity whereas Dirichlet and Neumann conditions skew the flow distribution and push the point of maximum velocity to the right of the channel. A reversal of role is seen between them in their influence on the flow in the left-half and the right-half of the channel. This leads to related consequences in heat transport. Viscous dissipation is shown to aid flow and heat transport. The present findings reiterate the observation on heat transfer in other configurations that only low concentrations of nanoparticles facilitate enhanced heat transport for all three temperature conditions. Significant change was observed in Neumann condition, whereas the changes are too extreme in Dirichlet condition. It is found that Robin condition is the most stable condition. Further, it is also found that all three nanoliquids have enhanced heat transport compared to that by base liquid, with CuO–water nanoliquid shows higher enhancement in its Nusselt number, compared to Al2O3 and TiO2.
SPS measures and possible market access implications for agricultural trade in the Doha Round: An analysis of systemic issues

OpenAIRE

Murali Kallummal

2012-01-01

Even as the Doha Round seeks to address tariff liberalization issues in a comprehensive manner, the imbalance in the outcome of market access for developing country exporters will be particularly glaring in the case of fresh agricultural and processed food products. There is growing evidence that protectionism from the usage of non-tariff barriers such as SPS measures has increased tremendously in the recent past. This paper discusses an analysis of the SPS notifications made by WTO Member co...
FREQUENCY ANALYSIS OF VIBRATIONS OF THE ROUND PARACHUTE EDGE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The article is addressed to the analysis of the videos obtained during flight experiment at the launch of meteo-rocket MMP-06 in order to determine main characteristics of the oscillatory process the edges of the canopy at subsonic speeds at altitudes from 42,2 km to 34.2 km. Data analysis demonstrated that the oscillations of the edge of the canopy has a random character. The structure frequency of 2.4 Hz was identified from the analysis to be determined by the nylon sling stiffness.
Proceedings of the joint CEC OECD IAEA specialists meeting on non-destructive examination - Practice and results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Borloo, E [Institute of Advanceds Materials, Ispra (Italy); Lemaitre, P M.V. [Institute of Advanced Materials, PO Box 2, NL-1755 ZG Petten (Netherlands)

1994-07-01

This meeting was organized to be an international forum for discussion of recent application results and of utility experience with non-destructive methods used for the inspection of steel components and weldments; it was also the closing meeting of the Round Robin Tests phase of PISC III (Programme for the Inspection of Steel Components). Lessons learned, data base available and first results were presented and discussed in view of further detailed analysis of all the information generated by that programme. The meeting addressed, in terms of the state of art, the capability and reliability of NDT procedures applied to the major nuclear reactor components. Special emphasis was placed on NDE techniques to detect and size flaws in order to assure structural integrity during plant design life or beyond. Related topics included qualification with emphasis on performance demonstration and application of NDT in plant life management
Proceedings of the joint CEC OECD IAEA specialists meeting on non-destructive examination - Practice and results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Borloo, E.; Lemaitre, P.M.V.

1994-01-01

This meeting was organized to be an international forum for discussion of recent application results and of utility experience with non-destructive methods used for the inspection of steel components and weldments; it was also the closing meeting of the Round Robin Tests phase of PISC III (Programme for the Inspection of Steel Components). Lessons learned, data base available and first results were presented and discussed in view of further detailed analysis of all the information generated by that programme. The meeting addressed, in terms of the state of art, the capability and reliability of NDT procedures applied to the major nuclear reactor components. Special emphasis was placed on NDE techniques to detect and size flaws in order to assure structural integrity during plant design life or beyond. Related topics included qualification with emphasis on performance demonstration and application of NDT in plant life management
Mathematical support for automated geometry analysis of lathe machining of oblique peakless round-nose tools

Science.gov (United States)

Filippov, A. V.; Tarasov, S. Yu; Podgornyh, O. A.; Shamarin, N. N.; Filippova, E. O.

2017-01-01

Automatization of engineering processes requires developing relevant mathematical support and a computer software. Analysis of metal cutting kinematics and tool geometry is a necessary key task at the preproduction stage. This paper is focused on developing a procedure for determining the geometry of oblique peakless round-nose tool lathe machining with the use of vector/matrix transformations. Such an approach allows integration into modern mathematical software packages in distinction to the traditional analytic description. Such an advantage is very promising for developing automated control of the preproduction process. A kinematic criterion for the applicable tool geometry has been developed from the results of this study. The effect of tool blade inclination and curvature on the geometry-dependent process parameters was evaluated.
77 FR 76515 - Osage Negotiated Rulemaking Committee

Science.gov (United States)

2012-12-28

... sign-up sheet at the meeting for those wishing to speak during the public comment period. The meeting... and Introduction; (2) Overview of prior meeting and action tracking; (3) Members' round robin to share... subcommittee activities; (5) Future Committee activities; (6) Public comments which will be scheduled for 45...
Sojourn time asymptotics in processor-sharing queues

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Borst, S.C.; Núñez Queija, R.; Zwart, B.

2006-01-01

Over the past few decades, the Processor-Sharing (PS) discipline has attracted a great deal of attention in the queueing literature. While the PS paradigm emerged in the sixties as an idealization of round-robin scheduling in time-shared computer systems, it has recently captured renewed interest as
Evaluation of the medical devices benchmark materials in the controlled human patch testing and in the RhE in vitro skin irritation protocol.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kandárová, Helena; Bendova, Hana; Letasiova, Silvia; Coleman, Kelly P; De Jong, Wim H; Jírova, Dagmar

2018-01-01

Several irritants were used in the in vitro irritation medical device round robin. The objective of this study was to verify their irritation potential using the human patch test (HPT), an in vitro assay, and in vivo data. The irritants were lactic acid (LA), heptanoic acid (HA), sodium dodecyl
A Benders approach for the constrained minimum break problem

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Rasmus Vinther; Trick, Michael

2007-01-01

This paper presents a hybrid IP/CP algorithm for designing a double round robin schedule with a minimal number of breaks. Both mirrored and non-mirrored schedules with and without place constraints are considered. The algorithm uses Benders cuts to obtain feasible home-away pattern sets in few it...
Publications | Page 368 | IDRC - International Development ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Results 3671 - 3680 of 6381 ... Zimbabwe's Exodus: Crisis, Migration, Survival. A rounded and compelling picture of the great exodus and, behind the turmoil of exile and return, we can glimpse the extraordinary people behind the statistics. — Robin Cohen, International Migration Institute, University of Oxford. The ongoing ...
Relationship between resist outgassing and EUV witness sample contamination in NXE outgas qualification using electrons and EUV photons

Science.gov (United States)

Pollentier, I.; Tirumala Venkata, A.; Gronheid, R.

2014-04-01

EUV photoresists are considered as a potential source of optics contamination, since they introduce irradiation-induced outgassing in the EUV vacuum environment. Therefore, before these resists can be used on e.g. ASML NXE:3100 or NXE:3300, they need to be tested in dedicated equipment according to a well-defined procedure, which is based on exposing a witness sample (WS) in the vicinity of a simultaneously exposed resist as it outgasses. Different system infrastructures are used at multiple sites (e.g. NIST, CNSE, Sematech, EIDEC, and imec) and were calibrated to each other by a detailed test plan. Despite this detailed tool qualifications, a first round robin comparison of identical materials showed inconsistent outgas test results, and required further investigation by a second round robin. Since the resist exposure mode is different at the various locations (some sites are using EUV photons while others use E-gun electrons), this difference has always a point of concern for variability of test results. In this work we compare the outgas test results from EUV photon and electron exposure using the resist materials of the second round robin. Since the imec outgas tester allows both exposure methods on the resist, a within-system comparison is possible and showed limited variation between photon and electron exposure mode. Therefore the system-to-system variability amongst the different outgas test sites is expected to be related to other parameters than the electron/photon exposure mode. Initial work showed that the variability might be related to temperature, E-gun emission excursion, and/or residual outgassing scaled by different wafer areas at the different sites.
Summary and recommendations of the NRC/INEL Activated Carbon Testing Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scarpellino, C.D.; Sill, C.W.

1986-01-01

The Committee on Nuclear Air and Gas Treatment (CONAGT) of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) sponsored an interlaboratory testing program, round-robin, of nuclear-grade activated carbon. The results of this round-robin revealed gross differences in penetration of radio-labeled methyl iodide as measured by the various laboratories when using Method A of the ASTM D-3803-79 Standard. These differences prompted the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to establish the NRC/INEL Activated Carbon Testing Program to determine the causes of these discrepancies and to provide recommendations that could lead to an accurate and reliable testing procedure that would ensure an adequate method for assessing the capability of activated carbon to remove radioiodine from gas streams within commercial nuclear power plants. The NRC/INEL Activated Carbon Testing Program has conducted formal and informal interlaboratory comparisons to identify problems with the test method and its application and to assess the effectiveness of changes to procedures and equipment voluntarily implemented by commercial laboratories to mitigate the disparity of test results. The results of the first formal NRC/INEL Interlaboratory Comparison (IC) essentially verified the CONAGT round-robin results despite the use of a detailed test protocol. This data indicated that many of the participating laboratories probably had been operating outside the ASTM specifications for relative humidity (RH) and flow. In addition, this process provided information which was used to modify the testing protocol employed for the second NRC/INEL Interlaboratory Comparison (IC-2) to make it more rugged and reliable. These changes to the protocol together with the results of INEL sensitivity testing are the basis for the recommendations presented

J-integral flaw resistance curves of Incoloy 800H at room temperature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krompholz, K.; Ullrich, G.

1985-08-01

J-integral experiments at room temperature were performed on three point bend type specimens of the iron-nickel base alloy Incoloy 800H with a/w-ratios of 0.3 and 0.5. These experiments are performed within the frame of a round robin test in cooperation with German- and US-partners. The tests were performed in stroke control as well as in load control. Three different evaluation procedures were applied: -The signal of the dc potential drop technique -The partial unloading procedure and -The multiple specimen technique. Evaluating the dc potential drop technique and the multiple specimen method delivered reasonable results while the partial unloading procedure failed. The different methods are discussed and fractographic results support these results under discussion. (author)
The Effect of Family Presence on Rounding Duration in the PICU.

Science.gov (United States)

Gupta, Priya R; Perkins, R Serene; Hascall, Rebecca L; Shelak, Carolyn F; Demirel, Shaban; Buchholz, Mark T

2017-02-01

The incorporation of family-centered rounds has become standard in PICUs across the United States. We compared rounding times in our institution, with and without family members present, to determine the effect on total rounding time and work flow. This observational study of a convenience sample was conducted over a 17-month period (May 2014-October 2015), accounting for typical seasonal variation in the PICU. The individual patient rounding times for 2657 encounters were recorded. The presence of family members, intubation status, physician assistant participation, interruptions during rounds, attending physician's full- or part-time status, and patient census were documented. The effect of family presence on per-patient rounding time was analyzed, while controlling for influential variables. Family members were present during 1743 of 2657 (66%) rounding encounters. The average per-patient rounding time with and without family members present was 8.6 minutes and 7.3 minutes, respectively, a difference of 1.3 minutes per patient. In statistical models that accounted for other influential variables, the presence of family members was associated with a highly significant (20.4%, P family members increases per-patient rounding times in the PICU. Family presence on rounds may have benefits that outweigh the additional time required to complete each patient interaction. Copyright © 2017 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
19 CFR 159.3 - Rounding of fractions.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 19 Customs Duties 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Rounding of fractions. 159.3 Section 159.3 Customs... (CONTINUED) LIQUIDATION OF DUTIES General Provisions § 159.3 Rounding of fractions. (a) Value. In the... cents or more, the lower fractions shall be dropped, and if it is necessary to take up as whole dollars...
Generation of high-titer viral preparations by concentration using successive rounds of ultracentrifugation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ichim Christine V

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Viral vectors provide a method of stably introducing exogenous DNA into cells that are not easily transfectable allowing for the ectopic expression or silencing of genes for therapeutic or experimental purposes. However, some cell types, in particular bone marrow cells, dendritic cells and neurons are difficult to transduce with viral vectors. Successful transduction of such cells requires preparation of highly concentrated viral stocks, which permit a high virus concentration and multiplicity of infection (MOI during transduction. Pseudotyping with the vesicular stomatitis virus G (VSV-G envelope protein is common practice for both lentiviral and retroviral vectors. The VSV-G glycoprotein adds physical stability to retroviral particles, allowing concentration of virus by high-speed ultracentrifugation. Here we describe a method report for concentration of virus from large volumes of culture supernatant by means of successive rounds of ultracentrifugation into the same ultracentrifuge tube. Method Stable retrovirus producer cell lines were generated and large volumes of virus-containing supernatant were produced. We then tested the transduction ability of virus following varying rounds of concentration by ultra-centrifugation. In a second series of experiments lentivirus-containing supernatant was produced by transient transfection of 297T/17 cells and again we tested the transduction ability of virus following multiple rounds of ultra-centrifugation. Results We report being able to centrifuge VSV-G coated retrovirus for as many as four rounds of ultracentrifugation while observing an additive increase in viral titer. Even after four rounds of ultracentrifugation we did not reach a plateau in viral titer relative to viral supernatant concentrated to indicate that we had reached the maximum tolerated centrifugation time, implying that it may be possible to centrifuge VSV-G coated retrovirus even further should it be necessary
Reprogramming of round spermatids by the germinal vesicle cytoplasm in mice.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peng-Cheng Kong

Full Text Available The birthrate following round spermatid injection (ROSI remains low in current and evidence suggests that factors in the germinal vesicle (GV cytoplasm and certain substances in the GV such as the nucleolus might be responsible for genomic reprogramming and embryonic development. However, little is known whether the reprogramming factors in GV oocyte cytoplasm and/or nucleolus in GV are beneficial to the reprogramming of round spermatids and development of ROSI embryos. Here, round spermatids were treated with GV cytolysates and injected this round spermatid alone or co-injected with GV oocyte nucleolus into mature metaphase II oocytes. Subsequent embryonic development was assessed morphologically and by Oct4 expression in blastocysts. There was no significant difference between experimental groups at the zygote to four-cell development stages. Blastocysts derived from oocytes which were injected with cytolysate treated-round spermatid alone or co-injected with nucleoli injection yielded 63.6% and 70.3% high quality embryos, respectively; comparable to blastocysts derived by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI, but higher than these oocytes which were co-injected with lysis buffer-treated round spermatids and nucleoli or injected with the lysis buffer-treated round spermatids alone. Furthermore, the proportion of live offspring resulting from oocytes which were co-injected with cytolysate treated-round spermatids and nucleoli or injected with cytolysate treated-round spermatids alone was higher than those were injected with lysis buffer treated-round spermaids, but comparable with the ICSI group. Our results demonstrate that factors from the GV cytoplasm improve round spermatid reprogramming, and while injection of the extra nucleolus does not obviously improve reprogramming its potential contribution, although which cannot be definitively excluded. Thus, some reprogramming factors are evidently present in GV oocyte cytoplasm and could
Optimization of traffic light control system of an intersection using ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper considers an automated static road traffic control system of an intersection for the purpose of minimizing the effects of traffic jam and hence its attendant consequences such as prolonged waiting time, emission of toxic hydrocarbons from automobiles, etc. Using real-time road traffic data, a dynamic round-robin ...
A Teaching Polygon Makes Learning a Community Enterprise

Science.gov (United States)

Colgan, Mark; DeLong, Matt

2015-01-01

In order to strengthen departmental collegiality and improve teaching, our mathematics department instituted a Teaching Polygon. Building on the faculty development idea of Teaching Squares, each member of our department visited one class taught by every other department member in a round-robin fashion during the school year. The visits were…
A multisource feedback tool to assess ward round leadership skills of senior paediatric trainees: (1) Development of tool.

Science.gov (United States)

Lakshminarayana, Indumathy; Wall, David; Bindal, Taruna; Goodyear, Helen M

2015-05-01

Leading a ward round is an essential skill for hospital consultants and senior trainees but is rarely assessed during training. To investigate the key attributes for ward round leadership and to use these results to develop a multisource feedback (MSF) tool to assess the ward round leadership skills of senior specialist trainees. A panel of experts comprising four senior paediatric consultants and two nurse managers were interviewed from May to August 2009. From analysis of the interview transcripts, 10 key themes emerged. A structured questionnaire based on the key themes was designed and sent electronically to paediatric consultants, nurses and trainees at a large university hospital (June-October 2010). 81 consultants, nurses and trainees responded to the survey. The internal consistency of this tool was high (Cronbach's α 0.95). Factor analysis showed that five factors accounted for 72% of variance. The five key areas for ward round leadership were communication skills, preparation and organisation, teaching and enthusiasm, team working and punctuality; communication was the most important key theme. A MSF tool for ward round leadership skills was developed with these areas as five domains. We believe that this tool will add to the current assessment tools available by providing feedback about ward round leadership skills. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.
Highly conserved non-coding elements on either side of SOX9 associated with Pierre Robin sequence.

Science.gov (United States)

Benko, Sabina; Fantes, Judy A; Amiel, Jeanne; Kleinjan, Dirk-Jan; Thomas, Sophie; Ramsay, Jacqueline; Jamshidi, Negar; Essafi, Abdelkader; Heaney, Simon; Gordon, Christopher T; McBride, David; Golzio, Christelle; Fisher, Malcolm; Perry, Paul; Abadie, Véronique; Ayuso, Carmen; Holder-Espinasse, Muriel; Kilpatrick, Nicky; Lees, Melissa M; Picard, Arnaud; Temple, I Karen; Thomas, Paul; Vazquez, Marie-Paule; Vekemans, Michel; Roest Crollius, Hugues; Hastie, Nicholas D; Munnich, Arnold; Etchevers, Heather C; Pelet, Anna; Farlie, Peter G; Fitzpatrick, David R; Lyonnet, Stanislas

2009-03-01

Pierre Robin sequence (PRS) is an important subgroup of cleft palate. We report several lines of evidence for the existence of a 17q24 locus underlying PRS, including linkage analysis results, a clustering of translocation breakpoints 1.06-1.23 Mb upstream of SOX9, and microdeletions both approximately 1.5 Mb centromeric and approximately 1.5 Mb telomeric of SOX9. We have also identified a heterozygous point mutation in an evolutionarily conserved region of DNA with in vitro and in vivo features of a developmental enhancer. This enhancer is centromeric to the breakpoint cluster and maps within one of the microdeletion regions. The mutation abrogates the in vitro enhancer function and alters binding of the transcription factor MSX1 as compared to the wild-type sequence. In the developing mouse mandible, the 3-Mb region bounded by the microdeletions shows a regionally specific chromatin decompaction in cells expressing Sox9. Some cases of PRS may thus result from developmental misexpression of SOX9 due to disruption of very-long-range cis-regulatory elements.
Winning by Losing: Incentive Incompatibility in Multiple Qualifiers

OpenAIRE

Dagaev, Dmitry; Sonin, Konstantin

2013-01-01

In sport tournaments, the rules are presumably structured in a way that any team cannot be better off (e.g., to advance to the next round of competition) by losing instead of winning a game. Starting with a real-world example, we demonstrate that the existing national rules of awarding places for the UEFA Champions Leagues and the UEFA Europa League, which are based on the results of the national championship, a round-robin tournament, and the national cup, a knock-out tournament, might produ...
Round pneumonia: imaging findings in a large series of children

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Yong-Woo; Donnelly, Lane F. [Cincinnati Children' s Hospital Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Cincinnati, OH (United States)

2007-12-15

Although round pneumonia is a well-known clinical entity, there have been no large case reviews, with most knowledge based on case reports and small series from the 1960s and 1970s. To review the imaging findings of a large series of children with round pneumonia. A retrospective review of radiographic and CT findings in all children reported to have round pneumonia at a large children's hospital from 2000 to 2006 was performed. Children with underlying medical conditions were excluded. Epidemiologic characteristics, radiographic and CT findings, and follow-up imaging were reviewed. The review identified 109 children (mean age 5 years, range 4 months to 19 years). Round pneumonias tended to be solitary 98% (107/109), have well-defined borders 70% (77/109), and be posteriorly located 83% (91/109), with the following lobar distribution: left lower lobe (36), right lower lobe (33), right upper lobe (28), left upper lobe (7), right middle lobe (4), and lingula (2). Round pneumonia tended to resolve on follow-up imaging (95%, 41/43) as compared to progression to lobar pneumonia (4.6%, 2/43). Three patients (2.6%, 3/112) originally suspected to have round pneumonia were later shown to have other diagnoses: cavitary necrosis in pneumonia (two) or pleural pseudocyst (one). Round pneumonia occurs in young children (mean age 5 years), tends to be a solitary lesion, and is most commonly posteriorly located. Misdiagnosis of other pathology as round pneumonia is uncommon. (orig.)
Round pneumonia: imaging findings in a large series of children

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Yong-Woo; Donnelly, Lane F.

2007-01-01

Although round pneumonia is a well-known clinical entity, there have been no large case reviews, with most knowledge based on case reports and small series from the 1960s and 1970s. To review the imaging findings of a large series of children with round pneumonia. A retrospective review of radiographic and CT findings in all children reported to have round pneumonia at a large children's hospital from 2000 to 2006 was performed. Children with underlying medical conditions were excluded. Epidemiologic characteristics, radiographic and CT findings, and follow-up imaging were reviewed. The review identified 109 children (mean age 5 years, range 4 months to 19 years). Round pneumonias tended to be solitary 98% (107/109), have well-defined borders 70% (77/109), and be posteriorly located 83% (91/109), with the following lobar distribution: left lower lobe (36), right lower lobe (33), right upper lobe (28), left upper lobe (7), right middle lobe (4), and lingula (2). Round pneumonia tended to resolve on follow-up imaging (95%, 41/43) as compared to progression to lobar pneumonia (4.6%, 2/43). Three patients (2.6%, 3/112) originally suspected to have round pneumonia were later shown to have other diagnoses: cavitary necrosis in pneumonia (two) or pleural pseudocyst (one). Round pneumonia occurs in young children (mean age 5 years), tends to be a solitary lesion, and is most commonly posteriorly located. Misdiagnosis of other pathology as round pneumonia is uncommon. (orig.)
Is the Doha Round Dead? What is the Way Forward?

OpenAIRE

Faizel Ismail

2012-01-01

The WTO Doha Round of negotiations has been at an impasse since December 2008. Several academics and opinion makers have argued recently that the Doha Round is â€˜deadâ€™. This paper discusses the US narrative on the reasons for the impasse in the Doha Round and the way forward. It contrasts this narrative with that of the major developing country alliances in the WTO and considers some underlying causes for the current impasse in the Doha Round. The paper concludes that the US narrative that...
Safety margin evaluation of pre-stressed concrete nuclear containment vessel model with BARC code ULCA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basha, S.M.; Patnaik, R.; Ramanujam, S.; Singh, R.K.; Kushwaha, H.S.; Venkat Raj, V.

2002-01-01

Full text: Ultimate load capacity assessment of nuclear containments has been a thrust research area for Indian pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR) power programme. For containment safety assessment of Indian PHWRs a finite element code ULCA was developed at BARC, Trombay. This code has been extensively benchmarked with experimental results and for prediction of safety margins of Indian PHWRs. The present paper highlights the analysis results for prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) tested at Sandia National Labs, USA in a round robin analysis activity co-sponsored by Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC), Japan and the U.S Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Three levels of failure pressure predictions namely the upper bound, the most probable and the lower bound (all with 90% confidence) were made as per the requirements of the round robin analysis activity. The most likely failure pressure is predicted to be in the range of 2.95 Pd to 3.15 Pd (Pd = design pressure of 0.39 MPa for the PCCV model) depending on the type of liners used in the construction of the PCCV model. The lower bound value of the ultimate pressure of 2.80 Pd and the upper bound of the ultimate pressure of 3.45 Pd are also predicted from the analysis. These limiting values depend on the assumptions of the analysis for simulating the concrete tendon interaction and the strain hardening characteristics of the steel members. The experimental test has been recently concluded at Sandia Laboratory and the peak pressure reached during the test is 3.3 Pd that is enveloped by our upper bound prediction of 3.45 Pd and is close to the predicted most likely pressure of 3.15 Pd
R and D activities of the ESARDA NDA working group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guardini, S.; Bignan, G.

1999-01-01

The aim of this paper is to report the R and D activities of the ESARDA Working Group on Techniques and Standards for Non-Destructive Analysis (NDA), as well as to discuss the role and possibilities of the group in the modern R and D scenario in safeguards and non-proliferation. The main tasks of the ESARDA NDA Working have been identified as being to: Define needs for procedural standards and reference materials; Design and manage the production and characterisation of reference materials; Assess and contribute to improving the performances of NDA techniques; Set up and maintain a list of NDA instruments and methods currently used for Safeguards purposes; and, through the above activities, assist Operators and Safeguards Authorities in their duty of Safeguards implementation. Members and observers appointed to the working group represent plant operators, the nuclear industry, R and D laboratories, NDA instrument developers and both safeguards control authorities. The participation of major European plant operators and of the EURATOM Safeguards Directorate and IAEA has always been assured and contributes to the good outcome of the WG activities. The ongoing R and D activities of the NDA Working Group are: Monte Carlo performance intercomparisons; 242 Pu accuracy assessment and improvement; NDA Sampling errors; General NDA performance evaluations. Some milestones have recently been reached: The 242 Pu uncertainty improvement project is coming to an end with the issuing of a new isotopic correlation; The NCC 'reals' evaluation and the Monte Carlo round robin is producing its first results; The Uranium Enrichment Round Robin Exercise has been completed; The waste drum standards are being characterised and constructed: they will be available by spring 1998. The round robin amongst laboratories will then start: summer 1998. Future activities comprise, beside the above issues, technical problems linked with the new challenges posed by new regimes of safeguards and non
Suffrage Movement and the Subversion of the ‘Juridico-Discursive’ Power in the Victorian Period: Elizabeth Robins and The Concept of 'New Women'

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esmaeil Najar

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the socio-historical subversion of ‘juridico-discursive’ power in the late Victorian period. It briefly investigates the rise of the British suffrage movement and highlights the role of ‘suffrage drama’ as its social apparatus. The authors demonstrate how suffrage artists, especially the playwright/actress Elizabeth Robins, acted against the dominant patriarchal hegemony and were in frontline of social uprisings. It is argued that ‘Suffrage drama’ as a ‘place of tolerance’ functioned as an antithesis to the mainstream theatre and challenged the conventional dramatic forms practiced prior to its birth. Suffrage drama provided a space for women to have their collective voice heard in a social and political context in the early Victorian era. Elizabeth Robins, mostly acknowledged for enacting women heroines of Ibsen’s plays, became an invaluable inspirational figure for suffrage women as she was the actress in whom the strong concept of the ‘New Woman’ was incarnated.
Lower antibiotic costs attributable to clinical microbiology rounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Richard S P; Guervil, David J; Hunter, Robert L; Wanger, Audrey

2015-09-01

At our institution, our microbiologist, pharmacist, and infectious disease (ID) team meet to discuss ID patients, and this meeting is referred to as microbiology rounds. We hypothesized that our microbiology rounds reduce antibiotic costs. The study involved a review of 80 patients with an ID consultation order at each of the 3 hospitals: hospital A (HA) (only HA has microbiology rounds), hospital B (HB), and hospital C (HC). Of this population, we included patients with a positive blood culture. Thirty-six patients who met the above criteria were included in the study. The average antibiotic cost/patient/day at HA, HB, and HC were $66.0, $123, and $109, respectively. Also, we found that change in antibiotics was appropriate when compared to the final microbiology results in 90%, 44%, and 40% of the time at HA, HB, and HC, respectively. Herein, we found an association between conducting microbiology rounds and reduction of antibiotic cost. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Trade Issues in the Doha Round; Dispelling Some Misconceptions

OpenAIRE

Stephen Tokarick

2006-01-01

The current round of multilateral trade negotiations-the Doha Round-presents an opportunity for countries to reap the benefits of trade liberalization. Unfortunately, a number of misconceptions about the likely impact of trade reforms has, in part, impeded more rapid progress toward completion of the Round. This paper addresses some of the most egregious of these misconceptions and presents results from IMF research that sheds light on these issues. In particular, this paper argues that: (i) ...
Results of a Round Robin ballistic load sensing headform test series

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Philippens, M.A.G.; Anctil, B.; Markwardt, K.C.

2014-01-01

The majority of methods to assess the behind armour blunt trauma (BABT) risk for ballistic helmets is based on plastic deformable headforms. An alternative, the Ballistic Load Sensing Headform (BLSH) can record the dynamic contact force between helmet back face and the skull. Helmet BABT methods are
Worldwide outdoor round robin study of organic photovoltaic devices and modules

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Madsen, Morten Vesterager; Gevorgyan, Suren; Pacios, R.

2014-01-01

Accurate characterization and reporting of organic photovoltaic (OPV) device performance remains one of the important challenges in the field. The large spread among the efficiencies of devices with the same structure reported by different groups is significantly caused by different procedures......-to-roll coated OPV cells and modules conducted among 46 laboratories worldwide is presented, where the samples and the testing equipment were integrated in a compact suitcase that served both as a sample transportation tool and as a holder and test equipment during testing. In addition, an internet based...

Does it actually feel right? A replication attempt of the rounded price effect.

Science.gov (United States)

Harms, Christopher; Genau, Hanna A; Meschede, Carolin; Beauducel, André

2018-04-01

How does the roundedness of prices affect product evaluations? The 'rounded price effect' postulates that depending on the context, rounded or non-rounded prices increase the purchase likelihood of consumers. The study presented here is a replication attempt of these findings and the proposed mediation of the effect through a sense of 'feeling right' when evaluating the product. p -Curve analysis and the R-Index are used to assess the robustness of the originally reported statistics since original data were not available. A pre-registered replication of study 5 from the original article was conducted in a sample of N =588 participants. For both the original product and one alternative product neither an interaction between price roundedness and context, nor a mediation through 'a sense of feeling right' was found. Our results suggest that the effect is either smaller than originally reported or contingent on other, not investigated factors. Further studies might investigate contingencies in larger samples.
Features of round air jet flowing at low Reynolds numbers

Science.gov (United States)

Lemanov, V. V.; Sharov, K. A.; Gorinovich, N. V.

2018-03-01

The laminar-turbulent transition in a round jet flowing from a cylindrical channel with the diameter of 3.2 mm was studied experimentally. In experiments, the range of Reynolds numbers determined by the mean-flow velocity was Re = Ud/ν = 700-12000. The measurements were carried out using a PIV system and one-component hot-wire anemometer. The profiles of average velocities and their pulsations in the zone of laminar-turbulent transition were obtained along with axial distributions of longitudinal velocity and pulsations of longitudinal velocity.
An Ultrasound and Acoustic Study of Turkish Rounded/Unrounded Vowel Pairs

Science.gov (United States)

Radisic, Milica

This dissertation grew out of a phonology course paper on the adaption of Turkish words in Serbian. The focus of the paper was on the Turkish vowels /m y oe/. Noticeably, in contrast to vowels /y oe/, the back vowel /m/ showed variable patterns of adaptation. The conclusion drawn from the paper was that the vowel /m/ was different from other vowels. Interestingly, the Turkish vowel inventory is a crowded vowel system with three rounded/unrounded vowel pairs, two front vowel pairs (/i y/ and /e oe/), and one back vowel pair (/m u/). And, while phonetic research has largely focused on front vowel pairs in other languages, I emphasize on the importance of the back vowel pair. The dissertation examines the phonetics of Turkish vowels to determine acoustic and articulatory properties of vowels produced in different contexts. Four experiments were done, two describing vowels in isolation and two describing vowels in four different consonantal contexts, based on place of articulation. First, I discuss the theory behind acoustics and articulation, by outlining theories of coarticulation and describing how the vowel /m/ differs from other vowels. Then, I present methodology used in the dissertation. Chapters 4 and 5 present results of articulation and acoustic experiments on vowels in isolation, while Chapter 6 and 7 present results of the articulation and acoustic experiments on vowels in consonantal contexts. Chapter 8 discusses the main findings. The study discovered that the three rounded/unrounded vowel pairs are true pairs, as they do not articulatorily differ much in tongue height and frontness. Since they differ most consistently in F2, this confirms the non-linear relationship between articulation and acoustics. Both high back vowels /m u/ are more prone to coarticulation in F2 than other vowels. Context variability, short duration, and absence of visual cues can explain why /m/ behaves like no other vowel in loanword adaptations. The dissertation enriches phonetic
Rounds Today: A Qualitative Study of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics Resident Perceptions.

Science.gov (United States)

Rabinowitz, Raphael; Farnan, Jeanne; Hulland, Oliver; Kearns, Lisa; Long, Michele; Monash, Bradley; Bhansali, Priti; Fromme, H Barrett

2016-10-01

Attending rounds is a key component of patient care and education at teaching hospitals, yet there is an absence of studies addressing trainees' perceptions of rounds. To determine perceptions of pediatrics and internal medicine residents about the current and ideal purposes of inpatient rounds on hospitalist services. In this multi-institutional qualitative study, the authors conducted focus groups with a purposive sample of internal medicine and pediatrics residents at 4 teaching hospitals. The constant comparative method was used to identify themes and codes. The study identified 4 themes: patient care, clinical education, patient/family involvement, and evaluation. Patient care included references to activities on rounds that forwarded care of the patient. Clinical education pertained to teaching/learning on rounds. Patient/family involvement encompassed comments about incorporating patients and families on rounds. Evaluation described residents demonstrating skill for attendings. Resident perceptions of the purposes of rounds aligned with rounding activities described by prior observational studies of rounds. The influence of time pressures and the divergent needs of participants on today's rounds placed these identified purposes in tension, and led to resident dissatisfaction in the achievement of all of them. Suboptimal congruency exists between perceived resident clinical education and specialty-specific milestones. These findings suggest a need for education of multiple stakeholders by (1) enhancing faculty teaching strategies to maximize clinical education while minimizing inefficiencies; (2) informing residents about the value of patient interactions and family-centered rounds; and (3) educating program directors in proper alignment of inpatient rotational objectives to the milestones.
The Doha Round, poverty, and regional inequality in Brazil

OpenAIRE

Filho, Joaquim Bento de Souza Ferreira; Horridge, Mark

2005-01-01

This paper addresses the potential effects of the Doha round of trade negotiations on poverty and income distribution in Brazil, using an applied general equilibrium (AGE) and micro-simulation model of Brazil tailored for income distribution and poverty analysis. Of particular importance is the fact that the representative household hypothesis is replaced by a detailed representation of households. The model distinguishes 10 different labor types and has 270 different household expenditure pa...
The Doha Round Impasse: A Graphical Account

OpenAIRE

Evenett, Simon J

2013-01-01

Several factors potentially responsible for the failure to conclude the Doha Round of multilateral trade negotiations are analysed. A two-stage negotiation and ratification game between the “North” (industrialised countries) and the “South” (developing countries) is employed and collapses into a single diagram. The choice of negotiating agenda, principles, and currency of the Doha Round interact with domestic political factors in leading WTO members, the fast growth of exports prior to 2007, ...
The value of case-based teaching vignettes in clinical microbiology rounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Spicer, Jennifer O; Kraft, Colleen S; Burd, Eileen M; Armstrong, Wendy S; Guarner, Jeannette

2014-03-01

To describe the implementation and evaluation of a case-based microbiology curriculum during daily microbiology rounds. Vignettes consist of short cases with images and questions that facilitate discussion among microbiologists, pathologists, infectious disease physicians, and trainees (residents and fellows). We performed a survey to assess the value of these vignettes to trainees. Motivation to come to rounds on time increased from 60% to 100%. Trainees attending rounds after implementation of the vignettes perceived the value of microbiology rounds to be significantly higher compared with those who attended rounds before implementation (P = .04). Pathology residents found that vignettes were helpful for retaining knowledge (8.3 of 10 points). The vignettes have enhanced the value of microbiology rounds by serving as a formalized curriculum exposing trainees from multiple specialties to various microbiology topics. Emphasis on interdisciplinary interactions between clinical and laboratory personnel was highlighted with this case-based curriculum.
Pioneer round of translation occurs during serum starvation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oh, Nara; Kim, Kyoung Mi; Cho, Hana; Choe, Junho; Kim, Yoon Ki

2007-01-01

The pioneer round of translation plays a role in translation initiation of newly spliced and exon junction complex (EJC)-bound mRNAs. Nuclear cap-binding protein complex CBP80/20 binds to those mRNAs at the 5'-end, recruiting translation initiation complex. As a consequence of the pioneer round of translation, the bound EJCs are dissociated from mRNAs and CBP80/20 is replaced by the cytoplasmic cap-binding protein eIF4E. Steady-state translation directed by eIF4E allows for an immediate and rapid response to changes in physiological conditions. Here, we show that nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD), which restricts only to the pioneer round of translation but not to steady-state translation, efficiently occurs even during serum starvation, in which steady-state translation is drastically abolished. Accordingly, CBP80 remains in the nucleus and processing bodies are unaffected in their abundance and number in serum-starved conditions. These results suggest that mRNAs enter the pioneer round of translation during serum starvation and are targeted for NMD if they contain premature termination codons
Environmental DNA (eDNA): A tool for quantifying the abundant but elusive round goby (Neogobius melanostomus)

Science.gov (United States)

Nevers, Meredith; Byappanahalli, Muruleedhara; Morris, Charles C.; Shively, Dawn; Przybyla-Kelly, Katarzyna; Spoljaric, Ashley M.; Dickey, Joshua; Roseman, Edward

2018-01-01

Environmental DNA (eDNA) is revolutionizing biodiversity monitoring, occupancy estimates, and real-time detections of invasive species. In the Great Lakes, the round goby (Neogobius melanostomus), an invasive benthic fish from the Black Sea, has spread to encompass all five lakes and many tributaries, outcompeting or consuming native species; however, estimates of round goby abundance are confounded by behavior and habitat preference, which impact reliable methods for estimating their population. By integrating eDNA into round goby monitoring, improved estimates of biomass may be obtainable. We conducted mesocosm experiments to estimate rates of goby DNA shedding and decay. Further, we compared eDNA with several methods of traditional field sampling to compare its use as an alternative/complementary monitoring method. Environmental DNA decay was comparable to other fish species, and first-order decay was lower at 12°C (k = 0.043) than at 19°C (k = 0.058). Round goby eDNA was routinely detected in known invaded sites of Lake Michigan and its tributaries (range log10 4.8–6.2 CN/L), but not upstream of an artificial fish barrier. Traditional techniques (mark-recapture, seining, trapping) in Lakes Michigan and Huron resulted in fewer, more variable detections than eDNA, but trapping and eDNA were correlated (Pearson R = 0.87). Additional field testing will help correlate round goby abundance with eDNA, providing insight on its role as a prey fish and its impact on food webs.
A unified in vitro evaluation for apatite-forming ability of bioactive glasses and their variants.

Science.gov (United States)

Maçon, Anthony L B; Kim, Taek B; Valliant, Esther M; Goetschius, Kathryn; Brow, Richard K; Day, Delbert E; Hoppe, Alexander; Boccaccini, Aldo R; Kim, Ill Yong; Ohtsuki, Chikara; Kokubo, Tadashi; Osaka, Akiyoshi; Vallet-Regí, Maria; Arcos, Daniel; Fraile, Leandro; Salinas, Antonio J; Teixeira, Alexandra V; Vueva, Yuliya; Almeida, Rui M; Miola, Marta; Vitale-Brovarone, Chiara; Verné, Enrica; Höland, Wolfram; Jones, Julian R

2015-02-01

The aim of this study was to propose and validate a new unified method for testing dissolution rates of bioactive glasses and their variants, and the formation of calcium phosphate layer formation on their surface, which is an indicator of bioactivity. At present, comparison in the literature is difficult as many groups use different testing protocols. An ISO standard covers the use of simulated body fluid on standard shape materials but it does not take into account that bioactive glasses can have very different specific surface areas, as for glass powders. Validation of the proposed modified test was through round robin testing and comparison to the ISO standard where appropriate. The proposed test uses fixed mass per solution volume ratio and agitated solution. The round robin study showed differences in hydroxyapatite nucleation on glasses of different composition and between glasses of the same composition but different particle size. The results were reproducible between research facilities. Researchers should use this method when testing new glasses, or their variants, to enable comparison between the literature in the future.
Average Throughput Performance of Myopic Policy in Energy Harvesting Wireless Sensor Networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Gul, Omer Melih; Demirekler, Mubeccel

2017-09-26

This paper considers a single-hop wireless sensor network where a fusion center collects data from M energy harvesting wireless sensors. The harvested energy is stored losslessly in an infinite-capacity battery at each sensor. In each time slot, the fusion center schedules K sensors for data transmission over K orthogonal channels. The fusion center does not have direct knowledge on the battery states of sensors, or the statistics of their energy harvesting processes. The fusion center only has information of the outcomes of previous transmission attempts. It is assumed that the sensors are data backlogged, there is no battery leakage and the communication is error-free. An energy harvesting sensor can transmit data to the fusion center whenever being scheduled only if it has enough energy for data transmission. We investigate average throughput of Round-Robin type myopic policy both analytically and numerically under an average reward (throughput) criterion. We show that Round-Robin type myopic policy achieves optimality for some class of energy harvesting processes although it is suboptimal for a broad class of energy harvesting processes.
Fiscal 2000 project for development of international standards for supporting novel industries. Standardization of methods for evaluating high-temperature physical properties of new glass; 2000 nendo shinki sangyo shiengata kokusai hyojun kaihatsu jigyo. New garasu koonbussei no hyoka hoho no hyojunka

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-03-01

Research and development is under way about methods for evaluating the physical properties of high-temperature glass melt for the development of the methods into international standards. In this fiscal year, a technique of measuring high-temperature physical properties of amino silicate glass melt was developed, and the techniques of measuring high-temperature physical properties of molten soda lime glass and borate-silicate glass were improved. As the result, evaluation techniques compatible with international standards were developed for high-temperature glass melt physical properties such as viscosity, density, coefficient of volume expansion, surface tension, specific heat, thermal conductivity, electric conductivity, oxidation/reduction potentials, and the structure of molten glass. Techniques of evaluating gas solubility and the coefficient of gas diffusion, however, need further basic research and development. The author took part in a round robin test relating to the measurement of glass melt density and heat conductivity at CG/TC18, and measured the said two properties. The result of the round robin test was discussed at TC18 held in Amsterdam in May this year. (NEDO)
Differential Fault Analysis on CLEFIA

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Hua; Wu, Wenling; Feng, Dengguo

CLEFIA is a new 128-bit block cipher proposed by SONY corporation recently. The fundamental structure of CLEFIA is a generalized Feistel structure consisting of 4 data lines. In this paper, the strength of CLEFIA against the differential fault attack is explored. Our attack adopts the byte-oriented model of random faults. Through inducing randomly one byte fault in one round, four bytes of faults can be simultaneously obtained in the next round, which can efficiently reduce the total induce times in the attack. After attacking the last several rounds' encryptions, the original secret key can be recovered based on some analysis of the key schedule. The data complexity analysis and experiments show that only about 18 faulty ciphertexts are needed to recover the entire 128-bit secret key and about 54 faulty ciphertexts for 192/256-bit keys.
Robins Air Force Base Solar Cogeneration Facility design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pierce, B.L.; Bodenschatz, C.A.

1982-06-01

A conceptual design and a cost estimate have been developed for a Solar Cogeneration Facility at Robins Air Force Base. This demonstration solar facility was designed to generate and deliver electrical power and process steam to the existing base distribution systems. The facility was to have the potential for construction and operation by 1986 and make use of existing technology. Specific objectives during the DOE funded conceptual design program were to: prepare a Solar Cogeneration Facility (overall System) Specification, select a preferred configuration and develop a conceptual design, establish the performance and economic characteristics of the facility, and prepare a development plan for the demonstration program. The Westinghouse team, comprised of the Westinghouse Advanced Energy Systems Division, Heery and Heery, Inc., and Foster Wheeler Solar Development Corporation, in conjunction with the U.S. Air Force Logistics Command and Georgia Power Company, has selected a conceptual design for the facility that will utilize the latest DOE central receiver technology, effectively utilize the energy collected in the application, operate base-loaded every sunny day of the year, and be applicable to a large number of military and industrial facilities throughout the country. The design of the facility incorporates the use of a Collector System, a Receiver System, an Electrical Power Generating System, a Balance of Facility - Steam and Feedwater System, and a Master Control System.
Patient-Centered Collaborative Care: The Impact of a New Approach to Postpartum Rounds on Residents' Perception of Their Work Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Baldwin, Maureen; Hashima, Jason; Guise, Jeanne-Marie; Gregory, William Thomas; Edelman, Alison; Segel, Sally

2010-01-01

Objective At our institution, traditional postpartum rounds consisted of separate visits from all members of the obstetric team. This led to patient care inefficiencies and miscommunication. In an effort to improve patient care, patient-centered collaborative care (PCCC) was established, whereby physicians, residents, medical students, nurses, case managers, and social workers conduct rounds as a team. The goal of this observational study was to evaluate how PCCC rounds affected resident physicians' assessment of their work environment. Methods Obstetrics and gynecology residents completed a 13-question written survey designed to assess their sense of workflow, education, and workplace cohesion. Surveys were completed before and 6 months after the implementation of PCCC. Responses were compared in aggregate for preintervention and postintervention with Pearson χ2 test. Results Ninety-two percent of the obstetrics residents (n = 23) completed the preintervention survey, and 79% (n = 19) completed the postintervention survey. For most measures, there was no difference in resident perception between the 2 time points. After implementation of PCCC rounds, fewer residents felt that rounds were educational (preintervention = 39%, postintervention = 7%; P = .03). Conclusion Residents did not report negative impacts on workflow, cohesion, or general well-being after the implementation of PCCC rounds. However, there was a perception that PCCC rounds negatively impacted the educational value of postpartum rounds. This information will help identify ways to improve the resident physician experience in the obstetric service while optimizing patient care. PMID:21975886
Analysis of material flow in metal forming processes by using computer simulation and experiment with model material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Heon Young; Kim, Dong Won

1993-01-01

The objective of the present study is to analyze material flow in the metal forming processes by using computer simulation and experiment with model material, plasticine. A UBET program is developed to analyze the bulk flow behaviour of various metal forming problems. The elemental strain-hardening effect is considered in an incremental manner and the element system is automatically regenerated at every deforming step in the program. The material flow behaviour in closed-die forging process with rib-web type cavity are analyzed by UBET and elastic-plastic finite element method, and verified by experiments with plasticine. There were good agreements between simulation and experiment. The effect of corner rounding on material flow behavior is investigated in the analysis of backward extrusion with square die. Flat punch indentation process is simulated by UBET, and the results are compared with that of elastic-plastic finite element method. (Author)
Agreement on Agriculture in the Uruguay Round of GATT, The

OpenAIRE

Zuhair A. Hassan

1994-01-01

The Uruguay Round is the eighth round of multilateral trade negotiations (MTN) under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The previous seven rounds produced significant reductions in tariffs on manufactured goods, but little or no progress was made in opening international markets for agricultural trade (see Appendix A0. However, the distortions in international agricultural trade and domestic agricultural production and the increasing budgetary outlays prompted trade ministers ...
Investigating the round air jet dynamics at low Reynolds numbers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lemanov Vadim

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The laminar-turbulent transition in a round jet flowing from a cylindrical channel with the diameter of 3.2 mm was studied experimentally. In experiments, the range of Reynolds numbers determined by the mean-flow velocity was Re = Ud/v = 700-12000. The measurements were carried out using a PIV system and one-component hot-wire anemometer. The profiles of average velocities and their pulsations in the zone of laminar-turbulent transition were obtained, as well as axial distributions of longitudinal velocity and pulsations of longitudinal velocity.
Will the right Robin patient rise, please? Definitions and criteria during management of Robin sequence patients in the Netherlands and Belgium.

Science.gov (United States)

Basart, Hanneke; Kruisinga, Frea H; Breugem, Corstiaan C; Don Griot, J Peter W; Hennekam, Raoul C; Van der Horst, Chantal M A M

2015-01-01

Robin Sequence (RS) is characterized by micrognathia and upper airway obstruction (UAO), with or without cleft palate, causing respiratory and feeding problems. Management options are: positioning; nasopharyngeal airway (NPA); tongue-lip adhesion (TLA); mandibular distraction (MDO); and tracheostomy. Controversy exists in literature regarding RS definition and management. Here we describe definitions, management strategies and criteria in opting for management strategies, used by Dutch and Belgian cleft teams. A specifically designed questionnaire was sent to members of all 16 Dutch and Belgian cleft teams. 14 cleft teams returned 35 questionnaires. All used micrognathia as definition criterion, 93.4% cleft palate, 51.5%glossoptosis and 45.7% UAO. Six different RS definitions were used; even within a single team >1 definition was used. All teams used different management strategies: all used positioning, 10 NPA, 6 TLA, 7 MDO, 8 tracheostomy, 5 refer patients with invasive treatment indication. Criteria in opting management modalities were: O2-saturation (89.3%), clinical presentation (86.2%), growth and feeding problems (69.0%), polysomnography (62.1%), and differed within teams. The Dutch and Belgian cleft teams use variable RS definitions, different management modalities and criteria in choosing management strategies. A single, strict definition and evidence-based management guidelines should be formulated for optimal patient care. Copyright © 2014 European Association for Cranio-Maxillo-Facial Surgery. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
CHF prediction in rod bundles using round tube data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Souza, Wallen F.; Veloso, Maria A.F.; Pereira, Cláubia; Costa, Antonella L., E-mail: wallenfds@yahoo.com.br, E-mail: mdora@nuclear.ufmg.br [Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, MG (Brazil). Departamento de Engenharia Nuclear

2017-07-01

The present work concerns the use of 1995 CHF table for uniformly heated round tubes, developed jointly by Canadian and Russian researchers, for the prediction of critical heat fluxes in rod bundles geometries. Comparisons between measured and calculated critical heat fluxes indicate that this table could be applied to rod bundles provided that a suitable correction factor is employed. The tolerance limits associated with the departure from nucleate boiling ratio (DNBR) are evaluated by using statistical analysis. (author)

Influence of lubricant on the pitting capacity of gears. Comparison and discussion of main pitting test methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hoehn, Bernd-Robert; Oster, Peter; Tobie, Thomas; Hergesell, Maria [Forschungsstelle fuer Zahnraeder und Getriebebau, Technische Univ. Muenchen, Garching (Germany)

2009-07-01

The lubricant in a gearbox should provide a separating lubricating film between the meshing teeth. Furthermore its main task is the evacuation of the developing heat. Hence the lubricant is also an important influence parameter on the pitting life time of gearsets. Due to the constantly rising demands for higher power transmission of gearsets, also higher demands are made against the performance of the lubricants. In order to quantify the capability and to choose the appropriate lubricant for each application, reliable testing methods are necessary. Therefor today different testing methods are available. Two of the main pitting testing methods are the Standard Pittingtest according to FVA 2/IV [2] and its advancement, the Practice Relevant Pittingtest according to FVA 371 [4]. For the Practice Relevant Pittingtest test gears with profile modification and lengthwise crowning are used, which are superfinished. For the introduction of the Practice Relevant Pittingtest into industrial application a round robin test was performed in co-operation with FVA and DGMK. This paper is discussing the today usual testing methods regarding the pitting load capacity of lubricants and their characteristics in comparison. Furthermore the results of the round robin test and further example results, including pictures of typical pittings, are presented. In addition it is demonstrated, how to deal with the results. On the basis of test experience, knowledge from research projects and other examples typical questions concerning the different testing methods are discussed. Thereby essential requirements for reliable and reproducible results are pointed out and possible limits for the application of the test methods are represented. (orig.)
Laurels for Swiss in-service inspection team

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1984-01-01

Following what is believed to be the first successful application of P-scan ultrasonic testing for the in-service inspection of austenitic welds in the boiling water reactor at Wuergassen (Federal Republic of Germany) last year, Sulzer participated in a 'round robin' test organized by the Electric Power Research Institute in the USA form May to July 1983. (Auth.)
Residual cold-work determination by X-ray diffraction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pireau, A.; Vanderborck, Y.

1990-01-01

The determination of the cold-work level of materials for fast breeder reactors can be made by different techniques. The report compares different methods for an application on austenitic stainless steels and demonstrates that the X-ray diffraction procedure is a reliable technique. A round robin test has been performed between three laboratories; the results are presented and discussed
Interlaboratory comparability of serum cotinine measurements at smoker and nonsmoker concentration levels: A round-robin study

Science.gov (United States)

Jacob, Peyton; Holiday, David B.; Benowitz, Neal L.; Sosnoff, Connie S.; Doig, Mira V.; Feyerabend, Colin; Aldous, Kenneth M.; Sharifi, Mehran; Kellogg, Mark D.; Langman, Loralie J.

2009-01-01

Introduction: Cotinine, the primary proximate metabolite of nicotine, is commonly measured as an index of exposure to tobacco in both active users of tobacco and nonsmokers with possible exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS). A number of laboratories have implemented analyses for measuring serum cotinine in recent years, but there have been few interlaboratory comparisons of the results. Among nonsmokers exposed to SHS, the concentration of cotinine in blood can be quite low, and extensive variability in these measurements has been reported in the past. Methods: In this study, a group of seven laboratories, all experienced in serum cotinine analysis, measured eight coded serum pools with concentrations ranging from background levels of about 0.05 ng/ml to relatively high concentrations in the active smokers range. All laboratories used either gas–liquid chromatography with nitrogen–phosphorus detection or liquid chromatography with mass spectrometric detection. Results: All seven laboratories reliably measured the cotinine concentrations in samples that were within the range of their methods. In each case, the results for the pools were correctly ranked in order, and no significant interlaboratory bias was observed at the 5% level of significance for results from any of the pools. Discussion: We conclude that present methods of chromatographic analysis of serum cotinine, as used by these experienced laboratories, are capable of providing accurate and precise results in both the smoker and the nonsmoker concentration range. PMID:19933777
NUFACT11 round table discussion questions and answers

CERN Document Server

Blondel, A

2013-01-01

This presents the response to questions formulated by a round table discussion panel to the NUFACT11 participants. The main points made were as follows. Neutrino mass is physics beyond the Standard Model, it presents a very deep puzzle to solve, with the answers to several fundamental questions as potential reward. Precision measurement of oscillation parameters is one essential way to access information needed to solve this puzzle and there is a relatively clear (but not easy) way forward. Large θ(13) makes the appearance signals larger, but does not allow to relax the requirements on high beam intensity and large detector masses, it creates a difficult challenge on systematic errors, which will require dedicated ancillary experiments. Of particular interest is a low intensity muon storage ring for required cross-section measurements. There exist already extended bottom-up international collaboration in both physics and R&D experiments. All three main regions have plans for upgraded super-beams and asso...
An object-based approach for detecting small brain lesions: application to Virchow-Robin spaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Descombes, Xavier; Kruggel, Frithjof; Wollny, Gert; Gertz, Hermann Josef

2004-02-01

This paper is concerned with the detection of multiple small brain lesions from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data. A model based on the marked point process framework is designed to detect Virchow-Robin spaces (VRSs). These tubular shaped spaces are due to retraction of the brain parenchyma from its supplying arteries. VRS are described by simple geometrical objects that are introduced as small tubular structures. Their radiometric properties are embedded in a data term. A prior model includes interactions describing the clustering property of VRS. A Reversible Jump Markov Chain Monte Carlo algorithm (RJMCMC) optimizes the proposed model, obtained by multiplying the prior and the data model. Example results are shown on T1-weighted MRI datasets of elderly subjects.
Experiences in Traceroute and Bandwidth Change Analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Logg, C

2004-06-23

SLAC has been studying end-to-end WAN bandwidth availability and achievability for 2.5 years via IEPM-BW [1]. IEPM-BW performs network intensive tests every 90 minutes. Based on that experience we have also developed a light weight available bandwidth (ABwE [2]) measurement tool that can make a measurement within a second. We are now extending this to a WAN measurement and detection system (IEPM-LITE) aimed at more quickly detecting and troubleshooting network performance problems and also to be more friendly on lower performance paths. IEPM-LITE uses ping, forward traceroutes, and ABwE sensors to monitor, in close to real-time, Round Trip Times (RTT), changes in available bandwidth and routes to and from target hosts. This paper discusses the experiences, techniques and algorithms used to detect and report on significant traceroute and bandwidth changes. The ultimate aim is to develop a lightweight WAN network performance monitoring system that can detect, in near real time, significant changes and generate alerts.
Experiences in Traceroute and Bandwidth Change Analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Logg, C

2004-01-01

SLAC has been studying end-to-end WAN bandwidth availability and achievability for 2.5 years via IEPM-BW [1]. IEPM-BW performs network intensive tests every 90 minutes. Based on that experience we have also developed a light weight available bandwidth (ABwE [2]) measurement tool that can make a measurement within a second. We are now extending this to a WAN measurement and detection system (IEPM-LITE) aimed at more quickly detecting and troubleshooting network performance problems and also to be more friendly on lower performance paths. IEPM-LITE uses ping, forward traceroutes, and ABwE sensors to monitor, in close to real-time, Round Trip Times (RTT), changes in available bandwidth and routes to and from target hosts. This paper discusses the experiences, techniques and algorithms used to detect and report on significant traceroute and bandwidth changes. The ultimate aim is to develop a lightweight WAN network performance monitoring system that can detect, in near real time, significant changes and generate alerts
Round Gating for Low Energy Block Ciphers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Banik, Subhadeep; Bogdanov, Andrey; Regazzoni, Francesco

2016-01-01

design techniques for implementing block ciphers in a low energy fashion. We concentrate on round based implementation and we discuss how gating, applied at round level can affect and improve the energy consumption of the most common lightweight block cipher currently used in the internet of things....... Additionally, we discuss how to needed gating wave can be generated. Experimental results show that our technique is able to reduce the energy consumption in most block ciphers by over 60% while incurring only a minimal overhead in hardware....
Examination of the program to avoid round-off error

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shiota, Y.; Kusunoki, T.; Tabushi, K.; Shimomura, K.; Kitou, S.

2005-01-01

The MACRO programs which express a simple shape such as PLANE, SPHERE, CYLINDER and CONE, are used to the formation of the geometry in EGS4. Each MACRO calculates the important value for the main code to recognize the configured geometry. This calculation process may generate the calculation error due to the effect of a round-off error. SPHERE, CYLINDER and CONE MACRO include the function to avoid the effect, but PLANE MACRO dose not include. The effect of the round-off error is small usually in case of PLANE MACRO, however a slant plane may cause the expansion of the effect. Therefore, we have configured the DELPLANE program with the function to avoid the effect of the round-off error. In this study, we examine the DELPLANE program using the simply geometry with slant plane. As a result, the normal PLANE MACRO generates the round-off error, however DELPLANE program dose not generates one. (author)
Feature-guided analysis for reduction of false positives in CAD of polyps for computed tomographic colonography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naeppi, Janne; Yoshida, Hiroyuki

2003-01-01

We evaluated the effect of our novel technique of feature-guided analysis of polyps on the reduction of false-positive (FP) findings generated by our computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) scheme for the detection of polyps from computed tomography colonographic data sets. The detection performance obtained by use of feature-guided analysis in the segmentation and feature analysis of polyp candidates was compared with that obtained by use of our previously employed fuzzy clustering technique. We also evaluated the effect of a feature called modified gradient concentration (MGC) on the detection performance. A total of 144 data sets, representing prone and supine views of 72 patients that included 14 patients with 21 colorectal polyps 5-25 mm in diameter, were used in the evaluation. At a 100% by-patient (95% by-polyp) detection sensitivity, the FP rate of our CAD scheme with feature-guided analysis based on round-robin evaluation was 1.3 (1.5) FP detections per patient. This corresponds to a 70-75 % reduction in the number of FPs obtained by use of fuzzy clustering at the same sensitivity levels. Application of the MGC feature instead of our previously used gradient concentration feature did not improve the detection result. The results indicate that feature-guided analysis is useful for achieving high sensitivity and a low FP rate in our CAD scheme
Impact of floating mass transducer coupling and positioning in round window vibroplasty.

Science.gov (United States)

Rajan, Gunesh P; Lampacher, Peter; Ambett, Ranjeeta; Dittrich, Gregor; Kuthubutheen, Jafri; Wood, Bradley; McArthur, Anne; Marino, Roberta

2011-02-01

The round window application of the Vibrant Sound bridge, the so-called round window vibroplasty, is gaining increasing popularity for hearing rehabilitation of patients with mixed hearing loss or conductive hearing loss. In these patients, conventional hearing amplification and/or surgical restoration is either not possible or has failed because of chronic ear disease, extensive otosclerosis, or malformations. The exact mechanisms of direct cochlear stimulation via the round window membrane are not yet completely understood. It is unclear what kind and what degree of contact is required between the floating mass transducer (FMT) and the round window membrane (RWM) to elicit a functional hearing perception with the implant. We investigated the coupling efficiency between the FMT and the RWM and how the efficiency is altered by the FMT position, the degree of FMT-RWM contact, and the use of a soft tissue coupler. Prospective cohort study. Tertiary referral center in Western Australia. Patients undergoing round window vibroplasty for a mixed or conductive hearing loss otherwise not aidable. Patients underwent round window vibroplasty and received audiological and coupling analysis in the follow-up. These data were then correlated with FMT positioning and the extent of FMT-RWM interface as determined by postoperative high-resolution temporal bone computed tomography. Coupling and hearing levels in relation to FMT positioning and degree of FMT-RWM contact. Of 10 patients, 8 were available for vibroplasty behavioral threshold testing. In 2 patients, testing could not be done because of wound breakdown requiring device explantation in 1 case, and in the other case, the bone conduction thresholds dropped 2 months after implantation, thus falling out of the performance range of the device. Postoperative FMT migration occurred in 50% of the patients (3/6) with recurrent chronic ear disease and status after multiple previous ear operations. All patients, including the 3
Rounding by disorder of first-order quantum phase transitions: emergence of quantum critical points.

Science.gov (United States)

Goswami, Pallab; Schwab, David; Chakravarty, Sudip

2008-01-11

We give a heuristic argument for disorder rounding of a first-order quantum phase transition into a continuous phase transition. From both weak and strong disorder analysis of the N-color quantum Ashkin-Teller model in one spatial dimension, we find that, for N > or =3, the first-order transition is rounded to a continuous transition and the physical picture is the same as the random transverse field Ising model for a limited parameter regime. The results are strikingly different from the corresponding classical problem in two dimensions where the fate of the renormalization group flows is a fixed point corresponding to N-decoupled pure Ising models.
Does Negative Type Characterize the Round Sphere?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kokkendorff, Simon Lyngby

2007-01-01

We discuss the measure theoretic metric invariants extent, mean distance and symmetry ratio and their relation to the concept of negative type of a metric space. A conjecture stating that a compact Riemannian manifold with symmetry ratio 1 must be a round sphere, was put forward in a previous paper....... We resolve this conjecture in the class of Riemannian symmetric spaces by showing, that a Riemannian manifold with symmetry ratio 1 must be of negative type and that the only compact Riemannian symmetric spaces of negative type are the round spheres....
Venezuela slates second oil field revival round

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1992-01-01

This paper reports that Venezuela will accept bids under a second round next year from private foreign and domestic companies for production contracts to operate marginal active as well as inactive oil fields. The first such round came earlier this year, involving about 55 other marginal, inactive fields. It resulted in two contractors signed with domestic and foreign companies. It represented the first time since nationalization of the petroleum industry in Venezuela in 1976 that private companies were allowed to produce oil in the country. A public bid tender was expected at presstime last week
Round beams generated by vertical dispersion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bagley, P.

1990-01-01

Simulations suggest that in e + e - storage rings collisions of round beams (equal emittances and equal β*) can produce very large tune shifts and luminosities. We understand how to make equal β*s, but generating equal emittances is more difficult. We describe an equal emittance scheme that uses several skew quads to couple horizontal dispersion into vertical dispersion. These skew quads also produce a coupling bump. At the interaction point and at other points outside the coupling bump, the motion is not coupled, so that the 'A' normal mode corresponds to horizontal motion and the 'B' normal mode corresponds to vertical motion. We present a round beam lattice for CESR that incorporates this scheme
Creating a Cycle of Continuous Improvement through Instructional Rounds

Science.gov (United States)

Meyer-Looze, Catherine L.

2015-01-01

Instructional Rounds is a continuous improvement strategy that focuses on the technical core of educational systems as well as educators collaborating side-by-side. Concentrating on collective learning, this process only makes sense within an overall strategy of improvement. This case study examined the Instructional Rounds process in a northern…
Integrated Data Collection Analysis (IDCA) Program - AN and Bullseye Smokeless Powder

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sandstrom, Mary M. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Brown, Geoffrey W. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Preston, Daniel N. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Pollard, Colin J. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Warner, Kirstin F. [Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC), Indian Head, MD (United States); Sorensen, Daniel N. [Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC), Indian Head, MD (United States); Remmers, Daniel L. [Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC), Indian Head, MD (United States); Phillips, Jason J. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Shelley, Timothy J. [Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, Redstone Arsenal, AL (United States); Reyes, Jose A. [Applied Research Associates, Tyndall Air Force Base, FL (United States); Hsu, Peter C. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Reynolds, John G. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

2013-07-17

The Integrated Data Collection Analysis (IDCA) program is conducting a proficiency study for Small- Scale Safety and Thermal (SSST) testing of homemade explosives (HMEs). Described here are the results for impact, friction, electrostatic discharge, and differential scanning calorimetry analysis of ammonium nitrate (AN) mixed with Bullseye® smokeless powder (Gunpowder). The participants found the AN/Gunpowder to: 1) have a range of sensitivity to impact, comparable to or less than RDX, 2) be fairly insensitive to friction as measured by BAM and ABL, 3) have a range for ESD, from insensitive to more sensitive than PETN, and 4) have thermal sensitivity about the same as PETN and Gunpowder. This effort, funded by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), is putting the issues of safe handling of these materials in perspective with standard military explosives. The study is adding SSST testing results for a broad suite of different HMEs to the literature. Ultimately the study has the potential to suggest new guidelines and methods and possibly establish the SSST testing accuracies needed when developing safe handling practices for HMEs. Each participating testing laboratory uses identical test materials and preparation methods. Note, however, the test procedures differ among the laboratories. The testing performers involved are Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Indian Head Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center, (NSWC IHD), Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), and Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL/RXQL). These tests are conducted as a proficiency study in order to establish some consistency in test protocols, procedures, and experiments and to compare results when these testing variables cannot be made consistent. Keywords: Small-scale safety testing, proficiency test, impact-, friction-, spark discharge-, thermal testing, round-robin test, safety testing protocols, HME, RDX, potassium perchlorate, potassium
Smartphone use during inpatient attending rounds: prevalence, patterns and potential for distraction.

Science.gov (United States)

Katz-Sidlow, Rachel J; Ludwig, Allison; Miller, Scott; Sidlow, Robert

2012-10-01

While there are numerous benefits of smartphone use for physicians, little is known about the negative effects of using these devices in the context of patient care. To assess resident and faculty smartphone use during inpatient attending rounds and its potential as a source of distraction during transfer of clinical information. Cross-sectional survey. University-affiliated public teaching hospital. All housestaff and inpatient faculty in the departments of Medicine and Pediatrics. Participants were asked about smartphone ownership, usage patterns during attending rounds, and whether team members had ever missed important data during rounds due to distraction from smartphones. Attendings were asked whether policies should be established for smartphone use during rounds. The overall response rate was 73%. Device ownership was prevalent (89% residents, 98% faculty), as was use of smartphones during inpatient rounds (57% residents, 28% attendings). According to self-reports, smartphones were used during rounds for patient care (85% residents, 48% faculty), reading/responding to personal texts/e-mails (37% residents, 12% faculty), and other non-patient care uses (15% residents, 0% faculty). Nineteen percent of residents and 12% of attendings believed they had missed important information because of distraction from smartphones. Residents and faculty agreed that smartphones "can be a serious distraction during attending rounds," and nearly 80% of faculty believed that smartphone policies should be established. Smartphone use during attending rounds is prevalent and can distract users during important information transfer. Attendings strongly favored the institution of formal policies governing appropriate smartphone use during inpatient rounds. Copyright © 2012 Society of Hospital Medicine.
The corner rounding modeling technique in SPICE simulations for deeply scaled MOSFETs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Wei; Yang Dake

2013-01-01

This paper presents a novel poly (PC) and active (RX) corner rounding modeling approach to SPICE simulations. A set of specially designed structures was used for measurement data collection. PC and RX corner rounding equations have been derived based on an assumption that the corner rounding area is a fragment of a circle. The equations were modified to reflect the gouging effect of physical silicon wafers. The modified general equations were implemented in the SPICE model to enable the model to describe the corner rounding effect. The good fittings between the SPICE model simulation results and the silicon data demonstrated in this paper proved that the designed corner rounding model is practical and accurate. (semiconductor devices)

Constant round group key agreement protocols: A comparative study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Makri, E.; Konstantinou, Elisavet

2011-01-01

The scope of this paper is to review and evaluate all constant round Group Key Agreement (GKA) protocols proposed so far in the literature. We have gathered all GKA protocols that require 1,2,3,4 and 5 rounds and examined their efficiency. In particular, we calculated each protocol’s computation and
Interplay between spherical confinement and particle shape on the self-assembly of rounded cubes.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Da; Hermes, Michiel; Kotni, Ramakrishna; Wu, Yaoting; Tasios, Nikos; Liu, Yang; de Nijs, Bart; van der Wee, Ernest B; Murray, Christopher B; Dijkstra, Marjolein; van Blaaderen, Alfons

2018-06-08

Self-assembly of nanoparticles (NPs) inside drying emulsion droplets provides a general strategy for hierarchical structuring of matter at different length scales. The local orientation of neighboring crystalline NPs can be crucial to optimize for instance the optical and electronic properties of the self-assembled superstructures. By integrating experiments and computer simulations, we demonstrate that the orientational correlations of cubic NPs inside drying emulsion droplets are significantly determined by their flat faces. We analyze the rich interplay of positional and orientational order as the particle shape changes from a sharp cube to a rounded cube. Sharp cubes strongly align to form simple-cubic superstructures whereas rounded cubes assemble into icosahedral clusters with additionally strong local orientational correlations. This demonstrates that the interplay between packing, confinement and shape can be utilized to develop new materials with novel properties.
Pre-test analysis results of a PWR steel lined pre-stressed concrete containment model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basha, S.M.; Ghosh, Barnali; Patnaik, R.; Ramanujam, S.; Singh, R.K.; Kushwaha, H.S.; Venkat Raj, V.

2000-02-01

Pre-stressed concrete nuclear containment serves as the ultimate barrier against the release of radioactivity to the environment. This ultimate barrier must be checked for its ultimate load carrying capacity. BARC participated in a Round Robin analysis activity which is co-sponsored by Sandia National Laboratory, USA and Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation Japan for the pre-test prediction of a 1:4 size Pre-stressed Concrete Containment Vessel. In house finite element code ULCA was used to make the test predictions of displacements and strains at the standard output locations. The present report focuses on the important landmarks of the pre-test results, in sequential terms of first crack appearance, loss of pre-stress, first through thickness crack, rebar and liner yielding and finally liner tearing at the ultimate load. Global and local failure modes of the containment have been obtained from the analysis. Finally sensitivity of the numerical results with respect to different types of liners and different constitutive models in terms of bond strength between concrete and steel and tension-stiffening parameters are examined. The report highlights the important features which could be observed during the test and guidelines are given for improving the prediction in the post test computation after the test data is available. (author)
Round-the-table teaching: a novel approach to resuscitation education.

Science.gov (United States)

McGarvey, Kathryn; Scott, Karen; O'Leary, Fenton

2014-10-01

Effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation saves lives. Health professionals who care for acutely unwell children need to be prepared to care for a child in arrest. Hospitals must ensure that their staff have the knowledge, confidence and ability to respond to a child in cardiac arrest. RESUS4KIDS is a programme designed to teach paediatric resuscitation to health care professionals who care for acutely unwell children. The programme is delivered in two components: an e-learning component for pre-learning, followed by a short, practical, face-to-face course that is taught using the round-the-table teaching approach. Round-the-table teaching is a novel, evidence-based small group teaching approach designed to teach paediatric resuscitation skills and knowledge. Round-the-table teaching uses a structured approach to managing a collapsed child, and ensures that each participant has the opportunity to practise the essential resuscitation skills of airway manoeuvres, bag mask ventilation and cardiac compressions. Round-the-table teaching is an engaging, non-threatening approach to delivering interdisciplinary paediatric resuscitation education. The methodology ensures that all participants have the opportunity to practise each of the different essential skills associated with the Danger, Response, Send for help, Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Defibrillation or rhythm recognition (DRSABCD) approach to the collapsed child. Round-the-table teaching is based on evidence-based small group teaching methods. The methodology of round-the-table teaching can be applied to any topic where participants must demonstrate an understanding of a sequential approach to a clinical skill. Round-the-table teaching uses a structured approach to managing a collapsed child. © 2014 The Authors. The Clinical Teacher published by Association for the Study of Medical Education and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Patient safety ward round checklist via an electronic app: implications for harm prevention.

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, C; Arsenault, S; Lamothe, M; Bostan, S R; O'Donnell, R; Harbison, J; Doherty, C P

2017-11-06

Patient safety is a value at the core of modern healthcare. Though awareness in the medical community is growing, implementing systematic approaches similar to those used in other high reliability industries is proving difficult. The aim of this research was twofold, to establish a baseline for patient safety practices on routine ward rounds and to test the feasibility of implementing an electronic patient safety checklist application. Two research teams were formed; one auditing a medical team to establish a procedural baseline of "usual care" practice and an intervention team concurrently was enforcing the implementation of the checklist. The checklist was comprised of eight standard clinical practice items. The program was conducted over a 2-week period and 1 month later, a retrospective analysis of patient charts was conducted using a global trigger tool to determine variance between the experimental groups. Finally, feedback from the physician participants was considered. The results demonstrated a statistically significant difference on five variables of a total of 16. The auditing team observed low adherence to patient identification (0.0%), hand decontamination (5.5%), and presence of nurse on ward rounds (6.8%). Physician feedback was generally positive. The baseline audit demonstrated significant practice bias on daily ward rounds which tended to omit several key-proven patient safety practices such as prompting hand decontamination and obtaining up to date reports from nursing staff. Results of the intervention arm demonstrate the feasibility of using the Checklist App on daily ward rounds.
Reproductive biology of round sardinella (Sardinella aurita in north-eastern Mediterranean

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Athanassios C. Tsikliras

2006-06-01

Full Text Available The reproductive biology of round sardinella, Sardinella aurita Valenciennes, 1847, was studied for the first time in the north-eastern Mediterranean Sea. Round sardinella has gained much attention lately because of its biomass increase, which might be the result of climatic changes occurring across the Mediterranean Sea. Monthly samples were collected on board commercial purse-seiners for two complete year cycles (September 2000 to August 2002. Round sardinella is a gonochoristic fish. The overall female to male ratio was not statistically different (P=0.34 from unity, although it varied monthly and with the length of the fish. The seasonal changes in the gonadosomatic index and the macroscopic characteristics of gonads showed that round sardinella in the northern Aegean spawns between May and July. Male round sardinella reach first sexual maturity at a smaller total length than females (155.0 and 168.3 mm respectively. Mean absolute fecundity (FA increased exponentially with body length (FA=0.0949xL4.22 and weight (FA=511.19xW1.02, with an average of ~21,000 oocytes produced per spawning female. Relative fecundity (FR ranged between 242 and 681 oocytes/g of body weight (average: 445 oocytes/g. The frequency distribution of oocytes showed that round sardinella produces a single batch of oocytes. In general, the reproductive characteristics of round sardinella in the north-eastern Mediterranean Sea differed when compared to stocks from other areas of its distribution.
On security arguments of the second round SHA-3 candidates

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andreeva, Elena; Bogdanov, Andrey; Mennink, Bart

2012-01-01

of which got accepted to the first round. 14 candidates were left in the second round, out of which five candidates have been recently chosen for the final round. An important criterion in the selection process is the SHA-3 hash function security. We identify two important classes of security arguments...... for the new designs: (1) the possible reductions of the hash function security to the security of its underlying building blocks and (2) arguments against differential attack on building blocks. In this paper, we compare the state of the art provable security reductions for the second round candidates...... and review arguments and bounds against classes of differential attacks.We discuss all the SHA-3 candidates at a high functional level, analyze, and summarize the security reduction results and bounds against differential attacks. Additionally, we generalize the well-known proof of collision resistance...
Medieval Round Churches and the Shape of the Earth.

Science.gov (United States)

Haagensen, Erling; Lind, Niels C

2015-12-01

There is a unique cluster of four medieval round churches, linked by a simple geometry, on Bornholm Island in the Baltic Sea. Why so many and why so close together? Immediate simple answers are "Just by chance" and "For no reason." Why are the churches round? "Defense." This essay proposes another hypothesis for this unique situation: the churches are astronomical observatories, meant to solve a scientific problem (Is the Earth really spherical?) and a practical problem (How far is it to sail west to the Orient?). The capacity and desire to find answers, together with other practical needs related to astronomy, can better explain these round churches' special architecture. The geometry that connects them fits the ideal pattern with an angular accuracy of 1 minute of a degree. The round churches may be the earliest astronomical observatories in Christian Europe; other hypotheses have been shown to be untenable. Their location provides for a good method to estimate the Earth's extent in the east-west direction, seemingly the earliest such measurements.
Organized colorectal cancer screening in Serbia - the first round within 2013-2014.

Science.gov (United States)

Banković Lazarević, Dušica; Krivokapić, Zoran; Barišić, Goran; Jovanović, Verica; Ilić, Dragan; Veljković, Marko

2016-04-01

The National Organized Colorectal Cancer Screening Program was conducted in the Republic of Serbia during 2013-2014 covering the population of both genders, aged 50 to 74 years, in 28 municipalities out of 180, with the target population of 651,445 people. This organized colorectal cancer screening aims to reduce mortality from colorectal cancer in the target population. The aim of this study was to show the results of organized screening for colorectal cancer during the first biannual round in Serbia. General practitioners from the primary health centers, invited target population by letters and by phone to perform immunochemical fecal occult blood test. Persons with a positive test results were referred to the colonoscopy. The database of health insurance and other citizens of the target population was used for invitation for screening in primary health centers. Descriptive statistical analysis of the results in organized colorectal cancer screening in the first round was performed for the key screening indicators. In the first round, a total of 99,592 persons were invited. The participation rate was 62.5%. Colonoscopy was performed in 1,554 persons. Adenomas were found in 586 persons (0.9% of all the tested), e.g. 37.7 % of all colonoscopied. In 129 persons colorectal cancer was diagnosed (0.2% of all the tested), e.g. 8.3% of all the colonoscopied. In the left half of the colon (rectum, sigmoid and descending colon) there were 70.4% diagnosed polyps and 77.3% carcinomas, while 29.6% of polyps and 22.7% carcinomas were found in the proximal parts of the colon. In the first round of the organized colorectal cancer screening in Serbia the participation rate of the targeted population was high and gave encouraging result. It was expected that in the forthcoming rounds even higher coverage of the target population would be accomplished. A positive predictive value of the completed colonoscopies showed that further work on observing the stages of diagnosed adenomas
Reliability of surface inspection techniques for pressurized components

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kauppinen, P.; Sillanpaeae, J.

1991-01-01

In the Nordtest NDT-programme (1984 - 1988) the detection of flaws by surface inspection methods has been studied. In the round-robin exercise, 133 test pieces have been inspected by 32 inspectors in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. From the results, the detectability of defects by magnetic particle and liquid-penetrant testing and the influence of materials and techniques used are evaluated. (author)
Enhancement of a sector magnet RGA into a PC-assisted quantitative mass spectrometer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Solomon, G.M.; Schaefer, M.; Schaefer, K.A.

1992-01-01

This paper presents design features of RGA sampling systems which should be considered when specifying or building a mass spectrometer sampling system. Important design features are described including non-fractionating, fast time response sampling system design, onboard calibration standards, multiple sample points and remote operation. PC control of both the sampling system and the RGA provides for important features including automatic peak position tuning, spectrum de-convolution, composition analysis based on actual calibration gas standards, and automatic round-robin sampling and data logging. Applications of such integrated sampling systems currently operating at industrial and government facilities performing continuous on-line monitoring and self calibration are also described. (orig.) [de
Solitary Fibrous Tumor in the Round Ligament of the Liver: A Fortunate Intraoperative Discovery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura Beyer

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Solitary fibrous tumors (SFTs are mesenchymal neoplasms of fibroblastic origin, most commonly found in the pleura. Numerous extrathoracic locations have been reported during the last 2 decades. Herein, we report the first case of an SFT in the round ligament of the liver. A 46-year-old Caucasian man presented with a 12-month history of abdominal pain. An ultrasonography-guided microbiopsy first revealed a desmoid tumor. After failure of first- and second-line medical treatments (celecoxib and tamoxifen, then imatinib, histological reexamination was suspicious for a low-grade sarcoma. MRI was also suspicious for a malignant process. Hence, surgery was decided. Laparotomy found a huge and well-limited tumor that, unexpectedly, was appended to the round ligament of the liver and free from any other intra-abdominal contact. The tumor was easily removed. Excision was monobloc and macroscopically complete. Histological analysis diagnosed an SFT arising from the round ligament of the liver. No adjuvant treatment was given. Ten months after surgery, the patient is alive without any signs or symptoms of relapse. This is the first report of SFT arising from the round ligament of the liver. It illustrates the difficulty in diagnosing such tumors. Whilst diagnosis of SFT is rare, it should be kept in mind to allow early diagnosis and complete surgical resection, which provide the best chance for recovery.
Solitary fibrous tumor in the round ligament of the liver: a fortunate intraoperative discovery.

Science.gov (United States)

Beyer, Laura; Delpero, Jean-Robert; Chetaille, Bruno; Sarran, Anthony; Perrot, Delphine; Moureau-Zabotto, Laurence; Guiramand, Jérôme; Bertucci, François

2012-01-01

Solitary fibrous tumors (SFTs) are mesenchymal neoplasms of fibroblastic origin, most commonly found in the pleura. Numerous extrathoracic locations have been reported during the last 2 decades. Herein, we report the first case of an SFT in the round ligament of the liver. A 46-year-old Caucasian man presented with a 12-month history of abdominal pain. An ultrasonography-guided microbiopsy first revealed a desmoid tumor. After failure of first- and second-line medical treatments (celecoxib and tamoxifen, then imatinib), histological reexamination was suspicious for a low-grade sarcoma. MRI was also suspicious for a malignant process. Hence, surgery was decided. Laparotomy found a huge and well-limited tumor that, unexpectedly, was appended to the round ligament of the liver and free from any other intra-abdominal contact. The tumor was easily removed. Excision was monobloc and macroscopically complete. Histological analysis diagnosed an SFT arising from the round ligament of the liver. No adjuvant treatment was given. Ten months after surgery, the patient is alive without any signs or symptoms of relapse. This is the first report of SFT arising from the round ligament of the liver. It illustrates the difficulty in diagnosing such tumors. Whilst diagnosis of SFT is rare, it should be kept in mind to allow early diagnosis and complete surgical resection, which provide the best chance for recovery.
From Twin Towers to Fawlty Towers: The story of the Doha Round

OpenAIRE

Erixon, Fredrik

2008-01-01

The Doha Round has yet again collapsed. The July 2008 attempt to negotiate a broad headline deal between the main member countries of the WTO failed. The Round is already way beyond bedtime and members now need to ask themselves: Is it at all meaningful to continue the Round - or should it be put at sleep permanently? This paper aims at examining the structural problems of the Doha Round and, by extension, the WTO and its current institutional setup. It offers a broad stock take of the curren...
Effects of efforts to optimise morbidity and mortality rounds to serve contemporary quality improvement and educational goals: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Smaggus, Andrew; Mrkobrada, Marko; Marson, Alanna; Appleton, Andrew

2018-01-01

The quality and safety movement has reinvigorated interest in optimising morbidity and mortality (M&M) rounds. We performed a systematic review to identify effective means of updating M&M rounds to (1) identify and address quality and safety issues, and (2) address contemporary educational goals. Relevant databases (Medline, Embase, PubMed, Education Resource Information Centre, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Healthstar, and Global Health) were searched to identify primary sources. Studies were included if they (1) investigated an intervention applied to M&M rounds, (2) reported outcomes relevant to the identification of quality and safety issues, or educational outcomes relevant to quality improvement (QI), patient safety or general medical education and (3) included a control group. Study quality was assessed using the Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument and Newcastle-Ottawa Scale-Education instruments. Given the heterogeneity of interventions and outcome measures, results were analysed thematically. The final analysis included 19 studies. We identified multiple effective strategies (updating objectives, standardising elements of rounds and attaching rounds to a formal quality committee) to optimise M&M rounds for a QI/safety purpose. These efforts were associated with successful integration of quality and safety content into rounds, and increased implementation of QI interventions. Consistent effects on educational outcomes were difficult to identify, likely due to the use of methodologies ill-fitted for educational research. These results are encouraging for those seeking to optimise the quality and safety mission of M&M rounds. However, the inability to identify consistent educational effects suggests the investigation of M&M rounds could benefit from additional methodologies (qualitative, mixed methods) in order to understand the complex mechanisms driving learning at M&M rounds. © Article author(s) (or their
Round window stimulation for conductive and mixed hearing loss.

Science.gov (United States)

Dillon, Margaret T; Tubbs, Rhonda S; Adunka, Marcia C; King, English R; Hillman, Todd A; Adunka, Oliver F; Chen, Douglas A; Buchman, Craig A

2014-10-01

Assess surgical complications, postoperative residual hearing, and speech perception outcomes of placement of a middle ear implant on the round window in conductive and mixed hearing loss cases. Single-subject, repeated-measures design where each subject served as his or her own control. Tertiary referral medical systems. Eighteen subjects with either conductive or mixed hearing loss who could not benefit from conventional amplification were enrolled in a clinical trial investigating vibratory stimulation of the round window. The floating mass transducer (FMT) was positioned in the round window niche. Unaided residual hearing, and aided sound field thresholds and speech perception abilities were evaluated preoperatively, and at 1, 3, 6, and 10 months post-activation of the external speech processor. Six subjects experienced complications that either required further medical management or resolved on their own. There was no difference in residual bone conduction thresholds or unaided word discrimination over time. All subjects experienced a significant improvement in aided speech perception abilities as compared to preoperative performance. Subjects with conductive and mixed hearing loss with placement of the FMT in the round window niche experienced improved sound field thresholds and speech perception, without compromising residual hearing thresholds. Vibratory stimulation of the round window via a middle ear implant may be an appropriate treatment option for patients with conductive and mixed hearing loss. Additional research is needed on the preferred placement of the FMT, improvement of functional gain, and methods to limit postoperative complications and need for revision surgery.
Heat or mass transfer at low Péclet number for Brinkman and Darcy flow round a sphere

KAUST Repository

Bell, Christopher G.

2014-01-01

Prior research into the effect of convection on steady-state mass transfer from a spherical particle embedded in a porous medium has used the Darcy model to describe the flow. However, a limitation of the Darcy model is that it does not account for viscous effects near boundaries. Brinkman modified the Darcy model to include these effects by introducing an extra viscous term. Here we investigate the impact of this extra viscous term on the steady-state mass transfer from a sphere at low Péclet number, Pe 1. We use singular perturbation techniques to find the approximate asymptotic solution for the concentration profile. Mass-release from the surface of the sphere is described by a Robin boundary condition, which represents a first-order chemical reaction. We find that a larger Brinkman viscous boundary layer renders mass transport by convection less effective, and reduces the asymmetry in the peri-sphere concentration profiles. We provide simple analytical expressions that can be used to calculate the concentration profiles, as well as the local and average Sherwood numbers; and comparison to numerical simulations verifies the order of magnitude of the error in the asymptotic expansions. In the appropriate limits, the asymptotic results agree with solutions previously obtained for Stokes and Darcy flow. The solution for Darcy flow with a Robin boundary condition has not been considered previously in the literature and is a new result. Whilst the article has been formulated in terms of mass transfer, the analysis is also applicable to heat transfer, with concentration replaced by temperature and the Sherwood number by the Nusselt number. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
An analysis of equine round pen training videos posted online: Differences between amateur and professional trainers.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Erin Kydd

Full Text Available Natural Horsemanship is popular among many amateur and professional trainers and as such, has been the subject of recent scientific enquiry. One method commonly adopted by Natural Horsemanship (NH trainers is that of round pen training (RPT. RPT sessions are usually split into a series of bouts; each including two phases: chasing/flight and chasing offset/flight offset. However, NH training styles are heterogeneous. This study investigated online videos of RPT to explore the characteristics of RPT sessions and test for differences in techniques and outcomes between amateurs and professionals (the latter being defined as those with accompanying online materials that promote clinics, merchandise or a service to the public. From more than 300 candidate videos, we selected sample files for individual amateur (n = 24 and professional (n = 21 trainers. Inclusion criteria were: training at liberty in a Round Pen; more than one bout and good quality video. Sessions or portions of sessions were excluded if the trainer attached equipment, such as a lunge line, directly to the horse or the horse was saddled, mounted or ridden. The number of bouts and duration of each chasing and non-chasing phase were recorded, and the duration of each RPT session was calculated. General weighted regression analysis revealed that, when compared with amateurs, professionals showed fewer arm movements per bout (p<0.05. Poisson regression analysis showed that professionals spent more time looking up at their horses, when transitioning between gaits, than amateurs did (p<0.05. The probability of horses following the trainer was not significantly associated with amount of chasing, regardless of category. Given that, according to some practitioners, the following response is a goal of RPT, this result may prompt caution in those inclined to give chase. The horses handled by professionals showed fewer conflict behaviours (e.g. kicking, biting, stomping, head-tossing, defecating
New developments in iterated rounding

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bansal, N.; Raman, V.; Suresh, S.P.

2014-01-01

Iterated rounding is a relatively recent technique in algorithm design, that despite its simplicity has led to several remarkable new results and also simpler proofs of many previous results. We will briefly survey some applications of the method, including some recent developments and giving a high
Natal Dispersal in the North Island Robin (Petroica longipes: the Importance of Connectivity in Fragmented Habitats

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Askia K. Wittern

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Natal dispersal is an important component in bird population dynamics and can influence the persistence of local and metapopulations. We examined natal dispersal in the North Island robin (Petroica longipes, a sedentary bird species distributed in a fragmented forest habitat on Tiritiri Matangi Island, New Zealand. Earlier studies have shown that the only dispersal phase in this species takes place when juveniles leave their natal patch, and that juveniles who fail to find suitable habitat do not survive their first winter. These findings suggest that natal dispersal behavior in this species is important for population viability. We found that juveniles were highly affected by the fragmentation of the forest habitat, with patch occupancy being positively correlated with degree of connectivity of the landscape. Most juvenile movements (52.1% were observed between patches that were separated by less than 20 m. Juvenile North Island robins were found in all forest habitat types, including young and open stands. This suggests that the juveniles are not dependent on old forest stands during their dispersal phase. Based on these findings, we suggest that management of this regionally-threatened species should focus not only on maintaining populations in occupied patches and increasing the habitat quality of these patches, but also on protecting existing forest patches acting as corridors and creating new forest habitat among patches. This would greatly increase the viability of the species' metapopulations by increasing dispersal success between both unoccupied patches and subpopulations. Additionally, increased connectivity between forest patches could also be expected to increase the probability of successful dispersal of other threatened native species, many of which are also sensitive to the high degree of fragmentation of their habitats.

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