Creating Online Training for Procedures in Global Health with PEARLS (Procedural Education for Adaptation to Resource-Limited Settings).

Science.gov (United States)

Bensman, Rachel S; Slusher, Tina M; Butteris, Sabrina M; Pitt, Michael B; On Behalf Of The Sugar Pearls Investigators; Becker, Amanda; Desai, Brinda; George, Alisha; Hagen, Scott; Kiragu, Andrew; Johannsen, Ron; Miller, Kathleen; Rule, Amy; Webber, Sarah

2017-11-01

The authors describe a multiinstitutional collaborative project to address a gap in global health training by creating a free online platform to share a curriculum for performing procedures in resource-limited settings. This curriculum called PEARLS (Procedural Education for Adaptation to Resource-Limited Settings) consists of peer-reviewed instructional and demonstration videos describing modifications for performing common pediatric procedures in resource-limited settings. Adaptations range from the creation of a low-cost spacer for inhaled medications to a suction chamber for continued evacuation of a chest tube. By describing the collaborative process, we provide a model for educators in other fields to collate and disseminate procedural modifications adapted for their own specialty and location, ideally expanding this crowd-sourced curriculum to reach a wide audience of trainees and providers in global health.

Step by Step: Biology Undergraduates' Problem-Solving Procedures during Multiple-Choice Assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Prevost, Luanna B; Lemons, Paula P

2016-01-01

This study uses the theoretical framework of domain-specific problem solving to explore the procedures students use to solve multiple-choice problems about biology concepts. We designed several multiple-choice problems and administered them on four exams. We trained students to produce written descriptions of how they solved the problem, and this allowed us to systematically investigate their problem-solving procedures. We identified a range of procedures and organized them as domain general, domain specific, or hybrid. We also identified domain-general and domain-specific errors made by students during problem solving. We found that students use domain-general and hybrid procedures more frequently when solving lower-order problems than higher-order problems, while they use domain-specific procedures more frequently when solving higher-order problems. Additionally, the more domain-specific procedures students used, the higher the likelihood that they would answer the problem correctly, up to five procedures. However, if students used just one domain-general procedure, they were as likely to answer the problem correctly as if they had used two to five domain-general procedures. Our findings provide a categorization scheme and framework for additional research on biology problem solving and suggest several important implications for researchers and instructors. © 2016 L. B. Prevost and P. P. Lemons. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2016 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Tritium fractionation in biological systems and in analytical procedures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, M.A.; Baumgaertner, F.

1991-01-01

The organically bound tritium (OBT) is evaluated in biological systems by measuring the tritium distribution ratio (R-value), i.e. tritium concentrations in organic substance to tissue water. The determination of the R-value is found to involve always isotope fractionation in applied analytical procedures and hence the evaluation of the true OBT-value in a given biological system appears more complicated than hitherto known in the literature. The present work concentrates on the tritium isotope fraction in the tissue water separation and on the resulting effects on the R-value. The analytical procedures examined are vacuum freeze drying under equilibrium and non-equilibrium conditions and azeotropic distillation. The vaporization isotope effects are determined separately in the phase transition of solid or liquid to gas in pure water systems as well as in real biological systems, e.g. maize plant. The results are systematically analysed and the influence of isotope effects on the R-value is rigorously quantified. (orig.)

On Designing Multicore-Aware Simulators for Systems Biology Endowed with OnLine Statistics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marco Aldinucci

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The paper arguments are on enabling methodologies for the design of a fully parallel, online, interactive tool aiming to support the bioinformatics scientists .In particular, the features of these methodologies, supported by the FastFlow parallel programming framework, are shown on a simulation tool to perform the modeling, the tuning, and the sensitivity analysis of stochastic biological models. A stochastic simulation needs thousands of independent simulation trajectories turning into big data that should be analysed by statistic and data mining tools. In the considered approach the two stages are pipelined in such a way that the simulation stage streams out the partial results of all simulation trajectories to the analysis stage that immediately produces a partial result. The simulation-analysis workflow is validated for performance and effectiveness of the online analysis in capturing biological systems behavior on a multicore platform and representative proof-of-concept biological systems. The exploited methodologies include pattern-based parallel programming and data streaming that provide key features to the software designers such as performance portability and efficient in-memory (big data management and movement. Two paradigmatic classes of biological systems exhibiting multistable and oscillatory behavior are used as a testbed.

On designing multicore-aware simulators for systems biology endowed with OnLine statistics.

Science.gov (United States)

Aldinucci, Marco; Calcagno, Cristina; Coppo, Mario; Damiani, Ferruccio; Drocco, Maurizio; Sciacca, Eva; Spinella, Salvatore; Torquati, Massimo; Troina, Angelo

2014-01-01

The paper arguments are on enabling methodologies for the design of a fully parallel, online, interactive tool aiming to support the bioinformatics scientists .In particular, the features of these methodologies, supported by the FastFlow parallel programming framework, are shown on a simulation tool to perform the modeling, the tuning, and the sensitivity analysis of stochastic biological models. A stochastic simulation needs thousands of independent simulation trajectories turning into big data that should be analysed by statistic and data mining tools. In the considered approach the two stages are pipelined in such a way that the simulation stage streams out the partial results of all simulation trajectories to the analysis stage that immediately produces a partial result. The simulation-analysis workflow is validated for performance and effectiveness of the online analysis in capturing biological systems behavior on a multicore platform and representative proof-of-concept biological systems. The exploited methodologies include pattern-based parallel programming and data streaming that provide key features to the software designers such as performance portability and efficient in-memory (big) data management and movement. Two paradigmatic classes of biological systems exhibiting multistable and oscillatory behavior are used as a testbed.

Student perceptions: Importance of and satisfaction with aspects of an online biology course

Science.gov (United States)

Hendry, Sheila R.

Research of student satisfaction with various facets of an online biology course, as well as the perceived importance of these aspects, was conducted during the summer and fall 2004 semesters within a course, History of Biology, at a university in the southeastern United States. This research is based on the theory of transactional distance, which involves dialogue between the teacher and student, the physical environments of both the student and teacher, and the emotional environments of each. Student ratings of importance and satisfaction regarding aspects of convenience, grade earned/knowledge learned, emotional health, communication, and student support were collected toward the end of each semester, via the online course, using the researcher-designed Student Perceptions Survey. Statistics with repeated measures ANOVA, using an alpha of 0.05, determined differences between importance and satisfaction ratings for each of these aspects. Students perceived grade earned/knowledge learned to be the most important aspect of learning online, although it is not an aspect unique to online courses. All of the aspects included in the study were found to be at least somewhat important. Convenience was the aspect with which students were most satisfied, with students at least somewhat satisfied with the other aspects. Although convenience is an inherent strength of the online course format, instructors should be aware of how important it is to design requirements of the online class to help students acquire knowledge while allowing them to do so at their own pace. Well-structured content, prompt feedback, encouragement of quality student-instructor communication, and student support are all parts of a positive online course experience. The Student Perceptions Survey, created specifically for this research, can have substantial value both in the creation of new online courses and in the evaluation of pre-existing courses. It can provide important information that can be

An agent architecture with on-line learning of both procedural and declarative knowledge

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sun, R.; Peterson, T.; Merrill, E. [Univ. of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL (United States)

1996-12-31

In order to develop versatile cognitive agents that learn in situated contexts and generalize resulting knowledge to different environments, we explore the possibility of learning both declarative and procedural knowledge in a hybrid connectionist architecture. The architecture is based on the two-level idea proposed earlier by the author. Declarative knowledge is represented symbolically, while procedural knowledge is represented subsymbolically. The architecture integrates reactive procedures, rules, learning, and decision-making in a unified framework, and structures different learning components (including Q-learning and rule induction) in a synergistic way to perform on-line and integrated learning.

Procedures for cryogenic X-ray ptychographic imaging of biological samples.

Science.gov (United States)

Yusuf, M; Zhang, F; Chen, B; Bhartiya, A; Cunnea, K; Wagner, U; Cacho-Nerin, F; Schwenke, J; Robinson, I K

2017-03-01

Biological sample-preparation procedures have been developed for imaging human chromosomes under cryogenic conditions. A new experimental setup, developed for imaging frozen samples using beamline I13 at Diamond Light Source, is described. This manuscript describes the equipment and experimental procedures as well as the authors' first ptychographic reconstructions using X-rays.

Procedures for cryogenic X-ray ptychographic imaging of biological samples

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Yusuf

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Biological sample-preparation procedures have been developed for imaging human chromosomes under cryogenic conditions. A new experimental setup, developed for imaging frozen samples using beamline I13 at Diamond Light Source, is described. This manuscript describes the equipment and experimental procedures as well as the authors' first ptychographic reconstructions using X-rays.

Tritium isotope fractionation in biological systems and in analytical procedures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, M.A.; Baumgaertner, Franz

1989-01-01

The organically bound tritium (OBT) is evaluated in biological systems by determining the tritium distribution ratio (R-value), i.e. tritium concentrations in organic substance to cell water. The determination of the R-value always involves isotope fractionation is applied analytical procedures and hence the evaluation of the true OBT -value in a given biological system appears more complicated than hitherto known in the literature. The present work concentrates on the tritium isotope fractionation in the cell water separation and on the resulting effects on the R-value. The analytical procedures examined are vacuum freeze drying under equilibrium and non-equilibrium conditions and azeotropic distillation. The vaporization isotope effects are determined separately in the phase transition of solid or liquid to gas in pure tritium water systems as well as in real biological systems, e.g. corn plant. The results are systematically analyzed and the influence of isotope effects on the R-value is rigorously quantified

Step by Step: Biology Undergraduates’ Problem-Solving Procedures during Multiple-Choice Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Prevost, Luanna B.; Lemons, Paula P.

2016-01-01

This study uses the theoretical framework of domain-specific problem solving to explore the procedures students use to solve multiple-choice problems about biology concepts. We designed several multiple-choice problems and administered them on four exams. We trained students to produce written descriptions of how they solved the problem, and this allowed us to systematically investigate their problem-solving procedures. We identified a range of procedures and organized them as domain general, domain specific, or hybrid. We also identified domain-general and domain-specific errors made by students during problem solving. We found that students use domain-general and hybrid procedures more frequently when solving lower-order problems than higher-order problems, while they use domain-specific procedures more frequently when solving higher-order problems. Additionally, the more domain-specific procedures students used, the higher the likelihood that they would answer the problem correctly, up to five procedures. However, if students used just one domain-general procedure, they were as likely to answer the problem correctly as if they had used two to five domain-general procedures. Our findings provide a categorization scheme and framework for additional research on biology problem solving and suggest several important implications for researchers and instructors. PMID:27909021

A prototype on-line work procedure system for radioisotope thermoelectric generator production

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kiebel, G.R.

1991-09-01

An on-line system to manage work procedures is being developed to support radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) assembly and testing in a new production facility. This system implements production work procedures as interactive electronic documents executed at the work site with no intermediate printed form. It provides good control of the creation and application of work procedures and provides active assistance to the worker in performing them and in documenting the results. An extensive prototype of this system is being evaluated to ensure that it will have all the necessary features and that it will fit the user's needs and expectations. This effort has involved the Radioisotope Power Systems Facility (RPSF) operations organization and technology transfer between Westinghouse Hanford Company (Westinghouse Hanford) and EG ampersand G Mound Applied Technologies Inc. (Mound) at the US Department of Energy (DOE) Mound Site. 1 ref

Biomonitoring test procedures and biological criteria

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kszos, L.A. [Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States); Lipschultz, M.J. [City of Las Vegas, NV (United States); Foster, W.E. [Saint Mary`s Coll., Winona, MN (United States)

1997-10-01

The Water Environment Federation recently issued a special publication, Biomonitoring in the Water Environment. In this paper, the authors highlight the contents of the chapter 3, Biomonitoring Test Procedures, identify current trends in test procedures and introduce the concept of biological criteria (biocriteria). The book chapter (and this paper) focuses on freshwater and marine chronic and acute toxicity tests used in the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits program to identify effluents and receiving waters containing toxic materials in acutely or chronically toxic concentrations. The two major categories of toxicity tests include acute tests and chronic tests. The USEPA chronic tests required in NPDEs permits have been shortened to 7 days by focusing on the most sensitive life-cycle stages; these tests are often referred to as short-term chronic tests. The type of test(s) required depend on NPDES permit requirements, objectives of the test, available resources, requirements of the test organisms, and effluent characteristics such as variability in flow or toxicity. The permit writer will determine the requirements for toxicity test(s) by considering such factors as dilution, effluent variability, and exposure variability. Whether the required test is acute or chronic, the objective of the test is to estimate the safe or no effect concentration which is defined as the concentration which will permit normal propagation of fish and other aquatic life in the receiving waters. In this paper, the authors review the types of toxicity tests, the commonly used test organisms, and the uses of toxicity test data. In addition, they briefly describe research on new methods and the use of biological criteria.

A Pirate too Needs to be Heard: Procedural Compromises in Online Copyright Infringement Cases in the UK

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Poorna Mysoor

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Online copyright infringement is one of the toughest challenges the content industry has faced in the twenty first century. Article 8(3 of the Information Society Directive, implemented under section 97A of the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, provides an injunctive remedy in response to such online infringement. Given the elusive nature of the website operators and the sheer number of their users, rights owners have turned to the Internet Service Providers (ISPs to implement the injunctions granted under section 97A to block websites with infringing content. In their battle to keep pace with online infringers, the UK courts have permitted significant compromises to the procedures while granting these injunctive blocking orders. One of the pioneers in this line of cases in the UK is the Pirate Bay case (TPB case, which ruled as a matter of law that the procedure under Section 97A does not require the alleged infringers to be made parties to those proceedings. TPB case also marks the trend of the ISPs consenting to an order of injunction, and not defending the proceedings. This has resulted in the absence of any adverse party in the proceedings under section 97A. This threatens the basic tenets of procedural fairness and propriety, having adverse consequences on both the substantive and procedural aspects, evident in the cases that followed TPB case. This article examines the aspects of the judgment in TPB case that led to these procedural compromises, whether it had any basis in the pre-existing case law, what the nature of an injunction under section 97A is and how the subsequent line of cases have followed TPB case as a precedent. It further explores the adverse consequences of the procedural compromises and whether any safeguards are available against such compromises.

An analysis of learning in an online biology course for teachers and teacher candidates: A mixed methods approach

Science.gov (United States)

Lebec, Michael Thomas

Due to discipline specific shortages, web-based learning has been proposed as a convenient way to upgrade the content knowledge of instructors interested in learning to teach science. Despite quantitative evidence that web-based instruction is equivalent to traditional methods, questions remain regarding its use. The efficiency and practicality of this approach with teachers in particular has not been extensively studied. This investigation examines learning in an online biology course designed to help teachers prepare for science certification exams. Research questions concern flow teachers learn biology in the online environment and how this setting influences the learning process. Quantitative and qualitative methodologies are employed in an attempt to provide a more complete perspective than typical studies of online learning. Concept maps, tests, and online discussion transcripts are compared as measures of assimilated knowledge, while interviews reflect participants' views on the course. Findings indicate that participants experienced gains in declarative knowledge, but little improvement with respect to conditional knowledge. Qualitative examination of concept maps demonstrates gaps in participants' understandings of key course ideas. Engagement in the use of online resources varied according to participants' attitudes towards online learning. Subjects also reported a lack of motivation to fully engage in the course due to busy teaching schedules and the absence of accountability.

Plant biology: From on-campus to on-line development and implementation

Science.gov (United States)

Bradley, Lucy K.

The lecture content of the Plant Biology class for non-majors was transformed from a traditional on-campus lecture to an asynchronous website that could be used both as a stand-alone course and as an adjunct to the on campus course sections. In addition, an interactive, on-line website with home laboratory experiments was developed and implemented by the Plant Biology Department in collaboration with design specialists from the Information Technology and Instructional Support Department of the Arizona State University. The 259-page lecture website included 134 interactive animations, as well as 11 videos. The lab website included 176 pages, with 187 graphics and 36 separate animations. Convenience was identified by most students as the key benefit of taking the course on-line. Website construction was rated highly by all of the students; however, website audio was problematic for 50% of them; video, for 71%. Students, staff, and faculty all agreed that to benefit fully from the website, adequate hardware, software, and internet connection speed were vital. Challenges with the web-based lab were either technological (inadequate equipment or skills), logistical (dissatisfaction with having to pick up home lab kits from campus), or motivational (student survey responses added to the growing literature that suggests that mature, focused, self-motivated students benefit more from distance learning).

Online Manifold Regularization by Dual Ascending Procedure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Boliang Sun

2013-01-01

Full Text Available We propose a novel online manifold regularization framework based on the notion of duality in constrained optimization. The Fenchel conjugate of hinge functions is a key to transfer manifold regularization from offline to online in this paper. Our algorithms are derived by gradient ascent in the dual function. For practical purpose, we propose two buffering strategies and two sparse approximations to reduce the computational complexity. Detailed experiments verify the utility of our approaches. An important conclusion is that our online MR algorithms can handle the settings where the target hypothesis is not fixed but drifts with the sequence of examples. We also recap and draw connections to earlier works. This paper paves a way to the design and analysis of online manifold regularization algorithms.

Managing online service recovery : procedures, justice and customer satisfaction

OpenAIRE

Singh, Jaywant; Crisafulli, Benedetta

2016-01-01

Purpose The Internet has changed the way services are delivered and has created new forms of customer-firm interactions. Whilst online service failures remain inevitable, the Internet offers opportunities for delivering efficient service recovery through the online channel. Notwithstanding, research evidence on how firms can deliver online service recovery remains scarce. This study investigates the impact of two online service recovery strategies - online information and te...

Using the Semantic Web for Rapid Integration of WikiPathways with Other Biological Online Data Resources.

Science.gov (United States)

Waagmeester, Andra; Kutmon, Martina; Riutta, Anders; Miller, Ryan; Willighagen, Egon L; Evelo, Chris T; Pico, Alexander R

2016-06-01

The diversity of online resources storing biological data in different formats provides a challenge for bioinformaticians to integrate and analyse their biological data. The semantic web provides a standard to facilitate knowledge integration using statements built as triples describing a relation between two objects. WikiPathways, an online collaborative pathway resource, is now available in the semantic web through a SPARQL endpoint at http://sparql.wikipathways.org. Having biological pathways in the semantic web allows rapid integration with data from other resources that contain information about elements present in pathways using SPARQL queries. In order to convert WikiPathways content into meaningful triples we developed two new vocabularies that capture the graphical representation and the pathway logic, respectively. Each gene, protein, and metabolite in a given pathway is defined with a standard set of identifiers to support linking to several other biological resources in the semantic web. WikiPathways triples were loaded into the Open PHACTS discovery platform and are available through its Web API (https://dev.openphacts.org/docs) to be used in various tools for drug development. We combined various semantic web resources with the newly converted WikiPathways content using a variety of SPARQL query types and third-party resources, such as the Open PHACTS API. The ability to use pathway information to form new links across diverse biological data highlights the utility of integrating WikiPathways in the semantic web.

Using the Semantic Web for Rapid Integration of WikiPathways with Other Biological Online Data Resources.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andra Waagmeester

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The diversity of online resources storing biological data in different formats provides a challenge for bioinformaticians to integrate and analyse their biological data. The semantic web provides a standard to facilitate knowledge integration using statements built as triples describing a relation between two objects. WikiPathways, an online collaborative pathway resource, is now available in the semantic web through a SPARQL endpoint at http://sparql.wikipathways.org. Having biological pathways in the semantic web allows rapid integration with data from other resources that contain information about elements present in pathways using SPARQL queries. In order to convert WikiPathways content into meaningful triples we developed two new vocabularies that capture the graphical representation and the pathway logic, respectively. Each gene, protein, and metabolite in a given pathway is defined with a standard set of identifiers to support linking to several other biological resources in the semantic web. WikiPathways triples were loaded into the Open PHACTS discovery platform and are available through its Web API (https://dev.openphacts.org/docs to be used in various tools for drug development. We combined various semantic web resources with the newly converted WikiPathways content using a variety of SPARQL query types and third-party resources, such as the Open PHACTS API. The ability to use pathway information to form new links across diverse biological data highlights the utility of integrating WikiPathways in the semantic web.

Using the Semantic Web for Rapid Integration of WikiPathways with Other Biological Online Data Resources

Science.gov (United States)

Waagmeester, Andra; Pico, Alexander R.

2016-01-01

The diversity of online resources storing biological data in different formats provides a challenge for bioinformaticians to integrate and analyse their biological data. The semantic web provides a standard to facilitate knowledge integration using statements built as triples describing a relation between two objects. WikiPathways, an online collaborative pathway resource, is now available in the semantic web through a SPARQL endpoint at http://sparql.wikipathways.org. Having biological pathways in the semantic web allows rapid integration with data from other resources that contain information about elements present in pathways using SPARQL queries. In order to convert WikiPathways content into meaningful triples we developed two new vocabularies that capture the graphical representation and the pathway logic, respectively. Each gene, protein, and metabolite in a given pathway is defined with a standard set of identifiers to support linking to several other biological resources in the semantic web. WikiPathways triples were loaded into the Open PHACTS discovery platform and are available through its Web API (https://dev.openphacts.org/docs) to be used in various tools for drug development. We combined various semantic web resources with the newly converted WikiPathways content using a variety of SPARQL query types and third-party resources, such as the Open PHACTS API. The ability to use pathway information to form new links across diverse biological data highlights the utility of integrating WikiPathways in the semantic web. PMID:27336457

On-line preconcentration using a resin functionalized with 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid for the determination of trace elements in biological samples by thermospray flame furnace atomic absorption spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lemos, Valfredo A.; Bezerra, Marcos A.; Amorim, Fabio A.C.

2008-01-01

In the present paper, an on-line preconcentration procedure for determination of cadmium, copper and zinc by thermospray flame furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (TS-FF-AAS) is proposed. Amberlite XAD-4 functionalized with 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid (XAD4-DHB) packed in a minicolumn was used as sorbent material. The metals were retained on the XAD-DHB resin, from which it could be eluted directly to the thermospray flame furnace system. The detection limits were 28 (Cd), 100 (Cu) and 77 ng L -1 (Zn) for 60 s preconcentration time, at a sample flow rate of 7.0 mL min -1 . Enrichment factors were 102, 91 and 62, for cadmium, copper and zinc, respectively. The procedure has been applied successfully to metal determination in biological standard reference materials

Online Manifold Regularization by Dual Ascending Procedure

OpenAIRE

Sun, Boliang; Li, Guohui; Jia, Li; Zhang, Hui

2013-01-01

We propose a novel online manifold regularization framework based on the notion of duality in constrained optimization. The Fenchel conjugate of hinge functions is a key to transfer manifold regularization from offline to online in this paper. Our algorithms are derived by gradient ascent in the dual function. For practical purpose, we propose two buffering strategies and two sparse approximations to reduce the computational complexity. Detailed experiments verify the utility of our approache...

Students' Use of Optional Online Reviews and Its Relationship to Summative Assessment Outcomes in Introductory Biology

Science.gov (United States)

Carpenter, Shana K.; Rahman, Shuhebur; Lund, Terry J. S.; Armstrong, Patrick I.; Lamm, Monica H.; Reason, Robert D.; Coffman, Clark R.

2017-01-01

Retrieval practice has been shown to produce significant enhancements in student learning of course information, but the extent to which students make use of retrieval to learn information on their own is unclear. In the current study, students in a large introductory biology course were provided with optional online review questions that could be…

Predicting success for college students enrolled in an online, lab-based, biology course for non-majors

Science.gov (United States)

Foster, Regina

Online education has exploded in popularity. While there is ample research on predictors of traditional college student success, little research has been done on effective methods of predicting student success in online education. In this study, a number of demographic variables including GPA, ACT, gender, age and others were examined to determine what, if any, role they play in successfully predicting student success in an online, lab-based biology for non-majors course. Within course variables such as participation in specific categories of assignment and frequency of online visits were also examined. Groups of students including Native American/Non-Native American and Digital Immigrants and Digital Natives and others were also examined to determine if overall course success differed significantly. Good predictors of online success were found to be GPA, ACT, previous course experience and frequency of online visits with the course materials. Additionally, students who completed more of the online assignments within the course were more successful. Native American and Non-Native American students were found to differ in overall course success significantly as well. Findings indicate student academic background, previous college experience and time spent with course materials are the most important factors in course success. Recommendations include encouraging enrollment advisors to advise students about the importance of maintaining high academic levels, previous course experience and spending time with course materials may impact students' choices for online courses. A need for additional research in several areas is indicated, including Native American and Non-Native American differences. A more detailed examination of students' previous coursework would also be valuable. A study involving more courses, a larger number of students and surveys from faculty who teach online courses would help improve the generalizability of the conclusions.

A comparative examination of sample treatment procedures for ICAP-AES analysis of biological tissue

Science.gov (United States)

De Boer, J. L. M.; Maessen, F. J. M. J.

The objective of this study was to contribute to the evaluation of existing sample preparation procedures for ICAP-AES analysis of biological material. Performance characteristics were established of current digestion procedures comprising extraction, solubilization, pressure digestion, and wet and dry ashing methods. Apart from accuracy and precision, a number of criteria of special interest for the analytical practice was applied. As a test sample served SRM bovine liver. In this material six elements were simultaneously determined. Results showed that every procedure has its defects and advantages. Hence, unambiguous recommendation of standard digestion procedures can be made only when taking into account the specific analytical problem.

Online plagiarism training falls short in biology classrooms.

Science.gov (United States)

Holt, Emily A; Fagerheim, Britt; Durham, Susan

2014-01-01

Online plagiarism tutorials are increasingly popular in higher education, as faculty and staff try to curb the plagiarism epidemic. Yet no research has validated the efficacy of such tools in minimizing plagiarism in the sciences. Our study compared three plagiarism-avoidance training regimens (i.e., no training, online tutorial, or homework assignment) and their impacts on students' ability to accurately discriminate plagiarism from text that is properly quoted, paraphrased, and attributed. Using pre- and postsurveys of 173 undergraduate students in three general ecology courses, we found that students given the homework assignment had far greater success in identifying plagiarism or the lack thereof compared with students given no training. In general, students trained with the homework assignment more successfully identified plagiarism than did students trained with the online tutorial. We also found that the summative assessment associated with the plagiarism-avoidance training formats (i.e., homework grade and online tutorial assessment score) did not correlate with student improvement on surveys through time.

Online Plagiarism Training Falls Short in Biology Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Holt, Emily A.; Fagerheim, Britt; Durham, Susan

2014-01-01

Online plagiarism tutorials are increasingly popular in higher education, as faculty and staff try to curb the plagiarism epidemic. Yet no research has validated the efficacy of such tools in minimizing plagiarism in the sciences. Our study compared three plagiarism-avoidance training regimens (i.e., no training, online tutorial, or homework assignment) and their impacts on students’ ability to accurately discriminate plagiarism from text that is properly quoted, paraphrased, and attributed. Using pre- and postsurveys of 173 undergraduate students in three general ecology courses, we found that students given the homework assignment had far greater success in identifying plagiarism or the lack thereof compared with students given no training. In general, students trained with the homework assignment more successfully identified plagiarism than did students trained with the online tutorial. We also found that the summative assessment associated with the plagiarism-avoidance training formats (i.e., homework grade and online tutorial assessment score) did not correlate with student improvement on surveys through time. PMID:24591507

Network Biology (http://www.iaees.org/publications/journals/nb/online-version.asp

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

networkbiology@iaees.org

Full Text Available Network Biology ISSN 2220-8879 URL: http://www.iaees.org/publications/journals/nb/online-version.asp RSS: http://www.iaees.org/publications/journals/nb/rss.xml E-mail: networkbiology@iaees.org Editor-in-Chief: WenJun Zhang Aims and Scope NETWORK BIOLOGY (ISSN 2220-8879; CODEN NBEICS is an open access, peer-reviewed international journal that considers scientific articles in all different areas of network biology. It is the transactions of the International Society of Network Biology. It dedicates to the latest advances in network biology. The goal of this journal is to keep a record of the state-of-the-art research and promote the research work in these fast moving areas. The topics to be covered by Network Biology include, but are not limited to: •Theories, algorithms and programs of network analysis •Innovations and applications of biological networks •Ecological networks, food webs and natural equilibrium •Co-evolution, co-extinction, biodiversity conservation •Metabolic networks, protein-protein interaction networks, biochemical reaction networks, gene networks, transcriptional regulatory networks, cell cycle networks, phylogenetic networks, network motifs •Physiological networks •Network regulation of metabolic processes, human diseases and ecological systems •Social networks, epidemiological networks •System complexity, self-organized systems, emergence of biological systems, agent-based modeling, individual-based modeling, neural network modeling, and other network-based modeling, etc. We are also interested in short communications that clearly address a specific issue or completely present a new ecological network, food web, or metabolic or gene network, etc. Authors can submit their works to the email box of this journal, networkbiology@iaees.org. All manuscripts submitted to this journal must be previously unpublished and may not be considered for publication elsewhere at any time during review period of this journal

Online Plagiarism Training Falls Short in Biology Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Holt, Emily A.; Fagerheim, Britt; Durham, Susan

2014-01-01

Online plagiarism tutorials are increasingly popular in higher education, as faculty and staff try to curb the plagiarism epidemic. Yet no research has validated the efficacy of such tools in minimizing plagiarism in the sciences. Our study compared three plagiarism-avoidance training regimens (i.e., no training, online tutorial, or homework…

Online Sellers’ Website Quality Influencing Online Buyers’ Purchase Intention

Science.gov (United States)

Shea Lee, Tan; Ariff, Mohd Shoki Md; Zakuan, Norhayati; Sulaiman, Zuraidah; Zameri Mat Saman, Muhamad

2016-05-01

The increase adoption of Internet among young users in Malaysia provides high prospect for online seller. Young users aged between 18 and 25 years old are important to online sellers because they are actively involved in online purchasing and this group of online buyers is expected to dominate future online market. Therefore, examining online sellers’ website quality and online buyers’ purchase intention is crucial. Based on the Theory of planned behavior (TPB), a conceptual model of online sellers’ website quality and purchase intention of online buyers was developed. E-tailQ instrument was adapted in this study which composed of website design, reliability/fulfillment, security, privacy & trust, and customer service. Using online questionnaire and convenience sampling procedure, primary data were obtained from 240 online buyers aged between 18 to 25 years old. It was discovered that website design, website reliability/fulfillment, website security, privacy & trust, and website customer service positively and significantly influence intention of online buyers to continuously purchase via online channels. This study concludes that online sellers’ website quality is important in predicting online buyers’ purchase intention. Recommendation and implication of this study were discussed focusing on how online sellers should improve their website quality to stay competitive in online business.

Determination of drugs in biological fluids by direct injection of samples for liquid-chromatographic analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Mullett, Wayne M

2007-03-10

The analysis of drugs in various biological fluids is an important criterion for the determination of the physiological performance of a drug. After sampling of the biological fluid, the next step in the analytical process is sample preparation. The complexity of biological fluids adds to the challenge of direct determination of the drug by chromatographic analysis, therefore demanding a sample preparation step that is often time-consuming, tedious, and frequently overlooked. However, direct on-line injection methods offer the advantage of reducing sample preparation steps and enabling effective pre-concentration and clean-up of biological fluids. These procedures can be automated and therefore reduce the requirements for handling potentially infectious biomaterial, improve reproducibility, and minimize sample manipulations and potential contamination. The objective of this review is to present an overview of the existing literature with emphasis on advances in automated sample preparation methods for liquid-chromatographic methods. More specifically, this review concentrates on the use of direct injection techniques, such as restricted-access materials, turbulent-flow chromatography and other automated on-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) procedures. It also includes short overviews of emerging automated extraction-phase technologies, such as molecularly imprinted polymers, in-tube solid-phase micro-extraction, and micro-extraction in a packed syringe for a more selective extraction of analytes from complex samples, providing further improvements in the analysis of biological materials. Lastly, the outlook for these methods and potential new applications for these technologies are briefly discussed.

Standard operating procedure for combustion of 14C - samples with OX-500 biological material oxidizer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nashriyah Mat.

1995-01-01

This procedure is for the purpose of safe operation of OX-500 biological material oxidizer. For ease of operation, the operation flow chart (including testing the system and sample combustion) and end of day maintenance flow chart were simplified. The front view, diagrams and switches are duly copied from operating manual. Steps on sample preparation are also included for biotic and a biotic samples. This operating procedure is subjected to future reviews

Online Coaching of Emotion-Regulation Strategies for Parents: Efficacy of the Online Rational Positive Parenting Program and Attention Bias Modification Procedures.

Science.gov (United States)

David, Oana A; Capris, David; Jarda, Alexandra

2017-01-01

Parenting programs are currently treatment of choice for behavioral disorders in children and one of their main components is reducing the negativity bias in the child-parent dyad. The Rational Positive Parenting Program (rPPP) is a program with a special focus on parent emotion-regulation functional reappraisal strategies, which has recently received consistent support for reducing child externalizing and internalizing disorders. In the last years, online interventions were proliferated and the Attention Bias Modification (ABM) becoming a promising implicit therapeutic intervention based on attention deployment emotion-regulation strategy, or adjunctive module to usual treatments, with results in multiple domains, varying from pain to self-esteem and emotional disorders (e.g., anxiety). We conducted two studies to investigate (1) the efficacy of the ABM procedures applied to parents and (2) the efficacy of the online version of the rPPP augmented with an ABM module. A total of 42 parents of children aged 2-12 years old participated in the first study, being allocated either to the ABM training or wait-list. Positive results were reported by the parents participating in the ABM group for own distress, satisfaction, positive interactions with the child, and child's strengths. In the second study, 53 parents and their children were allocated either in the rPPP group or in the rPPP + ABM group. Results show that ABM training can boost the effects of the rPPP on the strengths of children reported by the parents after the intervention. Findings are discussed in the light of limited research on using online tools for coaching effective emotion-regulation strategies for parents.

African Journals Online: Biology & Life Sciences

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Items 1 - 50 of 71 ... African Journal for Physical Activity and Health Sciences ... in the promotion of scientific proceedings and publications in developing countries. ... and proteomics, food and agricultural technologies, and metabolic engineering. ... The African Journal of Chemical Education (AJCE) is a biannual online journal ...

Procedure for developing biological input for the design, location, or modification of water-intake structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Neitzel, D.A.; McKenzie, D.H.

1981-12-01

To minimize adverse impact on aquatic ecosystems resulting from the operation of water intake structures, design engineers must have relevant information on the behavior, physiology and ecology of local fish and shellfish. Identification of stimulus/response relationships and the environmental factors that influence them is the first step in incorporating biological information in the design, location or modification of water intake structures. A procedure is presented in this document for providing biological input to engineers who are designing, locating or modifying a water intake structure. The authors discuss sources of stimuli at water intakes, historical approaches in assessing potential/actual impact and review biological information needed for intake design.

Electronprobe X-ray microanalysis of biological specimens improvement of a number of quantification procedures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boekestein, A.

1984-01-01

In this thesis an investigation is described to establish which quantification procedures can be used in the X-ray microanalysis of biological specimens. Two classes of specimens have been distinguished from each other, i.e. thick specimens (opaque to the beam electrons) and thin specimens (transparent to the beam electrons). (Auth.)

Evaluation of slurry preparation procedures for the determination of mercury by axial view inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry using on-line cold vapor generation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Santos, Eder Jose dos; Herrmann, Amanda Beatriz; Antunes Vieira, Mariana; Azzolin Frescura, Vera Lucia; Curtius, Adilson Jose

2005-01-01

Five different slurry preparation procedures were tested, after grinding the solid samples to a particle size ≤53 μm: (1) using aqua regia plus HF, 30 min of sonication, standing time of 24 h followed by another 30 min of sonication; (2) same as the previous one, except that the standing time and the second ultrasound treatment were omitted; (3) same as the previous one, except that HF was not used; (4) same as the previous one, except that the aqua regia was replaced by nitric acid; (5) same as the previous one, except that the acid nitric was replaced by tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH). The Hg vapor was generated on-line, and the emission signal intensity measured at 253.652 nm by axial view inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. Initially, four experimental conditions were optimized using a multivariate factorial analysis: the concentrations of HCl and of the reducing agent, NaBH 4 , used in the cold vapor generation, and two instrumental parameters, the plasma radiofrequency power and the carrier gas flow rate. The radiofrequency power was statistically significant, but limited to 1.2 kW for practical reasons. The procedures were applied to 11 biological and environmental materials. Both, the slurries and the filtrates were analyzed, using calibration solutions in the same medium as in the slurries. The first three procedures produced results in agreement with the certified values. The two last procedures, using nitric acid or TMHA could not be used for quantitative analysis. For practical reasons, Procedure 3, with a detection limit (3s, n=10) of 0.06 μg g -1 for a sample mass of 20 mg in a final volume of 15 mL is recommended. The relative standard deviations for mercury in the investigated materials, using the recommended procedure, were lower than 12.5%, indicating a good precision for slurry sampling. The recommended procedure is simple, rapid and robust

An optimized procedure for preconcentration, determination and on-line recovery of palladium using highly selective diphenyldiketone-monothiosemicarbazone modified silica gel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharma, R.K.; Pandey, Amit; Gulati, Shikha; Adholeya, Alok

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Diphenyldiketone-monothiosemicarbazone modified silica gel. ► Highly selective, efficient and reusable chelating resin. ► Solid phase extraction system for on-line separation and preconcentration of Pd(II) ions. ► Application in catalytic converter and spiked tap water samples for on-line recovery of Pd(II) ions. - Abstract: A novel, highly selective, efficient and reusable chelating resin, diphenyldiketone-monothiosemicarbazone modified silica gel, was prepared and applied for the on-line separation and preconcentration of Pd(II) ions in catalytic converter and spiked tap water samples. Several parameters like effect of pH, sample volume, flow rate, type of eluent, and influence of various ionic interferences, etc. were evaluated for effective adsorption of palladium at trace levels. The resin was found to be highly selective for Pd(II) ions in the pH range 4–5 with a very high sorption capacity of 0.73 mmol/g and preconcentration factor of 335. The present environment friendly procedure has also been applied for large-scale extraction by employing the use of newly designed reactor in which on-line separation and preconcentration of Pd can be carried out easily and efficiently in short duration of time.

40 CFR Appendix E to Part 63 - Monitoring Procedure for Nonthoroughly Mixed Open Biological Treatment Systems at Kraft Pulp...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

..., including methods, locations, and times; (3) A description of what conditions (DO, temperature, etc.) are... conditions. The purpose of this procedure is to estimate the concentration of HAP within the open biological... locations of the unit. This procedure may be used only under unsafe sampling conditions to estimate fbio...

Students' Perceptions about Online Teaching Effectiveness: A Bottom-Up Approach for Identifying Online Instructors' Roles

Science.gov (United States)

Gómez-Rey, Pilar; Barbera, Elena; Fernández-Navarro, Francisco

2018-01-01

The topic of online instructors' roles has been of interest to the educational community since the late twentieth century. In previous studies, the identification of online instructors' roles was done using a top-down (deductive) approach. This study applied a bottom-up (inductive) procedure to examine not only the roles of online instructors from…

Student-Teacher Interaction in Online Learning Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Robert D., Ed.

2015-01-01

As face-to-face interaction between student and instructor is not present in online learning environments, it is increasingly important to understand how to establish and maintain social presence in online learning. "Student-Teacher Interaction in Online Learning Environments" provides successful strategies and procedures for developing…

Dental students' perceptions of an online learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Asiry, Moshabab A

2017-10-01

To identify the readiness of students for online learning, to investigate their preference and perception, and to measure the quality of online tutorials. A 14-statement questionnaire was administered to fourth year undergraduate dental students in male campus at King Saud University who completed preclinical orthodontic course. The students responded to each statement by using Likert scale. The results reveal a high agreement of students (27.8-31.5% agree and 38.9-50% strongly agree) on a possession of necessary computer skills and access to internet. 59.2% and 64.8% of the students replied that online flash lectures and procedural videos were helpful to their learning, respectively. With respect to students' learning preferences, few students preferred online flash lectures (31.5%) and procedural videos (17.1%). Most students (38.9% agree and 31.5% strongly agree) preferred a combination of traditional teaching methods and online learning. Overall, student attitudes were positive regarding online learning. The students viewed online learning helpful as a supplement to their learning rather than a replacement for traditional teaching methods.

On-line preconcentration and determination of mercury in biological and environmental samples by cold vapor-atomic absorption spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ferrua, N.; Cerutti, S.; Salonia, J.A.; Olsina, R.A.; Martinez, L.D.

2007-01-01

An on-line procedure for the determination of traces of total mercury in environmental and biological samples is described. The present methodology combines cold vapor generation associated to atomic absorption spectrometry (CV-AAS) with preconcentration of the analyte on a minicolumn packed with activated carbon. The retained analyte was quantitatively eluted from the minicolumn with nitric acid. After that, volatile specie of mercury was generated by merging the acidified sample and sodium tetrahydroborate(III) in a continuous flow system. The gaseous analyte was subsequently introduced via a stream of Ar carrier into the atomizer device. Optimizations of both, preconcentration and mercury volatile specie generation variables were carried out using two level full factorial design (2 3 ) with 3 replicates of the central point. Considering a sample consumption of 25 mL, an enrichment factor of 13-fold was obtained. The detection limit (3σ) was 10 ng L -1 and the precision (relative standard deviation) was 3.1% (n = 10) at the 5 μg L -1 level. The calibration curve using the preconcentration system for mercury was linear with a correlation coefficient of 0.9995 at levels near the detection limit up to at least 1000 μg L -1 . Satisfactory results were obtained for the analysis of mercury in tap water and hair samples

Computerized procedures system

Science.gov (United States)

Lipner, Melvin H.; Mundy, Roger A.; Franusich, Michael D.

2010-10-12

An online data driven computerized procedures system that guides an operator through a complex process facility's operating procedures. The system monitors plant data, processes the data and then, based upon this processing, presents the status of the current procedure step and/or substep to the operator. The system supports multiple users and a single procedure definition supports several interface formats that can be tailored to the individual user. Layered security controls access privileges and revisions are version controlled. The procedures run on a server that is platform independent of the user workstations that the server interfaces with and the user interface supports diverse procedural views.

Building Online Communication into Courses: Possibilities and Cautions

Science.gov (United States)

Santhiveeran, Janaki

2005-01-01

The main purpose of this article is to discuss possibilities and concerns associated with building online communication into on-campus and online distance education courses. This article presents guidelines related to teaching strategies and procedures that maximize the integration of online communication in higher education. A sample of feedback…

Bariatric Surgery Procedures

Science.gov (United States)

... Meetings of Interest Online Education Job Board CME Policies CBN Fellowship Certificate Research Grant Program Resources All Resources Approved Procedures Patient Safety Vignettes Dr. Mason Historical Library Governing Documents Guidelines Access and Insurance Position and ...

Validation of an online replanning technique for prostate adaptive radiotherapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peng Cheng; Chen Guangpei; Ahunbay, Ergun; Wang Dian; Lawton, Colleen; Li, X Allen, E-mail: ali@mcw.edu [Department of Radiation Oncology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI (United States)

2011-06-21

We have previously developed an online adaptive replanning technique to rapidly adapt the original plan according to daily CT. This paper reports the quality assurance (QA) developments in its clinical implementation for prostate cancer patients. A series of pre-clinical validation tests were carried out to verify the overall accuracy and consistency of the online replanning procedure. These tests include (a) phantom measurements of 22 individual patient adaptive plans to verify their accuracy and deliverability and (b) efficiency and applicability of the online replanning process. A four-step QA procedure was established to ensure the safe and accurate delivery of an adaptive plan, including (1) offline phantom measurement of the original plan, (2) online independent monitor unit (MU) calculation for a redundancy check, (3) online verification of plan-data transfer using an in-house software and (4) offline validation of actually delivered beam parameters. The pre-clinical validations demonstrate that the newly implemented online replanning technique is dosimetrically accurate and practically efficient. The four-step QA procedure is capable of identifying possible errors in the process of online adaptive radiotherapy and to ensure the safe and accurate delivery of the adaptive plans. Based on the success of this work, the online replanning technique has been used in the clinic to correct for interfractional changes during the prostate radiation therapy.

Validation of an online replanning technique for prostate adaptive radiotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peng Cheng; Chen Guangpei; Ahunbay, Ergun; Wang Dian; Lawton, Colleen; Li, X Allen

2011-01-01

We have previously developed an online adaptive replanning technique to rapidly adapt the original plan according to daily CT. This paper reports the quality assurance (QA) developments in its clinical implementation for prostate cancer patients. A series of pre-clinical validation tests were carried out to verify the overall accuracy and consistency of the online replanning procedure. These tests include (a) phantom measurements of 22 individual patient adaptive plans to verify their accuracy and deliverability and (b) efficiency and applicability of the online replanning process. A four-step QA procedure was established to ensure the safe and accurate delivery of an adaptive plan, including (1) offline phantom measurement of the original plan, (2) online independent monitor unit (MU) calculation for a redundancy check, (3) online verification of plan-data transfer using an in-house software and (4) offline validation of actually delivered beam parameters. The pre-clinical validations demonstrate that the newly implemented online replanning technique is dosimetrically accurate and practically efficient. The four-step QA procedure is capable of identifying possible errors in the process of online adaptive radiotherapy and to ensure the safe and accurate delivery of the adaptive plans. Based on the success of this work, the online replanning technique has been used in the clinic to correct for interfractional changes during the prostate radiation therapy.

Headspace solid-phase microextraction procedures for gas chromatographic analysis of biological fluids and materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Mills, G A; Walker, V

2000-12-01

Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) is a new solventless sample preparation technique that is finding wide usage. This review provides updated information on headspace SPME with gas chromatographic separation for the extraction and measurement of volatile and semivolatile analytes in biological fluids and materials. Firstly the background to the technique is given in terms of apparatus, fibres used, extraction conditions and derivatisation procedures. Then the different matrices, urine, blood, faeces, breast milk, hair, breath and saliva are considered separately. For each, methods appropriate for the analysis of drugs and metabolites, solvents and chemicals, anaesthetics, pesticides, organometallics and endogenous compounds are reviewed and the main experimental conditions outlined with specific examples. Then finally, the future potential of SPME for the analysis of biological samples in terms of the development of new devices and fibre chemistries and its coupling with high-performance liquid chromatography is discussed.

Development of an automated sequential injection on-line solvent extraction-back extraction procedure as demonstrated for the determination of cadmium with detection by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Jianhua; Hansen, Elo Harald

2002-01-01

An automated sequential injection (SI) on-line solvent extraction-back extraction separation/preconcentration procedure is described. Demonstrated for the assay of cadmium by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS), the analyte is initially complexed with ammonium pyrrolidinedithioc......An automated sequential injection (SI) on-line solvent extraction-back extraction separation/preconcentration procedure is described. Demonstrated for the assay of cadmium by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS), the analyte is initially complexed with ammonium....../preconcentration process of the ensuing sample. An enrichment factor of 21.4, a detection limit of 2.7 ng/l, along with a sampling frequency of 13s/h were obtained at a sample flow rate of 6.0mlmin/sup -1/. The precision (R.S.D.) at the 0.4 mug/l level was 1.8% as compared to 3.2% when quantifying the organic extractant...

Development of Irradiation Procedure for Gamma Irradiation Chamber Bio beam GM 8000

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shuhaimi Shamsudin; Affrida Abu Hassan; Zaiton Ahmad; Abdul Rahim Harun; Ahmad Zainuri Mohd Dzomir

2015-01-01

Bio Beam GM 8000 gamma irradiation chamber obtained a conditional approval to operate on March 27, 2012, and later acquired a full approval on December 13, 2012. The objective for the procurement of this gamma chamber is to develop an acute irradiation facility for biological samples, including plants tissues, insects, pupae, microorganisms, as well as animal and human cells. To ensure a smooth and efficient operation, irradiation procedures were developed and improved over time. This paper discusses the operation and management of the Bio Beam GM 8000 facility, including irradiation procedures and sample preparation, application for services through online e-client system, consultancy, quality assurance and information dissemination to internal as well as external clients. In addition, this paper also discusses the potential, constraints and improvement measures taken to optimize the use of this facility in order to meet its objectives. (author)

Electronic-Imen-Delphi (EID): An Online Conferencing Procedure.

Science.gov (United States)

Passig, David; Sharbat, Aviva

2000-01-01

Examines the efficiency of the Imen-Delphi (ID) technique as an electronic procedure for conferencing that helps participants clarify their opinions and expectations regarding preferable and possible futures. Describes an electronic version of the original ID procedure and tested its efficiency among a group of experts on virtual reality and…

pGLO Mutagenesis: A Laboratory Procedure in Molecular Biology for Biology Students

Science.gov (United States)

Bassiri, Eby A.

2011-01-01

A five-session laboratory project was designed to familiarize or increase the laboratory proficiency of biology students and others with techniques and instruments commonly used in molecular biology research laboratories and industries. In this project, the EZ-Tn5 transposon is used to generate and screen a large number of cells transformed with…

ONLINE SCIENCE LEARNING:Best Practices and Technologies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

TOJDE

2009-04-01

Full Text Available This essential publication is for all research and academic libraries, especially those institutions with online and distance education courses available in their science education programs. This book will also benefit audiences within the science education community of practice and others interested in STEM education, virtual schools, e-learning, m-learning, natural sciences, physical sciences, biological sciences, geosciences, online learning models, virtual laboratories, virtual field trips, cyberinfrastructure, neurological learning and the neuro-cognitive model. The continued growth in general studies and liberal arts and science programs online has led to a rise in the number of students whose science learning experiences are partially or exclusively online. character and quality of online science instruction.

Students’ Use of Optional Online Reviews and Its Relationship to Summative Assessment Outcomes in Introductory Biology

Science.gov (United States)

Carpenter, Shana K.; Rahman, Shuhebur; Lund, Terry J. S.; Armstrong, Patrick I.; Lamm, Monica H.; Reason, Robert D.; Coffman, Clark R.

2017-01-01

Retrieval practice has been shown to produce significant enhancements in student learning of course information, but the extent to which students make use of retrieval to learn information on their own is unclear. In the current study, students in a large introductory biology course were provided with optional online review questions that could be accessed as Test questions (requiring students to answer the questions before receiving feedback) or as Read questions (providing students with the question and correct answer up-front). Students more often chose to access the questions as Test compared with Read, and students who used the Test questions scored significantly higher on subsequent exams compared with students who used Read questions or did not access the questions at all. Following an in-class presentation of superior exam performance following use of the Test questions, student use of Test questions increased significantly for the remainder of the term. These results suggest that practice questions can be an effective tool for enhancing student achievement in biology and that informing students about performance-based outcomes coincides with increased use of retrieval practice. PMID:28408408

African Journals Online: Biology & Life Sciences

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Items 1 - 50 of 71 ... Anatomy Journal of Africa is the Official Journal for the Association of Anatomical ... It publishes original articles pertaining to various aspects of renal ... in all fields of experimental biology including biochemistry, physiology, ...

Neutron activation as an online procedure in cement plants; Neutronenaktivierung als Online-Verfahren in Zementwerken

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anon.

2012-07-01

The use of PGNAA (Prompt Gamma Neutron Activation Analysis) makes it possible to determine the content of the components in bulk flows in cement plants directly online on the conveyor belt. The nature of the excitation and radiation means that the material can be penetrated even with large layer thicknesses on the belt. (orig.)

Biology Procedural Knowledge at Eleventh Grade of Senior High School in West Lampung Based on Curriculum

Science.gov (United States)

Sari, T. M.; Paidi; Mercuriani, I. S.

2018-03-01

This study was aim to determine Biology procedural knowledge of senior high school in West Lampung based on curriculum at 11th grade in even semester. This research was descriptive research. The population was all students of senior high school in West Lampung. The sampling technique in this research used purposive sampling technique, so the researcher obtained 3 schools using K13 and 3 schools using KTSP. Data collecting technique used instrument test. Data analysis technique used U-Mann Whitney test. The result showed that p=0.028 (p<0.05), so there was significant differences between school using K13 and KTSP. The procedural knowledge of schools which using K13 is higher than school which using KTSP, with the mean score K13=4.35 and KTSP=4.00

QA practice for online analyzers in water steam cycles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Staub, L.

2010-01-01

The liberalization of power markets throughout the world has resulted in more and more power stations being operated in cycling mode, with frequent load changes and multiple daily start-up and shut-down cycles. This more flexible operation also calls for better automation and poses new challenges to water chemistry in water steam cycles, to avoid subsequent damage to vital plant components such as turbines, boilers or condensers. But automation for the most important chemistry control tool, the sampling and online analyzer system, is only possible if chemists can rely on their online analysis equipment. Proof of plausibility as well as reliability and availability of online analysis results becomes a major focus. While SOP and standard QA procedures for laboratory equipment are well established and daily practice, such measures are widely neglected for online process analyzers. This paper is aiming to establish a roadmap for the implementation of SOP and QA/QC procedures for online instruments in water steam cycles, leading to reliable chemical information that is trustworthy for process automation and chemistry control in water steam cycles. (author)

QA practice for online analyzers in water steam cycles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Staub Lukas

2009-01-01

The liberalization of power markets throughout the world has resulted in more and more power stations being operated in cycling mode, with frequent load changes and multiple daily start-up and shut-down cycles. This more flexible operation also calls for better automation and poses new challenges to water chemistry in water steam cycles, to avoid subsequent damage to vital plant components such as turbines, boilers or condensers. But automation for the most important chemistry control tool, the sampling and online analyzer system, is only possible if chemists can rely on their online analysis equipment. Proof of plausibility as well as reliability and availability of online analysis results becomes a major focus. While SOP and standard QA procedures for laboratory equipment are well established and daily practice, such measures are widely neglected for online process analyzers. This paper is aiming to establish a roadmap for the implementation of SOP and QA/QC procedures for online instruments in water steam cycles, leading to reliable chemical information that is trustworthy for process automation and chemistry control in water steam cycles. (author)

Development of On-Line High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC)-Biochemical Detection Methods as Tools in the Identification of Bioactives

Science.gov (United States)

Malherbe, Christiaan J.; de Beer, Dalene; Joubert, Elizabeth

2012-01-01

Biochemical detection (BCD) methods are commonly used to screen plant extracts for specific biological activities in batch assays. Traditionally, bioactives in the most active extracts were identified through time-consuming bio-assay guided fractionation until single active compounds could be isolated. Not only are isolation procedures often tedious, but they could also lead to artifact formation. On-line coupling of BCD assays to high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is gaining ground as a high resolution screening technique to overcome problems associated with pre-isolation by measuring the effects of compounds post-column directly after separation. To date, several on-line HPLC-BCD assays, applied to whole plant extracts and mixtures, have been published. In this review the focus will fall on enzyme-based, receptor-based and antioxidant assays. PMID:22489144

Attitude of students towards online shopping of agricultural products ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study examined the attitude of students towards online shopping in selected tertiary institutions in Ogun state. One hundred and thirty-five respondents were sampled using multistage and simple random sampling procedures. Variables measured included their attitude towards online shopping, the factors that affect ...

ONLINE SCIENCE LEARNING:Best Practices and Technologies

OpenAIRE

TOJDE

2009-01-01

This essential publication is for all research and academic libraries, especially those institutions with online and distance education courses available in their science education programs. This book will also benefit audiences within the science education community of practice and others interested in STEM education, virtual schools, e-learning, m-learning, natural sciences, physical sciences, biological sciences, geosciences, online learning models, virtual laboratories, virtual field trip...

Shawnee Mission's On-Line Cataloging System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ellen Wasby Miller

1971-03-01

Full Text Available An on-line cataloging pilot project for two elementary schools is discussed. The system components are 2740 terminals, upper-lower-case input, IBM's FASTER generalized software package, and usual cards/labels output. Reasons for choosing FASTER, software and hardware features, operating procedures, system performance and costs are detailed. Future expansion to cataloging 100,000 annual K-12 acquisitions, on-line circulation, retrospective conversion, and union book catalogs is set forth.

37 CFR 1.809 - Examination procedures.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 37 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Examination procedures. 1.809... Biological Material § 1.809 Examination procedures. (a) The examiner shall determine pursuant to § 1.104 in... deposited biological material sufficient to specifically identify it and to permit examination; and (4) The...

An online model composition tool for system biology models.

Science.gov (United States)

Coskun, Sarp A; Cicek, A Ercument; Lai, Nicola; Dash, Ranjan K; Ozsoyoglu, Z Meral; Ozsoyoglu, Gultekin

2013-09-05

There are multiple representation formats for Systems Biology computational models, and the Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML) is one of the most widely used. SBML is used to capture, store, and distribute computational models by Systems Biology data sources (e.g., the BioModels Database) and researchers. Therefore, there is a need for all-in-one web-based solutions that support advance SBML functionalities such as uploading, editing, composing, visualizing, simulating, querying, and browsing computational models. We present the design and implementation of the Model Composition Tool (Interface) within the PathCase-SB (PathCase Systems Biology) web portal. The tool helps users compose systems biology models to facilitate the complex process of merging systems biology models. We also present three tools that support the model composition tool, namely, (1) Model Simulation Interface that generates a visual plot of the simulation according to user's input, (2) iModel Tool as a platform for users to upload their own models to compose, and (3) SimCom Tool that provides a side by side comparison of models being composed in the same pathway. Finally, we provide a web site that hosts BioModels Database models and a separate web site that hosts SBML Test Suite models. Model composition tool (and the other three tools) can be used with little or no knowledge of the SBML document structure. For this reason, students or anyone who wants to learn about systems biology will benefit from the described functionalities. SBML Test Suite models will be a nice starting point for beginners. And, for more advanced purposes, users will able to access and employ models of the BioModels Database as well.

The antecedents of buyers' perceived justice in online markets.

Science.gov (United States)

Chiu, Shun-Po; Chou, Huey-Wen; Chiu, Chao-Min

2013-07-01

The success of a business largely depends upon customers' intentions to continue to purchase, but this can be a challenge for vendors in online markets. This study proposes a model which identifies an initial set of justice antecedents and evaluates their relation to perceived justice, trust, and repurchase intention in online markets. The theoretical model is tested by using structural equation modeling on a data set of 424 buyers in Yahoo! Kimo online auction market. The results demonstrate that three dimensions of justice (distributive, procedural, and interactional) are positively and significantly related to trust, which in turn affects buyers' intention to repurchase. Moreover, among the three dimensions of justice judgments, distributive justice and interactional justice are relatively more important than procedural justice in predicting buyers' trust in sellers. In terms of the antecedents of justice, this study provides evidence that product quality and delivery performance are significantly related to distributive justice, while information quality and contact channel are important antecedents of procedural justice. This study also finds that responsiveness is important in enhancing buyers' judgments of interactional justice.

Does self-selection affect samples' representativeness in online surveys? An investigation in online video game research.

Science.gov (United States)

Khazaal, Yasser; van Singer, Mathias; Chatton, Anne; Achab, Sophia; Zullino, Daniele; Rothen, Stephane; Khan, Riaz; Billieux, Joel; Thorens, Gabriel

2014-07-07

The number of medical studies performed through online surveys has increased dramatically in recent years. Despite their numerous advantages (eg, sample size, facilitated access to individuals presenting stigmatizing issues), selection bias may exist in online surveys. However, evidence on the representativeness of self-selected samples in online studies is patchy. Our objective was to explore the representativeness of a self-selected sample of online gamers using online players' virtual characters (avatars). All avatars belonged to individuals playing World of Warcraft (WoW), currently the most widely used online game. Avatars' characteristics were defined using various games' scores, reported on the WoW's official website, and two self-selected samples from previous studies were compared with a randomly selected sample of avatars. We used scores linked to 1240 avatars (762 from the self-selected samples and 478 from the random sample). The two self-selected samples of avatars had higher scores on most of the assessed variables (except for guild membership and exploration). Furthermore, some guilds were overrepresented in the self-selected samples. Our results suggest that more proficient players or players more involved in the game may be more likely to participate in online surveys. Caution is needed in the interpretation of studies based on online surveys that used a self-selection recruitment procedure. Epidemiological evidence on the reduced representativeness of sample of online surveys is warranted.

Identification of potential participant scientists and development of procedures for a national inventory of selected biological monitoring programs: a mail questionnaire survey

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kemp, H.T.; Goff, F.G.; Ross, J.W.

1978-03-01

Procedural details of how the National Biological Monitoring Inventory was conducted are described. Results of a nationwide telephone campaign to identify principal investigators and also of a nationwide questionnaire mailing to the investigators identified are presented. On the basis of percentage of questionnaire returns (nearly 50 percent), the Inventory was judged to be successful. The communication procedures, guidelines, and formats developed may be useful to others engaged in this type of research

Social networking and online recruiting for HIV research: ethical challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Curtis, Brenda L

2014-02-01

Social networking sites and online advertising organizations provide HIV/AIDS researchers access to target populations, often reaching difficult-to-reach populations. However, this benefit to researchers raises many issues for the protections of prospective research participants. Traditional recruitment procedures have involved straightforward transactions between the researchers and prospective participants; online recruitment is a more complex and indirect form of communication involving many parties engaged in the collecting, aggregating, and storing of research participant data. Thus, increased access to online data has challenged the adequacy of current and established procedures for participants' protections, such as informed consent and privacy/confidentiality. Internet-based HIV/AIDS research recruitment and its ethical challenges are described, and research participant safeguards and best practices are outlined.

Social Networking and Online Recruiting for HIV Research: Ethical Challenges

Science.gov (United States)

Curtis, Brenda L.

2015-01-01

Social networking sites and online advertising organizations provide HIV/AIDS researchers access to target populations, often reaching difficult-to-reach populations. However, this benefit to researchers raises many issues for the protections of prospective research participants. Traditional recruitment procedures have involved straightforward transactions between the researchers and prospective participants; online recruitment is a more complex and indirect form of communication involving many parties engaged in the collecting, aggregating, and storing of research participant data. Thus, increased access to online data has challenged the adequacy of current and established procedures for participants’ protections, such as informed consent and privacy/confidentiality. Internet-based HIV/AIDS research recruitment and its ethical challenges are described, and research participant safeguards and best practices are outlined. PMID:24572084

Code of Conduct on Biosecurity for Biological Resource Centres: procedural implementation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rohde, Christine; Smith, David; Martin, Dunja; Fritze, Dagmar; Stalpers, Joost

2013-07-01

A globally applicable code of conduct specifically dedicated to biosecurity has been developed together with guidance for its procedural implementation. This is to address the regulations governing potential dual-use of biological materials, associated information and technologies, and reduce the potential for their malicious use. Scientists researching and exchanging micro-organisms have a responsibility to prevent misuse of the inherently dangerous ones, that is, those possessing characters such as pathogenicity or toxin production. The code of conduct presented here is based on best practice principles for scientists and their institutions working with biological resources with a specific focus on micro-organisms. It aims to raise awareness of regulatory needs and to protect researchers, their facilities and stakeholders. It reflects global activities in this area in response to legislation such as that in the USA, the PATRIOT Act of 2001, Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001; the Anti-Terrorism Crime and Security Act 2001 and subsequent amendments in the UK; the EU Dual-Use Regulation; and the recommendations of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), under their Biological Resource Centre (BRC) Initiative at the beginning of the millennium (OECD, 2001). Two project consortia with international partners came together with experts in the field to draw up a Code of Conduct on Biosecurity for BRCs to ensure that culture collections and microbiologists in general worked in a way that met the requirements of such legislation. A BRC is the modern day culture collection that adds value to its holdings and implements common best practice in the collection and supply of strains for research and development. This code of conduct specifically addresses the work of public service culture collections and describes the issues of importance and the controls or

Cephalopod biology and care, a COST FA1301 (CephsInAction) training school: anaesthesia and scientific procedures.

Science.gov (United States)

Lopes, Vanessa M; Sampaio, Eduardo; Roumbedakis, Katina; Tanaka, Nobuaki K; Carulla, Lucía; Gambús, Guillermo; Woo, Theodosia; Martins, Catarina P P; Penicaud, Virginie; Gibbings, Colette; Eberle, Jessica; Tedesco, Perla; Fernández, Isabel; Rodríguez-González, Tania; Imperadore, Pamela; Ponte, Giovanna; Fiorito, Graziano

2017-09-01

Cephalopods are the sole invertebrates included in the list of regulated species following the Directive 2010/63/EU. According to the Directive, achieving competence through adequate training is a requisite for people having a role in the different functions (article 23) as such carrying out procedures on animals, designing procedures and projects, taking care of animals, killing animals. Cephalopod Biology and Care Training Program is specifically designed to comply with the requirements of the "working document on the development of a common education and training framework to fulfil the requirements under the Directive 2010/63/EU". The training event occurred at the ICM-CSIC in Barcelona (Spain) where people coming from Europe, America and Asia were instructed on how to cope with regulations for the use of cephalopod molluscs for scientific purposes. The training encompasses discussion on the guidelines for the use and care of animals and their welfare with particular reference to procedures that may be of interest for neuroscience. Intensive discussion has been carried out during the training sessions with focus on behavioural studies and paradigms, welfare assessment, levels of severity of scientific procedures, animal care, handling, transport, individual identification and marking, substance administration, anaesthesia, analgesia and humane killing.

Quality indicators for the analysis of communication in an online course

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antonella Pezzotti

2012-08-01

Full Text Available This study describes the development and validation of quality indicators for analyzing forums interactions in an online course in biology teaching. The aim is to evaluate the quality of communication so as to strengthen the tutor’s role and help students learn fundamental biology concepts while enhancing their collaboration competencies. The indicators are used to analyze cognitive, metacognitive and relational aspects, drawing on a content analysis methodology. The model appears to have a wide range of possible applications in other online courses.

State of technology, system and solution supporting on-line maintenance - company's activities and products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishitani, Junichi; Shimizu, Shunichi; Higasa, Hisakazu

2010-01-01

The new inspection system based on operator's maintenance and monitoring program of nuclear power plants was introduced in Japan more than one year ago and recommended on-line maintenance (maintenance during operation) will be carried out to increase capacity factor with safe and reliable operation of the plant. In this feature article, nine experts described the state of technology, system and solution supporting on-line maintenance - company's activities and products. These were titled as 'MHI's technology supporting on-line maintenance'. 'Technology supporting on-line maintenance - Toshiba's activities to upgrade monitoring and diagnostic service and maintenance management', 'AsahiKASEI's activities of on-line maintenance', 'Importance of information sharing of on-line maintenance and its ideal method-function of impact plan of IBM Maximo Asset Management for Nuclear', 'US's on-line maintenance and information systems', 'SmartProcedures realizing safe operation of nuclear power plant - proposal of computerized procedures', 'Ultrasonic leak detection system SDT170', 'Application of infrared thermography for equipment maintenance in nuclear power plant' and 'On-line condition monitoring system - condition eye'. (T. Tanaka)

LHCb Online Log Analysis and Maintenance System

CERN Document Server

Garnier, J-C

2011-01-01

History has shown, many times computer logs are the only information an administrator may have for an incident, which could be caused either by a malfunction or an attack. Due to the huge amount of logs that are produced from large-scale IT infrastructures, such as LHCb Online, critical information may be overlooked or simply be drowned in a sea of other messages. This clearly demonstrates the need for an automatic system for long-term maintenance and real time analysis of the logs. We have constructed a low cost, fault tolerant centralized logging system which is able to do in-depth analysis and cross-correlation of every log. This system is capable of handling O(10000) different log sources and numerous formats, while trying to keep the overhead as low as possible. It provides log gathering and management, Offline analysis and online analysis. We call Offline analysis the procedure of analyzing old logs for critical information, while Online analysis refer to the procedure of early alerting and reacting. ...

Does Self-Selection Affect Samples’ Representativeness in Online Surveys? An Investigation in Online Video Game Research

Science.gov (United States)

van Singer, Mathias; Chatton, Anne; Achab, Sophia; Zullino, Daniele; Rothen, Stephane; Khan, Riaz; Billieux, Joel; Thorens, Gabriel

2014-01-01

Background The number of medical studies performed through online surveys has increased dramatically in recent years. Despite their numerous advantages (eg, sample size, facilitated access to individuals presenting stigmatizing issues), selection bias may exist in online surveys. However, evidence on the representativeness of self-selected samples in online studies is patchy. Objective Our objective was to explore the representativeness of a self-selected sample of online gamers using online players’ virtual characters (avatars). Methods All avatars belonged to individuals playing World of Warcraft (WoW), currently the most widely used online game. Avatars’ characteristics were defined using various games’ scores, reported on the WoW’s official website, and two self-selected samples from previous studies were compared with a randomly selected sample of avatars. Results We used scores linked to 1240 avatars (762 from the self-selected samples and 478 from the random sample). The two self-selected samples of avatars had higher scores on most of the assessed variables (except for guild membership and exploration). Furthermore, some guilds were overrepresented in the self-selected samples. Conclusions Our results suggest that more proficient players or players more involved in the game may be more likely to participate in online surveys. Caution is needed in the interpretation of studies based on online surveys that used a self-selection recruitment procedure. Epidemiological evidence on the reduced representativeness of sample of online surveys is warranted. PMID:25001007

Biological Dynamics Markup Language (BDML): an open format for representing quantitative biological dynamics data.

Science.gov (United States)

Kyoda, Koji; Tohsato, Yukako; Ho, Kenneth H L; Onami, Shuichi

2015-04-01

Recent progress in live-cell imaging and modeling techniques has resulted in generation of a large amount of quantitative data (from experimental measurements and computer simulations) on spatiotemporal dynamics of biological objects such as molecules, cells and organisms. Although many research groups have independently dedicated their efforts to developing software tools for visualizing and analyzing these data, these tools are often not compatible with each other because of different data formats. We developed an open unified format, Biological Dynamics Markup Language (BDML; current version: 0.2), which provides a basic framework for representing quantitative biological dynamics data for objects ranging from molecules to cells to organisms. BDML is based on Extensible Markup Language (XML). Its advantages are machine and human readability and extensibility. BDML will improve the efficiency of development and evaluation of software tools for data visualization and analysis. A specification and a schema file for BDML are freely available online at http://ssbd.qbic.riken.jp/bdml/. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press.

Synthetic Biology: Mapping the Scientific Landscape

Science.gov (United States)

Oldham, Paul; Hall, Stephen; Burton, Geoff

2012-01-01

This article uses data from Thomson Reuters Web of Science to map and analyse the scientific landscape for synthetic biology. The article draws on recent advances in data visualisation and analytics with the aim of informing upcoming international policy debates on the governance of synthetic biology by the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA) of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity. We use mapping techniques to identify how synthetic biology can best be understood and the range of institutions, researchers and funding agencies involved. Debates under the Convention are likely to focus on a possible moratorium on the field release of synthetic organisms, cells or genomes. Based on the empirical evidence we propose that guidance could be provided to funding agencies to respect the letter and spirit of the Convention on Biological Diversity in making research investments. Building on the recommendations of the United States Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues we demonstrate that it is possible to promote independent and transparent monitoring of developments in synthetic biology using modern information tools. In particular, public and policy understanding and engagement with synthetic biology can be enhanced through the use of online interactive tools. As a step forward in this process we make existing data on the scientific literature on synthetic biology available in an online interactive workbook so that researchers, policy makers and civil society can explore the data and draw conclusions for themselves. PMID:22539946

Online Paper Repositories and the Role of Scholarly Societies: An AERA Conference Report

Science.gov (United States)

Educational Researcher, 2010

2010-01-01

This article examines issues faced by scholarly societies that are developing and sustaining online paper repositories. It is based on the AERA Conference on Online Paper Repositories, which focused on fundamental issues of policy and procedure important to the operations of online working paper repositories. The report and recommendations address…

Updated Lagrangian finite element formulations of various biological soft tissue non-linear material models: a comprehensive procedure and review.

Science.gov (United States)

Townsend, Molly T; Sarigul-Klijn, Nesrin

2016-01-01

Simplified material models are commonly used in computational simulation of biological soft tissue as an approximation of the complicated material response and to minimize computational resources. However, the simulation of complex loadings, such as long-duration tissue swelling, necessitates complex models that are not easy to formulate. This paper strives to offer the updated Lagrangian formulation comprehensive procedure of various non-linear material models for the application of finite element analysis of biological soft tissues including a definition of the Cauchy stress and the spatial tangential stiffness. The relationships between water content, osmotic pressure, ionic concentration and the pore pressure stress of the tissue are discussed with the merits of these models and their applications.

Online unsupervised formation of cell assemblies for the encoding of multiple cognitive maps.

Science.gov (United States)

Salihoglu, Utku; Bersini, Hugues; Yamaguchi, Yoko; Molter, Colin

2009-01-01

Since their introduction sixty years ago, cell assemblies have proved to be a powerful paradigm for brain information processing. After their introduction in artificial intelligence, cell assemblies became commonly used in computational neuroscience as a neural substrate for content addressable memories. However, the mechanisms underlying their formation are poorly understood and, so far, there is no biologically plausible algorithms which can explain how external stimuli can be online stored in cell assemblies. We addressed this question in a previous paper [Salihoglu, U., Bersini, H., Yamaguchi, Y., Molter, C., (2009). A model for the cognitive map formation: Application of the retroaxonal theory. In Proc. IEEE international joint conference on neural networks], were, based on biologically plausible mechanisms, a novel unsupervised algorithm for online cell assemblies' creation was developed. The procedure involved simultaneously, a fast Hebbian/anti-Hebbian learning of the network's recurrent connections for the creation of new cell assemblies, and a slower feedback signal which stabilized the cell assemblies by learning the feedforward input connections. Here, we first quantify the role played by the retroaxonal feedback mechanism. Then, we show how multiple cognitive maps, composed by a set of orthogonal input stimuli, can be encoded in the network. As a result, when facing a previously learned input, the system is able to retrieve the cognitive map it belongs to. As a consequence, ambiguous inputs which could belong to multiple cognitive maps can be disambiguated by the knowledge of the context, i.e. the cognitive map.

Adapting to large-scale changes in Advanced Placement Biology, Chemistry, and Physics: the impact of online teacher communities

Science.gov (United States)

Frumin, Kim; Dede, Chris; Fischer, Christian; Foster, Brandon; Lawrenz, Frances; Eisenkraft, Arthur; Fishman, Barry; Jurist Levy, Abigail; McCoy, Ayana

2018-03-01

Over the past decade, the field of teacher professional learning has coalesced around core characteristics of high quality professional development experiences (e.g. Borko, Jacobs, & Koellner, 2010. Contemporary approaches to teacher professional development. In P. L. Peterson, E. Baker, & B. McGaw (Eds.), International encyclopedia of education (Vol. 7, pp. 548-556). Oxford: Elsevier.; Darling-Hammond, Hyler, & Gardner, 2017. Effective teacher professional development. Palo Alto, CA: Learning Policy Institute). Many countries have found these advances of great interest because of a desire to build teacher capacity in science education and across the full curriculum. This paper continues this progress by examining the role and impact of an online professional development community within the top-down, large-scale curriculum and assessment revision of Advanced Placement (AP) Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. This paper is part of a five-year, longitudinal, U.S. National Science Foundation-funded project to study the relative effectiveness of various types of professional development in enabling teachers to adapt to the revised AP course goals and exams. Of the many forms of professional development our research has examined, preliminary analyses indicated that participation in the College Board's online AP Teacher Community (APTC) - where teachers can discuss teaching strategies, share resources, and connect with each other - had positive, direct, and statistically significant association with teacher self-reported shifts in practice and with gains in student AP scores (Fishman et al., 2014). This study explored how usage of the online APTC might be useful to teachers and examined a more robust estimate of these effects. Findings from the experience of AP teachers may be valuable in supporting other large-scale curriculum changes, such as the U.S. Next Generation Science Standards or Common Core Standards, as well as parallel curricular shifts in other countries.

Queensland Museum Online Learning Resources

Science.gov (United States)

Bauer, Adriana

2009-01-01

This article evaluates three online educational resources on the Queensland Museum website in terms of their use of ICTs in science education; how they relate to the Queensland Middle School Science Curriculum and the Senior Biology, Marine Studies, Science 21 syllabuses; their visual appeal and level of student engagement; the appropriateness of…

Risk-based equipment removal guide for on-line maintenance at PSE ampersand G

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Knoll, A.; Smith, C.; Pollock, J.

1995-01-01

On-line maintenance plays an important role in achieving safe and reliable power generation in a nuclear power plant. However, maintenance, if not properly planned and performed, may also be an important contributor to plant risk. Therefore, plant-specific procedures are needed for equipment removal from service to enhance the benefits of on-line maintenance and minimize the risks involved. The problem is to identify and implement the most effective on-line maintenance policy in the form of a proceduralized guide to assure plant safety under various operation and maintenance constraints. This paper presents a methodology to develop plant-specific on-line maintenance strategies and acceptance criteria using a multivariate safety approach based on risk assessment. Based on plant-specific data as modeled in the individual plant evaluation (IPE) and the updated probabilistic safety assessment (PSA), the risk-based methodology is currently being applied to the development of proceduralized equipment removal guides at Hope Creek and Salem units 1 and 2 of Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE ampersand G)

Development of an online men’s suits customizing system using heuristic procedure for wheelchair users

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jeong, Minseok; Yang, Chuneun; You, Heecheon; Park, Kwangae; Lee, W.

2016-01-01

An online suit-customizing system for the special accessibility needs of wheelchair users should be developed because the demand for business suits by wheelchair users involved in economic activities has increased. This study
develops a user interface an online customizing system for men's suits

Online ecological and environmental data

CERN Document Server

Baldwin, Virginia Ann

2014-01-01

Discover important Internet resources for research data made public individually and collectively by researchers from a variety of entities in the fields of environmental studies and ecology Online Ecological and Environmental Data explores innovative projects from a diverse array of institutions that have made environmental and ecological research information freely available online. You will find a wealth of Web site listings with URLs and complete descriptions, data field descriptions, controlled vocabulary examples, and Web screen shots that demonstrate how to use a specific site. The book will help you locate the data, procedures, instruments, notes, and other descriptive information that scientists and engineers need for replicating and building on the research of others. With Online Ecological and Environmental Data, you''ll gain a better understanding of: * the cooperative design, development, and management of interdisciplinary data * cataloging multidisciplinary environmental data * data netw...

Computer Proficiency for Online Learning: Factorial Invariance of Scores among Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Amy L.; Reeves, Todd D.; Smith, Thomas J.; Walker, David A.

2016-01-01

Online learning is variously employed in K-12 education, including for teacher professional development. However, the use of computer-based technologies for learning purposes assumes learner computer proficiency, making this construct an important domain of procedural knowledge in formal and informal online learning contexts. Addressing this…

Preparation of biological samples for transmission X-ray microanalysis: a review of alternative procedures to the use of sectioned material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sigee, D.C.

1988-01-01

Although transmission X-ray microanalysis of biological material has traditionally been carried out mainly on sectioned preparations, a number of alternative procedures exist. These are considered under three major headings - whole cell preparations, analysis of cell homogenates and biological fluids, and applications of the technique to microsamples of purified biochemicals. These three aspects provide a continuous range of investigative level - from the cellular to the molecular. The use of X-ray microanalysis with whole cell preparations is considered in reference to eukaryote (animal) cells and prokaryotes - where it has particular potential in environmental studies on bacteria. In the case of cell homogenates and biological fluids, the technique has been used mainly with microdroplets of animal material. The use of X-ray microanalysis with purified biochemicals is considered in relation to both particulate and non-particulate samples. In the latter category, the application of this technique for analysis of thin films of metalloprotein is particularly emphasised. It is concluded that wider use could be made of the range of preparative techniques available - both within a particular investigation, and in diverse fields of study. Transmission X-ray microanalysis has implications for environmental, physiological and molecular biology as well as cell biology

Online nuclear data service

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dunford, C.L.

1994-01-01

The US National Nuclear Data Center and the IAEA Nuclear Data Section offer online computer access through international networks to their nuclear-physics and photoatomic numeric databases, related bibliographic systems and other related information of interest to basic and applied research and technology. A detailed description of the access procedures, the technical requirements, and the available databases is given. (author)

Online nuclear data service

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dunford, C.L.

1994-01-01

The US National Nuclear Data Center and the IAEA Nuclear Data Section offer online computer access through international networks to their nuclear-physics and photo-atomic numeric databases, related bibliographic systems and other related information of interest to basic and applied research and technology. A detailed description of the access procedures, the technical requirements, and the available databases is given. (author)

Online nuclear data service

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dunford, C.L.; Burrows, T.W.

1998-01-01

The US National Nuclear Data Center and the IAEA Nuclear Data Section offer online computer access through international networks to their nuclear-physics and photo-atomic numeric databases, related bibliographic systems and other related information of interest to basic and applied research and technology. A detailed description of the access procedures, the technical requirements, and the available databases is given. (author)

Online Nuclear Data Service

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dunford, C.L.

1994-01-01

The US National Nuclear Data Center and the IAEA Nuclear Data Section offer online computer access through international networks to their nuclear-physics and photo-atomic numeric databases, related bibliographic systems and other related information of interest to basic and applied research and technology. A detailed description of the access procedures, the technical requirements, and the available databases is given. (author)

Online nuclear data service

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dunford, C L [International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna (Austria). Nuclear Data Section; Burrows, T W [National Nuclear Data Center, Upton, NY (United States)

1994-12-31

The US National Nuclear Data Center and the IAEA Nuclear Data Section offer online computer access through international networks to their nuclear-physics and photo-atomic numeric databases, related bibliographic systems and other related information of interest to basic and applied research and technology. A detailed description of the access procedures, the technical requirements, and the available databases is given. (author).

Evaluation of some procedures relevant to the determination of trace elemental components in biological materials by destructive neutron activation analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berry, D.L.

1979-01-01

The development of a simplified procedure for the analysis of biological materials by destructive neutron activation analysis (DNAA) is described. The sample manipulations preceding gamma ray assay were investigated as five specific stages of processing: (1) pre-irradiation treatment; (2) sample irradiation; (3) removal of the organic matrix; (4) removal of interfering radioactivities; and (5) concentration and separation of analyte activities. Each stage was evaluated with respect to susceptibility to sample contamination, loss of trace elemental components, and compatibility with other operations in the overall DNAA procedures. A complete DNAA procedure was proposed and evaluated for the analysis of standard bovine liver and blood samples. The DNAA system was effective for the determination of As, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mo, Rb, Sb, Se, and Zn without yield determinations and with a minimum turn-around time of approximately 3 days

Evaluation of some procedures relevant to the determination of trace elemental components in biological materials by destructive neutron activation analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berry, D.L.

1979-01-01

The development of a simplified procedure for the analysis of biological materials by destructive neutron activation analysis (DNAA) is described. The sample manipulations preceding gamma ray assay were investigated as five specific stages of processing: (1) pre-irradiation treatment; (2) sample irradiation; (3) removal of the organic matrix; (4) removal of interfering radioactivities; and (5) concentration and separation of analyte activities. Each stage was evaluated with respect to susceptibility to sample contamination, loss of trace elemental components, and compatibility with other operations in the overall DNAA procedures. A complete DNAA procedure was proposed and evaluated for the analysis of standard bovine liver and blood samples. The DNAA system was effective for the determination of As, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mo, Rb, Sb, Se, and Zn without yield determinations and with a minimum turn-around time of approximately 3 days.

The Importance of Biological Databases in Biological Discovery.

Science.gov (United States)

Baxevanis, Andreas D; Bateman, Alex

2015-06-19

Biological databases play a central role in bioinformatics. They offer scientists the opportunity to access a wide variety of biologically relevant data, including the genomic sequences of an increasingly broad range of organisms. This unit provides a brief overview of major sequence databases and portals, such as GenBank, the UCSC Genome Browser, and Ensembl. Model organism databases, including WormBase, The Arabidopsis Information Resource (TAIR), and those made available through the Mouse Genome Informatics (MGI) resource, are also covered. Non-sequence-centric databases, such as Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), the Protein Data Bank (PDB), MetaCyc, and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), are also discussed. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Online updating procedures for a real-time hydrological forecasting system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kahl, B; Nachtnebel, H P

2008-01-01

Rainfall-runoff-models can explain major parts of the natural runoff pattern but never simulate the observed hydrograph exactly. Reasons for errors are various sources of uncertainties embedded in the model forecasting system. Errors are due to measurement errors, the selected time period for calibration and validation, the parametric uncertainty and the model imprecision. In on-line forecasting systems forecasted input data is used which additionally generates a major uncertainty for the hydrological forecasting system. Techniques for partially compensating these uncertainties are investigated in the recent study in a medium sized catchment in the Austrian part of the Danube basin. The catchment area is about 1000 km2. The forecasting system consists of a semi-distributed continuous rainfall-runoff model that uses quantitative precipitation and temperature forecasts. To provide adequate system states at the beginning of the forecasting period continuous simulation is required, especially in winter. In this study two online updating methods are used and combined for enhancing the runoff forecasts. The first method is used for updating the system states at the beginning of the forecasting period by changing the precipitation input. The second method is an autoregressive error model, which is used to eliminate systematic errors in the model output. In combination those two methods work together well as each method is more effective in different runoff situations.

Conference: Statistical Physics and Biological Information

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gross, David J.; Hwa, Terence

2001-01-01

In the spring of 2001, the Institute for Theoretical Physics ran a 6 month scientific program on Statistical Physics and Biological Information. This program was organized by Walter Fitch (UC Irvine), Terence Hwa (UC San Diego), Luca Peliti (University Federico II), Naples Gary Stormo (Washington University School of Medicine) and Chao Tang (NEC). Overall scientific supervision was provided by David Gross, Director, ITP. The ITP has an online conference/program proceeding which consists of audio and transparencies of almost all of the talks held during this program. Over 100 talks are available on the site at http://online.kitp.ucsb.edu/online/infobio01/

Online doctor reviews: do they track surgeon volume, a proxy for quality of care?

Science.gov (United States)

Segal, Jeffrey; Sacopulos, Michael; Sheets, Virgil; Thurston, Irish; Brooks, Kendra; Puccia, Ryan

2012-04-10

Increasingly, consumers are accessing the Internet seeking health information. Consumers are also using online doctor review websites to help select their physician. Such websites tally numerical ratings and comments from past patients. To our knowledge, no study has previously analyzed whether doctors with positive online reputations on doctor review websites actually deliver higher quality of care typically associated with better clinical outcomes and better safety records. For a number of procedures, surgeons who perform more procedures have better clinical outcomes and safety records than those who perform fewer procedures. Our objective was to determine if surgeon volume, as a proxy for clinical outcomes and patient safety, correlates with online reputation. We investigated the numerical ratings and comments on 9 online review websites for high- and low-volume surgeons for three procedures: lumbar surgery, total knee replacement, and bariatric surgery. High-volume surgeons were randomly selected from the group within the highest quartile of claims submitted for reimbursement using the procedures' relevant current procedural terminology (CPT) codes. Low-volume surgeons were randomly selected from the lowest quartile of submitted claims for the procedures' relevant CPT codes. Claims were collated within the Normative Health Information Database, covering multiple payers for more than 25 million insured patients. Numerical ratings were found for the majority of physicians in our sample (547/600, 91.2%) and comments were found for 385/600 (64.2%) of the physicians. We found that high-volume (HV) surgeons could be differentiated from low-volume (LV) surgeons independently by analyzing: (1) the total number of numerical ratings per website (HV: mean = 5.85; LV: mean = 4.87, Pcustomer service (HV: mean = 0.24; LV: mean = 0.22, P=.52); and (3) proportion of scathing criticism/total comments about customer service (HV: mean = 0.19; LV: mean = 0.21, P=.48). Online

Liquid chromatography mass spectrometry determination of perfluoroalkyl acids in environmental solid extracts after phospholipid removal and on-line turbulent flow chromatography purification.

Science.gov (United States)

Mazzoni, M; Polesello, S; Rusconi, M; Valsecchi, S

2016-07-01

An on-line TFC (Turbulent Flow Chromatography) clean up procedures coupled with UHPLC-MS/MS (Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry) multi-residue method was developed for the simultaneous determination of 8 perfluroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCA, from 5 to 12 carbon atoms) and 3 perfluoroalkyl sulfonic acids (PFSA, from 4 to 8 carbon atoms) in environmental solid matrices. Fast sample preparation procedure was based on a sonication-assisted extraction with acetonitrile. Phospholipids in biological samples were fully removed by an off-line SPE purification before injection, using HybridSPE(®) Phospholipid Ultra cartridges. The development of the on-line TFC clean-up procedure regarded the choice of the stationary phase, the optimization of the mobile phase composition, flow rate and injected volume. The validation of the optimized method included the evaluation of matrix effects, accuracy and reproducibility. Signal suppression in the analysis of fortified extracts ranged from 1 to 60%, and this problem was overcome by using isotopic dilution. Since no certified reference materials were available for PFAS in these matrices, accuracy was evaluated by recoveries on spiked clam samples which were 98-133% for PFCAs and 40-60% for PFSAs. MLDs and MLQs ranged from 0.03 to 0.3ngg(-1) wet weight and from 0.1 to 0.9ngg(-1) wet weight respectively. Repeatability (intra-day precision) and reproducibility (inter-day precision) showed RSD from 3 to 13% and from 4 to 27% respectively. Validated on-line TFC/UHPLC-MS/MS method has been applied for the determination of perfluoroalkyl acids in different solid matrices (sediment, fish, bivalves and bird yolk). Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Electronic procedure distribution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slone, B.J. III; Richardson, C.E.

1993-01-01

Printed procedures can offer a mix of text and graphic information that improves readability and increases understanding. A typical procedure uses illustrations and graphics to clarify concepts, a variety of type styles and weights to make it easier to find different topics and sections, white space to improve readability, and familiar navigational clues such as page numbers and topic headers. Initially, electronic procedure systems had limited typeface options, often only a single typeface, with no capability for enhancing readability by varying type size bolding, italicizing, or underlining, and no ability to include graphics. Even recently, many text-only electronic procedures were originally created in a modern What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get (WYSI-WYG) document authoring system, only to be converted to pages and pages of plain type for electronic distribution. Given the choice of paper or on-line producers, most users have chosen paper for its readability. But current-generation electronic document systems that use formatted text and embedded graphics offer users vastly improved readability. Further, they are offering ever-better search tools to enable rapid location of material of interest

Online dosimetry for temoporfin-mediated interstitial photodynamic therapy using the canine prostate as model

Science.gov (United States)

Swartling, Johannes; Höglund, Odd V.; Hansson, Kerstin; Södersten, Fredrik; Axelsson, Johan; Lagerstedt, Anne-Sofie

2016-02-01

Online light dosimetry with real-time feedback was applied for temoporfin-mediated interstitial photodynamic therapy (PDT) of dog prostate. The aim was to investigate the performance of online dosimetry by studying the correlation between light dose plans and the tissue response, i.e., extent of induced tissue necrosis and damage to surrounding organs at risk. Light-dose planning software provided dose plans, including light source positions and light doses, based on ultrasound images. A laser instrument provided therapeutic light and dosimetric measurements. The procedure was designed to closely emulate the procedure for whole-prostate PDT in humans with prostate cancer. Nine healthy dogs were subjected to the procedure according to a light-dose escalation plan. About 0.15 mg/kg temoporfin was administered 72 h before the procedure. The results of the procedure were assessed by magnetic resonance imaging, and gross pathology and histopathology of excised tissue. Light dose planning and online dosimetry clearly resulted in more focused effect and less damage to surrounding tissue than interstitial PDT without dosimetry. A light energy dose-response relationship was established where the threshold dose to induce prostate gland necrosis was estimated from 20 to 30 J/cm2.

International Journal of Biological and Chemical Sciences

African Journals Online (AJOL)

AFRICAN JOURNALS ONLINE (AJOL) · Journals · Advanced Search · USING AJOL ... toxicology, biotechnology, biostatistics, bioinformatics, environmental biology, ... IJBCS publishes original research papers, critical up-to-date and concise ...

An Optimized Online Verification Imaging Procedure for External Beam Partial Breast Irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Willis, David J.; Kron, Tomas; Chua, Boon

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the capabilities of a kilovoltage (kV) on-board imager (OBI)-equipped linear accelerator in the setting of on-line verification imaging for external-beam partial breast irradiation. Available imaging techniques were optimized and assessed for image quality using a modified anthropomorphic phantom. Imaging dose was also assessed. Imaging techniques were assessed for physical clearance between patient and treatment machine using a volunteer. Nonorthogonal kV image pairs were identified as optimal in terms of image quality, clearance, and dose. After institutional review board approval, this approach was used for 17 patients receiving accelerated partial breast irradiation. Imaging was performed before every fraction verification with online correction of setup deviations >5 mm (total image sessions = 170). Treatment staff rated risk of collision and visibility of tumor bed surgical clips where present. Image session duration and detected setup deviations were recorded. For all cases, both image projections (n = 34) had low collision risk. Surgical clips were rated as well as visualized in all cases where they were present (n = 5). The average imaging session time was 6 min, 16 sec, and a reduction in duration was observed as staff became familiar with the technique. Setup deviations of up to 1.3 cm were detected before treatment and subsequently confirmed offline. Nonorthogonal kV image pairs allowed effective and efficient online verification for partial breast irradiation. It has yet to be tested in a multicenter study to determine whether it is dependent on skilled treatment staff.

Reproductive biology of a pride of lions on Karongwe Game ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Reproductive biology of a pride of lions on Karongwe Game Reserve, South Africa. ... biology of a pride of lions (Panthera leo) was studied on the 8500 ha Karongwe Game Reserve from 1999 to 2005. Over this ... AJOL African Journals Online.

Understanding the Online : Jewellery Retail Market : an integrated model to conduct SEM

OpenAIRE

Wu, Yihong

2013-01-01

Research into e-commerce is becoming more and more popular; however the jewellery industry is somewhat special. There are very few studies having adapted a strategic marketing perspective on the online jewellery retail market. This study suggested an integrated online marketing strategy which focuses on the search engine marketing (SEM) approach. A detailed procedure of conducting search engine marketing (SEM) is introduced. Through the method of online questionnaires, with the help of soc...

An Examination of High School Students' Online Engagement in Mathematics Problems

Science.gov (United States)

Lim, Woong; Son, Ji-Won; Gregson, Susan; Kim, Jihye

2018-01-01

This article examines high school students' engagement in a set of trigonometry problems. Students completed this task independently in an online environment with access to Internet search engines, online textbooks, and YouTube videos. The findings imply that students have the resourcefulness to solve procedure-based mathematics problems in an…

On-line sample treatment - Capillary gas chromatography

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Goosens, EC; de Jong, D; de Jong, GJ; Brinkman, UAT

Sample pretreatment is often the bottleneck of a trace level analytical procedure. In order to increase performance, increasing attention is therefore being devoted to combining sample pretreatment on-line with the separation technique that has to be used. In the present review, a variety of

Readability of Online Materials for Rhinoplasty.

Science.gov (United States)

Santos, Pauline Joy F; Daar, David A; Paydar, Keyianoosh Z; Wirth, Garrett A

2018-01-01

Rhinoplasty is a popular aesthetic and reconstructive surgical procedure. However, little is known about the content and readability of online materials for patient education. The recommended grade level for educational materials is 7th to 8th grade according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This study aims to assess the readability of online patient resources for rhinoplasty. The largest public search engine, Google, was queried using the term "rhinoplasty" on February 26, 2016. Location filters were disabled and sponsored results excluded to avoid any inadvertent search bias. The 10 most popular websites were identified and all relevant, patient-directed information within one click from the original site was downloaded and saved as plain text. Readability was analyzed using five established analyses (Readability-score.com, Added Bytes, Ltd., Sussex, UK). Analysis of ten websites demonstrates an average grade level of at least 12 th grade. No material was at the recommended 7 th to 8 th grade reading level (Flesch-Kincaid, 11.1; Gunning-Fog, 14.1; Coleman-Liau, 14.5; SMOG 10.4; Automated Readability, 10.7; Average Grade Level, 12.2). Overall Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease Index was 43.5, which is rated as "difficult." Online materials available for rhinoplasty exceed NIH-recommended reading levels, which may prevent appropriate decision-making in patients considering these types of surgery. Outcomes of this study identify that Plastic Surgeons should be cognizant of available online patient materials and make efforts to develop and provide more appropriate materials. Readability results can also contribute to marketing strategy and attracting a more widespread interest in the procedure.

Online Bioinformatics Tutorials | Office of Cancer Genomics

Science.gov (United States)

Bioinformatics is a scientific discipline that applies computer science and information technology to help understand biological processes. The NIH provides a list of free online bioinformatics tutorials, either generated by the NIH Library or other institutes, which includes introductory lectures and "how to" videos on using various tools.

Online dating in Japan: a test of social information processing theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Farrer, James; Gavin, Jeff

2009-08-01

This study examines the experiences of past and present members of a popular Japanese online dating site in order to explore the extent to which Western-based theories of computer-mediated communication (CMC) and the development of online relationships are relevant to the Japanese online dating experience. Specifically, it examines whether social information processing theory (SIPT) is applicable to Japanese online dating interactions, and how and to what extent Japanese daters overcome the limitations of CMC through the use of contextual and other cues. Thirty-six current members and 27 former members of Match.com Japan completed an online survey. Using issue-based procedures for grounded theory analysis, we found strong support for SIPT. Japanese online daters adapt their efforts to present and acquire social information using the cues that the online dating platform provides, although many of these cues are specific to Japanese social context.

Multivariate two-part statistics for analysis of correlated mass spectrometry data from multiple biological specimens.

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, Sandra L; Ruhaak, L Renee; Weiss, Robert H; Kelly, Karen; Kim, Kyoungmi

2017-01-01

High through-put mass spectrometry (MS) is now being used to profile small molecular compounds across multiple biological sample types from the same subjects with the goal of leveraging information across biospecimens. Multivariate statistical methods that combine information from all biospecimens could be more powerful than the usual univariate analyses. However, missing values are common in MS data and imputation can impact between-biospecimen correlation and multivariate analysis results. We propose two multivariate two-part statistics that accommodate missing values and combine data from all biospecimens to identify differentially regulated compounds. Statistical significance is determined using a multivariate permutation null distribution. Relative to univariate tests, the multivariate procedures detected more significant compounds in three biological datasets. In a simulation study, we showed that multi-biospecimen testing procedures were more powerful than single-biospecimen methods when compounds are differentially regulated in multiple biospecimens but univariate methods can be more powerful if compounds are differentially regulated in only one biospecimen. We provide R functions to implement and illustrate our method as supplementary information CONTACT: sltaylor@ucdavis.eduSupplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Conference: Statistical Physics and Biological Information; F

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gross, David J.; Hwa, Terence

2001-01-01

In the spring of 2001, the Institute for Theoretical Physics ran a 6 month scientific program on Statistical Physics and Biological Information. This program was organized by Walter Fitch (UC Irvine), Terence Hwa (UC San Diego), Luca Peliti (University Federico II), Naples Gary Stormo (Washington University School of Medicine) and Chao Tang (NEC). Overall scientific supervision was provided by David Gross, Director, ITP. The ITP has an online conference/program proceeding which consists of audio and transparencies of almost all of the talks held during this program. Over 100 talks are available on the site at http://online.kitp.ucsb.edu/online/infobio01/

Thermographic Sensing For On-Line Industrial Control

Science.gov (United States)

Holmsten, Dag

1986-10-01

It is today's emergence of thermoelectrically cooled, highly accurate infrared linescanners and imaging systems that has definitely made on-line Infraread Thermography (IRT) possible. Specifically designed for continuous use, these scanners are equipped with dedicated software capable of monitoring and controlling highly complex thermodynamic situations. This paper will outline some possible implications of using IRT on-line by describing some uses of this technology in the steel-making (hot rolling) and automotive industries (machine-vision). A warning is also expressed that IRT technology not originally designed for automated applications e.g. high resolution, imaging systems, should not be directly applied to an on-line measurement situation without having its measurement resolution, accuracy and especially its repeatability, reliably proven. Some suitable testing procedures are briefly outlined at the end of the paper.

Synthetic biology and biosecurity: challenging the "myths".

OpenAIRE

Jefferson, C; Lentzos, F; Marris, C

2014-01-01

15.10.14 KB. Ok to add published version to spiral, OA paper under cc by Synthetic biology, a field that aims to make biology easier to engineer, is routinely described as leading to an increase in the dual-use threat, i.e., the potential for the same scientific research to be used for peaceful purposes or misused for warfare or terrorism. Fears have been expressed that the de-skilling of biology, combined with online access to the genomic DNA sequences of pathogenic organisms an...

A TEMPLATE FOR ONLINE HOMEWORK: FRANKENSTEIN'S MONSTER OR ROBO TA?

OpenAIRE

Dahlgran, Roger A.

2002-01-01

This paper describes the programming procedures required to implement online homework and evaluates the application of these procedures based on use in the author's course. The description of the procedures utilizes a template showing two representative applications from the author's introductory econometrics course. In one, the students are to collect and record data and in the other, students are to perform econometric analysis on the data. The web address for the template is arec.arizona.e...

Use of Online Records for Detection of Diseases and Heat in Dairy Cattle Stocks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Jørgen Vinsløv

In recent years management of cattle herds has become a much more automated process and machinery for measuring a number of biological entities online has been developed. Analysis of such online data can be helpful to the farmer in the management of the herd. This thesis is a contribution...

Online Tutoring Procedure for Research Project Supervision: Management, Organization and Key Elements

Science.gov (United States)

Darder Mesquida, Antònia; Pérez Garcias, Adolfina

2015-01-01

Research project tutoring appears as a crucial element for teaching; it is a planned action based on the relationship between a tutor and a student. This paper presents the findings of a design and development research which has as its main aim to create an organization system for the tutoring of online research projects. That system seeks to…

A Converter from the Systems Biology Markup Language to the Synthetic Biology Open Language.

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Tramy; Roehner, Nicholas; Zundel, Zach; Myers, Chris J

2016-06-17

Standards are important to synthetic biology because they enable exchange and reproducibility of genetic designs. This paper describes a procedure for converting between two standards: the Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML) and the Synthetic Biology Open Language (SBOL). SBML is a standard for behavioral models of biological systems at the molecular level. SBOL describes structural and basic qualitative behavioral aspects of a biological design. Converting SBML to SBOL enables a consistent connection between behavioral and structural information for a biological design. The conversion process described in this paper leverages Systems Biology Ontology (SBO) annotations to enable inference of a designs qualitative function.

Patient seeking behaviors and online personas: social media's role in cosmetic dermatology.

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, Nicholas A; Todd, Quintin; Saedi, Nazanin

2015-02-01

Social media sites, composed of providers, patients, and their social circles, facilitate health and healthcare delivery. To examine patients' perspective on social media as an information source, communication tool, and referral service through an anonymous survey. In addition, influences on patient Internet personas, an actively constructed online identity, around the time of cosmetic procedures are examined. Patients completed an anonymous institutional review board-approved survey during their initial cosmetic visit. Patients are highly active on social media using it as a multipurpose tool for physician referral services, support groups, and disease education. Patients gathered dermatology information from multiple sources, including friends, family, social media pages, and other online sources, often sharing their own experiences through social media platforms. Patients indicated a desire for provider educational materials on interactive media pages. Most preferred material written by a physician, but some indicated a preference for both physician and lay material. Online images highlighting dissatisfying skin features were influential to select patients, prompting manipulation of online personas and evaluation for aesthetic procedures. Although the study examines cosmetic patient perspectives, data highlight valuable trends for all dermatologists. Social media can improve patient education, collaboration, recruitment, and online professional image, leading to healthier patient-centered care.

Optimal learning with Bernstein online aggregation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wintenberger, Olivier

2017-01-01

batch version achieves the fast rate of convergence log (M) / n in deviation. The BOA procedure is the first online algorithm that satisfies this optimal fast rate. The second order refinement is required to achieve the optimality in deviation as the classical exponential weights cannot be optimal, see...... is shown to be sufficiently small to assert the fast rate in the iid setting when the loss is Lipschitz and strongly convex. We also introduce a multiple learning rates version of BOA. This fully adaptive BOA procedure is also optimal, up to a log log (n) factor....

Scaffolding student engagement via online peer learning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Casey, M M; Bates, S P; Galloway, K W; Galloway, R K; Hardy, J A; Kay, A E; Kirsop, P; McQueen, H A

2014-01-01

We describe one aspect of a UK inter-institutional project wherein an online tool was used to support student generation of multiple choice questions. Across three universities and in five modules in physics, chemistry and biology, we introduced the PeerWise online system as a summative assessment tool in our classes, the desire being to increase student engagement, academic attainment and level of cognitive challenge. Engagement with the system was high with many students exceeding the minimum requirements set out in the assessment criteria. We explore the nature of student engagement and describe a working model to enable high-impact student-learning and academic gain with minimal instructor intervention. (paper)

Monitoring Biological Activity at Geothermal Power Plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peter Pryfogle

2005-09-01

The economic impact of microbial growth in geothermal power plants has been estimated to be as high as $500,000 annually for a 100 MWe plant. Many methods are available to monitor biological activity at these facilities; however, very few plants have any on-line monitoring program in place. Metal coupon, selective culturing (MPN), total organic carbon (TOC), adenosine triphosphate (ATP), respirometry, phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA), and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) characterizations have been conducted using water samples collected from geothermal plants located in California and Utah. In addition, the on-line performance of a commercial electrochemical monitor, the BIoGEORGE?, has been evaluated during extended deployments at geothermal facilities. This report provides a review of these techniques, presents data on their application from laboratory and field studies, and discusses their value in characterizing and monitoring biological activities at geothermal power plants.

Disparities between online assisted reproduction patient education for same-sex and heterosexual couples.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Helen; Dasgupta, Shoumita

2016-10-01

Does the prevalence of online education in fertility center websites differ for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) couples compared to online education for heterosexual couples? This review of fertility center websites showed that the majority of websites with patient education for heterosexual couples do not have similar materials for LGBT couples. In order to have biologically related children, LGBT individuals or couples utilize assisted reproductive technologies (ART). Fertility clinic websites provide online education to familiarize patients with the different ART procedures; however, no studies have examined the prevalence of educational information for LGBT couples compared to information for heterosexual couples utilizing ART. This website review evaluated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-reported fertility center websites. Websites were reviewed in 2014 using the latest 2011 CDC report, and reviewed again in 2015 with the latest 2013 CDC report. Patient education information was coded using categories determined after a sample review, and differences were analyzed with χ(2) tests, with P-values calculated with Fisher's exact test. In 2014, 31.1% (121) of 389 websites with information for heterosexual couples also contained information for LGBT couples. In 2015, the number of fertility centers with information for LGBT couples increased by 52.9% to 185 (P online information on fertility center websites may not directly reflect the quality of care LGBT individuals or couples receive in the clinic, and the effect of this absence of online information on the clinical experiences of LGBT patients is unknown. These findings add to the growing body of work showing disparities in the treatment of LGBT persons compared to the overall population. To overcome these discrepancies, healthcare providers should adapt their practice to include this growing and underserved patient population. Funding was provided by the Medical Student Summer

Counseling Instruction in the Online Classroom: A Survey of Student and Faculty Perceptions

Science.gov (United States)

Cicco, Gina

2012-01-01

This article will review the design, procedures, and results of a recent study conducted to survey the perceptions of counseling students and professionals regarding the delivery of counseling instruction in online courses. Few studies have addressed the appropriateness, effectiveness, and evaluation procedures of counseling skills instruction via…

Promoting an active form of learning out-of-class via answering online "study questions" leads to higher than expected exam scores in General Biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Gibson, Susan I

2015-01-01

A rising need for workers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields has fueled interest in improving teaching within STEM disciplines. Numerous studies have demonstrated the benefits of active learning approaches on student learning outcomes. However, many of these studies have been conducted in experimental, rather than real-life class, settings. In addition, most of these studies have focused on in-class active learning exercises. This study tested the effects of answering questions outside of class on exam performance for General Biology students at the University of Minnesota. An online database of 1,020 multiple-choice questions covering material from the first half of the course was generated. Students in seven course sections (with an average of ∼265 students per section) were given unlimited access to the online study questions. These students made extensive use of the online questions, with students answering an average of 1,323 questions covering material from the half of the semester for which the questions were available. After students answered a set of questions, they were shown the correct answers for those questions. More specific feedback describing how to arrive at the correct answer was provided for the 73% of the questions for which the correct answers were not deemed to be self-explanatory. The extent to which access to the online study questions improved student learning outcomes was assessed by comparing the performance on exam questions of students in the seven course sections with access to the online study questions with the performance of students in course sections without access to the online study questions. Student performance was analyzed for a total of 89 different exams questions that were not included in the study questions, but that covered the same material covered by the study questions. Each of these 89 questions was used on one to five exams given to students in course sections that had access to the

Comparison of digestion procedures used for the determination of boron in biological tissues by ICP-AES [inductively-coupled, plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bauer, W.F.; Miller, D.L.; Steele, S.M.

1988-01-01

A study was designed to identify the most accurate and reliable procedures for the digestion of biological tissues prior to the determination of boron by inductively-coupled, plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES). The four procedures used in this study were an acid bomb digestion and digestions performed in test tubes using perchloric acid and hydrogen peroxide, nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide, and nitric acid alone. Digestions using nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide and nitric acid alone were performed in a manner analogous to the perchloric acid/hydrogen peroxide procedure. The tissues used in the study were from dogs that had been administered a boron compound (Na 2 B 12 H 11 SH) and included two brain tissues, a liver and a tongue. These tissues were selected in order to eliminate results that may be due to surface spiking only. None of the test tube procedures were successful in completely dissolving the samples, as was evidenced by residual color and a coagulated precipitate. The amount of precipitate was much larger for the brain tissues in all cases. The acid bomb digestion and the perchloric acid/hydrogen peroxide procedures gave comparable boron concentrations for all of the tissues in this study. 2 refs., 1 tab

An online readability analysis of pathology-related patient education articles: an opportunity for pathologists to educate patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Prabhu, Arpan V; Kim, Christopher; Crihalmeanu, Tudor; Hansberry, David R; Agarwal, Nitin; DeFrances, Marie C; Trejo Bittar, Humberto E

2017-07-01

Information for patients regarding their clinical conditions and treatment options is widely available online. The American Medical Association and National Institutes of Health recommend that online patient-oriented materials be written at no higher than a seventh-grade reading level to ensure full comprehension by the average American. This study sought to determine whether online patient-oriented materials explaining common pathology procedures are written at appropriate reading levels. Ten pathology procedures that patients would likely research were queried into Google search, and plain text from the first 10 Web sites containing patient education materials for each procedure was analyzed using 10 validated readability scales. We determined mean reading levels of materials grouped by readability scale, procedure, and Web site domain, the overall average reading level of all resources, and popular Web site domains. One hundred Web sites were accessed; one was omitted for short length (pathology-related patient education materials exceeded those recommended by national health literacy guidelines. These patient education materials should be revised to help patients fully understand them. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Management of infections in rheumatic patients receiving biological therapies. The Portuguese Society of Rheumatology recommendations.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Teixeira L

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Infections are a major cause of morbi dity and mortality in systemic inflammatory rheumatic di - seases and the management of infectious complications in patients under biological therapies deserves parti - cular attention. Objective: Develop evidence-based recommendations for the management of infections in rheumatic patients receiving biological therapies. Methods: A search in PubMed (until 10 November 2014 and EMBASE (until 20 December 2014 databases was performed. Patients with systemic inflammatory rheumatic diseases treated with approved biologics in whom infections occurred were included. Search results were submitted to title and abstract selection, followed by detailed review of suitable studies. Information regarding presentation of the infectious complication, its diagnosis, treatment, and outcome, as well as maintenance or discontinuation of the biological agent was extracted and subsequently pooled according to the type of infection considered. Results of literature review were presented and critically reviewed in a dedi - cated meeting by a multidisciplinary panel. Recommendations were then formulated using the Delphi method. Finally, the level of agreement among rheumatologists was voted using an online survey. Results: Fifteen recommendations were issued. Nine general recommendations concerned the assessment of infectious risk before and while on biologics, the procedures in case of suspected infection and the mana - gement of biologics during infectious complications. Six specific recommendations were developed for respiratory, urinary, gastrointestinal, skin, osteoarticular and disseminated infections. Conclusion: These fifteen recommendations are intended to help rheumatologists in the management of infections in patients on biological therapy. They integrate an extensive literature review, expert opinion and inputs from Portuguese rheumatologists.

Reinforcement Learning for Online Control of Evolutionary Algorithms

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Eiben, A.; Horvath, Mark; Kowalczyk, Wojtek; Schut, Martijn

2007-01-01

The research reported in this paper is concerned with assessing the usefulness of reinforcment learning (RL) for on-line calibration of parameters in evolutionary algorithms (EA). We are running an RL procedure and the EA simultaneously and the RL is changing the EA parameters on-the-fly. We

Using Online Lectures to Make Time for Active Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Prunuske, Amy J.; Batzli, Janet; Howell, Evelyn; Miller, Sarah

2012-01-01

To make time in class for group activities devoted to critical thinking, we integrated a series of short online lectures into the homework assignments of a large, introductory biology course at a research university. The majority of students viewed the online lectures before coming to class and reported that the online lectures helped them to complete the in-class activity and did not increase the amount of time they devoted to the course. In addition, students who viewed the online lecture performed better on clicker questions designed to test lower-order cognitive skills. The in-class activities then gave the students practice analyzing the information in groups and provided the instructor with feedback about the students’ understanding of the material. On the basis of the results of this study, we support creating hybrid course models that allow students to learn the fundamental information outside of class time, thereby creating time during the class period to be dedicated toward the conceptual understanding of the material. PMID:22714412

Patient use of social media to evaluate cosmetic treatments and procedures.

Science.gov (United States)

Schlichte, Megan J; Karimkhani, Chante; Jones, Trevor; Trikha, Ritika; Dellavalle, Robert P

2015-04-16

With a growing sphere of influence in the modern world, online social media serves as a readily accessible interface for communication of information. Aesthetic medicine is one of many industries increasingly influenced by social media, as evidenced by the popular website, "RealSelf," an online community founded in 2006 that compiles ratings, reviews, photographs, and expert physician commentary for nearly 300 cosmetic treatments. To investigate the current preferences of patients regarding cosmetic non-surgical, surgical, and dental treatments on RealSelf and in the documented medical literature. On a single day of data collection, all cosmetic treatments or procedures reviewed on the RealSelf website were tabulated, including name, percent "worth it" rating, total number of reviews, and average cost. Patient satisfaction rates documented in the current medical literature for each cosmetic treatment or procedure were also recorded. Statistical t-testingcomparing RealSelf ratings and satisfaction rates in the literature was performed for each category-non-surgical, surgical, and dental. The top ten most-commonly reviewed non-surgical treatments, top ten most-commonly reviewed surgical procedures, and top 5 most-commonly reviewed dental treatments, along with documented satisfaction rates in the medical literature for each treatment or procedure were recorded in table format and ranked by RealSelf "worth it" rating. Paired t-testing revealed that satisfaction rates documented in the literature were significantly higher than RealSelf "worth it" ratings for both non-surgical cosmetic treatments (p=0.00076) and surgical cosmetic procedures (p=0.00056), with no statistically significant difference for dental treatments. For prospective patients interested in cosmetic treatments or procedures, social media sites such as RealSelf may offer information helpful to decision-making as well enable cosmetic treatment providers to build reputations and expand practices. "Worth

Groundwater technical procedures of the U.S. Geological Survey

Science.gov (United States)

Cunningham, William L.; Schalk, Charles W.

2011-01-01

A series of groundwater technical procedures documents (GWPDs) has been released by the U.S. Geological Survey, Water-Resources Discipline, for general use by the public. These technical procedures were written in response to the need for standardized technical procedures of many aspects of groundwater science, including site and measuring-point establishment, measurement of water levels, and measurement of well discharge. The techniques are described in the GWPDs in concise language and are accompanied by necessary figures and tables derived from cited manuals, reports, and other documents. Because a goal of this series of procedures is to remain current with the state of the science, and because procedures change over time, this report is released in an online format only. As new procedures are developed and released, they will be linked to this document.

Tight integration of computerized procedures with plant information at the South Texas Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brtis, J.S.; Green, T.

1996-01-01

This paper describes a unique undertaking that is underway at Houston Lighting and Power's South Texas Project (STP). The paper presents an information upgrade project that uses expert system technologies to computerize design change procedures and to tightly integrate the resulting on-line, interactive procedures with the on-line information that design change activities use and generate. This effort will show how procedure computerization can leverage the large investments in plant data. The expected benefits include reduced costs and improved quality of design change work, plus a significant reduction in the burden of configuration management that comes from design changes. Both process computerization and the integration of process with data are being implemented at STP. This work is part of a major migration of information from a mainframe to a LAN platform. This paper will be of greatest interest to those involved in: (1) configuration management, (2) coordinating information to support design change procedures, (3) plant information management, and (4) business process reengineering

On-line moisture analysis

CERN Document Server

Cutmore, N G

2002-01-01

Measurement of the moisture content of iron ore has become a key issue for controlling moisture additions for dust suppression. In most cases moisture content is still determined by manual or automatic sampling of the ore stream, followed by conventional laboratory analysis by oven drying. Although this procedure enables the moisture content to be routinely monitored, it is too slow for control purposes. This has generated renewed interest in on-line techniques for the accurate and rapid measurement of moisture in iron ore on conveyors. Microwave transmission techniques have emerged over the past 40 years as the dominant technology for on-line measurement of moisture in bulk materials, including iron ores. Alternative technologies have their limitations. Infra-red analysers are used in a variety of process industries, but rely on the measurement of absorption by moisture in a very thin surface layer. Consequently such probes may be compromised by particle size effects and biased presentation of the bulk mater...

Procedure for determination of alpha emitters in urine and dregs samples

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Serdeiro, Nelida H.

2005-01-01

The purpose of this work is to establish the procedure for the identification and quantification of emitting alpha radionuclides in urine and dregs samples. This procedure are applied to all laboratories of the countries of the Project ARCAL LXXVII that determinate alpha emitting radionuclides in biological samples for biological assessment [es

Standardization of digestion procedure for the determination of heavy metals in biological materials by atomic absorption spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khalid, N.; Chaudhri, S.A.

1999-01-01

Proper decomposition of the sample is one of the basic requirements of the atomic absorption spectroscopic analysis. In the present studies, heavy metals (Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn) were determined in biological samples by designating them in a mixture of nitric acid and perchloric acid. The quantification was made with atomic absorption spectrometry using an air-acetylene flame. The reliability of the procedure used was checked by analysing standard reference materials from NBS and IAEA, such as Rice flour (NBS-SRM-1568), Horse Kidney (IAEA H-8), Mixed Human diet(IAEA H-9), Copepod (IAEA MA-A-1) and fish flesh (IAEA MA-A-2) under identical conditions. A good agreement was observed between determined and the certified values reported by NBS and IAEA. (author)

The KLOE online calibration system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pasqualucci, E.; Alexander, G.; Aloisio, A.

2001-01-01

Based on all the features of the KLOE online software, the online calibration system performs current calibration quality checking in real time and starts automatically new calibration procedures when needed. A calibration manager process controls the system, implementing the interface to the online system, receiving information from the run control and translating its state transitions to a separate state machine. It acts as a 'calibration run controller' and performs failure recovery when requested by a set of process checkers. The core of the system is a multi-threaded OO histogram server that receives histogramming commands by remote processes and operates on local ROOT histograms. A client library and C, fortran and C++ application interface libraries allow the user to connect and define his own histogram or read histograms owned by others using an book-like interface. Several calibration processes running in parallel in a distributed, multiplatform environment can fill the same histograms, allowing fast external information check. A monitor thread allow remote browsing for visual inspection. Pre-filtered data are read in non-privileged spy mode from the data acquisition system via the Kloe Integrated Dataflow. The main characteristics of the system are presented

Understanding Biological Regulation Through Synthetic Biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Bashor, Caleb J; Collins, James J

2018-03-16

Engineering synthetic gene regulatory circuits proceeds through iterative cycles of design, building, and testing. Initial circuit designs must rely on often-incomplete models of regulation established by fields of reductive inquiry-biochemistry and molecular and systems biology. As differences in designed and experimentally observed circuit behavior are inevitably encountered, investigated, and resolved, each turn of the engineering cycle can force a resynthesis in understanding of natural network function. Here, we outline research that uses the process of gene circuit engineering to advance biological discovery. Synthetic gene circuit engineering research has not only refined our understanding of cellular regulation but furnished biologists with a toolkit that can be directed at natural systems to exact precision manipulation of network structure. As we discuss, using circuit engineering to predictively reorganize, rewire, and reconstruct cellular regulation serves as the ultimate means of testing and understanding how cellular phenotype emerges from systems-level network function. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Biophysics Volume 47 is May 20, 2018. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

Factors Affecting Consumer Participation In Online Shopping In Malaysia: The Case Of University Students

OpenAIRE

Mohammed Shamsul Chowdhury; Nadiah Ahmad

2012-01-01

Since lack of trust has remained one of the barriers to online shopping, this study is intended to explore the factors that affect the perceptions of trust for students’ intent to participate in online shopping. We used non-probability procedure to select respondents since we do not know how many students have access to the internet and are engaged in online shopping. Pearson correlation, multiple regression were used to test the hypotheses. The regression analysis in this study clearly suppo...

Sequential Change-Point Detection via Online Convex Optimization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yang Cao

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Sequential change-point detection when the distribution parameters are unknown is a fundamental problem in statistics and machine learning. When the post-change parameters are unknown, we consider a set of detection procedures based on sequential likelihood ratios with non-anticipating estimators constructed using online convex optimization algorithms such as online mirror descent, which provides a more versatile approach to tackling complex situations where recursive maximum likelihood estimators cannot be found. When the underlying distributions belong to a exponential family and the estimators satisfy the logarithm regret property, we show that this approach is nearly second-order asymptotically optimal. This means that the upper bound for the false alarm rate of the algorithm (measured by the average-run-length meets the lower bound asymptotically up to a log-log factor when the threshold tends to infinity. Our proof is achieved by making a connection between sequential change-point and online convex optimization and leveraging the logarithmic regret bound property of online mirror descent algorithm. Numerical and real data examples validate our theory.

Varied Student Perception of E-Text Use among Student Populations in Biology Courses

Science.gov (United States)

McDaniel, Kerrie; Daday, Jerry

2018-01-01

The faculty in a biology department at a four-year public comprehensive university adopted e-texts for all 100 and 200 level biology courses with the primary motivation of reducing textbook costs to students. This study examines the students' perceptions of the e-texts adopted for these 100 and 200 level biology courses. An online questionnaire…

Online Resources

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Home; Journals; Journal of Genetics; Online Resources. Journal of Genetics. Online Resources. Volume 97. 2018 | Online resources. Volume 96. 2017 | Online resources. Volume 95. 2016 | Online resources. Volume 94. 2015 | Online resources. Volume 93. 2014 | Online resources. Volume 92. 2013 | Online resources ...

Simultaneous determination of the repertoire of classical neurotransmitters released from embryonal carcinoma stem cells using online microdialysis coupled with hydrophilic interaction chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, Ya-Bin; Sun, Fan; Teng, Lin; Li, Wen-Bin; An, Shi-Min; Zhang, Chun; Yang, Xin-Jie; Lv, Hao-Yu; Ding, Xu-Ping; Zhu, Liang

2014-01-01

Highlights: • An online MD-HILIC–MS/MS method for simultaneously measuring the repertoire of classical transmitters was developed and validated. • Hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) was successfully employed to online system. • Stable isotope labeled internal standards and authentic matrix have been applied to guarantee reliable results. • The method features simple procedure (no sample preparation), high recovery (≥73%), high accuracy (89.36% ≤ RE ≤ 116.89%), good reproducibility (2.18% ≤ RSD ≤ 14.56%), and sensitive limits of detection (2 pg for acetylcholine, serotonin, and glutamate, 10 pg for dopamine, norepinephrine, GABA, and glycine). - Abstract: Dynamic, continuous, and simultaneous multi-analysis of transmitters is important for the delineation of the complex interactions between the neuronal and intercellular communications. But the analysis of the whole repertoire of classical transmitters of diverse structure is challenging due to their different physico-chemical properties and to their high polarity feature which leads to poor retention in traditional reversed-phase columns during LC–MS analysis. Here, an online microdialysis coupled with hydrophilic interaction chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (online MD-HILIC–MS/MS) detection method was developed for the simultaneous measurement of the repertoire of classical transmitters (acetylcholine, serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, glutamate, GABA, and glycine). Stable isotope labeled internal standards and authentic matrix have been applied to guarantee reliable results. The method was successfully employed to reveal the characteristics of transmitter release from embryonal carcinoma stem cells. The method features simple procedure (no sample preparation), high recovery (≥73%), high accuracy (89.36% ≤ RE ≤ 116.89%), good reproducibility (2.18% ≤ RSD ≤ 14.56%), and sensitive limits of detection (2 pg for acetylcholine, serotonin, and glutamate, 10 pg

Simultaneous determination of the repertoire of classical neurotransmitters released from embryonal carcinoma stem cells using online microdialysis coupled with hydrophilic interaction chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tang, Ya-Bin [Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 280 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai 200025 (China); Collaborative Innovation Center for Translational Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 280 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai 200025 (China); Sun, Fan [Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 280 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai 200025 (China); Teng, Lin [Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 280 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai 200025 (China); Department of Cardiology and Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, The First College of Clinical Medical Sciences, China Three Gorges University, Yichang 443000, Hubei (China); Li, Wen-Bin; An, Shi-Min [Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 280 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai 200025 (China); Collaborative Innovation Center for Translational Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 280 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai 200025 (China); Zhang, Chun; Yang, Xin-Jie; Lv, Hao-Yu; Ding, Xu-Ping [Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 280 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai 200025 (China); Zhu, Liang, E-mail: zhuliang17@gmail.com [Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 280 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai 200025 (China); Collaborative Innovation Center for Translational Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 280 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai 200025 (China); and others

2014-11-07

Highlights: • An online MD-HILIC–MS/MS method for simultaneously measuring the repertoire of classical transmitters was developed and validated. • Hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) was successfully employed to online system. • Stable isotope labeled internal standards and authentic matrix have been applied to guarantee reliable results. • The method features simple procedure (no sample preparation), high recovery (≥73%), high accuracy (89.36% ≤ RE ≤ 116.89%), good reproducibility (2.18% ≤ RSD ≤ 14.56%), and sensitive limits of detection (2 pg for acetylcholine, serotonin, and glutamate, 10 pg for dopamine, norepinephrine, GABA, and glycine). - Abstract: Dynamic, continuous, and simultaneous multi-analysis of transmitters is important for the delineation of the complex interactions between the neuronal and intercellular communications. But the analysis of the whole repertoire of classical transmitters of diverse structure is challenging due to their different physico-chemical properties and to their high polarity feature which leads to poor retention in traditional reversed-phase columns during LC–MS analysis. Here, an online microdialysis coupled with hydrophilic interaction chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (online MD-HILIC–MS/MS) detection method was developed for the simultaneous measurement of the repertoire of classical transmitters (acetylcholine, serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, glutamate, GABA, and glycine). Stable isotope labeled internal standards and authentic matrix have been applied to guarantee reliable results. The method was successfully employed to reveal the characteristics of transmitter release from embryonal carcinoma stem cells. The method features simple procedure (no sample preparation), high recovery (≥73%), high accuracy (89.36% ≤ RE ≤ 116.89%), good reproducibility (2.18% ≤ RSD ≤ 14.56%), and sensitive limits of detection (2 pg for acetylcholine, serotonin, and glutamate, 10 pg

Content Analysis Coding Schemes for Online Asynchronous Discussion

Science.gov (United States)

Weltzer-Ward, Lisa

2011-01-01

Purpose: Researchers commonly utilize coding-based analysis of classroom asynchronous discussion contributions as part of studies of online learning and instruction. However, this analysis is inconsistent from study to study with over 50 coding schemes and procedures applied in the last eight years. The aim of this article is to provide a basis…

Microcomputers as on-line catalogs in special libraries.

Science.gov (United States)

Faust, J B

1986-01-01

This article discusses the rationale for the conversion of a card catalog to an on-line system in a special library owning approximately 4000 titles. Equipment, software, and procedures are described. Pros and cons of the use of a microcomputer for such a project, as well as costs and personnel needs, are outlined.

Promoting an active form of learning out-of-class via answering online “study questions” leads to higher than expected exam scores in General Biology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susan I. Gibson

2015-10-01

Full Text Available A rising need for workers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM fields has fueled interest in improving teaching within STEM disciplines. Numerous studies have demonstrated the benefits of active learning approaches on student learning outcomes. However, many of these studies have been conducted in experimental, rather than real-life class, settings. In addition, most of these studies have focused on in-class active learning exercises. This study tested the effects of answering questions outside of class on exam performance for General Biology students at the University of Minnesota. An online database of 1,020 multiple-choice questions covering material from the first half of the course was generated. Students in seven course sections (with an average of ∼265 students per section were given unlimited access to the online study questions. These students made extensive use of the online questions, with students answering an average of 1,323 questions covering material from the half of the semester for which the questions were available. After students answered a set of questions, they were shown the correct answers for those questions. More specific feedback describing how to arrive at the correct answer was provided for the 73% of the questions for which the correct answers were not deemed to be self-explanatory. The extent to which access to the online study questions improved student learning outcomes was assessed by comparing the performance on exam questions of students in the seven course sections with access to the online study questions with the performance of students in course sections without access to the online study questions. Student performance was analyzed for a total of 89 different exams questions that were not included in the study questions, but that covered the same material covered by the study questions. Each of these 89 questions was used on one to five exams given to students in course sections that

Effects of marine reserves on the reproductive biology and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Effects of marine reserves on the reproductive biology and recruitment rates of commonly and rarely exploited limpets. ... For recruitment, we hypothesised that if recruits are attracted to adults or survive better ... AJOL African Journals Online.

Effect of biological and chemical oxidation on the removal of estrogenic compounds (NP and BPA) from wastewater: an integrated assessment procedure.

Science.gov (United States)

Bertanza, Giorgio; Pedrazzani, Roberta; Dal Grande, Mario; Papa, Matteo; Zambarda, Valerio; Montani, Claudia; Steimberg, Nathalie; Mazzoleni, Giovanna; Di Lorenzo, Diego

2011-04-01

A major source of the wide presence of EDCs (Endocrine Disrupting Compounds) in water bodies is represented by direct/indirect discharge of sewage. Recent scientific literature reports data about their trace concentration in water, sediments and aquatic organisms, as well as removal efficiencies of different wastewater treatment schemes. Despite the availability of a huge amount of data, some doubts still persist due to the difficulty in evaluating synergistic effects of trace pollutants in complex matrices. In this paper, an integrated assessment procedure was used, based on chemical and biological analyses, in order to compare the performance of two full scale biological wastewater treatment plants (either equipped with conventional settling tanks or with an ultrafiltration membrane unit) and tertiary ozonation (pilot scale). Nonylphenol and bisphenol A were chosen as model EDCs, together with the parent compounds mono- and di-ethoxylated nonylphenol (quantified by means of GC-MS). Water estrogenic activity was evaluated by applying the human breast cancer MCF-7 based reporter gene assay. Process parameters (e.g., sludge age, temperature) and conventional pollutants (e.g., COD, suspended solids) were also measured during monitoring campaigns. Conventional activated sludge achieved satisfactory removal of both analytes and estrogenicity. A further reduction of biological activity was exerted by MBR (Membrane Biological Reactor) as well as ozonation; the latter contributed also to decrease EDC concentrations. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Health-related hot topic detection in online communities using text clustering.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yingjie Lu

Full Text Available Recently, health-related social media services, especially online health communities, have rapidly emerged. Patients with various health conditions participate in online health communities to share their experiences and exchange healthcare knowledge. Exploring hot topics in online health communities helps us better understand patients' needs and interest in health-related knowledge. However, the statistical topic analysis employed in previous studies is becoming impractical for processing the rapidly increasing amount of online data. Automatic topic detection based on document clustering is an alternative approach for extracting health-related hot topics in online communities. In addition to the keyword-based features used in traditional text clustering, we integrate medical domain-specific features to represent the messages posted in online health communities. Three disease discussion boards, including boards devoted to lung cancer, breast cancer and diabetes, from an online health community are used to test the effectiveness of topic detection. Experiment results demonstrate that health-related hot topics primarily include symptoms, examinations, drugs, procedures and complications. Further analysis reveals that there also exist some significant differences among the hot topics discussed on different types of disease discussion boards.

Review of online coupling of sample preparation techniques with liquid chromatography.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Jialiang; Zhang, Chengjiang; Zhang, Zhuomin; Li, Gongke

2014-03-07

Sample preparation is still considered as the bottleneck of the whole analytical procedure, and efforts has been conducted towards the automation, improvement of sensitivity and accuracy, and low comsuption of organic solvents. Development of online sample preparation techniques (SP) coupled with liquid chromatography (LC) is a promising way to achieve these goals, which has attracted great attention. This article reviews the recent advances on the online SP-LC techniques. Various online SP techniques have been described and summarized, including solid-phase-based extraction, liquid-phase-based extraction assisted with membrane, microwave assisted extraction, ultrasonic assisted extraction, accelerated solvent extraction and supercritical fluids extraction. Specially, the coupling approaches of online SP-LC systems and the corresponding interfaces have been discussed and reviewed in detail, such as online injector, autosampler combined with transport unit, desorption chamber and column switching. Typical applications of the online SP-LC techniques have been summarized. Then the problems and expected trends in this field are attempted to be discussed and proposed in order to encourage the further development of online SP-LC techniques. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Social Anxiety and Loneliness in Adults Who Solicit Minors Online.

Science.gov (United States)

Schulz, Anja; Bergen, Emilia; Schuhmann, Petya; Hoyer, Jürgen

2017-09-01

This study examined the association of social anxiety, loneliness, and problematic Internet use (PIU) with the online solicitation of minors. Within a convenience sample of adult Internet users from Germany, Finland, and Sweden ( N = 2,828), we compared the responses of participants who had not interacted sexually with strangers online ( n = 2,049) with participants who sexually interacted with unknown adults online ( n = 642), and both groups with adults who sexually solicited unknown minors online ( n = 137). Online sexual interaction with adults was associated with higher levels of social anxiety, loneliness, and PIU compared with not sexually interacting with strangers online. Sexually soliciting minors online was associated with higher levels of social anxiety, loneliness, and PIU compared with sexually interacting with adults and not sexually interacting with strangers at all. Interestingly, compared with those with adult contacts, loneliness was specifically pronounced for participants who solicited children, whereas social anxiety and PIU were pronounced for participants soliciting adolescents. These findings suggest that social anxiety, loneliness, and PIU may be among the motivators for using the Internet to solicit individuals of different age groups for sexual purposes. These factors emerged as specifically relevant for adults who sexually solicited minors and who reported greater impairments compared with adults who sexually interacted with adults. These characteristics may thus be important to consider for assessment and treatment procedures for individuals soliciting minors online.

Image Jacobian Matrix Estimation Based on Online Support Vector Regression

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shangqin Mao

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Research into robotics visual servoing is an important area in the field of robotics. It has proven difficult to achieve successful results for machine vision and robotics in unstructured environments without using any a priori camera or kinematic models. In uncalibrated visual servoing, image Jacobian matrix estimation methods can be divided into two groups: the online method and the offline method. The offline method is not appropriate for most natural environments. The online method is robust but rough. Moreover, if the images feature configuration changes, it needs to restart the approximating procedure. A novel approach based on an online support vector regression (OL-SVR algorithm is proposed which overcomes the drawbacks and combines the virtues just mentioned.

Essential elements of online information networks on invasive alien species

Science.gov (United States)

Simpson, A.; Sellers, E.; Grosse, A.; Xie, Y.

2006-01-01

In order to be effective, information must be placed in the proper context and organized in a manner that is logical and (preferably) standardized. Recently, invasive alien species (IAS) scientists have begun to create online networks to share their information concerning IAS prevention and control. At a special networking session at the Beijing International Symposium on Biological Invasions, an online Eastern Asia-North American IAS Information Network (EA-NA Network) was proposed. To prepare for the development of this network, and to provide models for other regional collaborations, we compare four examples of global, regional, and national online IAS information networks: the Global Invasive Species Information Network, the Invasives Information Network of the Inter-American Biodiversity Information Network, the Chinese Species Information System, and the Invasive Species Information Node of the US National Biological Information Infrastructure. We conclude that IAS networks require a common goal, dedicated leaders, effective communication, and broad endorsement, in order to obtain sustainable, long-term funding and long-term stability. They need to start small, use the experience of other networks, partner with others, and showcase benefits. Global integration and synergy among invasive species networks will succeed with contributions from both the top-down and the bottom-up. ?? 2006 Springer.

Pengaruh Sistem Pembayaran Listrik Online (Payment Point Online Bank Terhadap Pengendalian Internal Kas Pada PT. PLN (Persero DJBB

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maulana Yusup

2012-04-01

Full Text Available The company has its own way in the benefit and boost profits from year to year. Gains usually obtained sourced from a network perusahaan.System activities related procedures in a comprehensive series to carry out an enterprise activity. Therefore, the service strategy very big influence on the activities of the company. With the waiters are good, it is expected there will be no diversion of the company The research objective was to determine the effect of electricity online payment system (payment points online bank to internal control of cash at PT.PLN (Persero Distribution West Java and Banten Distribution Office. Conventional payment systems that rely on physical cash as a payment instrument has been shifted due to advances in technology can replace conventional ways of containing the risk of endangering safety. Based on research data on the PT. PLN (Persero Distribution West Java and Banten and discussion based on the theory, it can be concluded that the system of online payment of electricity was instrumental in supporting the effectiveness of internal control of cash, it can be seen from (1 The presence of general controls and application controls are adequate. Customers make payment through bank online payment points, (2 Reconciliation of receipt of funds receipt and bookkeeping is done regularly and directed accordingly (2 Process Online Payment System Electrical PPOB (Payment Point Online Bank is an electricity bill payment service and other bills online real -Time. For it can be suggested that understanding is not uniform (the existence of different viewpoints of employees with regard to the value and effect of the application of the company's progress PPOB can be removed and can eliminate the old paradigm of doing business processes PLN and increased knowledge of the mechanism of action of the system so as to improve performance and ultimately increase customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Online Biodiversity Resources - Principles for Usability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sophie Neale

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Online biodiversity portals and databases enabling access to large volumes of biological information represent a potentially extensive set of resources for a variety of user groups. However, in order for these resources to live up to their promise they need to be both useful and easy to use. We discuss a number of principles for designing systems for usability, examine how these have been applied to the development of online biodiversity resources and compare this with a portal project developed by the Astrophysics community. We highlight a lack of user involvement and formalised requirements analysis by biodiversity projects resulting in a poor understanding of both the users and their tasks. We suggest a change in the way large biodiversity portal projects are structured, that is by providing infrastructure and supporting user groups developing individual interfaces.

Why Choose Online Learning: Relationship of Existing Factors and Chronobiology

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Yi; Pan, Rui; Choi, Jea H.; Mellish, Linda; Strobel, Johannes

2011-01-01

Existing research on choice of online learning utilized factors such as perceived level of control, independence, and satisfaction, yet the relationship among these factors is under-researched. Due to the value of "learning anytime," biological factors underlying "choice of time" might provide additional insights. This article…

The impact of online reviews on exhibitor behaviour: evidence from movie industry

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, H.; Guo, K.

2017-11-01

This paper explores the effects of online reviews in the empirical context of movie industry. Quality uncertainty and hedonic consumption render movies a particularly interesting category to study quality signals and social influence. Online consumer chatters about a movie are readily available in popular movie-related websites. These data, coupled with movie-specific sales and advertising information accessible online or from commercial sources, provide unique opportunity to explore the implication of word-of-mouth (WOM) for consumer behaviour and business strategy. We thus examine how online reviews impact on business strategies, in this case, exhibitor behaviour, through an empirical analysis of movie industry. First, online reviews are grouped into user reviews and critic reviews. We then use them respectively in two simultaneous equation systems, which regard online reviews, box office revenue and the number of screens as endogenous variables. Next, a three-stage least-square procedure is employed to estimate these two systems using a sample of 141 movies in the U.S. market. The results indicate that the online user reviews' rating is positively associated with the number of screens, confirming that the online review is influential on exhibitor behaviour. The number of online reviews indirectly influences the number of screens through the box office revenue.

Green mathematics: Benefits of including biological variation in your data analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tijskens, L.M.M.; Schouten, R.E.; Unuk, T.; Simcic, M.

2015-01-01

Biological variation is omnipresent in nature. It contains useful information that is neglected by the usually applied statistical procedures. To extract this information special procedures have to be applied. Biological variation is seen in properties (e.g. size, colour, firmness), but the

Facing regulatory challenges of on-line hemodiafiltration.

Science.gov (United States)

Kümmerle, Wolfgang

2011-01-01

On-line hemodiafiltration (on-line HDF) is the result of a vision that triggered multifarious changes in very different areas. Driven by the idea to offer better medical treatment for renal patients, technological innovations were developed and established that also constituted new challenges in the field of regulatory affairs. The existing regulations predominantly addressed the quality and safety of those products needed to perform dialysis treatment which were supplied by industrial manufacturers. However, the complexity of treatment system required for the provision of on-line fluids demanded a holistic approach encompassing all components involved. Hence, focus was placed not only on single products, but much more on their interfacing, and the clinical infrastructure, in particular, had to undergo substantial changes. The overall understanding of the interaction between such factors, quite different in their nature, was crucial to overcome the arising regulatory obstacles. This essay describes the evolution of the on-line HDF procedure from the regulatory point of view. A simplified diagram demonstrates the path taken from the former regulatory understanding to the realization of necessary changes. That achievement was only possible through 'management of preview' and consequent promotion of technical and medical innovations as well as regulatory re-evaluations. Copyright © 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Argudas: lessons for argumentation in biology based on a gene expression use case.

Science.gov (United States)

McLeod, Kenneth; Ferguson, Gus; Burger, Albert

2012-01-25

In situ hybridisation gene expression information helps biologists identify where a gene is expressed. However, the databases that republish the experimental information online are often both incomplete and inconsistent. Non-monotonic reasoning can help resolve such difficulties - one such form of reasoning is computational argumentation. Essentially this involves asking a computer to debate (i.e. reason about) the validity of a particular statement. Arguments are produced for both sides - the statement is true and, the statement is false - then the most powerful argument is used. In this work the computer is asked to debate whether or not a gene is expressed in a particular mouse anatomical structure. The information generated during the debate can be passed to the biological end-user, enabling their own decision-making process. This paper examines the evolution of a system, Argudas, which tests using computational argumentation in an in situ gene hybridisation gene expression use case. Argudas reasons using information extracted from several different online resources that publish gene expression information for the mouse. The development and evaluation of two prototypes is discussed. Throughout a number of issues shall be raised including the appropriateness of computational argumentation in biology and the challenges faced when integrating apparently similar online biological databases. From the work described in this paper it is clear that for argumentation to be effective in the biological domain the argumentation community need to develop further the tools and resources they provide. Additionally, the biological community must tackle the incongruity between overlapping and adjacent resources, thus facilitating the integration and modelling of biological information. Finally, this work highlights both the importance of, and difficulty in creating, a good model of the domain.

Production of biological nanoparticles from bovine serum albumin ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Production of biological nanoparticles from bovine serum albumin for drug delivery. ... Bovine serum albumin (BSA) was used for generation of nanoparticles in a drug delivery system. ... The impact of protein concentration and additional rate of organic solvent (i.e. ethanol) upon the particle ... AJOL African Journals Online.

The Case for Cyberlearning: Genomics (and Dragons!) in the High School Biology Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Southworth, Meghan; Mokros, Jan; Dorsey, Chad; Smith, Randy

2010-01-01

GENIQUEST is a cyberlearning computer program that allows students to investigate biological data using a research-based instructional model. In this article, the authors make the case for using cyberlearning to teach students about the rapidly growing fields of genomics and computational biology. (Contains 2 figures and 1 online resource.)

On-line production of [11C]cyanogen bromide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Westerberg, G.; Laangstroem, B.

1997-01-01

The electrophilic labelling precursor [ 11 C]cyanogen bromide was produced in 95% radiochemical yield (decay-corrected) from hydrogen [ 11 C]cyanide within 3 min from the end of bombardment using a simple and convenient solid-phase on-line procedure. The [ 11 C]cyanogen bromide has been used in the synthesis of a number of labelled compounds for use in positron emission tomography. (author)

Aiming for a fully integrated computerized procedure system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marron, J. E.

2006-01-01

A fully integrated Computerized Procedure System must provide, at a minimum, a) Specification: access to design basis procedures, b) Monitoring: incorporation of real-time plant status, c) Advise: highlighting likely decision paths, and d) Reporting: logging conditions and actions taken. The CPS plays a critical role in overcoming the human factors that lead to accidents. At the same time it can be an essential tool in providing the information and automation to augment what humans do best, identify patterns and make associative leaps in the presence of ambiguous data. Timeliner and TaskGuide are examples of CPS that have evolved from projects in the aerospace industry. They illustrate certain common characteristics of a CPS, namely the knowledge base, user interface, and traceability features. The complexity and number of procedures for a current nuclear project has led to the development of two tools, the Power Generation Control System (PGCS) and the Online Procedure System (OLPS). Together, these systems address the knowledge-base and user interface aspects of a CPS and go a long way in addressing other areas. PGCS and OLPS contain full configuration management capabilities for procedures and the operating recipe. They include administrative functions for online and offline management of documents and data. Some lessons learned from this pair of programs developed by Invensys is the need for more integrated recording mechanisms. The future of CPS is likely to see higher integration of the document access, system status, decision support and logging capabilities. The CPS may evolve into the standard operational interface. Internet technologies that are common-place today have made the possibility of the Active Document a reality. The OPC Foundation is pursuing standards that may accelerate such developments. (authors)

Web-based online system for recording and examing of events in power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seyd Farshi, S.; Dehghani, M.

2004-01-01

Occurrence of events in power plants could results in serious drawbacks in generation of power. This suggests high degree of importance for online recording and examing of events. In this paper an online web-based system is introduced, which records and examines events in power plants. Throughout the paper, procedures for design and implementation of this system, its features and results gained are explained. this system provides predefined level of online access to all data of events for all its users in power plants, dispatching, regional utilities and top-level managers. By implementation of electric power industry intranet, an expandable modular system to be used in different sectors of industry is offered. Web-based online recording and examing system for events offers the following advantages: - Online recording of events in power plants. - Examing of events in regional utilities. - Access to event' data. - Preparing managerial reports

SAFARI, an On-Line Text-Processing System User's Manual.

Science.gov (United States)

Chapin, P.G.; And Others.

This report describes for the potential user a set of procedures for processing textual materials on-line. In this preliminary model an information analyst can scan through messages, reports, and other documents on a display scope and select relevant facts, which are processed linguistically and then stored in the computer in the form of logical…

Student Satisfaction with Online Learning: Is It a Psychological Contract?

Science.gov (United States)

Dziuban, Charles; Moskal, Patsy; Thompson, Jessica; Kramer, Lauren; DeCantis, Genevieve; Hermsdorfer, Andrea

2015-01-01

The authors explore the possible relationship between student satisfaction with online learning and the theory of psychological contracts. The study incorporates latent trait models using the image analysis procedure and computation of Anderson and Rubin factors scores with contrasts for students who are satisfied, ambivalent, or dissatisfied with…

Innovative Approaches to Increasing the Student Assessment Procedures Effectiveness

Science.gov (United States)

Dorozhkin, Evgenij M.; Chelyshkova, Marina B.; Malygin, Alexey A.; Toymentseva, Irina A.; Anopchenko, Tatiana Y.

2016-01-01

The relevance of the investigated problem is determined by the need to improving the evaluation procedures in education and the student assessment in the age of the context of education widening, new modes of study developing (such as blending learning, e-learning, massive open online courses), immediate feedback necessity, reliable and valid…

Pengaruh Online Reviews Terhadap Online Hotel Booking Intentions Pada Online Travel Agent Lokal

OpenAIRE

Widya Putra, Surya Aditya; Riorini, Sri Vandayuli

2016-01-01

Perkembangan penggunaan internet yang pesat saat ini, menunjukkan adanya pergesaran teknologi yang semakin maju mengarah ke media berbasis online. Konsumen cenderung untuk menelusuri (surfing) kelengkapan informasi produk dan jasa melalui internet dan melakukan pembelian secara online dikarenakan keterbatasan waktu serta kemudahan yang dirasakan. Penelitian yang dilakukan bertujuan untuk menganalisis pengaruh online reviews beserta dimensi-nya, yaitu: usefullness of online review, reviewer ex...

Undergraduate Essay Writing: Online and Face-to-Face Peer Reviews

Science.gov (United States)

Chong, Mike R.; Goff, Lori; Dej, Kimberly

2012-01-01

We implemented two different approaches of using peer review to support undergraduate essay assignments for students taking large second-year courses in life sciences and biology: a web-based online peer review (OPR) approach and a more traditional face-to-face peer review (FPR) approach that was conducted in tutorial settings. The essays…

The current role of on-line extraction approaches in clinical and forensic toxicology.

Science.gov (United States)

Mueller, Daniel M

2014-08-01

In today's clinical and forensic toxicological laboratories, automation is of interest because of its ability to optimize processes, to reduce manual workload and handling errors and to minimize exposition to potentially infectious samples. Extraction is usually the most time-consuming step; therefore, automation of this step is reasonable. Currently, from the field of clinical and forensic toxicology, methods using the following on-line extraction techniques have been published: on-line solid-phase extraction, turbulent flow chromatography, solid-phase microextraction, microextraction by packed sorbent, single-drop microextraction and on-line desorption of dried blood spots. Most of these published methods are either single-analyte or multicomponent procedures; methods intended for systematic toxicological analysis are relatively scarce. However, the use of on-line extraction will certainly increase in the near future.

Determination of Sr, Ba, Rb, and Cs in biological reference materials using a radiochemical NAA group separation procedure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mizera, J.; Randa, Z.

2008-01-01

Strontium, barium, rubidium, and cesium in selected, predominantly biological, reference materials (NIST 1515, 1547, 1549, 1566a, 1571, 1577b, 2704, CTA-OTL-1, and Bowen's Kale) were determined using neutron activation analysis (NAA) in two different analytical modes - instrumental NAA with epithermal neutrons (ENAA), and NAA with radiochemical group separation of Sr-Ba and Rb-Cs (RNAA). The ENAA mode was based on long-term (5 h) irradiation of samples in a Cd shielding. The RNAA procedure was based on long-term (20 h) irradiation of samples, their decomposition / dissolution by alkaline-oxidative fusion, and precipitation of Sr and Ba sulfates, and sorption of Rb and Cs onto ammonium phosphomolybdate (APM). Both methods provided element contents in the analyzed reference materials consistent with certified and/or literature values. (author)

The emerging molecular biology toolbox for the study of long noncoding RNA biology

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Fok, Ezio T

2017-10-01

Full Text Available cellular function, it remains crucial to deepen our understanding of their biology. First draft submitted: 4 May 2017; Accepted for publication: 4 July 2017; Published online: 6 September 2017 Keywords: CRISPR/Cas9 • epigenetic regulation • functional... efficient in the nucleus and preferably effective at the site of transcription. The use of targeted nucleases such as CRISPR/Cas9 for such purposes is possible, however, their application has to be carefully considered. Mutations to the sequence are usually...

Gender Representation in Online Media. Case Study: the Interview

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Delia Gavriliu

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The gender is a biological aspect which has migrated into a social concept with a major impact over the masculine or feminine identities, created by the society in itself. The media are a way of identity (reconstruction, our purpose being focused on a linguistic analysis of the media content of a Romanian online journal column – the interview, obtaining in this way classes of gender representation in the online medium. The application of the socio-psychological concept of gender on the journalistic texts is made through content analysis, obtaining in this way categories, types, domains of predilection, gender status. Social gender representations with their stereotypes and their innovations represent a poor explored domain when speaking of their transpositions in media. Our study aims to take into consideration a content – gender projection approach, in an objective perspective, based on a content analysis through gender representation in Romanian online content.

A procedure for the estimation over time of metabolic fluxes in scenarios where measurements are uncertain and/or insufficient

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Picó Jesús

2007-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background An indirect approach is usually used to estimate the metabolic fluxes of an organism: couple the available measurements with known biological constraints (e.g. stoichiometry. Typically this estimation is done under a static point of view. Therefore, the fluxes so obtained are only valid while the environmental conditions and the cell state remain stable. However, estimating the evolution over time of the metabolic fluxes is valuable to investigate the dynamic behaviour of an organism and also to monitor industrial processes. Although Metabolic Flux Analysis can be successively applied with this aim, this approach has two drawbacks: i sometimes it cannot be used because there is a lack of measurable fluxes, and ii the uncertainty of experimental measurements cannot be considered. The Flux Balance Analysis could be used instead, but the assumption of optimal behaviour of the organism brings other difficulties. Results We propose a procedure to estimate the evolution of the metabolic fluxes that is structured as follows: 1 measure the concentrations of extracellular species and biomass, 2 convert this data to measured fluxes and 3 estimate the non-measured fluxes using the Flux Spectrum Approach, a variant of Metabolic Flux Analysis that overcomes the difficulties mentioned above without assuming optimal behaviour. We apply the procedure to a real problem taken from the literature: estimate the metabolic fluxes during a cultivation of CHO cells in batch mode. We show that it provides a reliable and rich estimation of the non-measured fluxes, thanks to considering measurements uncertainty and reversibility constraints. We also demonstrate that this procedure can estimate the non-measured fluxes even when there is a lack of measurable species. In addition, it offers a new method to deal with inconsistency. Conclusion This work introduces a procedure to estimate time-varying metabolic fluxes that copes with the insufficiency of

Examining the Delivery Modes of Metacognitive Awareness and Active Reading Lessons in a College Nonmajors Introductory Biology Course

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kendra M. Hill

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Current research supports the role of metacognitive strategies to enhance reading comprehension. This study measured the effectiveness of online versus face-to-face metacognitive and active reading skills lessons introduced by Biology faculty to college students in a non-majors introductory biology course. These lessons were delivered in two lectures either online (Group 1: N = 154 or face-to-face (Group 2: N = 152. Previously validated pre- and post-surveys were used to collect and compare data by paired and independent t-test analysis (α = 0.05. Pre- and post-survey data showed a statistically significant improvement in both groups in metacognitive awareness (p = 0.001, p = 0.003, respectively and reading comprehension (p < 0.001 for both groups. When comparing the delivery mode of these lessons, no difference was detected between the online and face-to-face instruction for metacognitive awareness (pre- p = 0.619, post- p = 0.885. For reading comprehension, no difference in gains was demonstrated between online and face-to-face (p = 0.381, however, differences in pre- and post- test scores was measured (pre- p = 0.005, post- p = 0.038. This study suggests that biology instructors can easily introduce effective metacognitive awareness and active reading lessons into their course, either through online or face-to-face instruction.

The taboos attached to the translation of biological terms from ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The taboos attached to the translation of biological terms from English into Northern Sotho. ... terms in such a way that the readership for whom the translation is intended will not feel offended by the terms used. ... AJOL African Journals Online.

Quantifying the role of online news in linking conservation research to Facebook and Twitter.

Science.gov (United States)

Papworth, S K; Nghiem, T P L; Chimalakonda, D; Posa, M R C; Wijedasa, L S; Bickford, D; Carrasco, L R

2015-06-01

Conservation science needs to engage the general public to ensure successful conservation interventions. Although online technologies such as Twitter and Facebook offer new opportunities to accelerate communication between conservation scientists and the online public, factors influencing the spread of conservation news in online media are not well understood. We explored transmission of conservation research through online news articles with generalized linear mixed-effects models and an information theoretic approach. In particular, we assessed differences in the frequency conservation research is featured on online news sites and the impact of online conservation news content and delivery on Facebook likes and shares and Twitter tweets. Five percent of articles in conservation journals are reported in online news, and the probability of reporting depended on the journal. There was weak evidence that articles on climate change and mammals were more likely to be featured. Online news articles about charismatic mammals with illustrations were more likely to be shared or liked on Facebook and Twitter, but the effect of news sites was much larger. These results suggest journals have the greatest impact on which conservation research is featured and that news site has the greatest impact on how popular an online article will be on Facebook and Twitter. © 2015 Society for Conservation Biology.

Suicidality, psychopathology, and the internet: Online time vs. online behaviors.

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Keith M; Starcevic, Vladan; Ma, Jing; Zhang, Wei; Aboujaoude, Elias

2017-09-01

This study investigated whether several psychopathology variables, including suicidality, could predict the time people spend using the internet (hours online). Next, we examined a specific at-risk population (suicidal individuals) by their online behaviors, comparing suicidal individuals who went online for suicide-related purposes with suicidal individuals who did not go online for suicide-related purposes. An anonymous online sample of 713 (aged 18-71) reported hours online, psychiatric histories, and completed several standardized scales. After accounting for age and education, hierarchical regression modeling showed that the assessed psychopathology variables, including suicidality, did not explain significant variance in hours online. Hours online were better predicted by younger age, greater willingness to develop online relationships, higher perceived social support, higher curiosity, and lower extraversion. Suicidal participants, who did or did not go online for suicide-related purposes, did not differ on hours online. Multiple regression modeling showed that those who went online for suicide-related purposes were likely to be younger, more suicidal, and more willing to seek help from online mental health professionals. These findings revealed that hours online are not a valid indicator of psychopathology. However, studying online behaviors of specific at-risk groups could be informative and useful, including for suicide prevention efforts. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Learning styles of registered nurses enrolled in an online nursing program.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Anita

2010-01-01

Technological advances assist in the proliferation of online nursing programs which meet the needs of the working nurse. Understanding online learning styles permits universities to adequately address the educational needs of the professional nurse returning for an advanced degree. The purpose of this study was to describe the learning styles of registered nurses (RNs) enrolled in an online master's nursing program or RN-bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) program. A descriptive, cross-sectional design was used. Kolb's learning style inventory (Version 3.1) was completed by 217 RNs enrolled in online courses at a Southeastern university. Descriptive statistical procedures were used for analysis. Thirty-one percent of the nurses were accommodators, 20% were assimilators, 19% were convergers, and 20% were divergers. Accommodators desire hand-on experiences, carrying out plans and tasks and using an intuitive trial-and-error approach to problem solving. The learning styles of the RNs were similar to the BSN students in traditional classroom settings. Despite their learning style, nurses felt that the online program met their needs. Implementing the technological innovations in nursing education requires the understanding of the hands-on learning of the RN so that the development of the online courses will satisfactorily meet the needs of the nurses who have chosen an online program. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An advanced dissymmetric rolling model for online regulation

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, Trong-Son

2017-10-01

Roll-bite model is employed to predict the rolling force, torque as well as to estimate the forward slip for preset or online regulation at industrial rolling mills. The rolling process is often dissymmetric in terms of work-rolls rotation speeds and diameters as well as the friction conditions at upper and lower contact surfaces between work-rolls and the strip. The roll-bite model thus must be able to account for these dissymmetries and in the same time has to be accurate and fast enough for online applications. In the present study, a new method, namely Adapted Discretization Slab Method (ADSM) is proposed to obtain a robust roll-bite model, which can take into account the aforementioned dissymmetries and has a very short response time, lower than one millisecond. This model is based on the slab method, with an adaptive discretization and a global Newton-Raphson procedure to improve the convergence speed. The model was validated by comparing with other dissymmetric models proposed in the literature, as well as Finite Element simulations and industrial pilot trials. Furthermore, back-calculation tool was also constructed for friction management for both offline and online applications. With very short CPU time, the ADSM-based model is thus attractive for all online applications, both for cold and hot rolling.

Application of online modeling to the operation of SLC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woodley, M.D.; Sanchez-Chopitea, L.; Shoaee, H.

1987-02-01

Online computer models of first order beam optics have been developed for the commissioning, control and operation of the entire SLC including Damping Rings, Linac, Positron Return Line and Collider Arcs. A generalized online environment utilizing these models provides the capability for interactive selection of a desired optics configuration and for the study of its properties. Automated procedures have been developed which calculate and load beamline component set-points and which can scale magnet strengths to achieve desired beam properties for any Linac energy profile. Graphic displays facilitate comparison of design, desired and actual optical characteristics of the beamlines. Measured beam properties, such as beam emittance and dispersion, can be incorporated interactively into the models and used for beamline matching and optimization of injection and extraction efficiencies and beam transmission. The online optics modeling facility also serves as the foundation for many model-driven applications such as autosteering, calculation of beam launch parameters, emittance measurement and dispersion correction

Application of online modeling to the operation of SLC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woodley, M.D.; Sanchez-Chopitea, L.; Shoaee, H.

1987-01-01

Online computer models of first order beam optics have been developed for the commissioning, control and operation of the entire SLC including Damping Rings, Linac, Positron Return Line and Collider Arcs. A generalized online environment utilizing these models provides the capability for interactive selection of a desire optics configuration and for the study of its properties. Automated procedures have been developed which calculate and load beamline component set-points and which can scale magnet strengths to achieve desired beam properties for any Linac energy profile. Graphic displays facilitate comparison of design, desired and actual optical characteristics of the beamlines. Measured beam properties, such as beam emittance and dispersion, can be incorporated interactively into the models and used for beam matching and optimization of injection and extraction efficiencies and beam transmissions. The online optics modeling facility also serves as the foundation for many model-driven applications such as autosteering, calculation of beam launch parameters, emittance measurement and dispersion correction

Illuminating Cell Biology

Science.gov (United States)

2002-01-01

NASA's Ames Research Center awarded Ciencia, Inc., a Small Business Innovation Research contract to develop the Cell Fluorescence Analysis System (CFAS) to address the size, mass, and power constraints of using fluorescence spectroscopy in the International Space Station's Life Science Research Facility. The system will play an important role in studying biological specimen's long-term adaptation to microgravity. Commercial applications for the technology include diverse markets such as food safety, in situ environmental monitoring, online process analysis, genomics and DNA chips, and non-invasive diagnostics. Ciencia has already sold the system to the private sector for biosensor applications.

An Unsupervised Online Spike-Sorting Framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Knieling, Simeon; Sridharan, Kousik S; Belardinelli, Paolo; Naros, Georgios; Weiss, Daniel; Mormann, Florian; Gharabaghi, Alireza

2016-08-01

Extracellular neuronal microelectrode recordings can include action potentials from multiple neurons. To separate spikes from different neurons, they can be sorted according to their shape, a procedure referred to as spike-sorting. Several algorithms have been reported to solve this task. However, when clustering outcomes are unsatisfactory, most of them are difficult to adjust to achieve the desired results. We present an online spike-sorting framework that uses feature normalization and weighting to maximize the distinctiveness between different spike shapes. Furthermore, multiple criteria are applied to either facilitate or prevent cluster fusion, thereby enabling experimenters to fine-tune the sorting process. We compare our method to established unsupervised offline (Wave_Clus (WC)) and online (OSort (OS)) algorithms by examining their performance in sorting various test datasets using two different scoring systems (AMI and the Adamos metric). Furthermore, we evaluate sorting capabilities on intra-operative recordings using established quality metrics. Compared to WC and OS, our algorithm achieved comparable or higher scores on average and produced more convincing sorting results for intra-operative datasets. Thus, the presented framework is suitable for both online and offline analysis and could substantially improve the quality of microelectrode-based data evaluation for research and clinical application.

Anal Sphincter Augmentation Using Biological Material.

Science.gov (United States)

Alam, Nasra N; Narang, Sunil K; Köckerling, Ferdinand; Daniels, Ian R; Smart, Neil J

2015-01-01

The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the use of biological materials in the augmentation of the anal sphincter either as part of an overlapping sphincter repair (OSR) or anal bulking procedure. A systematic search of PubMed was conducted using the search terms "anal bulking agents," "anal sphincter repair," or "overlapping sphincter repair." Five studies using biological material as part of an overlapping sphincter repair (OSR) or as an anal bulking agent were identified. 122 patients underwent anal bulking with a biological material. Anorectal physiology was conducted in 27 patients and demonstrated deterioration in maximum resting pressure, and no significant change in maximum squeeze increment. Quality of life scores (QoLs) demonstrated improvements at 6 weeks and 6 months, but this had deteriorated at 12 months of follow up. Biological material was used in 23 patients to carry out an anal encirclement procedure. Improvements in QoLs were observed in patients undergoing OSR as well as anal encirclement using biological material. Incontinence episodes decreased to an average of one per week from 8 to 10 preoperatively. Sphincter encirclement with biological material has demonstrated improvements in continence and QoLs in the short term compared to traditional repair alone. Long-term studies are necessary to determine if this effect is sustained. As an anal bulking agent the benefits are short-term.

Application of radiochemical separation procedures to environmental and biological materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Eakins, J D [UKAEA Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Harwell. Environmental and Medical Sciences Div.

1984-06-15

The measurement of low levels of radionuclides in environmental and biological materials often depends on separation of the nuclide of interest from a bulky matrix containing interfering radioelements. In such case, however sophisticated and elegant the counting technique, the quality of the final data will

Splash Safety During Dermatologic Procedures Among US Dermatology Residents.

Science.gov (United States)

Korta, Dorota Z; Chapman, Lance W; Lee, Patrick K; Linden, Kenneth G

2017-07-01

Dermatologists are at potential risk of acquiring infections from contamination of the mucous membranes by blood and body fluids. However, there are little data on splash safety during procedural dermatology. To determine dermatology resident perceptions about splash risk during dermatologic procedures and to quantify the rate of protective equipment use. An anonymous on-line survey was sent to 108 United States ACGME-approved dermatology residency programs assessing frequency of facial protection during dermatologic procedures, personal history of splash injury, and, if applicable, reasons for not always wearing facial protection. A total of 153 dermatology residents responded. Rates of facial protection varied by procedure, with the highest rates during surgery and the lowest during local anesthetic injection. Over 54% of respondents reported suffering facial splash while not wearing facial protection during a procedure. In contrast, 88.9% of respondents correctly answered that there is a small risk of acquiring infection from mucosal splash. Residency program recommendations for facial protection seem to vary by procedure. The authors' results demonstrate that although facial splash is a common injury, facial protection rates and protective recommendations vary significantly by procedure. These data support the recommendation for enhanced facial protection guidelines during procedural dermatology.

BioCircos.js: an interactive Circos JavaScript library for biological data visualization on web applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Cui, Ya; Chen, Xiaowei; Luo, Huaxia; Fan, Zhen; Luo, Jianjun; He, Shunmin; Yue, Haiyan; Zhang, Peng; Chen, Runsheng

2016-06-01

We here present BioCircos.js, an interactive and lightweight JavaScript library especially for biological data interactive visualization. BioCircos.js facilitates the development of web-based applications for circular visualization of various biological data, such as genomic features, genetic variations, gene expression and biomolecular interactions. BioCircos.js and its manual are freely available online at http://bioinfo.ibp.ac.cn/biocircos/ rschen@ibp.ac.cn Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Improving the review of standard operating procedures: a novel electronic system for compounding pharmacies.

Science.gov (United States)

Brensel, Robert; Brensel, Scott; Ng, Amy

2013-01-01

Since the New England Compounding Center disaster in 2012, the importance of following correct procedures during every phase of customized pharmacy has been a focus of governmental interest and action as well as public scrutiny. Many pharmacies rely on the rote review of standard operating procedures to ensure that staff members understand and follow protocols that ensure the safety and potency of all compounds prepared, but that approach to continuing education can be cumbersome and needlessly time-consuming. In addition, documenting and retrieving evidence of employee competence can be difficult. In this article, we describe our use of online technology to improve our methods of educating staff about the full range of standard operating procedures that must be followed in our pharmacy. The system we devised and implemented has proven to be effective, easy to update and maintain, very inexpensive, and user friendly. Its use has reduced the time previously required for a read-over review of standard operating procedures from 30 or 40 minutes to 5 or 10 minutes in weekly staff meetings, and we can now easily document and access proof of employees' comprehension of that content. It is our hope that other small compounding pharmacies will also find this system of online standard operating procedure review helpful.

Online Lexicological Tools in ESP – Towards an Approach to Strategy Training

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaroslaw Krajka

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Together with great proliferation of online resources on the one hand and a striking lack of commercially published materials for specific ESP domains on the other, the ESP teacher needs to reflect on using Internet materials judiciously in the language classroom. An indispensable element of the teaching process in any context is effective resourcing, or the ability to find, evaluate and use reference tools of various kinds. This strategy is also necessary in the ESP context, and the range of available resources goes beyond dictionaries only and encompasses, among others, specialized dictionaries, glossaries, terminology databanks. The purpose of the present paper is to outline the procedure of online resourcing, by giving specific steps for the training of the skill based on ESP materials of various types. The theoretical discussion of strategy training will be substantiated with the practical activities for the procedure.

Procedures of control of quality for the on-line rectilinear scanner

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hernandez Garcia, J.; De la Hoz Olivera, J.

1999-01-01

Presently work is exposed the protocol of quality control of elaborated for the Rectilinear Scanner MB 8100 coupled one microcomputer, the main theoretical aspects, those peculiarities from the electronic point of view of the team kept in mind for their elaboration and the implemented software on platform Windows 95 to execute this protocol. It shows like it is guaranteed the checkup of all the this way parameters of importance in the operation of the team for the obtaining of the images. The implementation of those procedures were carried out keeping in mind the possibilities objective of the services of being able to substitute the sources patterns and phantom recommended by the norms, for others that can be manufactured using materials and accessories that are to its reach. The software was developed in language Delphi version 3.0 with facilities to execute this way procedures quick and comfortable with possibilities to keep the results more important in files for their later intercomparison

Effect of Color Shading Procedures and Cyclic Loading on the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2018-02-07

Feb 7, 2018 ... thickness) were divided into 6 groups of 12 discs each. Groups were ... coloring procedures affect the structure of the zirconia framework.[3-5] ... Access this article online .... where I is the intensities at angular position 2θ degrees from the ..... bridges with differing phase stabilizers and quality of sintering.

New Approaches in Cancer Biology Can Inform the Biology Curriculum.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Lynda; Gordon, Diana; Zelinski, Mary

2018-03-01

Students tend to be very interested in medical issues that affect them and their friends and family. Using cancer as a hook, the ART of Reproductive Medicine: Oncofertility curriculum (free, online, and NIH sponsored) has been developed to supplement the teaching of basic biological concepts and to connect biology and biomedical research. This approach allows integration of up-to-date information on cancer and cancer treatment, cell division, male and female reproductive anatomy and physiology, cryopreservation, fertility preservation, stem cells, ethics, and epigenetics into an existing biology curriculum. Many of the topics covered in the curriculum relate to other scientific disciplines, such as the latest developments in stem cell research including tissue bioengineering and gene therapy for inherited mitochondrial disease, how epigenetics occurs chemically to affect gene expression or suppression and how it can be passed down through the generations, and the variety of biomedical careers students could pursue. The labs are designed to be open-ended and inquiry-based, and extensions to the experiments are provided so that students can explore questions further. Case studies and ethical dilemmas are provided to encourage thoughtful discussion. In addition, each chapter of the curriculum includes links to scientific papers, additional resources on each topic, and NGSS alignment.

CUSTOMER PERCEPTION ON ONLINE PURCHASE INTENTION: THE IMPACT OF ONLINE SHOPPING ORIENTATIONS ON ONLINE BUYING INTENTION

OpenAIRE

Ghouri, Arsalan Mujahid; Ul Haq, Mirza Amin; Khan, Naveed R

2017-01-01

This paper endeavorsto recognize the customer perception on online purchase intention among theyouth of Pakistan. Customer perception on online purchase intention, thus ourresearch variables are impulse purchase orientation, brand orientation,and quality orientation were considered along with online trust andprior online purchase experience. The results are focused 292 responses gotfrom the online study. The exploration made that impulse purchase orientation;prior o...

Issues involved in a knowledge-based approach to procedure synthesis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hajek, B.K.; Khartabil, L.F.; Miller, D.W.

1992-01-01

Many knowledge-based systems (KBSs) have been built to assist human operators in managing nuclear power plant operating functions, such as monitoring, fault diagnosis, alarm filtering, and procedure management. For procedure management, KBSs have been built to display and track existing written procedures or to dynamically follow procedure execution by monitoring plant data and action execution and suggesting recovery steps. More recent works build KBSs able to synthesize procedures. This paper addresses and examines the main issues related to the implementation of on-line procedure synthesis using KBSs. A KBS for procedure synthesis can provide a more robust and effective procedural plan during accidents. Currently existing procedures for abnormal plant conditions, written as precompiled step sets based on the event and symptom approaches, are inherently not robust because anticipation of all potential plant states and associated plant responses is not possible. Thus, their failure recovery capability is limited to the precompiled set. Procedure synthesis has the potential to overcome these two problems because it does not require such precompilation of large sets of plant states and associated recovery procedures. Other benefits obtained from a complete procedure synthesis system are providing (a) a methodology for off-line procedure verification and (b) a methodology for the eventual automation of plant operations

On-line determination of manganese in solid seafood samples by flame atomic absorption spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yebra, M.C.; Moreno-Cid, A.

2003-01-01

Manganese is extracted on-line from solid seafood samples by a simple continuous ultrasound-assisted extraction system (CUES). This system is connected to an on-line manifold, which permits the flow-injection flame atomic absorption spectrometric determination of manganese. Optimisation of the continuous leaching procedure is performed by an experimental design. The proposed method allows the determination of manganese with a relative standard deviation of 0.9% for a sample containing 23.4 μg g -1 manganese (dry mass). The detection limit is 0.4 μg g -1 (dry mass) for 30 mg of sample and the sample throughput is ca. 60 samples per hour. Accurate results are obtained by measuring TORT-1 certified reference material. The procedure is finally applied to mussel, tuna, sardine and clams samples

Unwanted online sexual solicitation and online sexual risk behavior

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Baumgartner, S.E.; Valkenburg, P.M.; Peter, J.; Yan, Z.

2012-01-01

In recent years, there have been growing concerns about online sexual solicitations and online sexual risk behaviors. Recent studies suggest that only a minority of adolescents is confronted with online sexual solicitations or engages in online sexual risk behavior. Whereas more girls encounter

Strand Analysis, a free online program for the computational identification of the best RNA interference (RNAi targets based on Gibbs free energy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tiago Campos Pereira

2007-01-01

Full Text Available The RNA interference (RNAi technique is a recent technology that uses double-stranded RNA molecules to promote potent and specific gene silencing. The application of this technique to molecular biology has increased considerably, from gene function identification to disease treatment. However, not all small interfering RNAs (siRNAs are equally efficient, making target selection an essential procedure. Here we present Strand Analysis (SA, a free online software tool able to identify and classify the best RNAi targets based on Gibbs free energy (deltaG. Furthermore, particular features of the software, such as the free energy landscape and deltaG gradient, may be used to shed light on RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC activity and RNAi mechanisms, which makes the SA software a distinct and innovative tool.

Does online harassment constitute bullying? An exploration of online harassment by known peers and online-only contacts.

Science.gov (United States)

Wolak, Janis; Mitchell, Kimberly J; Finkelhor, David

2007-12-01

To shed light on the nature of online harassment and the extent to which it may be bullying by examining differences in the characteristics of harassed youth, online harassment incidents, and distressing online harassment based on the identity of online harassers (known peer vs. online-only contact). A telephone survey of a nationally representative sample of 1500 youth Internet users, ages 10 to 17, conducted between March and June 2005. Nine percent (n = 129) of youth were harassed online in the past year, 43% (n = 56) by known peers and 57% (n = 73) by people they met online and did not know in person (online-only contacts). Most online harassment incidents did not appear to meet the standard definition of bullying used in school-based research and requiring aggression, repetition, and power imbalance. Only 25% of incidents by known peers and 21% by online-only contacts involved both repeated incidents and either distress to targets or adult intervention. In many cases, the concept of "bullying" or "cyber-bullying" may be inappropriate for online interpersonal offenses. We suggest using "online harassment," with disclaimers that it does not constitute bullying unless it is part of or related to offline bullying. This would include incidents perpetrated by peers that occur entirely online, but arise from school-related events or relationships and have school-related consequences for targets. The Internet provides opportunities for the extension of conventional school bullying to new venues. Those who study conventional school bullying should include online forms of the behavior in research, prevention, and intervention paradigms.

Development and evaluation of online video teaching resources to enhance student knowledge of livestock handling.

Science.gov (United States)

Klupiec, C; Pope, S; Taylor, R; Carroll, D; Ward, M H; Celi, P

2014-07-01

To evaluate the effectiveness of online audiovisual materials to support the acquisition of animal handling skills by students of veterinary and animal science. A series of video clips (Livestock Handling modules) demonstrating livestock handling procedures was created and delivered online to students enrolled in the Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Sydney. The effectiveness of these modules for supporting student learning was evaluated via an online survey. The survey also sought feedback on how students could be better prepared for handling livestock. The survey indicated that students found the videos a useful part of their learning experience, particularly by familiarising them with correct handling procedures and emphasising the importance of safety when handling livestock. Students also highlighted that online delivery supported flexible learning. Suggested improvements of the Livestock Handling modules centred around broadening the content of the videos and improving the user-friendliness of online access. Student feedback regarding how the Faculty could better prepare them for livestock handling was dominated by requests for more opportunities to practise animal handling using live animals. The Livestock Handling audiovisual tool is a valuable supplementary resource for developing students' proficiency in safe and effective handling of livestock. However, the results also clearly reveal a perception by students that more hands-on experience is required for acquisition of animal handling skills. These findings will inform future development of the Faculty's animal handling program. © 2014 Australian Veterinary Association.

Vicarious Versus Traditional Learning in Biology: A Case of Sexually ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The purpose of this study was to compare between learning sexually transmitted infections in Biology by observation and traditional classroom lecture method ... The study found that observational method was more effective and preferred by students as compared to traditional lecture method ... AJOL African Journals Online.

Automatic Detection of Online Recruitment Frauds: Characteristics, Methods, and a Public Dataset

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sokratis Vidros

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The critical process of hiring has relatively recently been ported to the cloud. Specifically, the automated systems responsible for completing the recruitment of new employees in an online fashion, aim to make the hiring process more immediate, accurate and cost-efficient. However, the online exposure of such traditional business procedures has introduced new points of failure that may lead to privacy loss for applicants and harm the reputation of organizations. So far, the most common case of Online Recruitment Frauds (ORF, is employment scam. Unlike relevant online fraud problems, the tackling of ORF has not yet received the proper attention, remaining largely unexplored until now. Responding to this need, the work at hand defines and describes the characteristics of this severe and timely novel cyber security research topic. At the same time, it contributes and evaluates the first to our knowledge publicly available dataset of 17,880 annotated job ads, retrieved from the use of a real-life system.

Can a brief biologically-based psychoeducational intervention reduce stigma and increase help-seeking intentions for depression in young people? A randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Howard, Kerry A; Griffiths, Kathleen M; McKetin, Rebecca; Ma, Jennifer

2018-05-01

There is disagreement in the literature as to whether biological attribution increases or decreases stigma. This study investigated the effect of an online biological intervention on stigma and help-seeking intentions for depression among adolescents. A three-arm, pre-post test, double-blind randomised controlled trial (RCT) was used to compare the effects of a biological and a psychosocial intervention delivered online. Participants comprised secondary school students (N = 327) aged 16-19 years. Outcome measures included anticipated self-stigma for depression (primary), personal stigma, help-seeking intention for depression, and biological and psychosocial attribution. Neither the biological nor the psychosocial educational intervention significantly reduced anticipated self-stigma or personal stigma for depression relative to the control. However, a small increase in help-seeking intention for depression relative to the control was found for the biological educational condition. The study was undertaken over a single session and it is unknown whether the intervention effect on help-seeking intentions was sustained or would translate into help-seeking behaviour. A brief online biological education intervention did not alter stigma, but did promote a small increase in help-seeking intentions for depression among adolescents. This type of intervention may be a practical means for facilitating help-seeking among adolescents with current or future depression treatment needs.

[Non-conformities management in laboratory of medical biology: application to non-conformities of biological samples during 2009].

Science.gov (United States)

Annaix, Véronique; Rogowski, Julien; Joyau, Mireille; Jaouën, Edtih

2011-01-01

The non-conformity management is required for the ISO 15189 standard. The laboratory of medical biology has to carry out suitable acts and procedures to exploit different indicators through the framework of continuous improvement. We particularly study the indicator of biological samples nonconformities and we report 2009 results to the nurses' team managers to find solutions for quality of care to the patient.

Understanding the online channel extension of traditional retailers: Online-offline and online-prototypical congruence

OpenAIRE

Wu Jinfeng; Li Yilong

2016-01-01

Many Chinese traditional retailers have turned to the multichannel forms by establishing their own online stores. When doing so, retail managers face a difficult choice between two online marketing orientations: “pursuit of ideal” (i.e. online-prototypical congruence orientation) and “retention of tradition” (i.e. online-offline congruence orientation). To help managers make this choice, this study proposes a conceptual framework to illustrate how these two orientations affect retail store at...

Cascade Model for Online Discussion Boards in an E-Learning Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vibha Kumar

2010-03-01

Full Text Available This report is an outcome of five years of teaching and managing groups of students in an online learning environment. Some course management software allow the user to create groups and add different links within each group. Distinct platforms, with various sections, can be formed within those links for any given project. Students, as well as instructors, can manage the project for 6 to 8 weeks, cascading one discussion board into one or multiple platforms. This provides better understanding of the project material due to the step by step layout of the given exercise, leading to increased group management and greater communication among the student group members. This report provides the step-by-step procedure for cascading one discussion board into platforms, to manage online projects and provide a more controlled online environment for students in higher education.

Online to offline teaching model in optics education: resource sharing course and flipped class

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Xiaotong; Cen, Zhaofeng; Liu, Xiangdong; Zheng, Zhenrong

2016-09-01

Since the platform "Coursera" is created by the professors of Stanford University Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller, more and more universities have joined in it. From the very beginning, online education is not only about education itself, but also connected with social equality. This is especially significant for the economic transformation in China. In this paper the research and practice on informatization of optical education are described. Online to offline (O2O) education activities, such as online learning and offline meeting, online homework and online to offline discussion, online tests and online to offline evaluation, are combined into our teaching model in the course of Applied Optics. These various O2O strategies were implemented respectively in the autumn-winter small class and the spring-summer middle class according to the constructivism and the idea of open education. We have developed optical education resources such as videos of lectures, light transmission or ray trace animations, online tests, etc. We also divide the learning procedure into 4 steps: First, instead of being given a course offline, students will learn the course online; Second, once a week or two weeks, students will have a discussion in their study groups; Third, students will submit their homework and study reports; Fourth, they will do online and offline tests. The online optical education resources have been shared in some universities in China, together with new challenges to teachers and students when facing the revolution in the e-learning future.

Measuring the Outcome of At-Risk Students on Biology Standardized Tests When Using Different Instructional Strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Burns, Dana

Over the last two decades, online education has become a popular concept in universities as well as K-12 education. This generation of students has grown up using technology and has shown interest in incorporating technology into their learning. The idea of using technology in the classroom to enhance student learning and create higher achievement has become necessary for administrators, teachers, and policymakers. Although online education is a popular topic, there has been minimal research on the effectiveness of online and blended learning strategies compared to the student learning in a traditional K-12 classroom setting. The purpose of this study was to investigate differences in standardized test scores from the Biology End of Course exam when at-risk students completed the course using three different educational models: online format, blended learning, and traditional face-to-face learning. Data was collected from over 1,000 students over a five year time period. Correlation analyzed data from standardized tests scores of eighth grade students was used to define students as "at-risk" for failing high school courses. The results indicated a high correlation between eighth grade standardized test scores and Biology End of Course exam scores. These students were deemed "at-risk" for failing high school courses. Standardized test scores were measured for the at-risk students when those students completed Biology in the different models of learning. Results indicated significant differences existed among the learning models. Students had the highest test scores when completing Biology in the traditional face-to-face model. Further evaluation of subgroup populations indicated statistical differences in learning models for African-American populations, female students, and for male students.

21 CFR 606.165 - Distribution and receipt; procedures and records.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS CURRENT GOOD MANUFACTURING PRACTICE FOR BLOOD AND BLOOD COMPONENTS Records and Reports § 606.165 Distribution and receipt; procedures and records. (a) Distribution and receipt... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Distribution and receipt; procedures and records...

A robust procedure for comparing multiple means under heteroscedasticity in unbalanced designs.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esther Herberich

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Investigating differences between means of more than two groups or experimental conditions is a routine research question addressed in biology. In order to assess differences statistically, multiple comparison procedures are applied. The most prominent procedures of this type, the Dunnett and Tukey-Kramer test, control the probability of reporting at least one false positive result when the data are normally distributed and when the sample sizes and variances do not differ between groups. All three assumptions are non-realistic in biological research and any violation leads to an increased number of reported false positive results. Based on a general statistical framework for simultaneous inference and robust covariance estimators we propose a new statistical multiple comparison procedure for assessing multiple means. In contrast to the Dunnett or Tukey-Kramer tests, no assumptions regarding the distribution, sample sizes or variance homogeneity are necessary. The performance of the new procedure is assessed by means of its familywise error rate and power under different distributions. The practical merits are demonstrated by a reanalysis of fatty acid phenotypes of the bacterium Bacillus simplex from the "Evolution Canyons" I and II in Israel. The simulation results show that even under severely varying variances, the procedure controls the number of false positive findings very well. Thus, the here presented procedure works well under biologically realistic scenarios of unbalanced group sizes, non-normality and heteroscedasticity.

Student Directed Learning: An Online Exhibition for a Historic Costume Collection

Science.gov (United States)

Saiki, Diana; Nam, Jinhee; Beck, Jessica

2012-01-01

This article highlights the structure, procedures, and outcomes of a course organized using a student-directed learning approach to develop an online exhibition website as an outcome for a client. The teaching strategy required students to work in teams and carefully plan assignments to build on the development of the exhibition. Students said…

On-line fouling monitor for heat exchangers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsou, J.L.

1995-01-01

Biological and/or chemical fouling in utility service water system heat exchangers adversely affects operation and maintenance costs, and reduced heat transfer capability can force a power deaerating or even a plant shut down. In addition, service water heat exchanger performance is a safety issue for nuclear power plants, and the issue was highlighted by NRC in Generic Letter 89-13. Heat transfer losses due to fouling are difficult to measure and, usually, quantitative assessment of the impact of fouling is impossible. Plant operators typically measure inlet and outlet water temperatures and flow rates and then perform complex calculations for heat exchanger fouling resistance or ''cleanliness''. These direct estimates are often imprecise due to inadequate instrumentation. Electric Power Research Institute developed and patented an on-line condenser fouling monitor. This monitor may be installed in any location within the condenser; does not interfere with routine plant operations, including on-line mechanical and chemical treatment methods; and provides continuous, real-time readings of the heat transfer efficiency of the instrumented tube. This instrument can be modified to perform on-line monitoring of service water heat exchangers. This paper discusses the design, construction of the new monitor, and algorithm used to calculate service water heat exchanger fouling

How many training modalities are needed to obtain procedural confidence in intraosseous access?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hallas, Peter; Folkestad, Lars; Brabrand, Mikkel

2011-01-01

Participants in advanced resuscitation courses are often expected to learn to perform intraosseous access (IO). But how many learning modalities are needed to achieve procedural confidence in IO? We distributed an online questionnaire to members of emergency medicine, paediatric and anaesthesiology...

Online tutoring procedure for research project supervision: management, organization and key elements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antònia Darder Mesquida

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Research project tutoring appears as a crucial element for teaching; it is a planned action based on the relationship between a tutor and a student. This paper presents the findings of a design and development research which has as its main aim to create an organization system for the tutoring of online research projects. That system seeks to facilitate the tutoring and supervision task with trainee researchers, providing guidance for its management and instruments for its implementation. The main conclusions arising from this research derive from considering the need to offer a solution to the problem of distance research project supervision and has materialized in organization and sequencing through a model about the variables that influence the research project tutoring problem.

Probabilistic Motor Sequence Yields Greater Offline and Less Online Learning than Fixed Sequence.

Science.gov (United States)

Du, Yue; Prashad, Shikha; Schoenbrun, Ilana; Clark, Jane E

2016-01-01

It is well acknowledged that motor sequences can be learned quickly through online learning. Subsequently, the initial acquisition of a motor sequence is boosted or consolidated by offline learning. However, little is known whether offline learning can drive the fast learning of motor sequences (i.e., initial sequence learning in the first training session). To examine offline learning in the fast learning stage, we asked four groups of young adults to perform the serial reaction time (SRT) task with either a fixed or probabilistic sequence and with or without preliminary knowledge (PK) of the presence of a sequence. The sequence and PK were manipulated to emphasize either procedural (probabilistic sequence; no preliminary knowledge (NPK)) or declarative (fixed sequence; with PK) memory that were found to either facilitate or inhibit offline learning. In the SRT task, there were six learning blocks with a 2 min break between each consecutive block. Throughout the session, stimuli followed the same fixed or probabilistic pattern except in Block 5, in which stimuli appeared in a random order. We found that PK facilitated the learning of a fixed sequence, but not a probabilistic sequence. In addition to overall learning measured by the mean reaction time (RT), we examined the progressive changes in RT within and between blocks (i.e., online and offline learning, respectively). It was found that the two groups who performed the fixed sequence, regardless of PK, showed greater online learning than the other two groups who performed the probabilistic sequence. The groups who performed the probabilistic sequence, regardless of PK, did not display online learning, as indicated by a decline in performance within the learning blocks. However, they did demonstrate remarkably greater offline improvement in RT, which suggests that they are learning the probabilistic sequence offline. These results suggest that in the SRT task, the fast acquisition of a motor sequence is driven

A new procedure for deep sea mining tailings disposal

OpenAIRE

Ma, W.; Schott, D.L.; Lodewijks, G.

2017-01-01

Deep sea mining tailings disposal is a new environmental challenge related to water pollution, mineral crust waste handling, and ocean biology. The objective of this paper is to propose a new tailings disposal procedure for the deep sea mining industry. Through comparisons of the tailings disposal methods which exist in on-land mining and the coastal mining fields, a new tailings disposal procedure, i.e., the submarine–backfill–dam–reuse (SBDR) tailings disposal procedure, is proposed. It com...

The UK Human Genome Mapping Project online computing service.

Science.gov (United States)

Rysavy, F R; Bishop, M J; Gibbs, G P; Williams, G W

1992-04-01

This paper presents an overview of computing and networking facilities developed by the Medical Research Council to provide online computing support to the Human Genome Mapping Project (HGMP) in the UK. The facility is connected to a number of other computing facilities in various centres of genetics and molecular biology research excellence, either directly via high-speed links or through national and international wide-area networks. The paper describes the design and implementation of the current system, a 'client/server' network of Sun, IBM, DEC and Apple servers, gateways and workstations. A short outline of online computing services currently delivered by this system to the UK human genetics research community is also provided. More information about the services and their availability could be obtained by a direct approach to the UK HGMP-RC.

Evolution of Various Library Instruction Strategies: Using Student Feedback to Create and Enhance Online Active Learning Assignments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marcie Lynne Jacklin

2013-06-01

Full Text Available This case study traces the evolution of library assignments for biological science students from paper-based workbooks in a blended (hands-on workshop to blended learning workshops using online assignments to online active learning modules which are stand-alone without any face-to-face instruction. As the assignments evolved to adapt to online learning supporting materials in the form of PDFs (portable document format, screen captures and screencasting were embedded into the questions as teaching moments to replace face-to-face instruction. Many aspects of the evolution of the assignment were based on student feedback from evaluations, input from senior lab demonstrators and teaching assistants, and statistical analysis of the students’ performance on the assignment. Advantages and disadvantages of paper-based and online assignments are discussed. An important factor for successful online learning may be the ability to get assistance.

Engineering Online and In-person Social Networks for Physical Activity: A Randomized Trial

Science.gov (United States)

Rovniak, Liza S.; Kong, Lan; Hovell, Melbourne F.; Ding, Ding; Sallis, James F.; Ray, Chester A.; Kraschnewski, Jennifer L.; Matthews, Stephen A.; Kiser, Elizabeth; Chinchilli, Vernon M.; George, Daniel R.; Sciamanna, Christopher N.

2016-01-01

Background Social networks can influence physical activity, but little is known about how best to engineer online and in-person social networks to increase activity. Purpose To conduct a randomized trial based on the Social Networks for Activity Promotion model to assess the incremental contributions of different procedures for building social networks on objectively-measured outcomes. Methods Physically inactive adults (n = 308, age, 50.3 (SD = 8.3) years, 38.3% male, 83.4% overweight/obese) were randomized to 1 of 3 groups. The Promotion group evaluated the effects of weekly emailed tips emphasizing social network interactions for walking (e.g., encouragement, informational support); the Activity group evaluated the incremental effect of adding an evidence-based online fitness walking intervention to the weekly tips; and the Social Networks group evaluated the additional incremental effect of providing access to an online networking site for walking, and prompting walking/activity across diverse settings. The primary outcome was mean change in accelerometer-measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), assessed at 3 and 9 months from baseline. Results Participants increased their MVPA by 21.0 mins/week, 95% CI [5.9, 36.1], p = .005, at 3 months, and this change was sustained at 9 months, with no between-group differences. Conclusions Although the structure of procedures for targeting social networks varied across intervention groups, the functional effect of these procedures on physical activity was similar. Future research should evaluate if more powerful reinforcers improve the effects of social network interventions. Trial Registration Number NCT01142804 PMID:27405724

Assessment of Knowledge of Participants on Basic Molecular Biology Techniques after 5-Day Intensive Molecular Biology Training Workshops in Nigeria

Science.gov (United States)

Yisau, J. I.; Adagbada, A. O.; Bamidele, T.; Fowora, M.; Brai, B. I. C.; Adebesin, O.; Bamidele, M.; Fesobi, T.; Nwaokorie, F. O.; Ajayi, A.; Smith, S. I.

2017-01-01

The deployment of molecular biology techniques for diagnosis and research in Nigeria is faced with a number of challenges, including the cost of equipment and reagents coupled with the dearth of personnel skilled in the procedures and handling of equipment. Short molecular biology training workshops were conducted at the Nigerian Institute of…

New developments in online plant monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laipple, Bernd; Langenstein, Magnus

2007-01-01

The large quantities of information produced within plant processes nearly make the plausibility of data impossible without the help of additional tools. For this reason, a variety of plant monitoring tools has been developed in the past which promise a sensible compression of data. The main problem with the offered tools lies with the omission of procedural plausibility. The newly developed plant monitoring system BTB ProcessPlus is based on the VDI 2048 methodology of process data reconciliation. Plausibility and quality control therefore serve as a basis for the system. With this procedural process image, significant diagnosis and monitoring tools have been developed and now offer a fast and economically optimal support in process optimization. This paper describes the methodology according to VDI 2048. The benefits of the online plant monitoring system are demonstrated by means of examples from day-to-day operations. (author)

Patent Remedies: Online Management of IP Services

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Allan Gordon

2006-06-01

Full Text Available This paper was inspired by work currently in progress under a DTI (Department of Trade and Industry funded KTP (Knowledge Transfer Partnership Project between Kennedy’s Patent and Glasgow Caledonian University. The project offers a unique opportunity to study the interplay between the firm's business exigencies, and the constantly evolving legal and procedural framework within which the firm operates. The particular focus of the paper is the issues raised by the provision of online legal/quasi-legal services in an ‘e-government’ context.

Nanofluidic device for continuous multiparameter quality assurance of biologics.

Science.gov (United States)

Ko, Sung Hee; Chandra, Divya; Ouyang, Wei; Kwon, Taehong; Karande, Pankaj; Han, Jongyoon

2017-08-01

Process analytical technology (PAT) is critical for the manufacture of high-quality biologics as it enables continuous, real-time and on-line/at-line monitoring during biomanufacturing processes. The conventional analytical tools currently used have many restrictions to realizing the PAT of current and future biomanufacturing. Here we describe a nanofluidic device for the continuous monitoring of biologics' purity and bioactivity with high sensitivity, resolution and speed. Periodic and angled nanofilter arrays served as the molecular sieve structures to conduct a continuous size-based analysis of biologics. A multiparameter quality monitoring of three separate commercial biologic samples within 50 minutes has been demonstrated, with 20 µl of sample consumption, inclusive of dead volume in the reservoirs. Additionally, a proof-of-concept prototype system, which integrates an on-line sample-preparation system and the nanofluidic device, was demonstrated for at-line monitoring. Thus, the system is ideal for on-site monitoring, and the real-time quality assurance of biologics throughout the biomanufacturing processes.

Effects of Chronotypes on Students' Choice, Participation, and Performance in Online Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Yi; Pan, Rui; Choi, Jea H.; Strobel, Johannes

2018-01-01

Introducing a new theoretical framework of chronotypes (inner biological clock), this article presents a study examining students' choices, participation, and performance in two discussion-heavy online history courses. The study comprised two major parts: a repetition study and an exploratory study. The survey adopted in the repetition study…

Maintaining Quality While Expanding Our Reach: Using Online Information Literacy Tutorials in the Sciences and Health Sciences

OpenAIRE

Talitha Rosa Matlin; Tricia Lantzy

2017-01-01

Abstract Objective – This article aims to assess student achievement of higher-order information literacy learning outcomes from online tutorials as compared to in-person instruction in science and health science courses. Methods – Information literacy instruction via online tutorials or an in-person one-shot session was implemented in multiple sections of a biology (n=100) and a kinesiology course (n=54). After instruction, students in both instructional environments completed an ide...

Dynamic Open Inquiry Performances of High-School Biology Students

Science.gov (United States)

Zion, Michal; Sadeh, Irit

2010-01-01

In examining open inquiry projects among high-school biology students, we found dynamic inquiry performances expressed in two criteria: "changes occurring during inquiry" and "procedural understanding". Characterizing performances in a dynamic open inquiry project can shed light on both the procedural and epistemological…

Determinants of online trust and their impact on online purchase intention

OpenAIRE

Kooli, Kaouther; Ben Mansour, K.; Rizky , Utama

2014-01-01

Abundant literature has examined online trust. However the different approaches were scarcely integrated to address the determinants of online trust and their impacts on online purchase intention. An integrative approach to online trust is adopted in this paper. A survey is carried out on a sample of 401 online consumers in Indonesia. The findings show that purchase intention is significantly influenced by online trust. Besides, there is significant impact of personality based trust (benevole...

Simultaneous Release and Labeling of O- and N-Glycans Allowing for Rapid Glycomic Analysis by Online LC-UV-ESI-MS/MS.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chengjian; Lu, Yu; Han, Jianli; Jin, Wanjun; Li, Lingmei; Zhang, Ying; Song, Xuezheng; Huang, Linjuan; Wang, Zhongfu

2018-05-24

Most glycoproteins and biological protein samples undergo both O- and N-glycosylation, making characterization of their structures very complicated and time-consuming. Nevertheless, to fully understand the biological functions of glycosylation, both the glycosylation forms need to be analyzed. Herein we report a versatile, convenient one-pot method in which O- and N-glycans are simultaneously released from glycoproteins and chromogenically labeled in situ and thus available for further characterization. In this procedure, glycoproteins are incubated with 1-phenyl-3-methyl-5-pyrazolone (PMP) in aqueous ammonium hydroxide, making O-glycans released from protein backbones by β-elimination and N-glycans liberated by alkaline hydrolysis. The released glycans are promptly derivatized with PMP in situ by Knoevenagel condensation and Michael addition, with peeling degradation almost completely prevented. The recovered mixture of O- and N-glycans as bis-PMP derivatives features strong ultraviolet (UV) absorbing ability and hydrophobicity, allowing for high-resolution chromatographic separation and high-sensitivity spectrometric detection. Using this technique, O- and N-glycans were simultaneously prepared from some model glycoproteins and complex biological samples, without significant peeling, desialylation, deacetylation, desulfation or other side-reactions, and then comprehensively analyzed by online HILIC-UV-ESI-MS/MS and RP-HPLC-UV-ESI-MS/MS, with which some novel O- and N-glycan structures were first found. This method provides a simple, versatile strategy for high-throughput glycomics analysis.

Stakeholder perceptions: Biological control of Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia)

Science.gov (United States)

Sharlene E. Sing; Kevin J. Delaney

2016-01-01

An online survey was distributed through email lists provided by various stakeholder groups on behalf of the International Consortium for Biological Control of Russian Olive in spring of 2012. A total of 392 respondents replied from 24 U.S. states and 1 Canadian province. Questions posed in the survey were designed to identify and categorize 1) stakeholders by...

The molecular biology capstone assessment: a concept assessment for upper-division molecular biology students.

Science.gov (United States)

Couch, Brian A; Wood, William B; Knight, Jennifer K

2015-03-02

Measuring students' conceptual understandings has become increasingly important to biology faculty members involved in evaluating and improving departmental programs. We developed the Molecular Biology Capstone Assessment (MBCA) to gauge comprehension of fundamental concepts in molecular and cell biology and the ability to apply these concepts in novel scenarios. Targeted at graduating students, the MBCA consists of 18 multiple-true/false (T/F) questions. Each question consists of a narrative stem followed by four T/F statements, which allows a more detailed assessment of student understanding than the traditional multiple-choice format. Questions were iteratively developed with extensive faculty and student feedback, including validation through faculty reviews and response validation through student interviews. The final assessment was taken online by 504 students in upper-division courses at seven institutions. Data from this administration indicate that the MBCA has acceptable levels of internal reliability (α=0.80) and test-retest stability (r=0.93). Students achieved a wide range of scores with a 67% overall average. Performance results suggest that students have an incomplete understanding of many molecular biology concepts and continue to hold incorrect conceptions previously documented among introductory-level students. By pinpointing areas of conceptual difficulty, the MBCA can provide faculty members with guidance for improving undergraduate biology programs. © 2015 B. A. Couch et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2015 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

An image correlation procedure for digitally reconstructed radiographs and electronic portal images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dong, Lei; Boyer, Arthur L.

1995-01-01

Purpose: To study a procedure that uses megavoltage digitally reconstructed radiographs (DRRs) calculated from patient's three-dimensional (3D) computed tomography (CT) data as a reference image for correlation with on-line electronic portal images (EPIs) to detect patient setup errors. Methods and Materials: Megavoltage DRRs were generated by ray tracing through a modified volumetric CT data set in which CT numbers were converted into linear attenuation coefficients for the therapeutic beam energy. The DRR transmission image was transformed to the grayscale window of the EPI by a histogram-matching technique. An alternative approach was to calibrate the transmission DRR using a measured response curve of the electronic portal imaging device (EPID). This forces the calculated transmission fluence values to be distributed in the same range as that of the EPID image. A cross-correlation technique was used to determine the degree of alignment of the patient anatomy found in the EPID image relative to the reference DRR. Results: Phantom studies demonstrated that the correlation procedure had a standard deviation of 0.5 mm and 0.5 deg. in aligning translational shifts and in-plane rotations. Systematic errors were found between a reference DRR and a reference EPID image. The automated grayscale image-correlation process was completed within 3 s on a workstation computer or 12 s on a PC. Conclusion: The alignment procedure allows the direct comparison of a patient's treatment portal designed with a 3D planning computer with a patient's on-line portal image acquired at the treatment unit. The image registration process is automated to the extent that it requires minimal user intervention, and it is fast and accurate enough for on-line clinical applications

Dealing with the Data Deluge: Handling the Multitude Of Chemical Biology Data Sources.

Science.gov (United States)

Guha, Rajarshi; Nguyen, Dac-Trung; Southall, Noel; Jadhav, Ajit

2012-09-01

Over the last 20 years, there has been an explosion in the amount and type of biological and chemical data that has been made publicly available in a variety of online databases. While this means that vast amounts of information can be found online, there is no guarantee that it can be found easily (or at all). A scientist searching for a specific piece of information is faced with a daunting task - many databases have overlapping content, use their own identifiers and, in some cases, have arcane and unintuitive user interfaces. In this overview, a variety of well known data sources for chemical and biological information are highlighted, focusing on those most useful for chemical biology research. The issue of using multiple data sources together and the associated problems such as identifier disambiguation are highlighted. A brief discussion is then provided on Tripod, a recently developed platform that supports the integration of arbitrary data sources, providing users a simple interface to search across a federated collection of resources.

Biologically inspired EM image alignment and neural reconstruction.

Science.gov (United States)

Knowles-Barley, Seymour; Butcher, Nancy J; Meinertzhagen, Ian A; Armstrong, J Douglas

2011-08-15

Three-dimensional reconstruction of consecutive serial-section transmission electron microscopy (ssTEM) images of neural tissue currently requires many hours of manual tracing and annotation. Several computational techniques have already been applied to ssTEM images to facilitate 3D reconstruction and ease this burden. Here, we present an alternative computational approach for ssTEM image analysis. We have used biologically inspired receptive fields as a basis for a ridge detection algorithm to identify cell membranes, synaptic contacts and mitochondria. Detected line segments are used to improve alignment between consecutive images and we have joined small segments of membrane into cell surfaces using a dynamic programming algorithm similar to the Needleman-Wunsch and Smith-Waterman DNA sequence alignment procedures. A shortest path-based approach has been used to close edges and achieve image segmentation. Partial reconstructions were automatically generated and used as a basis for semi-automatic reconstruction of neural tissue. The accuracy of partial reconstructions was evaluated and 96% of membrane could be identified at the cost of 13% false positive detections. An open-source reference implementation is available in the Supplementary information. seymour.kb@ed.ac.uk; douglas.armstrong@ed.ac.uk Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Students’ online purchasing behavior in Malaysia: Understanding online shopping attitude

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marzieh Zendehdel

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Studies examining the factors that affect the online purchasing behavior of consumers are rare, despite the prospective advance of e-commerce in Malaysia. The present study examines particular factors that influence the attitude of potential consumers to purchase online by using the attributes from the diffusion of innovations theory of Rogers, the attribute of perception of risk, and the subjective norms toward online purchasing. Consumers’ perceived risks of online shopping have become a vital subject in research because they directly influence users’ attitude toward online purchasing. The structural equation modeling method was used to analyze the data gathered on students using e-commerce, and, thus, to validate the model. According to the results, consumers’ attitude toward online purchasing affects the intention toward online purchasing. The other influential factors are compatibility, relative advantage, and subjective norm.

Pengaruh Shopping Orientation, Online Trust Dan Prior Online Purchase Experience Terhadap Online Purchase Intention (Studi Pada Online Shop Hijabi House)

OpenAIRE

Azifah, Nurul; Dewi, Citra Kusuma

2016-01-01

Salah satu fashion yang semakin berkembang di kalangan masyarakat Indonesia khususnya wanita muslimah adalah jilbab. Hijabi House merupakan salah satu online shop yang menawarkan jilbab hasil produksinya melalui media sosial Instagram. Hasil wawancara awal, Hijabi House dinilai baik namun masih ada keluhan dari para followers berkaitan shopping orientation, online trust, dan prior online purchase experience. Penelitian yang bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh ketiga variabel tersebut terhadap...

Online Piracy

OpenAIRE

Daniel A. Howard

2017-01-01

Piracy, whether made online or in any other way is an illegal act, which should be avoided and stopped. In this era of rapid globalization and booming technology, online piracy can be seen in many forms. However, the main area of concern are the consequences that the online piracy has for the many people who are directly or indirectly involved in it. These consequences provide implications for ethical considerations. In my opinion, online piracy is an unethical act and should be avoided, howe...

Tracking the emergence of synthetic biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Shapira, Philip; Kwon, Seokbeom; Youtie, Jan

2017-01-01

Synthetic biology is an emerging domain that combines biological and engineering concepts and which has seen rapid growth in research, innovation, and policy interest in recent years. This paper contributes to efforts to delineate this emerging domain by presenting a newly constructed bibliometric definition of synthetic biology. Our approach is dimensioned from a core set of papers in synthetic biology, using procedures to obtain benchmark synthetic biology publication records, extract keywords from these benchmark records, and refine the keywords, supplemented with articles published in dedicated synthetic biology journals. We compare our search strategy with other recent bibliometric approaches to define synthetic biology, using a common source of publication data for the period from 2000 to 2015. The paper details the rapid growth and international spread of research in synthetic biology in recent years, demonstrates that diverse research disciplines are contributing to the multidisciplinary development of synthetic biology research, and visualizes this by profiling synthetic biology research on the map of science. We further show the roles of a relatively concentrated set of research sponsors in funding the growth and trajectories of synthetic biology. In addition to discussing these analyses, the paper notes limitations and suggests lines for further work.

Online Educators' Recommendations for Teaching Online: Crowdsourcing in Action

Science.gov (United States)

Dunlap, Joanna C.; Lowenthal, Patrick R.

2018-01-01

Over the years, online educators have learned a great deal about what works and does not work when designing and facilitating online courses. During the past few years, we have used crowdsourcing to invite experienced online educators to share their recommendations for teaching online. In this article, we describe our use of crowdsourcing to…

Recent advances in on-line coupling of capillary electrophoresis to atomic absorption and fluorescence spectrometry for speciation analysis and studies of metal-biomolecule interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Yan; Yin Xuebo; Yan Xiuping

2008-01-01

Speciation information is vital for the understanding of the toxicity, mobility and bioavailability of elements in environmental or biological samples. Hyphenating high resolving power of separation techniques and element-selective detectors provides powerful tools for studying speciation of trace elements in environmental and biological systems. During the last five years several novel hybrid techniques based on capillary electrophoresis (CE) and atomic spectrometry have been developed for speciation analysis and metal-biomolecule interaction study in our laboratory. These techniques include CE on-line coupled with atomic fluorescence spectrometry (AFS), chip-CE on-line coupled with AFS, CE on-line coupled with flame heated quartz furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (FHF-AAS), and CE on-line coupled with electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS). The necessity for the development of these techniques, their interface design, and applications in speciation analysis and metal-biomolecule interaction study are reviewed. The advantages and limitations of the developed hybrid techniques are critically discussed, and further development is also prospected

Online prediction and control in nonlinear stochastic systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Torben Skov

2002-01-01

speed and the relationship between (primarily) wind speed and wind power (the power curve). In paper G the model parameters are estimated using a RLS algorithm and any systematic time-variation of the model parameters is disregarded. Two di erent parameterizations of the power curve is considered...... are estimated using the algorithm proposed in paper C. The power curve and the diurnal variation of wind speed is estimated separately using the local polynomial regression procedure described in paper A . In paper J the parameters of the prediction model is assumed to be smooth functions of wind direction (and......The present thesis consists of a summary report and ten research papers. The subject of the thesis is on-line prediction and control of non-linear and non-stationary systems based on stochastic modelling. The thesis consists of three parts where the rst part deals with on-line estimation in linear...

Application of automated reasoning software: procedure generation system verifier

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, D.E.; Seeman, S.E.

1984-09-01

An on-line, automated reasoning software system for verifying the actions of other software or human control systems has been developed. It was demonstrated by verifying the actions of an automated procedure generation system. The verifier uses an interactive theorem prover as its inference engine with the rules included as logic axioms. Operation of the verifier is generally transparent except when the verifier disagrees with the actions of the monitored software. Testing with an automated procedure generation system demonstrates the successful application of automated reasoning software for verification of logical actions in a diverse, redundant manner. A higher degree of confidence may be placed in the verified actions gathered by the combined system

Understanding the online channel extension of traditional retailers: Online-offline and online-prototypical congruence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wu Jinfeng

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Many Chinese traditional retailers have turned to the multichannel forms by establishing their own online stores. When doing so, retail managers face a difficult choice between two online marketing orientations: “pursuit of ideal” (i.e. online-prototypical congruence orientation and “retention of tradition” (i.e. online-offline congruence orientation. To help managers make this choice, this study proposes a conceptual framework to illustrate how these two orientations affect retail store attitude when retail brand familiarity differs. The results indicate that both orientations can improve consumers’ retail store attitudes. When retail brand familiarity is low, the online stores of traditional retailers should balance both orientations in product selections and adopt “pursuit of ideal” in prices. When retail brand familiarity is high, “retention of tradition” should be applied in product selections and both orientations should be integrated in prices for gaining more positive change in retail store attitude.

Online MOS Capacitor Characterization in LabVIEW Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chinmay K Maiti

2009-08-01

Full Text Available We present an automated evaluation procedure to characterize MOS capacitors involving high-k gate dielectrics. Suitability of LabVIEW environment for online web-based semiconductor device characterization is demonstrated. Developed algorithms have been successfully applied to automate the MOS capacitor measurements for Capacitance-Voltage, Conductance-Voltage and Current-Voltage characteristics. Implementation of the algorithm for use as a remote internet-based characterization tool where the client and server communicate with each other via web services is also shown.

Online Shopping Behavior

OpenAIRE

Shahzad, Hashim

2015-01-01

Online shopping is a very much developed phenomena in Scandinavian countries. Different online factors impact online consumers’ behavior differently depending on the environment of different regions. Sweden is one of the developed and technologically advanced countries. To see the impact of different factors on consumers’ online shopping behavior, the purpose of this study is to analyse the factors that influence consumers’ online shopping behavior in Sweden’s context. One of the objectives o...

Engineering Online and In-Person Social Networks for Physical Activity: A Randomized Trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Rovniak, Liza S; Kong, Lan; Hovell, Melbourne F; Ding, Ding; Sallis, James F; Ray, Chester A; Kraschnewski, Jennifer L; Matthews, Stephen A; Kiser, Elizabeth; Chinchilli, Vernon M; George, Daniel R; Sciamanna, Christopher N

2016-12-01

Social networks can influence physical activity, but little is known about how best to engineer online and in-person social networks to increase activity. The purpose of this study was to conduct a randomized trial based on the Social Networks for Activity Promotion model to assess the incremental contributions of different procedures for building social networks on objectively measured outcomes. Physically inactive adults (n = 308, age, 50.3 (SD = 8.3) years, 38.3 % male, 83.4 % overweight/obese) were randomized to one of three groups. The Promotion group evaluated the effects of weekly emailed tips emphasizing social network interactions for walking (e.g., encouragement, informational support); the Activity group evaluated the incremental effect of adding an evidence-based online fitness walking intervention to the weekly tips; and the Social Networks group evaluated the additional incremental effect of providing access to an online networking site for walking as well as prompting walking/activity across diverse settings. The primary outcome was mean change in accelerometer-measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), assessed at 3 and 9 months from baseline. Participants increased their MVPA by 21.0 min/week, 95 % CI [5.9, 36.1], p = .005, at 3 months, and this change was sustained at 9 months, with no between-group differences. Although the structure of procedures for targeting social networks varied across intervention groups, the functional effect of these procedures on physical activity was similar. Future research should evaluate if more powerful reinforcers improve the effects of social network interventions. The trial was registered with the ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01142804).

Online Marketing Trends

OpenAIRE

Horecká, Ivana

2015-01-01

This thesis deals with online marketing trends. Its main goal is to define the latest online marketing trends, create a website with the free online marketing trends, and analyse their effectiveness. The theoretical part brings a thorough description of the latest online marketing trends. Moreover, it provides an insight into the latest trends in the website development. The chosen online marketing trends defined in the theoretical part are subsequently applied on a newly created website. All...

Teachers' Online Experience: Is There a Covert Curriculum in Online Professional Development?

Science.gov (United States)

Norton, Priscilla; Hathaway, Dawn

2015-01-01

Although the literature emphasizes the need for teachers to have online learning experiences in preparation for teaching online, teachers have few opportunities to experience online learning. One opportunity is online professional development. The authors hypothesized that online professional development might serve not only as a way to gain…

What Do Online MBA Professors Have to Say about Online Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Shijuan; Kim, Kyong-Jee; Bonk, Curtis J.; Magjuka, Richard

2007-01-01

Online MBA programs have grown exponentially in recent years. Yet, the prevailing literature indicates that research on online MBA education remains extremely limited. This article summarizes 28 instructor interviews from those teaching online courses in an online MBA program at a Midwestern public university. Instructors were interviewed…

On-line sources of toxicological information in Canada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Racz, William J.; Ecobichon, Donald J.; Baril, Marc

2003-01-01

This paper will provide an overview of the on-line resources available in toxicology in Canada. It will describe a brief history of The Society of Toxicology of Canada, with reference to other societies and also provide information on education, research and other resources related to toxicology. Toxicology in Canada emerged as a distinct and vibrant discipline following the thalidomide tragedy of the 1960s. In the pharmaceutical industry and government, toxicology was readily established as an essential component of drug development and safety, and as the need for toxicologists expanded, training programs were established, usually in collaboration with departments of pharmacology. In the last two to three decades other disciplines, environmental biology, analytical chemistry and epidemiology joined the ranks of toxicology. The on-line sources of toxicology information are rapidly expanding. This article describes those sources considered by the authors to be important from a national and international perspective. The majority of these sources are professional organizations and government agencies

Investigating What Second Language Learners Do and Monitor under Careful Online Planning Conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmadian, Mohammad Javad; Tavakoli, Mansoor

2014-01-01

This study used quantitative analyses complemented by the retrospective data obtained through a stimulated recall procedure to address three interrelated issues: (a) whether second language learners use online planning opportunities to carefully plan their speech to enhance the quality of the language they produce, (b) what kinds of self-repair…

Procedural virtual reality simulation in minimally invasive surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Våpenstad, Cecilie; Buzink, Sonja N

2013-02-01

Simulation of procedural tasks has the potential to bridge the gap between basic skills training outside the operating room (OR) and performance of complex surgical tasks in the OR. This paper provides an overview of procedural virtual reality (VR) simulation currently available on the market and presented in scientific literature for laparoscopy (LS), flexible gastrointestinal endoscopy (FGE), and endovascular surgery (EVS). An online survey was sent to companies and research groups selling or developing procedural VR simulators, and a systematic search was done for scientific publications presenting or applying VR simulators to train or assess procedural skills in the PUBMED and SCOPUS databases. The results of five simulator companies were included in the survey. In the literature review, 116 articles were analyzed (45 on LS, 43 on FGE, 28 on EVS), presenting a total of 23 simulator systems. The companies stated to altogether offer 78 procedural tasks (33 for LS, 12 for FGE, 33 for EVS), of which 17 also were found in the literature review. Although study type and used outcomes vary between the three different fields, approximately 90 % of the studies presented in the retrieved publications for LS found convincing evidence to confirm the validity or added value of procedural VR simulation. This was the case in approximately 75 % for FGE and EVS. Procedural training using VR simulators has been found to improve clinical performance. There is nevertheless a large amount of simulated procedural tasks that have not been validated. Future research should focus on the optimal use of procedural simulators in the most effective training setups and further investigate the benefits of procedural VR simulation to improve clinical outcome.

How to Better Engage Online Students with Online Strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Britt, Margaret

2015-01-01

Online education is growing at a phenomenal rate. This growth in online education offers many opportunities to colleges and universities to reach students who may not have attended a traditional (brick and mortar) college or university. Online education also gives students more control over their education along with a more flexible schedule. As…

iBiology: communicating the process of science.

Science.gov (United States)

Goodwin, Sarah S

2014-08-01

The Internet hosts an abundance of science video resources aimed at communicating scientific knowledge, including webinars, massive open online courses, and TED talks. Although these videos are efficient at disseminating information for diverse types of users, they often do not demonstrate the process of doing science, the excitement of scientific discovery, or how new scientific knowledge is developed. iBiology (www.ibiology.org), a project that creates open-access science videos about biology research and science-related topics, seeks to fill this need by producing videos by science leaders that make their ideas, stories, and experiences available to anyone with an Internet connection. © 2014 Goodwin. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). Two months after publication it is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Determination of gaseous compounds using online mass spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Praun, S.

1999-08-01

The work is divided in three major parts and describes various measurements of gaseous compounds. The first part tasks the problem of transit traffic along the motorway from Kufstein, Northern Tyrol/Austria until Ala, Trentino/Italy. During three periods measurements of the immissions of many compounds were carried out simultaneously in Northern Tyrol, Southern Tyrol and Trentino. The influence of the ban of heavy lorry traffic during the weekend and during the night on the reduction of NO 2 could be demonstrated. Furthermore certain compounds (e.g. Benzene) were monitored online for the first time along the motorway at lowest concentrations using the mass spectrometer 'Airsense 500'. In the second part online measurements of exhaled human breath after the oral application of a medicine against bronchitis was performed. In that way beside clinical and pharmacological studies the effectiveness of this pharmacon could be proved. The last part of the present work shows adsorption- and desorption measurements on four different adsorbents. During this procedure seven different gases with an increasing number of carbon atoms were monitored online by the hyphenation of these adsorbents with the mass spectrometer 'Airsense 500'. Thereby, the various properties of the adsorbents in the interaction with the gases could be demonstrated. (author)

Flow injection on-line preconcentration of low levels of Cr(VI) with detection by ETAAS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Som-aum, Waraporn; Liawruangrath, Saisunee; Hansen, Elo Harald

2002-01-01

A flow injection (FI) on-line sorption preconcentration procedure utilizing a packed column reactor and combined with electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS) is proposed for the determination of low levels of Cr(VI) in water samples. Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) beads packed in a ...

Online Poker Gambling in University Students: Further Findings from an Online Survey

Science.gov (United States)

Griffiths, Mark; Parke, Jonathan; Wood, Richard; Rigbye, Jane

2010-01-01

Online poker is one of the fastest growing forms of online gambling yet there has been relatively little research to date. This study comprised 422 online poker players (362 males and 60 females) and investigated some of the predicting factors of online poker success and problem gambling using an online questionnaire. Results showed that length of…

An Online Generalized Multiscale Discontinuous Galerkin Method (GMsDGM) for Flows in Heterogeneous Media

KAUST Repository

Chung, Eric T.

2017-02-07

Offline computation is an essential component in most multiscale model reduction techniques. However, there are multiscale problems in which offline procedure is insufficient to give accurate representations of solutions, due to the fact that offline computations are typically performed locally and global information is missing in these offline information. To tackle this difficulty, we develop an online local adaptivity technique for local multiscale model reduction problems. We design new online basis functions within Discontinuous Galerkin method based on local residuals and some optimally estimates. The resulting basis functions are able to capture the solution efficiently and accurately, and are added to the approximation iteratively. Moreover, we show that the iterative procedure is convergent with a rate independent of physical scales if the initial space is chosen carefully. Our analysis also gives a guideline on how to choose the initial space. We present some numerical examples to show the performance of the proposed method.

Students’ online purchasing behavior in Malaysia: Understanding online shopping attitude

OpenAIRE

Marzieh Zendehdel; Laily Hj Paim; Syuhaily Bint Osman

2015-01-01

Studies examining the factors that affect the online purchasing behavior of consumers are rare, despite the prospective advance of e-commerce in Malaysia. The present study examines particular factors that influence the attitude of potential consumers to purchase online by using the attributes from the diffusion of innovations theory of Rogers, the attribute of perception of risk, and the subjective norms toward online purchasing. Consumers’ perceived risks of online shopping have become a vi...

An incremental procedure model for e-learning projects at universities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pahlke, Friedrich

2006-11-01

Full Text Available E-learning projects at universities are produced under different conditions than in industry. The main characteristic of many university projects is that these are realized quasi in a solo effort. In contrast, in private industry the different, interdisciplinary skills that are necessary for the development of e-learning are typically supplied by a multimedia agency.A specific procedure tailored for the use at universities is therefore required to facilitate mastering the amount and complexity of the tasks.In this paper an incremental procedure model is presented, which describes the proceeding in every phase of the project. It allows a high degree of flexibility and emphasizes the didactical concept – instead of the technical implementation. In the second part, we illustrate the practical use of the theoretical procedure model based on the project “Online training in Genetic Epidemiology”.

The online data filters for Explorer and Nautilus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

D'Antonio, S

2002-01-01

The basic problem for gravitational wave detectors is to detect very small signals in the presence of noise which is often not Gaussian and not stationary. We cope with this problem by applying data filters, matched to short bursts, based on power spectra obtained online. We describe the new procedure adopted by the Rome group, where the signal-to-noise ratios obtained with various algorithms are compared and the best one is selected. The selected algorithm depends on the noise characteristics at that particular time

Problems in the online marketing of online shops in China : Case study: the Taobao online marketing policy

OpenAIRE

Ding, Lu

2013-01-01

With the development and popularization of the Internet, more and more people are choosing to trade via the Internet. For the Chinese market, online marketing is still in its infancy, and inevitably several problems exist. Taobao is the fastest developing of all online marketing shopping platforms in China and accounts for the largest share of the online shopping market. In such a rapidly expanding market, Taobao's rise is a cause for concern. This thesis will examine the current online m...

Online monitoring for proton therapy: A real-time procedure using a planar PET system

Science.gov (United States)

Kraan, A. C.; Battistoni, G.; Belcari, N.; Camarlinghi, N.; Ciocca, M.; Ferrari, A.; Ferretti, S.; Mairani, A.; Molinelli, S.; Pullia, M.; Sala, P.; Sportelli, G.; Del Guerra, A.; Rosso, V.

2015-06-01

In this study a procedure for range verification in proton therapy by means of a planar in-beam PET system is presented. The procedure consists of two steps: the measurement of the β+-activity induced in the irradiated body by the proton beam and the comparison of these distributions with simulations. The experimental data taking was performed at the CNAO center in Pavia, Italy, irradiating plastic phantoms. For two different cases we demonstrate how a real-time feedback of the delivered treatment plan can be obtained with in-beam PET imaging.

Online monitoring for proton therapy: A real-time procedure using a planar PET system

CERN Document Server

Kraan, A C; Belcari, N; Camarlinghi, N; Ciocca, M; Ferrari, A; Ferretti, S; Mairani, A; Molinelli, S; Pullia, M; Sala, P; Sportelli, G; Del Guerra, A; Rosso, V

2015-01-01

In this study a procedure for range verification in proton therapy by means of a planar in-beam PET system is presented. The procedure consists of two steps: the measurement of the β+-activity induced in the irradiated body by the proton beam and the comparison of these distributions with simulations. The experimental data taking was performed at the CNAO center in Pavia, Italy, irradiating plastic phantoms. For two different cases we demonstrate how a real-time feedback of the delivered treatment plan can be obtained with in-beam PET imaging.

Journal of Medical Chemical, Biological and Radiological Defense

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Price, B.

2007-01-01

The Journal of Medical Chemical, Biological, and Radiological Defense is a free, on-line journal dedicated to providing an international, peer-reviewed journal of original scientific research and clinical and doctrinal knowledge in the area of medical treatment and countermeasures for chemical, biological and radiological defense; and to developing and maintaining an archive of current research and development information on training, doctrine, and professional discussions of problems related to chemical, biological and radiological casualties. The Journal, www.JMedCBR.org, now in its fifth year, is sponsored by the US Defense Threat Reduction Agency. Areas of interest include, but are not limited to: Neuroprotectants; Bioscavengers for Nerve Agents; Medical Diagnostic Systems and Technologies; Medical Effects of Low Level Exposures; Toxicology and Biological Effects of TICs and TIMs; Broad Spectrum Medical Countermeasures; Treatments and Therapeutics for Bacterial, Viral and Toxin Agents; Radiological Medical Countermeasures; Clinical Treatment of Chemical, Biological or Radiological Casualties; Toxins Structures and Treatments. The Journal is supported by an editorial advisory board of distinguished scientists and researchers in the fields of CBR defense and medical treatment and countermeasures in eleven countries.(author)

The use of selective adsorbents in capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry for analyte preconcentration and microreactions: a powerful three-dimensional tool for multiple chemical and biological applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Guzman, N A; Stubbs, R J

2001-10-01

Much attention has recently been directed to the development and application of online sample preconcentration and microreactions in capillary electrophoresis using selective adsorbents based on chemical or biological specificity. The basic principle involves two interacting chemical or biological systems with high selectivity and affinity for each other. These molecular interactions in nature usually involve noncovalent and reversible chemical processes. Properly bound to a solid support, an "affinity ligand" can selectively adsorb a "target analyte" found in a simple or complex mixture at a wide range of concentrations. As a result, the isolated analyte is enriched and highly purified. When this affinity technique, allowing noncovalent chemical interactions and biochemical reactions to occur, is coupled on-line to high-resolution capillary electrophoresis and mass spectrometry, a powerful tool of chemical and biological information is created. This paper describes the concept of biological recognition and affinity interaction on-line with high-resolution separation, the fabrication of an "analyte concentrator-microreactor", optimization conditions of adsorption and desorption, the coupling to mass spectrometry, and various applications of clinical and pharmaceutical interest.

Benefits and Limitations of Online Instruction in Natural Science Undergraduate Liberal Arts Courses

Science.gov (United States)

Liddicoat, Joseph; Roberts, Godfrey; Liddicoat, Kendra; Porzecanski, Ana Luz; Mendez, Martin; McMullen, David

2013-04-01

Online courses in the Natural Sciences are taught three ways at New York University to undergraduate students majoring in the liberal arts and professional programs - synchronous courses in which students communicate online with the instructor and classmates in real time, asynchronous courses when faculty present course material for students to access and learn at their leisure, and hybrid or blended courses when part is taught asynchronously and part is taught face-to-face in a classroom with all students present. We have done online courses each way - Global Ecology (synchronous); Stars, Planets, and Life (synchronous and asynchronous); Darwin to DNA: An Overview of Evolution (asynchronous); Biodiversity Conservation (asynchronous); and Biology of Hunger and Population (blended). We will present the advantages and challenges we experienced teaching courses online in this fashion. Besides the advantages listed in the description for this session, another can be programmed learning that allows a set of sequential steps or a more complex branching of steps that allows students to repeat lessons multiple times to master the material. And from an academic standpoint, course content and assessment can be standardized, making it possible for each student to learn the same material. Challenges include resistance to online learning by a host of stakeholders who might be educators, students, parents, and the community. Equally challenging might be the readiness of instructors and students to teach and learn online. Student integrity issues such as plagiarism and cheating are a concern in a course taught online (Thormann and Zimmerman, 2012), so we will discuss our strategies to mitigate them.

Online calibration method for condition monitoring of nuclear reactor instrumentations based on electrical signature analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Syaiful Bakhri

2013-01-01

Electrical signature analysis currently becomes an alternative in condition monitoring in nuclear power plants not only for stationary components such as sensors, measurement and instrumentation channels, and other components but also for dynamic components such as electric motors, pumps, generator or actuators. In order to guarantee the accuracy, the calibration of monitoring system is a necessary which practically is performed offline, under limited schedules and certain tight procedures. This research aims to introduce online calibration technique for electrical signature condition monitoring in order that the accuracy can be maintained continuously which in turn increases the reactor safety as a whole. The research was performed step by stepin detail from the conventional technique, online calibration using baseline information and online calibration using differential gain adjustment. Online calibration based on differential gain adjustment provides better results than other techniques even tough under extreme gain insertion as well as external disturbances such as supply voltages. (author)

Instructional design in the development of an online course on Basic Life Support.

Science.gov (United States)

Tobase, Lucia; Peres, Heloisa Helena Ciqueto; Almeida, Denise Maria de; Tomazini, Edenir Aparecida Sartorelli; Ramos, Meire Bruna; Polastri, Thatiane Facholi

2018-03-26

To develop and evaluate an online course on Basic Life Support. Technological production research of online course guided by the ADDIE (Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation) instructional design model based on Andragogy and the Meaningful Learning Theory. The online course was constructed in the platform Moodle, previously assessed by a group of experts, and then presented to the students of the Nursing School of the University of São Paulo, who assessed it at the end of the course. The course was evaluated by the experts and obtained a mean score of 0.92 (SD 0.15), considered as good quality (between 0.90-0.94), and by the students, with a mean score of 0.95 (SD 0.03), considered as high quality (0.95-1.00). The instructional design used was found to be appropriate to the development of the online course. As an active educational strategy, it contributed to the learning on Basic Life Support during cardiac arrest-related procedures in adults. In view of the need for technological innovations in education and systematization of care in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the online course allows the establishment of continuous improvement processes in the quality of resuscitation in the care provided by students and professionals.

Instructional design in the development of an online course on Basic Life Support

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucia Tobase

2018-03-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective To develop and evaluate an online course on Basic Life Support. Method Technological production research of online course guided by the ADDIE (Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation instructional design model based on Andragogy and the Meaningful Learning Theory. The online course was constructed in the platform Moodle, previously assessed by a group of experts, and then presented to the students of the Nursing School of the University of São Paulo, who assessed it at the end of the course. Results The course was evaluated by the experts and obtained a mean score of 0.92 (SD 0.15, considered as good quality (between 0.90-0.94, and by the students, with a mean score of 0.95 (SD 0.03, considered as high quality (0.95-1.00. Conclusion The instructional design used was found to be appropriate to the development of the online course. As an active educational strategy, it contributed to the learning on Basic Life Support during cardiac arrest-related procedures in adults. In view of the need for technological innovations in education and systematization of care in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the online course allows the establishment of continuous improvement processes in the quality of resuscitation in the care provided by students and professionals.

An independent accurate reference method for the determination of chromium in biological materials

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lagerwaard, A.; Woittiez, J.R.W.; de Goeij, J.J.M.

1994-01-01

A method for the determination of Cr in biological materials with high accuracy is reported for use as an independent reference method. It is based on radiochemical neutron activation analysis (RNAA) in combination with an individual yield determination based on the online yield principle. A

Online Advertising

OpenAIRE

Goldfarb, Avi; Tucker, Catherine Elizabeth

2011-01-01

This chapter explores what makes online advertising different from traditional advertising channels. We argue that online advertising differs from traditional advertising channels in two important ways: measurability and targetability. Measurability is higher because the digital nature of online advertising means that responses to ads can be tracked relatively easily. Targetability is higher because data can be automatically tracked at an individual level, and it is relatively easy to show di...

Learning Declarative and Procedural Knowledge via Video Lectures: Cognitive Load and Learning Effectiveness

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Jianzhong; Pi, Zhongling; Yang, Jiumin

2018-01-01

Video lectures are being widely used in online and blended learning classes worldwide, and their learning effectiveness is becoming a focus of many educators and researchers. This study examined the cognitive load and learning effectiveness of video lectures in terms of the type of knowledge being taught (declarative or procedural) and instructor…

Synthetic biology and occupational risk.

Science.gov (United States)

Howard, John; Murashov, Vladimir; Schulte, Paul

2017-03-01

Synthetic biology is an emerging interdisciplinary field of biotechnology that involves applying the principles of engineering and chemical design to biological systems. Biosafety professionals have done an excellent job in addressing research laboratory safety as synthetic biology and gene editing have emerged from the larger field of biotechnology. Despite these efforts, risks posed by synthetic biology are of increasing concern as research procedures scale up to industrial processes in the larger bioeconomy. A greater number and variety of workers will be exposed to commercial synthetic biology risks in the future, including risks to a variety of workers from the use of lentiviral vectors as gene transfer devices. There is a need to review and enhance current protection measures in the field of synthetic biology, whether in experimental laboratories where new advances are being researched, in health care settings where treatments using viral vectors as gene delivery systems are increasingly being used, or in the industrial bioeconomy. Enhanced worker protection measures should include increased injury and illness surveillance of the synthetic biology workforce; proactive risk assessment and management of synthetic biology products; research on the relative effectiveness of extrinsic and intrinsic biocontainment methods; specific safety guidance for synthetic biology industrial processes; determination of appropriate medical mitigation measures for lentiviral vector exposure incidents; and greater awareness and involvement in synthetic biology safety by the general occupational safety and health community as well as by government occupational safety and health research and regulatory agencies.

Online Support Service Quality, Online Learning Acceptance, and Student Satisfaction

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jung-Wan

2010-01-01

This paper examines potential differences between Korean and American students in terms of their perception levels regarding online education support service quality, online learning acceptance, and satisfaction. Eight hundred and seventy-two samples, which were collected from students in online classes in the United States and Korea, were…

Online newspapers as newspapers online - extending the concept of 'newspaper'

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Falkenberg, Vidar

2007-01-01

Online newspapers may be easy to identify, but are difficult to define. This paper discusses how to define the online newspaper and proposes a definition that includes online newspapers with or without printed editions. The definition is based on the functions of a newspaper rather than on who th...

Aliens in the Classroom: Fantastical Creatures as Tools in Teaching Biology

Science.gov (United States)

Cruz, Ronald Allan L.

2013-01-01

Creatures from science fiction and fantasy can be used to illustrate key concepts and principles in biology. This article describes a project for a university-level general zoology course wherein the students classify, down to at least the phylum level, "animals" from the Alien Species Wiki (2013). This is an online database of creatures from…

What factors influence online brand trust: evidence from online tickets buyers in Malaysia

OpenAIRE

Shah Alam, Syed; Mohd Yasin, Norjaya

2010-01-01

This study examines online brand trust and its influencing factors in the specific context of online air ticket buyers in Malaysia. Summarizing academic literature on online brand trust drivers, it was found that there is a need to conduct research on online brand trust. Accordingly our hypotheses is that word-of-mouth, online experience, security/privacy, perceived risk, brand reputation and quality information have significant influence on online brand trust. Our hypothesis is being tested ...

The computerised procedure system COPMA and its user interface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krogsaeter, M.; Larsen, J.; Nilsen, S.; Oewre, F.

1990-01-01

At the OECD Halden Reactor Project, the COPMA system has been developed in order to investigate whether procedures can be executed more safety and efficiently if they are computerised, i.e. if the operator uses a CRT-based system instead of written manuals. Procedures are entered in a procedure data base using PED, a procedure editor. Each procedure is given a textual as well as a graphical representation. For the textual representation, the language PROLA is used, a language which has been designed for simple procedure specification. The COPMA online system lets the operator execute procedures that are stored in the procedure data base. The operator interface is a screen divided into non-overlapping windows each serving a different purpose. All commands to the system are given by moving a mouse device around and clicking buttons on top of the mouse. A procedure consists of steps, each step containing a number of instructions. The operator works on one activity at a time, an activity to be seen as a procedure instance. A graph shows the overall procedure (or activity) structure in a window and activity execution is traced in the graph. Another windows shows the instructions of the step currently being executed. The operator steps through the activity by selecting whether and how to execute the listed instructions. COPMA can maintain the status of several activities in parallel, so that the operator can easily switch between different activities. COPMA is linked to a PWR nuclear simulator over Ethernet using the TCP/IP protocol. This gives a number of advantages as compared to conventional written procedures, especially the fact that COPMA can help collect data from the procedure data base automatically

Development of a radiochemical neutron activation analysis procedure for determination of rhenium in biological and environmental samples at ultratrace level

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kucera, J.; Lucanikova, M.; Czech Technical Univ., Prague

2006-01-01

Radiochemical neutron activation procedures using liquid-liquid extraction with tetraphenylarsonium chloride in chloroform from 1M HCl and solid extraction with ALIQUAT 336 incorporated in a polyacrylonitrile binding matrix from 0.1M HCl were developed for accurate determination of rhenium in biological and environmental samples at the sub-ng x g -1 level. Concentrations of Re in the range of 0.1 to 2.4 ng x g -1 were determined in several botanical reference materials (RM), while in a RM of road dust a value of ∼ 10 ng x g -1 was found. Significantly elevated values of Re, up to 90 ng x g -1 were found in seaweed (brown algae). Results for Re in the brown algae Fucus vesiculosus in which elevated 99 Tc values had previously been determined suggested possible competition between Re and Tc in the accumulation process. (author)

Using Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games for Online Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Childress, Marcus D.; Braswell, Ray

2006-01-01

This article addresses the use of a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) to foster communication and interaction and to facilitate cooperative learning in an online course. The authors delineate the definition and history of massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs), and describe current uses of MMORPGs in education, including…

Introducing Online Bibliographic Service to its Users: The Online Presentation

Science.gov (United States)

Crane, Nancy B.; Pilachowski, David M.

1978-01-01

A description of techniques for introducing online services to new user groups includes discussion of terms and their definitions, evolution of online searching, advantages and disadvantages of online searching, production of the data bases, search strategies, Boolean logic, costs and charges, "do's and don'ts," and a user search questionnaire. (J…

Price Transparency in the Online Age.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaplan, Jonathan L; Mills, Parker H

2016-05-01

Plastic surgeons are sometimes hesitant to provide their pricing information online, due to several concerns. However, if implemented right, price transparency can be used as a lead generation tool that provides consumers with the pricing information they want and gives the physician the consumer's contact information for follow-up. This study took place during the author's first year in private practice in a new city. An interactive price transparency platform (ie, cost estimator) was integrated into his website, allowing consumers to submit a "wishlist" of procedures to check pricing on these procedures of interest. However, the consumer must submit their contact information to receive the desired breakdown of costs that are tailored based on the author's medical fees. During that first year, without any advertising expenditure, the author's website received 412 wishlists from 208 unique consumers. Consumers (17.8%) that submitted a wishlist came in for a consultation and 62% of those booked a procedure. The average value of a booked procedure was over US $4000 and cumulatively, all of the leads from this one lead source in that first year generated over US $92,000 in revenue. When compared with non-price-aware patients, price-aware patients were 41% more likely to book a procedure. Price transparency led to greater efficiency and reduced consultations that ended in "sticker shock." When prudently integrated into a medical practice, price transparency can be a great lead generation source for patients that are (1) paying out of pocket for medically necessary services due to a high-deductible health plan or (2) paying for services not typically covered by insurance, such as cosmetic services.

Analytical procedures for bulk frozen-hydrated biological tissues

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Echlin, P.; Hayes, T.L.; McKoon, M.

1983-01-01

The main advantage of using solid frozen samples for elemental x-ray microanalysis is the ease with which they may be prepared and maintained in the frozen-hydrated state. Within the limits imposed by the reduced spatial resolution of the method, the morphological identification of the tissue components is comparatively easy. Bearing in mind these limitations, the authors have carried out an analysis for several elements in the developing root tips of Lemna minor L (Duckweed). Fresh root tips of Lemna minor L, briefly encapsulated in a polymeric cryoprotectant, are quench frozen in melting nitrogen at ca. 70 0 K and transferred to the pre-cooled cold stage of an AMray Biochamber. The analysis was carried out by means of a Kevex energy-dispersive detector by use of the peak-to-background ratio method. These procedures allow the authors to obtain flat fracture faces in which they have been able to measure the relative concentrations of various elements at the various stages of differentiation in the root tissue

Stochastic Averaging for Constrained Optimization With Application to Online Resource Allocation

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Tianyi; Mokhtari, Aryan; Wang, Xin; Ribeiro, Alejandro; Giannakis, Georgios B.

2017-06-01

Existing approaches to resource allocation for nowadays stochastic networks are challenged to meet fast convergence and tolerable delay requirements. The present paper leverages online learning advances to facilitate stochastic resource allocation tasks. By recognizing the central role of Lagrange multipliers, the underlying constrained optimization problem is formulated as a machine learning task involving both training and operational modes, with the goal of learning the sought multipliers in a fast and efficient manner. To this end, an order-optimal offline learning approach is developed first for batch training, and it is then generalized to the online setting with a procedure termed learn-and-adapt. The novel resource allocation protocol permeates benefits of stochastic approximation and statistical learning to obtain low-complexity online updates with learning errors close to the statistical accuracy limits, while still preserving adaptation performance, which in the stochastic network optimization context guarantees queue stability. Analysis and simulated tests demonstrate that the proposed data-driven approach improves the delay and convergence performance of existing resource allocation schemes.

On-line Auto-Tuning of PI Control of the Superheat for a Supermarket Refrigeration System

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yang, Zhenyu; Andersen, Casper; Izadi-Zamanabadi, Roozbeh

2011-01-01

An online PI auto-tuning method is proposed for superheat control for a type of supermarket refrigeration systems. The proposed procedure consists of three serial steps: Step-One uses one of the two proposed empirical methods, namely multi-step method and relay method, for modeling initialization...

Googling trends in conservation biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Proulx, Raphaël; Massicotte, Philippe; Pépino, Marc

2014-02-01

Web-crawling approaches, that is, automated programs data mining the internet to obtain information about a particular process, have recently been proposed for monitoring early signs of ecosystem degradation or for establishing crop calendars. However, lack of a clear conceptual and methodological framework has prevented the development of such approaches within the field of conservation biology. Our objective was to illustrate how Google Trends, a freely accessible web-crawling engine, can be used to track changes in timing of biological processes, spatial distribution of invasive species, and level of public awareness about key conservation issues. Google Trends returns the number of internet searches that were made for a keyword in a given region of the world over a defined period. Using data retrieved online for 13 countries, we exemplify how Google Trends can be used to study the timing of biological processes, such as the seasonal recurrence of pollen release or mosquito outbreaks across a latitudinal gradient. We mapped the spatial extent of results from Google Trends for 5 invasive species in the United States and found geographic patterns in invasions that are consistent with their coarse-grained distribution at state levels. From 2004 through 2012, Google Trends showed that the level of public interest and awareness about conservation issues related to ecosystem services, biodiversity, and climate change increased, decreased, and followed both trends, respectively. Finally, to further the development of research approaches at the interface of conservation biology, collective knowledge, and environmental management, we developed an algorithm that allows the rapid retrieval of Google Trends data. © 2013 Society for Conservation Biology.

On the use of on-line detection for maintenance of gradually deteriorating systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fouladirad, Mitra; Grall, Antoine; Dieulle, Laurence

2008-01-01

This paper deals with condition-based maintenance and non-stationary degradation process due to sudden changes. This is an attempt to propose an adaptive maintenance policy based on the on-line change detection procedure which can help to detect switches from a nominal mode to an accelerated mode in a non-informative context about the change mode time

On the use of on-line detection for maintenance of gradually deteriorating systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fouladirad, Mitra [Institut Charles Delaunay, Universite de Technologie de Troyes, FRE CNRS 2848, LM2S 12 rue Marie Curie, 10010 Troyes (France); Grall, Antoine [Institut Charles Delaunay, Universite de Technologie de Troyes, FRE CNRS 2848, LM2S 12 rue Marie Curie, 10010 Troyes (France)], E-mail: antoine.grall@utt.fr; Dieulle, Laurence [Institut Charles Delaunay, Universite de Technologie de Troyes, FRE CNRS 2848, LM2S 12 rue Marie Curie, 10010 Troyes (France)

2008-12-15

This paper deals with condition-based maintenance and non-stationary degradation process due to sudden changes. This is an attempt to propose an adaptive maintenance policy based on the on-line change detection procedure which can help to detect switches from a nominal mode to an accelerated mode in a non-informative context about the change mode time.

The Motivating Effect of Antecedent Stimuli on the Web Shop: A Conjoint Analysis of the Impact of Antecedent Stimuli at the Point of Online Purchase

Science.gov (United States)

Fagerstrom, Asle

2010-01-01

This article introduces the concept of motivating operation (MO) to the field of online consumer research. A conjoint analysis was conducted to assess the motivating impact of antecedent stimuli on online purchasing. Stimuli tested were in-stock status, price, other customers' reviews, order confirmation procedures, and donation to charity. The…

Online Learning Self-Efficacy in Students with and without Online Learning Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Zimmerman, Whitney Alicia; Kulikowich, Jonna M.

2016-01-01

A need was identified for an instrument to measure online learning self-efficacy, which encompassed the wide variety of tasks required of successful online students. The Online Learning Self-Efficacy Scale (OLSES) was designed to include tasks required of students enrolled in paced online courses at one university. In the present study, the…

Library Services Online: Introducing Library Services for Online MBA Classes

Science.gov (United States)

Slavin, Laura C.

2015-01-01

In this article, a librarian at Lincoln Memorial University creates library services for an MBA program offered entirely online that is in the early stages of development. The library services include a subject guide and 4 tutorials that will be added to the MBA online orientation. Other services include offering online office hours and…

Health literacy in a complex digital media landscape: Pediatric obesity patients' experiences with online weight, food, and health information.

Science.gov (United States)

Holmberg, Christopher; Berg, Christina; Dahlgren, Jovanna; Lissner, Lauren; Chaplin, John Eric

2018-03-01

This study aimed to explore experiences with online information regarding food, weight management, and health in a group of adolescents in treatment for obesity. Individual semi-structured interviews with 20 adolescents were conducted. Participants used a screen-recorded laptop to demonstrate their search procedures and online information sources. The transcribed interviews were categorized using qualitative content analysis. The adolescents described both encouraging and discouraging experiences. On one hand, they said that online forums could provide nutritious meal ideas and inspiration as well as social support for behavior change. On the other hand, they mentioned that there was a confusing amount of misleading commercial content online and also experiences of peer-facilitated food marketing in online networks. An overarching theme was generated: social media might be a resource for health inspiration, health information, and social support, but requires awareness and competencies. Implications for clinical practice are discussed in light of these findings.

Online Games

OpenAIRE

Kerr, Aphra; Ivory, James D.

2015-01-01

When we agreed to edit the theme on online games for this Encyclopedia our first question was, “What is meant by online games?” Scholars of games distinguish between nondigital games (such as board games) and digital games, rather than between online and offline games. With networked consoles and smartphones it is becoming harder and harder to find players in the wealthy industrialized countries who play “offline” digital games. Most games developers now include ...

Biological monitors of air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kucera, J.

1994-01-01

Direct biological monitoring of air pollution was introduced about 30 years ago. Although still under development, the application of biological monitors, or indicators, may provide important information on the levels, availability, and pathways of a variety of pollutants including heavy metals and other toxic trace elements in the air. A survey is given of the most frequently used biomonitors, such as herbaceous plants, tree leaves or needles, bryophytes, and lichens, with their possible advantages and/or limitations. In addition to using naturally-occurring biomonitors, a possibility of employing ''transplanted'' species in the study areas, for instance grasses grown in special containers in standard soils or lichens transplanted with their natural substrate to an exposition site, is also mentioned. Several sampling and washing procedures are reported. The important of employing nuclear analytical methods, especially instrumental neutron activation analysis, for multielemental analysis of biomonitors as a pre-requisite for unlocking the information contained in chemical composition of monitor's tissues, such as apportionment of emission sources using multivariate statistical procedures, is also outlined. (author). 32 refs, 2 figs

ANALISIS ARGUMENTASI MAHASISWA PENDIDIKAN BIOLOGI PADA ISU SOSIOSAINFIK KONSUMSI GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISM (GMO

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Y. Herlanti

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis argumentasi yang dikemukakan oleh mahasiswa pendidikan biologi terkait isu sosiosaintifik yaitu konsumsi pangan Genetically Modified Organism (GMO.  Penelitian menggunakan metode survei secara online.  Partisipan yang berasal dari semester III-VII Universitas Islam Negeri Jakarta yang secara sukarela mengisi kuisioner online yang diunggah pada weblog. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan isu sosiosaintifik GMO lebih banyak ditanggapi secara saintifik oleh partisipan.  Argumentasi sebagian besar berada pada level II, yaitu telah mampu mengungkapkan sebuah klaim disertai dengan alasan. Hanya sedikit yang sudah mampu memberikan argumen secara holistik (level IV, yaitu mampu mengungkapkan argumen dengan alasan yang kuat yang tidak mudah dibantah.  Umumnya argumentasi yang dikemukan partisipan berjenis argumentasi sederhana dan argumentasi tipe rantai.  Berdasarkan temuan ini, perlu dikembangkan sebuah model perkuliahan yang dapat meningkatkan keterampilan berargumentasi. This research aimed to analyze the argument for socioscientifik issue “Genetically Modified Organism (GMO Food Consumtion”.  This reseach used online survey.  Participant filled online questionaire that uploaded in weblog.  Participants are student of biology education in Jakarta Islamic State University. The result showed most participants gave scientific view in their argument.  Most of argumentations were in level II; participants gave a klaim within a warrant.  Only a few argument were in level IV, it’s a holistic argument that contained a klaim, a warrant, a backing, and a rebuttal.  Most of argument had simple type or chain type.  From this result, university must develop strategies of lecturing to improve argumentation skill.

Influence of Incentives on Performance in a Pre-College Biology MOOC

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suhang Jiang

2014-11-01

Full Text Available There is concern that online education may widen the achievement gap between students from different socioeconomic classes. The recent discussion of integrating massive open online courses (MOOCs into formal higher education has added fuel to this debate. In this study, factors influencing enrollment and completion in a pre-college preparatory MOOC were explored. University of California at Irvine (UCI students of all preparation levels, defined by math Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT score, were invited to take a Bio Prep MOOC to help them prepare for introductory biology. Students with math SAT below 550 were offered the explicit incentive of an early change to the biology major upon successful completion of the MOOC and two additional onsite courses. Our results demonstrate that, among course registrants, a higher percentage of UCI students (>60% completed the course than non-UCI registrants from the general population (<9%. Female UCI students had a greater likelihood of enrolling in the MOOC, but were not different from male students in terms of performance. University students entering with low preparation outperformed students entering who already had the credentials to become biology majors. These findings suggest that MOOCs can reach students, even those entering college with less preparation, before they enter university and have the potential to prepare them for challenging science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM courses.

Synthetic biology and biosecurity: challenging the "myths".

Science.gov (United States)

Jefferson, Catherine; Lentzos, Filippa; Marris, Claire

2014-01-01

Synthetic biology, a field that aims to "make biology easier to engineer," is routinely described as leading to an increase in the "dual-use" threat, i.e., the potential for the same scientific research to be "used" for peaceful purposes or "misused" for warfare or terrorism. Fears have been expressed that the "de-skilling" of biology, combined with online access to the genomic DNA sequences of pathogenic organisms and the reduction in price for DNA synthesis, will make biology increasingly accessible to people operating outside well-equipped professional research laboratories, including people with malevolent intentions. The emergence of do-it-yourself (DIY) biology communities and of the student iGEM competition has come to epitomize this supposed trend toward greater ease of access and the associated potential threat from rogue actors. In this article, we identify five "myths" that permeate discussions about synthetic biology and biosecurity, and argue that they embody misleading assumptions about both synthetic biology and bioterrorism. We demonstrate how these myths are challenged by more realistic understandings of the scientific research currently being conducted in both professional and DIY laboratories, and by an analysis of historical cases of bioterrorism. We show that the importance of tacit knowledge is commonly overlooked in the dominant narrative: the focus is on access to biological materials and digital information, rather than on human practices and institutional dimensions. As a result, public discourse on synthetic biology and biosecurity tends to portray speculative scenarios about the future as realities in the present or the near future, when this is not warranted. We suggest that these "myths" play an important role in defining synthetic biology as a "promissory" field of research and as an "emerging technology" in need of governance.

Gene2Function: An Integrated Online Resource for Gene Function Discovery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yanhui Hu

2017-08-01

Full Text Available One of the most powerful ways to develop hypotheses regarding the biological functions of conserved genes in a given species, such as humans, is to first look at what is known about their function in another species. Model organism databases and other resources are rich with functional information but difficult to mine. Gene2Function addresses a broad need by integrating information about conserved genes in a single online resource.

Nevada Applied Ecology Group procedures handbook for environmental transuranics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

White, M.G.; Dunaway, P.B.

1976-10-01

The activities of the Nevada Applied Ecology Group (NAEG) integrated research studies of environmental plutonium and other transuranics at the Nevada Test Site have required many standardized field and laboratory procedures. These include sampling techniques, collection and preparation, radiochemical and wet chemistry analysis, data bank storage and reporting, and statistical considerations for environmental samples of soil, vegetation, resuspended particles, animals, and other biological material. This document, printed in two volumes, includes most of the Nevada Applied Ecology Group standard procedures, with explanations as to the specific applications involved in the environmental studies. Where there is more than one document concerning a procedure, it has been included to indicate special studies or applications more complex than the routine standard sampling procedures utilized

75 FR 66391 - Regulations Containing Procedures for Handling of Retaliation Complaints; Extension of the Office...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-28

..., Procedures for Handling of Discrimination Complaints Under Section 806 of the Corporate and Criminal Fraud... Systems Security Act of 2007, Enacted as Section 1413 of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11... Federal eRulemaking Portal. Follow the instructions online for submitting comments. Facsimile: If your...

Efficacy of Cleaning and Disinfection Procedures in a Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Facility

OpenAIRE

Garcia, Rachel L; Sanders, George E

2011-01-01

Appropriate cleaning and disinfection procedures in zebrafish (Danio rerio) laboratories are crucial in preventing the spread of aquatic animal pathogens and minimizing the build-up of waste products and biologic matter. The procedures selected should accomplish these goals and incorporate the individual needs of various laboratories. In this study of a single zebrafish facility, we assessed the efficacy of 2 different cleaning and disinfection procedures for nets, tanks, and lids. ATP levels...

ONLINE MARKETING OF HOSPITALITY SERVICES : Tourist satisfaction with online accommodation booking

OpenAIRE

Kaakinen, Heidi; Purkayastha, Eshita

2016-01-01

The aim of this thesis was to study tourist satisfaction in online accommodation booking. Nowadays it is very common to conduct any kind of business online because of its practicality, accessibility and convenience. These days online is a community and it is a very effective way to build relation with the consumers. Hospitality firms like hostel and restaurants are using online community as a marketing tool to reach their customers. Studies have found four participation benefits as to partici...

An Ensemble of Neural Networks for Online Electron Filtering at the ATLAS Experiment.

CERN Document Server

Da Fonseca Pinto, Joao Victor; The ATLAS collaboration

2018-01-01

In 2017 the ATLAS experiment implemented an ensemble of neural networks (NeuralRinger algorithm) dedicated to improving the performance of filtering events containing electrons in the high-input rate online environment of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, Geneva. The ensemble employs a concept of calorimetry rings. The training procedure and final structure of the ensemble are used to minimize fluctuations from detector response, according to the particle energy and position of incidence. A detailed study was carried out to assess profile distortions in crucial offline quantities through the usage of statistical tests and residual analysis. These details and the online performance of this algorithm during the 2017 data-taking will be presented.

A comparative analysis of online education resources for patients undergoing endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Fahey, Natalie; Patel, Vimal; Rosseau, Gail

2014-12-01

Endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery has become the most commonly performed surgical procedure for pituitary tumor removal. As such, there are many patient-oriented educational materials on the technique available online for members of the public who desire to learn more about the surgery. It has been recommended that educational resources be written to the national average reading level, which in the United States is between sixth and seventh grade. This study assesses the reading level of the educational materials currently available online for endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery and determines whether these resources are written at a suitable comprehension level for most readers. Sixteen patient educational resources describing endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery were identified online and assessed using 4 standard readability assessments. Patient educational resources written for endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery are written far above the recommended reading level of sixth grade. The online educational resources written for patients about endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery are above the recommended reading level for patient education materials. Further revisions to simplify these resources on endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery are needed to ensure that most patients can comprehend this important material and make informed decisions about their health care. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Prevention by All Means?
A Legal Comparison of the Criminalization of Online Grooming and its Enforcement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Renée Kool

2011-10-01

Full Text Available The obligation to criminalise online grooming, recently prescribed by the Council of Europe in the Treaty of Lanzarote, illustrates modern citizens' fears of external dangers, especially towards the sexual abuse of minors. The authorities' image of online grooming being unclear, the penalisatiom tends to be of a symbolic nature, implying false prophecies of legal protection. Moreover, the penalisation of online grooming indicates a precautionary use of the criminal law, so its justification lies within the perpertrators' objectionable motive, the latter violating basic assumptions of criminal law. Next to theoretical objections, practical issues are to be foreseen, as the criminal investigation of online grooming indicates the use of undercover tactics, which has a bearing on the procedural risk, e.g. the entrapment defence. Nevertheless, the British authorities have been able to penalise online grooming rather successfully. The Netherlands having recently (in July 2010 introduced a similar provision, this calls for a comparative analysis. Does the penalisation of online grooming have any added value, especially in light of the tendency towards a precautionary use of the criminal law, and what features are apparent in the British success?

Retention of community college students in online courses

Science.gov (United States)

Krajewski, Sarah

The issue of attrition in online courses at higher learning institutions remains a high priority in the United States. A recent rapid growth of online courses at community colleges has been instigated by student demand, as they meet the time constraints many nontraditional community college students have as a result of the need to work and care for dependents. Failure in an online course can cause students to become frustrated with the college experience, financially burdened, or to even give up and leave college. Attrition could be avoided by proper guidance of who is best suited for online courses. This study examined factors related to retention (i.e., course completion) and success (i.e., receiving a C or better) in an online biology course at a community college in the Midwest by operationalizing student characteristics (age, race, gender), student skills (whether or not the student met the criteria to be placed in an AFP course), and external factors (Pell recipient, full/part time status, first term) from the persistence model developed by Rovai. Internal factors from this model were not included in this study. Both univariate analyses and multivariate logistic regression were used to analyze the variables. Results suggest that race and Pell recipient were both predictive of course completion on univariate analyses. However, multivariate analyses showed that age, race, academic load and first term were predictive of completion and Pell recipient was no longer predictive. The univariate results for the C or better showed that age, race, Pell recipient, academic load, and meeting AFP criteria were predictive of success. Multivariate analyses showed that only age, race, and Pell recipient were significant predictors of success. Both regression models explained very little (<15%) of the variability within the outcome variables of retention and success. Therefore, although significant predictors were identified for course completion and retention, there are still

Using Online Presence to Improve Online Collaborative Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zoran Jeremic

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Social software tools have become an integral part of students’ personal lives and their primary communication medium. Likewise, these tools are increasingly entering the enterprise world (within the recent trend known as Enterprise 2.0 and becoming a part of everyday work routines. Aiming to keep the pace with the job requirements and also to position learning as an integral part of students’ life, the field of education is challenged to embrace social software. Personal Learning Environments (PLEs emerged as a concept that makes use of social software to facilitate collaboration, knowledge sharing, group formation around common interests, active participation and reflective thinking in online learning settings. Furthermore, social software allows for establishing and maintaining one’s presence in the online world. By being aware of a student's online presence, a PLE is better able to personalize the learning settings, e.g., through recommendation of content to use or people to collaborate with. Aiming to explore the potentials of online presence for the provision of recommendations in PLEs, in the scope of the OP4L project, we have develop a software solution that is based on a synergy of Semantic Web technologies, online presence and socially-oriented learning theories. In this paper we present the current results of this research work.

Online Gamers' Preferences for Online Game Charging Mechanisms: The Effect of Exploration Motivation

OpenAIRE

Fan-Chen Tseng; Ching-I Teng

2015-01-01

Online games construct a virtual world where gamers can explore and experience various exciting environments. However, studies on gamer behavior rarely investigated the relationships between motivations and spending for online games. Understanding these relationships helps online game service providers manage gamers' motivations and develop better revenue models. This study investigated the relationships between one core motivation for playing online games—exploration motivation—and onlin...

The development of online doctor reviews in China: an analysis of the largest online doctor review website in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Hao, Haijing

2015-06-01

.366 (95% CI 1.337-1.395), respectively. Quantitatively, traditional Chinese medicine doctors (Previews than the combined small specialty areas. But internal medicine doctors received fewer reviews than the combined small specialty areas (Previews were positive-about 88% were positive for the doctors' treatment effect measure and 91% were positive for the bedside manner measure. This was the case for the four major specialty areas, which had the most number of doctors—internal medicine, gynecology-obstetrics-pediatrics, surgery, and traditional Chinese medicine. Like consumers in the United States and Europe, Chinese consumers have started to use online doctor reviews. Similar to previous research on other countries' online doctor reviews, the online reviews in China covered almost every medical specialty, and most of the reviews were positive even though all of the reviewing procedures and the final available information were anonymous. The average number of reviews per rated doctor received in this dataset was 6, which was higher than that for doctors in the United States or Germany, probably because this dataset covered a longer time period than did the US or German dataset. But this number is still very small compared to any doctor's real patient population, and it cannot represent the reality of that population. Also, since all the data used for analysis were from one single website, the data might be biased and might not be a representative national sample of China.

Determination of chromium in biological matrices by neutron activation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McClendon, L.T.

1978-01-01

Chromium is recognized to be an essential trace element in several biological systems. It exists in many biological materials in a variety of chemical forms and very low concentration levels which cause problems for many analytical techniques. Both instrumental and destructive neutron activation analysis were used to determine the chromium concentration in Orchard Leaves, SRM 1571, Brewers Yeast, SRM 1569, and Bovine Liver, SRM 1577. Some of the problems inherent with determining chromium in certain biological matrices and the data obtained here at the National Bureau of Standards using this technique are discussed. The results obtained from dissolution of brewers yeast in a closed system as described in the DNAA procedure are in good agreement with the INAA results. The same phenomenon existed in the determination of chromium in bovine liver. The radiochemical procedure described for chromium (DNAA) provides the analyst with a simple, rapid and selective technique for chromium determination in a variety of matrices. (T.G.)

Online Leadership and Learning: How Online Leaders May Learn From Their Working Experience

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kolbæk, Ditte

2018-01-01

Online working environments develop and change continuously, meaning that online leaders and online team members must learn to adapt to change and should utilize emerging possibilities for doing their jobs. The purpose of this chapter is to explore how online leaders learn from experiences develo...

Online Instructors as Thinking Advisors: A Model for Online Learner Adaptation

Science.gov (United States)

Benedetti, Christopher

2015-01-01

This article examines the characteristics and challenges of online instruction and presents a model for improving learner adaptation in an online classroom. Instruction in an online classroom presents many challenges, including learner individualization. Individual differences in learning styles and preferences are often not considered in the…

Library Online Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Folda, Linda; And Others

1989-01-01

Issues related to library online systems are discussed in six articles. Topics covered include staff education through vendor demonstrations, evaluation of online public access catalogs, the impact of integrated online systems on cataloging operations, the merits of smart and dumb barcodes, and points to consider in planning for the next online…

Heuristic for Stochastic Online Flowshop Problem with Preemption Penalties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Bayat

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The deterministic flowshop model is one of the most widely studied problems; whereas its stochastic equivalent has remained a challenge. Furthermore, the preemptive online stochastic flowshop problem has received much less attention, and most of the previous researches have considered a nonpreemptive version. Moreover, little attention has been devoted to the problems where a certain time penalty is incurred when preemption is allowed. This paper examines the preemptive stochastic online flowshop with the objective of minimizing the expected makespan. All the jobs arrive overtime, which means that the existence and the parameters of each job are unknown until its release date. The processing time of the jobs is stochastic and actual processing time is unknown until completion of the job. A heuristic procedure for this problem is presented, which is applicable whenever the job processing times are characterized by their means and standard deviation. The performance of the proposed heuristic method is explored using some numerical examples.

Radioimmunoassay and related procedures in medicine 1982

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-01-01

Of the 77 papers submitted, 69 were included in INIS. The papers included in the proceedings cover the following sessions: reagents and separation procedures; assay for free hormones; assay for biological substances; assay for drugs; data processing; intralaboratory quality control; external surveillance of assay performance; assay service in developing countries; public health applications; clinical applications; alternatives to radioassay

Online Interactions and Social Presence in Online Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Sang Joon; Huang, Kun

2018-01-01

The community of inquiry framework identified three essential elements of cognitive, social, and teaching presences for a successful online learning experience. Among them, social presence is key for developing personal relationships and enhancing collaboration and critical discourse in online courses. This study examined whether providing more…

Neuro-symbolic representation learning on biological knowledge graphs

KAUST Repository

Alshahrani, Mona

2017-04-21

Biological data and knowledge bases increasingly rely on Semantic Web technologies and the use of knowledge graphs for data integration, retrieval and federated queries. In the past years, feature learning methods that are applicable to graph-structured data are becoming available, but have not yet widely been applied and evaluated on structured biological knowledge.We develop a novel method for feature learning on biological knowledge graphs. Our method combines symbolic methods, in particular knowledge representation using symbolic logic and automated reasoning, with neural networks to generate embeddings of nodes that encode for related information within knowledge graphs. Through the use of symbolic logic, these embeddings contain both explicit and implicit information. We apply these embeddings to the prediction of edges in the knowledge graph representing problems of function prediction, finding candidate genes of diseases, protein-protein interactions, or drug target relations, and demonstrate performance that matches and sometimes outperforms traditional approaches based on manually crafted features. Our method can be applied to any biological knowledge graph, and will thereby open up the increasing amount of SemanticWeb based knowledge bases in biology to use in machine learning and data analytics.https://github.com/bio-ontology-research-group/walking-rdf-and-owl.robert.hoehndorf@kaust.edu.sa.Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

University Student Online Plagiarism

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yu-mei

2008-01-01

This article reports a study investigating university student online plagiarism. The following questions are investigated: (a) What is the incidence of student online plagiarism? (b) What are student perceptions regarding online plagiarism? (c) Are there any differences in terms of student perceptions of online plagiarism and print plagiarism? (d)…

Online shopping hesitation.

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Chang-Hoan; Kang, Jaewon; Cheon, Hongsik John

2006-06-01

This study was designed to understand which factors influence consumer hesitation or delay in online product purchases. The study examined four groups of variables (i.e., consumer characteristics, contextual factors perceived uncertainty factors, and medium/channel innovation factors) that predict three types of online shopping hesitation (i.e., overall hesitation, shopping cart abandonment, and hesitation at the final payment stage). We found that different sets of delay factors are related to different aspects of online shopping hesitation. The study concludes with suggestion for various delay-reduction devices to help consumers close their online decision hesitation.

Online Shopping Woes

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Hou Weili

2011-01-01

AS a frequent online shopper,Zhou Fangjie,a 28-year-old white-collar worker,was annoyed when she could not open Hanyidushe,an online shop selling Korean-style clothing on Taobao Mall.Her experience resulted from the online protest initiated by small vendors on Taobao Mall,China's largest business to consumer online platform.Thousands of small vendors started the protest against larger established vendors by discrediting them through False orders,forming an anti-Taobao Union and setting up a chat room to devise ways to disrupt operations on Taobao Mall.

77 FR 1972 - U.S. Department of State Advisory Committee on Private International Law (ACPIL)-Online Dispute...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-12

... business to consumer cross-border electronic commerce disputes. The Working Group has been considering, inter alia, ODR procedural rules for resolution of cross-border electronic commerce disputes. For the... International Law (ACPIL)--Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) Study Group Meeting The Office of Private...

The Quality of Online Health-Related Information – an Emergent Consumer Health Issue

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nădăşan Valentin

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The Internet has become one of the main means of communication used by people who search for health-related information. The quality of online health-related information affects the users’ knowledge, their attitude, and their risk or health behaviour in complex ways and influences a substantial number of users in their decisions regarding diagnostic and treatment procedures.

On-line evaluation of position-sensitive detector (PSD) diffraction data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stansfield, R.F.D.; McIntyre, G.J.

1985-01-01

The amount of raw data accumulated in a single-crystal diffraction experiment using a two-dimensional Position Sensitive Detector is usually so large that it is impracticable to store it. It is therefore necessary to reduce each local three-dimensional array of counts to a Bragg intensity, in a time not longer than the average time that one reflection is active. The statistically optimum procedure comprises an estimation of the background from a large number of counts, and an integration of peak intensity within a suitable three-dimensional envelope. A typical on-line method is described, using as an example the D19 diffractometer at the Institut Max von Laue - Paul Langevin (ILL) high-flux reactor. Current methods of PSD data reduction are reviewed. These fall into three groups according to the basis of the method used to find the integration envelope: (a) statistical criteria, (b) three-dimensional sigma(I)/I analysis, and (c) pre-calculation of the resolution function. On-line data reduction imposes special requirements on diagnostics to check the precision of the reduced data, especially at the start of an experiment, when any peculiarities must be identified and allowed for in the data-reduction procedure. The diagnostic possibilities resulting from the comparison of local with global characteristics of the background and the integration envelope are discussed. (author)

A fast and systematic procedure to develop dynamic models of bioprocesses: application to microalgae cultures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Mailier

2010-09-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this paper is to report on the development of a procedure for inferring black-box, yet biologically interpretable, dynamic models of bioprocesses based on sets of measurements of a few external components (biomass, substrates, and products of interest. The procedure has three main steps: (a the determination of the number of macroscopic biological reactions linking the measured components; (b the estimation of a first reaction scheme, which has interesting mathematical properties, but might lack a biological interpretation; and (c the "projection" (or transformation of this reaction scheme onto a biologically-consistent scheme. The advantage of the method is that it allows the fast prototyping of models for the culture of microorganisms that are not well documented. The good performance of the third step of the method is demonstrated by application to an example of microalgal culture.

Online monitoring of fast neutron (DT/DD) at Purnima neutron generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bishnoi, S.; Patel, T.; Shukla, M.; Adhikari, P.S.; Sinha, A.

2012-01-01

A neutron generator (NG) at Purnima Labs, BARC has been developed for DT accelerator driven zero power subcritical (ADSS) system. Subcritical core of ADSS will be coupled to the NG for benchmarking experiments. Kinetic parameters of ADSS such as K-source, flux, power etc depends on this external neutron source strength injected to the core. However the neutron emission rate of NG does not remain stable throughout its operation. In view of this a reliable, precise and online monitoring of NG's neutron emission rate is required. An online neutron monitoring system based on associated particle method has been designed, developed and installed at NG. The monitoring unit consists of an ion implanted planar silicon detector, placed inside the drift tube of NG at an angle with respect to D + beam direction. A series of experiments were carried out with increasing neutron yield to optimize the position of detector such that it has sufficient counting statistics and minimum pileup. A complementary calibration procedure for validating these results based on activation technique was also carried out with standard Cu foil. The reaction rate monitored with online monitor and foil activation technique were compared, their variations with the predicted (theoretical) results were within 16%. This paper deals with the development and performance of online neutron monitoring system for DT and DD neutrons

Conducting interactive experiments online.

Science.gov (United States)

Arechar, Antonio A; Gächter, Simon; Molleman, Lucas

2018-01-01

Online labor markets provide new opportunities for behavioral research, but conducting economic experiments online raises important methodological challenges. This particularly holds for interactive designs. In this paper, we provide a methodological discussion of the similarities and differences between interactive experiments conducted in the laboratory and online. To this end, we conduct a repeated public goods experiment with and without punishment using samples from the laboratory and the online platform Amazon Mechanical Turk. We chose to replicate this experiment because it is long and logistically complex. It therefore provides a good case study for discussing the methodological and practical challenges of online interactive experimentation. We find that basic behavioral patterns of cooperation and punishment in the laboratory are replicable online. The most important challenge of online interactive experiments is participant dropout. We discuss measures for reducing dropout and show that, for our case study, dropouts are exogenous to the experiment. We conclude that data quality for interactive experiments via the Internet is adequate and reliable, making online interactive experimentation a potentially valuable complement to laboratory studies.

Relationship between Online Learning Readiness and Structure and Interaction of Online Learning Students

Science.gov (United States)

Demir Kaymak, Zeliha; Horzum, Mehmet Baris

2013-01-01

Current study tried to determine whether a relationship exists between readiness levels of the online learning students for online learning and the perceived structure and interaction in online learning environments. In the study, cross sectional survey model was used. The study was conducted with 320 voluntary students studying online learning…

An Online Change of Activity in Energy Spectrum for Detection on an Early Intervention Robot

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boudergui, K.; Laine, F. [CEA, LIST, Laboratoire Capteurs et Architectures Electroniques, F-91191 Gif Sur Yvette (France); Montagu, T. [CEA, LIST, Laboratoire de Modelisation et de Simulation des Systemes, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette (France); Blanc, P. [IMS, Innovation and Measurement Systems, 94100 Saint-Maur-des-Fosses (France); Deltour, A. [ECA Robotics, 91892 Orsay Cedex (France); Mozziconacci, S. [SDIS13, 13110 Port de Bouc (France)

2015-07-01

With the growth of industrial risks and the multiplication of CBRNe (Chemical Biological Radiological and explosive) attacks through toxic chemicals, biological or radiological threats, public services and military authorities face with increasingly critical situations, whose management is strongly conditioned by fast and reliable establishment of an informative diagnostic. Right after an attack, the five first minutes are crucial to define the various scenarios and the most dangerous for a human intervention. Therefore the use of robots is considered essential by all stakeholders of security. In this context, the SISPEO project (Systeme d'Intervention Sapeurs Pompiers Robotise) aims to create/build/design a robust response through a robotic platform for early intervention services such as civil and military security in hostile environments. CEA LIST has proposed an adapted solution to detect and characterize nuclear and radiological risks online and in motion, using a miniature embedded CdZnTe (CZT) crystal Gamma-ray spectrometer. This paper presents experimental results for this miniature embedded CZT spectrometer and its associated mathematical method to detect and characterize radiological threats online and in motion. (authors)

An Online Change of Activity in Energy Spectrum for Detection on an Early Intervention Robot

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boudergui, K.; Laine, F.; Montagu, T.; Blanc, P.; Deltour, A.; Mozziconacci, S.

2015-01-01

With the growth of industrial risks and the multiplication of CBRNe (Chemical Biological Radiological and explosive) attacks through toxic chemicals, biological or radiological threats, public services and military authorities face with increasingly critical situations, whose management is strongly conditioned by fast and reliable establishment of an informative diagnostic. Right after an attack, the five first minutes are crucial to define the various scenarios and the most dangerous for a human intervention. Therefore the use of robots is considered essential by all stakeholders of security. In this context, the SISPEO project (Systeme d'Intervention Sapeurs Pompiers Robotise) aims to create/build/design a robust response through a robotic platform for early intervention services such as civil and military security in hostile environments. CEA LIST has proposed an adapted solution to detect and characterize nuclear and radiological risks online and in motion, using a miniature embedded CdZnTe (CZT) crystal Gamma-ray spectrometer. This paper presents experimental results for this miniature embedded CZT spectrometer and its associated mathematical method to detect and characterize radiological threats online and in motion. (authors)

E-Service Quality, E-Satisfaction and E-Loyalty of Online Shoppers in Business to Consumer Market; Evidence form Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Ting, Ong Soo; Ariff, Mohd Shoki Md; Zakuan, Norhayati; Sulaiman, Zuraidah; Zameri Mat Saman, Muhamad

2016-05-01

The growing usage of internet and online shopping in Malaysia presents a huge prospect in e-commerce market, specifically for B2C segment. As a result, electronic service quality (e-SQ), electronic satisfaction (e-Satisfaction) and electronic loyalty (e-Loyalty) become vital for online retailers to attract and retain online shoppers in this virtual environment. The association between e-SQ, e-Satisfaction and e-Loyalty should be continuously examined to cope with the advancement in information and communication technology, and the changing expectation of online shoppers. However, construct of e-SQ for online retailers in B2C market is still debatable. In this research, E-SERVQUAL was integrated with the other e-SQ scales to measure e-SQ of a prominent online retailer in Malaysia. Specifically, the e-SQ constructs are Efficiency, Privacy and Trust, Fulfilment, Responsiveness, Contact and Website Design. 390 sets of completed and usable questionnaires were gathered using online questionnaire and convenience sampling procedure. The result indicated that the five proposed dimensions of e-SQ constitute e-SQ of online retailer in B2C market. All the dimensions of e-SQ were found to have positive and significant effect on e-Satisfaction of online shoppers. Responsiveness of e-SQ had the strongest impact on e-satisfaction of online shoppers. The shoppers e-Satisfaction was positively and significantly affected their e-Loyalty towards continuous usage of online retailer's website. Managerial and theoretical implications are discussed based on the results of the study.

Design an online course of radiological protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garcia S, R.; Del Sol F, S.; Rivera M, T.; Sanchez G, D.

2015-10-01

Currently there is a vast research about the harmful effects of the use of ionizing radiation in medical procedures and in recent years struck by the rapid innovation in imaging equipment, considerably increasing the radiation dose received both patients and professionals in the radiodiagnosis area, service having the greatest demand in our country. The main strategy that has so far is education, that is, to inform all those involved in managing ionizing radiation about the applications and risks associated with them. Generally it requires that all personnel occupationally exposed attesting a course of radiation protection. However, the high demand for this type of medical services and poorly trained staff, makes taking a classroom course for personnel occupationally exposed is complicated. So that in the Instituto Politecnico Nacional (IPN) we are designing a course in radiation protection to be implemented online, through the virtual platform Moodle in a first stage, and a massive open online course as the second stage so that can be carried by anyone interested in the subject, without having to appear in person. This will allows to reach the largest possible number of personnel occupationally exposed to just have a computer with internet access. (Author)

What Online Networks Offer: "Online Network Compositions and Online Learning Experiences of Three Ethnic Groups"

Science.gov (United States)

Lecluijze, Suzanne Elisabeth; de Haan, Mariëtte; Ünlüsoy, Asli

2015-01-01

This exploratory study examines ethno-cultural diversity in youth's narratives regarding their "online" learning experiences while also investigating how these narratives can be understood from the analysis of their online network structure and composition. Based on ego-network data of 79 respondents this study compared the…

Assessing Students' Performances in Decision-Making: Coping Strategies of Biology Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Steffen, Benjamin; Hößle, Corinna

2017-01-01

Decision-making in socioscientific issues (SSI) constitutes a real challenge for both biology teachers and learners. The assessment of students' performances in SSIs constitutes a problem, especially for biology teachers. The study at hand was conducted in Germany and uses a qualitative approach following the research procedures of grounded theory…

The development of adolescents’ online sexual risk behavior and its relationship to negative online experiences

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Baumgartner, S.; Sumter, S.; Valkenburg, P.; Peter, J.

2012-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate developmental pathways of online sexual risk behavior from early to late adolescence. Moreover, this study examined how these trajectories are related to negative online experiences, such as online sexual solicitation, online harassment, and online

Online cognition : Factors facilitating reliable online neuropsychological test results

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Feenstra, H.E.M.; Vermeulen, I.E.; Murre, J.M.J.; Schagen, S.B.

2017-01-01

OBJECTIVE: Online neuropsychological test batteries could allow for large-scale cognitive data collection in clinical studies. However, the few online neuropsychological test batteries that are currently available often still require supervision or lack proper psychometric evaluation. In this paper,

Online cognition : factors facilitating reliable online neuropsychological test results

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Feenstra, Heleen E M; Vermeulen, Ivar E; Murre, Jaap M J; Schagen, Sanne B

OBJECTIVE: Online neuropsychological test batteries could allow for large-scale cognitive data collection in clinical studies. However, the few online neuropsychological test batteries that are currently available often still require supervision or lack proper psychometric evaluation. In this paper,

77 FR 31682 - U.S. Department of State Advisory Committee on Private International Law (ACPIL)-Online Dispute...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-05-29

... and business to consumer cross-border electronic commerce disputes. The Working Group is in the process of developing generic ODR procedural rules for resolution of cross-border electronic commerce... International Law (ACPIL)--Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) Study Group The Office of Private International Law...

Pilot Testing for Feasibility in a Study of Student Retention and Attrition in Online Undergraduate Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Fraser, Joy; Fahlman, Dorothy; Arscott, Jane; Guillot, Isabelle

2018-01-01

Prior to undertaking a descriptive study on attrition and retention of students in two online undergraduate health administration and human service programs, a pilot test was conducted to assess the procedures for participant recruitment, usability of the survey questionnaire, and data collection processes. A retention model provided the…

Adaptive on-line calibration for around-view monitoring system using between-camera homography estimation

Science.gov (United States)

Lim, Sungsoo; Lee, Seohyung; Kim, Jun-geon; Lee, Daeho

2018-01-01

The around-view monitoring (AVM) system is one of the major applications of advanced driver assistance systems and intelligent transportation systems. We propose an on-line calibration method, which can compensate misalignments for AVM systems. Most AVM systems use fisheye undistortion, inverse perspective transformation, and geometrical registration methods. To perform these procedures, the parameters for each process must be known; the procedure by which the parameters are estimated is referred to as the initial calibration. However, when only using the initial calibration data, we cannot compensate misalignments, caused by changing equilibria of cars. Moreover, even small changes such as tire pressure levels, passenger weight, or road conditions can affect a car's equilibrium. Therefore, to compensate for this misalignment, additional techniques are necessary, specifically an on-line calibration method. On-line calibration can recalculate homographies, which can correct any degree of misalignment using the unique features of ordinary parking lanes. To extract features from the parking lanes, this method uses corner detection and a pattern matching algorithm. From the extracted features, homographies are estimated using random sample consensus and parameter estimation. Finally, the misaligned epipolar geographies are compensated via the estimated homographies. Thus, the proposed method can render image planes parallel to the ground. This method does not require any designated patterns and can be used whenever cars are placed in a parking lot. The experimental results show the robustness and efficiency of the method.

National Biological Monitoring Inventory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burgess, R.L.

1979-01-01

The National Biological Monitoring Inventory, initiated in 1975, currently consists of four computerized data bases and voluminous manual files. MAIN BIOMON contains detailed information on 1,021 projects, while MINI BIOMON provides skeletal data for over 3,000 projects in the 50 states, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, plus a few in Canada and Mexico. BIBLIO BIOMON and DIRECTORY BIOMON complete the computerized data bases. The structure of the system provides for on-line search capabilities to generate details of agency sponsorship, indications of funding levels, taxonomic and geographic coverage, length of program life, managerial focus or emphasis, and condition of the data. Examples of each of these are discussed and illustrated, and potential use of the Inventory in a variety of situations is emphasized

An introduction to deep learning on biological sequence data: examples and solutions.

Science.gov (United States)

Jurtz, Vanessa Isabell; Johansen, Alexander Rosenberg; Nielsen, Morten; Almagro Armenteros, Jose Juan; Nielsen, Henrik; Sønderby, Casper Kaae; Winther, Ole; Sønderby, Søren Kaae

2017-11-15

Deep neural network architectures such as convolutional and long short-term memory networks have become increasingly popular as machine learning tools during the recent years. The availability of greater computational resources, more data, new algorithms for training deep models and easy to use libraries for implementation and training of neural networks are the drivers of this development. The use of deep learning has been especially successful in image recognition; and the development of tools, applications and code examples are in most cases centered within this field rather than within biology. Here, we aim to further the development of deep learning methods within biology by providing application examples and ready to apply and adapt code templates. Given such examples, we illustrate how architectures consisting of convolutional and long short-term memory neural networks can relatively easily be designed and trained to state-of-the-art performance on three biological sequence problems: prediction of subcellular localization, protein secondary structure and the binding of peptides to MHC Class II molecules. All implementations and datasets are available online to the scientific community at https://github.com/vanessajurtz/lasagne4bio. skaaesonderby@gmail.com. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author (2017). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

Biological Variance in Agricultural Products. Theoretical Considerations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tijskens, L.M.M.; Konopacki, P.

2003-01-01

The food that we eat is uniform neither in shape or appearance nor in internal composition or content. Since technology became increasingly important, the presence of biological variance in our food became more and more of a nuisance. Techniques and procedures (statistical, technical) were

Perancangan Massively Multiplayer Online Knights Fantasy Online

OpenAIRE

Haris, Darius Andana; Mawardi, Viny Christanti; Pratama, Davin

2017-01-01

Knights Fantasy Online adalah game online multiplayer dengan genre role-playing. Game ini dibuat menggunakan ActionScript 3.0 dengan Adobe Flash sebagai sisi klien dan Java sebagai servernya. Desain dari game ini dibuat dengan Adobe illustrator. Dalam game ini, pemain memulai petualangannya di dunia bernama Edenia, sebagai ksatria dari kerajaan yang bernama Aurum. Pemain bertugas mengkontrol jumlah populasi monster. Pemain dapat mengambil quest, mengumpulkan equipment dan meningkatkan ability...

Consumers’ Attitude towards Online Shopping : Factors influencing Gotland consumers to shop online

OpenAIRE

Sultan, Muhammad Umar; Uddin, Md. Nasir

2011-01-01

In the era of globalization electronic marketing is a great revolution.  Over the last decade maximum business organizations are running with technological change.  Online shopping or marketing is the use of technology (i.e., computer) for better marketing performance. And retailers are devising strategies to meet the demand of online shoppers; they are busy in studying consumer behavior in the field of online shopping, to see the consumer attitudes towards online shopping. Therefore we have ...

Online Labour Index: Measuring the Online Gig Economy for Policy and Research

OpenAIRE

Kässi, Otto; Lehdonvirta, Vili

2016-01-01

Labour markets are thought to be in the midst of a dramatic transformation, where standard employment is increasingly supplemented or substituted by temporary gig work mediated by online platforms. Yet the scale and scope of these changes is hard to assess, because conventional labour market statistics and economic indicators are ill-suited to measuring online gig work. We present the Online Labour Index (OLI), a new economic indicator that provides the online gig economy equivalent of conven...

Missed Opportunities for Science Learning: Unacknowledged Unscientific Arguments in Asynchronous Online and Face-to-Face Discussions

Science.gov (United States)

Callis-Duehl, Kristine; Idsardi, Robert; Humphrey, Eve A.; Gougis, Rebekka Darner

2018-02-01

We explored the scientific argumentation that occurs among university biology students during an argumentation task implemented in two environments: face-to-face in a classroom and online in an asynchronous discussion. We observed 10 student groups, each composed of three students. Our analysis focused on how students respond to their peers' unscientific arguments, which we define as assertions, hypotheses, propositions, or explanations that are inaccurate or incomplete from a scientific perspective. Unscientific arguments provide opportunities for productive dissent, scientific argumentation, and conceptual development of scientifically desirable conceptions. We found that students did not respond to the majority of unscientific arguments in both environments. Challenges to unscientific arguments were expressed as a question or through explanation, although the latter was more common online than face-to-face. Students demonstrated significantly more epistemic distancing in the face-to-face environment than the online environment. We discuss the differences in discourse observed in both environments and teaching implications. We also provide direction for future research seeking to address the challenges of engaging students in productive scientific argumentation in both face-to-face and online environments.

Oral biology in middle age: a history of the University at Buffalo Oral Biology PhD Program.

Science.gov (United States)

Scannapieco, F A

2014-05-01

In 1960, the first Department of Oral Biology in the United States dedicated to the conduct of research, graduate biomedical research education, and the provision of basic oral science education for the DDS curriculum was established at the University at Buffalo. In 1963, the Department organized the first PhD Program in Oral Biology in the United States. This PhD program has produced a large cadre of oral health researchers, many of whom have gone on to make major contributions to dental research and education. This article provides a brief history of the program, the context within which the program was organized and developed, and a description of some of the many faculty, students, and fellows associated with the program. Additionally, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of this program, a symposium, entitled "The Oral Microbiome, Immunity and Chronic Disease", was held on June 12-14, 2013, in Buffalo, New York. The proceedings are published online in Advances in Dental Research (2014, Vol. 26).

Computer-aided design of biological circuits using TinkerCell.

Science.gov (United States)

Chandran, Deepak; Bergmann, Frank T; Sauro, Herbert M

2010-01-01

Synthetic biology is an engineering discipline that builds on modeling practices from systems biology and wet-lab techniques from genetic engineering. As synthetic biology advances, efficient procedures will be developed that will allow a synthetic biologist to design, analyze, and build biological networks. In this idealized pipeline, computer-aided design (CAD) is a necessary component. The role of a CAD application would be to allow efficient transition from a general design to a final product. TinkerCell is a design tool for serving this purpose in synthetic biology. In TinkerCell, users build biological networks using biological parts and modules. The network can be analyzed using one of several functions provided by TinkerCell or custom programs from third-party sources. Since best practices for modeling and constructing synthetic biology networks have not yet been established, TinkerCell is designed as a flexible and extensible application that can adjust itself to changes in the field. © 2010 Landes Bioscience

Nitrous Oxide Production at a Fully Covered Wastewater Treatment Plant: Results of a Long-Term Online Monitoring Campaign.

Science.gov (United States)

Kosonen, Heta; Heinonen, Mari; Mikola, Anna; Haimi, Henri; Mulas, Michela; Corona, Francesco; Vahala, Riku

2016-06-07

The nitrous oxide emissions of the Viikinmäki wastewater treatment plant were measured in a 12 month online monitoring campaign. The measurements, which were conducted with a continuous gas analyzer, covered all of the unit operations of the advanced wastewater-treatment process. The relation between the nitrous oxide emissions and certain process parameters, such as the wastewater temperature, influent biological oxygen demand, and ammonium nitrogen load, was investigated by applying online data obtained from the process-control system at 1 min intervals. Although seasonal variations in the measured nitrous oxide emissions were remarkable, the measurement data indicated no clear relationship between these emissions and seasonal changes in the wastewater temperature. The diurnal variations of the nitrous oxide emissions did, however, strongly correlate with the alternation of the influent biological oxygen demand and ammonium nitrogen load to the aerated zones of the activated sludge process. Overall, the annual nitrous oxide emissions of 168 g/PE/year and the emission factor of 1.9% of the influent nitrogen load are in the high range of values reported in the literature but in very good agreement with the results of other long-term online monitoring campaigns implemented at full-scale wastewater-treatment plants.

Recommendations for sampling for prevention of hazards in civil defense. On analytics of chemical, biological and radioactive contaminations. Brief instruction for the CBRN (chemical, biological, radioactive, nuclear) sampling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bachmann, Udo; Biederbick, Walter; Derakshani, Nahid

2010-01-01

The recommendation for sampling for prevention of hazards in civil defense is describing the analytics of chemical, biological and radioactive contaminations and includes detail information on the sampling, protocol preparation and documentation procedures. The volume includes a separate brief instruction for the CBRN (chemical, biological, radioactive, nuclear) sampling.

An Effective Interval-Valued Intuitionistic Fuzzy Entropy to Evaluate Entrepreneurship Orientation of Online P2P Lending Platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaohong Chen

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper describes an approach to measure the entrepreneurship orientation of online P2P lending platforms. The limitations of existing methods for calculating entropy of interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy sets (IVIFSs are significantly improved by a new entropy measure of IVIFS considered in this paper, and then the essential properties of the proposed entropy are introduced. Moreover, an evaluation procedure is proposed to measure entrepreneurship orientation of online P2P lending platforms. Finally, a case is used to demonstrate the effectiveness of this method.

Synthetic biology and biosecurity: challenging the ‘myths’

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Catherine eJefferson

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Synthetic biology, a field that aims to ‘make biology easier to engineer’, is routinely described as leading to an increase in the ‘dual use’ threat, i.e. the potential for the same piece of scientific research to be ‘used’ for peaceful purposes or ‘misused’ for warfare or terrorism. Fears have been expressed that the ‘de-skilling’ of biology, combined with online access to the genomic DNA sequences of pathogenic organisms and the reduction in price for DNA synthesis, will make biology increasingly accessible to people operating outside well-equipped professional research laboratories, including people with malevolent intentions. The emergence of DIY biology communities and of the student iGEM competition has come to epitomize this supposed trend towards greater ease of access and the associated potential threat from rogue actors. In this article, we identify 5 ‘myths’ that permeate discussions about synthetic biology and biosecurity, and argue that they embody misleading assumptions about both synthetic biology and bioterrorism. We demonstrate how these myths are challenged by more realistic understandings of the scientific research currently being conducted in both professional and DIY laboratories, and by an analysis of historical cases of bioterrorism. We show that the importance of tacit knowledge is commonly overlooked in the dominant narrative: the focus is on access to biological materials and digital information, rather than on human practices and institutional dimensions. As a result, public discourse on synthetic biology and biosecurity tends to portray speculative scenarios about the future as realities in the present or the near future, when this is not warranted. We suggest that these ‘myths’ play an important role in defining synthetic biology as a ‘promissory’ field of research and as an ‘emerging technology’ in need of governance.

Synthetic Biology and Biosecurity: Challenging the “Myths”

Science.gov (United States)

Jefferson, Catherine; Lentzos, Filippa; Marris, Claire

2014-01-01

Synthetic biology, a field that aims to “make biology easier to engineer,” is routinely described as leading to an increase in the “dual-use” threat, i.e., the potential for the same scientific research to be “used” for peaceful purposes or “misused” for warfare or terrorism. Fears have been expressed that the “de-skilling” of biology, combined with online access to the genomic DNA sequences of pathogenic organisms and the reduction in price for DNA synthesis, will make biology increasingly accessible to people operating outside well-equipped professional research laboratories, including people with malevolent intentions. The emergence of do-it-yourself (DIY) biology communities and of the student iGEM competition has come to epitomize this supposed trend toward greater ease of access and the associated potential threat from rogue actors. In this article, we identify five “myths” that permeate discussions about synthetic biology and biosecurity, and argue that they embody misleading assumptions about both synthetic biology and bioterrorism. We demonstrate how these myths are challenged by more realistic understandings of the scientific research currently being conducted in both professional and DIY laboratories, and by an analysis of historical cases of bioterrorism. We show that the importance of tacit knowledge is commonly overlooked in the dominant narrative: the focus is on access to biological materials and digital information, rather than on human practices and institutional dimensions. As a result, public discourse on synthetic biology and biosecurity tends to portray speculative scenarios about the future as realities in the present or the near future, when this is not warranted. We suggest that these “myths” play an important role in defining synthetic biology as a “promissory” field of research and as an “emerging technology” in need of governance. PMID:25191649

Procedures and Tools Used by Teachers When Completing Functional Vision Assessments with Children with Visual Impairments

Science.gov (United States)

Kaiser, Justin T.; Herzberg, Tina S.

2017-01-01

Introduction: This study analyzed survey responses from 314 teachers of students with visual impairments regarding the tools and procedures used in completing functional vision assessments (FVAs). Methods: Teachers of students with visual impairments in the United States and Canada completed an online survey during spring 2016. Results: The…

ONLINE-SERVICES AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES IN DISTANCE LEARNING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

U. A. Vishniakou

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the analysis of distance learning (DL methods, approaches, technologies, tools, the use as known online services so and developing the new ones. The terminology in area of DL is discussed and differences between correspondence course and DL are done. The development tendencies of distance learning are analyzed. Their technical and organization components are done. The course programs for DL are realizing by software which functions are shown. The typical lines of DL, their advances and lacks are conceded. As DL advances are self activity, individuality, independence and so on. As DL lacks are insufficiently individual, psychological, practical aspects, writing forms of DL and so on.Technologies and organization of DL including IT are discussed. The tutor activity is divided on two stages: decision of methodological, organizational problems and realization of distance courses. The various kind of online services in DL such as chats, web, TV, video conferences multimedia, robot learning, web-services are shown. Such IT for DL as CD, net, TV, satellite, cloud are discussed.The models of integration decisions for DL development such as Remote Procedure Calls (RPS, Enterprise Application Integration (EAL, Web-Services (WS, Enterprise Service Bus (ESB are proposed. The content of e-learning online services including intellectual technologies and cloud computing are done. As new one integration method for DL is Semantic Web and Web-service (SWWS with knowledge representation support on ontology base and knowledge processing on agents support are representation.

Online test application development using framework CodeIgniter

Science.gov (United States)

Wibawa, S. C.; Wahyuningsih, Y.; Sulistyowati, R.; Abidin, R.; Lestari, Y.; Noviyanti; Maulana, D. A.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study is developing application an online test for vocational students and to know the user acceptance testing on the application. The method used in this research is the Research and Development (R & D) only up to the pilot phase of the product. The stage of the procedure of the research namely: (1) Analyze the exam using paper compared to using web-based application test online. (2) Design the media in accordance with the design of the author. (3) To test the product by including a questionnaire instrument against the application that has been done. Researchers carried out tests on class X on the computer and network engineering Vocational High School (SMK) Darul Ma’wa Plumpang. It can be concluded that: (1) application online test was created gets the value of the validator with the percentage of lowest value and the highest value for the validation of products: 25% and 100%. With a total number of 14 questions, after validation of the products obtained from the three aspects of the assessment scale from 81.25 to 100 obtained from 2 different validators with the meaning of an application that has been developed and very suitable for use in school. (2) Based on User Acceptance Testing (UAT), applications can be very well received by the students and recommend to replay the final semester and others. With the successful acquisition of a category which means it’s ready and qualified.

Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and High-Yield Explosives Consequences Management

Science.gov (United States)

2006-10-02

protective measures associated with such offensive operations. Since riot control agents and herbicides are not considered to be chemical warfare agents...control. Procedures to avoid, reduce, remove, or render harmless (temporarily or permanently) nuclear, radiological, biological, and chemical...destroying, neutralizing, making harmless , or removing chemical or biological agents, or by removing radioactive material clinging to or around it. (JP 1

Marketing through Online Leadership to Retain Invisible Customers: Perceptions of Online Students

Science.gov (United States)

Kibiloski, F. Terry.

2012-01-01

This quantitative study examined the relationship between student perceived leadership styles of online university instructors, and the perceived customer satisfaction and retention of online students. Specifically, the four goals of this study were to determine: (a) students' perception of their online instructor's leadership style, (b) if…

A new procedure for deep sea mining tailings disposal

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ma, W.; Schott, D.L.; Lodewijks, G.

2017-01-01

Deep sea mining tailings disposal is a new environmental challenge related to water pollution, mineral crust waste handling, and ocean biology. The objective of this paper is to propose a new tailings disposal procedure for the deep sea mining industry. Through comparisons of the tailings disposal

Health Professionals' Use of Online Information Retrieval Systems and Online Evidence.

Science.gov (United States)

Lialiou, Paschalina; Pavlopoulou, Ioanna; Mantas, John

2016-01-01

Across-sectional survey was designed to determine health professionals' awareness and usage of online evidence retrieval systems in clinical practice. A questionnaire was used to measure professionals' behavior and utilization of online evidences, as well as, reasons and barriers on information retrieval. 439 nurses and physicians from public and private hospitals in Greece formulate the study's sample. The two most common reasons that individuals are using online information systems were for writing scientific manuscripts or filling a knowledge gap. A positive correlation was found between participants with postgraduate studies and information system usage. The majority of them (90,6%) believe that online information systems improves patient care and 67,6% of them had their own experiences on this. More support is needed to nurses and physicians in order to use the online evidence and as a result to improve the provided care and practices.

Designing online audiovisual heritage services: an empirical study of two comparable online video services

Science.gov (United States)

Ongena, G.; van de Wijngaert, L. A. L.; Huizer, E.

2013-03-01

The purpose of this study is to seek input for a new online audiovisual heritage service. In doing so, we assess comparable online video services to gain insights into the motivations and perceptual innovation characteristics of the video services. The research is based on data from a Dutch survey held among 1,939 online video service users. The results show that online video service held overlapping antecedents but does show differences in motivations and in perceived innovation characteristics. Hence, in general, one can state that in comparison, online video services comply with different needs and have differences in perceived innovation characteristics. This implies that one can design online video services for different needs. In addition to scientific implications, the outcomes also provide guidance for practitioners in implementing new online video services.

Observation of online communities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nørskov, Sladjana V.; Rask, Morten

2011-01-01

This paper addresses the application of observation to online settings with a special focus on observer roles. It draws on a study of online observation of a virtual community, i.e. an open source software (OSS) community. The paper examines general and specific advantages and disadvantages...... of the observer roles in online settings by relating these roles to the same roles assumed in offline settings. The study suggests that under the right circumstances online and offline observation may benefit from being combined as they complement each other well. Quality issues and factors important to elicit...... trustworthy observational data from online study settings, such as OSS communities, are discussed. A proposition is made concerning how threats to credibility and transferability in relation to online observation (i.e. lack of richness and detail, risk of misunderstandings) can be diminished, while...

British surgeons' experiences of mandatory online workplace-based assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira, Erlick A C; Dean, Benjamin J F

2009-07-01

An online workplace-based assessment tool, the Intercollegiate Surgical Curriculum Programme (ISCP), has become mandatory for all British surgical trainees appointed since August 2007. A compulsory pound125 annual trainee fee has also been introduced to fund its running costs. The study sought to evaluate user satisfaction with the ISCP. A total of 539 users across all surgical specialties (including 122 surgeons acting as assessors) were surveyed in late 2008 by online questionnaire regarding their experiences with the ISCP. Sixty-seven percent had used the tool for at least one year. It was rated above average by only 6% for its registration process and only 11% for recording meetings and objectives. Forty-nine percent described its online assessments as poor or very poor, only 9% considering them good or very good. Seventy-nine percent rated the website's user friendliness as average or worse, as did 72% its peer-assessment tool and 61% its logbook of procedures. Seventy-six percent of respondents had carried out paper assessments due to difficulties using the website. Six percent stated that the ISCP had impacted negatively on their training opportunities, 41% reporting a negative impact overall upon their training; only 6% reported a positive impact. Ninety-four percent did not consider the trainee fee good value, only 2% believing it should be paid by the trainee. The performance of the ISCP leaves large numbers of British surgeons unsatisfied. Its assessments lack appropriate evidence of validity and its introduction has been problematic. With reducing training hours, the increased online bureaucratic burden exacerbates low morale of trainees and trainers, adversely impacting potentially upon both competency and productivity.

Suicidal and online: how do online behaviors inform us of this high-risk population?

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Keith M; McLean, John P; Sheffield, Jeanie

2014-01-01

To assist suicide prevention we need a better understanding of how suicidal individuals act in their environment, and the online world offers an ideal opportunity to examine daily behaviors. This anonymous survey (N = 1,016) provides first-of-its-kind empirical evidence demonstrating suicide-risk people (n = 290) are unique in their online behaviors. Suicidal users reported more time online, greater likelihood of developing online personal relationships, and greater use of online forums. In addition, suicide-risk women reported more time browsing/surfing and social networking. The authors conclude that suicide prevention efforts should respond to suicide-risk users' greater demands for online interpersonal communications.

Building online brand perceptual map.

Science.gov (United States)

Chiang, I-Ping; Lin, Chih-Ying; Wang, Kaisheng M

2008-10-01

Many companies have launched their products or services online as a new business focus, but only a few of them have survived the competition and made profits. The most important key to an online business's success is to create "brand value" for the customers. Although the concept of online brand has been discussed in previous studies, there is no empirical study on the measurement of online branding. As Web 2.0 emerges to be critical to online branding, the purpose of this study was to measure Taiwan's major Web sites with a number of personality traits to build a perceptual map for online brands. A pretest identified 10 most representative online brand perceptions. The results of the correspondence analysis showed five groups in the perceptual map. This study provided a practical view of the associations and similarities among online brands for potential alliance or branding strategies. The findings also suggested that brand perceptions can be used with identified consumer needs and behaviors to better position online services. The brand perception map in the study also contributed to a better understanding of the online brands in Taiwan.

The ORGA test: Development of a testing procedure for a practical evaluation of the fermenter biology and NaWaRo biogas plants; Der ORGA-Test. Entwicklung eines Testverfahrens zur praxisnahen Beurteilung der Fermenterbiologie von NaWaRo-Biogasanlagen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Engler, Nils; Nelles, Michael [Rostock Univ. (Germany). Lehrstuhl fuer Abfall- und Stoffstromwirtschaft; Merretig-Bruns, Ute [Fraunhofer Institut fuer Umwelt-, Sicherheits- und Energietechnik UMSICHT, Oberhausen (Germany); Feher, Adam [HAWK Fachhochschule Goettingen (Germany). Fachgebiet NEUTec; Fritz, Thomas [Schaumann Biotic Consult GmbH, Pinneberg (Germany)

2010-07-01

The Oberhausen-Rostock-Goettingen activity test (ORGA test) enables a comparative quantification of the biological activity of biogas fermenters. At this, fermenter samples of biological gas facilities are submitted to a standardised test routine, and the kinetics of degradation of a standardised, reproducible substrate in high temporal resolution is investigated. In a parallel experiment, the influence by fermentation aiding substances or potential inhibitors on kinetics of degradation can be investigated. The Gas Production System of the company ANKOM is the technical equipment for this test procedure. The procedure is based on the measurement of the increase of pressure in a constant volume at a constant temperature. With the presently existing equipment a zero-attempt, control and up to six variants of additives can be performed in three-fold repetition. Time criteria such as the t{sub 5}0 value are well manageable quantities for the comparison of different fermenter samples.

Neuro-symbolic representation learning on biological knowledge graphs.

Science.gov (United States)

Alshahrani, Mona; Khan, Mohammad Asif; Maddouri, Omar; Kinjo, Akira R; Queralt-Rosinach, Núria; Hoehndorf, Robert

2017-09-01

Biological data and knowledge bases increasingly rely on Semantic Web technologies and the use of knowledge graphs for data integration, retrieval and federated queries. In the past years, feature learning methods that are applicable to graph-structured data are becoming available, but have not yet widely been applied and evaluated on structured biological knowledge. Results: We develop a novel method for feature learning on biological knowledge graphs. Our method combines symbolic methods, in particular knowledge representation using symbolic logic and automated reasoning, with neural networks to generate embeddings of nodes that encode for related information within knowledge graphs. Through the use of symbolic logic, these embeddings contain both explicit and implicit information. We apply these embeddings to the prediction of edges in the knowledge graph representing problems of function prediction, finding candidate genes of diseases, protein-protein interactions, or drug target relations, and demonstrate performance that matches and sometimes outperforms traditional approaches based on manually crafted features. Our method can be applied to any biological knowledge graph, and will thereby open up the increasing amount of Semantic Web based knowledge bases in biology to use in machine learning and data analytics. https://github.com/bio-ontology-research-group/walking-rdf-and-owl. robert.hoehndorf@kaust.edu.sa. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

Dueling biological and social contagions

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Feng; Christakis, Nicholas A.; Fowler, James H.

2017-03-01

Numerous models explore how a wide variety of biological and social phenomena spread in social networks. However, these models implicitly assume that the spread of one phenomenon is not affected by the spread of another. Here, we develop a model of “dueling contagions”, with a particular illustration of a situation where one is biological (influenza) and the other is social (flu vaccination). We apply the model to unique time series data collected during the 2009 H1N1 epidemic that includes information about vaccination, flu, and face-to-face social networks. The results show that well-connected individuals are more likely to get vaccinated, as are people who are exposed to friends who get vaccinated or are exposed to friends who get the flu. Our dueling contagion model suggests that other epidemiological models may be dramatically underestimating the R0 of contagions. It also suggests that the rate of vaccination contagion may be even more important than the biological contagion in determining the course of the disease. These results suggest that real world and online platforms that make it easier to see when friends have been vaccinated (personalized vaccination campaigns) and when they get the flu (personalized flu warnings) could have a large impact on reducing the severity of epidemics. They also suggest possible benefits from understanding the coevolution of many kinds of dueling contagions.

Statistical properties of online avatar numbers in a massive multiplayer online role-playing game

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Zhi-Qiang; Ren, Fei; Gu, Gao-Feng; Tan, Qun-Zhao; Zhou, Wei-Xing

2010-02-01

Massive multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) have been very popular in the past few years. The profit of an MMORPG company is proportional to how many users registered, and the instant number of online avatars is a key factor to assess how popular an MMORPG is. We use the online-offline logs on an MMORPG server to reconstruct the instant number of online avatars per second and investigate its statistical properties. We find that the online avatar number exhibits one-day periodic behavior and clear intraday pattern, the fluctuation distribution of the online avatar numbers has a leptokurtic non-Gaussian shape with power-law tails, and the increments of online avatar numbers after removing the intraday pattern are uncorrelated and the associated absolute values have long-term correlation. In addition, both time series exhibit multifractal nature.

Still "Live at the Scene": An Exploration of Timely Television News Broadcasts Repurposed as Online Content

Science.gov (United States)

Ware, Jennifer Marie

2012-01-01

Technology has afforded journalists a myriad of new opportunities to promote and publish content online. This project provides an overview of many of the new practices that have become standard operating procedures for digital media news creation and examines how the heavy imprint of traditional media news values are not contextualized within the…

ADAPTIVE MONITORING TO ENHANCE WATER SENSOR CAPABILITIES FOR CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL CONTAMINANT DETECTION IN DRINKING WATER SYSTEMS

Science.gov (United States)

Optoelectronic and other conventional water quality sensors offer a potential for real-time online detection of chemical and biological contaminants in a drinking water supply and distribution system. The nature of the application requires sensors of detection capabilities at lo...

Predictors of unwanted exposure to online pornography and online sexual solicitation of youth.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Fong-Ching; Chiu, Chiung-Hui; Miao, Nae-Fang; Chen, Ping-Hung; Lee, Ching-Mei; Chiang, Jeng-Tung

2016-06-01

This study examined factors associated with the unwanted exposure to online pornography and unwanted online sexual solicitation victimization and perpetration of youth in Taiwan. A total of 2315 students from 26 high schools were assessed in the 10th grade, with follow-up performed in the 11th grade. Self-administered questionnaires were collected. Multivariate analysis results indicated that higher levels of online game use, pornography media exposure, Internet risk behaviors, depression, and cyberbullying experiences predicted online sexual solicitation victimization, while higher levels of Internet chat room use, pornography media exposure, Internet risk behaviors, cyberbullying experiences, and offline sexual harassment predicted online sexual solicitation perpetration. © The Author(s) 2014.

TU Delft en online media

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Speekenbrink, R.J.H.

2013-01-01

Dit boek behandelt een visie op online media bij Nederlandse universiteiten. Daarbij beperk ik me tot die aspecten waarin online communicatie en/of online marketing een rol speelt. Dit boek behandelt niet de onderwijsgerelateerde aspecten van online media. Elektronische leeromgevingen, sociale media

Electrochemical Behavior of Biologically Important Indole Derivatives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cigdem Karaaslan

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Voltammetric techniques are most suitable to investigate the redox properties of a new drug. Use of electrochemistry is an important approach in drug discovery and research as well as quality control, drug stability, and determination of physiological activity. The indole nucleus is an essential element of a number of natural and synthetic products with significant biological activity. Indole derivatives are the well-known electroactive compounds that are readily oxidized at carbon-based electrodes, and thus analytical procedures, such as electrochemical detection and voltammetry, have been developed for the determination of biologically important indoles. This paper explains some of the relevant and recent achievements in the electrochemistry processes and parameters mainly related to biologically important indole derivatives in view of drug discovery and analysis.

Women's attitudes to beauty, aging, and the place of cosmetic procedures: insights from the QUEST Observatory.

Science.gov (United States)

Ehlinger-Martin, Agnès; Cohen-Letessier, Anny; Taïeb, Maryna; Azoulay, Elisabeth; du Crest, Dominique

2016-03-01

The quest for beauty has been a constant theme in human history since the earliest civilizations. The QUEST Observatory, an online observational study, investigated how women continue the pursuit of beauty in the 21st century by examining women's perceptions of facial attractiveness and the strategies they adopt to combat the effects of time on their faces. To investigate women's attitudes toward beauty, aging, and the place of minimally invasive cosmetic procedures and anti-aging skincare. An in-depth questionnaire was developed by experts in dermatology, esthetic medicine, and social anthropology as the basis for this online, observational study. A nationally representative sample of 1000 French women aged between 25 and 70 years took part in the study. The main criteria for beauty were identified as a natural look, self-confidence, and attractive skin. A woman is considered to be at the peak of beauty in her mid-thirties just before early signs of facial aging begin to appear. Approximately 50% of women contemplate cosmetic procedures, but less than 10% go ahead. Confidence in the practitioner and good postprocedure follow-up are as influential as efficacy, safety, and cost in decisions about cosmetic procedures. The QUEST Observatory sheds valuable light on factors that affect women's choices regarding strategies for anti-aging and cosmetic procedures. These findings will help esthetic practitioners to better understand their patients and to meet their expectations. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

ONLINE PROCUREMENT IN SME`s

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniela ICHIM

2017-12-01

Full Text Available E-Marketplaces are new business places for buying, selling products and services in many industries to support customers. The emergence of business-to-business (B2B in the online environment has opened up opportunities for effective online transactions between businesses. Research in this area is not enough to offer only fragmented perspectives in this area. Therefore, the targeted research problem was designed to investigate how business performance of online B2B purchases can be analyzed. The proposed study focuses on the online procurement in. Specifically, they try to answer questions such as: Does site, product, and vendor characteristics affect the online procurement in? Does online buying experience influence online procurement by? Participants are that use the Internet to procure products or services. Study respondents were SME managers who believe that online procurement will save time, money and effort, reducing costs.

Characterization of biological macromolecules by electrophoresis and neutron activation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stone, S.F.; Hancock, D.; Zeisler, R.

1987-01-01

A procedure combining polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) with INAA and autoradiography was developed to study biological macromolecules and their associated trace elements. Results from the application of this method to several metalloproteins are presented. (author)

Online-Expert: An Expert System for Online Database Selection.

Science.gov (United States)

Zahir, Sajjad; Chang, Chew Lik

1992-01-01

Describes the design and development of a prototype expert system called ONLINE-EXPERT that helps users select online databases and vendors that meet users' needs. Search strategies are discussed; knowledge acquisition and knowledge bases are described; and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), a decision analysis technique that ranks databases,…

Students' Perceptions of Online Courses: The Effect of Online Course Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Dobbs, Rhonda R.; Waid-Lindberg, Courtney A.; del Carmen, Alejandro

2017-01-01

While online learning is nothing new, research regarding student perceptions of online courses is limited and has generally focused on those who have taken online courses. Data were collected from 180 students taking criminal justice courses on campus at a large 4-year university in the Southwest and 100 students taking criminal justice courses in…

OnlineMin

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brodal, Gerth Stølting; Moruz, Gabriel; Negoescu, Andrei

2015-01-01

OnlineMin that has optimal competitiveness and allows fast implementations. In fact, if k pages fit in internal memory the best previous solution required O(k2) time per request and O(k) space. We present two implementations of OnlineMin which use O(k) space, but only O(logk) worst case time and O...

User Types in Online Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ion IVAN

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Online applications are presented in the context of information society. Online applications characteristics are analyzed. Quality characteristics are presented in relation to online applications users. Types of users for AVIO application are presented. Use cases for AVIO application are identified. The limitations of AVIO application are defined. Types of users in online applications are identified. The threedimensional matrix of access to the online application resources is built. The user type-oriented database is structured. Access management of the fields related to the database tables is analyzed. The classification of online applications users is done.

A highly rationalized procedure of neutron activation analysis for routine applications in dairy science

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heine, K.; Wiechen, A.

1976-01-01

A rational procedure was developed for the multi-element analysis by neutron activation for applications in dairy science. The preparation of samples prior to irradiation consists of drying, weighing, and welding in quartz ampoules. The neutron flux, samples are exposed to during reactor irradiation , is determined by the mono-comparator technique for which the Co-content of a commercial aluminium foil was chosen as the flux monitor. Constancy of the Co-content and uncomplicated handling of the foil essentially simplify the determination of flux. The samples are irradiated for 72 h, dissolved in HNO 3 /H 2 SO 4 and measured in the liquid state after waiting times of 1-2, 4 and 8 weeks by a Ge(Li)-detector and a 4,096 channel spectrometer. The procedure was confirmed by investigations of the biological KALE standard and by participation in inter-comparisons of biological substances of the Analytical Quality Control Service of the IAEA for the analysis of the elements Na, Ca, Cr, Fe, Co, Zn, Se, Rb, and Cs. So a procedure was developed suitable for routine multi-element analysis of biologic samples by optimizing and rationalizing all analytical steps. (orig./MG) [de

Marketing of the online communities

OpenAIRE

Pražan, Jan

2010-01-01

The Bachelor Thesis "Marketing of the online communities" is devoted to online virtual communities, one of the phenomena of the current Internet. Goal of this thesis is to determine the factors that predispose the successful operation of online communities. The thesis defines the essentials features of social media, characterized by online communities and their role in marketing. It deals with strategic and tactical aspects of building and maintaining successful online communities. Based on t...

Separation procedure for the determination of Ag, Cd, Hg and Zn in biological material by radiochemical neutron activation analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haas, H F; Krivan, V

1986-05-01

A simple separation procedure for the determination of Ag, Au, Cd, Hg and Zn in biological material by radiochemical neutron activation analysis was developed. It enables the separation of the indicator radionuclides sup(110m)Ag, /sup 198/Au, /sup 115/Cd, /sup 203/Hg and /sup 65/Zn in a group with yields >99% and is well suited for the separation of /sup 203/Hg from /sup 75/Se and /sup 65/Zn from /sup 46/Sc. The separation of these radionuclides is often necessary because of the occurrence of instrumental interferences in the instrumental neutron activation analysis. Simultaneously, the limits of detection for Ag, Au and Cd can significantly be improved. The method is based on the decomposition of the sample in the mixture of HNO/sub 3//HCl/H/sub 2/O/sub 2/ and on the separation of Ag, Au, Cd, Hg and Zn on Dowex 1X8 from a sample solution being 1.5 M with HCl. The applicability of this method is demonstrated by the analysis of lichens and several kinds of fungi. For the experimental conditions used, the limits of detection are of the order of magnitude of 10 ng/g.

Robust Control Methods for On-Line Statistical Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Capobianco Enrico

2001-01-01

Full Text Available The issue of controlling that data processing in an experiment results not affected by the presence of outliers is relevant for statistical control and learning studies. Learning schemes should thus be tested for their capacity of handling outliers in the observed training set so to achieve reliable estimates with respect to the crucial bias and variance aspects. We describe possible ways of endowing neural networks with statistically robust properties by defining feasible error criteria. It is convenient to cast neural nets in state space representations and apply both Kalman filter and stochastic approximation procedures in order to suggest statistically robustified solutions for on-line learning.

Can Patients Comprehend the Educational Materials that Hospitals Provide about Common IR Procedures?

Science.gov (United States)

Sadigh, Gelareh; Hawkins, C Matthew; O'Keefe, John J; Khan, Ramsha; Duszak, Richard

2015-08-01

To assess the readability of online education materials offered by hospitals describing commonly performed interventional radiology (IR) procedures. Online patient education materials from 402 hospitals selected from the Medicare Hospital Compare database were assessed. The presence of an IR service was determined by representation in the Society of Interventional Radiology physician finder directory. Patient online education materials about (i) uterine artery embolization for fibroid tumors, (ii) liver cancer embolization, (iii) varicose vein treatment, (iv) central venous access, (v) inferior vena cava (IVC) filter placement, (vi) nephrostomy tube insertion, (vii) gastrostomy tube placement, and (viii) vertebral augmentation were targeted and assessed by using six validated readability scoring systems. Of 402 hospitals sampled, 156 (39%) were presumed to offer IR services. Of these, 119 (76%) offered online patient education material for one or more of the eight service lines. The average readability scores corresponding to grade varied between the ninth- and 12th-grade levels. All were higher than the recommended seventh-grade level (P Reading Ease scores ranged from 42 to 69, corresponding with fairly difficult to difficult readability for all service lines except IVC filter and gastrostomy tube placement, which corresponded with standard readability. A majority of hospitals offering IR services provide at least some online patient education material. Most, however, are written significantly above the reading comprehension level of most Americans. More attention to health literacy by hospitals and IR physicians is warranted. Copyright © 2015 SIR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Conflict management in online relationships.

Science.gov (United States)

Ishii, Kumi

2010-08-01

With the diffusion of networked technology, personal relationships can be easily formed and maintained online today. Similar to a face-to-face situation, conflict is also seen in these online relationships. Early theories suggested that computer-mediated communication (CMC) tends to increase conflicts because of the lack of social-context cues, and CMC is not rich enough to manage conflict. As CMC has become part of our daily life, we often face conflict online, and thus we need to understand how people manage conflict online. This study explored how online users manage interpersonal conflict. Self-report survey data from 159 university students were analyzed to examine their conflict-management styles in association with the perceived closeness of the online relationship and a future intention toward the relationship. The results indicated that online users select cooperative management styles to handle conflict in their close relationships. In addition, online users avoid less cooperative styles when they want to continue the relationship.

Attitudes toward buying online as predictors of shopping online for British and American respondents.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Bijou; Lester, David; James, Simon

2007-04-01

This study compared the attitudes toward online shopping of British and American individuals. Using a sample of 327 British and American university students, the British respondents were found to have less favorable attitudes toward online shopping. Attitudes toward online shopping were found to be significant predictors of making online purchases. The implications of these results were discussed and suggestions made for future research.

ONLINE EDUCATION FOR LIFELONG LEARNING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fatih Bayram

2007-07-01

Full Text Available This book was edited by, Yukiko Inoue, professor of educational research at the University of Guam, where she teaches online and face-to-face courses. It was published by Information Science Publishing in 2007. The authors of the chapters in this bookare selected from different universities from Guam,Australia, Turkey and Greece. Online education hasprovided considerable opportunities for all peoplein lifelong learning. People who use online learningmaterials has interactive medium for lifelonglearning. The aim of this book is to examine online environment in terms of development, implementation, theories, technology and case studies. It provides theoretical and practical information about online lifelong learning; consequently, it can appeal to researchers, practitioners, online learners and anyone interested in online lifelong learning. This book covers 14 chapters divided into fivesections.

Data correlation in on-line solid-phase extraction-gas chromatography-atomic emission/mass spectrometric detection of unknown microcontaminants

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hankemeier, Th.; Rozenbrand, J.; Abhadur, M.; Vreuls, J.J.; Brinkman, U.A.Th.

1998-01-01

A procedure is described for the (non-target) screening of hetero-atom-containing compounds in tap and waste water by correlating data obtained by gas chromatography (GC) using atomic emission (AED) and mass selective (MS) detection. Solid-phase extraction (SPE) was coupled on-line to both GC

Commissioning of the ALICE-LHC online data quality monitoring framework

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roukoutakis, Filimon; Haller, Barthelemy von

2009-01-01

ALICE is one of the experiments installed at CERN Large Hadron Collider, dedicated to the study of heavy-ion collisions. The final ALICE data acquisition system has been installed and is being used for the testing and commissioning of detectors. Data Quality Monitoring (DQM) is an important aspect of the online procedures for a HEP experiment. In this presentation we overview the commissioning and the integration of ALICE's AMORE (Automatic MOnitoRing Environment), a custom-written distributed application aimed at providing DQM services in a large, experiment-wide scale.

On-line vibration and loose parts monitoring of nuclear power stations as a preventive maintenance tool

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

An equipment for on-line monitoring of vibrations and loose parts of nuclear power plants is described. The unit consists of piezoelectric transducers, preamplifiers, a data processor, and peripherals. It secures on-line measurement without interfering with the operation of the power plant. A diagram is given showing the monitor of vibrations and loose parts for pressurized water reactors and the Spectra-Scan equipment for the automatic recording and computer processing of noise signals is described. A survey is given of diagnostic methods for internal vibrations, noise and oscillations and procedures for the analysis of recordings are described. The experiences of Atomica International with the observation of vibrations in nuclear power plants are described and an economic assessment is presented of the efficiency of on-line monitoring of these vibrations. A cost-benefit analysis is made of such equipment which justifies their introduction. (B.S.)

Online lektiehjælp

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Jens Jørgen; Remvig, Kirstin

2016-01-01

vejledningsdidaktik, herunder metoder, modeller og materialer for lektievejledning i regi af Lektier Online. Lektier Online er en organisation ved Statsbiblioteket i Århus, der tilbyder en online lektiecafe, hvor bl.a. gymnasie-elever kan få hjælp af frivillige universitetsstuderende. Dette didaktiske de-sign er et...

Online University-Industry Collaboration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Søndergaard, Helle Alsted; Bergenholtz, Carsten; Juhl, Hans Jørn

Extant studies have shown how online communities can promote collaborative and innovative activities in general. Studies on university-industry collaborations have so far focused less on online activities. We therefore set out to examine the individual and organizational drivers and barriers...... for academics and industrial professionals to contribute to online community-based platforms. We use a mixed method approach using both survey data and in-depth interviews with respondents from the Danish food sector. Findings show that in line with known studies on online innovation communities in general......, the main drivers for engagement are organizational and individual learning, and establishing connections, rather than monetary incentives. In contrast to offline studies on university-industry interactions, well-connected academics are less interested in online communities of academics and industry...

The use of online word of mouth opinion in online learning: a questionnaire survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Sandars, John; Walsh, Kieran

2009-04-01

There is increasing use of online word of mouth opinion (user feedback) systems for general services but its use in online learning has not been previously investigated. To understand why users of BMJ Learning provide and read word of mouth feedback, and whether this feedback influences uptake of modules by prospective users. Online questionnaire of users of BMJ Learning who had completed online user feedback. 109 questionnaires were completed (response rate 25%). The main motivation to contribute was to influence the authors of the module (66%), and 43% stated that they wanted to help other users to make an informed choice. 16% stated that they wanted to develop an online community of learners. The main motivation to read the user feedback was to see if they agreed with the comments (56%). Online word of mouth opinion (user feedback) appears to be useful for online learners. There are also system design considerations since the attempt to create an online community of learners that is desired by some users will not be appreciated by others. Further research with a larger number of users is recommended to confirm the findings.

Contextualized personality: traditional and new assessment procedures.

Science.gov (United States)

Heller, Daniel; Watson, David; Komar, Jennifer; Min, Ji-A; Perunovic, Wei Qi Elaine

2007-12-01

We describe our ongoing program of research related to the assessment of contextualized personality, focusing on social roles and cultural cues as contextual factors. First, we present our research employing the traditional assessment approach, wherein participants are asked to rate explicitly their personality across several different roles. We argue that this hypothetical approach is potentially susceptible to the influence of stereotypes, social desirability, and demand characteristics. We therefore describe the development of three novel and subtle assessment procedures that are based on obtaining online self-representations that are activated while occupying a specific context. Finally, the strengths and limitations of all four approaches, as well as directions for future research in the study of contextualized personality, are discussed.

Customer experience with online shopping : what are the unique experiences customers seek from online shopping?

OpenAIRE

Jin, Daoyan

2013-01-01

Over the last decade, there has been a great change in consumers' shopping behavior along with technological change. Online shopping is the use of computer technology for better shopping performance. Retailers are busy in studying consumers' behavior to see their attitudes toward online shopping and to meet the demand of online shoppers. Due to my interest in online business, I have also decided to study about customers' attitudes toward online shopping and specifically regarding factors that...

Survey on Aesthetic Vulvovaginal Procedures: What do PortugueseDoctors andMedical Students Think?

OpenAIRE

Vieira-Baptista, Pedro; Lima-Silva, Joana; Fonseca-Moutinho, José; Monteiro, Virgínia; Águas, Fernanda

2017-01-01

Abstract Objective To assess themedical doctors andmedical students’ opinion regarding the evidence and ethical background of the performance of vulvovaginal aesthetic procedures (VVAPs). Methods Cross-sectional online survey among 664 Portuguese medical doctors and students. Results Most participants considered that there is never or there rarely is amedical reason to perform: vulvar whitening (85.9% [502/584]); hymenoplasty (72.0% [437/607]); mons pubis liposuction (71.6% [426/595]); ...

Online Data Collection.

Science.gov (United States)

Topp, Neal W.; Pawloski, Bob

2002-01-01

Describes the eventful history of online data collection and presents a review of current literature following by a list of pros and cons to be considered when stepping into online surveying. (Contains 14 references.) (Author/YDS)

The increasing number of surgical procedures for female genital fistula in England: analysis of Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data.

Science.gov (United States)

Ismail, S I M F

2015-01-01

The aim of this study was to describe the number and trend of surgical procedures for female genital fistula in England. An online search of Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data was carried out. Data were available for the 4-year period from 2002-03 until 2005-06. The total number of surgical procedures carried out for female genital fistula steadily increased by 28.7% from 616 in 2002-03 to 793 in 2005-06. The number of surgical procedures performed for rectovaginal fistula exceeded the total number of surgical procedures carried out for vesicovaginal and urethrovaginal fistula in each year of the study period. This pattern needs to be monitored and investigated further.

Developing Students' Critical Reasoning About Online Health Information: A Capabilities Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Wiblom, Jonna; Rundgren, Carl-Johan; Andrée, Maria

2017-11-01

The internet has become a main source for health-related information retrieval. In addition to information published by medical experts, individuals share their personal experiences and narratives on blogs and social media platforms. Our increasing need to confront and make meaning of various sources and conflicting health information has challenged the way critical reasoning has become relevant in science education. This study addresses how the opportunities for students to develop and practice their capabilities to critically approach online health information can be created in science education. Together with two upper secondary biology teachers, we carried out a design-based study. The participating students were given an online retrieval task that included a search and evaluation of health-related online sources. After a few lessons, the students were introduced to an evaluation tool designed to support critical evaluation of health information online. Using qualitative content analysis, four themes could be discerned in the audio and video recordings of student interactions when engaging with the task. Each theme illustrates the different ways in which critical reasoning became practiced in the student groups. Without using the evaluation tool, the students struggled to overview the vast amount of information and negotiate trustworthiness. Guided by the evaluation tool, critical reasoning was practiced to handle source subjectivity and to sift out scientific information only. Rather than a generic skill and transferable across contexts, students' critical reasoning became conditioned by the multi-dimensional nature of health issues, the blend of various contexts and the shift of purpose constituted by the students.

An Online High School "Shepherding" Program: Teacher Roles and Experiences Mentoring Online Students

Science.gov (United States)

Drysdale, Jeffery S.; Graham, Charles R.; Borup, Jered

2014-01-01

Several online programs use on-site facilitators to create a stronger sense of community and reduce student dropout. However, very little research addresses how programs that are fully online can provide their students with comparable support. Using K-12 online research, this case study analyzed a "shepherding program" at Mountain…

Medical Tourism for CCSVI Procedures in People with Multiple Sclerosis: An Observational Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Metz, Luanne M; Greenfield, Jamie; Marrie, Ruth Ann; Jette, Nathalie; Blevins, Gregg; Svenson, Lawrence W; Alikhani, Katayoun; Wall, Winona; Dhaliwal, Raveena; Suchowersky, Oksana

2016-05-01

Many Canadians with multiple sclerosis (MS) have recently travelled internationally to have procedures for a putative condition called chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI). Here, we describe where and when they went and describe the baseline characteristics of persons with MS who participated in this non-evidence-based medical tourism for CCSVI procedures. We conducted a longitudinal observational study that used online questionnaires to collect patient-reported information about the safety, experiences, and outcomes following procedures for CCSVI. A convenience sample of all Albertans with MS was recruited between July 2011 and March 2013. In total, 868 individuals enrolled; 704 were included in this cross-sectional, baseline analysis. Of these, 128 (18.2%) participants retrospectively reported having procedures for CCSVI between April 2010 and September 2012. The proportion of participants reporting CCSVI procedures declined from 80 (62.5%) in 2010, to 40 (31.1%) in 2011, and 8 (6.3%) in 2012. In multivariable logistic regression analysis, CCSVI procedures were independently associated with longer disease duration, secondary progressive clinical course, and greater disability status. Although all types of people with MS pursued procedures for CCSVI, a major driver of participation was greater disability. This highlights that those with the greatest disability are the most vulnerable to unproven experimental procedures. Participation in CCSVI procedures waned over time possibly reflecting unmet expectations of treated patients, decreased media attention, or that individuals who wanted procedures had them soon after the CCSVI hypothesis was widely publicized.

Implementing Online Physical Education

Science.gov (United States)

Mohnsen, Bonnie

2012-01-01

Online physical education, although seemingly an oxymoron, appears to be the wave of the future at least for some students. The purpose of this article is to explore research and options for online learning in physical education and to examine a curriculum, assessment, and instructional model for online learning. The article examines how physical…

Online Customization of Retailers’ Activities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natorina Alona O.

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The aim of the article is to develop recommendations on correct online customization of retailers’ activities in the online space based on results of studying and analyzing trends in digital activity of consumers under real time conditions and taking into account the factors directly influencing buyers’ purchasing from corresponding online retailers. The trends of changes in digital forms of contacting consumers in different countries and regions of the world are studied, and their access to the digital content with details of gadget types and devices is analyzed. The level of digital activity of consumers in the online space is diagnosed in accordance with the consumer inclusion index using the GfK methodology. It is grounded that retailers are advisable to look for new tools of online customization with mandatory consideration of consumer preferences, which depend on the influence of various factors on their behavior. It is found out that a high level of online confidence in a retailer acts as a catalyst for purchasing on the Internet, and factors influencing it are identified. The prerequisites for successful online customization of retailers’ activities are considered, and categories of behavioral patterns of potential buyers to achieve the most effective digital promotion of retailers in the online space are proposed. The aspects of online customization that guarantee the necessary level of competitiveness of retailers for effective functioning in the online space are justified.

On-line liquid phase micro-extraction based on drop-in-plug sequential injection lab-at-valve platform for metal determination

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mitani, Constantina [Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University, Thessaloniki 54124 (Greece); Anthemidis, Aristidis N., E-mail: anthemid@chem.auth.gr [Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University, Thessaloniki 54124 (Greece)

2013-04-10

Highlights: ► Drop-in-plug micro-extraction based on SI-LAV platform for metal preconcentration. ► Automatic liquid phase micro-extraction coupled with FAAS. ► Organic solvents with density higher than water are used. ► Lead determination in environmental water and urine samples. -- Abstract: A novel automatic on-line liquid phase micro-extraction method based on drop-in-plug sequential injection lab-at-valve (LAV) platform was proposed for metal preconcentration and determination. A flow-through micro-extraction chamber mounted at the selection valve was adopted without the need of sophisticated lab-on-valve components. Coupled to flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS), the potential of this lab-at-valve scheme is demonstrated for trace lead determination in environmental and biological water samples. A hydrophobic complex of lead with ammonium pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (APDC) was formed on-line and subsequently extracted into an 80 μL plug of chloroform. The extraction procedure was performed by forming micro-droplets of aqueous phase into the plug of the extractant. All critical parameters that affect the efficiency of the system were studied and optimized. The proposed method offered good performance characteristics and high preconcentration ratios. For 10 mL sample consumption an enhancement factor of 125 was obtained. The detection limit was 1.8 μg L{sup −1} and the precision expressed as relative standard deviation (RSD) at 50.0 μg L{sup −1} of lead was 2.9%. The proposed method was evaluated by analyzing certified reference materials and applied for lead determination in natural waters and urine samples.

How do we interact online? An approach to researching multidimensionality of online communication

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Petrović Dalibor

2016-01-01

Full Text Available If different dimensions of online interaction are neglected and/or unknowingly combined in a research study there is a risk of misleading results due to compensatory effect. With respect to the multidimensionality of online interaction, two substantially different types of online communication are defined - procreative and transmissional. The procreative online communication is understood as a person's tendency to use the internet as a space for social interaction, which essentially differs from using the internet transmissionally, as a peer-to-peer communication channel between people who are familiar with one another. The aim of this paper is to explore more deeply the procreative dimensions of online communication. Based on our conceptual framework, we defined three procreativity dimensions and developed an Online Procreativity Scale (OPS to measure them. The OPS has been validated through EFA and CFA and the three-dimensional structure has been confirmed. Using the OLS regression analyses we found that gender and psychological characteristics and social network sites (SNS use have diverse influence depending on the procreativity dimension under observation. Gender, city size, share of unfamiliar SNS friends and loneliness predicted willingness to interact with strangers, while the time spent on SNS predicted only the tendency to participate in public online interaction.

A novel procedure on next generation sequencing data analysis using text mining algorithm.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Weizhong; Chen, James J; Perkins, Roger; Wang, Yuping; Liu, Zhichao; Hong, Huixiao; Tong, Weida; Zou, Wen

2016-05-13

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies have provided researchers with vast possibilities in various biological and biomedical research areas. Efficient data mining strategies are in high demand for large scale comparative and evolutional studies to be performed on the large amounts of data derived from NGS projects. Topic modeling is an active research field in machine learning and has been mainly used as an analytical tool to structure large textual corpora for data mining. We report a novel procedure to analyse NGS data using topic modeling. It consists of four major procedures: NGS data retrieval, preprocessing, topic modeling, and data mining using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) topic outputs. The NGS data set of the Salmonella enterica strains were used as a case study to show the workflow of this procedure. The perplexity measurement of the topic numbers and the convergence efficiencies of Gibbs sampling were calculated and discussed for achieving the best result from the proposed procedure. The output topics by LDA algorithms could be treated as features of Salmonella strains to accurately describe the genetic diversity of fliC gene in various serotypes. The results of a two-way hierarchical clustering and data matrix analysis on LDA-derived matrices successfully classified Salmonella serotypes based on the NGS data. The implementation of topic modeling in NGS data analysis procedure provides a new way to elucidate genetic information from NGS data, and identify the gene-phenotype relationships and biomarkers, especially in the era of biological and medical big data. The implementation of topic modeling in NGS data analysis provides a new way to elucidate genetic information from NGS data, and identify the gene-phenotype relationships and biomarkers, especially in the era of biological and medical big data.

Using numeric simulation in an online e-learning environment to teach functional physiological contexts.

Science.gov (United States)

Christ, Andreas; Thews, Oliver

2016-04-01

Mathematical models are suitable to simulate complex biological processes by a set of non-linear differential equations. These simulation models can be used as an e-learning tool in medical education. However, in many cases these mathematical systems have to be treated numerically which is computationally intensive. The aim of the study was to develop a system for numerical simulation to be used in an online e-learning environment. In the software system the simulation is located on the server as a CGI application. The user (student) selects the boundary conditions for the simulation (e.g., properties of a simulated patient) on the browser. With these parameters the simulation on the server is started and the simulation result is re-transferred to the browser. With this system two examples of e-learning units were realized. The first one uses a multi-compartment model of the glucose-insulin control loop for the simulation of the plasma glucose level after a simulated meal or during diabetes (including treatment by subcutaneous insulin application). The second one simulates the ion transport leading to the resting and action potential in nerves. The student can vary parameters systematically to explore the biological behavior of the system. The described system is able to simulate complex biological processes and offers the possibility to use these models in an online e-learning environment. As far as the underlying principles can be described mathematically, this type of system can be applied to a broad spectrum of biomedical or natural scientific topics. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Online with Krathwohl: affective aspects of learning in an online ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Online with Krathwohl: affective aspects of learning in an online environment. WJ Rauscher, JC Cronje. Abstract. No Abstract. South African Journal of Higher Education 2005, Vol. 19(3): 512-526. Full Text: EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. Article Metrics. Metrics ...

Polynomial algebra of discrete models in systems biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Veliz-Cuba, Alan; Jarrah, Abdul Salam; Laubenbacher, Reinhard

2010-07-01

An increasing number of discrete mathematical models are being published in Systems Biology, ranging from Boolean network models to logical models and Petri nets. They are used to model a variety of biochemical networks, such as metabolic networks, gene regulatory networks and signal transduction networks. There is increasing evidence that such models can capture key dynamic features of biological networks and can be used successfully for hypothesis generation. This article provides a unified framework that can aid the mathematical analysis of Boolean network models, logical models and Petri nets. They can be represented as polynomial dynamical systems, which allows the use of a variety of mathematical tools from computer algebra for their analysis. Algorithms are presented for the translation into polynomial dynamical systems. Examples are given of how polynomial algebra can be used for the model analysis. alanavc@vt.edu Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Verification test for on-line diagnosis algorithm based on noise analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tamaoki, T.; Naito, N.; Tsunoda, T.; Sato, M.; Kameda, A.

1980-01-01

An on-line diagnosis algorithm was developed and its verification test was performed using a minicomputer. This algorithm identifies the plant state by analyzing various system noise patterns, such as power spectral densities, coherence functions etc., in three procedure steps. Each obtained noise pattern is examined by using the distances from its reference patterns prepared for various plant states. Then, the plant state is identified by synthesizing each result with an evaluation weight. This weight is determined automatically from the reference noise patterns prior to on-line diagnosis. The test was performed with 50 MW (th) Steam Generator noise data recorded under various controller parameter values. The algorithm performance was evaluated based on a newly devised index. The results obtained with one kind of weight showed the algorithm efficiency under the proper selection of noise patterns. Results for another kind of weight showed the robustness of the algorithm to this selection. (orig.)

Development and outcomes of an online-onsite hybrid dental admissions enhancement pilot program.

Science.gov (United States)

Hanson, Carrie L; Van Ness, Chris; Gadbury-Amyot, Cynthia C; Crain, Geralyn

2014-10-01

The University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) School of Dentistry has piloted two years of an Admissions Enhancement Program (AEP) with students from underrepresented minority groups and/or economically disadvantaged areas of Missouri interested in applying to dental school. The AEP utilizes an innovative online-onsite hybrid format to elevate students' foundational knowledge in biology, chemistry, organic chemistry, and quantitative reasoning. The online component includes interaction with UMKC instructors using tablet technology and Wimba virtual classroom sessions. The onsite component engages students in academic and professional development, enrichment activities targeting skills training, experience in dental labs and clinics, and mentoring in preparing the dental school application, essay writing, and interviewing. Results to date indicate overall program satisfaction among AEP participants and a dental school acceptance rate of 73.7 percent (14/19 students). Participants reported the mock interviews and essay-writing portions contributed to their becoming competitive candidates for the admission process, and the online material enhanced their preparation for the Dental Admission Test (DAT). Pre- and post-AEP data show participant DAT Academic Average scores increased by two points. The school will continue to monitor program participants in subsequent years.

Online Anti-Brand Herds

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Langley, David J.; Tan, Chee-Wee; Worm, Daniël

The online environment offers a fertile breeding ground for anti-brand herds of disgruntled consumers. Firms are often caught off guard by the unpredictability of such herds and, as a consequence, are forced into a reactive, defensive stance. We conduct a social media analysis that aims to shed...... light on the formation, growth, and dissolution of online anti-brand herds. First we expand on the concept of environmental turbulence to advance core properties unique to online herd behavior. Next, based on evidence gathered from 40 online anti-brand herd episodes targeting two prominent firms from...... the Netherlands, we develop an analytical model to investigate drivers of herd formation, growth, and dissolution. Finally, combining environmental turbulence literature with our empirical findings, we derive a novel typology of online anti-brand herd behaviors, and put forward six propositions to guide theory...

PENGEMBANGAN TES BAKAT TERPADU ONLINE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I Made Candiasa

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Abstrak Pengembangan tes bakat online didasari ide untuk memperluas otomasi layanan pendidikan, melengkapi e-learning yang sudah berkembang dengan baik untuk otomasi pembelajaran. Kelebihan tes bakat online yang dikembangkan adalah dapat digunakan setiap saat, dan tidak terlalu terikat tempat, serta tidak memerlukan petugas yang memahami evaluasi. Selain itu, tes bakat online dapat menyajikan variasi tes yang berbeda setiap kali diakses, serta dapat memberikan informasi hasil tes secara otomatis langsung setelah peserta tes memvalidasi jawabannya. Kata kunci: tes bakat online, otomasi layanan pendidikan Abstract Development of online aptitude test based on idea of widening automation on educational service, completing existing various e-learning model for instructional automation. There are some advantages of online aptitude test. It can be used anytime and anywhere by everyone. Furthermore, it can present various package of test every time it is accessed and automatically gives score and feedback immediately after tester finish answer the test. Keywords: online aptitude test, automation of educational service

Analysis of fetal dose in CT procedures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ortiz Torres, A.; Plazas, M. C.

2006-01-01

It is the miracle of the life, that sublime formation, the given more beautiful gift for heaven's sake to our to exist, and it is consequently our responsibility to look after their protection and care. Today in day the quantity of radiation absorbed by the fetus in the treatments for radiodiagnostic, mainly in the procedures of on-line axial tomography, the fetus absorbs a considerable dose of radiation and the questions generated regarding if these doses, bear to a risk of malformations or if it is necessary the interruption of the pregnancy is very frequent. In most of the cases, the treatment with ionizing radiations that it is beneficial for the mother, is only indirectly it for the fetus that is exposed to a risk. The possibility that a fetus or a small boy contract cancer caused by the radiation it can be three times superior to that of the population in general, of there the importance of analyzing the goods of the prenatal irradiation and the main agents to consider for the estimate of the magnitude of the risk of the exhibitions in uterus. In the different circumstances in that these can happen in treatments of on-line axial tomography computerized. (Author)

On-line combination of liquid chromatography and capillary gas chromatography : preconcentration and analysis of organic compounds in aqueous samples

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Noij, T.H.M.; Weiss, E.; Herps, T.; Cruchten, van H.; Rijks, J.A.

1988-01-01

This paper describes the design of a new, versatile, and low-cost on-line LC-GC interface that allows the fast and reliable introduction of large sample volumes onto a capillary GC column. The sample introduction procedure consists successively of: evaporation of the entire sample (LC fraction),

Operation manual for the INEL on-line mass-separator facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anderl, R.A.

1984-06-01

This report is an operation manual for an on-line mass-separator facility which is located in Building 661 at the Test Reactor Area of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. The facility provides mass-separated sources of short-lived fission-product radionuclides whose decay properties can be studied using a variety of nuclear spectroscopic techniques. This facility is unique in that it utilizes the gas-jet technique to transport fission products from a 252 Cf source located in a hot cell to the ion source of the mass separator. This document includes the following: (a) a detailed description of the facility, (b) identification of equipment hazards and safety controls, (c) detailed operating procedures for startup, continuous operation and shutdown, (d) operating procedures for the californium hot cell, and (e) an operator's manual for the automated moving tape collector/data acquisition system. 7 references, 16 figures, 8 tables

Trust and Online Reputation Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Kwan, Ming; Ramachandran, Deepak

Web 2.0 technologies provide organizations with unprecedented opportunities to expand and solidify relationships with their customers, partners, and employees—while empowering firms to define entirely new business models focused on sharing information in online collaborative environments. Yet, in and of themselves, these technologies cannot ensure productive online interactions. Leading enterprises that are experimenting with social networks and online communities are already discovering this fact and along with it, the importance of establishing trust as the foundation for online collaboration and transactions. Just as today's consumers must feel secure to bank, exchange personal information and purchase products and services online; participants in Web 2.0 initiatives will only accept the higher levels of risk and exposure inherent in e-commerce and Web collaboration in an environment of trust. Indeed, only by attending to the need to cultivate online trust with customers, partners and employees will enterprises ever fully exploit the expanded business potential posed by Web 2.0. But developing online trust is no easy feat. While various preliminary attempts have occurred, no definitive model for establishing or measuring it has yet been established. To that end, nGenera has identified three, distinct dimensions of online trust: reputation (quantitative-based); relationship (qualitative-based) and process (system-based). When considered together, they form a valuable model for understanding online trust and a toolbox for cultivating it to support Web 2.0 initiatives.

Online with Krathwohl: affective aspects of learning in an online ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Online with Krathwohl: affective aspects of learning in an online environment. WJ Rauscher, JC Cronje. Abstract. No Abstract. South African Journal of Higher Education 2005, Vol. 19(3): 512-526. Full Text: EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · AJOL African Journals ...

NOWADAYS ONLINE CONSUMERS' RIGHTS AND INTERESTS. CASE STUDY- THE ROMANIAN EDUCATED ONLINE YOUNG CONSUMER

OpenAIRE

Nicoleta-Dorina RACOLŢA-PAINA; Theodora Alexandra LUCA

2011-01-01

The digital age brought along the appearance of a new type of consumer, the online consumer. Taking into consideration the serious security threats of the virtual market, the purpose of this article is to emphasize several significant aspects related to online consumer’s rights and interests, with a special interest on the educated online young consumers in Romania. We used desk and field research and carried out an online exploratory, quantitative survey, with the questionnaire as the main i...

Delivering and Evaluating On-Line Degree Programs in Culinary Arts/Management: A Survey of Educators and Industry Practitioners

Science.gov (United States)

Ryll, Stefan

2017-01-01

This quantitative research examines the perceptions of culinary arts/management educators and culinary industry practitioners on the future of online culinary arts education. Specifically pertaining to the recommended procedures by educators and chefs to judge and critique the quality of food products in terms sensory modalities, and what the key…

Translation and adaptation procedures for music therapy outcome instruments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ridder, Hanne Mette Ochsner; McDermott, Orii; Orrell, Martin

2017-01-01

With increasing occurrence of international multicentre studies, there is a need for music therapy outcome measures to become more widely available across countries. For countries where English is not the first language, translation and cross-cultural adaptation of outcome measures may be necessa...... procedural steps for the translation and adaptation of music therapy outcome instruments. OBS: 50 free online copies to share: http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/d8TPZbkVMjzgKg7DjcmT/full......With increasing occurrence of international multicentre studies, there is a need for music therapy outcome measures to become more widely available across countries. For countries where English is not the first language, translation and cross-cultural adaptation of outcome measures may be necessary....... A literature review identified a knowledge gap regarding translation procedures of outcome measures used in music therapy research. However, a large body of translation guidelines is available in other health professions. We used the guidelines from these related fields to identify guidelines and outline...

Process Analytical Technology and On-Line Spectroscopic Measurements of Chemical Meat Quality

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Klavs Martin

This thesis deals with process analytical technology and how it can be implemented in the meat industry through on-line grading of chemical meat quality. The focus will be on two applications, namely the rapid quality control of fat quality and the development of a method for on-line detection...... of nano-molar quantification in few seconds, in addition to an accelerated extraction-free GC-MS method that through automation can deliver results much faster than other similar methods. The implementation of these high tech methods will provide the meat industry with a leading edge not only with product...... of boar taint. The chemical makeup of fat has a large effect on meat cut quality. Fat quality has traditionally been determined by methylation of a tissue sample followed by chromatography on a GC-MS system, elucidating the composition of the individual fatty acids. As this procedure typically takes far...

Online Advertising in Social Networks

Science.gov (United States)

Bagherjeiran, Abraham; Bhatt, Rushi P.; Parekh, Rajesh; Chaoji, Vineet

Online social networks offer opportunities to analyze user behavior and social connectivity and leverage resulting insights for effective online advertising. This chapter focuses on the role of social network information in online display advertising.

Biology and Nursing Students’ Perceptions of a Web-based Information Literacy Tutorial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sharon Weiner

2012-04-01

Full Text Available This study assessed student perceptions about an online information literacy tutorial, CORE (Comprehensive Online Research Education, to plan for the next generation of tutorials. The CORE tutorial includes seven modules: “Planning Your Project,” “Topic Exploration,” “Types of Information,” “Search Tools,” “Search Strategies,” “Evaluating Sources,” and “Copyright, Plagiarism, and Citing Sources.” First-year students in biology and nursing courses responded to a survey after they completed the CORE modules. The students liked learning through an online tutorial. They thought that the tutorial could be improved with shorter modules and the addition of video and audio content. Few students reported learning important information from the “Copyright, Plagiarism, and Citing Sources,” “Evaluating Resources,” and “Types of Information” modules. They suggested topics for additional tutorials: how to use library databases and Microsoft Excel; how to evaluate the quality of information, how to cite references in a bibliography, and how to find statistics.

Online Friendship, Romance, and Sex: Properties and Associations of the Online Relationship Initiation Scale.

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Keith M; Aboujaoude, Elias

2016-08-01

Online relationships are increasingly central to many people's lives. As a result, there is a growing need to scientifically examine their psychosocial implications. This study developed and tested the Online Relationship Initiation Scale (ORIS) through classical and item response theory analyses to address this need. An anonymous online survey included 713 adults, aged 18-71 years. The ORIS was tested on psychometric properties and examined for associations with gender and several standardized psychosocial measures. Results demonstrated unidimensionality of nine items, strong factor loadings, and high internal consistency (α = 0.90, ωt = 0.94). All items captured significant information on the latent trait and none showed differential item functioning by sex, age group, or ethnicity. General linear modeling confirmed hypotheses that men were more likely than women to initiate online relationships. Online relationship initiation was not strongly associated with perceived social support, but was positively related to financial distress, and willingness to engage in infidelity or unprotected sex. The ORIS was negatively associated with age and satisfaction with life and showed modest interactions with ethnicity and hours online. This study provided empirical evidence for an interpersonal relationship initiation construct. The ORIS was shown to be a psychometrically sound instrument for evaluating online interpersonal behaviors and their associations with psychosocial and demographic factors. Such psychometrically sound instruments can be useful in exploring online interpersonal behaviors and their significance.

Flow injection on-line dilution for multi-element determination in human urine with detection by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Jianhua; Hansen, Elo Harald; Gammelgaard, Bente

2001-01-01

A simple flow injection on-line dilution procedure with detection by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was developed for the determination of copper, zinc, arsenic, lead, selenium, nickel and molybdenum in human urine. Matrix effects were minimized by employing a dilution factor...

Chemical preparation of biological materials for accurate chromium determination by isotope dilution mass spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dunstan, L.P.; Garner, E.L.

1977-01-01

The current interest in trace elements in biological materials has created a need for accurate methods of analysis. The source of discrepancies and variations in chromium concentration determinations is often traceable to inadequate methods of sample preparation. Any method of Cr analysis that requires acid digestion of a biological matrix must take into consideration the existence or formation of a volatile Cr component. In addition, because Cr is often present at concentrations less than 1 μg/g, the analytical blank becomes a potential source of error. Chemical procedures have been developed for the digestion of the biological matrix and the separation of Cr without either large analytical blanks or significant losses by volatilization. These procedures have been used for the analysis of NBS Standard Reference Material (SRM) 1569 Brewers Yeast; SRM 1577 Bovine Liver; SRM 1570 Spinach and other biological materials including human hair and nails. At this time, samples containing 1 μg of Cr can be determined with an estimated accuracy of 2 percent

Quality online personalisation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

T. Li (Ting); T. Unger (Till)

2012-01-01

textabstractWhen done right, personalisation online can be an effective way to enhance the buying or consuming experience, thus stimulating purchasing. However, it can also rely heavily on customers’ private details, a very sensitive and currently hot issue. So, how do online marketeers deal

Online consumer contracts

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Luzak, J.

2014-01-01

The new Consumer Rights Directive introduced some changes to the level of consumers’ protection online. However, just like with its predecessor, the Distance Selling Directive, the main focus of the protection that consumers have been granted online is to provide them with transparent and salient

Using Interactive Animations to Enhance Teaching, Learning, and Retention of Respiration Pathway Concepts in Face-to-Face and Online High School, Undergraduate, and Continuing Education Learning Environments ?

OpenAIRE

Rice, Sederick C.

2013-01-01

One major tool set teachers/instructors can use is online interactive animations, which presents content in a way that helps pique students' interest and differentiates instructional content.  The Virtual Cell Animation Collections (VCAC), developed from the Molecular and Cellular Biology Learning Center, has developed a series of online interactive animations that provide teacher/instructors and students with immersive learning tools for studying and understanding respiration processes.  The...

On-line conformal HDR dose escalation trial in prostate cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martinez, Alvaro; Stromberg, Jannifer; Edmundson, Gregory; Gustafson, Gary; Vicini, Frank; Brabbins, Donald

1996-01-01

Purpose: To improve treatment results on prostatic adenocarcinoma, we began the first prospective Phase I/II dose-escalating clinical trial of conformal brachytherapy (CB) and concurrent external beam irradiation. Methods and Materials: Fifty-four patients with T2b-T3c prostatic adenocarcinoma received 172 transperineal conformal high-dose rate (HDR) boost implants. All patients received concomitant external beam pelvic irradiation. Dose escalation of the three HDR fractions were: 5.5 Gy (18 patients), 6 Gy (15 patients), and 6.5 Gy (21 patients). The urethra, anterior rectal wall, and prostate boundaries were identified individually and outlined at 5 mm intervals from the base to the apex of the gland. The CB using real-time ultrasound guidance with interactive online isodose distributions was performed on an outpatient basis. As needles were placed into the prostate, corrections for prostate displacement were recorded and the isodose distributions were recalculated to represent the new relationship between the needles, prostate, and normal structures. Results: Craniocaudal motion of the gland ranged from 0.5-2.0 cm (mean=1.0 cm), whereas lateral displacement was 0.1-0.4 cm. With the interactive online planning system, organ motion was immediately detected, accounted for, and corrected prior to each HDR treatment. The rectal dose has ranged from 45 to 87%, and the urethral dose from 97 to 112% of the prostate dose. Negative prostatic biopsies at 18 months were seen in (30(32)) patients. Biochemical (PSA <1.5 ng/ml) control at 36 months is is 89%. It is significant that operator dependence has been completely removed because the interactive online planning system uniformly guides the physicians. Conclusions: With ultrasound guidance and the interactive online dosimetry system, organ motion is insignificant because it can be corrected during the procedure. Common pitfalls of brachytherapy, including operator dependence and difficulty with reproducibility, have been

An On-Line Solid Phase Extraction-Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry Method for the Determination of Perfluoroalkyl Acids in Drinking and Surface Waters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michela Mazzoni

2015-01-01

Full Text Available An UHPLC-MS/MS multiresidue method based on an on-line solid phase extraction (SPE procedure was developed for the simultaneous determination of 9 perfluorinated carboxylates (from 4 to 12 carbon atoms and 3 perfluorinated sulphonates (from 4 to 8 carbon atoms. This work proposes using an on-line solid phase extraction before chromatographic separation and analysis to replace traditional methods of off-line SPE before direct injection to LC-MS/MS. Manual sample preparation was reduced to sample centrifugation and acidification, thus eliminating several procedural errors and significantly reducing time-consuming and costs. Ionization suppression between target perfluorinated analytes and their coeluting SIL-IS were detected for homologues with a number of carbon atoms less than 9, but the quantitation was not affected. Total matrix effect corrected by SIL-IS, inclusive of extraction efficacy, and of ionization efficiency, ranged between −34 and +39%. The percentage of recoveries, between 76 and 134%, calculated in different matrices (tap water and rivers impacted by different pollutions was generally satisfactory. LODs and LOQs of this on-line SPE method, which also incorporate recovery losses, ranged from 0.2 to 5.0 ng/L and from 1 to 20 ng/L, respectively. Validated on-line SPE-LC/MS/MS method has been applied in a wide survey for the determination of perfluoroalkyl acids in Italian surface and ground waters.

An On-Line Solid Phase Extraction-Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry Method for the Determination of Perfluoroalkyl Acids in Drinking and Surface Waters

Science.gov (United States)

Mazzoni, Michela; Rusconi, Marianna; Valsecchi, Sara; Martins, Claudia P. B.; Polesello, Stefano

2015-01-01

An UHPLC-MS/MS multiresidue method based on an on-line solid phase extraction (SPE) procedure was developed for the simultaneous determination of 9 perfluorinated carboxylates (from 4 to 12 carbon atoms) and 3 perfluorinated sulphonates (from 4 to 8 carbon atoms). This work proposes using an on-line solid phase extraction before chromatographic separation and analysis to replace traditional methods of off-line SPE before direct injection to LC-MS/MS. Manual sample preparation was reduced to sample centrifugation and acidification, thus eliminating several procedural errors and significantly reducing time-consuming and costs. Ionization suppression between target perfluorinated analytes and their coeluting SIL-IS were detected for homologues with a number of carbon atoms less than 9, but the quantitation was not affected. Total matrix effect corrected by SIL-IS, inclusive of extraction efficacy, and of ionization efficiency, ranged between −34 and +39%. The percentage of recoveries, between 76 and 134%, calculated in different matrices (tap water and rivers impacted by different pollutions) was generally satisfactory. LODs and LOQs of this on-line SPE method, which also incorporate recovery losses, ranged from 0.2 to 5.0 ng/L and from 1 to 20 ng/L, respectively. Validated on-line SPE-LC/MS/MS method has been applied in a wide survey for the determination of perfluoroalkyl acids in Italian surface and ground waters. PMID:25834752

Application of computational systems biology to explore environmental toxicity hazards

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Audouze, Karine Marie Laure; Grandjean, Philippe

2011-01-01

Background: Computer-based modeling is part of a new approach to predictive toxicology.Objectives: We investigated the usefulness of an integrated computational systems biology approach in a case study involving the isomers and metabolites of the pesticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT......) to ascertain their possible links to relevant adverse effects.Methods: We extracted chemical-protein association networks for each DDT isomer and its metabolites using ChemProt, a disease chemical biology database that includes both binding and gene expression data, and we explored protein-protein interactions...... using a human interactome network. To identify associated dysfunctions and diseases, we integrated protein-disease annotations into the protein complexes using the Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man database and the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database.Results: We found 175 human proteins linked to p,p´-DDT...

Book reviews online

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Philip Barker

1997-12-01

Full Text Available Many thousands of books are published each year, and even specialists find it difficult to keep abreast of new books in their disciplines, learning technology being no exception - indeed, in our subject-area the situation is beginning to reach saturation point. The bookreview procedure facilitates selection: a good review will capture the essential content of a book, and will comment on its quality, style, level of presentation, appropriateness, and perhaps value for money. Figure 1 shows the review process, its relationship to the production of books and learned journals, and the functional similarity between book reviews and abstracts of papers published in learned journals. Abstracts are often archived in online databases or on CD-ROM, in this way acting as an alerting and brief reference service. Book reviews can be treated in the same way. This paper discusses the use of servers (Internet or intranet as a means of making them available to a global population. It also describes how such a facility could fit into a more general infrastructure for soliciting potential reviewers and drawing their attention to publications available for review.

Online Report Card: Tracking Online Education in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, I. Elaine; Seaman, Jeff

2016-01-01

This is the thirteenth annual report on the state of online learning in U.S. higher education. The survey is designed, administered and analyzed by the Babson Survey Research Group in partnership with the Online Learning Consortium (OLC), Pearson, WCET, StudyPortals, and Tyton Partners, with additional data from the National Center for Education…

Manual of bioassay procedures for radionuclides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pleskach, S.; Petkau, A.

1986-06-01

A monitoring program is described by which atomic radiation workers ar monitored for internal contamination with radionuclides in the workplace. The program involves analytical procedures for measuring alpha, beta and gamma activity in biological specimens, usually urine. Radionuclides are identified by their characteristic radiation using liquid scintillation counting, and alpha, beta and gamma spectrometry. Examples of calculating the minimum detectable activity for specific radionuclides are given and used to derive call-in-criteria in accordance with which the different groups of workers are monitored each month

PBL online

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kolbæk, Ditte; Nortvig, Anne-Mette

2017-01-01

Problem- and Project-Based Learning (PBL) is a widely used pedagogical method in higher education. Although PBL encourages self-directed learning and works with the students’ own projects and problems, it also includes teacher presentations, discussions and group reflections, both on......-campus and online. Therefore, the teacher’s plans might be relevant to the students’ projects, but that is not always the case. This study investigates how master’s students interact with an online Problem-Based Learning design and examines how technology influences these interactions. The empirical data stem from...... lessons at an online master’s course, and they were collected and analyzed using a netnographic approach. The study finds that concepts like self-directed learning and active involvement of everyone can have very different meanings from the teachers’ and the students’ points of view. If the students do...

Online Assessment of Human-Robot Interaction for Hybrid Control of Walking

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana de-los-Reyes

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Restoration of walking ability of Spinal Cord Injury subjects can be achieved by different approaches, as the use of robotic exoskeletons or electrical stimulation of the user’s muscles. The combined (hybrid approach has the potential to provide a solution to the drawback of each approach. Specific challenges must be addressed with specific sensory systems and control strategies. In this paper we present a system and a procedure to estimate muscle fatigue from online physical interaction assessment to provide hybrid control of walking, regarding the performances of the muscles under stimulation.

ECHMERIT: A new on-line global mercury-chemistry model

Science.gov (United States)

Jung, G.; Hedgecock, I. M.; Pirrone, N.

2009-04-01

Mercury is a volatile metal, that is of concern because when deposited and transformed to methylmercury accumulates within the food-web. Due to the long lifetime of elemental mercury, which is the dominant fraction of mercury species in the atmosphere, mercury is prone to long-range transport and therefore distributed over the globe, transported and hence deposited even in regions far from anthropogenic emission sources. Mercury is released to the atmosphere from a variety of natural and anthropogenic sources, in elementary and oxidised forms, and as particulate mercury. It is then transported, but also transformed chemically in the gaseous phase, as well as in aqueous phase within cloud and rain droplets. Mercury (particularly its oxidised forms) is removed from the atmosphere though wet and dry deposition processes, a large fraction of deposited mercury is, after chemical or biological reduction, re-emitted to the atmosphere as elementary mercury. To investigate mercury chemistry and transport processes on the global scale, the new, global model ECHMERIT has been developed. ECHMERIT simulates meteorology, transport, deposition, photolysis and chemistry on-line. The general circulation model on which ECHMERIT is based is ECHAM5. Sophisticated chemical modules have been implemented, including gas phase chemistry based on the CBM-Z chemistry mechanism, as well as aqueous phase chemistry, both of which have been adapted to include Hg chemistry and Hg species gas-droplet mass transfer. ECHMERIT uses the fast-J photolysis routine. State-of-the-art procedures simulating wet and dry deposition and emissions were adapted and included in the model as well. An overview of the model structure, development, validation and sensitivity studies is presented.

Performance optimization of an online retailer by a unique online resilience engineering algorithm