Minimum requirements on a QA program in radiation oncology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Almond, P.R.

1996-01-01

In April, 1994, the American Association of Physicists in Medicine published a ''Comprehensive QA for radiation oncology:'' a report of the AAPM Radiation Therapy Committee. This is a comprehensive QA program which is likely to become the standard for such programs in the United States. The program stresses the interdisciplinary nature of QA in radiation oncology involving the radiation oncologists, the radiotherapy technologies (radiographers), dosimetrists, and accelerator engineers, as well as the medical physicists. This paper describes a comprehensive quality assurance program with the main emphasis on the quality assurance in radiation therapy using a linear accelerator. The paper deals with QA for a linear accelerator and simulator and QA for treatment planning computers. Next the treatment planning process and QA for individual patients is described. The main features of this report, which should apply to QA programs in any country, emphasizes the responsibilities of the medical physicist. (author). 7 refs, 9 tabs

Minimum requirements on a QA program in radiation oncology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Almond, P R [Louisville Univ., Louisville, KY (United States). J.G. Brown Cancer Center

1996-08-01

In April, 1994, the American Association of Physicists in Medicine published a ``Comprehensive QA for radiation oncology:`` a report of the AAPM Radiation Therapy Committee. This is a comprehensive QA program which is likely to become the standard for such programs in the United States. The program stresses the interdisciplinary nature of QA in radiation oncology involving the radiation oncologists, the radiotherapy technologies (radiographers), dosimetrists, and accelerator engineers, as well as the medical physicists. This paper describes a comprehensive quality assurance program with the main emphasis on the quality assurance in radiation therapy using a linear accelerator. The paper deals with QA for a linear accelerator and simulator and QA for treatment planning computers. Next the treatment planning process and QA for individual patients is described. The main features of this report, which should apply to QA programs in any country, emphasizes the responsibilities of the medical physicist. (author). 7 refs, 9 tabs.

The Migrant Border Crossing Study: A methodological overview of research along the Sonora-Arizona border.

Science.gov (United States)

Martínez, Daniel E; Slack, Jeremy; Beyerlein, Kraig; Vandervoet, Prescott; Klingman, Kristin; Molina, Paola; Manning, Shiras; Burham, Melissa; Walzak, Kylie; Valencia, Kristen; Gamboa, Lorenzo

2017-07-01

Increased border enforcement efforts have redistributed unauthorized Mexican migration to the United States (US) away from traditional points of crossing, such as San Diego and El Paso, and into more remote areas along the US-Mexico border, including southern Arizona. Yet relatively little quantitative scholarly work exists examining Mexican migrants' crossing, apprehension, and repatriation experiences in southern Arizona. We contend that if scholars truly want to understand the experiences of unauthorized migrants in transit, such migrants should be interviewed either at the border after being removed from the US, or during their trajectories across the border, or both. This paper provides a methodological overview of the Migrant Border Crossing Study (MBCS), a unique data source on Mexican migrants who attempted an unauthorized crossing along the Sonora-Arizona border, were apprehended, and repatriated to Nogales, Sonora in 2007-09. We also discuss substantive and theoretical contributions of the MBCS.

Statistical process control analysis for patient-specific IMRT and VMAT QA.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanghangthum, Taweap; Suriyapee, Sivalee; Srisatit, Somyot; Pawlicki, Todd

2013-05-01

This work applied statistical process control to establish the control limits of the % gamma pass of patient-specific intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) quality assurance (QA), and to evaluate the efficiency of the QA process by using the process capability index (Cpml). A total of 278 IMRT QA plans in nasopharyngeal carcinoma were measured with MapCHECK, while 159 VMAT QA plans were undertaken with ArcCHECK. Six megavolts with nine fields were used for the IMRT plan and 2.5 arcs were used to generate the VMAT plans. The gamma (3%/3 mm) criteria were used to evaluate the QA plans. The % gamma passes were plotted on a control chart. The first 50 data points were employed to calculate the control limits. The Cpml was calculated to evaluate the capability of the IMRT/VMAT QA process. The results showed higher systematic errors in IMRT QA than VMAT QA due to the more complicated setup used in IMRT QA. The variation of random errors was also larger in IMRT QA than VMAT QA because the VMAT plan has more continuity of dose distribution. The average % gamma pass was 93.7% ± 3.7% for IMRT and 96.7% ± 2.2% for VMAT. The Cpml value of IMRT QA was 1.60 and VMAT QA was 1.99, which implied that the VMAT QA process was more accurate than the IMRT QA process. Our lower control limit for % gamma pass of IMRT is 85.0%, while the limit for VMAT is 90%. Both the IMRT and VMAT QA processes are good quality because Cpml values are higher than 1.0.

QA manpower requirement for nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Link, M.

1980-01-01

To ensure the quality of the plant, QA activities are to be performed by the owner, the main contractor, the subcontractors and the Licensing Authority. The responsibilities of the QA-personnel of these organizations comprise as a minimum the control of the quality assurance systems and the proof of the quality requirements. Numbers of the required QA-personnel, designated for different tasks and recommended educational levels and professional qualifications will be given. (orig./RW)

Graded approach for establishment of QA requirements for Type B packaging of radioactive material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fabian, R.R.; Woodruff, K.C.

1988-01-01

A study that was conducted by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the U.S. Congress to assess the effectiveness of quality assurance (QA) activities has demonstrated a need to modify and improve the application of QA requirements for the nuclear industry. As a result, the packaging community, along with the nuclear industry as a whole, has taken action to increase the efficacy of the QA function. The results of the study indicate that a graded approach for establishing QA requirements is the preferred method. The essence of the graded approach is the establishment of applicable QA requirements to an extent consistent with the importance to safety of an item, component, system, or activity. This paper describes the process that is used to develop the graded approach for QA requirements pertaining to Type B packaging

NRC overview: Repository QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kennedy, J.E.

1988-01-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is on the threshold of an extensive program for characterizing Yucca Mountain in Nevada to determine if it is a suitable site for the permanent disposal of high-level nuclear waste. Earlier this year, the DOE published the Consultation Draft Site Characterization Plan for the Nevada site, which describes in some detail the studies that need to be performed to determine if the site is acceptable. In the near future, the final site characterization plan (SCP) is expected to be issued and large-scale site characterization activities to begin. The data and analyses that will result from the execution of that plan are expected to be the primary basis for the license application to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Because of the importance of these data and analyses in the assessment of the suitability of the site and in the demonstration of that suitability in the NRC licensing process, the NRC requires in 10CFR60 that site characterization be performed under a quality assurance (QA) program. The QA program is designed to provide confidence that data are valid, retrievable, and reproducible. The documentation produced by the program will form an important part of the record on which the suitability of the site is judged in licensing. In addition, because the NRC staff can review only a selected portion of the data collected, the staff will need to rely on the system of controls in the DOE QA program

Application of QA geoscience investigations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henderson, J.T.

1980-01-01

This paper discusses the evolution of a classical hardware QA program (as currently embodied in DOE/ALO Manual Chapter 08XA; NRC 10CFR Part 50, Appendix B; and other similar documents) into the present geoscience quality assurance programs that address eventual NRC licensing, if required. In the context of this paper, QA will be restricted to the tasks associated with nuclear repositories, i.e. site identification, selection, characterization, verification, and utilization

Follow-up utterances in QA dialogue

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Schooten, B.W.; op den Akker, Hendrikus J.A.

2006-01-01

The processing of user follow-up utterances by a QA system is a topic which is still in its infant stages, but enjoys growing interest in the QA community. In this paper, we discuss the broader issues related to handling follow-up utterances in a real-life "information kiosk" setting. With help of a

Cross-border cooperation potential in fostering redevelopment of degraded border areas - a case study approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Alexandre Castanho, Rui; Ramírez, Beatriz; Loures, Luis; Fernández-Pozo, Luis; Cabezas, José

2017-04-01

Border interactions have reached unprecedented levels in recent decades, not only due to their potential for territorial integration but also considering their role in supranational processes, such as landscape reclamation, infrastructure development and land use planning on European territory. In this scenario, successful examples related to the redevelopment of degraded areas have been showing positive impacts at several levels, such as the social, economic, environmental and aesthetic ones which have ultimately related this process, positively, to sustainability issues. However, concerning to border areas, and due to their inherent legislative and bureaucratic conflicts, the intervention in these areas is more complex. Still, and taking into account previously developed projects and strategies of cross-border cooperation (CBC) in European territory it is possible to identified that the definition of common master plans and common objectives are critical issues to achieve the desired territorial success. Additionally, recent studies have put forward some noteworthy ideas highlighting that it is possible to establish a positive correlation between CBC processes and an increasing redevelopment of degraded border areas, with special focus on the reclamation of derelict landscapes fostering soil reuse and redevelopment. The present research, throughout case study analysis at the Mediterranean level - considering case studies from Portugal, Spain, Monaco and Italy - which presents specific data on border landscape redevelopment, enables us to conclude that CBC processes have a positive influence on the potential redevelopment of degraded border areas, considering not only urban but also rural land. Furthermore, this paper presents data obtained through a public participation process which highlights that these areas present a greater potential for landscape reclamation, fostering resource sustainability and sustainable growth. Keywords: Spatial planning; Land

Improvement of QA/QC activities in the construction of nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jinji Tomita; Shigetaka Tomaru

1987-01-01

Construction of commercial nuclear power plants in Japan started at around 1965. In this presentation are described quality assurance (QA) activities of a plant supplier who is a manufacturer of the key components as well. The QA activities until now are divided into several periods of the construction history in Japan. First term is 1960's when the QA activities are featured as the study and implementation through the construction of imported plants. Since then technologies and procedures of our own have been established and improved for the construction of high reliability plants. Our present QA activities are based on the active reflection of those lessons learned of past experiences. (author)

QA at Fermilab

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bodnarczuk, M.

1988-01-01

This paper opens with a brief overview of the purpose of Fermilab and historical synopsis of the development and current status of quality assurance (QA) at the Laboratory. The paper subsequently addresses some of the more important aspects of interpreting the national standard ANSI/ASME NQA-1 in pure research environments like Fermilab. Highlights of this discussion include, (1) what is hermeneutics and why are hermeneutical considerations relevant for QA, (2) a critical analysis of NQA-1 focussing on teleological aspects of the standard, (3) a description of the hermeneutical approach to NQA-1 used at Fermilab which attempts to capture the true intents of the document without violating the deeply ingrained traditions of quality standards and peer review that have been foundational to the overall success of the paradigms of high-energy physics.

Moving from gamma passing rates to patient DVH-based QA metrics in pretreatment dose QA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhen, Heming; Nelms, Benjamin E.; Tome, Wolfgang A. [Department of Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53705 (United States); Department of Human Oncology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53792 and Canis Lupus LLC, Merrimac, Wisconsin 53561 (United States); Department of Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53705 and Department of Human Oncology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53792 (United States)

2011-10-15

considerable scatter in the gamma passing rate vs DVH-based metric curves. However, for the same input data, the PDP estimates were in agreement with actual patient DVH results. Conclusions: Gamma passing rate, even if calculated based on patient dose grids, has generally weak correlation to critical patient DVH errors. However, the PDP algorithm was shown to accurately predict the DVH impact using conventional planar QA results. Using patient-DVH-based metrics IMRT QA allows per-patient dose QA to be based on metrics that are both sensitive and specific. Further studies are now required to analyze new processes and action levels associated with DVH-based metrics to ensure effectiveness and practicality in the clinical setting.

The quality assurance process for the ARTSCAN head and neck study - A practical interactive approach for QA in 3DCRT and IMRT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johansson, Karl-Axel; Nilsson, Per; Zackrisson, Bjoern; Ohlson, Birgitta; Kjellen, Elisabeth; Mercke, Claes; Alvarez-Fonseca, Mauricio; Billstroem, Anette; Bjoerk-Eriksson, Thomas; Bjoer, Ove; Ekberg, Lars; Friesland, Signe; Karlsson, Magnus; Lagerlund, Magnus; Lundkvist, Lena; Loefroth, Per-Olov; Loefvander-Thapper, Kerstin; Nilsson, Alla; Nyman, Jan; Persson, Essie

2008-01-01

Aim: This paper describes the quality assurance (QA) work performed in the Swedish multicenter ARTSCAN (Accelerated RadioTherapy of Squamous cell CArcinomas in the head and Neck) trial to guarantee high quality in a multicenter study which involved modern radiotherapy such as 3DCRT or IMRT. Materials and methods: The study was closed in June 2006 with 750 randomised patients. Radiation therapy-related data for every patient were sent by each participating centre to the QA office where all trial data were reviewed, analysed and stored. In case of any deviation from the protocol, an interactive process was started between the QA office and the local responsible clinician and/or physicist to increase the compliance to the protocol for future randomised patients. Meetings and workshops were held on a regular basis for discussions on various trial-related issues and for the QA office to report on updated results. Results and discussion: This review covers the 734 patients out of a total of 750 who had entered the study. Deviations early in the study were corrected so that the overall compliance to the protocol was very high. There were only negligible variations in doses and dose distributions to target volumes for each specific site and stage. The quality of the treatments was high. Furthermore, an extensive database of treatment parameters was accumulated for future dose-volume vs. endpoint evaluations. Conclusions: This comprehensive QA programme increased the probability to draw firm conclusions from our study and may serve as a concept for QA work in future radiotherapy trials where comparatively small effects are searched for in a heterogeneous tumour population

SU-E-T-636: ProteusONE Machine QA Procedure and Stabiity Study: Half Year Clinical Operation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Freund, D; Ding, X; Wu, H; Zhang, J; Syh, J; Syh, J; Patel, B; Song, X [Willis-Knighton Medical Center, Shreveport, LA (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: The objective of this study is to evaluate the stability of ProteusOne, the 1st commercial PBS proton system, throughout the daily QA and monthly over 6 month clinical operation. Method: Daily QA test includes IGRT position/repositioning, output in the middle of SOBP, beam flatness, symmetry, inplane and crossplane dimensions as well as energy range check. Daily range shifter QA consist of output, symmetry and field size checks to make sure its integrity. In 30 mins Daily QA test, all the measurements are performed using the MatriXXPT (IBA dosimetry). The data from these measurement was collected and compare over the first 6 month of clinical operation. In addition to the items check in daily QA, the summary also includes the monthly QA gantry star shots, absolute position check using a novel device, XRV-100. Results: Average machine output at the center of the spread out bragg peak was 197.5±.8 cGy and was within 1%of the baseline at 198.4 cGy. Beam flatness was within 1% cross plane with an average of 0.67±0.12% and 2% in-plane with an average of 1.08±0.17% compared to baseline measurements of 0.6 and 1.03, respectively. In all cases the radiation isocenter shift was less than or equal to 1mm. Output for the range shifter was within 2% for each individual measurement and averaged 34.4±.2cGy compare to a baseline reading of 34.5cGy. The average range shifter in and cross plane field size measurements were 19.8±0.5cm and 20.5±0.4cm compared with baseline values of 20.19cm and 20.79cm, respectively. Range shifter field symmetry had an average of less 1% for both in-plane and cross plane measurements. Conclusion: All machine metrics over the past 6 months have proved to be stable. Although, some averages are outside the baseline measurement they are within 1% tolerance and the deviation across all measurements is minimal.

SU-E-T-636: ProteusONE Machine QA Procedure and Stabiity Study: Half Year Clinical Operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freund, D; Ding, X; Wu, H; Zhang, J; Syh, J; Syh, J; Patel, B; Song, X

2015-01-01

Purpose: The objective of this study is to evaluate the stability of ProteusOne, the 1st commercial PBS proton system, throughout the daily QA and monthly over 6 month clinical operation. Method: Daily QA test includes IGRT position/repositioning, output in the middle of SOBP, beam flatness, symmetry, inplane and crossplane dimensions as well as energy range check. Daily range shifter QA consist of output, symmetry and field size checks to make sure its integrity. In 30 mins Daily QA test, all the measurements are performed using the MatriXXPT (IBA dosimetry). The data from these measurement was collected and compare over the first 6 month of clinical operation. In addition to the items check in daily QA, the summary also includes the monthly QA gantry star shots, absolute position check using a novel device, XRV-100. Results: Average machine output at the center of the spread out bragg peak was 197.5±.8 cGy and was within 1%of the baseline at 198.4 cGy. Beam flatness was within 1% cross plane with an average of 0.67±0.12% and 2% in-plane with an average of 1.08±0.17% compared to baseline measurements of 0.6 and 1.03, respectively. In all cases the radiation isocenter shift was less than or equal to 1mm. Output for the range shifter was within 2% for each individual measurement and averaged 34.4±.2cGy compare to a baseline reading of 34.5cGy. The average range shifter in and cross plane field size measurements were 19.8±0.5cm and 20.5±0.4cm compared with baseline values of 20.19cm and 20.79cm, respectively. Range shifter field symmetry had an average of less 1% for both in-plane and cross plane measurements. Conclusion: All machine metrics over the past 6 months have proved to be stable. Although, some averages are outside the baseline measurement they are within 1% tolerance and the deviation across all measurements is minimal

Analysis of QA audit checklist for equipment suppliers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tian Xuehang

2012-01-01

Eleven aspects during the equipment manufacturing by the suppliers, including the guidelines and objectives of quality assurance, management department review, document and record control, staffing and training, design control, procurement control, control of items, process control, inspection and testing control, non-conformance control, and internal and external QA audit, are analyzed in this article. The detailed QA audit checklist on these above mentioned aspects are described and the problems found in real QA audit are listed in this article. (authors)

Applications of QA to RandD support of HLW programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryder, D.E.

1988-05-01

The application of a formal QA program to any discipline or organization can be difficult to achieve and to do so with a research and development organization has special challenges that are somewhat unique. This paper describes how a QA program based upon a national consensus standard (developed for application to the design, construction and operation of nuclear facilities) has been successfully applied to some of the research and development activities in support of the High Level Waste Programs. This description includes a discussion on the importance of being creative when interpreting the QA standard, a brief overview of the QA program that was developed and the results achieved during implementation of the QA program. 4 refs., 4 figs

Institutional Patient-specific IMRT QA Does Not Predict Unacceptable Plan Delivery

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kry, Stephen F., E-mail: sfkry@mdanderson.org [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core at Houston, Department of Radiation Physics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Molineu, Andrea [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core at Houston, Department of Radiation Physics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Kerns, James R.; Faught, Austin M.; Huang, Jessie Y.; Pulliam, Kiley B.; Tonigan, Jackie [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core at Houston, Department of Radiation Physics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); The University of Texas Health Science Center Houston, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, Texas (United States); Alvarez, Paola [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core at Houston, Department of Radiation Physics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Stingo, Francesco [The University of Texas Health Science Center Houston, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, Texas (United States); Department of Biostatistics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Followill, David S. [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core at Houston, Department of Radiation Physics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); The University of Texas Health Science Center Houston, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, Texas (United States)

2014-12-01

Purpose: To determine whether in-house patient-specific intensity modulated radiation therapy quality assurance (IMRT QA) results predict Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core (IROC)-Houston phantom results. Methods and Materials: IROC Houston's IMRT head and neck phantoms have been irradiated by numerous institutions as part of clinical trial credentialing. We retrospectively compared these phantom results with those of in-house IMRT QA (following the institution's clinical process) for 855 irradiations performed between 2003 and 2013. The sensitivity and specificity of IMRT QA to detect unacceptable or acceptable plans were determined relative to the IROC Houston phantom results. Additional analyses evaluated specific IMRT QA dosimeters and analysis methods. Results: IMRT QA universally showed poor sensitivity relative to the head and neck phantom, that is, poor ability to predict a failing IROC Houston phantom result. Depending on how the IMRT QA results were interpreted, overall sensitivity ranged from 2% to 18%. For different IMRT QA methods, sensitivity ranged from 3% to 54%. Although the observed sensitivity was particularly poor at clinical thresholds (eg 3% dose difference or 90% of pixels passing gamma), receiver operator characteristic analysis indicated that no threshold showed good sensitivity and specificity for the devices evaluated. Conclusions: IMRT QA is not a reasonable replacement for a credentialing phantom. Moreover, the particularly poor agreement between IMRT QA and the IROC Houston phantoms highlights surprising inconsistency in the QA process.

Institutional Patient-specific IMRT QA Does Not Predict Unacceptable Plan Delivery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kry, Stephen F.; Molineu, Andrea; Kerns, James R.; Faught, Austin M.; Huang, Jessie Y.; Pulliam, Kiley B.; Tonigan, Jackie; Alvarez, Paola; Stingo, Francesco; Followill, David S.

2014-01-01

Purpose: To determine whether in-house patient-specific intensity modulated radiation therapy quality assurance (IMRT QA) results predict Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core (IROC)-Houston phantom results. Methods and Materials: IROC Houston's IMRT head and neck phantoms have been irradiated by numerous institutions as part of clinical trial credentialing. We retrospectively compared these phantom results with those of in-house IMRT QA (following the institution's clinical process) for 855 irradiations performed between 2003 and 2013. The sensitivity and specificity of IMRT QA to detect unacceptable or acceptable plans were determined relative to the IROC Houston phantom results. Additional analyses evaluated specific IMRT QA dosimeters and analysis methods. Results: IMRT QA universally showed poor sensitivity relative to the head and neck phantom, that is, poor ability to predict a failing IROC Houston phantom result. Depending on how the IMRT QA results were interpreted, overall sensitivity ranged from 2% to 18%. For different IMRT QA methods, sensitivity ranged from 3% to 54%. Although the observed sensitivity was particularly poor at clinical thresholds (eg 3% dose difference or 90% of pixels passing gamma), receiver operator characteristic analysis indicated that no threshold showed good sensitivity and specificity for the devices evaluated. Conclusions: IMRT QA is not a reasonable replacement for a credentialing phantom. Moreover, the particularly poor agreement between IMRT QA and the IROC Houston phantoms highlights surprising inconsistency in the QA process

Construction QA/QC systems: comparative analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Willenbrock, J.H.; Shepard, S.

1980-01-01

An analysis which compares the quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) systems adopted in the highway, nuclear power plant, and U.S. Navy construction areas with the traditional quality control approach used in building construction is presented. Full participation and support by the owner as well as the contractor and AE firm are required if a QA/QC system is to succeed. Process quality control, acceptance testing and quality assurance responsibilities must be clearly defined in the contract documents. The owner must audit these responsibilities. A contractor quality control plan, indicating the tasks which will be performed and the fact that QA/QC personnel are independent of project time/cost pressures should be submitted for approval. The architect must develop realistic specifications which consider the natural variability of material. Acceptance criteria based on the random sampling technique should be used. 27 refs

MO-A-16A-01: QA Procedures and Metrics: In Search of QA Usability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sathiaseelan, V; Thomadsen, B

2014-01-01

Radiation therapy has undergone considerable changes in the past two decades with a surge of new technology and treatment delivery methods. The complexity of radiation therapy treatments has increased and there has been increased awareness and publicity about the associated risks. In response, there has been proliferation of guidelines for medical physicists to adopt to ensure that treatments are delivered safely. Task Group recommendations are copious, and clinical physicists' hours are longer, stretched to various degrees between site planning and management, IT support, physics QA, and treatment planning responsibilities.Radiation oncology has many quality control practices in place to ensure the delivery of high-quality, safe treatments. Incident reporting systems have been developed to collect statistics about near miss events at many radiation oncology centers. However, tools are lacking to assess the impact of these various control measures. A recent effort to address this shortcoming is the work of Ford et al (2012) who recently published a methodology enumerating quality control quantification for measuring the effectiveness of safety barriers. Over 4000 near-miss incidents reported from 2 academic radiation oncology clinics were analyzed using quality control quantification, and a profile of the most effective quality control measures (metrics) was identified.There is a critical need to identify a QA metric to help the busy clinical physicists to focus their limited time and resources most effectively in order to minimize or eliminate errors in the radiation treatment delivery processes. In this symposium the usefulness of workflows and QA metrics to assure safe and high quality patient care will be explored.Two presentations will be given:Quality Metrics and Risk Management with High Risk Radiation Oncology ProceduresStrategies and metrics for quality management in the TG-100 Era Learning Objectives: Provide an overview and the need for QA usability

MO-A-16A-01: QA Procedures and Metrics: In Search of QA Usability

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sathiaseelan, V [Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL (United States); Thomadsen, B [University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)

2014-06-15

Radiation therapy has undergone considerable changes in the past two decades with a surge of new technology and treatment delivery methods. The complexity of radiation therapy treatments has increased and there has been increased awareness and publicity about the associated risks. In response, there has been proliferation of guidelines for medical physicists to adopt to ensure that treatments are delivered safely. Task Group recommendations are copious, and clinical physicists' hours are longer, stretched to various degrees between site planning and management, IT support, physics QA, and treatment planning responsibilities.Radiation oncology has many quality control practices in place to ensure the delivery of high-quality, safe treatments. Incident reporting systems have been developed to collect statistics about near miss events at many radiation oncology centers. However, tools are lacking to assess the impact of these various control measures. A recent effort to address this shortcoming is the work of Ford et al (2012) who recently published a methodology enumerating quality control quantification for measuring the effectiveness of safety barriers. Over 4000 near-miss incidents reported from 2 academic radiation oncology clinics were analyzed using quality control quantification, and a profile of the most effective quality control measures (metrics) was identified.There is a critical need to identify a QA metric to help the busy clinical physicists to focus their limited time and resources most effectively in order to minimize or eliminate errors in the radiation treatment delivery processes. In this symposium the usefulness of workflows and QA metrics to assure safe and high quality patient care will be explored.Two presentations will be given:Quality Metrics and Risk Management with High Risk Radiation Oncology ProceduresStrategies and metrics for quality management in the TG-100 Era Learning Objectives: Provide an overview and the need for QA usability

Physics acceptance and QA procedures for IMRT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

LoSasso, T.; Ling, C.

2001-01-01

Full text: Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) may improve tumor control without compromising normal tissues by facilitating higher, more conformal tumor doses relative to 3D CRT. Intensity modulation (IM) is now possible with inverse planning and radiation delivery using dynamic multileaf collimation. Compared to 3D CRT, certain components in the IMRT process are more obscure to the user. Thus, special quality assurance procedures are required. Hardware and software are still relatively new to many users, and the potential for error is unknown. The relationship between monitor unit (MU) setting and radiation dose for IM beams is much more complex than for non-IM fields. The leaf sequence computer files, which control the MLC position as a function of MU, are large and do not lend themselves to simple manual verification. The 'verification' port film for each IM treatment field, usually obtained with the MLC set at the extreme leaf positions for that field to outline the entire irradiated area, does not verify the intensity modulation pattern. Finally, in IMRT using DMLC (the so-called sliding window technique), a small error in the window (or gap) width will lead to a significant dose error. In earlier papers, we provided an evaluation of the mechanical and dosimetric aspects in the use of a MLC in the dynamic mode. Mechanical tolerances are significantly tighter for DMLC than for static MLC treatments. Transmission through the leaves and through rounded leaf ends and head scatter were shown to be significant to the accuracy of radiation dose delivery using DMLC. With these considerations, we concluded that the present DMLC hardware and software are effective for routine clinical implementation, provided that a carefully designed routine QA procedure is followed to assure the normality of operation. In our earlier studies, an evaluation of the long-term stability of DMLC operation had not yet been performed. This paper describes the current status of our

Role of QA in total quality management environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McCarthy, J.B.; Ayres, R.A.

1992-01-01

A successful company in today's highly competitive business environment must emphasize quality in all activities at all times. For most companies, this requires a major cultural change to establish appropriate operating attitudes and priorities. A total quality environment is required where quality becomes a way of life, and this process must be carefully managed. It will not be accomplished in a few short months with a simple management pronouncement. Instead, it evolves over a period of years through continuous incremental improvement. This evolution towards total quality requires a dramatic change in the quality assurance (QA) function of most companies. Traditionally, quality was automatically equated to QA and its attendant procedures and personnel. Now, quality is becoming a global concept, and QA can play a significant role in the process. The QA profession must, however, recognize and accept a new role as consultant, coach, and partner in today's total quality game. The days of the hard-line enforcer of procedural requirements are gone

Cross-border Co-operation and Policy Networks in West Africa

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trémolières, Marie; Walther, Olivier

This publication examines how policy actors involved in cross-border co-operation contribute to the regional integration process in West Africa. It uses a pioneering methodology, known as social network analysis, to visualise the formal and informal relationships between actors involved in cross...... West Africa to develop cross-border initiatives in a number of ways. Combining these two analyses with the perceptions of regional policy makers as to which border areas they consider as priorities for regional integration, the publication concludes with the analytical foundations for more effective......-border policy networks, showing that borders have notable and diverse impacts on exchanges of information and the relative power of networks. The report then analyses a range of regional indicators of co-operation potential, visually demonstrating that borders can also affect the ability of sub-regions within...

International Issues, High-Stakes Testing, and Border Pedagogy: Social Studies at Border High School

Science.gov (United States)

Cashman, Timothy G.; McDermott, Benjamin R.

2013-01-01

A recently constructed border wall stands within walking distance of Border High School (BHS) and was created to impede the flow of people, goods, fauna, and contraband from Mexico into the United States (U.S.). The reality, however, is that this geopolitical border is fluid, allowing connections between sociopolitical zones. The researchers…

Multibody neutrino exchange in a neutron star neutrino sea and border effects

CERN Document Server

Abada, A; Rodríguez-Quintero, J; Abada, As

1998-01-01

The interaction due to the exchange of massless neutrinos between neutrons is a long-range force. Border effects on this multibody exchange inside a dense core are studied and computed analytically in 1 + 1 dimensions. We demonstrate in this work that a proper treatment of the star's border effect automatically incorporates the condensate contribution as a consequence of the appropriate boundary conditions for the neutrino Feynman propagator inside the star. The total multibody exchange contribution is infrared-safe and vanishes exactly in 1 + 1 dimensions. The general conclusion of this work is that the border effect does not modify the result that neutrino exchange is infrared-safe. This toy model prepares the ground and gives the tools for the study of the realistic 3 + 1 star.

Implementation of quality assurance and quality control in the Nuclear Analytical Laboratory of the Estonian Radiation Protection Centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koeoep, T.; Jakobson, E.

2002-01-01

The Analytical Laboratory of the Estonian Radiation Protection Centre is in the process of implementing the system of Quality Assurance (QA) and Quality Control (QC) in the framework of the IAEA TC Project RER/2/004/ 'QA/QC of Nuclear Analytical Techniques'. The draft Quality Manual with annexes has been prepared accordingly to the ISO 17025 Guide, documents and other printed material delivered on the seminars of the project. The laboratory supply has been supplemented with necessary equipment for guaranteeing of quality. Proficiency testing included in the project has been performed successfully. (author)

Cross border mobility of nurse educators: Case studies from ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The purpose of the study was to raise awareness on cross border mobility of nurse educators and draw on Foucault's analysis to conceptualise the means by which cross border migration of nurse educators could be revisited. A case study design of seven nurse educators who had migrated and came back to their countries ...

Investigations of low qa discharges in the SINP tokamak

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Low edge safety factor discharges including very low qa (1 qa ... From fluctuation analysis of the external magnetic probe data it has been found that MHD ... To investigate the internal details of these discharges, an internal magnetic probe ...

Border Encounters: American Cultural Politics and the U.S.-Mexico Border

OpenAIRE

Reimer, Jennifer Andrea

2011-01-01

AbstractBorder Encounters: American Cultural Politics and the U.S.-Mexico BorderbyJennifer Andrea ReimerDoctor of Philosophy in Ethnic StudiesUniversity of California, BerkeleyProfessor José David Saldívar, Co-ChairProfessor Laura E. Pérez, Co-ChairBorder Encounters: American Cultural Politics and the U.S.-Mexico Border is a transnational, interdisciplinary cultural study of the contemporary U.S.-Mexico border that argues for the critical role of the international border in the racial past, p...

QA experience at the University of Wisconsin accredited dosimetry calibration laboratory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

DeWard, L.A.; Micka, J.A. [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)

1993-12-31

The University of Wisconsin Accredited Dosimetry Calibration Laboratory (UW ADCL) employs procedure manuals as part of its Quality Assurance (QA) program. One of these manuals covers the QA procedures and results for all of the UW ADCL measurement equipment. The QA procedures are divided into two main areas: QA for laboratory equipment and QA for external chambers sent for calibration. All internal laboratory equipment is checked and recalibrated on an annual basis, after establishing its consistency on a 6-month basis. QA for external instruments involves checking past calibration history as well as comparing to a range of calibration values for specific instrument models. Generally, the authors find that a chamber will have a variation of less than 0.5 % from previous Co-60 calibration factors, and falls within two standard deviations of previous calibrations. If x-ray calibrations are also performed, the energy response of the chamber is plotted and compared to previous instruments of the same model. These procedures give the authors confidence in the transfer of calibration values from National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

QA experience at the University of Wisconsin accredited dosimetry calibration laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

DeWard, L.A.; Micka, J.A.

1993-01-01

The University of Wisconsin Accredited Dosimetry Calibration Laboratory (UW ADCL) employs procedure manuals as part of its Quality Assurance (QA) program. One of these manuals covers the QA procedures and results for all of the UW ADCL measurement equipment. The QA procedures are divided into two main areas: QA for laboratory equipment and QA for external chambers sent for calibration. All internal laboratory equipment is checked and recalibrated on an annual basis, after establishing its consistency on a 6-month basis. QA for external instruments involves checking past calibration history as well as comparing to a range of calibration values for specific instrument models. Generally, the authors find that a chamber will have a variation of less than 0.5 % from previous Co-60 calibration factors, and falls within two standard deviations of previous calibrations. If x-ray calibrations are also performed, the energy response of the chamber is plotted and compared to previous instruments of the same model. These procedures give the authors confidence in the transfer of calibration values from National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

Application of QA to R ampersand D support of HLW programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryder, D.E.

1988-01-01

Quality has always been of primary importance in the research and development (R ampersand D) environment. An organization's ability to attract funds for new or continued research is largely dependent on the quality of past performance. However, with the possible exceptions of peer reviews for fund allocation and the referee process prior to publication, past quality assurance (QA) activities were primarily informal good practices. This resulted in standards of acceptable practice that varied from organization to organization. The increasing complexity of R ampersand D projects and the increasing need for project results to be upheld outside the scientific community (i.e., lawsuits and licensing hearings) are encouraging R ampersand D organizations and their clients to adopt more formalized methods for the scientific process and to increase control over support organizations (i.e., suppliers and subcontractors). This has become especially true for R ampersand D organizations involved in the high-level (HLW) projects for a number of years. The PNL began to implement QA program requirements within a few HLW repository preliminary studies in 1978. In 1985, PNL developed a comprehensive QA program for R ampersand D activities in support of two of the proposed repository projects. This QA program was developed by the PNL QA department with a significant amount of support assistance and guidance from PNL upper management, the Basalt Waste Isolation Project (BWIP), and the Salt Repository Program Office (SPRO). The QA program has been revised to add a three-level feature and is currently being implemented on projects sponsored by the Office of Geologic Repositories (DOE/OGR), Repository Technology Program (DOE-CH), Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigation (NNWSI) Project, and other HLW projects

SU-E-T-11: A Cloud Based CT and LINAC QA Data Management System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wiersma, R; Grelewicz, Z; Belcher, A; Liu, X

2015-01-01

Purpose: The current status quo of QA data management consists of a mixture of paper-based forms and spreadsheets for recording the results of daily, monthly, and yearly QA tests for both CT scanners and LINACs. Unfortunately, such systems suffer from a host of problems as, (1) records can be easily lost or destroyed, (2) data is difficult to access — one must physically hunt down records, (3) poor or no means of historical data analysis, and (4) no remote monitoring of machine performance off-site. To address these issues, a cloud based QA data management system was developed and implemented. Methods: A responsive tablet interface that optimizes clinic workflow with an easy-to-navigate interface accessible from any web browser was implemented in HTML/javascript/CSS to allow user mobility when entering QA data. Automated image QA was performed using a phantom QA kit developed in Python that is applicable to any phantom and is currently being used with the Gammex ACR, Las Vegas, Leeds, and Catphan phantoms for performing automated CT, MV, kV, and CBCT QAs, respectively. A Python based resource management system was used to distribute and manage intensive CPU tasks such as QA phantom image analysis or LaTeX-to-PDF QA report generation to independent process threads or different servers such that website performance is not affected. Results: To date the cloud QA system has performed approximately 185 QA procedures. Approximately 200 QA parameters are being actively tracked by the system on a monthly basis. Electronic access to historical QA parameter information was successful in proactively identifying a Linac CBCT scanner’s performance degradation. Conclusion: A fully comprehensive cloud based QA data management system was successfully implemented for the first time. Potential machine performance issues were proactively identified that would have been otherwise missed by a paper or spreadsheet based QA system

SU-E-T-11: A Cloud Based CT and LINAC QA Data Management System

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wiersma, R; Grelewicz, Z; Belcher, A; Liu, X [The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: The current status quo of QA data management consists of a mixture of paper-based forms and spreadsheets for recording the results of daily, monthly, and yearly QA tests for both CT scanners and LINACs. Unfortunately, such systems suffer from a host of problems as, (1) records can be easily lost or destroyed, (2) data is difficult to access — one must physically hunt down records, (3) poor or no means of historical data analysis, and (4) no remote monitoring of machine performance off-site. To address these issues, a cloud based QA data management system was developed and implemented. Methods: A responsive tablet interface that optimizes clinic workflow with an easy-to-navigate interface accessible from any web browser was implemented in HTML/javascript/CSS to allow user mobility when entering QA data. Automated image QA was performed using a phantom QA kit developed in Python that is applicable to any phantom and is currently being used with the Gammex ACR, Las Vegas, Leeds, and Catphan phantoms for performing automated CT, MV, kV, and CBCT QAs, respectively. A Python based resource management system was used to distribute and manage intensive CPU tasks such as QA phantom image analysis or LaTeX-to-PDF QA report generation to independent process threads or different servers such that website performance is not affected. Results: To date the cloud QA system has performed approximately 185 QA procedures. Approximately 200 QA parameters are being actively tracked by the system on a monthly basis. Electronic access to historical QA parameter information was successful in proactively identifying a Linac CBCT scanner’s performance degradation. Conclusion: A fully comprehensive cloud based QA data management system was successfully implemented for the first time. Potential machine performance issues were proactively identified that would have been otherwise missed by a paper or spreadsheet based QA system.

Utility view on QA/QC of WWER-440 fuel design and manufacture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vesely, P.

1999-01-01

In this lecture the legislation implements in the Czech Republic, QA/QC system at CEZ, demonstration and development program (purchaser point of view), audit of QA/QC system for fuel design and manufacturing as well as QA/QC records are discussed

The impact of Border policy effect on cross-border ethnic areas

Science.gov (United States)

Bie, Q. L.; Zhou, S. Y.; Li, C. S.

2013-11-01

Boundary effect analysis is related to border policy making in the cross-border ethnic area. The border effect literatures show that geographic boundaries have obvious impacts on economic, social and cultural relations in both sides of a nation border. Particularly in cross-border ethnic areas, each ethnic group has strong internal spatial structure relevance, and the boundary effect is more obvious. However, most of China's border areas are cross-border ethnic areas, each of border issues is unique. Under this perspective, we analyze the border effects of various boundaries can provide basis for formulating border management policies. For small scale of cross-border ethnic minority areas, how to formulate the boundary management policy is a good question to explore. This paper is demonstrated by a study of the impact of border management policies in Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan Province at the border area to Burma. The comparative method is used to analysis the border management policies in past 50 decades for the border area of Yunnan Province .This research aims to define trends within border policy and its influences to national security. This paper also examines Wendy Brown's liberal theory of border management policy. We found that it is not suitable for Sino-Burma border area. The conclusion is that the changes or instability of international economic and political situation has more influence to this cross-border ethnic area, and only innovative policy will be effective in cross-border ethnic area. So the border management policies should reflect the change of international context.

WE-AB-201-00: Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-01-01

Treatment planning systems (TPS) are a cornerstone of modern radiation therapy. Errors in their commissioning or use can have a devastating impact on many patients. To support safe and high quality care, medical physicists must conduct efficient and proper commissioning, good clinical integration, and ongoing quality assurance (QA) of the TPS. AAPM Task Group 53 and related publications have served as seminal benchmarks for TPS commissioning and QA over the past two decades. Over the same time, continuing innovations have made the TPS even more complex and more central to the clinical process. Medical goals are now expressed in terms of the dose and margins around organs and tissues that are delineated from multiple imaging modalities (CT, MR and PET); and even temporally resolved (i.e., 4D) imaging. This information is passed on to optimization algorithms to establish accelerator movements that are programmed directly for IMRT, VMAT and stereotactic treatments. These advances have made commissioning and QA of the TPS much more challenging. This education session reviews up-to-date experience and guidance on this subject; including the recently published AAPM Medical Physics Practice Guideline (MPPG) #5 “Commissioning and QA of Treatment Planning Dose Calculations: Megavoltage Photon and Electron Beams”. Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities (Greg Salomons) This session will provide some key background and review publications describing prominent incidents relating to TPS commissioning and QA. Traditional approaches have been hardware and feature oriented. They aim to establish a functional configuration and establish specifications for regular testing of features (like dose calculation) to assure stable operation and detect failures. With the advent of more complex systems, more patient-specific testing has also been adopted. A number of actual TPS defects will be presented along with heuristics for identifying similar

WE-AB-201-00: Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2015-06-15

Treatment planning systems (TPS) are a cornerstone of modern radiation therapy. Errors in their commissioning or use can have a devastating impact on many patients. To support safe and high quality care, medical physicists must conduct efficient and proper commissioning, good clinical integration, and ongoing quality assurance (QA) of the TPS. AAPM Task Group 53 and related publications have served as seminal benchmarks for TPS commissioning and QA over the past two decades. Over the same time, continuing innovations have made the TPS even more complex and more central to the clinical process. Medical goals are now expressed in terms of the dose and margins around organs and tissues that are delineated from multiple imaging modalities (CT, MR and PET); and even temporally resolved (i.e., 4D) imaging. This information is passed on to optimization algorithms to establish accelerator movements that are programmed directly for IMRT, VMAT and stereotactic treatments. These advances have made commissioning and QA of the TPS much more challenging. This education session reviews up-to-date experience and guidance on this subject; including the recently published AAPM Medical Physics Practice Guideline (MPPG) #5 “Commissioning and QA of Treatment Planning Dose Calculations: Megavoltage Photon and Electron Beams”. Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities (Greg Salomons) This session will provide some key background and review publications describing prominent incidents relating to TPS commissioning and QA. Traditional approaches have been hardware and feature oriented. They aim to establish a functional configuration and establish specifications for regular testing of features (like dose calculation) to assure stable operation and detect failures. With the advent of more complex systems, more patient-specific testing has also been adopted. A number of actual TPS defects will be presented along with heuristics for identifying similar

Accounting for human factor in QC and QA inspections

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goodman, J.

1986-01-01

Two types of human error during QC/QA inspection have been identified. The method of accounting for the effects of human error in QC/QA inspections was developed. The result of evaluation of the proportion of discrepant items in the population is affected significantly by human factor

Analytical methods manual for the Mineral Resource Surveys Program, U.S. Geological Survey

Science.gov (United States)

Arbogast, Belinda F.

1996-01-01

The analytical methods validated by the Mineral Resource Surveys Program, Geologic Division, is the subject of this manual. This edition replaces the methods portion of Open-File Report 90-668 published in 1990. Newer methods may be used which have been approved by the quality assurance (QA) project and are on file with the QA coordinator.This manual is intended primarily for use by laboratory scientists; this manual can also assist laboratory users to evaluate the data they receive. The analytical methods are written in a step by step approach so that they may be used as a training tool and provide detailed documentation of the procedures for quality assurance. A "Catalog of Services" is available for customer (submitter) use with brief listings of:the element(s)/species determined,method of determination,reference to cite,contact person,summary of the technique,and analyte concentration range.For a copy please contact the Branch office at (303) 236-1800 or fax (303) 236-3200.

ITRAP - an international pilot study on border monitoring systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beck, P.; Duftschmid, K.E.

1999-01-01

The paper describes the design and preliminary results of an extended pilot study of commercially available monitoring systems for the detection of nuclear and other radioactive materials at borders. The study consists of a laboratory test phase and field tests at the Austrian/Hungarian border and the Vienna airport, each for a duration of one year. The results will be used to derive realistic performance requirements for border control systems in view of optimized technical and economic conditions as well as to propose an 'investigation level'. The ITRAP study consists of three phases. In the first phase equipment currently available on the market is subjected to laboratory testing at the Austrian Research Centres Seibersdorf. The instrument categories include hand-held, portable, and fixed-installed equipment. The test criteria defined as minimum requirements have been established together with the manufacturers. The laboratory tests started in May 1998 and will last until end of this year. During the second phase, the field study, equipment passing the laboratory tests will be installed at a major Austrian-Hungarian border crossing (Nickelsdorf) for monitoring of cars, trucks and trains, as well as at the Vienna airport for pedestrians, luggage and cargo. In this phase the results gained from the lab tests about the 'fitness for use' will be verified in practice, in close co-operation with the law enforcement officers at the borders. Also training issues and questions of maintenance and support shall be evaluated. In the third phase, realistic specifications and performance requirements shall be derived with the help of international experts and selected specialists from the users and manufacturers. The results of the field study will focus not only on the technical aspects of monitoring equipment (e.g. detection threshold and rate of false alarms) but also on the operational (e.g. ease of use, reliability, training requirements, field support) and economic

Process control analysis of IMRT QA: implications for clinical trials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pawlicki, Todd; Rice, Roger K; Yoo, Sua; Court, Laurence E; McMillan, Sharon K; Russell, J Donald; Pacyniak, John M; Woo, Milton K; Basran, Parminder S; Boyer, Arthur L; Bonilla, Claribel

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study is two-fold: first is to investigate the process of IMRT QA using control charts and second is to compare control chart limits to limits calculated using the standard deviation (σ). Head and neck and prostate IMRT QA cases from seven institutions in both academic and community settings are considered. The percent difference between the point dose measurement in phantom and the corresponding result from the treatment planning system (TPS) is used for analysis. The average of the percent difference calculations defines the accuracy of the process and is called the process target. This represents the degree to which the process meets the clinical goal of 0% difference between the measurements and TPS. IMRT QA process ability defines the ability of the process to meet clinical specifications (e.g. 5% difference between the measurement and TPS). The process ability is defined in two ways: (1) the half-width of the control chart limits, and (2) the half-width of ±3σ limits. Process performance is characterized as being in one of four possible states that describes the stability of the process and its ability to meet clinical specifications. For the head and neck cases, the average process target across institutions was 0.3% (range: -1.5% to 2.9%). The average process ability using control chart limits was 7.2% (range: 5.3% to 9.8%) compared to 6.7% (range: 5.3% to 8.2%) using standard deviation limits. For the prostate cases, the average process target across the institutions was 0.2% (range: -1.8% to 1.4%). The average process ability using control chart limits was 4.4% (range: 1.3% to 9.4%) compared to 5.3% (range: 2.3% to 9.8%) using standard deviation limits. Using the standard deviation to characterize IMRT QA process performance resulted in processes being preferentially placed in one of the four states. This is in contrast to using control charts for process characterization where the IMRT QA processes were spread over three of the

WE-B-BRD-03: MR QA/QC for MRgRT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Layman, R. [Ohio State Univ (United States)

2015-06-15

The use of MRI in radiation therapy is rapidly increasing. Applications vary from the MRI simulator, to the MRI fused with CT, and to the integrated MRI+RT system. Compared with the standard MRI QA, a broader scope of QA features has to be defined in order to maximize the benefits of using MRI in radiation therapy. These QA features include geometric fidelity, image registration, motion management, cross-system alignment, and hardware interference. Advanced MRI techniques require a specific type of QA, as they are being widely used in radiation therapy planning, dose calculations, post-implant dosimetry, and prognoses. A vigorous and adaptive QA program is crucial to defining the responsibility of the entire radiation therapy group and detecting deviations from the performance of high-quality treatment. As a drastic departure from CT simulation, MRI simulation requires changes in the work flow of treatment planning and image guidance. MRI guided radiotherapy platforms are being developed and commercialized to take the advantage of the advance in knowledge, technology and clinical experience. This symposium will from an educational perspective discuss the scope and specific issues related to MRI guided radiotherapy. Learning Objectives: Understand the difference between a standard and a radiotherapy-specific MRI QA program. Understand the effects of MRI artifacts (geometric distortion and motion) on radiotherapy. Understand advanced MRI techniques (ultrashort echo, fast MRI including dynamic MRI and 4DMRI, diffusion, perfusion, and MRS) and related QA. Understand the methods to prepare MRI for treatment planning (electron density assignment, multimodality image registration, segmentation and motion management). Current status of MRI guided treatment platforms. Dr. Jihong Wang has a research grant with Elekta-MRL project. Dr. Ke Sheng receives research grants from Varian Medical systems.

Concept of a QA-programme for the recipient country, goals and measures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, F.W.

1986-04-01

Ordering, design and erection of a NPP is a complex business even in a country with experience. Therefore a QA-Programme can be helpful to do the work in a planned and organized manner. In the case of a recipient country the use of administrative QA-measures seems to be a necessary support, especially for the ordering company. It is not the intention of the QA-Programme to say what to do, and so it cannot solve ''political'' questions of the business, but the QA-Programme can say how the work has to be done to bring it to a good end. This lecture points out the most important and interesting questions in the phase of establishing a QA-Programme. Examples of solutions are given. (author). 13 figs

Current Status of QA For Nuclear Power Plants in Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagoshi, Hitohiko

1986-01-01

It is the current status of QA and our QA experiences with nuclear power plants against the background of the Japanese social and business environment. Accordingly, in 1972, 'The Guidance for Quality Assurance in Construction of Nuclear Power Plants' based on U. S. 10CEF50 Appendix B, was published by the Japan Electric Association. 'Jug-4101 The Guide for Quality Assurance of Nuclear Power Plants' has been prepared by referring to the IAEA QA code. The Guide has been accepted by the Japanese nuclear industry and applied to the QA programs of every organization concerned therewith. The Japanese approach to higher quality will naturally be different from that of other countries because of Japan's cultural, social, and economic conditions. Even higher quality is being aimed at through the LWR Improvement and Standardization Program and coordinated quality assurance efforts

Ecosystem Services and Border Regions. Case Study from Czech – Polish Borderland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marcin Spyra

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Land-use management and planning of cross-border regions is a complex problem. Different legislatures, development visions and interests on both sides of the border make it even more complicated. Introducing ecosystem services concept into land-use planning and management at cross-border regions is a challenge.  However not much is said about this issue in literature.This paper aims to present result of the study concerning to ecosystem services concept in the context of cross-border part of Pradziad Euroregion. The studyed area is situated within Czech – Polish borderland. First part of the research concerns to land-cover analyze of the region. The second one to Czech and Polish land-use strategies, which are binding at NUTS 4 and 5 level in the studyed area.Resoults of the research indicates asymmetry of the cross-border landscape of the analyzed region. The asymmetry is indicated by different types, biodiversities and areas of ecosystems identified on both sides of the border. It is also identified by differences in land-use strategies concerning to the region.It is discussed to what extend ecosystem services concept can be implemented in planning legislature of the cross-border region.

The GSPC: Newest Franchise in al-Qa'ida's Global Jihad

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Boudali, Lianne K

2007-01-01

... of support in Europe. The alignment of the GSPC with al Qa ida represents a significant change in the group's strategy, however, its decision to join al Qa ida's global jihad should be understood as an act of desperation...

IMRT QA: Selecting gamma criteria based on error detection sensitivity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Steers, Jennifer M. [Department of Radiation Oncology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, California 90048 and Physics and Biology in Medicine IDP, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095 (United States); Fraass, Benedick A., E-mail: benedick.fraass@cshs.org [Department of Radiation Oncology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, California 90048 (United States)

2016-04-15

Purpose: The gamma comparison is widely used to evaluate the agreement between measurements and treatment planning system calculations in patient-specific intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) quality assurance (QA). However, recent publications have raised concerns about the lack of sensitivity when employing commonly used gamma criteria. Understanding the actual sensitivity of a wide range of different gamma criteria may allow the definition of more meaningful gamma criteria and tolerance limits in IMRT QA. We present a method that allows the quantitative determination of gamma criteria sensitivity to induced errors which can be applied to any unique combination of device, delivery technique, and software utilized in a specific clinic. Methods: A total of 21 DMLC IMRT QA measurements (ArcCHECK®, Sun Nuclear) were compared to QA plan calculations with induced errors. Three scenarios were studied: MU errors, multi-leaf collimator (MLC) errors, and the sensitivity of the gamma comparison to changes in penumbra width. Gamma comparisons were performed between measurements and error-induced calculations using a wide range of gamma criteria, resulting in a total of over 20 000 gamma comparisons. Gamma passing rates for each error class and case were graphed against error magnitude to create error curves in order to represent the range of missed errors in routine IMRT QA using 36 different gamma criteria. Results: This study demonstrates that systematic errors and case-specific errors can be detected by the error curve analysis. Depending on the location of the error curve peak (e.g., not centered about zero), 3%/3 mm threshold = 10% at 90% pixels passing may miss errors as large as 15% MU errors and ±1 cm random MLC errors for some cases. As the dose threshold parameter was increased for a given %Diff/distance-to-agreement (DTA) setting, error sensitivity was increased by up to a factor of two for select cases. This increased sensitivity with increasing dose

Poster - Thur Eve - 29: Detecting changes in IMRT QA using statistical process control.

Science.gov (United States)

Drever, L; Salomons, G

2012-07-01

Statistical process control (SPC) methods were used to analyze 239 measurement based individual IMRT QA events. The selected IMRT QA events were all head and neck (H&N) cases with 70Gy in 35 fractions, and all prostate cases with 76Gy in 38 fractions planned between March 2009 and 2012. The results were used to determine if the tolerance limits currently being used for IMRT QA were able to indicate if the process was under control. The SPC calculations were repeated for IMRT QA of the same type of cases that were planned after the treatment planning system was upgraded from Eclipse version 8.1.18 to version 10.0.39. The initial tolerance limits were found to be acceptable for two of the three metrics tested prior to the upgrade. After the upgrade to the treatment planning system the SPC analysis found that the a priori limits were no longer capable of indicating control for 2 of the 3 metrics analyzed. The changes in the IMRT QA results were clearly identified using SPC, indicating that it is a useful tool for finding changes in the IMRT QA process. Routine application of SPC to IMRT QA results would help to distinguish unintentional trends and changes from the random variation in the IMRT QA results for individual plans. © 2012 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Deep nets vs expert designed features in medical physics: An IMRT QA case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Interian, Yannet; Rideout, Vincent; Kearney, Vasant P; Gennatas, Efstathios; Morin, Olivier; Cheung, Joey; Solberg, Timothy; Valdes, Gilmer

2018-03-30

The purpose of this study was to compare the performance of Deep Neural Networks against a technique designed by domain experts in the prediction of gamma passing rates for Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy Quality Assurance (IMRT QA). A total of 498 IMRT plans across all treatment sites were planned in Eclipse version 11 and delivered using a dynamic sliding window technique on Clinac iX or TrueBeam Linacs. Measurements were performed using a commercial 2D diode array, and passing rates for 3%/3 mm local dose/distance-to-agreement (DTA) were recorded. Separately, fluence maps calculated for each plan were used as inputs to a convolution neural network (CNN). The CNNs were trained to predict IMRT QA gamma passing rates using TensorFlow and Keras. A set of model architectures, inspired by the convolutional blocks of the VGG-16 ImageNet model, were constructed and implemented. Synthetic data, created by rotating and translating the fluence maps during training, was created to boost the performance of the CNNs. Dropout, batch normalization, and data augmentation were utilized to help train the model. The performance of the CNNs was compared to a generalized Poisson regression model, previously developed for this application, which used 78 expert designed features. Deep Neural Networks without domain knowledge achieved comparable performance to a baseline system designed by domain experts in the prediction of 3%/3 mm Local gamma passing rates. An ensemble of neural nets resulted in a mean absolute error (MAE) of 0.70 ± 0.05 and the domain expert model resulted in a 0.74 ± 0.06. Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) with transfer learning can predict IMRT QA passing rates by automatically designing features from the fluence maps without human expert supervision. Predictions from CNNs are comparable to a system carefully designed by physicist experts. © 2018 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

SU-E-CAMPUS-T-04: Statistical Process Control for Patient-Specific QA in Proton Beams

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

LAH, J [Myongji Hospital, Goyangsi, Gyeonggi-do (Korea, Republic of); SHIN, D [National Cancer Center, Goyangsi, Gyeonggi-do (Korea, Republic of); Kim, G [UCSD Medical Center, La Jolla, CA (United States)

2014-06-15

Purpose: To evaluate and improve the reliability of proton QA process, to provide an optimal customized level using the statistical process control (SPC) methodology. The aim is then to suggest the suitable guidelines for patient-specific QA process. Methods: We investigated the constancy of the dose output and range to see whether it was within the tolerance level of daily QA process. This study analyzed the difference between the measured and calculated ranges along the central axis to suggest the suitable guidelines for patient-specific QA in proton beam by using process capability indices. In this study, patient QA plans were classified into 6 treatment sites: head and neck (41 cases), spinal cord (29 cases), lung (28 cases), liver (30 cases), pancreas (26 cases), and prostate (24 cases). Results: The deviations for the dose output and range of daily QA process were ±0.84% and ±019%, respectively. Our results show that the patient-specific range measurements are capable at a specification limit of ±2% in all treatment sites except spinal cord cases. In spinal cord cases, comparison of process capability indices (Cp, Cpm, Cpk ≥1, but Cpmk ≤1) indicated that the process is capable, but not centered, the process mean deviates from its target value. The UCL (upper control limit), CL (center line) and LCL (lower control limit) for spinal cord cases were 1.37%, −0.27% and −1.89%, respectively. On the other hands, the range differences in prostate cases were good agreement between calculated and measured values. The UCL, CL and LCL for prostate cases were 0.57%, −0.11% and −0.78%, respectively. Conclusion: SPC methodology has potential as a useful tool to customize an optimal tolerance levels and to suggest the suitable guidelines for patient-specific QA in clinical proton beam.

Beam dynamics of mixed high intensity highly charged ion Beams in the Q/A selector

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, X.H., E-mail: zhangxiaohu@impcas.ac.cn [Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000 (China); Yuan, Y.J.; Yin, X.J.; Qian, C.; Sun, L.T. [Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000 (China); Du, H.; Li, Z.S.; Qiao, J.; Wang, K.D. [Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000 (China); University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049 (China); Zhao, H.W.; Xia, J.W. [Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000 (China)

2017-06-11

Electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) ion sources are widely used in heavy ion accelerators for their advantages in producing high quality intense beams of highly charged ions. However, it exists challenges in the design of the Q/A selection systems for mixed high intensity ion beams to reach sufficient Q/A resolution while controlling the beam emittance growth. Moreover, as the emittance of beam from ECR ion sources is coupled, the matching of phase space to post accelerator, for a wide range of ion beam species with different intensities, should be carefully studied. In this paper, the simulation and experimental results of the Q/A selection system at the LECR4 platform are shown. The formation of hollow cross section heavy ion beam at the end of the Q/A selector is revealed. A reasonable interpretation has been proposed, a modified design of the Q/A selection system has been committed for HIRFL-SSC linac injector. The features of the new design including beam simulations and experiment results are also presented.

QA in the design and fabrication of the TMI-2 rail cask

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hayes, G.R.

1988-01-01

EGandG Idaho, Inc., acting on behalf of the US Department of Energy, is responsible for transporting core debris from Three Mile Island-Unit 2 to the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. Transportation of the debris is being accomplished using an NRC licensed container, called the NuPac 125-B. This paper describes the NuPac 125-B Rail Cask and the quality assurance (QA) requirements for that system. Also discussed are the QA roles of the various organizations involved in designing, building, inspecting and testing the NuPac 125-B. The paper presents QA/QC systems implemented during the design, procurement, and fabrication of the cask to assure compliance with all applicable technical codes, standards and regulations. It also goes beyond the requirements aspect and describes unique QA/QC measures employed to assure that the cask was built with minimum QA problems. Finally, the lessons learned from the NuPac 125-B project is discussed. 4 refs., 4 figs

SU-F-T-558: ArcCheck for Patient Specific QA in Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ramachandran, P [Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne (Australia); RMIT University, Bundoora (Australia); Tajaldeen, A; Esen, N; Geso, M [RMIT University, Bundoora (Australia); Taylor, D; Wanigaratne, D; Roozen, K; Kron, T [Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne (Australia)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy (SABR) is one of the most preferred treatment techniques for early stage lung cancer. This technique has been extended to other treatment sites like Spine, Liver, Scapula, Sternum etc., This has resulted in increased physics QA time on machine. In this study, we’ve tested the feasibility of using ArcCheck as an alternative method to replace film dosimetry. Methods: Twelve patients with varied diagnosis of Lung, Liver, scapula, sternum and Spine undergoing SABR were selected for this study. Pre-treatment QA was performed for all the patients which include ionization chamber and film dosimetry. The required gamma criteria for each SABR plan to pass QA and proceed to treatment is 95% (3%,1mm). In addition to this routine process, the treatment plans were exported on to an ArcCheck phantom. The planned and measured dose from the ArcCheck device were compared using four different gamma criteria: 2%,2 mm, 3%,2 mm, 3%,1 mm and 3%, 3 mm. In addition to this, we’ve also introduced errors to gantry, collimator and couch angle to assess sensitivity of the ArcCheck with potential delivery errors. Results: The ArcCheck mean passing rates for all twelve cases were 76.1%±9.7% for gamma criteria 3%,1 mm, 89.5%±5.3% for 2%,2 mm, 92.6%±4.2% for 3%,2 mm, and 97.6%±2.4% for 3%,3 mm gamma criteria. When SABR spine cases are excluded, we observe ArcCheck passing rates higher than 95% for all the studied cases with 3%, 3mm, and ArcCheck results in acceptable agreement with the film gamma results. Conclusion: Our ArcCheck results at 3%, 3 mm were found to correlate well with our non-SABR spine routine patient specific QA results (3%,1 mm). We observed significant reduction in QA time on using ArcCheck for SABR QA. This study shows that ArcCheck could replace film dosimetry for all sites except SABR spine.

SU-F-T-558: ArcCheck for Patient Specific QA in Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ramachandran, P; Tajaldeen, A; Esen, N; Geso, M; Taylor, D; Wanigaratne, D; Roozen, K; Kron, T

2016-01-01

Purpose: Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy (SABR) is one of the most preferred treatment techniques for early stage lung cancer. This technique has been extended to other treatment sites like Spine, Liver, Scapula, Sternum etc., This has resulted in increased physics QA time on machine. In this study, we’ve tested the feasibility of using ArcCheck as an alternative method to replace film dosimetry. Methods: Twelve patients with varied diagnosis of Lung, Liver, scapula, sternum and Spine undergoing SABR were selected for this study. Pre-treatment QA was performed for all the patients which include ionization chamber and film dosimetry. The required gamma criteria for each SABR plan to pass QA and proceed to treatment is 95% (3%,1mm). In addition to this routine process, the treatment plans were exported on to an ArcCheck phantom. The planned and measured dose from the ArcCheck device were compared using four different gamma criteria: 2%,2 mm, 3%,2 mm, 3%,1 mm and 3%, 3 mm. In addition to this, we’ve also introduced errors to gantry, collimator and couch angle to assess sensitivity of the ArcCheck with potential delivery errors. Results: The ArcCheck mean passing rates for all twelve cases were 76.1%±9.7% for gamma criteria 3%,1 mm, 89.5%±5.3% for 2%,2 mm, 92.6%±4.2% for 3%,2 mm, and 97.6%±2.4% for 3%,3 mm gamma criteria. When SABR spine cases are excluded, we observe ArcCheck passing rates higher than 95% for all the studied cases with 3%, 3mm, and ArcCheck results in acceptable agreement with the film gamma results. Conclusion: Our ArcCheck results at 3%, 3 mm were found to correlate well with our non-SABR spine routine patient specific QA results (3%,1 mm). We observed significant reduction in QA time on using ArcCheck for SABR QA. This study shows that ArcCheck could replace film dosimetry for all sites except SABR spine.

THE IMPORTANCE OF A SUCCESSFUL QUALITY ASSURANCE (QA) PROGRAM FROM A RESEARCH MANAGER'S PERSPECTIVE

Science.gov (United States)

The paper discusses the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Division's Quality Assurance (QA) program and the approaches used to meet QA requirements in the Division. The presentation is a technical manager's perspective of the Division's requirements for and approach to QA in i...

SU-E-J-52: Decreasing Frequency of Performing TG-142 Imaging QA – 5 Year Experience

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, T; Ma, C

2015-01-01

Purpose This study is an update to check if the frequency of imaging QA suggested by AAPM Task Group Report 142 (TG142) is necessary with our 5 year experience. TG142 presents recommendations for QA criteria of IGRT treatment. ACR has adopted it to be the requirements for any radiatiotherapy practices; however, we propose to reduce the frequency on image quality QA according to this 5 year study.Method and Materials: This study uses VarianIX2100 and Siemens Artiste Linacs to perform QAs on KV, MV, CBCT modalities. The QA was designed following under the recommendations of TG142. This study reports the daily imaging positioning/repositioning and imaging and treatment coordinate coincidence. QA results on kV, MV and CBCT from 4/7/2010∼3/11/15 are analyzed. KV, MV, CBCT images are taken with the Varian isocube localized at the isocenter. Digital graticule is used in the software to verify the isocenter position. CBCT images are taken with the cube placed at 1cm superior, lateral and anterior of the isocenter. In-line fusion software is used to verify the contrived shift. Digital ruler provided at the on-board-imaging software or adaptive-targeting software was used to measure the position differences. The position differences were recorded at AP,LR,SI directions. Results 5 year records on kV, MV, CBCT show the shifts in all three directions are within the tolerance of 1mm suggested in TG142 for stereotactic radiation treatment(SRS/SRT). There is no occasion where shifts are outside 1mm tolerance. Conclusions The daily imaging QA suggested in TG142 is useful in ensuring the accuracy needed for SRS/SRT in IGRT. 5 year measurements presented suggest that decreasing the frequency of imaging QA may be acceptable, in particular for institutions reporting no violation of tolerance over periods of few years

SU-E-J-52: Decreasing Frequency of Performing TG-142 Imaging QA – 5 Year Experience

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lin, T; Ma, C [Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose This study is an update to check if the frequency of imaging QA suggested by AAPM Task Group Report 142 (TG142) is necessary with our 5 year experience. TG142 presents recommendations for QA criteria of IGRT treatment. ACR has adopted it to be the requirements for any radiatiotherapy practices; however, we propose to reduce the frequency on image quality QA according to this 5 year study.Method and Materials: This study uses VarianIX2100 and Siemens Artiste Linacs to perform QAs on KV, MV, CBCT modalities. The QA was designed following under the recommendations of TG142. This study reports the daily imaging positioning/repositioning and imaging and treatment coordinate coincidence. QA results on kV, MV and CBCT from 4/7/2010∼3/11/15 are analyzed. KV, MV, CBCT images are taken with the Varian isocube localized at the isocenter. Digital graticule is used in the software to verify the isocenter position. CBCT images are taken with the cube placed at 1cm superior, lateral and anterior of the isocenter. In-line fusion software is used to verify the contrived shift. Digital ruler provided at the on-board-imaging software or adaptive-targeting software was used to measure the position differences. The position differences were recorded at AP,LR,SI directions. Results 5 year records on kV, MV, CBCT show the shifts in all three directions are within the tolerance of 1mm suggested in TG142 for stereotactic radiation treatment(SRS/SRT). There is no occasion where shifts are outside 1mm tolerance. Conclusions The daily imaging QA suggested in TG142 is useful in ensuring the accuracy needed for SRS/SRT in IGRT. 5 year measurements presented suggest that decreasing the frequency of imaging QA may be acceptable, in particular for institutions reporting no violation of tolerance over periods of few years.

On the use of biomathematical models in patient-specific IMRT dose QA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhen Heming [UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas 75390 (United States); Nelms, Benjamin E. [Canis Lupus LLC, Merrimac, Wisconsin 53561 (United States); Tome, Wolfgang A. [Department of Radiation Oncology, Division of Medical Physics, Montefiore Medical Center and Institute of Onco-Physics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York 10461 (United States)

2013-07-15

Purpose: To investigate the use of biomathematical models such as tumor control probability (TCP) and normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) as new quality assurance (QA) metrics.Methods: Five different types of error (MLC transmission, MLC penumbra, MLC tongue and groove, machine output, and MLC position) were intentionally induced to 40 clinical intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) patient plans (20 H and N cases and 20 prostate cases) to simulate both treatment planning system errors and machine delivery errors in the IMRT QA process. The changes in TCP and NTCP for eight different anatomic structures (H and N: CTV, GTV, both parotids, spinal cord, larynx; prostate: CTV, rectal wall) were calculated as the new QA metrics to quantify the clinical impact on patients. The correlation between the change in TCP/NTCP and the change in selected DVH values was also evaluated. The relation between TCP/NTCP change and the characteristics of the TCP/NTCP curves is discussed.Results:{Delta}TCP and {Delta}NTCP were summarized for each type of induced error and each structure. The changes/degradations in TCP and NTCP caused by the errors vary widely depending on dose patterns unique to each plan, and are good indicators of each plan's 'robustness' to that type of error.Conclusions: In this in silico QA study the authors have demonstrated the possibility of using biomathematical models not only as patient-specific QA metrics but also as objective indicators that quantify, pretreatment, a plan's robustness with respect to possible error types.

On the use of biomathematical models in patient-specific IMRT dose QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhen Heming; Nelms, Benjamin E.; Tomé, Wolfgang A.

2013-01-01

Purpose: To investigate the use of biomathematical models such as tumor control probability (TCP) and normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) as new quality assurance (QA) metrics.Methods: Five different types of error (MLC transmission, MLC penumbra, MLC tongue and groove, machine output, and MLC position) were intentionally induced to 40 clinical intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) patient plans (20 H and N cases and 20 prostate cases) to simulate both treatment planning system errors and machine delivery errors in the IMRT QA process. The changes in TCP and NTCP for eight different anatomic structures (H and N: CTV, GTV, both parotids, spinal cord, larynx; prostate: CTV, rectal wall) were calculated as the new QA metrics to quantify the clinical impact on patients. The correlation between the change in TCP/NTCP and the change in selected DVH values was also evaluated. The relation between TCP/NTCP change and the characteristics of the TCP/NTCP curves is discussed.Results:ΔTCP and ΔNTCP were summarized for each type of induced error and each structure. The changes/degradations in TCP and NTCP caused by the errors vary widely depending on dose patterns unique to each plan, and are good indicators of each plan's “robustness” to that type of error.Conclusions: In this in silico QA study the authors have demonstrated the possibility of using biomathematical models not only as patient-specific QA metrics but also as objective indicators that quantify, pretreatment, a plan's robustness with respect to possible error types

Identifying Potential Conservation Corridors Along the Mongolia-Russia Border Using Resource Selection Functions: A Case Study on Argali Sheep

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Buyanaa Chimeddorj

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The disruption of animal movements is known to affect wildlife populations, particularly large bodied, free-ranging mammals that require large geographic ranges to survive. Corridors commonly connect fragmented wildlife populations and their habitats, yet identifying corridors rarely uses data on habitat selection and movements of target species. New technologies and analytical tools make it possible to better integrate landscape patterns with spatial behavioral data. We show how resource selection functions can describe habitat suitability using continuous and multivariate metrics to determine potential wildlife movement corridors. During 2005–2010, we studied movements of argali sheep ( Ovis ammon near the Mongolia-Russia border using radio-telemetry and modeled their spatial distribution in relation to landscape features to create a spatially explicit habitat suitability surface to identify potential transboundary conservation corridors. Argali sheep habitat selection in western Mongolia positively correlated with elevation, ruggedness index, and distance to border. In other words, argali were tended use areas with higher elevation, rugged topography, and distances farther from the international border. We suggest that these spatial modeling approaches offer ways to design and identify wildlife corridors more objectively and holistically, and can be applied to many other target species.

International conference on nuclear analytical methods in the life sciences (NAMLS) (abstracts)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1999-01-01

The International Conference on Nuclear Analytical Methods in the Life Sciences (NAMLS) was hold on October 26-30, 1998 in Beijing, China, which was organized by China Institute of Atomic Energy in Cooperation with IAEA, National Science Foundation of China, China National Nuclear Cooperation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of High Energy Physics, Shanghai Institute for Nuclear Research, Chinese Nuclear Society, Nuclear Physics Society of China and Nuclear Chemistry Society of China. the contents of this Conference include: 1. QA-QC and CRM studies; 2. Elemental speciation and localization; 3. Health-related environmental studies; 4. Recent development in nuclear and related analytical techniques; 5. Trace elements in health and diseases; 6. Miscellaneous applications of NAT in the life sciences

Retrospective analysis of 'gamma distribution' based IMRT QA criteria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wen, C.; Chappell, R.A.

2010-01-01

Full text: IMRT has been implemented into clinical practice at Royal Hobart Hospital (RHH) since mid 2006 for treating patients with Head and Neck (H and N) or prostate tumours. A local quality assurance (QA) acceptance criteria based on 'gamma distribution' for approving IMRT plan was developed and implemented in early 2007. A retrospective analysis of such criteria over 194 clinical cases will be presented. The RHH IMRT criteria was established with assumption that gamma distribution obtained through inter-comparison of 2 D dose maps between planned and delivered was governed by a positive-hail' normal distribution. A commercial system-MapCheck was used for 2 D dose map comparison with a built-in gamma analysis tool. Gamma distribution histogram was generated and recorded for all cases. By retrospectively analysing those distributions using curve fitting technique, a statistical gamma distribution can be obtained and evaluated. This analytical result can be used for future IMRT planing and treatment delivery. The analyses indicate that gamma distribution obtained through MapCheckTM is well under the normal distribution, particularly for prostate cases. The applied pass/fail criteria is not overly sensitive to identify 'false fails' but can be further tighten-up for smaller field while for larger field found in both H and N and prostate cases, the criteria was correctly applied. Non-uniform distribution of detectors in MapCheck and experience level of planners are two major factors to variation in gamma distribution among clinical cases. This criteria derived from clinical statistics is superior and more accurate than single-valued criteria for lMRT QA acceptance procedure. (author)

The unusually strong hydrogen bond between the carbonyl of Q(A) and His M219 in the Rhodobacter sphaeroides reaction center is not essential for efficient electron transfer from Q(A)(-) to Q(B).

Science.gov (United States)

Breton, Jacques; Lavergne, Jérôme; Wakeham, Marion C; Nabedryk, Eliane; Jones, Michael R

2007-06-05

In native reaction centers (RCs) from photosynthetic purple bacteria the primary quinone (QA) and the secondary quinone (QB) are interconnected via a specific His-Fe-His bridge. In Rhodobacter sphaeroides RCs the C4=O carbonyl of QA forms a very strong hydrogen bond with the protonated Npi of His M219, and the Ntau of this residue is in turn coordinated to the non-heme iron atom. The second carbonyl of QA is engaged in a much weaker hydrogen bond with the backbone N-H of Ala M260. In previous work, a Trp side chain was introduced by site-directed mutagenesis at the M260 position in the RC of Rb. sphaeroides, resulting in a complex that is completely devoid of QA and therefore nonfunctional. A photochemically competent derivative of the AM260W mutant was isolated that contains a Cys side chain at the M260 position (denoted AM260(W-->C)). In the present work, the interactions between the carbonyl groups of QA and the protein in the AM260(W-->C) suppressor mutant have been characterized by light-induced FTIR difference spectroscopy of the photoreduction of QA. The QA-/QA difference spectrum demonstrates that the strong interaction between the C4=O carbonyl of QA and His M219 is lost in the mutant, and the coupled CO and CC modes of the QA- semiquinone are also strongly perturbed. In parallel, a band assigned to the perturbation of the C5-Ntau mode of His M219 upon QA- formation in the native RC is lacking in the spectrum of the mutant. Furthermore, a positive band between 2900 and 2400 cm-1 that is related to protons fluctuating within a network of highly polarizable hydrogen bonds in the native RC is reduced in amplitude in the mutant. On the other hand, the QB-/QB FTIR difference spectrum is essentially the same as for the native RC. The kinetics of electron transfer from QA- to QB were measured by the flash-induced absorption changes at 780 nm. Compared to native RCs the absorption transients are slowed by a factor of about 2 for both the slow phase (in the

Border Crossings, US-Mexico Border, 2010, NAVTEQ

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — NAVTEQ Border Crossings for Region 9. The Border Crossing layer contains all international border crossings for all motorway crossings, as well as other important...

Borders as barriers to tourism: tourists experiences at the Beitbridge Border Post (Zimbabwean side

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Getrude Kwanisai

2014-01-01

Full Text Available International borders greatly influence tourism development. In 2012 and 2013, a decline in tourists to Zimbabwe from South Africa was partially attributed to tourist border facilitation issues. It is against this background that this study sought to establish the nature of challenges faced by tourists when using the Beitbridge border post (Zimbabwean side. Questionnaire responses were thematically analysed and the study concluded that border administrative management related issues are a major barrier to tourism. Key among the study's recommendations is that the depressed tourists' border experiences obtaining at Beitbridge border post among other constraints have to be addressed as a matter of urgency. This will enhance Zimbabwe's accessibility, tourist satisfaction and the image of the country as a destination. The paper further identifies several destination managerial implications and future research priorities.

Gender, Cross-border Migrant Workers and Citizenship : Case Study ...

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

... of the Burmese-Thai border; final technical report. Documents. Border industrialization and labour mobility : a case of Burmese migrant workers in border area factories. Rapports. Round Table Discussion on Past and Current Research on Migrant Workers in Thailand, Miracle Grand Convention Hotel, 17 January 2007 ...

WE-PIS-Exhibit Hall-01: Tools for TG-142 Linac Imaging QA II

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Childress, N [Mobius Medical Management, LLC,, Houston, TX (United States); Murray, B [ZapIT Medical, Dublin, OH (Ireland)

2014-06-15

Partners in Solutions is an exciting new program in which AAPM partners with our vendors to present practical “hands-on” information about the equipment and software systems that we use in our clinics. The therapy topic this year is solutions for TG-142 recommendations for linear accelerator imaging QA. Note that the sessions are being held in a special purpose room built on the Exhibit Hall Floor, to encourage further interaction with the vendors. Using DoseLab to Perform TG-142 Imaging QA The goals of this session will be to present a clinical overview of acquiring images for TG-142 Imaging QA, as well as analyzing and evaluating results using DoseLab software. DoseLab supports planar imaging QA analysis using almost any QA phantom provided by numerous vendors. General advantages and disadvantages of selecting each of these phantoms will be briefly summarized. Best practices for selecting image acquisition parameters will be presented. A demonstration of using DoseLab software to perform a series of TG-142 tests will be performed. We will disuss why DoseLab uses its own set of imaging QA formulas, and why imaging QA measurement values of the same nominal properties will vary between TG- 142 software packages. Because TG-142 does not specify baseline and tolerance values for imaging QA, the presentation will recommend performing the manufacturer's acceptance test procedure to validate the equipment is functioning correctly. Afterwards, results can be obtained using the clinic's selected set of phantoms, image acquisition parameters, and TG-142 software to set proper baseline values. This presentation will highlight the reasons why comparing imaging QA results can be trickier than comparing linear accelerator treatment results and what physicists should keep in mind when comparing imaging QA results for different machines. Physicists are often unsure of the next step when there is an issue discovered during Imaging QA. Therefore, a few common examples

WE-PIS-Exhibit Hall-01: Tools for TG-142 Linac Imaging QA II

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Childress, N; Murray, B

2014-01-01

Partners in Solutions is an exciting new program in which AAPM partners with our vendors to present practical “hands-on” information about the equipment and software systems that we use in our clinics. The therapy topic this year is solutions for TG-142 recommendations for linear accelerator imaging QA. Note that the sessions are being held in a special purpose room built on the Exhibit Hall Floor, to encourage further interaction with the vendors. Using DoseLab to Perform TG-142 Imaging QA The goals of this session will be to present a clinical overview of acquiring images for TG-142 Imaging QA, as well as analyzing and evaluating results using DoseLab software. DoseLab supports planar imaging QA analysis using almost any QA phantom provided by numerous vendors. General advantages and disadvantages of selecting each of these phantoms will be briefly summarized. Best practices for selecting image acquisition parameters will be presented. A demonstration of using DoseLab software to perform a series of TG-142 tests will be performed. We will disuss why DoseLab uses its own set of imaging QA formulas, and why imaging QA measurement values of the same nominal properties will vary between TG- 142 software packages. Because TG-142 does not specify baseline and tolerance values for imaging QA, the presentation will recommend performing the manufacturer's acceptance test procedure to validate the equipment is functioning correctly. Afterwards, results can be obtained using the clinic's selected set of phantoms, image acquisition parameters, and TG-142 software to set proper baseline values. This presentation will highlight the reasons why comparing imaging QA results can be trickier than comparing linear accelerator treatment results and what physicists should keep in mind when comparing imaging QA results for different machines. Physicists are often unsure of the next step when there is an issue discovered during Imaging QA. Therefore, a few common examples

WE-G-BRA-02: SafetyNet: Automating Radiotherapy QA with An Event Driven Framework

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hadley, S; Kessler, M; Litzenberg, D; Lee, C; Irrer, J; Chen, X; Acosta, E; Weyburne, G; Lam, K; Younge, K; Matuszak, M; Keranen, W; Covington, E; Moran, J

2015-01-01

Purpose: Quality assurance is an essential task in radiotherapy that often requires many manual tasks. We investigate the use of an event driven framework in conjunction with software agents to automate QA and eliminate wait times. Methods: An in house developed subscription-publication service, EventNet, was added to the Aria OIS to be a message broker for critical events occurring in the OIS and software agents. Software agents operate without user intervention and perform critical QA steps. The results of the QA are documented and the resulting event is generated and passed back to EventNet. Users can subscribe to those events and receive messages based on custom filters designed to send passing or failing results to physicists or dosimetrists. Agents were developed to expedite the following QA tasks: Plan Revision, Plan 2nd Check, SRS Winston-Lutz isocenter, Treatment History Audit, Treatment Machine Configuration. Results: Plan approval in the Aria OIS was used as the event trigger for plan revision QA and Plan 2nd check agents. The agents pulled the plan data, executed the prescribed QA, stored the results and updated EventNet for publication. The Winston Lutz agent reduced QA time from 20 minutes to 4 minutes and provided a more accurate quantitative estimate of radiation isocenter. The Treatment Machine Configuration agent automatically reports any changes to the Treatment machine or HDR unit configuration. The agents are reliable, act immediately, and execute each task identically every time. Conclusion: An event driven framework has inverted the data chase in our radiotherapy QA process. Rather than have dosimetrists and physicists push data to QA software and pull results back into the OIS, the software agents perform these steps immediately upon receiving the sentinel events from EventNet. Mr Keranen is an employee of Varian Medical Systems. Dr. Moran’s institution receives research support for her effort for a linear accelerator QA project from

WE-G-BRA-02: SafetyNet: Automating Radiotherapy QA with An Event Driven Framework

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hadley, S; Kessler, M [The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Litzenberg, D [Univ Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Lee, C; Irrer, J; Chen, X; Acosta, E; Weyburne, G; Lam, K; Younge, K; Matuszak, M [University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Keranen, W [Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA (United States); Covington, E [University of Michigan Hospital and Health System, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Moran, J [Univ Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: Quality assurance is an essential task in radiotherapy that often requires many manual tasks. We investigate the use of an event driven framework in conjunction with software agents to automate QA and eliminate wait times. Methods: An in house developed subscription-publication service, EventNet, was added to the Aria OIS to be a message broker for critical events occurring in the OIS and software agents. Software agents operate without user intervention and perform critical QA steps. The results of the QA are documented and the resulting event is generated and passed back to EventNet. Users can subscribe to those events and receive messages based on custom filters designed to send passing or failing results to physicists or dosimetrists. Agents were developed to expedite the following QA tasks: Plan Revision, Plan 2nd Check, SRS Winston-Lutz isocenter, Treatment History Audit, Treatment Machine Configuration. Results: Plan approval in the Aria OIS was used as the event trigger for plan revision QA and Plan 2nd check agents. The agents pulled the plan data, executed the prescribed QA, stored the results and updated EventNet for publication. The Winston Lutz agent reduced QA time from 20 minutes to 4 minutes and provided a more accurate quantitative estimate of radiation isocenter. The Treatment Machine Configuration agent automatically reports any changes to the Treatment machine or HDR unit configuration. The agents are reliable, act immediately, and execute each task identically every time. Conclusion: An event driven framework has inverted the data chase in our radiotherapy QA process. Rather than have dosimetrists and physicists push data to QA software and pull results back into the OIS, the software agents perform these steps immediately upon receiving the sentinel events from EventNet. Mr Keranen is an employee of Varian Medical Systems. Dr. Moran’s institution receives research support for her effort for a linear accelerator QA project from

IMRT QA using machine learning: A multi-institutional validation.

Science.gov (United States)

Valdes, Gilmer; Chan, Maria F; Lim, Seng Boh; Scheuermann, Ryan; Deasy, Joseph O; Solberg, Timothy D

2017-09-01

To validate a machine learning approach to Virtual intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) quality assurance (QA) for accurately predicting gamma passing rates using different measurement approaches at different institutions. A Virtual IMRT QA framework was previously developed using a machine learning algorithm based on 498 IMRT plans, in which QA measurements were performed using diode-array detectors and a 3%local/3 mm with 10% threshold at Institution 1. An independent set of 139 IMRT measurements from a different institution, Institution 2, with QA data based on portal dosimetry using the same gamma index, was used to test the mathematical framework. Only pixels with ≥10% of the maximum calibrated units (CU) or dose were included in the comparison. Plans were characterized by 90 different complexity metrics. A weighted poison regression with Lasso regularization was trained to predict passing rates using the complexity metrics as input. The methodology predicted passing rates within 3% accuracy for all composite plans measured using diode-array detectors at Institution 1, and within 3.5% for 120 of 139 plans using portal dosimetry measurements performed on a per-beam basis at Institution 2. The remaining measurements (19) had large areas of low CU, where portal dosimetry has a larger disagreement with the calculated dose and as such, the failure was expected. These beams need further modeling in the treatment planning system to correct the under-response in low-dose regions. Important features selected by Lasso to predict gamma passing rates were as follows: complete irradiated area outline (CIAO), jaw position, fraction of MLC leafs with gaps smaller than 20 or 5 mm, fraction of area receiving less than 50% of the total CU, fraction of the area receiving dose from penumbra, weighted average irregularity factor, and duty cycle. We have demonstrated that Virtual IMRT QA can predict passing rates using different measurement techniques and across multiple

Technical Note: Response time evolution of XR-QA2 GafChromic™ film models.

Science.gov (United States)

Aldelaijan, Saad; Tomic, Nada; Papaconstadopoulos, Pavlos; Schneider, James; Seuntjens, Jan; Shih, Shelley; Lewis, David; Devic, Slobodan

2018-01-01

To evaluate the response of the newest XR-QA2 GafChromic™ film model in terms of postexposure signal growth and energy response in comparison with the older XR-QA (Version 2) model. Pieces of film were irradiated to air kerma in air values up to 12 cGy with several beam qualities (5.3-8.25 mm Al) commonly used for CT scanning. Film response was scored in terms of net reflectance from scanned film images at various points in time postirradiation ranging from 1 to 7 days and 5 months postexposure. To reconstruct the measurement signal changes with postirradiation delay, we irradiated one film piece and then scanned it at different point times starting from 2" min and up to 3 days postexposure. For all beam qualities and dose range investigated, it appears that the XR-QA2 film signal completely saturated after 15 h. Compared to 15 h postirradiation scanning time, the observed variation in net reflectance were 3%, 2%, and 1% for film scanned 2" min, 20 min, and 3 h after exposure, respectively, which is well within the measurement uncertainty of the XR-QA2 based reference radiochromic film dosimetry system. A comparison between the XR-QA (Version 2) and the XR-QA2 film response after several months (relative to their responses after 24 h) show differences in up to 8% and 1% for each film model respectively. The replacement of cesium bromide in the older XR-QA (Version 2) film model with bismuth oxide in the newer XR-QA2 film, while keeping the same single sensitive layer structure, lead to a significantly more stable postexposure response. © 2017 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Multimodal follow-up questions to multimodal answers in a QA system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Schooten, B.W.; op den Akker, Hendrikus J.A.

2007-01-01

We are developing a dialogue manager (DM) for a multimodal interactive Question Answering (QA) system. Our QA system presents answers using text and pictures, and the user may pose follow-up questions using text or speech, while indicating screen elements with the mouse. We developed a corpus of

Per-beam, planar IMRT QA passing rates do not predict clinically relevant patient dose errors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelms, Benjamin E.; Zhen Heming; Tome, Wolfgang A.

2011-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this work is to determine the statistical correlation between per-beam, planar IMRT QA passing rates and several clinically relevant, anatomy-based dose errors for per-patient IMRT QA. The intent is to assess the predictive power of a common conventional IMRT QA performance metric, the Gamma passing rate per beam. Methods: Ninety-six unique data sets were created by inducing four types of dose errors in 24 clinical head and neck IMRT plans, each planned with 6 MV Varian 120-leaf MLC linear accelerators using a commercial treatment planning system and step-and-shoot delivery. The error-free beams/plans were used as ''simulated measurements'' (for generating the IMRT QA dose planes and the anatomy dose metrics) to compare to the corresponding data calculated by the error-induced plans. The degree of the induced errors was tuned to mimic IMRT QA passing rates that are commonly achieved using conventional methods. Results: Analysis of clinical metrics (parotid mean doses, spinal cord max and D1cc, CTV D95, and larynx mean) vs IMRT QA Gamma analysis (3%/3 mm, 2/2, 1/1) showed that in all cases, there were only weak to moderate correlations (range of Pearson's r-values: -0.295 to 0.653). Moreover, the moderate correlations actually had positive Pearson's r-values (i.e., clinically relevant metric differences increased with increasing IMRT QA passing rate), indicating that some of the largest anatomy-based dose differences occurred in the cases of high IMRT QA passing rates, which may be called ''false negatives.'' The results also show numerous instances of false positives or cases where low IMRT QA passing rates do not imply large errors in anatomy dose metrics. In none of the cases was there correlation consistent with high predictive power of planar IMRT passing rates, i.e., in none of the cases did high IMRT QA Gamma passing rates predict low errors in anatomy dose metrics or vice versa. Conclusions: There is a lack of correlation between

Proposal for a Similar Question Search System on a Q&A Site

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katsutoshi Kanamori

2014-06-01

Full Text Available There is a service to help Internet users obtain answers to specific questions when they visit a Q&A site. A Q&A site is very useful for the Internet user, but posted questions are often not answered immediately. This delay in answering occurs because in most cases another site user is answering the question manually. In this study, we propose a system that can present a question that is similar to a question posted by a user. An advantage of this system is that a user can refer to an answer to a similar question. This research measures the similarity of a candidate question based on word and dependency parsing. In an experiment, we examined the effectiveness of the proposed system for questions actually posted on the Q&A site. The result indicates that the system can show the questioner the answer to a similar question. However, the system still has a number of aspects that should be improved.

TU-C-BRE-01: KEYNOTE PRESENTATION - Emerging Frontiers in IMRT QA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Siebers, J [University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville, VA (United States)

2014-06-15

As IMRT treatment processes advance and mature, so must the quality assurance processes being used to validate their delivery. In some respects, treatment delivery advancements (e.g. VMAT) have out-paced QA advancements. The purpose of this session is to describe new processes that are being implemented to bring IMRT QA up-to-date with the treatment delivery advances. It would explore emerging IMRT QA paradigms, including requirements-based IMRT QA which necessitates definition of delivery errors (e.g. patient dose error, leaf positioning error) and development of processes to ensure reliable error detection. Engineeringbased QA approaches, including use of IMRT treatment delivery process trees, fault tree analysis and failure modes effects analysis would be described. Approaches to detect errors such as (1) during treatment delivery validation using exit fluence detectors (e.g. EPIDs); (2) analysis of treatment delivery via use of machine parameter log files; (3) dose recalculation using (3a) treatment planning system; (3b) record-and-verify; or (3c) entrance and exit fluence measurement parameters would be explained. The relative advantages and disadvantages of each method would be discussed. Schemes for error classification and root cause analysis would be described – steps which are essential for future error prevention. For each QA method, testing procedures and results would be presented indicating the types of errors that can be detected, those that cannot be detected, and the reliability of the error detection method (for example determined via ROC analysis). For speakers, we are seeking to engage non-commercially biased experts. Those listed below are a sub-sample of possible qualified individuals.

TU-C-BRE-01: KEYNOTE PRESENTATION - Emerging Frontiers in IMRT QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Siebers, J

2014-01-01

As IMRT treatment processes advance and mature, so must the quality assurance processes being used to validate their delivery. In some respects, treatment delivery advancements (e.g. VMAT) have out-paced QA advancements. The purpose of this session is to describe new processes that are being implemented to bring IMRT QA up-to-date with the treatment delivery advances. It would explore emerging IMRT QA paradigms, including requirements-based IMRT QA which necessitates definition of delivery errors (e.g. patient dose error, leaf positioning error) and development of processes to ensure reliable error detection. Engineeringbased QA approaches, including use of IMRT treatment delivery process trees, fault tree analysis and failure modes effects analysis would be described. Approaches to detect errors such as (1) during treatment delivery validation using exit fluence detectors (e.g. EPIDs); (2) analysis of treatment delivery via use of machine parameter log files; (3) dose recalculation using (3a) treatment planning system; (3b) record-and-verify; or (3c) entrance and exit fluence measurement parameters would be explained. The relative advantages and disadvantages of each method would be discussed. Schemes for error classification and root cause analysis would be described – steps which are essential for future error prevention. For each QA method, testing procedures and results would be presented indicating the types of errors that can be detected, those that cannot be detected, and the reliability of the error detection method (for example determined via ROC analysis). For speakers, we are seeking to engage non-commercially biased experts. Those listed below are a sub-sample of possible qualified individuals

Tolerance design of patient-specific range QA using the DMAIC framework in proton therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Rah, Jeong-Eun; Shin, Dongho; Manger, Ryan P; Kim, Tae Hyun; Oh, Do Hoon; Kim, Dae Yong; Kim, Gwe-Ya

2018-02-01

To implement the DMAIC (Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control) can be used for customizing the patient-specific QA by designing site-specific range tolerances. The DMAIC framework (process flow diagram, cause and effect, Pareto chart, control chart, and capability analysis) were utilized to determine the steps that need focus for improving the patient-specific QA. The patient-specific range QA plans were selected according to seven treatment site groups, a total of 1437 cases. The process capability index, C pm was used to guide the tolerance design of patient site-specific range. For prostate field, our results suggested that the patient range measurements were capable at the current tolerance level of ±1 mm in clinical proton plans. For other site-specific ranges, we analyzed that the tolerance tends to be overdesigned to insufficient process capability calculated by the patient-specific QA data. The customized tolerances were calculated for treatment sites. Control charts were constructed to simulate the patient QA time before and after the new tolerances were implemented. It is found that the total simulation QA time was decreased on average of approximately 20% after establishing new site-specific range tolerances. We simulated the financial impact of this project. The QA failure for whole process in proton therapy would lead up to approximately 30% increase in total cost. DMAIC framework can be used to provide an effective QA by setting customized tolerances. When tolerance design is customized, the quality is reasonably balanced with time and cost demands. © 2017 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Cross border environmental issues arising from the former Soviet Union nuclear fuel cycle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shaw, B.R.; Dooley, J.J.; Bradley, D.J.

1998-02-01

Radioactive contamination from sites in the Former Soviet Union (FSU) threaten bordering states via transport through marine environments. Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Germany, Sweden, Norway, and Finland share waterways or border common bodies of water with the FSU. Cross-border contamination resulting from past and in some cases current radioactive waste practices FSU nuclear wastes could under the right circumstances destabilize military, economic, or other relationships between the FSU and these border nations. The United States has an ongoing obligation to assist many of these border nations in times of need. This analysis was sponsored by the Office of Policy and International Affairs, Office of Materials-Asset Management and National Security Policy Analysis. The Center for Environmental Security was tasked to identify cross-border and other policy issues from an extensive body of technical materials dealing with nuclear materials management in the Former Soviet Union compiled over time by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The analysis focused on cross-border impacts but also provides insights into policy analysis based on this existing technical work. The efficiencies and results realized by this study indicate that this analytical methodology has merit for additional policy studies. There are three elements comprising the problem of understanding cross border transport. The amount of FSU nuclear waste that has been disposed of in ways that did not, or probably will not contain the waste is the first element. The past and probable future entry of these wastes into groundwater and surface waters, thence to seas is the second. Finally, adverse effects on human health and welfare from ingesting contaminated sea products, and from damaged fisheries and food production activities is the third

Cultural border crossing in three urban classrooms: A mixed methods study

Science.gov (United States)

Roopnarine, Rupnarain

This study examined the effects of the instruction of four youth cultural border crossing behaviors: flexibility, being at ease, playfulness, and citizenship as an intervention aimed at helping students to transition across three borders, student to student, student to science, and student to teacher. The research involved 12 ninth- and 10th-grade students in a large urban school district in three diverse classrooms, A, B, and C. Four students in each classroom volunteered for the study. The students in Groups A and B were in 9th grade Living Environment and students in Group B were in 10th grade chemistry. These students participated in this instructional intervention for three months. The study was conducted using both quantitative and qualitative methods based on participant observations, interviews, and questionnaire. The result indicated that there was no significant effect of the cultural border crossing instructions on the students' interactions across the three borders examined. However, the instructions helped Group A and Group B to be more flexible but not group C. Also, the instructions helped Group A to be more playful and at ease but not Group B and C. The instructions also helped Group A to show more citizenship but not Group B and C. In addition, there was no difference between the pretest and posttest cultural bother crossing behavior. Moreover, qualitative data analysis showed that the participants were more flexible, at ease, and playful among peers than across student to teacher and student to science borders. Also, the use of citizenship in the three groups showed no effect on the participants' interaction with peers. Although, the findings showed no effect of cultural border crossing instructions on students' interactions, it is suggested that we continue to find ways to help students feel more comfortable in science.

Lymphocytes Negatively Regulate NK Cell Activity via Qa-1b following Viral Infection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Haifeng C. Xu

2017-11-01

Full Text Available NK cells can reduce anti-viral T cell immunity during chronic viral infections, including infection with the lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV. However, regulating factors that maintain the equilibrium between productive T cell and NK cell immunity are poorly understood. Here, we show that a large viral load resulted in inhibition of NK cell activation, which correlated with increased expression of Qa-1b, a ligand for inhibitory NK cell receptors. Qa-1b was predominantly upregulated on B cells following LCMV infection, and this upregulation was dependent on type I interferons. Absence of Qa-1b resulted in increased NK cell-mediated regulation of anti-viral T cells following viral infection. Consequently, anti-viral T cell immunity was reduced in Qa-1b- and NKG2A-deficient mice, resulting in increased viral replication and immunopathology. NK cell depletion restored anti-viral immunity and virus control in the absence of Qa-1b. Taken together, our findings indicate that lymphocytes limit NK cell activity during viral infection in order to promote anti-viral T cell immunity.

Per-beam, planar IMRT QA passing rates do not predict clinically relevant patient dose errors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nelms, Benjamin E.; Zhen Heming; Tome, Wolfgang A. [Canis Lupus LLC and Department of Human Oncology, University of Wisconsin, Merrimac, Wisconsin 53561 (United States); Department of Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53705 (United States); Departments of Human Oncology, Medical Physics, and Biomedical Engineering, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53792 (United States)

2011-02-15

Purpose: The purpose of this work is to determine the statistical correlation between per-beam, planar IMRT QA passing rates and several clinically relevant, anatomy-based dose errors for per-patient IMRT QA. The intent is to assess the predictive power of a common conventional IMRT QA performance metric, the Gamma passing rate per beam. Methods: Ninety-six unique data sets were created by inducing four types of dose errors in 24 clinical head and neck IMRT plans, each planned with 6 MV Varian 120-leaf MLC linear accelerators using a commercial treatment planning system and step-and-shoot delivery. The error-free beams/plans were used as ''simulated measurements'' (for generating the IMRT QA dose planes and the anatomy dose metrics) to compare to the corresponding data calculated by the error-induced plans. The degree of the induced errors was tuned to mimic IMRT QA passing rates that are commonly achieved using conventional methods. Results: Analysis of clinical metrics (parotid mean doses, spinal cord max and D1cc, CTV D95, and larynx mean) vs IMRT QA Gamma analysis (3%/3 mm, 2/2, 1/1) showed that in all cases, there were only weak to moderate correlations (range of Pearson's r-values: -0.295 to 0.653). Moreover, the moderate correlations actually had positive Pearson's r-values (i.e., clinically relevant metric differences increased with increasing IMRT QA passing rate), indicating that some of the largest anatomy-based dose differences occurred in the cases of high IMRT QA passing rates, which may be called ''false negatives.'' The results also show numerous instances of false positives or cases where low IMRT QA passing rates do not imply large errors in anatomy dose metrics. In none of the cases was there correlation consistent with high predictive power of planar IMRT passing rates, i.e., in none of the cases did high IMRT QA Gamma passing rates predict low errors in anatomy dose metrics or vice versa

Border Crossing Points, US-Mexico Border, 2015, NAVTEQ

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — NAVTEQ Border Crossings for the United States. The Border Crossing layer contains all international border crossings for all motorway crossings, as well as other...

WE-AB-201-03: TPS Commissioning and QA: Incorporating the Entire Planning Process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mutic, S.

2015-01-01

Treatment planning systems (TPS) are a cornerstone of modern radiation therapy. Errors in their commissioning or use can have a devastating impact on many patients. To support safe and high quality care, medical physicists must conduct efficient and proper commissioning, good clinical integration, and ongoing quality assurance (QA) of the TPS. AAPM Task Group 53 and related publications have served as seminal benchmarks for TPS commissioning and QA over the past two decades. Over the same time, continuing innovations have made the TPS even more complex and more central to the clinical process. Medical goals are now expressed in terms of the dose and margins around organs and tissues that are delineated from multiple imaging modalities (CT, MR and PET); and even temporally resolved (i.e., 4D) imaging. This information is passed on to optimization algorithms to establish accelerator movements that are programmed directly for IMRT, VMAT and stereotactic treatments. These advances have made commissioning and QA of the TPS much more challenging. This education session reviews up-to-date experience and guidance on this subject; including the recently published AAPM Medical Physics Practice Guideline (MPPG) #5 “Commissioning and QA of Treatment Planning Dose Calculations: Megavoltage Photon and Electron Beams”. Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities (Greg Salomons) This session will provide some key background and review publications describing prominent incidents relating to TPS commissioning and QA. Traditional approaches have been hardware and feature oriented. They aim to establish a functional configuration and establish specifications for regular testing of features (like dose calculation) to assure stable operation and detect failures. With the advent of more complex systems, more patient-specific testing has also been adopted. A number of actual TPS defects will be presented along with heuristics for identifying similar

WE-AB-201-01: Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salomons, G.

2015-01-01

Treatment planning systems (TPS) are a cornerstone of modern radiation therapy. Errors in their commissioning or use can have a devastating impact on many patients. To support safe and high quality care, medical physicists must conduct efficient and proper commissioning, good clinical integration, and ongoing quality assurance (QA) of the TPS. AAPM Task Group 53 and related publications have served as seminal benchmarks for TPS commissioning and QA over the past two decades. Over the same time, continuing innovations have made the TPS even more complex and more central to the clinical process. Medical goals are now expressed in terms of the dose and margins around organs and tissues that are delineated from multiple imaging modalities (CT, MR and PET); and even temporally resolved (i.e., 4D) imaging. This information is passed on to optimization algorithms to establish accelerator movements that are programmed directly for IMRT, VMAT and stereotactic treatments. These advances have made commissioning and QA of the TPS much more challenging. This education session reviews up-to-date experience and guidance on this subject; including the recently published AAPM Medical Physics Practice Guideline (MPPG) #5 “Commissioning and QA of Treatment Planning Dose Calculations: Megavoltage Photon and Electron Beams”. Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities (Greg Salomons) This session will provide some key background and review publications describing prominent incidents relating to TPS commissioning and QA. Traditional approaches have been hardware and feature oriented. They aim to establish a functional configuration and establish specifications for regular testing of features (like dose calculation) to assure stable operation and detect failures. With the advent of more complex systems, more patient-specific testing has also been adopted. A number of actual TPS defects will be presented along with heuristics for identifying similar

WE-AB-201-01: Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Salomons, G. [Cancer Center of Southeastern Ontario (Canada)

2015-06-15

Treatment planning systems (TPS) are a cornerstone of modern radiation therapy. Errors in their commissioning or use can have a devastating impact on many patients. To support safe and high quality care, medical physicists must conduct efficient and proper commissioning, good clinical integration, and ongoing quality assurance (QA) of the TPS. AAPM Task Group 53 and related publications have served as seminal benchmarks for TPS commissioning and QA over the past two decades. Over the same time, continuing innovations have made the TPS even more complex and more central to the clinical process. Medical goals are now expressed in terms of the dose and margins around organs and tissues that are delineated from multiple imaging modalities (CT, MR and PET); and even temporally resolved (i.e., 4D) imaging. This information is passed on to optimization algorithms to establish accelerator movements that are programmed directly for IMRT, VMAT and stereotactic treatments. These advances have made commissioning and QA of the TPS much more challenging. This education session reviews up-to-date experience and guidance on this subject; including the recently published AAPM Medical Physics Practice Guideline (MPPG) #5 “Commissioning and QA of Treatment Planning Dose Calculations: Megavoltage Photon and Electron Beams”. Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities (Greg Salomons) This session will provide some key background and review publications describing prominent incidents relating to TPS commissioning and QA. Traditional approaches have been hardware and feature oriented. They aim to establish a functional configuration and establish specifications for regular testing of features (like dose calculation) to assure stable operation and detect failures. With the advent of more complex systems, more patient-specific testing has also been adopted. A number of actual TPS defects will be presented along with heuristics for identifying similar

WE-AB-201-03: TPS Commissioning and QA: Incorporating the Entire Planning Process

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mutic, S. [Washington University School of Medicine (United States)

2015-06-15

Treatment planning systems (TPS) are a cornerstone of modern radiation therapy. Errors in their commissioning or use can have a devastating impact on many patients. To support safe and high quality care, medical physicists must conduct efficient and proper commissioning, good clinical integration, and ongoing quality assurance (QA) of the TPS. AAPM Task Group 53 and related publications have served as seminal benchmarks for TPS commissioning and QA over the past two decades. Over the same time, continuing innovations have made the TPS even more complex and more central to the clinical process. Medical goals are now expressed in terms of the dose and margins around organs and tissues that are delineated from multiple imaging modalities (CT, MR and PET); and even temporally resolved (i.e., 4D) imaging. This information is passed on to optimization algorithms to establish accelerator movements that are programmed directly for IMRT, VMAT and stereotactic treatments. These advances have made commissioning and QA of the TPS much more challenging. This education session reviews up-to-date experience and guidance on this subject; including the recently published AAPM Medical Physics Practice Guideline (MPPG) #5 “Commissioning and QA of Treatment Planning Dose Calculations: Megavoltage Photon and Electron Beams”. Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities (Greg Salomons) This session will provide some key background and review publications describing prominent incidents relating to TPS commissioning and QA. Traditional approaches have been hardware and feature oriented. They aim to establish a functional configuration and establish specifications for regular testing of features (like dose calculation) to assure stable operation and detect failures. With the advent of more complex systems, more patient-specific testing has also been adopted. A number of actual TPS defects will be presented along with heuristics for identifying similar

Local Border Traffic as a Form of Visa Liberalisation and Territorial Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kretinin G.

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This article addresses the issue of visa liberalisation between Russia and the European Union, which constitutes a key aspect of the parties’ diplomatic cooperation. This work sets out to identify the main results of Russia/EU cooperation. The authors have conducted a brief historical analysis of this area of relations. The visa “regionalisation” is considered in the context of identifying the key actors of the EU — Russia negotiations: the Kaliningrad region, Germany, Poland, and Lithuania. In their analysis, the authors rely mostly on primary sources: intergovernmental agreements on simplified border traffic, border-crossing statistics for the Kaliningrad region in the framework of the local border traffic, expert interviews, and related analytic reports. Specifically, local border traffic is viewed as the most effective form of interaction in the field of visa regime simplification and border territory development. An assessment of the positions of key negotiators shows that local border traffic between the Kaliningrad region of Russia and the Polish border voivodeships is a success, which stresses the need for a prompt transition to a visa-free regime with the EU.

Size Effect of the 2-D Bodies on the Geothermal Gradient and Q-A Plot

Science.gov (United States)

Thakur, M.; Blackwell, D. D.

2009-12-01

Using numerical models we have investigated some of the criticisms on the Q-A plot of related to the effect of size of the body on the slope and reduced heat flow. The effects of horizontal conduction depend on the relative difference of radioactivity between the body and the country rock (assuming constant thermal conductivity). Horizontal heat transfer due to different 2-D bodies was numerically studied in order to quantify resulting temperature differences at the Moho and errors on the predication of Qr (reduced heat flow). Using the two end member distributions of radioactivity, the step model (thickness 10km) and exponential model, different 2-D models of horizontal scale (width) ranging from 10 -500 km were investigated. Increasing the horizontal size of the body tends to move observations closer towards the 1-D solution. A temperature difference of 50 oC is produced (for the step model) at Moho between models of width 10 km versus 500 km. In other words the 1-D solution effectively provides large scale averaging in terms of heat flow and temperature field in the lithosphere. For bodies’ ≤ 100 km wide the geotherms at shallower levels are affected, but at depth they converge and are 50 oC lower than that of the infinite plate model temperature. In case of 2-D bodies surface heat flow is decreased due to horizontal transfer of heat, which will shift the Q-A point vertically downward on the Q-A plot. The smaller the size of the body, the more will be the deviation from the 1-D solution and the more will be the movement of Q-A point downwards on a Q-A plot. On the Q-A plot, a limited points of bodies of different sizes with different radioactivity contrast (for the step and exponential model), exactly reproduce the reduced heat flow Qr. Thus the size of the body can affect the slope on a Q-A plot but Qr is not changed. Therefore, Qr ~ 32 mWm-2 obtained from the global terrain average Q-A plot represents the best estimate of stable continental mantle heat

Business, brokers and borders

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Walther, Olivier

Using social network analysis, this paper studies the structure of trade networks that developed across West African borders. The first part aims to understand the centralization of cross-border trade networks. In a business environment where transaction costs are extremely high, we find...... developed with foreign partners from a different origin, religion or culture. In the second part, we study the spatial structure of trade networks and the influence of national borders on the development of social ties. The paper shows that the spatial form of trade networks is constrained by the historical...... origin of the traders engaged in cross-border activities. In those markets where trade is recent and where most of the traders are not native of the region, national borders are likely to exert a greater influence than in those regions where trade has pre-colonial roots....

SU-E-T-468: Implementation of the TG-142 QA Process for Seven Linacs with Enhanced Beam Conformance

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Woollard, J; Ayan, A; DiCostanzo, D; Grzetic, S; Hessler, J; Gupta, N [OH State University, Columbus, OH (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: To develop a TG-142 compliant QA process for 7 Varian TrueBeam linear accelerators (linacs) with enhanced beam conformance and dosimetrically matched beam models. To ensure consistent performance of all 7 linacs, the QA process should include a common set of baseline values for use in routine QA on all linacs. Methods: The TG 142 report provides recommended tests, tolerances and frequencies for quality assurance of medical accelerators. Based on the guidance provided in the report, measurement tests were developed to evaluate each of the applicable parameters listed for daily, monthly and annual QA. These tests were then performed on each of our 7 new linacs as they came on line at our institution. Results: The tolerance values specified in TG-142 for each QA test are either absolute tolerances (i.e. ±2mm) or require a comparison to a baseline value. The results of our QA tests were first used to ensure that all 7 linacs were operating within the suggested tolerance values provided in TG −142 for those tests with absolute tolerances and that the performance of the linacs was adequately matched. The QA test results were then used to develop a set of common baseline values for those QA tests that require comparison to a baseline value at routine monthly and annual QA. The procedures and baseline values were incorporated into a spreadsheets for use in monthly and annual QA. Conclusion: We have developed a set of procedures for daily, monthly and annual QA of our linacs that are consistent with the TG-142 report. A common set of baseline values was developed for routine QA tests. The use of this common set of baseline values for comparison at monthly and annual QA will ensure consistent performance of all 7 linacs.

SU-E-T-468: Implementation of the TG-142 QA Process for Seven Linacs with Enhanced Beam Conformance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woollard, J; Ayan, A; DiCostanzo, D; Grzetic, S; Hessler, J; Gupta, N

2015-01-01

Purpose: To develop a TG-142 compliant QA process for 7 Varian TrueBeam linear accelerators (linacs) with enhanced beam conformance and dosimetrically matched beam models. To ensure consistent performance of all 7 linacs, the QA process should include a common set of baseline values for use in routine QA on all linacs. Methods: The TG 142 report provides recommended tests, tolerances and frequencies for quality assurance of medical accelerators. Based on the guidance provided in the report, measurement tests were developed to evaluate each of the applicable parameters listed for daily, monthly and annual QA. These tests were then performed on each of our 7 new linacs as they came on line at our institution. Results: The tolerance values specified in TG-142 for each QA test are either absolute tolerances (i.e. ±2mm) or require a comparison to a baseline value. The results of our QA tests were first used to ensure that all 7 linacs were operating within the suggested tolerance values provided in TG −142 for those tests with absolute tolerances and that the performance of the linacs was adequately matched. The QA test results were then used to develop a set of common baseline values for those QA tests that require comparison to a baseline value at routine monthly and annual QA. The procedures and baseline values were incorporated into a spreadsheets for use in monthly and annual QA. Conclusion: We have developed a set of procedures for daily, monthly and annual QA of our linacs that are consistent with the TG-142 report. A common set of baseline values was developed for routine QA tests. The use of this common set of baseline values for comparison at monthly and annual QA will ensure consistent performance of all 7 linacs

Conventional patient specific IMRT QA and 3DVH verification of dose distribution for helical tomotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharma, Prabhat Krishna; Joshi, Kishore; Epili, D.; Gavake, Umesh; Paul, Siji; Reena, Ph.; Jamema, S.V.

2016-01-01

In recent years, patient-specific IMRT QA has transitioned from point dose measurements by ion chambers to films to 2D array measurements. 3DVH software has taken this transition a step further by estimating the 3D dose delivered to the patient volume from 2D diode measurements using a planned dose perturbation (PDP) algorithm. This algorithm was developed to determine, if the conventional IMRT QA though sensitive at detecting errors, has any predictive power in detecting dose errors of clinical significance related to dose to the target volume and organs at risk (OAR). The aim of this study is to compare the conventional IMRT patient specific QA and 3DVH dose distribution for patients treated with helical tomotherapy (HT)

SU-F-T-226: QA Management for a Large Institution with Multiple Campuses for FMEA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tang, G; Chan, M; Lovelock, D; Lim, S; Febo, R; DeLauter, J; Both, S; Li, X; Ma, R; Saleh, Z; Song, Y; Tang, X; Xiong, W; Hunt, M; LoSasso, T [Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To redesign our radiation therapy QA program with the goal to improve quality, efficiency, and consistency among a growing number of campuses at a large institution. Methods: A QA committee was established with at least one physicist representing each of our six campuses (22 linacs). Weekly meetings were scheduled to advise on and update current procedures, to review end-to-end and other test results, and to prepare composite reports for internal and external audits. QA procedures for treatment and imaging equipment were derived from TG Reports 142 and 66, practice guidelines, and feedback from ACR evaluations. The committee focused on reaching a consensus on a single QA program among all campuses using the same type of equipment and reference data. Since the recommendations for tolerances referenced to baseline data were subject to interpretation in some instances, the committee reviewed the characteristics of all machines and quantified any variations before choosing between treatment planning system (i.e. treatment planning system commissioning data that is representative for all machines) or machine-specific values (i.e. commissioning data of the individual machines) as baseline data. Results: The configured QA program will be followed strictly by all campuses. Inventory of available equipment has been compiled, and additional equipment acquisitions for the QA program are made as needed. Dosimetric characteristics are evaluated for all machines using the same methods to ensure consistency of beam data where possible. In most cases, baseline data refer to treatment planning system commissioning data but machine-specific values are used as reference where it is deemed appropriate. Conclusion: With a uniform QA scheme, variations in QA procedures are kept to a minimum. With a centralized database, data collection and analysis are simplified. This program will facilitate uniformity in patient treatments and analysis of large amounts of QA data campus

Border effects without borders: What divides Japan's internal trade?

OpenAIRE

Wrona, Jens

2015-01-01

Over the last 20 years the trade literature repeatedly documented the trade-reducing effects of inter- and intra-national borders. Thereby, the puzzling size and persistence of observed border effects from the beginning raised doubts on the role of underlying political borders. However, when observed border effects are not caused by political trade barriers, why should their spatial dimension then inevitably coincide with the geography of present or past political borders? This paper identifi...

MO-FG-202-09: Virtual IMRT QA Using Machine Learning: A Multi-Institutional Validation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valdes, G; Scheuermann, R; Solberg, T; Chan, M; Deasy, J

2016-01-01

Purpose: To validate a machine learning approach to Virtual IMRT QA for accurately predicting gamma passing rates using different QA devices at different institutions. Methods: A Virtual IMRT QA was constructed using a machine learning algorithm based on 416 IMRT plans, in which QA measurements were performed using diode-array detectors and a 3%local/3mm with 10% threshold. An independent set of 139 IMRT measurements from a different institution, with QA data based on portal dosimetry using the same gamma index and 10% threshold, was used to further test the algorithm. Plans were characterized by 90 different complexity metrics. A weighted poison regression with Lasso regularization was trained to predict passing rates using the complexity metrics as input. Results: In addition to predicting passing rates with 3% accuracy for all composite plans using diode-array detectors, passing rates for portal dosimetry on per-beam basis were predicted with an error <3.5% for 120 IMRT measurements. The remaining measurements (19) had large areas of low CU, where portal dosimetry has larger disagreement with the calculated dose and, as such, large errors were expected. These beams need to be further modeled to correct the under-response in low dose regions. Important features selected by Lasso to predict gamma passing rates were: complete irradiated area outline (CIAO) area, jaw position, fraction of MLC leafs with gaps smaller than 20 mm or 5mm, fraction of area receiving less than 50% of the total CU, fraction of the area receiving dose from penumbra, weighted Average Irregularity Factor, duty cycle among others. Conclusion: We have demonstrated that the Virtual IMRT QA can predict passing rates using different QA devices and across multiple institutions. Prediction of QA passing rates could have profound implications on the current IMRT process.

MO-FG-202-09: Virtual IMRT QA Using Machine Learning: A Multi-Institutional Validation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Valdes, G; Scheuermann, R; Solberg, T [University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA (United States); Chan, M; Deasy, J [Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To validate a machine learning approach to Virtual IMRT QA for accurately predicting gamma passing rates using different QA devices at different institutions. Methods: A Virtual IMRT QA was constructed using a machine learning algorithm based on 416 IMRT plans, in which QA measurements were performed using diode-array detectors and a 3%local/3mm with 10% threshold. An independent set of 139 IMRT measurements from a different institution, with QA data based on portal dosimetry using the same gamma index and 10% threshold, was used to further test the algorithm. Plans were characterized by 90 different complexity metrics. A weighted poison regression with Lasso regularization was trained to predict passing rates using the complexity metrics as input. Results: In addition to predicting passing rates with 3% accuracy for all composite plans using diode-array detectors, passing rates for portal dosimetry on per-beam basis were predicted with an error <3.5% for 120 IMRT measurements. The remaining measurements (19) had large areas of low CU, where portal dosimetry has larger disagreement with the calculated dose and, as such, large errors were expected. These beams need to be further modeled to correct the under-response in low dose regions. Important features selected by Lasso to predict gamma passing rates were: complete irradiated area outline (CIAO) area, jaw position, fraction of MLC leafs with gaps smaller than 20 mm or 5mm, fraction of area receiving less than 50% of the total CU, fraction of the area receiving dose from penumbra, weighted Average Irregularity Factor, duty cycle among others. Conclusion: We have demonstrated that the Virtual IMRT QA can predict passing rates using different QA devices and across multiple institutions. Prediction of QA passing rates could have profound implications on the current IMRT process.

Estimation of eye lens dose during brain scans using Gafchromic XR-QA2 film in various multidetector CT scanners

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akhilesh, Philomina; Jamhale, Shramika H.; Sharma, S.D.; Kumar, Rajesh; Datta, D.; Kulkarni, Arti R.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to estimate eye lens dose during brain scans in 16-, 64-, 128- and 256-slice multidetector computed tomography (CT) scanners in helical acquisition mode and to test the feasibility of using radiochromic film as eye lens dosemeter during CT scanning. Eye lens dose measurements were performed using Gafchromic XR-QA2 film on a polystyrene head phantom designed with outer dimensions equivalent to the head size of a reference Indian man. The response accuracy of XR-QA2 film was validated by using thermoluminescence dosemeters. The eye lens dose measured using XR-QA2 film on head phantom for plain brain scanning in helical mode ranged from 43.8 to 45.8 mGy. The XR-QA2 film measured dose values were in agreement with TLD measured dose values within a maximum variation of 8.9%. The good correlation between the two data sets confirms the viability of using XR-QA2 film for eye lens dosimetry. (authors)

QA CLASSIFICATION ANALYSIS OF GROUND SUPPORT SYSTEMS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

D. W. Gwyn

1996-01-01

The purpose and objective of this analysis is to determine if the permanent function Ground Support Systems (CI: BABEEOOOO) are quality-affecting items and if so, to establish the appropriate Quality Assurance (QA) classification

An echocardiographic study of healthy Border Collies with normal reference ranges for the breed.

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobson, Jake H; Boon, June A; Bright, Janice M

2013-06-01

The objectives of this study were to obtain standard echocardiographic measurements from healthy Border Collies and to compare these measurements to those previously reported for a general population of dogs. Standard echocardiographic data were obtained from twenty apparently healthy Border Collie dogs. These data (n = 20) were compared to data obtained from a general population of healthy dogs (n = 69). Border Collies were deemed healthy based on normal history, physical examination, complete blood count, serum biochemical profile, electrocardiogram, and blood pressure, with no evidence of congenital or acquired heart disease on echocardiographic examination. Standard two dimensional, M-mode, and Doppler echocardiographic measurements were obtained and normal ranges determined. The data were compared to data previously obtained at our hospital from a general population of normal dogs. Two dimensional, M-mode, and Doppler reference ranges for healthy Border Collies are presented in tabular form. Comparison of the weight adjusted M-mode echocardiographic means from Border Collies to those from the general population of dogs showed Border Collies to have larger left ventricular systolic and diastolic dimensions, smaller interventricular septal thickness, and lower fractional shortening. There are differences in some echocardiographic parameters between healthy Border Collies and the general dog population, and the echocardiographic reference ranges provided in this study should be used as breed specific reference values for Border Collies. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

SU-G-TeP2-01: Can EPID Based Measurement Replace Traditional Daily Output QA On Megavoltage Linac?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saleh, Z; Tang, X; Song, Y; Obcemea, C; Beeban, N; Chan, M; Li, X; Tang, G; Lim, S; Lovelock, D; LoSasso, T; Mechalakos, J; Both, S

2016-01-01

Purpose: To investigate the long term stability and viability of using EPID-based daily output QA via in-house and vendor driven protocol, to replace conventional QA tools and improve QA efficiency. Methods: Two Varian TrueBeam machines (TB1&TB2) equipped with electronic portal imaging devices (EPID) were employed in this study. Both machines were calibrated per TG-51 and used clinically since Oct 2014. Daily output measurement for 6/15 MV beams were obtained using SunNuclear DailyQA3 device as part of morning QA. In addition, in-house protocol was implemented for EPID output measurement (10×10 cm fields, 100 MU, 100cm SID, output defined over an ROI of 2×2 cm around central axis). Moreover, the Varian Machine Performance Check (MPC) was used on both machines to measure machine output. The EPID and DailyQA3 based measurements of the relative machine output were compared and cross-correlated with monthly machine output as measured by an A12 Exradin 0.65cc Ion Chamber (IC) serving as ground truth. The results were correlated using Pearson test. Results: The correlations among DailyQA3, in-house EPID and Varian MPC output measurements, with the IC for 6/15 MV were similar for TB1 (0.83–0.95) and TB2 (0.55–0.67). The machine output for the 6/15MV beams on both machines showed a similar trend, namely an increase over time as indicated by all measurements, requiring a machine recalibration after 6 months. This drift is due to a known issue with pressurized monitor chamber which tends to leak over time. MPC failed occasionally but passed when repeated. Conclusion: The results indicate that the use of EPID for daily output measurements has the potential to become a viable and efficient tool for daily routine LINAC QA, thus eliminating weather (T,P) and human setup variability and increasing efficiency of the QA process.

SU-G-TeP2-01: Can EPID Based Measurement Replace Traditional Daily Output QA On Megavoltage Linac?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saleh, Z; Tang, X; Song, Y; Obcemea, C; Beeban, N; Chan, M; Li, X; Tang, G; Lim, S; Lovelock, D; LoSasso, T; Mechalakos, J; Both, S [Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, NY (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To investigate the long term stability and viability of using EPID-based daily output QA via in-house and vendor driven protocol, to replace conventional QA tools and improve QA efficiency. Methods: Two Varian TrueBeam machines (TB1&TB2) equipped with electronic portal imaging devices (EPID) were employed in this study. Both machines were calibrated per TG-51 and used clinically since Oct 2014. Daily output measurement for 6/15 MV beams were obtained using SunNuclear DailyQA3 device as part of morning QA. In addition, in-house protocol was implemented for EPID output measurement (10×10 cm fields, 100 MU, 100cm SID, output defined over an ROI of 2×2 cm around central axis). Moreover, the Varian Machine Performance Check (MPC) was used on both machines to measure machine output. The EPID and DailyQA3 based measurements of the relative machine output were compared and cross-correlated with monthly machine output as measured by an A12 Exradin 0.65cc Ion Chamber (IC) serving as ground truth. The results were correlated using Pearson test. Results: The correlations among DailyQA3, in-house EPID and Varian MPC output measurements, with the IC for 6/15 MV were similar for TB1 (0.83–0.95) and TB2 (0.55–0.67). The machine output for the 6/15MV beams on both machines showed a similar trend, namely an increase over time as indicated by all measurements, requiring a machine recalibration after 6 months. This drift is due to a known issue with pressurized monitor chamber which tends to leak over time. MPC failed occasionally but passed when repeated. Conclusion: The results indicate that the use of EPID for daily output measurements has the potential to become a viable and efficient tool for daily routine LINAC QA, thus eliminating weather (T,P) and human setup variability and increasing efficiency of the QA process.

The assessment report of QA program through the analysis of quality trend in 1994

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Yung Se; Hong, Kyung Sik; Park, Sang Pil; Park, Kun Woo [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

1995-04-01

Effectiveness and adequacy of KAERI Qualify Assurance Program is assessed through the analysis of quality trend. As a result of assessment, Quality Assurance System for each project has reached the stage of stabilization, and especially, significant improvement of the conformance to QA procedure, the control of QA Records and documents and the inspiration of quality mind for the job has been made. However, some problems discovered in this trend analysis, ie, improvement of efficiency of quality training and economies of design verification system, are required to take preventive actions and consider appropriate measures. In the future, QA is expected to be a support to assurance of nuclear safety and development of advanced technology by making it possible to establish the best quality system suitable for our situation, based on the assessment method for quality assurance program presented in this study. 5 figs., 30 tabs. (Author).

The assessment report of QA program through the analysis of quality trend in 1994

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Yung Se; Hong, Kyung Sik; Park, Sang Pil; Park, Kun Woo

1995-04-01

Effectiveness and adequacy of KAERI Qualify Assurance Program is assessed through the analysis of quality trend. As a result of assessment, Quality Assurance System for each project has reached the stage of stabilization, and especially, significant improvement of the conformance to QA procedure, the control of QA Records and documents and the inspiration of quality mind for the job has been made. However, some problems discovered in this trend analysis, ie, improvement of efficiency of quality training and economies of design verification system, are required to take preventive actions and consider appropriate measures. In the future, QA is expected to be a support to assurance of nuclear safety and development of advanced technology by making it possible to establish the best quality system suitable for our situation, based on the assessment method for quality assurance program presented in this study. 5 figs., 30 tabs. (Author)

SU-F-T-285: Evaluation of a Patient DVH-Based IMRT QA System

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhen, H; Redler, G; Chu, J; Turian, J [Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To evaluate the clinical performance of a patient DVH-based QA system for prostate VMAT QA. Methods: Mobius3D(M3D) is a QA software with an independent beam model and dose engine. The MobiusFX(MFX) add-on predicts patient dose using treatment machine log files. We commissioned the Mobius beam model in two steps. First, the stock beam model was customized using machine commissioning data, then verified against the TPS with 12 simple phantom plans and 7 clinical 3D plans. Secondly, the Dosimetric Leaf Gap(DLG) in the Mobius model was fine-tuned for VMAT treatment based on ion chamber measurements for 6 clinical VMAT plans. Upon successful commissioning, we retrospectively performed IMRT QA for 12 VMAT plans with the Mobius system as well as the ArcCHECK-3DVH system. Selected patient DVH values (PTV D95, D50; Bladder D2cc, Dmean; Rectum D2cc) were compared between TPS, M3D, MFX, and 3DVH. Results: During the first commissioning step, TPS and M3D calculated target Dmean for 3D plans agree within 0.7%±0.7%, with 3D gamma passing rates of 98%±2%. In the second commissioning step, the Mobius DLG was adjusted by 1.2mm from the stock value, reducing the average difference between MFX calculation and ion chamber measurement from 3.2% to 0.1%. In retrospective prostate VMAT QA, 5 of 60 MFX calculated DVH values have a deviation greater than 5% compared to TPS. One large deviation at high dose level was identified as a potential QA failure. This echoes the 3DVH QA result, which identified 2 instances of large DVH deviation on the same structure. For all DVH’s evaluated, M3D and MFX show high level of agreement (0.1%±0.2%), indicating that the observed deviation is likely from beam modelling differences rather than delivery errors. Conclusion: Mobius system provides a viable solution for DVH based VMAT QA, with the capability of separating TPS and delivery errors.

SU-F-T-285: Evaluation of a Patient DVH-Based IMRT QA System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhen, H; Redler, G; Chu, J; Turian, J

2016-01-01

Purpose: To evaluate the clinical performance of a patient DVH-based QA system for prostate VMAT QA. Methods: Mobius3D(M3D) is a QA software with an independent beam model and dose engine. The MobiusFX(MFX) add-on predicts patient dose using treatment machine log files. We commissioned the Mobius beam model in two steps. First, the stock beam model was customized using machine commissioning data, then verified against the TPS with 12 simple phantom plans and 7 clinical 3D plans. Secondly, the Dosimetric Leaf Gap(DLG) in the Mobius model was fine-tuned for VMAT treatment based on ion chamber measurements for 6 clinical VMAT plans. Upon successful commissioning, we retrospectively performed IMRT QA for 12 VMAT plans with the Mobius system as well as the ArcCHECK-3DVH system. Selected patient DVH values (PTV D95, D50; Bladder D2cc, Dmean; Rectum D2cc) were compared between TPS, M3D, MFX, and 3DVH. Results: During the first commissioning step, TPS and M3D calculated target Dmean for 3D plans agree within 0.7%±0.7%, with 3D gamma passing rates of 98%±2%. In the second commissioning step, the Mobius DLG was adjusted by 1.2mm from the stock value, reducing the average difference between MFX calculation and ion chamber measurement from 3.2% to 0.1%. In retrospective prostate VMAT QA, 5 of 60 MFX calculated DVH values have a deviation greater than 5% compared to TPS. One large deviation at high dose level was identified as a potential QA failure. This echoes the 3DVH QA result, which identified 2 instances of large DVH deviation on the same structure. For all DVH’s evaluated, M3D and MFX show high level of agreement (0.1%±0.2%), indicating that the observed deviation is likely from beam modelling differences rather than delivery errors. Conclusion: Mobius system provides a viable solution for DVH based VMAT QA, with the capability of separating TPS and delivery errors.

Technical report on comparative analysis of ASME QA requirements and ISO series

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Kwan Hyun

2000-06-01

This technical report provides the differences on the QA requirement ASME and ISO in nuclear fields. This report applies to the quality assurance(QA) programmes of the design of two requirement. The organization having overall responsibility for the nuclear design, preservation, fabrication shall be described in this report in each stage of design project

Contemporary studies on the tree-border area of Slovenia, Italy and Austria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anton Gosar

1993-12-01

Full Text Available The area wher three-borders of Austria, ltaly and Slovenia meet was centuries long a transitional rgion between the core areas of the Mediterranean and Alps. The under Austria unified area was divided among three states in 1918. Since than diverse systems in economy and politics have changed the once supportive economies. Tendencies to develop in each of the bordering states such economies which would support each other are becoming a reality. Studies, performed by universities of Ljubljana, Trieste, Udine and Klagenfurt should provide knowledge on the existing socio-geographic structure of the above named border regions.

Tolerance limits and methodologies for IMRT measurement-based verification QA: Recommendations of AAPM Task Group No. 218.

Science.gov (United States)

Miften, Moyed; Olch, Arthur; Mihailidis, Dimitris; Moran, Jean; Pawlicki, Todd; Molineu, Andrea; Li, Harold; Wijesooriya, Krishni; Shi, Jie; Xia, Ping; Papanikolaou, Nikos; Low, Daniel A

2018-04-01

Patient-specific IMRT QA measurements are important components of processes designed to identify discrepancies between calculated and delivered radiation doses. Discrepancy tolerance limits are neither well defined nor consistently applied across centers. The AAPM TG-218 report provides a comprehensive review aimed at improving the understanding and consistency of these processes as well as recommendations for methodologies and tolerance limits in patient-specific IMRT QA. The performance of the dose difference/distance-to-agreement (DTA) and γ dose distribution comparison metrics are investigated. Measurement methods are reviewed and followed by a discussion of the pros and cons of each. Methodologies for absolute dose verification are discussed and new IMRT QA verification tools are presented. Literature on the expected or achievable agreement between measurements and calculations for different types of planning and delivery systems are reviewed and analyzed. Tests of vendor implementations of the γ verification algorithm employing benchmark cases are presented. Operational shortcomings that can reduce the γ tool accuracy and subsequent effectiveness for IMRT QA are described. Practical considerations including spatial resolution, normalization, dose threshold, and data interpretation are discussed. Published data on IMRT QA and the clinical experience of the group members are used to develop guidelines and recommendations on tolerance and action limits for IMRT QA. Steps to check failed IMRT QA plans are outlined. Recommendations on delivery methods, data interpretation, dose normalization, the use of γ analysis routines and choice of tolerance limits for IMRT QA are made with focus on detecting differences between calculated and measured doses via the use of robust analysis methods and an in-depth understanding of IMRT verification metrics. The recommendations are intended to improve the IMRT QA process and establish consistent, and comparable IMRT QA

Development of Indonesia-Papua New Guinea border, Muara Tami District, Jayapura City through agropolitan concept

Science.gov (United States)

Subagiyo, A.; Dwiproborini, F.; Sari, N.

2017-06-01

The border of RI-PNG Muara Tami district is located on the eastern part of Jayapura city, which has agricultural potential. The past paradigm put the border as the backyard caused underdevelopment in border RI-PNG Muara Tami district, so that needed acceleration development through agropolitan concept. The purpose of the research is to define the aspect of physical, social, economic and border security to support agropolitan concept in border RI-PNG Muara Tami district. The analytical research method are border interactionan analysis, border security analysis, land capability analysis, land availability analysis, schallogram analysis, institutional analysis, leading comodity analysis (LQ and Growth Share), agribusiness linkage system analysis, accessibility analysis and A’WOT analysis. The result shown that mobilization from PNG to Muara Tami district could increase the economic opportunities with agricultural based. Border security of RI-PNG Muara Tami district is vulnerable, yet still condusive to mobilization. There is 12.977,94 Ha potensial land for agricultural (20,93%). There are six leading commodities to developed are rice, watermelon, banana, coconut, areca nut and cocoa. The border of RI-PNG Muara Tami district is ready enough to support agropolitan concept, but still have problems in social and economy aspect.

Radiotherapy QA of the DAHANCA 19 protocol

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Samsøe, E.; Andersen, E.; Hansen, C. R.

2015-01-01

Purpose/Objective: It has been demonstrated that nonadherence to protocol-specified radiotherapy (RT) requirements is associated with reduced survival, local control and potentially increased toxicity [1]. Thus, quality assurance (QA) of RT is important when evaluating the results of clinical...

Bridging Borders: Toward a Pedagogy of Preparedness for Visiting Faculty

Science.gov (United States)

Mizzi, Robert C.

2017-01-01

This analytical article largely draws on the experiences of visiting faculty teaching at post-secondary institutions overseas. What is largely understood in the literature is that visiting faculty need to navigate the sociocultural, professional, and contextual differences that shape the work context. Drawing on the theory of border pedagogy, this…

Border markets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Walther, Olivier

2014-01-01

The objective of this issue of Articulo – Journal of Urban Research is to examine the characteristics of border markets in a comparative perspective. In this introductory paper, I first discuss what makes African border markets different from other markets, and examine several factors that explain...... their unequal economic development: the presence of a trade community, the combination of trading and productive activities, and the relative porosity of borders. In a second part, I examine how border markets on the U.S.-Mexico border must simultaneously guarantee the security of the state while favoring...... regional trade. The last part of the paper argues that more policy attention should be paid to border markets which, despite being at the margin of states, are a vital component of their economy. Fifty years after most West African states became independent and just as NAFTA turns 20, it is high time...

STUDY REGARDING OVER BORDERS TOURISM AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP CULTURE IN THE DOMAIN

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreş Solomia

2012-06-01

Full Text Available The study was regarded as a qualitative research that measures entrepreneurship tendencies of the two regions from the border rural environment, initiation and management measures of business in the rural environment. The study regarding entrepreneurship education knowledge of target member groups from the partner border communities from Caras-Severin and Serbia has as main objective the evaluating of entrepreneurship knowledge of communities from the two regions of the rural environment, both with a strong touristic and cultural potential, for the purpose of rebirth of border socio-economical activities and the improvement of life quality by developing rural tourism. The objective desired from this study were: a quantitative and qualitative of information level gained by the members of the target groups regarding the initiation and development of business in tourism; the establishing of an entrepreneur profile for the respondents; the identification of the activity domain with a high potential of economical exploitation. Starting from the premises that only a correct evaluation and a detailed information of these aspects will determine the fact that the results of the research will represent the basis of the elaborati2ng of a development strategy for the rural tourism for the border rural communities, the research team, to which I was also a member of, has used the method of investigation and questionnaires as useful instruments in the development of the activities of the Centre for Border Rural Tourism. These instruments have contributed to the knowledge and measuring of present dimensions from the two dimensions, qualitative and quantitative, of the level of basic entrepreneurship knowledge in order to stimulate in the future the inhabitants’ involvment in the development of tourism activities and of economical-social ones.

The implementing of the training, examination and qualification for QA auditor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ma Xiaozheng; Han Peicong; Zhang Zhongyuan; Zhu Guoliang

2007-01-01

China Power Investment Corporation has implemented the training, examination and qualification for QA auditor based on the related requirements of the nuclear safety documents. The bases, planning of the procedure, implementing procedure and suggestions for implementing the training, examination and qualification are described in this article. That can be used as the reference for implementing the training, examination and qualification for QA auditor, as well as for establishment of the related guide. (authors)

Application of QA grading to Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project items and activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murthy, R.B.; Smith, S.C.

1991-01-01

Grading is the act of selecting the quality assurance (QA) measures necessary to develop and maintain confidence in the quality of an item or activity. The list of QA measures from which this selection is made are the 20 criteria of the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project Quality Assurance Requirements Document

The Intersectionality of Border Pedagogy and Latino/a Youth: Enacting Border Pedagogy in Multiple Spaces

Science.gov (United States)

Ramirez, Pablo C.; Ross, Lydia; Jimenez-Silva, Margarita

2016-01-01

In this one-year qualitative study, the authors examined how border pedagogy is enacted by two Latino/a high school teachers in a border community in Southern California. Through classroom observations, the authors documented powerful student discussions that named complex borders (Giroux, 1992) that existed in their daily lives. We drew from…

Illela border market: origin and contributions to trans-border ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Illela border market: origin and contributions to trans-border relations between Nigeria and Niger republic. ... cordial relations between her and her immediate neighbours and thus stem the scourge of smuggling and other trans-border crimes which have negatively affected the Nigerian economy and her international image.

SU-C-BRD-03: Closing the Loop On Virtual IMRT QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valdes, G; Scheuermann, R; Y, H C.; Olszanski, A; Bellerive, M; Solberg, T

2015-01-01

Purpose: To develop an algorithm that predicts a priori IMRT QA passing rates. Methods: 416 IMRT plans from all treatment sites were planned in Eclipse version 11 and delivered using a dynamic sliding window technique on Clinac iX or TrueBeam linacs (Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA). The 3%/3mm and 2%/2mm local distance to agreement (DTA) were recorded during clinical operations using a commercial 2D diode array (MapCHECK 2, Sun Nuclear, Melbourne, FL). Each plan was characterized by 37 metrics that describe different failure modes between the calculated and measured dose. Machine-learning algorithms (MLAs) were trained to learn the relation between the plan characteristics and each passing rate. Minimization of the cross validated error, together with maximum a posteriori estimation (MAP), were used to choose the model parameters. Results: 3%/3mm local DTA can be predicted with an error smaller than 3% for 98% of the plans. For the remaining 2% of plans, the residual error was within 5%. For 2%/2mm local DTA passing rates, 96% percent of the plans were successfully predicted with an error smaller than 5%. All high-risk plans that failed the 2%/2mm local criteria were correctly identified by the algorithm. The most important metric to describe the passing rates was determined to be the MU per Gray (modulation factor). Conclusions: Logs files and independent dose calculations have been suggested as possible substitutes for measurement based IMRT QA. However, none of these methods answer the fundamental question of whether a plan can be delivered with a clinically acceptable error given the limitations of the linacs and the treatment planning system. Predicting the IMRT QA passing rates a priori closes that loop. For additional robustness, virtual IMRT QA can be combined with Linac QA and log file analysis to confirm appropriate delivery

SU-C-BRD-03: Closing the Loop On Virtual IMRT QA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Valdes, G; Scheuermann, R; Y, H C.; Olszanski, A; Bellerive, M; Solberg, T [University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: To develop an algorithm that predicts a priori IMRT QA passing rates. Methods: 416 IMRT plans from all treatment sites were planned in Eclipse version 11 and delivered using a dynamic sliding window technique on Clinac iX or TrueBeam linacs (Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA). The 3%/3mm and 2%/2mm local distance to agreement (DTA) were recorded during clinical operations using a commercial 2D diode array (MapCHECK 2, Sun Nuclear, Melbourne, FL). Each plan was characterized by 37 metrics that describe different failure modes between the calculated and measured dose. Machine-learning algorithms (MLAs) were trained to learn the relation between the plan characteristics and each passing rate. Minimization of the cross validated error, together with maximum a posteriori estimation (MAP), were used to choose the model parameters. Results: 3%/3mm local DTA can be predicted with an error smaller than 3% for 98% of the plans. For the remaining 2% of plans, the residual error was within 5%. For 2%/2mm local DTA passing rates, 96% percent of the plans were successfully predicted with an error smaller than 5%. All high-risk plans that failed the 2%/2mm local criteria were correctly identified by the algorithm. The most important metric to describe the passing rates was determined to be the MU per Gray (modulation factor). Conclusions: Logs files and independent dose calculations have been suggested as possible substitutes for measurement based IMRT QA. However, none of these methods answer the fundamental question of whether a plan can be delivered with a clinically acceptable error given the limitations of the linacs and the treatment planning system. Predicting the IMRT QA passing rates a priori closes that loop. For additional robustness, virtual IMRT QA can be combined with Linac QA and log file analysis to confirm appropriate delivery.

Common QA/QM Criteria for Multinational Vendor Inspection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2014-01-01

This VICWG document provides the 'Common QA/QM Criteria' which will be used in Multinational Vendor Inspection. The 'Common QA/QM Criteria' provides the basic consideration when performing the Vendor Inspection. These criteria has been developed in conformity with International Codes and Standards such as IAEA, ISO and so on that MDEP member countries adopted. The purpose of the VICWG is to establish areas of co-operation in the Vendor Inspection practices among MDEP member countries as described in the MDEP issue-specific Terms of Reference (ToR). As part of this, from the beginning, a survey was performed to understand and to identify areas of commonality and differences between regulatory practices of member countries in the area of vendor inspection. The VICWG also collaborated by performing Witnessed Inspections and Joint Inspections. Through these activities, it was recognized that member countries commonly apply the IAEA safety standard (GS-R-3) to the vendor inspection criteria, and almost ail European member countries apply the ISO standard (ISO9001). In the US, the NRC regulatory requirement in 10 CFR, Part 50, Appendix B is used. South Korea uses the same criteria as in the US. As a result of the information obtained, a comparison table between codes and standards (IAEAGS-R-3, ISO 9001:2008.10CFR50 Appendix Band ASME NQA-1) has been developed in order to inform the development of 'Common QA/QM Criteria'. The result is documented in Table 1, 'MDEP CORE QA/QM Requirement and Comparison between Codes and Standards'. In addition, each country's criteria were compared with the US 10CFR50 Appendix B as a template. Table 2 shows VICWG Survey on Quality Assurance Program Requirements. Through these activities above, we considered that the core requirements should be consistent with both IAEA safety standard and ISO standard, and considered that the common requirements in the US 10CFR50 Appendix B used to the survey

SU-E-T-392: Evaluation of Ion Chamber/film and Log File Based QA to Detect Delivery Errors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, C; Mason, B; Kirsner, S; Ohrt, J

2015-01-01

Purpose: Ion chamber and film (ICAF) is a method used to verify patient dose prior to treatment. More recently, log file based QA has been shown as an alternative for measurement based QA. In this study, we delivered VMAT plans with and without errors to determine if ICAF and/or log file based QA was able to detect the errors. Methods: Using two VMAT patients, the original treatment plan plus 7 additional plans with delivery errors introduced were generated and delivered. The erroneous plans had gantry, collimator, MLC, gantry and collimator, collimator and MLC, MLC and gantry, and gantry, collimator, and MLC errors. The gantry and collimator errors were off by 4 0 for one of the two arcs. The MLC error introduced was one in which the opening aperture didn’t move throughout the delivery of the field. For each delivery, an ICAF measurement was made as well as a dose comparison based upon log files. Passing criteria to evaluate the plans were ion chamber less and 5% and film 90% of pixels pass the 3mm/3% gamma analysis(GA). For log file analysis 90% of voxels pass the 3mm/3% 3D GA and beam parameters match what was in the plan. Results: Two original plans were delivered and passed both ICAF and log file base QA. Both ICAF and log file QA met the dosimetry criteria on 4 of the 12 erroneous cases analyzed (2 cases were not analyzed). For the log file analysis, all 12 erroneous plans alerted a mismatch in delivery versus what was planned. The 8 plans that didn’t meet criteria all had MLC errors. Conclusion: Our study demonstrates that log file based pre-treatment QA was able to detect small errors that may not be detected using an ICAF and both methods of were able to detect larger delivery errors

DeepQA: improving the estimation of single protein model quality with deep belief networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, Renzhi; Bhattacharya, Debswapna; Hou, Jie; Cheng, Jianlin

2016-12-05

Protein quality assessment (QA) useful for ranking and selecting protein models has long been viewed as one of the major challenges for protein tertiary structure prediction. Especially, estimating the quality of a single protein model, which is important for selecting a few good models out of a large model pool consisting of mostly low-quality models, is still a largely unsolved problem. We introduce a novel single-model quality assessment method DeepQA based on deep belief network that utilizes a number of selected features describing the quality of a model from different perspectives, such as energy, physio-chemical characteristics, and structural information. The deep belief network is trained on several large datasets consisting of models from the Critical Assessment of Protein Structure Prediction (CASP) experiments, several publicly available datasets, and models generated by our in-house ab initio method. Our experiments demonstrate that deep belief network has better performance compared to Support Vector Machines and Neural Networks on the protein model quality assessment problem, and our method DeepQA achieves the state-of-the-art performance on CASP11 dataset. It also outperformed two well-established methods in selecting good outlier models from a large set of models of mostly low quality generated by ab initio modeling methods. DeepQA is a useful deep learning tool for protein single model quality assessment and protein structure prediction. The source code, executable, document and training/test datasets of DeepQA for Linux is freely available to non-commercial users at http://cactus.rnet.missouri.edu/DeepQA/ .

SU-F-T-459: ArcCHECK Machine QA : Highly Efficient Quality Assurance Tool for VMAT, SRS & SBRT Linear Accelerator Delivery

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mhatre, V; Patwe, P; Dandekar, P [Sir HN RF Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra (India)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Quality assurance (QA) of complex linear accelerators is critical and highly time consuming. ArcCHECK Machine QA tool is used to test geometric and delivery aspects of linear accelerator. In this study we evaluated the performance of this tool. Methods: Machine QA feature allows user to perform quality assurance tests using ArcCHECK phantom. Following tests were performed 1) Gantry Speed 2) Gantry Rotation 3) Gantry Angle 4)MLC/Collimator QA 5)Beam Profile Flatness & Symmetry. Data was collected on trueBEAM stX machine for 6 MV for a period of one year. The Gantry QA test allows to view errors in gantry angle, rotation & assess how accurately the gantry moves around the isocentre. The MLC/Collimator QA tool is used to analyze & locate the differences between leaf bank & jaw position of linac. The flatness & Symmetry test quantifies beam flatness & symmetry in IEC-y & x direction. The Gantry & Flatness/Symmetry test can be performed for static & dynamic delivery. Results: The Gantry speed was 3.9 deg/sec with speed maximum deviation around 0.3 deg/sec. The Gantry Isocentre for arc delivery was 0.9mm & static delivery was 0.4mm. The maximum percent positive & negative difference was found to be 1.9 % & – 0.25 % & maximum distance positive & negative diff was 0.4mm & – 0.3 mm for MLC/Collimator QA. The Flatness for Arc delivery was 1.8 % & Symmetry for Y was 0.8 % & X was 1.8 %. The Flatness for gantry 0°,270°,90° & 180° was 1.75,1.9,1.8 & 1.6% respectively & Symmetry for X & Y was 0.8,0.6% for 0°, 0.6,0.7% for 270°, 0.6,1% for 90° & 0.6,0.7% for 180°. Conclusion: ArcCHECK Machine QA is an useful tool for QA of Modern linear accelerators as it tests both geometric & delivery aspects. This is very important for VMAT, SRS & SBRT treatments.

SU-F-T-459: ArcCHECK Machine QA : Highly Efficient Quality Assurance Tool for VMAT, SRS & SBRT Linear Accelerator Delivery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mhatre, V; Patwe, P; Dandekar, P

2016-01-01

Purpose: Quality assurance (QA) of complex linear accelerators is critical and highly time consuming. ArcCHECK Machine QA tool is used to test geometric and delivery aspects of linear accelerator. In this study we evaluated the performance of this tool. Methods: Machine QA feature allows user to perform quality assurance tests using ArcCHECK phantom. Following tests were performed 1) Gantry Speed 2) Gantry Rotation 3) Gantry Angle 4)MLC/Collimator QA 5)Beam Profile Flatness & Symmetry. Data was collected on trueBEAM stX machine for 6 MV for a period of one year. The Gantry QA test allows to view errors in gantry angle, rotation & assess how accurately the gantry moves around the isocentre. The MLC/Collimator QA tool is used to analyze & locate the differences between leaf bank & jaw position of linac. The flatness & Symmetry test quantifies beam flatness & symmetry in IEC-y & x direction. The Gantry & Flatness/Symmetry test can be performed for static & dynamic delivery. Results: The Gantry speed was 3.9 deg/sec with speed maximum deviation around 0.3 deg/sec. The Gantry Isocentre for arc delivery was 0.9mm & static delivery was 0.4mm. The maximum percent positive & negative difference was found to be 1.9 % & – 0.25 % & maximum distance positive & negative diff was 0.4mm & – 0.3 mm for MLC/Collimator QA. The Flatness for Arc delivery was 1.8 % & Symmetry for Y was 0.8 % & X was 1.8 %. The Flatness for gantry 0°,270°,90° & 180° was 1.75,1.9,1.8 & 1.6% respectively & Symmetry for X & Y was 0.8,0.6% for 0°, 0.6,0.7% for 270°, 0.6,1% for 90° & 0.6,0.7% for 180°. Conclusion: ArcCHECK Machine QA is an useful tool for QA of Modern linear accelerators as it tests both geometric & delivery aspects. This is very important for VMAT, SRS & SBRT treatments.

Cross-border collaboration in history among Nordic students: A case study about creating innovative ICT didactic models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Spante

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Gränsöverskridande Nordisk Undervisning/Utdanelse (GNU, meaning Cross-Border Nordic Education, the larger Nordic project, under which this case study was carried out, aims at developing innovative, cross-border teaching models in different subject domains in elementary school, including mathematics, language, science, social studies and history. This paper provides an in-depth description and analysis of how four social science and history elementary school teachers and their 70 students (5th–7th grades worked together between November 2011 and December 2012. Previous research regarding the use of information and communication technology (ICT in history education in elementary schools is limited, thus calling for contemporary investigations in this particular subject domain. The Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK model, enhancing the combination of teachers’ pedagogical, content and technical competence, was used as the analytical framework, together with nation-specific curricula and the European Union’s recommendations regarding students’ skills for lifelong learning. A range of empirical materials was analyzed, such as classroom observations, students’ video productions, texts and photos distributed and shared on a mutual blog, real-time interaction and teachers’ communication. The teachers tried out two ICT didactic models. In the asynchronous model, the major focus was on the form and content of the video productions being shared, whereas work with the synchronous model concentrated on the content and quality of the communication. Notwithstanding obstacles, cross-border collaboration provided added value. The nation-specific differences triggered curiosity and motivation to produce digital presentations of history content to be understood by the students in the three nations, facilitating goal fulfillment in communication skills and digital competence. However, achieving subject-specific goals in history

Restructuring locality: practice, identity and place-making on the German-Polish border

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sandberg, Marie

2016-01-01

Taking cities as analytical entry points for investigating practice, identity and place-making, this article explores the differential restructurings of locality in the twin cities of Görlitz and Zgorzelec on the German-Polish border. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, it shows how the local cities......′ leaderships are attempting to wrestle the cities out of their downmarket positioning in the global economy. Deploying a performative research strategy of methodological relationalism, the article examines intersections between these cities′ strategies of situating local youth within urban regeneration...... and cross-border projects and local youth′s preferences for engaging in other kinds of place-making. By ‘seeing’ the cities in border regions through practices of place-making within the multiscalar processes of urban regeneration, new insights about ‘place’ are generated in which city branding...

A Chatbot as a Natural Web Interface to Arabic Web QA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bayan Abu Shawar

2011-03-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we describe a way to access Arabic Web Question Answering (QA corpus using a chatbot, without the need for sophisticated natural language processing or logical inference. Any Natural Language (NL interface to Question Answer (QA system is constrained to reply with the given answers, so there is no need for NL generation to recreate well-formed answers, or for deep analysis or logical inference to map user input questions onto this logical ontology; simple (but large set of pattern-template matching rules will suffice. In previous research, this approach works properly with English and other European languages. In this paper, we try to see how the same chatbot will react in terms of Arabic Web QA corpus. Initial results shows that 93% of answers were correct, but because of a lot of characteristics related to Arabic language, changing Arabic questions into other forms may lead to no answers.

The Debtor’s Property Selling in the Cross-Border Insolvency Proceedings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sproge Daiga

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The title of this research is “The debtor’s property selling in the cross-border insolvency proceedings”. The insolvency proceeding gets the cross-border status also in case, if a debtor is an owner of the property outside of the main interests’ centre, namely, in another country. Therefore, there are many problematic cases when insolvency administrator (also called insolvency practitioner defines the real estate in this other country and has to make a decision concerning the methods of selling the real estate in accordance with the law of the Member State in which territory the insolvency proceedings have been started. At the same time, the administrator shall provide that the property is sold in particular with regard to procedures for the realization of assets defined in the legislation of that country, where such real estate has been located. The article’s aim is to give a view of the features of the sale of the property in the insolvency proceedings and to define the possible lack and improvements in the cross-border insolvency concerning the selling of a debtor’s property. The European Parliament and the Council of the European Union has adopted Regulation (EU 2015/848 of 20 May 2015 on Insolvency proceedings, which shall apply from 26 June 2017, with some exceptions Despite the regulation of the cross-border insolvency has been improved, the procedure of the property disposal is still incomplete in the cross-border insolvency proceedings. Within the study the following research methods are applied: the analytical method, comparative method, sociological method and descriptive method. The predicted value of the research is theoretical and also practical. The research should be useful for the insolvency proceedings administrators, the companies and the banks, other experts involved in the cross-border insolvency proceedings, as well as for students to improve their theoretical knowledge about the cross-border insolvency.

Web Implementation of Quality Assurance (QA) for X-ray Units in Balkanic Medical Institutions.

Science.gov (United States)

Urošević, Vlade; Ristić, Olga; Milošević, Danijela; Košutić, Duško

2015-08-01

Diagnostic radiology is the major contributor to the total dose of the population from all artificial sources. In order to reduce radiation exposure and optimize diagnostic x-ray image quality, it is necessary to increase the quality and efficiency of quality assurance (QA) and audit programs. This work presents a web application providing completely new QA solutions for x-ray modalities and facilities. The software gives complete online information (using European standards) with which the corresponding institutions and individuals can evaluate and control a facility's Radiation Safety and QA program. The software enables storage of all data in one place and sharing the same information (data), regardless of whether the measured data is used by an individual user or by an authorized institution. The software overcomes the distance and time separation of institutions and individuals who take part in QA. Upgrading the software will enable assessment of the medical exposure level to ionizing radiation.

The development of cross-border economic relations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Houtum, H.J.

1998-01-01

This dissertation investigates the influence of a state border on the development of cross-border economic relations in the European Union. The focus is on the frequency, number, and success of cross-border relations between firms in the border regions of the Netherlands and Belgium. The study fills

The Border Multiple

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Addressing and conceptualizing the changing character of borders in contemporary Europe, this book examines developments occurring in the light of European integration processes and an on-going tightening of Europe's external borders. Moreover, the book suggests new ways of investigating the nature...... of European borders by looking at border practices in the light of the mobility turn, and thus as dynamic, multiple, diverse and best expressed in everyday experiences of people living at and with borders, rather than focusing on static territorial divisions between states and regions at geopolitical level...

TU-FG-201-01: 18-Month Clinical Experience of a Linac Daily Quality Assurance (QA) Solution Using Only EPID and OBI

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cai, B; Sun, B; Yaddanapudi, S; Goddu, S; Li, H; Caruthers, D; Kavanaugh, J; Mutic, S [Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To describe the clinical use of a Linear Accelerator (Linac) DailyQA system with only EPID and OBI. To assess the reliability over an 18-month period and improve the robustness of this system based on QA failure analysis. Methods: A DailyQA solution utilizing an in-house designed phantom, combined EPID and OBI image acquisitions, and a web-based data analysis and reporting system was commissioned and used in our clinic to measure geometric, dosimetry and imaging components of a Varian Truebeam Linac. During an 18-month period (335 working days), the Daily QA results, including the output constancy, beam flatness and symmetry, uniformity, TPR20/10, MV and KV imaging quality, were collected and analyzed. For output constancy measurement, an independent monthly QA system with an ionization chamber (IC) and annual/incidental TG51 measurements with ADCL IC were performed and cross-compared to Daily QA system. Thorough analyses were performed on the recorded QA failures to evaluate the machine performance, optimize the data analysis algorithm, adjust the tolerance setting and improve the training procedure to prevent future failures. Results: A clinical workflow including beam delivery, data analysis, QA report generation and physics approval was established and optimized to suit daily clinical operation. The output tests over the 335 working day period cross-correlated with the monthly QA system within 1.3% and TG51 results within 1%. QA passed with one attempt on 236 days out of 335 days. Based on the QA failures analysis, the Gamma criteria is revised from (1%, 1mm) to (2%, 1mm) considering both QA accuracy and efficiency. Data analysis algorithm is improved to handle multiple entries for a repeating test. Conclusion: We described our 18-month clinical experience on a novel DailyQA system using only EPID and OBI. The long term data presented demonstrated the system is suitable and reliable for Linac daily QA.

De-Identification in Learning Analytics

Science.gov (United States)

Khalila, Mohammad; Ebner, Martin

2016-01-01

Learning analytics has reserved its position as an important field in the educational sector. However, the large-scale collection, processing, and analyzing of data has steered the wheel beyond the borders to face an abundance of ethical breaches and constraints. Revealing learners' personal information and attitudes, as well as their activities,…

Opportunities for Cross-Border Entrepreneurship Development in a Cluster Model Exemplified by the Polish–Czech Border Region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joanna Kurowska-Pysz

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The subject of the paper is the analysis and evaluation of cross-border entrepreneurship development opportunities on the basis of cross-border cooperation, which has gradually evolved from consisting of bilateral partnerships to a networking model or even a cluster. The study conducted at the Polish–Czech border area indicates that, in terms of the development of cross-border cooperation, the economic sphere is lagging far behind social activities such as culture, education and tourism. At the same time, Polish and Czech enterprises are not sufficiently mobilized to develop cross-border entrepreneurship, although a number of support instruments in this regard have been proposed. Sustainable development of the border should take into account both social and economic aspects. An important research problem therefore becomes determining the possibility of boosting the development of cross-border entrepreneurship on the basis of the existing forms of cross-border cooperation, including cooperation in the social sphere. The aim of this paper is to define the conditions and opportunities for the development of cluster cooperation in the area of cross-border entrepreneurship. The author has attempted to resolve whether the intensity of cross-border cooperation can be a factor which mobilizes companies to develop their cross-border entrepreneurship and whether cross-border entrepreneurship can be further developed within the cluster model.

A virtual dosimetry audit - Towards transferability of gamma index analysis between clinical trial QA groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Hussein, Mohammad; Clementel, Enrico; Eaton, David J; Greer, Peter B; Haworth, Annette; Ishikura, Satoshi; Kry, Stephen F; Lehmann, Joerg; Lye, Jessica; Monti, Angelo F; Nakamura, Mitsuhiro; Hurkmans, Coen; Clark, Catharine H

2017-12-01

Quality assurance (QA) for clinical trials is important. Lack of compliance can affect trial outcome. Clinical trial QA groups have different methods of dose distribution verification and analysis, all with the ultimate aim of ensuring trial compliance. The aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of different processes to inform future dosimetry audit reciprocity. Six clinical trial QA groups participated. Intensity modulated treatment plans were generated for three different cases. A range of 17 virtual 'measurements' were generated by introducing a variety of simulated perturbations (such as MLC position deviations, dose differences, gantry rotation errors, Gaussian noise) to three different treatment plan cases. Participants were blinded to the 'measured' data details. Each group analysed the datasets using their own gamma index (γ) technique and using standardised parameters for passing criteria, lower dose threshold, γ normalisation and global γ. For the same virtual 'measured' datasets, different results were observed using local techniques. For the standardised γ, differences in the percentage of points passing with γ audit has been an informative step in understanding differences in the verification of measured dose distributions between different clinical trial QA groups. This work lays the foundations for audit reciprocity between groups, particularly with more clinical trials being open to international recruitment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Discussion of Regulatory Guide 7.10, emphasizing the graded approach for establishing QA programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gordon, L.; Lake, W.H.

1983-01-01

To assist applicants in establishing an acceptable QA program to meet the programmatic elements of Appendix E to 10 CFR Part 71, Regulatory Guide 7.10 was developed. Regulatory Guide 7.10 is organized in three self-contained ANNEXES. Guidance applicable to designer/fabricators, to users, and users of radiographic devices are in separate annexes. QA programs for packaging to transport radioactive material are similar in regard to the various operations a licensee may be involved in. However, the appropriate QA/QC effort to verify the program elements may vary significantly. This is referred to as the graded approach. Appendix A in the guide addresses the graded approach

Revitalising Borders: Memory, Mobility and Materiality in a Latvian-Russian Border Region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aija Lulle

2016-04-01

Full Text Available In this paper I investigate how an international border is 'revitalised' in political discourses as opposed to lived experiences. Based on narratives I have collected from border dwellers on both sides of the current border between Latvia and Rus-sia and placing them into a broader context of current border debates, I analyse how geographical and social mobility is remembered from Soviet times and reworked in current contexts. I argue that while politically the border is revitalised through aban-doning and forgetting the Soviet past and through the idea of constant threats in the future, locally it is revitalised through giving a life to the abandoned: memories of 'vigorous times' in life-courses and material things. People who dwell at the border did not move themselves: the international border moved several times in one cen-tury leaving border dwellers' memories and significant places on the 'other' side. I focus on how these borders were crossed in the past, how they are (not crossed now, and the social meanings assigned to these circumstances. In the current con-text I follow diverse paths of reasoning that describe how the uneven flow of goods and people through the Latvian-Russian border shapes the power dynamic against which the people living in the border area used to reconstruct imaginaries of 'Soviet times' versus 'Europe' and 'vigorous times' versus decline.

Study on the correlation between VEGF and peritumoral edema and tumor border in astrocytoma by CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ye Yuxiang; Tan Siping; Liu Bo; Liu Guorui; Zhen Zhichao; Fan Miao

2004-01-01

Objective: To study the correlation between VEGF and peritumoral edema and tumor border in human astrocytoma, investigate the significance of its CT features in molecular-biology. Methods: The VEGF was examined by means of SP immunohistochemical technique in 52 cases of astrocytoma proved by pathology. The correlation of tumor VEGF with peritumoral edema, and tumor border was analyzed. Results: The peritumoral edema, tumor border and mass effect of astrocytoma was positively correlated with its VEGF. The VEGF increased with peritumoral edema and mass effect (P<0.01). VEGF were significantly higher in uncertain border group than those the clear border group (P<0.05), which VEGF were 69.2 ± 19.0. Conclusion: The over expression of VEGF obviously effect CT features in astrocytoma, such as peritumoral edema and tumor border

Non-dosimetric quality assurance for the three-dimensional radiation treatment planning systems using a multi-leaf collimator phantom

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tateoka, Kunihiko; Nagase, Daiki; Sato, Takahito; Shimizume, Kazunari; Ouchi, Atsushi; Nakata, Kensei; Hareyama, Masato

2008-01-01

Evaluation of errors and limitations in simulation software for three-dimensional radiation treatment systems (3D-RTPS) is an important issue. Non-dosimetric quality assurance (QA) of the simulation software of 3D-RTPS was evaluated by graphical displays of JAW and multi-leaf collimator (MLC) settings in a 3D-RTPS. The influence of observations made using the phantom depends on human errors and several parameters of the CT scan set, such as slice thickness and spacing, pixel size, partial volume effects and the reconstructed image orientation. We explored the methods that were minimally influenced by these errors and parameters. The QA phantom (MLC phantom) has been designed for checking a JAW and MLC settings in a 3D-RTPS is used for non-dosimetric QA. We analyzed the CT value of the boundary the structures of the MLC phantom. The relative CT value for thickness 1 mm slice in border of each structure body of MLC phantom respectively shows a decrease of about 2%, 4%, 10% by 2 mm, 3 mm and 5 mm. In case of thickness 5 mm slice, the mean deference of border of virtual radiation beams and phantom was 0.8 mm, and standard deviation of them was 0.6 mm. And the mean difference of border of a DRR image and phantom was 0.08 mm and the standard deviation of them 0.6 mm. In case of thickness 2 mm slice, the mean deference of border of virtual radiation beams and phantom was -0.18 mm, and standard deviation of them was 0.32 mm. And the mean difference of border of a DRR image and phantom was 0.87 mm and the standard deviation of them 0.54 mm. The result of the study is useful for improvement in a precision of non-dosimetric QA. Our method of non-dosimetric QA can minimize human error and influence of several parameters of the CT scan set. The MLC phantom is a useful tool in the QA of radiation therapy with application to 3D-RTPS, CT simulators, and virtual simulation packages with MLC display capabilities. (author)

Introduction: Borders in Translation and Intercultural Communication

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jonathan Evans

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The introduction to this special issue discusses the notion of border and its position in current scholarship in translation studies and intercultural communication. It then analyses ways in which borders can be useful for thinking, focusing particularly on Walter Mignolo’s notion of “border thinking”. It reviews how borders are viewed in both translation studies and intercultural communication and offers some possible directions for future research before introducing the papers in this special issue.

WE-AB-201-02: TPS Commissioning and QA: A Process Orientation and Application of Control Charts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharpe, M.

2015-01-01

Treatment planning systems (TPS) are a cornerstone of modern radiation therapy. Errors in their commissioning or use can have a devastating impact on many patients. To support safe and high quality care, medical physicists must conduct efficient and proper commissioning, good clinical integration, and ongoing quality assurance (QA) of the TPS. AAPM Task Group 53 and related publications have served as seminal benchmarks for TPS commissioning and QA over the past two decades. Over the same time, continuing innovations have made the TPS even more complex and more central to the clinical process. Medical goals are now expressed in terms of the dose and margins around organs and tissues that are delineated from multiple imaging modalities (CT, MR and PET); and even temporally resolved (i.e., 4D) imaging. This information is passed on to optimization algorithms to establish accelerator movements that are programmed directly for IMRT, VMAT and stereotactic treatments. These advances have made commissioning and QA of the TPS much more challenging. This education session reviews up-to-date experience and guidance on this subject; including the recently published AAPM Medical Physics Practice Guideline (MPPG) #5 “Commissioning and QA of Treatment Planning Dose Calculations: Megavoltage Photon and Electron Beams”. Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities (Greg Salomons) This session will provide some key background and review publications describing prominent incidents relating to TPS commissioning and QA. Traditional approaches have been hardware and feature oriented. They aim to establish a functional configuration and establish specifications for regular testing of features (like dose calculation) to assure stable operation and detect failures. With the advent of more complex systems, more patient-specific testing has also been adopted. A number of actual TPS defects will be presented along with heuristics for identifying similar

WE-AB-201-02: TPS Commissioning and QA: A Process Orientation and Application of Control Charts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sharpe, M. [The Princess Margaret Cancer Centre - UHN (Canada)

2015-06-15

Treatment planning systems (TPS) are a cornerstone of modern radiation therapy. Errors in their commissioning or use can have a devastating impact on many patients. To support safe and high quality care, medical physicists must conduct efficient and proper commissioning, good clinical integration, and ongoing quality assurance (QA) of the TPS. AAPM Task Group 53 and related publications have served as seminal benchmarks for TPS commissioning and QA over the past two decades. Over the same time, continuing innovations have made the TPS even more complex and more central to the clinical process. Medical goals are now expressed in terms of the dose and margins around organs and tissues that are delineated from multiple imaging modalities (CT, MR and PET); and even temporally resolved (i.e., 4D) imaging. This information is passed on to optimization algorithms to establish accelerator movements that are programmed directly for IMRT, VMAT and stereotactic treatments. These advances have made commissioning and QA of the TPS much more challenging. This education session reviews up-to-date experience and guidance on this subject; including the recently published AAPM Medical Physics Practice Guideline (MPPG) #5 “Commissioning and QA of Treatment Planning Dose Calculations: Megavoltage Photon and Electron Beams”. Treatment Planning System Commissioning and QA: Challenges and Opportunities (Greg Salomons) This session will provide some key background and review publications describing prominent incidents relating to TPS commissioning and QA. Traditional approaches have been hardware and feature oriented. They aim to establish a functional configuration and establish specifications for regular testing of features (like dose calculation) to assure stable operation and detect failures. With the advent of more complex systems, more patient-specific testing has also been adopted. A number of actual TPS defects will be presented along with heuristics for identifying similar

Border mythology: Turner and modernity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jorge E. Brenna B.

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Modernity has been creating spaces, new boundaries and borders, as metaphysical, mythological and symbolic marks of physical and imaginary territories. Modern space and its borders are metaphors, boundaries that are created, walls that rise to identify with some and categorize others. In this short paper we want to approach the problem of the transformation of the idea of border (geographical, cultural, symbolic, etc., for a reflection on the transformations of that civilized obsession called border. The border has always been a reference in facing the identities, names, symbols, different imaginary: it is more confrontational line between two otherness. From the previous framework, we reflect on Turnerian mythology, as we believe that behind the creation of the imagination of the northern border is the mythical vision of the American frontier as ideological canon that explains and confirms the presence of the white race in a border re–made in the image and likeness of the “American Dream”. Frederick Turner’s reflection on the role of the frontier in American history is not only the study of the importance of progress towards the West but –even more so, is the analysis of meaning that had the American frontier as a historical process that ended in 1893, as Turner said, but rather extended into the twentieth century and continues to constantly shaping the process of territorialization of the border.

Refinement of MLC modeling improves commercial QA dosimetry system for SRS and SBRT patient-specific QA.

Science.gov (United States)

Hillman, Yair; Kim, Josh; Chetty, Indrin; Wen, Ning

2018-04-01

dosimetry, MLC modeling, and inhomogeneity corrections in the beam model for SRS/SBRT QA. The improvements noted in this study, and further collaborations between clinical physicists and the vendor to refine the M3D beam model could enable M3D to become a premier SRS/SBRT QA tool. © 2018 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

SU-G-206-01: A Fully Automated CT Tool to Facilitate Phantom Image QA for Quantitative Imaging in Clinical Trials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wahi-Anwar, M; Lo, P; Kim, H; Brown, M; McNitt-Gray, M

2016-01-01

Purpose: The use of Quantitative Imaging (QI) methods in Clinical Trials requires both verification of adherence to a specified protocol and an assessment of scanner performance under that protocol, which are currently accomplished manually. This work introduces automated phantom identification and image QA measure extraction towards a fully-automated CT phantom QA system to perform these functions and facilitate the use of Quantitative Imaging methods in clinical trials. Methods: This study used a retrospective cohort of CT phantom scans from existing clinical trial protocols - totaling 84 phantoms, across 3 phantom types using various scanners and protocols. The QA system identifies the input phantom scan through an ensemble of threshold-based classifiers. Each classifier - corresponding to a phantom type - contains a template slice, which is compared to the input scan on a slice-by-slice basis, resulting in slice-wise similarity metric values for each slice compared. Pre-trained thresholds (established from a training set of phantom images matching the template type) are used to filter the similarity distribution, and the slice with the most optimal local mean similarity, with local neighboring slices meeting the threshold requirement, is chosen as the classifier’s matched slice (if it existed). The classifier with the matched slice possessing the most optimal local mean similarity is then chosen as the ensemble’s best matching slice. If the best matching slice exists, image QA algorithm and ROIs corresponding to the matching classifier extracted the image QA measures. Results: Automated phantom identification performed with 84.5% accuracy and 88.8% sensitivity on 84 phantoms. Automated image quality measurements (following standard protocol) on identified water phantoms (n=35) matched user QA decisions with 100% accuracy. Conclusion: We provide a fullyautomated CT phantom QA system consistent with manual QA performance. Further work will include parallel

SU-G-206-01: A Fully Automated CT Tool to Facilitate Phantom Image QA for Quantitative Imaging in Clinical Trials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wahi-Anwar, M; Lo, P; Kim, H; Brown, M; McNitt-Gray, M [UCLA Radiological Sciences, Los Angeles, CA (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: The use of Quantitative Imaging (QI) methods in Clinical Trials requires both verification of adherence to a specified protocol and an assessment of scanner performance under that protocol, which are currently accomplished manually. This work introduces automated phantom identification and image QA measure extraction towards a fully-automated CT phantom QA system to perform these functions and facilitate the use of Quantitative Imaging methods in clinical trials. Methods: This study used a retrospective cohort of CT phantom scans from existing clinical trial protocols - totaling 84 phantoms, across 3 phantom types using various scanners and protocols. The QA system identifies the input phantom scan through an ensemble of threshold-based classifiers. Each classifier - corresponding to a phantom type - contains a template slice, which is compared to the input scan on a slice-by-slice basis, resulting in slice-wise similarity metric values for each slice compared. Pre-trained thresholds (established from a training set of phantom images matching the template type) are used to filter the similarity distribution, and the slice with the most optimal local mean similarity, with local neighboring slices meeting the threshold requirement, is chosen as the classifier’s matched slice (if it existed). The classifier with the matched slice possessing the most optimal local mean similarity is then chosen as the ensemble’s best matching slice. If the best matching slice exists, image QA algorithm and ROIs corresponding to the matching classifier extracted the image QA measures. Results: Automated phantom identification performed with 84.5% accuracy and 88.8% sensitivity on 84 phantoms. Automated image quality measurements (following standard protocol) on identified water phantoms (n=35) matched user QA decisions with 100% accuracy. Conclusion: We provide a fullyautomated CT phantom QA system consistent with manual QA performance. Further work will include parallel

Quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) of image guided radiotherapy (IGRT). Osaka Rosai Hospital experience

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsuboi, Kazuki; Yagi, Masayuki; Fujiwara, Kanta

2013-01-01

The linear accelerator with image guided radiation therapy (IGRT) was introduced in May 2010. We performed the verification of the IGRT system, id est (i.e.), acceptance test and our original performance test and confirmed the acceptability for clinical use. We also performed daily QA/QC program before the start of treatment. One-year experience of QA/QC program showed excellent stability of IGRT function compared with our old machine. We further hope to establish the more useful management system and QA/QC program. (author)

QA [Quality Assurance] role in advanced energy activities: Towards an /open quotes/orthodox/close quotes/ Quality Program: Canonizing the traditions at Fermilab

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bodnarczuk, M.W.

1988-02-01

After a brief description of the goal of Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) this paper poses and answers three questions related to Quality Assurance (QA) at the Laboratory. First, what is the difference between 'orthodox' and 'unorthodox' QA and is there a place for 'orthodox' QA at a laboratory like Fermilab? Second, are the deeper philosophical and cultural frameworks of high-energy physics acommodating or antagonistic to an 'orthodox' QA Program? Finally, faced with the task of developing an institutional QA program for Fermilab where does one begin? The paper is based on experience with the on-going development and implementation of an institutional QA Program at Fermilab. 10 refs

Contributions of gastronomy for developing border tourist destinations: A case study

OpenAIRE

López-Guzman, Tomás; Orgaz-Aguera, Francisco; Ribeiro, Manuel Alector

2018-01-01

The tourism activity promotes socioeconomic development and conservation of the resources of a destination. In developing border areas, tourism is part of the engine of its economy being exploited through different historical, cultural and natural resources near the border. The gastronomy is among these cultural resources. The purpose of this research was threefold: first analyze the strengths of gastronomy in the Dominican-Haitian border; second, to analyze the motivations of foreign tourist...

Basic concept of QA for advanced technologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mijnheer, Ben

2008-01-01

The lecture was structured as follows: (1) Rationale for accurate dose determination; (2) Existing recommendations and guidance; (3) Challenges within the current QA paradigm; (4) New paradigm adopted by AAPM TG 100; and (5) Application of new paradigm to IMRT. Attention was paid, i.a., to major accidents in radiotherapy such as Epinal-1. (P.A.)

SU-E-T-760: Tolerance Design for Site-Specific Range in Proton Patient QA Process Using the Six Sigma Model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lah, J; Shin, D; Kim, G

2015-01-01

Purpose: To show how tolerance design and tolerancing approaches can be used to predict and improve the site-specific range in patient QA process in implementing the Six Sigma. Methods: In this study, patient QA plans were selected according to 6 site-treatment groups: head &neck (94 cases), spine (76 cases), lung (89 cases), liver (53 cases), pancreas (55 cases), and prostate (121 cases), treated between 2007 and 2013. We evaluated a model of the Six Sigma that determines allowable deviations in design parameters and process variables in patient-specific QA, where possible, tolerance may be loosened, then customized if it necessary to meet the functional requirements. A Six Sigma problem-solving methodology is known as DMAIC phases, which are used stand for: Define a problem or improvement opportunity, Measure process performance, Analyze the process to determine the root causes of poor performance, Improve the process by fixing root causes, Control the improved process to hold the gains. Results: The process capability for patient-specific range QA is 0.65 with only ±1 mm of tolerance criteria. Our results suggested the tolerance level of ±2–3 mm for prostate and liver cases and ±5 mm for lung cases. We found that customized tolerance between calculated and measured range reduce that patient QA plan failure and almost all sites had failure rates less than 1%. The average QA time also improved from 2 hr to less than 1 hr for all including planning and converting process, depth-dose measurement and evaluation. Conclusion: The objective of tolerance design is to achieve optimization beyond that obtained through QA process improvement and statistical analysis function detailing to implement a Six Sigma capable design

SU-E-T-760: Tolerance Design for Site-Specific Range in Proton Patient QA Process Using the Six Sigma Model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lah, J [Myongji Hospital, Goyang, Gyeonggi-do (Korea, Republic of); Shin, D [National Cancer Center, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do (Korea, Republic of); Kim, G [University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: To show how tolerance design and tolerancing approaches can be used to predict and improve the site-specific range in patient QA process in implementing the Six Sigma. Methods: In this study, patient QA plans were selected according to 6 site-treatment groups: head &neck (94 cases), spine (76 cases), lung (89 cases), liver (53 cases), pancreas (55 cases), and prostate (121 cases), treated between 2007 and 2013. We evaluated a model of the Six Sigma that determines allowable deviations in design parameters and process variables in patient-specific QA, where possible, tolerance may be loosened, then customized if it necessary to meet the functional requirements. A Six Sigma problem-solving methodology is known as DMAIC phases, which are used stand for: Define a problem or improvement opportunity, Measure process performance, Analyze the process to determine the root causes of poor performance, Improve the process by fixing root causes, Control the improved process to hold the gains. Results: The process capability for patient-specific range QA is 0.65 with only ±1 mm of tolerance criteria. Our results suggested the tolerance level of ±2–3 mm for prostate and liver cases and ±5 mm for lung cases. We found that customized tolerance between calculated and measured range reduce that patient QA plan failure and almost all sites had failure rates less than 1%. The average QA time also improved from 2 hr to less than 1 hr for all including planning and converting process, depth-dose measurement and evaluation. Conclusion: The objective of tolerance design is to achieve optimization beyond that obtained through QA process improvement and statistical analysis function detailing to implement a Six Sigma capable design.

The Border Multiple

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

of European borders by looking at border practices in the light of the mobility turn, and thus as dynamic, multiple, diverse and best expressed in everyday experiences of people living at and with borders, rather than focusing on static territorial divisions between states and regions at geopolitical level...

Improving the Validity of Squeeze Film Air-Damping Model of MEMS Devices with Border Effect

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cheng Bai

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Evaluation of squeezed film air damping is critical in the design and control of dynamic MEMS devices. The published squeezed film air damping models are generally derived from the analytical solutions of Reynolds equation or its other modified forms under the supposition of trivial pressure boundary conditions on the peripheral borders. These treatments ignoring the border effect can not give faithful result for structure with smaller air venting gap or the double-gimbaled structure in which the inner frame and outer one affect the air venting. In this paper, we use Green’s function to solve the nonlinear Reynolds equation with inhomogeneous boundary conditions. For two typical normal motion cases of parallel plate, the analytical models of squeeze film damping force with border effect are established. The viscous and inertial losses with real values and image values acoustic impedance are all included in the model. These models reduced the time consumption while giving satisfactory result. Without multifield coupling analysis, the estimation of the dynamic behavior of MEMS device is also allowed, and the simulation of the system performance is more convenient.

SU-E-T-422: Correlation Between 2D Passing Rates and 3D Dose Differences for Pretreatment VMAT QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jin, X; Xie, C

2014-01-01

Purpose: Volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) quality assurance (QA) is typically using QA methods and action levels taken from fixedbeam intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) QA methods. However, recent studies demonstrated that there is no correlation between the percent gamma passing rate (%GP) and the magnitude of dose discrepancy between the planned dose and the actual delivered dose for IMRT. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether %GP is correlated with clinical dosimetric difference for VMAT. Methods: Twenty nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) patients treated with dual-arc simultaneous integrated boost VMAT and 20 esophageal cancer patients treated with one-arc VMAT were enrolled in this study. Pretreatment VMAT QA was performed by a 3D diode array ArcCheck. Acceptance criteria of 2%/2mm, 3%/3mm, and 4%/4mm were applied for 2D %GP. Dose values below 10% of the per-measured normalization maximum dose were ignored.Mean DVH values obtained from 3DVH software and TPS were calculated and percentage dose differences were calculated. Statistical correlation between %GP and percent dose difference was studied by using Pearson correlation. Results: The %GP for criteria 2%/2mm, 3%/3mm, and 4%/4mm were 82.33±4.45, 93.47±2.31, 97.13±2.41, respectively. Dose differences calculated from 3DVH and TPS for beam isocenter, mean dose of PTV, maximum dose of PTV, D2 of PTV and D98 of PTV were -1.04±3.24, -0.74±1.71, 2.92±3.62, 0.89±3.29, -1.46±1.97, respectively. No correction were found between %GP and dose differences. Conclusion: There are weak correlations between the 2D %GP and dose differences calculated from 3DVH. The %GP acceptance criteria of 3%/3mm usually applied for pretreatment QA of IMRT and VMAT is not indicating strong clinical correlation with 3D dose difference. 3D dose reconstructions on patient anatomy may be necessary for physicist to predict the accuracy of delivered dose for VMAT QA

MO-D-213-05: Sensitivity of Routine IMRT QA Metrics to Couch and Collimator Rotations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alaei, P

2015-01-01

Purpose: To assess the sensitivity of gamma index and other IMRT QA metrics to couch and collimator rotations. Methods: Two brain IMRT plans with couch and/or collimator rotations in one or more of the fields were evaluated using the IBA MatriXX ion chamber array and its associated software (OmniPro-I’mRT). The plans were subjected to routine QA by 1) Creating a composite planar dose in the treatment planning system (TPS) with the couch/collimator rotations and 2) Creating the planar dose after “zeroing” the rotations. Plan deliveries to MatriXX were performed with all rotations set to zero on a Varian 21ex linear accelerator. This in effect created TPS-created planar doses with an induced rotation error. Point dose measurements for the delivered plans were also performed in a solid water phantom. Results: The IMRT QA of the plans with couch and collimator rotations showed clear discrepancies in the planar dose and 2D dose profile overlays. The gamma analysis, however, did pass with the criteria of 3%/3mm (for 95% of the points), albeit with a lower percentage pass rate, when one or two of the fields had a rotation. Similar results were obtained with tighter criteria of 2%/2mm. Other QA metrics such as percentage difference or distance-to-agreement (DTA) histograms produced similar results. The point dose measurements did not obviously indicate the error due to location of dose measurement (on the central axis) and the size of the ion chamber used (0.6 cc). Conclusion: Relying on Gamma analysis, percentage difference, or DTA to determine the passing of an IMRT QA may miss critical errors in the plan delivery due to couch/collimator rotations. A combination of analyses for composite QA plans, or per-beam analysis, would detect these errors

Border installations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lenaerts, Koen

1988-01-01

Border installations cover all nuclear plants located near the border with a neighbouring state. However, the actual distance depends on the context. The distance can vary considerably. Also the prohibition on siting near a heavily populated area also defines the actual distance variably. The distance criteria may be modified by other factors of topography, prevailing climate and so on. Various examples which illustrate the problems are given. For example, the Creys-Melville nuclear power plant is 80km from Geneva and the Cattonam installation is 12km from the French border with Luxembourg and Germany. The Cattenom case is explained and the legal position within the European Institutions is discussed. The French licensing procedures for nuclear power stations are described with special reference to the Cattenom power plant. Border installations are discussed in the context of European Community Law and Public International Law. (U.K.)

Crossing borders via mental bridges

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Keil, Dirk

The project studies cross-border regional integration in Europe drawing on the example of the emerging Danish-German Femern Belt Region. It focuses on cross-border networking within public administration as part of regional integra- tion. My central question is how national-cultural differences...... influence coopera- tion, coordination and collaboration in administrative cross-border networks. In this connection the project asks after the perception of regional integration seen from the different national backgrounds. The research concentrates on the group of decision makers within the field of public...... administration, and in specific on the attempt to initiate and promote cross-border regional integration via the building of mental bridges between Danish and German parts of the Femern Belt Region. Here one of the first projects aiming primarily at building mental bridges in the Femern Belt Region...

Enriching consumer health vocabulary through mining a social Q&A site: A similarity-based approach.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Zhe; Chen, Zhiwei; Oh, Sanghee; Hou, Jinghui; Bian, Jiang

2017-05-01

The widely known vocabulary gap between health consumers and healthcare professionals hinders information seeking and health dialogue of consumers on end-user health applications. The Open Access and Collaborative Consumer Health Vocabulary (OAC CHV), which contains health-related terms used by lay consumers, has been created to bridge such a gap. Specifically, the OAC CHV facilitates consumers' health information retrieval by enabling consumer-facing health applications to translate between professional language and consumer friendly language. To keep up with the constantly evolving medical knowledge and language use, new terms need to be identified and added to the OAC CHV. User-generated content on social media, including social question and answer (social Q&A) sites, afford us an enormous opportunity in mining consumer health terms. Existing methods of identifying new consumer terms from text typically use ad-hoc lexical syntactic patterns and human review. Our study extends an existing method by extracting n-grams from a social Q&A textual corpus and representing them with a rich set of contextual and syntactic features. Using K-means clustering, our method, simiTerm, was able to identify terms that are both contextually and syntactically similar to the existing OAC CHV terms. We tested our method on social Q&A corpora on two disease domains: diabetes and cancer. Our method outperformed three baseline ranking methods. A post-hoc qualitative evaluation by human experts further validated that our method can effectively identify meaningful new consumer terms on social Q&A. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Quality system implementation for nuclear analytical techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2004-01-01

The international effort (UNIDO, ILAC, BIPM, etc.) to establish a functional infrastructure for metrology and accreditation in many developing countries needs to be complemented by assistance to implement high quality practices and high quality output by service providers and producers in the respective countries. Knowledge of how to approach QA systems that justify a formal accreditation is available in only a few countries and the dissemination of know how and development of skills is needed bottom up from the working level of laboratories and institutes. Awareness building, convincing of management, introduction of good management practices, technical expertise and good documentation will lead to the creation of a quality culture that assures a sustainability and inherent development of quality practices as a prerequisite of economic success. Quality assurance and quality control can be used as a valuable management tool and is a prerequisite for international trade and information exchange. This publication tries to assist quality managers, Laboratory Managers and staff involved in setting up a QA/QC system in a nuclear analytical laboratory to take appropriate action to start and complete the necessary steps for a successful quality system for ultimate national accreditation. This guidebook contributes to a better understanding of the basic ideas behind ISO/IEC 17025, the international standard for 'General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories'. It provides basic information and detailed explanation about the establishment of the QC system in analytical and nuclear analytical laboratories. It is a proper training material for training of trainers and makes managers with QC management and implementation familiar. This training material aims to facilitate the implementation of internationally accepted quality principles and to promote attempts by Member States' laboratories to obtain accreditation for nuclear analytical

Metrics for border management systems.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Duggan, Ruth Ann

2009-07-01

There are as many unique and disparate manifestations of border systems as there are borders to protect. Border Security is a highly complex system analysis problem with global, regional, national, sector, and border element dimensions for land, water, and air domains. The complexity increases with the multiple, and sometimes conflicting, missions for regulating the flow of people and goods across borders, while securing them for national security. These systems include frontier border surveillance, immigration management and customs functions that must operate in a variety of weather, terrain, operational conditions, cultural constraints, and geopolitical contexts. As part of a Laboratory Directed Research and Development Project 08-684 (Year 1), the team developed a reference framework to decompose this complex system into international/regional, national, and border elements levels covering customs, immigration, and border policing functions. This generalized architecture is relevant to both domestic and international borders. As part of year two of this project (09-1204), the team determined relevant relative measures to better understand border management performance. This paper describes those relative metrics and how they can be used to improve border management systems.

40 CFR 98.164 - Monitoring and QA/QC requirements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Methods for Instrumental Determination of Carbon, Hydrogen, and Nitrogen in Petroleum Products and... Determination of Carbon, Hydrogen, and Nitrogen in Laboratory Samples of Coal (incorporated by reference, see... (CONTINUED) MANDATORY GREENHOUSE GAS REPORTING Hydrogen Production § 98.164 Monitoring and QA/QC requirements...

SU-F-T-182: A Stochastic Approach to Daily QA Tolerances On Spot Properties for Proton Pencil Beam Scanning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

St James, S; Bloch, C; Saini, J

2016-01-01

Purpose: Proton pencil beam scanning is used clinically across the United States. There are no current guidelines on tolerances for daily QA specific to pencil beam scanning, specifically related to the individual spot properties (spot width). Using a stochastic method to determine tolerances has the potential to optimize tolerances on individual spots and decrease the number of false positive failures in daily QA. Individual and global spot tolerances were evaluated. Methods: As part of daily QA for proton pencil beam scanning, a field of 16 spots (corresponding to 8 energies) is measured using an array of ion chambers (Matrixx, IBA). Each individual spot is fit to two Gaussian functions (x,y). The spot width (σ) in × and y are recorded (32 parameters). Results from the daily QA were retrospectively analyzed for 100 days of data. The deviations of the spot widths were histogrammed and fit to a Gaussian function. The stochastic spot tolerance was taken to be the mean ± 3σ. Using these results, tolerances were developed and tested against known deviations in spot width. Results: The individual spot tolerances derived with the stochastic method decreased in 30/32 instances. Using the previous tolerances (± 20% width), the daily QA would have detected 0/20 days of the deviation. Using a tolerance of any 6 spots failing the stochastic tolerance, 18/20 days of the deviation would have been detected. Conclusion: Using a stochastic method we have been able to decrease daily tolerances on the spot widths for 30/32 spot widths measured. The stochastic tolerances can lead to detection of deviations that previously would have been picked up on monthly QA and missed by daily QA. This method could be easily extended for evaluation of other QA parameters in proton spot scanning.

Improvement in QA protocol for TLD based personnel monitoring laboratory in last five year

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rakesh, R.B.

2018-01-01

The Quality Assurance (QA) in Personnel monitoring (PM) is a tool to assess the performance of PM laboratories and reliability of dose estimation with respect to standards laid down by international agencies such as IAEA (ISO trumpet curve), IEC, ANSI etc. Reliable personal dose estimation is a basic requirement for radiation protection planning as well as decision making continuous improvement in radiation protection is inherent in radiation protection practices which is highly dependent on accuracy and reliability of the monitoring data. Experience based evolution of Quality control (QC) measures as well as Quality assurance (QA) protocol are two important aspects towards continuous improvement in accuracy and reliability of personnel monitoring results. The paper describes improvement in QC measures and QA protocols initiated during the last five years which led to improvement in the quality of PM services

QA [quality assurance] at Fermilab; the hermeneutics of NQA-1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bodnarczuk, M.

1988-06-01

This paper opens with a brief overview of the purpose of Fermilab and a historical synopsis of the development and current status of quality assurance (QA) at the Laboratory. The paper subsequently addresses some of the more important aspects of interpreting the national standard ANSI/ASME NQA-1 in pure research environments like Fermilab. Highlights of this discussion include, what is hermeneutics and why are hermeneutical considerations relevant for QA, a critical analysis of NQA-1 focussing on teleological aspects of the standard, a description of the hermeneutical approach to NQA-1 used at Fermilab which attempts to capture the true intents of the document without violating the deeply ingrained traditions of quality standards and peer review that have been foundational to the overall success of the paradigms of high-energy physics

QA (quality assurance) at Fermilab; the hermeneutics of NQA-1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bodnarczuk, M.

1988-06-01

This paper opens with a brief overview of the purpose of Fermilab and a historical synopsis of the development and current status of quality assurance (QA) at the Laboratory. The paper subsequently addresses some of the more important aspects of interpreting the national standard ANSI/ASME NQA-1 in pure research environments like Fermilab. Highlights of this discussion include, what is hermeneutics and why are hermeneutical considerations relevant for QA, a critical analysis of NQA-1 focussing on teleological aspects of the standard, a description of the hermeneutical approach to NQA-1 used at Fermilab which attempts to capture the true intents of the document without violating the deeply ingrained traditions of quality standards and peer review that have been foundational to the overall success of the paradigms of high-energy physics.

Intensity-modulated radiation therapy: dynamic MLC (DMLC) therapy, multisegment therapy and tomotherapy. An example of QA in DMLC therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Webb, S.

1998-01-01

Intensity-modulated radiation therapy will make a quantum leap in tumor control. It is the new radiation therapy for the new millennium. The major methods to achieve IMRT are: 1. Dynamic multileaf collimator (DMLC) therapy, 2. multisegment therapy, and 3. tomotherapy. The principles of these 3 techniques are briefly reviewed. Each technique presents unique QA issues which are outlined. As an example this paper will present the results of a recent new study of an important QA concern in DMLC therapy. (orig.) [de

mosaicQA - A General Approach to Facilitate Basic Data Quality Assurance for Epidemiological Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Bialke, Martin; Rau, Henriette; Schwaneberg, Thea; Walk, Rene; Bahls, Thomas; Hoffmann, Wolfgang

2017-05-29

Epidemiological studies are based on a considerable amount of personal, medical and socio-economic data. To answer research questions with reliable results, epidemiological research projects face the challenge of providing high quality data. Consequently, gathered data has to be reviewed continuously during the data collection period. This article describes the development of the mosaicQA-library for non-statistical experts consisting of a set of reusable R functions to provide support for a basic data quality assurance for a wide range of application scenarios in epidemiological research. To generate valid quality reports for various scenarios and data sets, a general and flexible development approach was needed. As a first step, a set of quality-related questions, targeting quality aspects on a more general level, was identified. The next step included the design of specific R-scripts to produce proper reports for metric and categorical data. For more flexibility, the third development step focussed on the generalization of the developed R-scripts, e.g. extracting characteristics and parameters. As a last step the generic characteristics of the developed R functionalities and generated reports have been evaluated using different metric and categorical datasets. The developed mosaicQA-library generates basic data quality reports for multivariate input data. If needed, more detailed results for single-variable data, including definition of units, variables, descriptions, code lists and categories of qualified missings, can easily be produced. The mosaicQA-library enables researchers to generate reports for various kinds of metric and categorical data without the need for computational or scripting knowledge. At the moment, the library focusses on the data structure quality and supports the assessment of several quality indicators, including frequency, distribution and plausibility of research variables as well as the occurrence of missing and extreme values. To

40 CFR 98.414 - Monitoring and QA/QC requirements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 20 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Monitoring and QA/QC requirements. 98.414 Section 98.414 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) MANDATORY GREENHOUSE GAS REPORTING Suppliers of Industrial Greenhouse Gases § 98.414 Monitoring...

40 CFR 98.214 - Monitoring and QA/QC requirements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 20 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Monitoring and QA/QC requirements. 98.214 Section 98.214 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS... standard method or other enhanced industry consensus standard method published by an industry consensus...

A community Q&A for HEP Software and Computing ?

CERN Multimedia

CERN. Geneva

2016-01-01

How often do you use StackOverflow or ServerFault to find information in your daily work? Would you be interested in a community Q&A site for HEP Software and Computing, for instance a dedicated StackExchange site? I looked into this question...

Q&A: Grace Anne Koppel, Living Well with COPD

Science.gov (United States)

... their own lives back is the most rewarding thing we have ever done. Read More "The Challenge of COPD" Articles Q&A: Grace Anne Koppel, Living Well with COPD / What is COPD? / What Causes COPD? / Getting Tested / Am I at Risk? / COPD Quiz Fall ...

Measuring cross-border regional integration with composite indicators

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Makkonen, Teemu

2016-01-01

Earlier quantitative studies on cross-border regional integration processes have commonly neglected science, technology and innovation (STI) indicators: even the most notable example of a composite indicator approach to measuring cross-border regional integration, i.e. the Oresund index, lacks...... a sub-category for STI. Consequently, by ignoring cross-border innovation and knowledge flows, the Oresund integration index fails to take into account one of the most important drivers of economic growth in cross-border regions. Therefore, a new composite STI indicator (sub-category) was introduced......-border regions....

The GSPC: Newest Franchise in al-Qa'ida's Global Jihad

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Boudali, Lianne K

2007-01-01

.... Some observers have speculated that North Africa may be the next safe haven for al Qa ida, and that European countries may face a greater risk of attack if Algerian terrorist groups expand their base...

MO-PIS-Exhibit Hall-01: Tools for TG-142 Linac Imaging QA I

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clements, M; Wiesmeyer, M

2014-01-01

Partners in Solutions is an exciting new program in which AAPM partners with our vendors to present practical “hands-on” information about the equipment and software systems that we use in our clinics. The therapy topic this year is solutions for TG-142 recommendations for linear accelerator imaging QA. Note that the sessions are being held in a special purpose room built on the Exhibit Hall Floor, to encourage further interaction with the vendors. Automated Imaging QA for TG-142 with RIT Presentation Time: 2:45 – 3:15 PM This presentation will discuss software tools for automated imaging QA and phantom analysis for TG-142. All modalities used in radiation oncology will be discussed, including CBCT, planar kV imaging, planar MV imaging, and imaging and treatment coordinate coincidence. Vendor supplied phantoms as well as a variety of third-party phantoms will be shown, along with appropriate analyses, proper phantom setup procedures and scanning settings, and a discussion of image quality metrics. Tools for process automation will be discussed which include: RIT Cognition (machine learning for phantom image identification), RIT Cerberus (automated file system monitoring and searching), and RunQueueC (batch processing of multiple images). In addition to phantom analysis, tools for statistical tracking, trending, and reporting will be discussed. This discussion will include an introduction to statistical process control, a valuable tool in analyzing data and determining appropriate tolerances. An Introduction to TG-142 Imaging QA Using Standard Imaging Products Presentation Time: 3:15 – 3:45 PM Medical Physicists want to understand the logic behind TG-142 Imaging QA. What is often missing is a firm understanding of the connections between the EPID and OBI phantom imaging, the software “algorithms” that calculate the QA metrics, the establishment of baselines, and the analysis and interpretation of the results. The goal of our brief presentation will be to

MO-PIS-Exhibit Hall-01: Tools for TG-142 Linac Imaging QA I

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Clements, M [RAD Image, Colorado Springs, CO (United States); Wiesmeyer, M [Standard Imaging, Inc., Middleton, WI (United States)

2014-06-15

Partners in Solutions is an exciting new program in which AAPM partners with our vendors to present practical “hands-on” information about the equipment and software systems that we use in our clinics. The therapy topic this year is solutions for TG-142 recommendations for linear accelerator imaging QA. Note that the sessions are being held in a special purpose room built on the Exhibit Hall Floor, to encourage further interaction with the vendors. Automated Imaging QA for TG-142 with RIT Presentation Time: 2:45 – 3:15 PM This presentation will discuss software tools for automated imaging QA and phantom analysis for TG-142. All modalities used in radiation oncology will be discussed, including CBCT, planar kV imaging, planar MV imaging, and imaging and treatment coordinate coincidence. Vendor supplied phantoms as well as a variety of third-party phantoms will be shown, along with appropriate analyses, proper phantom setup procedures and scanning settings, and a discussion of image quality metrics. Tools for process automation will be discussed which include: RIT Cognition (machine learning for phantom image identification), RIT Cerberus (automated file system monitoring and searching), and RunQueueC (batch processing of multiple images). In addition to phantom analysis, tools for statistical tracking, trending, and reporting will be discussed. This discussion will include an introduction to statistical process control, a valuable tool in analyzing data and determining appropriate tolerances. An Introduction to TG-142 Imaging QA Using Standard Imaging Products Presentation Time: 3:15 – 3:45 PM Medical Physicists want to understand the logic behind TG-142 Imaging QA. What is often missing is a firm understanding of the connections between the EPID and OBI phantom imaging, the software “algorithms” that calculate the QA metrics, the establishment of baselines, and the analysis and interpretation of the results. The goal of our brief presentation will be to

40 CFR 98.394 - Monitoring and QA/QC requirements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 20 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Monitoring and QA/QC requirements. 98... by a consensus-based standards organization exists, such a method shall be used. Consensus-based... (NAESB). (ii) Where no appropriate standard method developed by a consensus-based standards organization...

40 CFR 98.424 - Monitoring and QA/QC requirements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 20 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Monitoring and QA/QC requirements. 98... published by a consensus-based standards organization if such a method exists. Consensus-based standards...). (ii) Where no appropriate standard method developed by a consensus-based standards organization exists...

Experience in the application of the IAEA QA code and guides to the manufacture of nuclear reactor components

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dutta, N.G.; Mankame, M.A.; Kulkarni, P.G.; Vijayaraghavan, R.; Balaramamoorthy, K.

1985-01-01

India has made considerable progress in the indigenous manufacture of 'Quality' nuclear reactor components. All activities associated with the development of atomic energy from mining of strategic minerals to the design, construction, and operation of nuclear power plants including supporting research and development efforts are mainly carried out by the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE). Through the sustained efforts of DAE, the major industries, both in public and private sectors supplying nuclear components have now adopted the practice of systematic quality assurance (QA). The stringent QA steps are mandatory for achieving the desired quality in the manufactured nuclear components. Control blades for BWRs are now indigenously manufactured by the Atomic Fuels Division (AFD) of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), a constituent unit of DAE. For the Project Dhruva, a 100 MW(th) nuclear reactor, constructed at BARC, Trombay, Bombay, an independent cell was formed to carry out quality audit on the manufactured components. The components were designed, fabricated, inspected and tested to the desired quality level. The QA activities were enforced from the procurement of raw materials to the audit of the completed component for monitoring the manufacturer's continued compliance with the design. The major components of Dhruva, viz. calandria, end-shield, coolant channels, heat exchangers, etc., were covered under these quality audit activities. The paper highlights the QA programme implemented in the manufacture of control blades for BWRs, illustrated with a typical example, the end-shield for Dhruva. The authors consider that the recommendations and guidelines provided in the documents 50-SG-QA3, 50-SG-QA8, 50-SG-QA10, etc., were useful in providing a formal and systematic framework, under which various quality assurance functions have been carried out

Characterization of a prototype MR-compatible Delta4 QA-system in a 1.5 tesla MR-linac

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Vries, Wilfred J H; Seravalli, Enrica; Houweling, Anette; Woodings, Simon J; van Rooij, Rob; Wolthaus, Jochem W H; Lagendijk, JJW; Raaymakers, Bas W

2018-01-01

To perform patient plan-quality assurance (QA) on the newly installed MR-Linac (MRL) there was a need for having an MR-compatible QA-device. An MR compatible device (MR-Delta4) was developed together with Scandidos AB (Uppsala, Sweden). The basic characteristics of the detector response

Analytical method of waste allocation in waste management systems: Concept, method and case study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bergeron, Francis C., E-mail: francis.b.c@videotron.ca

2017-01-15

Waste is not a rejected item to dispose anymore but increasingly a secondary resource to exploit, influencing waste allocation among treatment operations in a waste management (WM) system. The aim of this methodological paper is to present a new method for the assessment of the WM system, the “analytical method of the waste allocation process” (AMWAP), based on the concept of the “waste allocation process” defined as the aggregation of all processes of apportioning waste among alternative waste treatment operations inside or outside the spatial borders of a WM system. AMWAP contains a conceptual framework and an analytical approach. The conceptual framework includes, firstly, a descriptive model that focuses on the description and classification of the WM system. It includes, secondly, an explanatory model that serves to explain and to predict the operation of the WM system. The analytical approach consists of a step-by-step analysis for the empirical implementation of the conceptual framework. With its multiple purposes, AMWAP provides an innovative and objective modular method to analyse a WM system which may be integrated in the framework of impact assessment methods and environmental systems analysis tools. Its originality comes from the interdisciplinary analysis of the WAP and to develop the conceptual framework. AMWAP is applied in the framework of an illustrative case study on the household WM system of Geneva (Switzerland). It demonstrates that this method provides an in-depth and contextual knowledge of WM. - Highlights: • The study presents a new analytical method based on the waste allocation process. • The method provides an in-depth and contextual knowledge of the waste management system. • The paper provides a reproducible procedure for professionals, experts and academics. • It may be integrated into impact assessment or environmental system analysis tools. • An illustrative case study is provided based on household waste

Analytical method of waste allocation in waste management systems: Concept, method and case study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bergeron, Francis C.

2017-01-01

Waste is not a rejected item to dispose anymore but increasingly a secondary resource to exploit, influencing waste allocation among treatment operations in a waste management (WM) system. The aim of this methodological paper is to present a new method for the assessment of the WM system, the “analytical method of the waste allocation process” (AMWAP), based on the concept of the “waste allocation process” defined as the aggregation of all processes of apportioning waste among alternative waste treatment operations inside or outside the spatial borders of a WM system. AMWAP contains a conceptual framework and an analytical approach. The conceptual framework includes, firstly, a descriptive model that focuses on the description and classification of the WM system. It includes, secondly, an explanatory model that serves to explain and to predict the operation of the WM system. The analytical approach consists of a step-by-step analysis for the empirical implementation of the conceptual framework. With its multiple purposes, AMWAP provides an innovative and objective modular method to analyse a WM system which may be integrated in the framework of impact assessment methods and environmental systems analysis tools. Its originality comes from the interdisciplinary analysis of the WAP and to develop the conceptual framework. AMWAP is applied in the framework of an illustrative case study on the household WM system of Geneva (Switzerland). It demonstrates that this method provides an in-depth and contextual knowledge of WM. - Highlights: • The study presents a new analytical method based on the waste allocation process. • The method provides an in-depth and contextual knowledge of the waste management system. • The paper provides a reproducible procedure for professionals, experts and academics. • It may be integrated into impact assessment or environmental system analysis tools. • An illustrative case study is provided based on household waste

DeepQA: Improving the estimation of single protein model quality with deep belief networks

OpenAIRE

Cao, Renzhi; Bhattacharya, Debswapna; Hou, Jie; Cheng, Jianlin

2016-01-01

Background Protein quality assessment (QA) useful for ranking and selecting protein models has long been viewed as one of the major challenges for protein tertiary structure prediction. Especially, estimating the quality of a single protein model, which is important for selecting a few good models out of a large model pool consisting of mostly low-quality models, is still a largely unsolved problem. Results We introduce a novel single-model quality assessment method DeepQA based on deep belie...

Changing European borders: from separation to interface? An introduction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jen Nelles

2011-03-01

Full Text Available The aim of this special issue is to address the evolution of European borders from a comparative perspective. This collection of papers spans a wide variety of topics in the realm of borderland studies. Although each engages with a single empirical or theoretical case collectively they identify nuances relevant to the theoretical elaboration of borders, and particularly contribute to the field of sub-national cross-border cooperation. In the course of its analysis each paper contributes to a broader understanding of the definition of cross-border regions; identifies a set of barriers to cooperation in these contexts; explores the role of identities on cooperation and of the role of borders in constructing those identities; and reflects on the socio-political meanings and uses of these international boundaries. This introduction discusses theoretical significance of these contributions to major debates in the study of borders and border regions.

SU-E-T-432: A Rapid and Comprehensive Procedure for Daily Proton QA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, T; Sun, B; Grantham, K; Knutson, N; Santanam, L; Goddu, S; Klein, E [Washington University, St. Louis, MO (United States)

2014-06-01

Purpose: The objective is to develop a rapid and comprehensive daily QA procedure implemented at the S. Lee Kling Proton Therapy Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. Methods: A scribed phantom with imbedded fiducials is used for checking lasers accuracy followed by couch isocentricity and for X-ray imaging congruence with isocenter. A Daily QA3 device (Sun Nuclear, FL) was used to check output, range and profiles. Five chambers in the central region possess various build-ups. After converting the thickness of the inherent build-ups into water equivalent thickness (WET) for proton, range of any beam can be checked with additional build-up on the Daily QA3 device. In our procedure, 3 beams from 3 bands (large, small and deep) with nominal range of 20 cm are checked daily. 17cm plastic water with WET of 16.92cm are used as additional build-up so that four chambers sit on the SOBP plateau at various depths and one sit on the distal fall off. Reading from the five chambers are fitted to an error function that has been parameterized to match the SOBP with the same nominal range. Shifting of the error function to maximize the correlation between measurements and the error function is deemed as the range shift from the nominal value. Results: We have found couch isocentricity maintained over 180 degrees. Imaging system exhibits accuracy in regard to imaging and mechanical isocenters. Ranges are within 1mm accuracy from measurements in water tank, and sensitive to change of sub-millimeter. Data acquired since the start of operation show outputs, profiles and range stay within 1% or 1mm from baselines. The whole procedure takes about 40 minutes. Conclusion: Taking advantage of the design of Daily QA3 device turns the device originally designed for photon and electron into a comprehensive and rapid tool for proton daily QA.

SU-E-T-432: A Rapid and Comprehensive Procedure for Daily Proton QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao, T; Sun, B; Grantham, K; Knutson, N; Santanam, L; Goddu, S; Klein, E

2014-01-01

Purpose: The objective is to develop a rapid and comprehensive daily QA procedure implemented at the S. Lee Kling Proton Therapy Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. Methods: A scribed phantom with imbedded fiducials is used for checking lasers accuracy followed by couch isocentricity and for X-ray imaging congruence with isocenter. A Daily QA3 device (Sun Nuclear, FL) was used to check output, range and profiles. Five chambers in the central region possess various build-ups. After converting the thickness of the inherent build-ups into water equivalent thickness (WET) for proton, range of any beam can be checked with additional build-up on the Daily QA3 device. In our procedure, 3 beams from 3 bands (large, small and deep) with nominal range of 20 cm are checked daily. 17cm plastic water with WET of 16.92cm are used as additional build-up so that four chambers sit on the SOBP plateau at various depths and one sit on the distal fall off. Reading from the five chambers are fitted to an error function that has been parameterized to match the SOBP with the same nominal range. Shifting of the error function to maximize the correlation between measurements and the error function is deemed as the range shift from the nominal value. Results: We have found couch isocentricity maintained over 180 degrees. Imaging system exhibits accuracy in regard to imaging and mechanical isocenters. Ranges are within 1mm accuracy from measurements in water tank, and sensitive to change of sub-millimeter. Data acquired since the start of operation show outputs, profiles and range stay within 1% or 1mm from baselines. The whole procedure takes about 40 minutes. Conclusion: Taking advantage of the design of Daily QA3 device turns the device originally designed for photon and electron into a comprehensive and rapid tool for proton daily QA

Cross-Border Collaboration in History among Nordic Students: A Case Study about Creating Innovative ICT Didactic Models

Science.gov (United States)

Spante, Maria; Karlsen, Asgjerd Vea; Nortvig, Anne-Mette; Christiansen, Rene B.

2014-01-01

Gränsöverskridande Nordisk Undervisning/Utdanelse (GNU, meaning Cross-Border Nordic Education), the larger Nordic project, under which this case study was carried out, aims at developing innovative, cross-border teaching models in different subject domains in elementary school, including mathematics, language, science, social studies and history.…

Border Crossing/Entry Data - Border Crossing/Entry Data Time Series tool

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Transportation — The dataset is known as “Border Crossing/Entry Data.” The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) Border Crossing/Entry Data provides summary statistics to the...

40 CFR 98.144 - Monitoring and QA/QC requirements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 20 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Monitoring and QA/QC requirements. 98... fraction for each carbonate consumed based on sampling and chemical analysis using an industry consensus... testing method published by an industry consensus standards organization (e.g., ASTM, ASME, API, etc.). ...

40 CFR 98.404 - Monitoring and QA/QC requirements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 20 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Monitoring and QA/QC requirements. 98... published by a consensus-based standards organization exists, such a method shall be used. Consensus-based... (NAESB). (ii) Where no appropriate standard method developed by a consensus-based standards organization...

Facilitating cultural border crossing in urban secondary science classrooms: A study of inservice teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Monteiro, Anna Karina

Research acknowledges that if students are to be successful science, they must learn to navigate and cross cultural borders that exist between their own cultures and the subculture of science. This dissertation utilized a mixed methods approach to explore how inservice science teachers working in urban schools construct their ideas of and apply the concepts about the culture of science and cultural border crossing as relevant to the teaching and learning of science. The study used the lenses of cultural capital, social constructivism, and cultural congruency in the design and analysis of each of the three phases of data collection. Phase I identified the perspectives of six inservice science teachers on science culture, cultural border crossing, and which border crossing methods, if any, they used during science teaching. Phase II took a dialectical approach as the teachers read about science culture and cultural border crossing during three informal professional learning community meetings. This phase explored how teachers constructed their understanding of cultural border crossing and how the concept applied to the teaching and learning of science. Phase III evaluated how teachers' perspectives changed from Phase I. In addition, classroom observations were used to determine whether teachers' practices in their science classrooms changed from Phase I to Phase III. All three phases collected data through qualitative (i.e., interviews, classroom observations, and surveys) and quantitative (Likert items) means. The findings indicated that teachers found great value in learning about the culture of science and cultural border crossing as it pertained to their teaching methods. This was not only evidenced by their interviews and surveys, but also in the methods they used in their classrooms. Final conclusions included how the use of student capital resources (prior experiences, understandings and knowledge, ideas an interests, and personal beliefs), if supported by

Multilatinas and Value Creation from Cross-Border Acquisitions: An Event Study Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paulo Roberto Feldmann

2013-10-01

Full Text Available The central proposition of this paper is to assess the performance of cross-border acquisitions made by Multilatinas. Applying the event study method to a sample of 607 announcements of acquisitions during the period 1989-2011 by 182 Multilatinas from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela, we conclude that: (a on average, these announcements have a neutral impact on the short-term returns to acquiring companies’ shareholders; (b cross-sectional analysis reveals that relative size of the deals have anegative and significant effect on investors’ reactions and; (c unlike the institutional distance between home and host countries, cultural distance matters, since it has a negative and significant effect on the perceptions that investors have regarding the expected economic impact of acquirers’ cross-border merger and acquisition(M&A decisions. Inasmuch as the market rationality assumption that underlies the event study method has been questioned, future research lines are proposed in order to search for alternative long-term performance constructs concerning M&A processes in general that can: (a shed light on the reality of value creation (and destruction from cross-border acquisitions made by Multilatinas; and (b contribute to strategy, international business and M&A theories and practice.

Factors Associated with Depression Among Mexican Americans Living in U.S.-Mexico Border and Non-Border Areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Vaeth, Patrice A C; Caetano, Raul; Mills, Britain A

2016-08-01

Factors associated with CES-D depression among Mexican Americans living on and off the U.S.-Mexico border are examined. Data are from two studies of Mexican American adults. The Border Survey conducted face-to-face interviews in urban U.S.-Mexico border counties of California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas (N = 1307). The non-border HABLAS survey conducted face-to-face interviews in Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, and Miami (N = 1288). Both surveys used a multistage cluster sample design with response rates of 67 and 76 %, respectively. The multivariate analysis showed that border residence and higher perceived neighborhood collective efficacy were protective for depression among men. Among men, lower education, unemployment, increased weekly drinking, and poor health status were associated with depression. Among women, alcohol-related problems and poorer health status were also associated with depression. Further examinations of how neighborhood perceptions vary by gender and how these perceptions influence the likelihood of depression are warranted.

The California Border Health Collaborative: A Strategy for Leading the Border to Better Health

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charles Edwards Matthews III

2015-05-01

Full Text Available There are hundreds of departments and organizations working on border health issues in the California/Baja California border region trying to protect and improve health without a collaborative structure that integrates jurisdictions and organizations. As a result, there is a need to effectively improve the health in the border region by coordinating these organizations to work together and benefit from each other’s best practices. The newly developed California Border Health Collaborative (CBHC can provide the leadership and collaborative culture to positively improve the health of the border region. This article aims to describe the development process of this collaborative to include key ingredients to success, the roles of mulit-level jurisdictions, and policy implications.This article describes the methods used to develop key aspects of collaborative leadership, strategic alignment and a common vision toward the building of this collective impact approach to border health. In addition, we describe the role of key local County (County of San Diego Live Well San Diego initiative, State, (California Department of Public Health- Office of Binational Border Health, Federal (US-Mexico Border Health Commission’s Leaders across Borders, Academia (e.g., University of California San Diego and San Diego State University and non-profit entities (e.g., Project Concern International, San Ysidro Health Center in forming the BHCC. Evaluating the consortium development process included a literature review of similar processes, a review of internal documents and an analysis of developmental events. To this point the CBHC has built a strong, cohesive collaborative on the U.S. side of the border. It is sharing and leveraging local expertise to address many border health issues. Even more importantly, the BHCC has reached a key stage in which it can effectively engage its Baja California, Mexico counterparts in a manner that will prove extremely powerful

QA engineering for the LCP USA magnet manufacturers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Childress, C.E.; Batey, J.E.; Burn, P.B.

1981-01-01

This paper describes the QA and QC efforts and results used in fabricating the superconducting magnets of competing designs being developed by American Manufacturers for testing in the ORNL Large Coil Test Facility. Control of the design, materials and processes to assure proper functioning of the magnets in the test facility as well as the content of archival data being compiled is discussed

SU-E-T-29: A Web Application for GPU-Based Monte Carlo IMRT/VMAT QA with Delivered Dose Verification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Folkerts, M; Graves, Y; Tian, Z; Gu, X; Jia, X; Jiang, S

2014-01-01

Purpose: To enable an existing web application for GPU-based Monte Carlo (MC) 3D dosimetry quality assurance (QA) to compute “delivered dose” from linac logfile data. Methods: We added significant features to an IMRT/VMAT QA web application which is based on existing technologies (HTML5, Python, and Django). This tool interfaces with python, c-code libraries, and command line-based GPU applications to perform a MC-based IMRT/VMAT QA. The web app automates many complicated aspects of interfacing clinical DICOM and logfile data with cutting-edge GPU software to run a MC dose calculation. The resultant web app is powerful, easy to use, and is able to re-compute both plan dose (from DICOM data) and delivered dose (from logfile data). Both dynalog and trajectorylog file formats are supported. Users upload zipped DICOM RP, CT, and RD data and set the expected statistic uncertainty for the MC dose calculation. A 3D gamma index map, 3D dose distribution, gamma histogram, dosimetric statistics, and DVH curves are displayed to the user. Additional the user may upload the delivery logfile data from the linac to compute a 'delivered dose' calculation and corresponding gamma tests. A comprehensive PDF QA report summarizing the results can also be downloaded. Results: We successfully improved a web app for a GPU-based QA tool that consists of logfile parcing, fluence map generation, CT image processing, GPU based MC dose calculation, gamma index calculation, and DVH calculation. The result is an IMRT and VMAT QA tool that conducts an independent dose calculation for a given treatment plan and delivery log file. The system takes both DICOM data and logfile data to compute plan dose and delivered dose respectively. Conclusion: We sucessfully improved a GPU-based MC QA tool to allow for logfile dose calculation. The high efficiency and accessibility will greatly facilitate IMRT and VMAT QA

SU-E-T-29: A Web Application for GPU-Based Monte Carlo IMRT/VMAT QA with Delivered Dose Verification

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Folkerts, M [The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Ctr, Dallas, TX (United States); University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States); Graves, Y [University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States); Tian, Z; Gu, X; Jia, X; Jiang, S [The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Ctr, Dallas, TX (United States)

2014-06-01

Purpose: To enable an existing web application for GPU-based Monte Carlo (MC) 3D dosimetry quality assurance (QA) to compute “delivered dose” from linac logfile data. Methods: We added significant features to an IMRT/VMAT QA web application which is based on existing technologies (HTML5, Python, and Django). This tool interfaces with python, c-code libraries, and command line-based GPU applications to perform a MC-based IMRT/VMAT QA. The web app automates many complicated aspects of interfacing clinical DICOM and logfile data with cutting-edge GPU software to run a MC dose calculation. The resultant web app is powerful, easy to use, and is able to re-compute both plan dose (from DICOM data) and delivered dose (from logfile data). Both dynalog and trajectorylog file formats are supported. Users upload zipped DICOM RP, CT, and RD data and set the expected statistic uncertainty for the MC dose calculation. A 3D gamma index map, 3D dose distribution, gamma histogram, dosimetric statistics, and DVH curves are displayed to the user. Additional the user may upload the delivery logfile data from the linac to compute a 'delivered dose' calculation and corresponding gamma tests. A comprehensive PDF QA report summarizing the results can also be downloaded. Results: We successfully improved a web app for a GPU-based QA tool that consists of logfile parcing, fluence map generation, CT image processing, GPU based MC dose calculation, gamma index calculation, and DVH calculation. The result is an IMRT and VMAT QA tool that conducts an independent dose calculation for a given treatment plan and delivery log file. The system takes both DICOM data and logfile data to compute plan dose and delivered dose respectively. Conclusion: We sucessfully improved a GPU-based MC QA tool to allow for logfile dose calculation. The high efficiency and accessibility will greatly facilitate IMRT and VMAT QA.

SU-F-T-489: 4-Years Experience of QA in TomoTherapy MVCT: What Do We Look Out For?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, F; Chan, K [Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Hong Kong (Hong Kong)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To evaluate the QA results of TomoTherapy MVCT from March 2012 to February 2016, and to identify issues that may affect consistency in HU numbers and reconstructed treatment dose in MVCT. Methods: Monthly QA was performed on our TomoHD system. Phantom with rod inserts of various mass densities was imaged in MVCT and compared to baseline to evaluate HU number consistency. To evaluate treatment dose reconstructed by delivered sinogram and MVCT, a treatment plan was designed on a humanoid skull phantom. The phantom was imaged with MVCT and treatment plan was delivered to obtain the sinogram. The dose reconstructed with the Planned Adaptive software was compared to the dose in the original plan. The QA tolerance for HU numbers was ±30 HU, and ±2% for discrepancy between original plan dose and reconstructed dose. Tolerances were referenced to AAPM TG148. Results: Several technical modifications or maintenance activities to the system have been identified which affected QA Results: 1) Upgrade in console system software which added a weekly HU calibration procedure; 2) Linac or MLC replacement leading to change in Accelerator Output Machine (AOM) parameters; 3) Upgrade in planning system algorithm affecting MVCT dose reconstruction. These events caused abrupt changes in QA results especially for the reconstructed dose. In the past 9 months, when no such modifications were done to the system, reconstructed dose was consistent with maximum deviation from baseline less than 0.6%. The HU number deviated less than 5HU. Conclusion: Routine QA is essential for MVCT, especially if the MVCT is used for daily dose reconstruction to monitor delivered dose to patients. Several technical events which may affect consistency of this are software changes, linac or MLC replacement. QA results reflected changes which justify re-calibration or system adjustment. In normal circumstances, the system should be relatively stable and quarterly QA may be sufficient.

The Second Round of the PHAR-QA Survey of Competences for Pharmacy Practice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeffrey Atkinson

2016-09-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the results of the second European Delphi round on the ranking of competences for pharmacy practice and compares these data to those of the first round already published. A comparison of the numbers of respondents, distribution by age group, country of residence, etc., shows that whilst the student population of respondents changed from Round 1 to 2, the populations of the professional groups (community, hospital and industrial pharmacists, pharmacists in other occupations and academics were more stable. Results are given for the consensus of ranking and the scores of ranking of 50 competences for pharmacy practice. This two-stage, large-scale Delphi process harmonized and validated the Quality Assurance in European Pharmacy Education and Training (PHAR-QA framework and ensured the adoption by the pharmacy profession of a framework proposed by the academic pharmacy community. The process of evaluation and validation of ranking of competences by the pharmacy profession is now complete, and the PHAR-QA consortium will now put forward a definitive PHAR-QA framework of competences for pharmacy practice.

The Second Round of the PHAR-QA Survey of Competences for Pharmacy Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Atkinson, Jeffrey; De Paepe, Kristien; Pozo, Antonio Sánchez; Rekkas, Dimitrios; Volmer, Daisy; Hirvonen, Jouni; Bozic, Borut; Skowron, Agnieska; Mircioiu, Constantin; Marcincal, Annie; Koster, Andries; Wilson, Keith; van Schravendijk, Chris

2016-01-01

This paper presents the results of the second European Delphi round on the ranking of competences for pharmacy practice and compares these data to those of the first round already published. A comparison of the numbers of respondents, distribution by age group, country of residence, etc., shows that whilst the student population of respondents changed from Round 1 to 2, the populations of the professional groups (community, hospital and industrial pharmacists, pharmacists in other occupations and academics) were more stable. Results are given for the consensus of ranking and the scores of ranking of 50 competences for pharmacy practice. This two-stage, large-scale Delphi process harmonized and validated the Quality Assurance in European Pharmacy Education and Training (PHAR-QA) framework and ensured the adoption by the pharmacy profession of a framework proposed by the academic pharmacy community. The process of evaluation and validation of ranking of competences by the pharmacy profession is now complete, and the PHAR-QA consortium will now put forward a definitive PHAR-QA framework of competences for pharmacy practice. PMID:28970400

BORDERS AS AN INTERDISCPLINARY PROBLEM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Duško Vrban

2018-04-01

Full Text Available This article deals with the concepts of space and territoriality in law and politics seen through reflexion on borders, which are understood primarily as forms of identification and the basis for nation-building. While in the classical antiquity, borders were seen as exclusionary defensive structures, in modern international law in the 18th and 19th centuries, they became spaces for the delimitation of states sovereign territories. The author attempts to enligthen the symbolic significance of borders in modern European history, which have been connected with imperial designs, nationalist discourses and political imaginaries. Border rhetoric often emphasised territorial inclusions and exclusions relied to the concepts such as sovereignty, security and natural living space (“natural borders”. The concept of borders is also related to the understanding of the division of Earth’s surface into areas defined as regions. Regions may construct and transcend natural and political borders. Although, borders have been through world history sites of conflict, they also build ways of interconnections between locals and neighbours. The struggle over cultural and political domination and attempts to integrate and assimilate border populations were mostly reflected into deliberate linguistic policies relating to the language of administration and the public sphere. After the Second world war, the perception of borders have changed and the new understanding of borders have prevailed, based upon the idea of cooperation and the recognition of local traditions and minority rights. The principle of uti possidetis iuris was applied in order to prevent redrawing of the borders of new states and to maintain the territorial stability of the regions. But the recent migration crisis and security concerns in Europe and America have re-actualised the perception of state borders as defensive structures. Moreover, introduction of new technologies, such as ICT and the

QA role in advanced energy activities: Reductionism, emergence, and functionalism; presuppositions in designing internal QA audits

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bodnarczuk, M.

1988-06-01

After a brief overview of the mission of Fermilab, this paper explores some of the problems associated with designing internal QA audits. The paper begins with several examples of how audits should not be designed, then goes on to analyze two types of presuppositions about organizational structure (reductionism and emergence) that can be misleading and skew the data sample if folded too heavily into the checklist. A third type of presupposition (functionalism), is proposed as a viable way of achieving a more well-rounded measure of the performance of an organization, i.e. its effectiveness, not just compliance.

Measuring cross-border regional STI integration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Makkonen, T

2016-07-01

Earlier quantitative studies on cross-border regional integration processes have commonly neglected science, technology and innovation (STI) indicators: even the most notable example of a composite indicator approach to measuring cross-border regional integration, i.e. the Oresund index, lacks a sub-category for STI. Consequently, by ignoring cross-border innovation and knowledge flows, the Oresund integration index fails to take into account one of the most important drivers of economic growth in cross-border regions. Therefore, a new composite STI indicator (sub-category) was introduced to strengthen the Oresund integration index. This was compiled from patent, publication and collaborative R&D project data. The findings show that this index performs reasonably well in depicting STI integration, while at the same time remaining simple and straightforward enough to be adopted in other crossborder regions. (Author)

Q&A: The Basics of California's School Finance System

Science.gov (United States)

EdSource, 2006

2006-01-01

In a state as large and complex as California, education financing can become as complicated as rocket science. This two-page Q&A provides a brief, easy-to-understand explanation of California's school finance system and introduces the issues of its adequacy and equity. A list of resources providing additional information is provided.

40 CFR 98.174 - Monitoring and QA/QC requirements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... (CONTINUED) MANDATORY GREENHOUSE GAS REPORTING Iron and Steel Production § 98.174 Monitoring and QA/QC... moisture content of the stack gas. (5) Determine the mass rate of process feed or process production (as... Fusion Techniques (incorporated by reference, see § 98.7) for iron and ferrous scrap. (v) ASM CS-104 UNS...

SU-E-T-120: Analytic Dose Verification for Patient-Specific Proton Pencil Beam Scanning Plans

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chang, C; Mah, D

2015-01-01

Purpose: To independently verify the QA dose of proton pencil beam scanning (PBS) plans using an analytic dose calculation model. Methods: An independent proton dose calculation engine is created using the same commissioning measurements as those employed to build our commercially available treatment planning system (TPS). Each proton PBS plan is exported from the TPS in DICOM format and calculated by this independent dose engine in a standard 40 x 40 x 40 cm water tank. This three-dimensional dose grid is then compared with the QA dose calculated by the commercial TPS, using standard Gamma criterion. A total of 18 measured pristine Bragg peaks, ranging from 100 to 226 MeV, are used in the model. Intermediate proton energies are interpolated. Similarly, optical properties of the spots are measured in air over 15 cm upstream and downstream, and fitted to a second-order polynomial. Multiple Coulomb scattering in water is approximated analytically using Preston and Kohler formula for faster calculation. The effect of range shifters on spot size is modeled with generalized Highland formula. Note that the above formulation approximates multiple Coulomb scattering in water and we therefore chose not use the full Moliere/Hanson form. Results: Initial examination of 3 patient-specific prostate PBS plans shows that agreement exists between 3D dose distributions calculated by the TPS and the independent proton PBS dose calculation engine. Both calculated dose distributions are compared with actual measurements at three different depths per beam and good agreements are again observed. Conclusion: Results here showed that 3D dose distributions calculated by this independent proton PBS dose engine are in good agreement with both TPS calculations and actual measurements. This tool can potentially be used to reduce the amount of different measurement depths required for patient-specific proton PBS QA

Network communities within and across borders.

Science.gov (United States)

Cerina, Federica; Chessa, Alessandro; Pammolli, Fabio; Riccaboni, Massimo

2014-04-01

We investigate the impact of borders on the topology of spatially embedded networks. Indeed territorial subdivisions and geographical borders significantly hamper the geographical span of networks thus playing a key role in the formation of network communities. This is especially important in scientific and technological policy-making, highlighting the interplay between pressure for the internationalization to lead towards a global innovation system and the administrative borders imposed by the national and regional institutions. In this study we introduce an outreach index to quantify the impact of borders on the community structure and apply it to the case of the European and US patent co-inventors networks. We find that (a) the US connectivity decays as a power of distance, whereas we observe a faster exponential decay for Europe; (b) European network communities essentially correspond to nations and contiguous regions while US communities span multiple states across the whole country without any characteristic geographic scale. We confirm our findings by means of a set of simulations aimed at exploring the relationship between different patterns of cross-border community structures and the outreach index.

A novel DTI-QA tool: Automated metric extraction exploiting the sphericity of an agar filled phantom.

Science.gov (United States)

Chavez, Sofia; Viviano, Joseph; Zamyadi, Mojdeh; Kingsley, Peter B; Kochunov, Peter; Strother, Stephen; Voineskos, Aristotle

2018-02-01

To develop a quality assurance (QA) tool (acquisition guidelines and automated processing) for diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data using a common agar-based phantom used for fMRI QA. The goal is to produce a comprehensive set of automated, sensitive and robust QA metrics. A readily available agar phantom was scanned with and without parallel imaging reconstruction. Other scanning parameters were matched to the human scans. A central slab made up of either a thick slice or an average of a few slices, was extracted and all processing was performed on that image. The proposed QA relies on the creation of two ROIs for processing: (i) a preset central circular region of interest (ccROI) and (ii) a signal mask for all images in the dataset. The ccROI enables computation of average signal for SNR calculations as well as average FA values. The production of the signal masks enables automated measurements of eddy current and B0 inhomogeneity induced distortions by exploiting the sphericity of the phantom. Also, the signal masks allow automated background localization to assess levels of Nyquist ghosting. The proposed DTI-QA was shown to produce eleven metrics which are robust yet sensitive to image quality changes within site and differences across sites. It can be performed in a reasonable amount of scan time (~15min) and the code for automated processing has been made publicly available. A novel DTI-QA tool has been proposed. It has been applied successfully on data from several scanners/platforms. The novelty lies in the exploitation of the sphericity of the phantom for distortion measurements. Other novel contributions are: the computation of an SNR value per gradient direction for the diffusion weighted images (DWIs) and an SNR value per non-DWI, an automated background detection for the Nyquist ghosting measurement and an error metric reflecting the contribution of EPI instability to the eddy current induced shape changes observed for DWIs. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier

Border Security: Barriers Along the U.S. International Border

Science.gov (United States)

2009-03-16

1980). 120 Mexican Government Press Release, “Crecimiento con Calidad: El Presidente Vicente Fox encabezará la cena de gala de la XI Cumbre Anual...and Roads at Various Project Areas Located in California, Arizona, New Mexico , and Texas...Diego Border Primary Fence The USBP’s San Diego sector extends along the first 66 miles from the Pacific Ocean of the international border with Mexico

Fast and slow border traps in MOS devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fleetwood, D.M.

1996-01-01

Convergent lines of evidence are reviewed which show that near-interfacial oxide traps (border traps) that exchange charge with the Si can strongly affect the performance, radiation response, and long-term reliability of MOS devices. Observable effects of border traps include capacitance-voltage (C-V) hysteresis, enhanced l/f noise, compensation of trapped holes, and increased thermally stimulated current in MOS capacitors. Effects of faster (switching times between ∼10 -6 s and ∼1 s) and slower (switching times greater than ∼1 s) border traps have been resolved via a dual-transistor technique. In conjunction with studies of MOS electrical response, electron paramagnetic resonance and spin dependent recombination studies suggest that E' defects (trivalent Si centers in SiO 2 associated with O vacancies) can function as border traps in MOS devices exposed to ionizing radiation or high-field stress. Hydrogen-related centers may also be border traps

Neighborhoods, Social and Cultural Correlates of Obesity Risk among Latinos living on the U.S.-Mexico border in Southern California.

Science.gov (United States)

Baquero, Barbara; Molina, Marisa; Elder, John P; Norman, Gregory J; Ayala, Guadalupe X

2016-01-01

We explored the relationship between obesity and neighborhood-related, social, and cultural variables and possible moderation by acculturation and cross-national practices. We obtained data from the 2009 San Diego Prevention Research Center's community survey, which used multistage sampling methods to recruit 397 adult respondents and conducted multilevel logistic analytic methods. Nearly half of the respondents were obese. Respondents had low acculturation scores and reported crossing the U.S.-Mexico border about three times per month, mostly to visit family and friends. Neighborhoods where respondents lived were predominantly Latino and had 27% home ownership. A significant cross-level interaction emerged: those who reported crossing the border and reported higher levels of collective efficacy were more likely to be obese than those who had not crossed. Study findings provide evidence of the complex relationship among obesity risk factors in a U.S.-Mexico border community that warrant further examination to prevent and control obesity.

Sustainable Planning of Cross-Border Cooperation: A Strategy for Alliances in Border Cities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joanna Kurowska-Pysz

2018-05-01

Full Text Available In recent years, cooperation among nations has become a critical issue towards sustainable development of neighbor cities in border areas. In this regard, sustainable common planning approaches and policies are an increasing reality, particularly in European territories. Considering the significant amount of cross-border cooperation (CBC projects and strategies within Europe, it is crucial to promote research approaches that are able to identify the most positive approaches towards the establishment of alliances in border territories, serving as pivotal methodologies for achieving success. Contextually, the present study considered direct and indirect research methods and tools, literature reviews, data collection, computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI and computer-assisted web interview (CAWI, all applied over two European border cities: Cieszyn (Poland and Cesky Tesin (Czech Republic. These methods enabled the assembly of perspectives of local authorities, public and private institutions, non-governmental organizations, and entrepreneurs from the cities under study. Through the analysis of the collected data, five conditions have been identified for the success of strategic alliances in CBC projects: (i well defining the alliance goals; (ii ensuring participation in the alliance of various groups of stakeholders; (iii involvement of both partners with extensive experience in CBC; (iv ensuring the coherence of the key objective; and (v guaranteeing the alliance benefits both sides. These conditions might effectively contribute to achieve more successful outputs in CBC projects, highlighting the relevance of previously developed strategies on the definition of future approaches.

Cross-border policy effects on alcohol outcomes: drinking without thinking on the u.s.-Mexico border?

Science.gov (United States)

Mills, Britain A; Caetano, Raul; Vaeth, Patrice

2014-11-01

Rates of alcohol-related outcomes are sensitive to policy differences in politically distinct, adjacent territories. Factors that shape these cross-border effects, particularly when the policy differences are longstanding, remain poorly understood. We compared the ability of 2 classes of variables with theoretical relevance to the U.S.-Mexico border context-bar attendance and alcohol-related social-cognitive variables-to explain elevated drinking on the U.S. side of the border relative to other areas of the United States. Data were collected from multistage cluster samples of adult Mexican Americans on and off the U.S.-Mexico border (current drinker N = 1,351). Structural equation models were used to test drinking context (frequency of bar attendance) and 6 different social-cognitive variables (including alcohol-related attitudes, norms, motives, and beliefs) as mediators of border effects on a composite drinking index. The border effect on drinking varied by age (with younger adults showing a stronger effect), consistent with previous findings and known risk factors in the region. Contrary to theoretical expectations, 6 different social-cognitive variables-despite relating strongly with drinking-were comparable in border and nonborder areas (within and across age) and played no role in elevated drinking on the border. Conversely, elevated drinking among border youth was mediated by bar attendance. This mediated moderation effect held after adjusting for potential sociodemographic and neighborhood-level confounders. Increased drinking among U.S.-Mexico border youth is explained by patterns of bar attendance, but not by more permissive alcohol-related social-cognitive variables in border areas: Border youth attend bars and drink more than their nonborder counterparts, despite having comparable alcohol-related beliefs, attitudes, norms, and motives for use. Alcohol's heightened availability and visibility on both sides of the border may create opportunities for

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)

SU-F-P-07: Applying Failure Modes and Effects Analysis to Treatment Planning System QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mathew, D; Alaei, P

2016-01-01

Purpose: A small-scale implementation of Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) for treatment planning system QA by utilizing methodology of AAPM TG-100 report. Methods: FMEA requires numerical values for severity (S), occurrence (O) and detectability (D) of each mode of failure. The product of these three values gives a risk priority number (RPN). We have implemented FMEA for the treatment planning system (TPS) QA for two clinics which use Pinnacle and Eclipse TPS. Quantitative monthly QA data dating back to 4 years for Pinnacle and 1 year for Eclipse have been used to determine values for severity (deviations from predetermined doses at points or volumes), and occurrence of such deviations. The TPS QA protocol includes a phantom containing solid water and lung- and bone-equivalent heterogeneities. Photon and electron plans have been evaluated in both systems. The dose values at multiple distinct points of interest (POI) within the solid water, lung, and bone-equivalent slabs, as well as mean doses to several volumes of interest (VOI), have been re-calculated monthly using the available algorithms. Results: The computed doses vary slightly month-over-month. There have been more significant deviations following software upgrades, especially if the upgrade involved re-modeling of the beams. TG-100 guidance and the data presented here suggest an occurrence (O) of 2 depending on the frequency of re-commissioning the beams, severity (S) of 3, and detectability (D) of 2, giving an RPN of 12. Conclusion: Computerized treatment planning systems could pose a risk due to dosimetric errors and suboptimal treatment plans. The FMEA analysis presented here suggests that TPS QA should immediately follow software upgrades, but does not need to be performed every month.

SU-F-P-07: Applying Failure Modes and Effects Analysis to Treatment Planning System QA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mathew, D; Alaei, P [University Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: A small-scale implementation of Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) for treatment planning system QA by utilizing methodology of AAPM TG-100 report. Methods: FMEA requires numerical values for severity (S), occurrence (O) and detectability (D) of each mode of failure. The product of these three values gives a risk priority number (RPN). We have implemented FMEA for the treatment planning system (TPS) QA for two clinics which use Pinnacle and Eclipse TPS. Quantitative monthly QA data dating back to 4 years for Pinnacle and 1 year for Eclipse have been used to determine values for severity (deviations from predetermined doses at points or volumes), and occurrence of such deviations. The TPS QA protocol includes a phantom containing solid water and lung- and bone-equivalent heterogeneities. Photon and electron plans have been evaluated in both systems. The dose values at multiple distinct points of interest (POI) within the solid water, lung, and bone-equivalent slabs, as well as mean doses to several volumes of interest (VOI), have been re-calculated monthly using the available algorithms. Results: The computed doses vary slightly month-over-month. There have been more significant deviations following software upgrades, especially if the upgrade involved re-modeling of the beams. TG-100 guidance and the data presented here suggest an occurrence (O) of 2 depending on the frequency of re-commissioning the beams, severity (S) of 3, and detectability (D) of 2, giving an RPN of 12. Conclusion: Computerized treatment planning systems could pose a risk due to dosimetric errors and suboptimal treatment plans. The FMEA analysis presented here suggests that TPS QA should immediately follow software upgrades, but does not need to be performed every month.

The Hippo pathway controls border cell migration through distinct mechanisms in outer border cells and polar cells of the Drosophila ovary.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Tzu-Huai; Yeh, Tsung-Han; Wang, Tsu-Wei; Yu, Jenn-Yah

2014-11-01

The Hippo pathway is a key signaling cascade in controlling organ size. The core components of this pathway are two kinases, Hippo (Hpo) and Warts (Wts), and a transcriptional coactivator, Yorkie (Yki). Yes-associated protein (YAP, a Yki homolog in mammals) promotes epithelial-mesenchymal transition and cell migration in vitro. Here, we use border cells in the Drosophila ovary as a model to study Hippo pathway functions in cell migration in vivo. During oogenesis, polar cells secrete Unpaired (Upd), which activates JAK/STAT signaling of neighboring cells and specifies them into outer border cells. The outer border cells form a cluster with polar cells and undergo migration. We find that hpo and wts are required for migration of the border cell cluster. In outer border cells, overexpression of hpo disrupts polarization of the actin cytoskeleton and attenuates migration. In polar cells, knockdown of hpo and wts or overexpression of yki impairs border cell induction and disrupts migration. These manipulations in polar cells reduce JAK/STAT activity in outer border cells. Expression of upd-lacZ is increased and decreased in yki and hpo mutant polar cells, respectively. Furthermore, forced expression of upd in polar cells rescues defects of border cell induction and migration caused by wts knockdown. These results suggest that Yki negatively regulates border cell induction by inhibiting JAK/STAT signaling. Together, our data elucidate two distinct mechanisms of the Hippo pathway in controlling border cell migration: (1) in outer border cells, it regulates polarized distribution of the actin cytoskeleton; (2) in polar cells, it regulates upd expression to control border cell induction and migration. Copyright © 2014 by the Genetics Society of America.

Securing the Borders: Creation of the Border Patrol Auxiliary

Science.gov (United States)

2007-05-05

DATES COVERED 00-00-2007 to 00-00-2007 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Securing the Borders: Creation of the Border Patrol Auxillary 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER...Substantial work experience which demonstrates an ability to (1) take charge, make sound decisions , and maintain composure in stressful situations; (2...applicable laws, court decisions , and law enforcement procedures; and 4. Develop and maintain contact with the network of informants. ¾ To qualify at

Discussion of QA grading for AP1000 NP plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luo Shuiyun; Zhang Qingchuan

2012-01-01

The grading method of quality assurance for the following AP1000 project is presented based on the Westinghouse classification principle, referring to the classification method of the AP1000 self-reliance supporting project and considering the factors of classification, which can meet the requirements of domestic nuclear safety regulation and standard of the QA classification. (authors)

Why Border Enforcement Backfired.

Science.gov (United States)

Massey, Douglas S; Durand, Jorge; Pren, Karen A

2016-03-01

In this article we undertake a systematic analysis of why border enforcement backfired as a strategy of immigration control in the United States. We argue theoretically that border enforcement emerged as a policy response to a moral panic about the perceived threat of Latino immigration to the United States propounded by self-interested bureaucrats, politicians, and pundits who sought to mobilize political and material resources for their own benefit. The end result was a self-perpetuating cycle of rising enforcement and increased apprehensions that resulted in the militarization of the border in a way that was disconnected from the actual size of the undocumented flow. Using an instrumental variable approach, we show how border militarization affected the behavior of unauthorized migrants and border outcomes to transform undocumented Mexican migration from a circular flow of male workers going to three states into an eleven-million person population of settled families living in 50 states.

Sci-Fri PM: Radiation Therapy, Planning, Imaging, and Special Techniques - 06: Patient-specific QA Procedure for Gated VMAT SABR Treatments using 10x Beam in Flattening-Filter Free Mode

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mestrovic, Ante; Chitsazzadeh, Shadi; Wells, Derek M.; Gray, Stephen [University of Calgary, Tom Baker Cancer Centre, Tom Baker Cancer Centre (Canada)

2016-08-15

Purpose: To develop a highly sensitive patient specific QA procedure for gated VMAT stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) treatments. Methods: A platform was constructed to attach the translational stage of a Quasar respiratory motion phantom to a pinpoint ion chamber insert and move the ion chamber inside the ArcCheck. The Quasar phantom controller uses a patient-specific breathing pattern to translate the ion chamber in a superior-inferior direction inside the ArcCheck. With this system the ion chamber is used to QA the correct phase of the gated delivery and the ArcCheck diodes are used to QA the overall dose distribution. This novel approach requires a single plan delivery for a complete QA of a gated plan. The sensitivity of the gating QA procedure was investigated with respect to the following parameters: PTV size, exhale duration, baseline drift, gating window size. Results: The difference between the measured dose to a point in the penumbra and the Eclipse calculated dose was under 2% for small residual motions. The QA procedure was independent of PTV size and duration of exhale. Baseline drift and gating window size, however, significantly affected the penumbral dose measurement, with differences of up to 30% compared to Eclipse. Conclusion: This study described a highly sensitive QA procedure for gated VMAT SABR treatments. The QA outcome was dependent on the gating window size and baseline drift. Analysis of additional patient breathing patterns is currently undergoing to determine a clinically relevant gating window size and an appropriate tolerance level for this procedure.

The role of immigration age on alcohol and drug use among border and non-border Mexican Americans.

Science.gov (United States)

Reingle, Jennifer M; Caetano, Raul; Mills, Britain A; Vaeth, Patrice A C

2014-07-01

To determine the age of immigration at which the marked increase in risk for alcohol- and drug-use problems in adulthood is observed among Mexican American adults residing in 2 distinct contexts: the U.S.-Mexico border, and cities not proximal to the border. We used 2 samples of Mexican American adults: specifically, 1,307 who resided along the U.S.-Mexico border, and 1,288 non-border adults who were interviewed as a part of the 2006 Hispanic Americans Baseline Alcohol Survey study. Survey logistic and Poisson regression methods were used to examine how immigration age during adolescence is related to alcohol- and drug-use behavior in adulthood. We found that participants who immigrate to the United States prior to age 14 have qualitatively different alcohol- and drug-related outcomes compared to those who immigrate later in life. Adults who immigrated at younger ages have alcohol- and drug-use patterns similar to those who were U.S.-born. Adults who immigrated at young ages and reside distal from the U.S.-Mexico border are at greater risk for alcohol and drug use than those who live in border contexts. Immigration from Mexico to the U.S. before age 14 results in alcohol- and drug-related behavior that mirrors the behavior of U.S.-born residents, and the alcohol- and drug-use effects were more pronounced among adults who did not reside proximal to the U.S.-Mexico border. Copyright © 2014 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.

Cross-border shopping and tourism destination marketing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Makkonen, Teemu

2016-01-01

This article addresses the economic impact that cross-border shopping has on the local tourism industry and the ways that cross-border shopping is taken advantage of in tourism destination marketing. Southern Jutland–situated in Denmark just north of the German border, where border shops situated......-border shopping into tourism destination marketing strategies. The results have wider relevance for other border regions.......This article addresses the economic impact that cross-border shopping has on the local tourism industry and the ways that cross-border shopping is taken advantage of in tourism destination marketing. Southern Jutland–situated in Denmark just north of the German border, where border shops situated...... just south of the same border enable Danes to capitalize on the lower value added tax levels in Germany–is utilized as an illustrative case example. The data was collected by analysing the relevant tourism destination marketing material and via interviews with local destination marketing organizations...

Requirements for quality control of analytical data for the Environmental Restoration Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Engels, J.

1992-12-01

The Environmental Restoration (ER) Program was established for the investigation and remediation of inactive US Department of Energy (DOE) sites and facilities that have been declared surplus in terms of their previous uses. The purpose of this document is to Specify ER requirements for quality control (QC) of analytical data. Activities throughout all phases of the investigation may affect the quality of the final data product, thus are subject to control specifications. Laboratory control is emphasized in this document, and field concerns will be addressed in a companion document Energy Systems, in its role of technical coordinator and at the request of DOE-OR, extends the application of these requirements to all participants in ER activities. Because every instance and concern may not be addressed in this document, participants are encouraged to discuss any questions with the ER Quality Assurance (QA) Office, the Analytical Environmental Support Group (AESG), or the Analytical Project Office (APO)

Immunoelectrophoretic studies on pig intestinal brush border proteins

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Danielsen, Erik Michael; Sjöström, H; Norén, O

1977-01-01

Brush borders were prepared from pig intestinal mucosa and the membrane proteins solubilized with either Triton X-100 or papain. Proteins, thus released, were used as antigens to raise antisera in rabbits. The immunoglobulin G fractions were isolated and shown by the double layer immunofluorescence...

Border trees of complex networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Villas Boas, Paulino R; Rodrigues, Francisco A; Travieso, Gonzalo; Fontoura Costa, Luciano da

2008-01-01

The comprehensive characterization of the structure of complex networks is essential to understand the dynamical processes which guide their evolution. The discovery of the scale-free distribution and the small-world properties of real networks were fundamental to stimulate more realistic models and to understand important dynamical processes related to network growth. However, the properties of the network borders (nodes with degree equal to 1), one of its most fragile parts, remained little investigated and understood. The border nodes may be involved in the evolution of structures such as geographical networks. Here we analyze the border trees of complex networks, which are defined as the subgraphs without cycles connected to the remainder of the network (containing cycles) and terminating into border nodes. In addition to describing an algorithm for identification of such tree subgraphs, we also consider how their topological properties can be quantified in terms of their depth and number of leaves. We investigate the properties of border trees for several theoretical models as well as real-world networks. Among the obtained results, we found that more than half of the nodes of some real-world networks belong to the border trees. A power-law with cut-off was observed for the distribution of the depth and number of leaves of the border trees. An analysis of the local role of the nodes in the border trees was also performed

SU-D-BRC-02: Application of Six Sigma Approach to Improve the Efficiency of Patient-Specific QA in Proton Therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

LAH, J; Shin, D; Manger, R; Kim, G

2016-01-01

Purpose: To show how the Six Sigma DMAIC (Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control) can be used for improving and optimizing the efficiency of patient-specific QA process by designing site-specific range tolerances. Methods: The Six Sigma tools (process flow diagram, cause and effect, capability analysis, Pareto chart, and control chart) were utilized to determine the steps that need focus for improving the patient-specific QA process. The patient-specific range QA plans were selected according to 7 treatment site groups, a total of 1437 cases. The process capability index, Cpm was used to guide the tolerance design of patient site-specific range. We also analyzed the financial impact of this project. Results: Our results suggested that the patient range measurements were non-capable at the current tolerance level of ±1 mm in clinical proton plans. The optimized tolerances were calculated for treatment sites. Control charts for the patient QA time were constructed to compare QA time before and after the new tolerances were implemented. It is found that overall processing time was decreased by 24.3% after establishing new site-specific range tolerances. The QA failure for whole process in proton therapy would lead up to a 46% increase in total cost. This result can also predict how costs are affected by changes in adopting the tolerance design. Conclusion: We often believe that the quality and performance of proton therapy can easily be improved by merely tightening some or all of its tolerance requirements. This can become costly, however, and it is not necessarily a guarantee of better performance. The tolerance design is not a task to be undertaken without careful thought. The Six Sigma DMAIC can be used to improve the QA process by setting optimized tolerances. When tolerance design is optimized, the quality is reasonably balanced with time and cost demands.

SU-D-BRC-02: Application of Six Sigma Approach to Improve the Efficiency of Patient-Specific QA in Proton Therapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

LAH, J [Myongji Hospital, Goyang-si (Korea, Republic of); Shin, D [Proton Therapy Center, National Cancer Center, Goyang (Korea, Republic of); Manger, R; Kim, G [University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To show how the Six Sigma DMAIC (Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control) can be used for improving and optimizing the efficiency of patient-specific QA process by designing site-specific range tolerances. Methods: The Six Sigma tools (process flow diagram, cause and effect, capability analysis, Pareto chart, and control chart) were utilized to determine the steps that need focus for improving the patient-specific QA process. The patient-specific range QA plans were selected according to 7 treatment site groups, a total of 1437 cases. The process capability index, Cpm was used to guide the tolerance design of patient site-specific range. We also analyzed the financial impact of this project. Results: Our results suggested that the patient range measurements were non-capable at the current tolerance level of ±1 mm in clinical proton plans. The optimized tolerances were calculated for treatment sites. Control charts for the patient QA time were constructed to compare QA time before and after the new tolerances were implemented. It is found that overall processing time was decreased by 24.3% after establishing new site-specific range tolerances. The QA failure for whole process in proton therapy would lead up to a 46% increase in total cost. This result can also predict how costs are affected by changes in adopting the tolerance design. Conclusion: We often believe that the quality and performance of proton therapy can easily be improved by merely tightening some or all of its tolerance requirements. This can become costly, however, and it is not necessarily a guarantee of better performance. The tolerance design is not a task to be undertaken without careful thought. The Six Sigma DMAIC can be used to improve the QA process by setting optimized tolerances. When tolerance design is optimized, the quality is reasonably balanced with time and cost demands.

Hmong Across Borders or Borders Across Hmong? Social and Political Influences Upon Hmong People

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Prasit Leepreecha

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The Hmong are a transnational ethnic people, because of their dispersal from China into Southeast Asia in the early 19th century and from Southeast Asia to Western countries from 1975 onward. However, even within the context of Southeast Asia and southern China, the Hmong are a transnational ethnic group, due to state boundaries and the enforcement of international laws.Scholars speak as though the Hmong population has crossed political and legal borders by their movement across state boundaries and international borders. However, I argue that it is the political, social, and legal borders that have cut across the Hmong people and subjected them to be citizens of different modern nation-states. Even in the present time, these borders still, and continuously, play important roles that cross and divide the Hmong people into distinctive subgroups and fragments. In this article, I will start by describing the generally understood situation of Hmong being across national borders, and then will explain my argument that borders are across the Hmong.

Over the border - the problems of uncontrolled radioactive materials crossing national borders

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Duftschmid, K.E. E-mail: k.duftschmid@aon.at

2002-03-01

Cross-border movement of radioactive materials and contaminated items, in particular metallurgical scrap, has become a problem of increasing importance. Radioactive sources out of regulatory control, now often called 'orphan sources', have frequently caused serious, even deadly, radiation exposures and widespread contamination. The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission reported over 2300 incidents of radioactive materials found in recycled metal scrap and more than 50 accidental smeltings of radioactive sources. A further potentially serious problem is illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive materials. In 1995 the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) started a programme to combat illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive materials, which includes an international database on incidents of illicit trafficking, receiving reports from some 80 member states. For the period 1993-2000 the IAEA database includes 345 confirmed incidents. While from 1994-1996 the frequency declined significantly, this trend has been reversed since 1997, largely due to radioactive sources rather than nuclear material. This paper compares monitoring techniques for radioactive materials in scrap applied at steel plants and scrap yards with monitoring at borders, a completely different situation. It discusses the results of the 'Illicit Trafficking Radiation Detection Assessment Program', a large international pilot study, conducted in cooperation between the IAEA, the Austrian Government and the Austrian Research Centre Seibersdorf. The aim of this exercise was to derive realistic and internationally agreed requirements for border monitoring instrumentation. Finally the present extent of border monitoring installations is discussed. (author)

Straddling the border

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Eilenberg, Michael

2011-01-01

border between the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan and the Malaysian state of Sarawak on the island of Borneo. Based on local narratives, the aim of this paper is to unravel the little known history of how the Iban segment of the border population in West Kalimantan became entangled in the highly...

Border Crossing/Entry Data

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Transportation — The dataset is known as “Border Crossing/Entry Data.” The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) Border Crossing/Entry Data provides summary statistics to the...

Small Border Traffic and Cross-Border Tourism Between Poland and the Kaliningrad Oblast of the Russian Federation

OpenAIRE

Anisiewicz Renata; Palmowski Tadeusz

2014-01-01

Polish and Russian cross-border cooperation is governed by lawful agreements. The enlargement of the Schengen Area had a significant impact on Kaliningrad Oblast relations and cross-border cooperation with its neighbours. The introduction of visas between Poland and Russia hindered and restricted local border trade which had for years been the only measure mitigating social and economic problems of the cross-border regions. Nevertheless, border traffic between Poland and Kaliningrad grew stea...

SU-F-P-54: Guidelines to Check Image Registration QA of a Clinical Deformation Registration Software: A Single Institution Preliminary Study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gill, G; Souri, S; Rea, A; Chen, Y; Antone, J; Qian, X; Riegel, A; Taylor, P; Marrero, M; Diaz, F; Cao, Y; Jamshidi, A; Klein, E [Northwell Health, Lake Success, NY (United States); Barley, S; Sorell, V; Karangelis, G [Oncology Systems Limited, Longbow Close, Shrewsbury SY1 3GZ (United Kingdom); Button, T [Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook, NY (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: The objective of this study is to verify and analyze the accuracy of a clinical deformable image registration (DIR) software. Methods: To test clinical DIR software qualitatively and quantitatively, we focused on lung radiotherapy and analyzed a single (Lung) patient CT scan. Artificial anatomical changes were applied to account for daily variations during the course of treatment including the planning target volume (PTV) and organs at risk (OAR). The primary CT (pCT) and the structure set (pST) was deformed with commercial tool (ImSimQA-Oncology Systems Limited) and after artificial deformation (dCT and dST) sent to another commercial tool (VelocityAI-Varian Medical Systems). In Velocity, the deformed CT and structures (dCT and dST) were inversely deformed back to original primary CT (dbpCT and dbpST). We compared the dbpST and pST structure sets using similarity metrics. Furthermore, a binary deformation field vector (BDF) was created and sent to ImSimQA software for comparison with known “ground truth” deformation vector fields (DVF). Results: An image similarity comparison was made by using “ground truth” DVF and “deformed output” BDF with an output of normalized “cross correlation (CC)” and “mutual information (MI)” in ImSimQA software. Results for the lung case were MI=0.66 and CC=0.99. The artificial structure deformation in both pST and dbpST was analyzed using DICE coefficient, mean distance to conformity (MDC) and deformation field error volume histogram (DFEVH) by comparing them before and after inverse deformation. We have noticed inadequate structure match for CTV, ITV and PTV due to close proximity of heart and overall affected by lung expansion. Conclusion: We have seen similarity between pCT and dbpCT but not so well between pST and dbpST, because of inadequate structure deformation in clinical DIR system. This system based quality assurance test will prepare us for adopting the guidelines of upcoming AAPM task group 132

SU-F-P-54: Guidelines to Check Image Registration QA of a Clinical Deformation Registration Software: A Single Institution Preliminary Study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gill, G; Souri, S; Rea, A; Chen, Y; Antone, J; Qian, X; Riegel, A; Taylor, P; Marrero, M; Diaz, F; Cao, Y; Jamshidi, A; Klein, E; Barley, S; Sorell, V; Karangelis, G; Button, T

2016-01-01

Purpose: The objective of this study is to verify and analyze the accuracy of a clinical deformable image registration (DIR) software. Methods: To test clinical DIR software qualitatively and quantitatively, we focused on lung radiotherapy and analyzed a single (Lung) patient CT scan. Artificial anatomical changes were applied to account for daily variations during the course of treatment including the planning target volume (PTV) and organs at risk (OAR). The primary CT (pCT) and the structure set (pST) was deformed with commercial tool (ImSimQA-Oncology Systems Limited) and after artificial deformation (dCT and dST) sent to another commercial tool (VelocityAI-Varian Medical Systems). In Velocity, the deformed CT and structures (dCT and dST) were inversely deformed back to original primary CT (dbpCT and dbpST). We compared the dbpST and pST structure sets using similarity metrics. Furthermore, a binary deformation field vector (BDF) was created and sent to ImSimQA software for comparison with known “ground truth” deformation vector fields (DVF). Results: An image similarity comparison was made by using “ground truth” DVF and “deformed output” BDF with an output of normalized “cross correlation (CC)” and “mutual information (MI)” in ImSimQA software. Results for the lung case were MI=0.66 and CC=0.99. The artificial structure deformation in both pST and dbpST was analyzed using DICE coefficient, mean distance to conformity (MDC) and deformation field error volume histogram (DFEVH) by comparing them before and after inverse deformation. We have noticed inadequate structure match for CTV, ITV and PTV due to close proximity of heart and overall affected by lung expansion. Conclusion: We have seen similarity between pCT and dbpCT but not so well between pST and dbpST, because of inadequate structure deformation in clinical DIR system. This system based quality assurance test will prepare us for adopting the guidelines of upcoming AAPM task group 132

Who’s Who at the Border? A rights-based approach to identifying human trafficking at international borders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marika McAdam

2013-09-01

Full Text Available International borders are widely touted as bastions in the fight against trafficking in persons. This article acknowledges the important role border officials play in preventing human trafficking, but calls for expectations to be tempered by deference to the conceptual complexity of cross-border trafficking and the migration processes involved. The fact that many trafficked victims begin their journeys as irregular or smuggled migrants highlights the challenge posed to border officials in identifying trafficked persons among the people they encounter. Indicators of trafficking generally relate to the exploitation phase, leaving border officials with little guidance as to how persons vulnerable to trafficking can be accurately identified before any exploitation has occurred. Ultimately, this paper advocates a pragmatic rights-based approach in designating anti-trafficking functions to border officials. A rights-based approach to border control acknowledges the core work of border officials as being to uphold border integrity, while ensuring that their performance of this role does not jeopardise the rights of those they intercept nor result in missed opportunities for specialists to identify trafficked persons and other vulnerable people among them.

Study on the Flexibility in Cross-Border Water Resources Cooperation Governance

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Zongrui; Wang, Teng; Zhou, Li

2018-02-01

Flexible strategy is very important to cross-border cooperation in international rivers water resources, which may be employed to reconcile contradictions and ease conflicts. Flexible characters of cross-border cooperation in international rivers water resources could be analyzed and revealed, using flexible strategic management framework, by taking international cooperation protocols related to water from Transboundary Freshwater Disputes Database (TFDD) as samples from the number of cooperation issues, the amount of management layers and regulator agencies in cooperation organization and the categories of income (cost) distribution (allocation) mode. The research demonstrates that there are some flexible features of cross-border cooperation in international rivers water resources: Riparian countries would select relative diversification strategies related to water, tend to construct a flexible cooperation organization featured with moderate hierarchies from vertical perspective and simplified administrations from horizontal perspective, and adopt selective inducement modes to respect ‘joint and several liability’.

School Social Workers in Texas: A Comparative Demographic Analysis of the Texas-Mexico Border and Non-Border Regions

Science.gov (United States)

Garza, Cecilia; Landeck, Michael

2007-01-01

This study examines the role of school social workers as potential agents of change in the educational system, with a special focus on their major demographic characteristics in Texas and along the Mexico border region. The border region of the state has chronic poverty and limited educational attainment levels and demonstrates a need for…

Manufacturing and QA of adaptors for LHC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madhu Murthy, V.; Dwivedi, J.; Goswami, S.G.; Soni, H.C.; Mainaud Durand, H.; Quesnel, J.P.; )

2006-01-01

The LHC low beta quadrupoles, have very tight alignment tolerances and are located in areas with strong radiation field. They require remote re-alignment, by motorized jacks, based on the feedback of alignment sensors of each magnet. Jacks designed to support arc cryomagnets of LHC are modified and motorized with the help of adaptors. Two types of adapters, for vertical and transverse axes of the jacks, were developed and supplied through collaboration between RRCAT, DAE, India and CERN, Geneva. This paper describes their functional requirements, manufacture and quality assurance (QA). (author)

Small Border Traffic and Cross-Border Tourism Between Poland and the Kaliningrad Oblast of the Russian Federation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anisiewicz Renata

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Polish and Russian cross-border cooperation is governed by lawful agreements. The enlargement of the Schengen Area had a significant impact on Kaliningrad Oblast relations and cross-border cooperation with its neighbours. The introduction of visas between Poland and Russia hindered and restricted local border trade which had for years been the only measure mitigating social and economic problems of the cross-border regions. Nevertheless, border traffic between Poland and Kaliningrad grew steadily, to exceed four million in 2012.

Measuring cross-border travel times for freight : Otay Mesa international border crossing.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-01

Cross border movement of people and goods is a vital part of the North American economy. Accurate real-time data on travel times along the US-Mexico border can help generate a range of tangible benefits covering improved operations and security, lowe...

Cross-border innovation cooperation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hjaltadóttir, Rannveig Edda; Makkonen, Teemu; Sørensen, Nils Karl

2017-01-01

Finding a suitable partner is paramount for the success of innovation cooperation. Thus, this paper sets out to analyse the determinants of cross-border innovation cooperation in Denmark by focusing on partner selection. The aim of the article is to investigate determinants of partner selection...... by taking the location of the partners into account. In particular, the discussion is tied to the notion of varying knowledge bases firms utilize in their innovation creation processes. Firm level data from the 2010 Community Innovation Survey in Denmark was utilized to analyse cross-border innovation...... of innovativeness increase the likelihood of cross-border innovation cooperation. Accordingly, geographical proximity to international borders is found to have a significant, positive effect on selecting partners within the European Union. The multivariate probit model shows that the decision of choosing a domestic...

Smart border initiative: a Franco-German cross-border energy optimisation project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2017-01-01

Integrated and optimised local energy systems will play a key role in achieving the energy transition objectives set by France and Germany, in line with the Energy Union's goals, and contribute to ensuring a secure, affordable and climate-friendly energy supply in the EU. In order to capitalise on the French and German expertise and experiences in developing such systems and to continue strengthening the cross-border cooperation towards a fully integrated European energy market, both Governments have decided to launch a common initiative to identify and structure a cross-border energy optimisation project. Tilia and Dena have undertaken this mission to jointly develop the Smart Border Initiative (SBI). The SBI will, on the one hand, connect policies designed by France and Germany in order to support their cities and territories in their energy transition strategies and European market integration. It is currently a paradox that, though more balanced and resilient energy systems build up, bottom-up, at the local level, borders remain an obstacle to this local integration, in spite of the numerous complementarities observed in cross-border regions, and of their specific needs, in terms of smart mobility for example. The SBI project aims at enabling European neighbouring regions separated by a border to jointly build up optimised local energy systems, and jointly develop their local economies following an integrated, sustainable and low-carbon model. On the other hand, this showcase project will initiate a new stage in the EU electricity market integration, by completing high voltage interconnections with local, low voltage integration at DSO level, opening new optimisation possibilities in managing the electricity balance, and enabling DSOs to jointly overcome some of the current challenges, notably the increased share of renewable energy (RE) and ensuring Europe's security of supply

Laboratory quality assurance and its role in nuclear fuel reprocessing and refabrication

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Delvin, W.L.

1977-09-01

For the overall quality assurance (QA) program to be fully effective, the principles of QA must be applied to the operation of the analytical chemistry laboratory itself. This paper shows how QA is used at HEDL to produce confidence in each analytical result. Use of QA has resulted in the following benefits: poor laboratory practices have been found and eliminated, and an already adequate record system was improved even further

Using a User-Interactive QA System for Personalized E-Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Dawei; Chen, Wei; Zeng, Qingtian; Hao, Tianyong; Min, Feng; Wenyin, Liu

2008-01-01

A personalized e-learning framework based on a user-interactive question-answering (QA) system is proposed, in which a user-modeling approach is used to capture personal information of students and a personalized answer extraction algorithm is proposed for personalized automatic answering. In our approach, a topic ontology (or concept hierarchy)…

Border information flow architecture

Science.gov (United States)

2006-04-01

This brochure describes the Border Information Flow Architecture (BIFA). The Transportation Border Working Group, a bi-national group that works to enhance coordination and planning between the United States and Canada, identified collaboration on th...

Organizing cross-border fire brigade response in the Dutch-German border region

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boersma, F.K.; Engelman, E.

2012-01-01

This article addresses the opportunities and problems with cross-border collaboration between the Dutch and German fire brigades. The following are the main problems: 1) no uniformity in concluding and using the cross-border agreements for emergency assistance, 2) the language problem, 3) the

SU-F-T-271: Comparing IMRT QA Pass Rates Before and After MLC Calibration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mazza, A; Perrin, D; Fontenot, J [Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, Baton Rouge, LA (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To compare IMRT QA pass rates before and after an in-house MLC leaf calibration procedure. Methods: The MLC leaves and backup jaws on four Elekta linear accelerators with MLCi2 heads were calibrated using the EPID-based RIT Hancock Test as the means for evaluation. The MLCs were considered to be successfully calibrated when they could pass the Hancock Test with criteria of 1 mm jaw position tolerance, and 1 mm leaf position tolerance. IMRT QA results were collected pre- and postcalibration and analyzed using gamma analysis with 3%/3mm DTA criteria. AAPM TG-119 test plans were also compared pre- and post-calibration, at both 2%/2mm DTA and 3%/3mm DTA. Results: A weighted average was performed on the results for all four linear accelerators. The pre-calibration IMRT QA pass rate was 98.3 ± 0.1%, compared with the post-calibration pass rate of 98.5 ± 0.1%. The TG-119 test plan results showed more of an improvement, particularly at the 2%/2mm criteria. The averaged results were 89.1% pre and 96.1% post for the C-shape plan, 94.8% pre and 97.1% post for the multi-target plan, 98.6% pre and 99.7% post for the prostate plan, 94.7% pre and 94.8% post for the head/neck plan. Conclusion: The patient QA results did not show statistically significant improvement at the 3%/3mm DTA criteria after the MLC calibration procedure. However, the TG-119 test cases did show significant improvement at the 2%/2mm level.

Temporary reintroduction of border controls at French borders inside the Schengen Area

CERN Multimedia

2015-01-01

The French authorities have informed CERN that, in view of the upcoming COP21 Paris Climate Conference, France will exceptionally reintroduce controls at its borders with Schengen states for one month from 13 November to 13 December 2015. All border posts and crossing points between France and Switzerland will be affected by this measure.   Members of the personnel are therefore reminded that, when crossing borders within the Schengen Area*, they must carry: either, in the case of citizens of European Economic Area (EEA) countries and Switzerland, an official identity document (identity card or passport); or, in the case of non-EEA and non-Swiss citizens, an identity document together with a Schengen visa if they are subject to this obligation, or an identity document together with a residence permit issued by a Schengen state** if they have one.   The French authorities will make every effort to limit the impact of this measure on cross-border traffic, and wish to thank the members of th...

Effect of the US-Mexico border region in cardiovascular mortality: ecological time trend analysis of Mexican border and non-border municipalities from 1998 to 2012.

Science.gov (United States)

Anaya, Gabriel; Al-Delaimy, Wael K

2017-05-06

An array of risk factors has been associated with cardiovascular diseases, and developing nations are becoming disproportionately affected by such diseases. Cardiovascular diseases have been reported to be highly prevalent in the Mexican population, but local mortality data is poor. The Mexican side of the US-Mexico border has a culture that is closely related to a developed nation and therefore may share the same risk factors of cardiovascular diseases. We wanted to explore if there was higher cardiovascular mortality in the border region of Mexico compared to the rest of the nation. We conducted a population based cross-sectional time series analysis to estimate the effects of education, insurance and municipal size in Mexican border (n = 38) and non-border municipalities (n = 2360) and its association with cardiovascular age-adjusted mortality rates between the years 1998-2012. We used a mixed effect linear model with random effect estimation and repeated measurements to compare the main outcome variable (mortality rate), the covariates (education, insurance and population size) and the geographic delimiter (border/non-border). Mortality due to cardiovascular disease was consistently higher in the municipalities along the US-Mexico border, showing a difference of 78 · 5 (95% CI 58 · 7-98 · 3, p Insurance coverage showed an increase in cardiovascular mortality of 3 · 6 (95% CI 3 · 1-4 · 0, p Mexico border region is disproportionately affected by cardiovascular disease mortality as compared to the non-border region of Mexico. This was not explained by education, population density, or insurance coverage. Proximity to the US culture and related diet and habits can be explanations of the increasing mortality trend.

TH-A-BRC-01: AAPM TG-135U1 QA for Robotic Radiosurgery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dieterich, S.

2016-01-01

AAPM TG-135U1 QA for Robotic Radiosurgery - Sonja Dieterich Since the publication of AAPM TG-135 in 2011, the technology of robotic radiosurgery has rapidly developed. AAPM TG-135U1 will provide recommendations on the clinical practice for using the IRIS collimator, fiducial-less real-time motion tracking, and Monte Carlo based treatment planning. In addition, it will summarize currently available literature about uncertainties. Learning Objectives: Understand the progression of technology since the first TG publication Learn which new QA procedures should be implemented for new technologies Be familiar with updates to clinical practice guidelines AAPM TG-178 Gamma Stereotactic Radiosurgery Dosimetry and Quality Assurance - Steven Goetsch Purpose: AAPM Task Group 178 Gamma Stereotactic Radiosurgery Dosimetry and Quality Assurance was formed in August, 2008. The Task Group has 12 medical physicists, two physicians and two consultants. Methods: A round robin dosimetry intercomparison of proposed ionization chambers, electrometer and dosimetry phantoms was conducted over a 15 month period in 2011 and 2012 (Med Phys 42, 11, Nov, 2015). The data obtained at 9 institutions (with ten different Elekta Gamma Knife units) was analyzed by the lead author using several protocols. Results: The most consistent results were obtained using the Elekta ABS 16cm diameter phantom, with the TG-51 protocol modified as recommended by Alfonso et al (Med Phys 35, 11, Nov 2008). A key white paper (Med Phys, in press) sponsored by Elekta Corporation, was used to obtain correction factors for the ionization chambers and phantoms used in this intercomparison. Consistent results were obtained for both Elekta Gamma Knife Model 4C and Gamma Knife Perfexion units as measured with each of two miniature ionization chambers. Conclusion: The full report gives clinical history and background of gamma stereotactic radiosurgery, clinical examples and history, quality assurance recommendations and outline

TH-A-BRC-00: New Task Groups for External Beam QA: An Overview

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2016-01-01

AAPM TG-135U1 QA for Robotic Radiosurgery - Sonja Dieterich Since the publication of AAPM TG-135 in 2011, the technology of robotic radiosurgery has rapidly developed. AAPM TG-135U1 will provide recommendations on the clinical practice for using the IRIS collimator, fiducial-less real-time motion tracking, and Monte Carlo based treatment planning. In addition, it will summarize currently available literature about uncertainties. Learning Objectives: Understand the progression of technology since the first TG publication Learn which new QA procedures should be implemented for new technologies Be familiar with updates to clinical practice guidelines AAPM TG-178 Gamma Stereotactic Radiosurgery Dosimetry and Quality Assurance - Steven Goetsch Purpose: AAPM Task Group 178 Gamma Stereotactic Radiosurgery Dosimetry and Quality Assurance was formed in August, 2008. The Task Group has 12 medical physicists, two physicians and two consultants. Methods: A round robin dosimetry intercomparison of proposed ionization chambers, electrometer and dosimetry phantoms was conducted over a 15 month period in 2011 and 2012 (Med Phys 42, 11, Nov, 2015). The data obtained at 9 institutions (with ten different Elekta Gamma Knife units) was analyzed by the lead author using several protocols. Results: The most consistent results were obtained using the Elekta ABS 16cm diameter phantom, with the TG-51 protocol modified as recommended by Alfonso et al (Med Phys 35, 11, Nov 2008). A key white paper (Med Phys, in press) sponsored by Elekta Corporation, was used to obtain correction factors for the ionization chambers and phantoms used in this intercomparison. Consistent results were obtained for both Elekta Gamma Knife Model 4C and Gamma Knife Perfexion units as measured with each of two miniature ionization chambers. Conclusion: The full report gives clinical history and background of gamma stereotactic radiosurgery, clinical examples and history, quality assurance recommendations and outline

TH-A-BRC-00: New Task Groups for External Beam QA: An Overview

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2016-06-15

AAPM TG-135U1 QA for Robotic Radiosurgery - Sonja Dieterich Since the publication of AAPM TG-135 in 2011, the technology of robotic radiosurgery has rapidly developed. AAPM TG-135U1 will provide recommendations on the clinical practice for using the IRIS collimator, fiducial-less real-time motion tracking, and Monte Carlo based treatment planning. In addition, it will summarize currently available literature about uncertainties. Learning Objectives: Understand the progression of technology since the first TG publication Learn which new QA procedures should be implemented for new technologies Be familiar with updates to clinical practice guidelines AAPM TG-178 Gamma Stereotactic Radiosurgery Dosimetry and Quality Assurance - Steven Goetsch Purpose: AAPM Task Group 178 Gamma Stereotactic Radiosurgery Dosimetry and Quality Assurance was formed in August, 2008. The Task Group has 12 medical physicists, two physicians and two consultants. Methods: A round robin dosimetry intercomparison of proposed ionization chambers, electrometer and dosimetry phantoms was conducted over a 15 month period in 2011 and 2012 (Med Phys 42, 11, Nov, 2015). The data obtained at 9 institutions (with ten different Elekta Gamma Knife units) was analyzed by the lead author using several protocols. Results: The most consistent results were obtained using the Elekta ABS 16cm diameter phantom, with the TG-51 protocol modified as recommended by Alfonso et al (Med Phys 35, 11, Nov 2008). A key white paper (Med Phys, in press) sponsored by Elekta Corporation, was used to obtain correction factors for the ionization chambers and phantoms used in this intercomparison. Consistent results were obtained for both Elekta Gamma Knife Model 4C and Gamma Knife Perfexion units as measured with each of two miniature ionization chambers. Conclusion: The full report gives clinical history and background of gamma stereotactic radiosurgery, clinical examples and history, quality assurance recommendations and outline

TH-A-BRC-01: AAPM TG-135U1 QA for Robotic Radiosurgery

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dieterich, S. [UC Davis Medical Center (United States)

2016-06-15

AAPM TG-135U1 QA for Robotic Radiosurgery - Sonja Dieterich Since the publication of AAPM TG-135 in 2011, the technology of robotic radiosurgery has rapidly developed. AAPM TG-135U1 will provide recommendations on the clinical practice for using the IRIS collimator, fiducial-less real-time motion tracking, and Monte Carlo based treatment planning. In addition, it will summarize currently available literature about uncertainties. Learning Objectives: Understand the progression of technology since the first TG publication Learn which new QA procedures should be implemented for new technologies Be familiar with updates to clinical practice guidelines AAPM TG-178 Gamma Stereotactic Radiosurgery Dosimetry and Quality Assurance - Steven Goetsch Purpose: AAPM Task Group 178 Gamma Stereotactic Radiosurgery Dosimetry and Quality Assurance was formed in August, 2008. The Task Group has 12 medical physicists, two physicians and two consultants. Methods: A round robin dosimetry intercomparison of proposed ionization chambers, electrometer and dosimetry phantoms was conducted over a 15 month period in 2011 and 2012 (Med Phys 42, 11, Nov, 2015). The data obtained at 9 institutions (with ten different Elekta Gamma Knife units) was analyzed by the lead author using several protocols. Results: The most consistent results were obtained using the Elekta ABS 16cm diameter phantom, with the TG-51 protocol modified as recommended by Alfonso et al (Med Phys 35, 11, Nov 2008). A key white paper (Med Phys, in press) sponsored by Elekta Corporation, was used to obtain correction factors for the ionization chambers and phantoms used in this intercomparison. Consistent results were obtained for both Elekta Gamma Knife Model 4C and Gamma Knife Perfexion units as measured with each of two miniature ionization chambers. Conclusion: The full report gives clinical history and background of gamma stereotactic radiosurgery, clinical examples and history, quality assurance recommendations and outline

Dream vs. reality: seven case-studies on the desirability and feasibility of cross-border hospital collaboration in Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Glinos, Irene A; Baeten, Rita

2014-09-01

Despite being a niche phenomenon, cross-border health care collaboration receives a lot of attention in the EU and figures visibly on the policy agenda, in particular since the policy process which eventually led to the adoption of Directive 2011/24/EU. One of the underlying assumptions is that cross-border collaboration is desirable, providing justification to both the European Commission and to border-region stakeholders for promoting it. The purpose of this paper is to question this assumption and to examine the role of actors in pushing (or not) for cross-border collaboration. The analysis takes place in two parts. First, the EU policies to promote cross-border collaboration and the tools employed are examined, namely (a) use of European funds to sponsor concrete border-region collaboration projects, (b) use of European funds to sponsor research which gives visibility to cross-border collaboration, and (c) use of the European Commission's newly acquired legal mandate to encourage "Member States to cooperate in cross-border health care provision in border-regions" (Art. 10) and support "Member States in the development of European reference networks between health care providers and centres of expertise" (Art. 12). Second, evidence gathered in 2011-2013 from seven European border-regions on hospital cross-border collaboration is systematically reviewed to assess the reality of cross-border collaboration - can it work and when, and why do actors engage in cross-border collaboration? The preliminary findings suggest that while the EU plays a prominent role in some border-region initiatives, cross-border collaboration needs such a specific set of circumstances to work that it is questionable whether it can effectively be promoted. Moreover, local actors make use of the EU (as a source of funding, legislation or legitimisation) to serve their needs. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Symmetry or asymmetry? Cross-border openness of service providers in Polish-Czech and Polish-German border towns

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dołzbłasz Sylwia

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The symmetry and/or asymmetry in terms of cross-border openness of service providers is examined in this article, for the cases of two border twin towns: Cieszyn/Český Těšín at the Polish-Czech border, and Gubin/Guben at the Polish-German border. To assess the level of openness of firms towards clients from the other side of the border, four trans-border categories were examined: neighbour’s language visible at store location; business offers in the language of the neighbour; the possibilities of payment in the neighbour’s currency; and the staff’s knowledge of the language. This enabled a comparison of both parts of the particular twin towns in relation to the character of cross-border openness, as well as an assessment of their symmetry/asymmetry. Comparisons of Gubin/Guben and Cieszyn/Český Těšín with respect to the analysed features were also carried out. The analysis shows significant variation in the level of cross-border openness towards clients from neighbouring countries. Whereas in the Polish-Czech town a relative symmetry was observed, in the Polish-German case, significant asymmetry was noted.

Border Malaria Associated with Multidrug Resistance on Thailand-Myanmar and Thailand-Cambodia Borders: Transmission Dynamic, Vulnerability, and Surveillance

Science.gov (United States)

Bhumiratana, Adisak; Intarapuk, Apiradee; Sorosjinda-Nunthawarasilp, Prapa; Maneekan, Pannamas; Koyadun, Surachart

2013-01-01

This systematic review elaborates the concepts and impacts of border malaria, particularly on the emergence and spread of Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax multidrug resistance (MDR) malaria on Thailand-Myanmar and Thailand-Cambodia borders. Border malaria encompasses any complex epidemiological settings of forest-related and forest fringe-related malaria, both regularly occurring in certain transmission areas and manifesting a trend of increased incidence in transmission prone areas along these borders, as the result of interconnections of human settlements and movement activities, cross-border population migrations, ecological changes, vector population dynamics, and multidrug resistance. For regional and global perspectives, this review analyzes and synthesizes the rationales pertaining to transmission dynamics and the vulnerabilities of border malaria that constrain surveillance and control of the world's most MDR falciparum and vivax malaria on these chaotic borders. PMID:23865048

CROSS-BORDER E-COMMERCE – PROBLEMS IN IDENTIFICATION AND MEASUREMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sylwia Talar

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Cross-border e-commerce is a relatively new phenomenon in the contemporary world economy and very little examined. The aim of this paper is to specify and charac-terize basic problems for the cross-border e-commerce research. It was carried out a wide literature review, including methodological manuals, studies, reports and statistics. The problems with definition of the cross-border e-commerce notion were studied, as well as the scope of official statistics and private sources of data in this area. The finding is that the studies of cross-border e-commerce are currently faced with serious problems of fundamental nature, which are identification of meaning and quantitative dimension of this phenomenon.

Sprouting of dormant buds on border trees

Science.gov (United States)

G.R., Jr. Trimble; H. Clay Smith; H. Clay Smith

1970-01-01

As part of an evaluation of silvicultura1 systems used in managing Appalachian hardwoods, we are studying degrade of border trees surrounding harvest-cut openings made in the patch cutting and group selection systems. One facet of this research dealt with determining what portion of visually evident dormant buds on border tree boles sprouted when the openings were cut...

Portland cement concrete pavement review of QC/QA data 2000 through 2009.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-04-01

This report analyzes the Quality Control/Quality Assurance (QC/QA) data for Portland cement concrete pavement : (PCCP) awarded in the years 2000 through 2009. Analysis of the overall performance of the projects is accomplished by : reviewing the Calc...

SU-E-T-354: Efficient and Enhanced QA Testing of Linear Accelerators Using a Real-Time Beam Monitor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jung, J; Farrokhkish, M; Norrlinger, B; Wang, Y [Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Ontario (Canada); Heaton, R; Jaffray, D; Islam, M [Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Ontario (Canada); University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario (Canada)

2015-06-15

Purpose: To investigate the feasibility of performing routine QA tests of linear accelerators (Linac) using the Integral Quality Monitoring (IQM) system. The system, consisting of a 1-D sensitivity gradient large area ion-chamber mounted at the collimator, allows automatic collection and analysis of beam data. Methods: The IQM was investigated to perform several QA constancy tests, similar to those recommended by AAPM TG142, of a Linac including: beam output, MLC calibration, beam symmetry, relative dose factor (RDF), dose linearity, output as a function of gantry angle and dose rate. All measurements by the IQM system accompanied a reference measurement using a conventional dosimetry system and were performed on an Elekta Infinity Linac with Agility MLC. The MLC calibration check is done using a Picket-Fence type 2×10cm{sup 2} field positioned at different off-axis locations along the chamber gradient. Beam symmetry constancy values are established by signals from an 4×4cm{sup 2} aperture located at various off-axis positions; the sensitivity of the test was determined by the changes in the signals in response to a tilt in the beam. The data for various square field sizes were used to develop a functional relationship with RDF. Results: The IQM tracked the beam output well within 1% of the reference ion-chamber readings. The Picket-Fence type field test detected a 1mm shift error of one MLC bank. The system was able to detect 2.5% or greater beam asymmetry. The IQM results for all other QA tests were found to agree with the reference values to within 0.5%. Conclusion: It was demonstrated that the IQM system can effectively monitor the Linac performance parameters for the purpose of routine QA constancy tests. With minimum user interactions a comprehensive set of tests can be performed efficiently, allowing frequent monitoring of the Linac. The presenting author’s salary is funded by the manufacturer of the QA device. All the other authors have financial

SU-E-T-354: Efficient and Enhanced QA Testing of Linear Accelerators Using a Real-Time Beam Monitor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, J; Farrokhkish, M; Norrlinger, B; Wang, Y; Heaton, R; Jaffray, D; Islam, M

2015-01-01

Purpose: To investigate the feasibility of performing routine QA tests of linear accelerators (Linac) using the Integral Quality Monitoring (IQM) system. The system, consisting of a 1-D sensitivity gradient large area ion-chamber mounted at the collimator, allows automatic collection and analysis of beam data. Methods: The IQM was investigated to perform several QA constancy tests, similar to those recommended by AAPM TG142, of a Linac including: beam output, MLC calibration, beam symmetry, relative dose factor (RDF), dose linearity, output as a function of gantry angle and dose rate. All measurements by the IQM system accompanied a reference measurement using a conventional dosimetry system and were performed on an Elekta Infinity Linac with Agility MLC. The MLC calibration check is done using a Picket-Fence type 2×10cm 2 field positioned at different off-axis locations along the chamber gradient. Beam symmetry constancy values are established by signals from an 4×4cm 2 aperture located at various off-axis positions; the sensitivity of the test was determined by the changes in the signals in response to a tilt in the beam. The data for various square field sizes were used to develop a functional relationship with RDF. Results: The IQM tracked the beam output well within 1% of the reference ion-chamber readings. The Picket-Fence type field test detected a 1mm shift error of one MLC bank. The system was able to detect 2.5% or greater beam asymmetry. The IQM results for all other QA tests were found to agree with the reference values to within 0.5%. Conclusion: It was demonstrated that the IQM system can effectively monitor the Linac performance parameters for the purpose of routine QA constancy tests. With minimum user interactions a comprehensive set of tests can be performed efficiently, allowing frequent monitoring of the Linac. The presenting author’s salary is funded by the manufacturer of the QA device. All the other authors have financial interests with

Supply chain cost improvement opportunities through streamlining cross-border operations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jan Hendrik Havenga

2013-09-01

Full Text Available The Cross-Border Road Transport Agency (CBRTA in South Africa aims to encourage and facilitate trade between South Africa and its neighbouring countries. The CBRTA sponsored a study by Stellenbosch University (SU to determine the logistics cost impact of cross-border delays between South Africa and its major neighbouring trading partners, and prioritise opportunities for improvement. SU is the proprietor of both a comprehensive freight demand model and a logistics cost model for South Africa, which enable extractions and extensions of freight flows and related costs for specific purposes. Through the application of these models, the following information is identified and presented in this paper: South Africa’s most important border posts (based on traffic flows; a product profile for imports and exports through these border posts; the modal split (road and rail; the annual logistics costs incurred on the corridors feeding the border posts, as well as the additional costs incurred due to border delays. The research has proved that the streamlining of border-post operations that take a total supply chain view (i.e. of both border operations and those that could be moved from the border is beneficial.

The application of analytical methods to the study of Pareto - optimal control systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. K. Romanova

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The subject of research articles - - methods of multicriteria optimization and their application for parametric synthesis of double-circuit control systems in conditions of inconsistency of individual criteria. The basis for solving multicriteria problems is a fundamental principle of a multi-criteria choice - the principle of the Edgeworth - Pareto. Getting Pareto - optimal variants due to inconsistency of individual criteria does not mean reaching a final decision. Set these options only offers the designer (DM.An important issue when using traditional numerical methods is their computational cost. An example is the use of methods of sounding the parameter space, including with use of uniform grids and uniformly distributed sequences. Very complex computational task is the application of computer methods of approximation bounds of Pareto.The purpose of this work is the development of a fairly simple search methods of Pareto - optimal solutions for the case of the criteria set out in the analytical form.The proposed solution is based on the study of the properties of the analytical dependences of criteria. The case is not covered so far in the literature, namely, the topology of the task, in which no touch of indifference curves (lines level. It is shown that for such tasks may be earmarked for compromise solutions. Prepositional use of the angular position of antigradient to the indifference curves in the parameter space relative to the coordinate axes. Formulated propositions on the characteristics of comonotonicity and contramonotonicity and angular characteristics of antigradient to determine Pareto optimal solutions. Considers the General algorithm of calculation: determine the scope of permissible values of parameters; investigates properties comonotonicity and contraventanas; to build an equal level (indifference curves; determined touch type: single sided (task is not strictly multicriteria or bilateral (objective relates to the Pareto

Border Malaria Associated with Multidrug Resistance on Thailand-Myanmar and Thailand-Cambodia Borders: Transmission Dynamic, Vulnerability, and Surveillance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adisak Bhumiratana

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This systematic review elaborates the concepts and impacts of border malaria, particularly on the emergence and spread of Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax multidrug resistance (MDR malaria on Thailand-Myanmar and Thailand-Cambodia borders. Border malaria encompasses any complex epidemiological settings of forest-related and forest fringe-related malaria, both regularly occurring in certain transmission areas and manifesting a trend of increased incidence in transmission prone areas along these borders, as the result of interconnections of human settlements and movement activities, cross-border population migrations, ecological changes, vector population dynamics, and multidrug resistance. For regional and global perspectives, this review analyzes and synthesizes the rationales pertaining to transmission dynamics and the vulnerabilities of border malaria that constrain surveillance and control of the world’s most MDR falciparum and vivax malaria on these chaotic borders.

QA/QC - Practices and procedures in WWER fuel management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keselica, M.

1999-01-01

Construction time schedule and commissioning (unit by unit) of the NPP Dukovany as well as structure of electricity generation in the CEZ in 1998 are reviewed. History of QA/QC system establishment and rules (system standards) as well as organization chart of the NPP Dukovany and quality manual of reactor physics department are presented. Standards of worker's qualification and nuclear fuel inspections are discussed. Fuel reliability indicators are presented

Business across borders between Colombia and Venezuela: from trade to social conflict

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jhon Antuny Pabón León

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Border relations in the «living borders» have been an object of study due to the conditions under which the economy of the borders is developed. Investigations carried out between North Santander and Táchira State border are analyzed, comparing them with the principles of the German (the state-nation and French (the border area Schools. Studies of the Chamber of Commerce of Cúcuta are analyzed and discussed. It is concluded that the economy of North Santander is affected more by political and ideological positions than by international trade. Governments continue to ignore the reality of two peoples who share a border region, as it is exposed by the principles of the French School.

Market Intergration and Border Effects in Eastern Africa

OpenAIRE

Bruno Versailles

2012-01-01

This paper studies border efects in Eastern Africa by exploiting a consumer price data set covering 4 out of 5 EAC member states, 39 cities and 24 goods over the period 2004-2008. The Law-of-One-Price (LOP) is tested by running level regressions on relative prices with city-pairs the unit of observation. Unsurprisingly, distance plays an important role in explaining relative price movements, both within and between countries. The border efect as measured by the coef?cient on a border dummy is...

The shape of soap films and Plateau borders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fortes, M A; Teixeira, P I C; Deus, A M

2007-01-01

We have calculated the shapes of flat liquid films, and of the transition region to the associated Plateau borders (PBs), by integrating the Laplace equation with a position-dependent surface tension γ(x), where 2x is the local film thickness. We discuss films in either zero or non-zero gravity, using standard γ(x) potentials for the interaction between the two bounding surfaces. We have investigated the effects of the film flatness, liquid underpressure, and gravity on the shape of films and their PBs. Films may exhibit 'humps' and/or 'dips' associated with inflection points and minima of the film thickness. Finally, we propose an asymptotic analytical solution for the film width profile

The shape of soap films and Plateau borders

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fortes, M A [Departamento de Engenharia de Materiais and Instituto de Ciencia e Engenharia de Materiais e SuperfIcies, Instituto Superior Tecnico, Avenida Rovisco Pais, P-1049-001 Lisbon (Portugal); Teixeira, P I C [Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Lisboa Rua Conselheiro EmIdio Navarro 1, P-1950-062 Lisbon (Portugal); Deus, A M [Departamento de Engenharia de Materiais and Instituto de Ciencia e Engenharia de Materiais e SuperfIcies, Instituto Superior Tecnico, Avenida Rovisco Pais, P-1049-001 Lisbon (Portugal)

2007-06-20

We have calculated the shapes of flat liquid films, and of the transition region to the associated Plateau borders (PBs), by integrating the Laplace equation with a position-dependent surface tension {gamma}(x), where 2x is the local film thickness. We discuss films in either zero or non-zero gravity, using standard {gamma}(x) potentials for the interaction between the two bounding surfaces. We have investigated the effects of the film flatness, liquid underpressure, and gravity on the shape of films and their PBs. Films may exhibit 'humps' and/or 'dips' associated with inflection points and minima of the film thickness. Finally, we propose an asymptotic analytical solution for the film width profile.

Expansion of polyalanine tracts in the QA domain may play a critical ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

2015-09-03

Sep 3, 2015 ... role in the clavicular development of cleidocranial dysplasia. LI-ZHENG ... RUNX2 mutation have been identified in nearly 500 families with CCD ... tracts in the QA domain of RUNX2 influences the transcrip- tional activity of ...

Borders as membranes :metaphors and models for improved policy in border regions.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Malczynski, Leonard A.; Passell, Howard David; Forster, Craig B. (University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT); Cockerill, Kristan (Cockerill Consulting, Boone, NC)

2005-10-01

Political borders are controversial and contested spaces. In an attempt to better understand movement along and through political borders, this project applied the metaphor of a membrane to look at how people, ideas, and things ''move'' through a border. More specifically, the research team employed this metaphor in a system dynamics framework to construct a computer model to assess legal and illegal migration on the US-Mexico border. Employing a metaphor can be helpful, as it was in this project, to gain different perspectives on a complex system. In addition to the metaphor, the multidisciplinary team utilized an array of methods to gather data including traditional literature searches, an experts workshop, a focus group, interviews, and culling expertise from the individuals on the research team. Results from the qualitative efforts revealed strong social as well as economic drivers that motivate individuals to cross the border legally. Based on the information gathered, the team concluded that legal migration dynamics were of a scope we did not want to consider hence, available demographic models sufficiently capture migration at the local level. Results from both the quantitative and qualitative data searches were used to modify a 1977 border model to demonstrate the dynamic nature of illegal migration. Model runs reveal that current US-policies based on neo-classic economic theory have proven ineffective in curbing illegal migration, and that proposed enforcement policies are also likely to be ineffective. We suggest, based on model results, that improvement in economic conditions within Mexico may have the biggest impact on illegal migration to the U.S. The modeling also supports the views expressed in the current literature suggesting that demographic and economic changes within Mexico are likely to slow illegal migration by 2060 with no special interventions made by either government.

U.S./Mexico Border environmental study toxics release inventory data, 1988--1992

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

O`Brien, R.F.; LoPresti, C.A.

1996-02-01

This is a report on industrial toxic chemical releases and transfers based on information reported to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI), a database maintained by the USEPA. This document discusses patterns of toxic chemical releases to the atmosphere, to water, to the land, and to underground injection; and transfers of toxic chemicals to Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW), and for disposal, treatment and other off-site transfers during the TRI reporting years 1988--1992. Geographic coverage is limited to the US side of the ``Border Area``, the geographic area situated within 100 km of the US/Mexico international boundary. A primary purpose of this study is to provide background information that can be used in the future development of potential ``indicator variables`` for tracking environmental and public health status in the Border Area in conjunction with the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Cross-Border Exposures and Financial Contagion

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Degryse, H.A.; Elahi, M.A.; Penas, M.F.

2009-01-01

Integrated financial markets provide opportunities for expansion and improved risk sharing, but also pose threats of contagion risk through cross-border exposures. This paper examines cross-border contagion risk over the period 1999-2006. To that purpose we use aggregate cross-border exposures of

Old Borders and New Bordering Capabilities: Cities as Frontier Zones

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saskia Sassen

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The global city is a new frontier zone. Deregulation, privatization, and new fiscal and monetary policies create the formal instruments to construct their equivalent of the old military “fort”. The city is also a strategic frontier zone for those who lack power, and allows the making of informal politics. At the same time the border is a mix of regimes, marked by protections and opportunities for corporations and high-level professionals, and implies confinement, capture and detention for migrants. The essay discusses the transformation of the city in a frontier zone and analyses the separation between the capabilities entailed by territoriality and the geographic territory tout court. The analysis focuses on the effects of neoliberal policies that, far from making this a borderless world, have actually multiplied the bordered spaces that allow firms and markets to move across conventional borders. Cities are therefore one of the key sites where new neoliberal norms are made and where new identities emerge.

SU-E-T-242: Design of a Novel Afterloader Clearance QA Device for Biliary HDR Therapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mullins, JP; Deufel, CL [Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: Bile duct cancer affects 2–3 thousand people annually in the United States. Radiation therapy has been shown to double median survival, with combined external beam and intraluminal high dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy being most effective. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) biliary HDR, a less-invasive alternative to trans-hepatic brachytherapy, is delivered through a catheter that travels a tortuous path from nose to bile duct, requiring wire drive force and dexterity beyond typical afterloader performance specifications. Thus, specific afterloader quality assurance(QA) is recommended for this procedure. Our aim was to create a device and process for Varisource afterloader clearance QA with objectives that it be quantitative and can monitor afterloader performance over time, compare performance between two distinct afterloaders and potentially Result in a predictive nomogram for patient-specific clearance. Methods: Based on retrospective reconstruction of 20 ERCP patient anatomies, we designed a phantom to test afterloader ability to drive the source wire along an intended treatment path. The ability of the afterloader to fully extend the intended treatment path is a function of number and diameters of turns. We have determined experimentally that relative position of the turns does not impact performance. Results: Both patient and QA paths involve three common turns/loops: a large turn representing the stomach(10.8cm±2.0cm), an elliptical loop representing the duodenum(7.3cm±1.5cmx4.8cm±0.7cm), and a final turn at the end of the bile duct that may be tight for some patient-specific anatomies and absent in others(3.7cm±0.7cm, where present). Our phantom design uses anatomical average turn diameters for the stomach and duodenum then terminates in a turn of quantitatively selectable diameter. The smallest final turn diameter that an afterloader can pass is recorded as the QA parameter. Conclusion: With this device and QA process, we

SU-E-T-164: Clinical Implementation of ASi EPID Panels for QA of IMRT/VMAT Plans.

Science.gov (United States)

Hosier, K; Wu, C; Beck, K; Radevic, M; Asche, D; Bareng, J; Kroner, A; Lehmann, J; Logsdon, M; Dutton, S; Rosenthal, S

2012-06-01

To investigate various issues for clinical implementation of aSi EPID panels for IMRT/VMAT QA. Six linacs are used in our clinic for EPID-based plan QA; two Varian Truebeams, two Varian 2100 series, two Elekta Infiniti series. Multiple corrections must be accounted for in the calibration of each panel for dosimetric use. Varian aSi panels are calibrated with standard dark field, flood field, and 40×40 diagonal profile for beam profile correction. Additional corrections to account for off-axis and support arm backscatter are needed for larger field sizes. Since Elekta iViewGT system does not export gantry angle with images, a third-party inclinometer must be physically mounted to back of linac gantry and synchronized with data acquisition via iViewGT PC clock. A T/2 offset correctly correlates image and gantry angle for arc plans due to iView image time stamp at the end of data acquisition for each image. For both Varian and Elekta panels, a 5 MU 10×10 calibration field is used to account for the nonlinear MU to dose response at higher energies. Acquired EPID images are deconvolved via a high pass filter in Fourier space and resultant fluence maps are used to reconstruct a 3D dose 'delivered' to patient using DosimetryCheck. Results are compared to patient 3D dose computed by TPS using a 3D-gamma analysis. 120 IMRT and 100 VMAT cases are reported. Two 3D gamma quantities (Gamma(V10) and Gamma(PTV)) are proposed for evaluating QA results. The Gamma(PTV) is sensitive to MLC offsets while Gamma(V10) is sensitive to gantry rotations. When a 3mm/3% criteria and 90% or higher 3D gamma pass rate is used, all IMRT and 90% of VMAT QA pass QA. After appropriate calibration of aSi panels and setup of image acquisition systems, EPID based 3D dose reconstruction method is found clinically feasible. © 2012 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

SU-E-T-646: Quality Assurance of Truebeam Multi-Leaf Collimator Using a MLC QA Phantom

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, J; Lu, J; Hong, D

2015-01-01

Purpose: To perform a routine quality assurance procedure for Truebeam multi-leaf collimator (MLC) using MLC QA phantom, verify the stability and reliability of MLC during the treatment. Methods: MLC QA phantom is a specialized phantom for MLC quality assurance (QA), and contains five radio-opaque spheres that are embedded in an “L” shape. The phantom was placed isocentrically on the Truebeam treatment couch for the tests. A quality assurance plan was setted up in the Eclipse v10.0, the fields that need to be delivered in order to acquire the necessary images, the MLC shapes can then be obtained by the images. The images acquired by the electronic portal imaging device (EPID), and imported into the PIPSpro software for the analysis. The tests were delivered twelve weeks (once a week) to verify consistency of the delivery, and the images are acquired in the same manner each time. Results: For the Leaf position test, the average position error was 0.23mm±0.02mm (range: 0.18mm∼0.25mm). The Leaf width was measured at the isocenter, the average error was 0.06mm±0.02mm (range: 0.02mm∼0.08mm) for the Leaf width test. Multi-Port test showed the dynamic leaf shift error, the average error was 0.28mm±0.03mm (range: 0.2mm∼0.35mm). For the leaf transmission test, the average inter-leaf leakage value was 1.0%±0.17% (range: 0.8%∼1.3%) and the average inter-bank leakage value was 32.6%±2.1% (range: 30.2%∼36.1%). Conclusion: By the test of 12 weeks, the MLC system of the Truebeam is running in a good condition and the MLC system can be steadily and reliably carried out during the treatment. The MLC QA phantom is a useful test tool for the MLC QA

The Border Pedagogy Revisited

Science.gov (United States)

Kazanjian, Christopher John

2011-01-01

Border pedagogy is a multicultural educational approach utilized in multicultural settings to help students understand their histories and experiences and how it affects their identities and cultures. The approach seeks to produce intellectuals that transcend physical and metaphysical boundaries. The goal of border pedagogy is to remove cultural…

Border of spacetime

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harada, Tomohiro; Nakao, Ken-ichi

2004-01-01

It is still uncertain whether the cosmic censorship conjecture is true or not. To get a new insight into this issue, we propose the concept of the border of spacetime as a generalization of the spacetime singularity and discuss its visibility. The visible border, corresponding to the naked singularity, is not only relevant to mathematical completeness of general relativity but also a window into new physics in strongly curved spacetimes, which is in principle observable

Pipeline politics—A study of India′s proposed cross border gas projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nathan, Hippu Salk Kristle; Kulkarni, Sanket Sudhir; Ahuja, Dilip R.

2013-01-01

India′s energy situation is characterized by increasing energy demand, high fossil fuel dependency, large import shares, and significant portion of population deprived of modern energy services. At this juncture, natural gas, being the cleanest fossil fuel with high efficiency and cost effectiveness, is expected to play an important role. India, with only 0.6% of proven world reserves, is not endowed with adequate natural gas domestically. Nevertheless, there are gas reserves in neighbouring regions which gives rise to the prospects of three cross border gas pipeline projects, namely, Iran–Pakistan–India, Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India, and Myanmar–Bangladesh–India. This study is a political analysis of these pipeline projects. First, it provides justification on use of natural gas and promotion of cross border energy trade. Then it examines these three pipeline projects and analyses the security concerns, role of different actors, their positions, shifting goals, and strategies. The study develops scenarios on the basis of changing circumstances and discusses some of the pertinent issues like technology options for underground/underwater pipelines and role of private players. It also explores impact of India′s broader foreign relations and role of SAARC on the future of pipelines and proposes energy induced mutually assured protection (MAP) as a concept for regional security. -- Highlights: •We justify the need for cross border energy trade through gas pipelines for India. •We examine prospective pipeline projects—IPI, TAPI, MBI and their security issues. •We develop scenarios and analyze role of actors, their positions, and strategies. •We discuss technology and policy options for realizing these gas pipelines. •We propose energy induced mutually assured protection (MAP) for regional security

Recent trends in cross-border banking

NARCIS (Netherlands)

De Haas, Ralph; van Horen, Neeltje; Beck, Thorsten; Casu, Barbara

2017-01-01

This chapter identifies a number of recent trends in European cross-border banking. The authors first distinguish between two main modes of international banking: cross-border versus multinational banking. Cross-border banking occurs when a bank in country A lends directly to a borrower in country

Gender, Cross-border Migrant Workers and Citizenship : Case Study ...

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

Burmese women workers in Thai border factories are generally excluded from the benefits and protection that define citizenship entitlements. ... have little or no access to basic services, including health and education for themselves or their dependents. ... New funding opportunity for gender equality and climate change.

USGS QA Plan: Certification of digital airborne mapping products

Science.gov (United States)

Christopherson, J.

2007-01-01

To facilitate acceptance of new digital technologies in aerial imaging and mapping, the US Geological Survey (USGS) and its partners have launched a Quality Assurance (QA) Plan for Digital Aerial Imagery. This should provide a foundation for the quality of digital aerial imagery and products. It introduces broader considerations regarding processes employed by aerial flyers in collecting, processing and delivering data, and provides training and information for US producers and users alike.

Briefing : the Eritrean-Ethiopian border dispute

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Abbink, G.J.

1998-01-01

On 6 May 1998, a violent conflict erupted in the Ethiopian-Eritrean border area. This article contends that this border crisis is neither unexpected nor the result of a real border dispute. Rather, it is due to three factors: the particular history and relationship of the two insurgent movements

Manufacture of Daily Check Device and Efficiency Evaluation for Daily Q.A

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Chan Yong; Jae, Young Wan; Park, Heung Deuk; Lee, Jae Hee

2005-01-01

Daily Q.A is the important step which must be preceded in a radiation treatment. Specially, radiation output measurement and laser alignment, SSD indicator related to a patient set-up recurrence must be confirmed for a reasonable radiation treatment. Daily Q.A proceeds correctness and a prompt way, and needs an objective measurement basis. Manufacture of the device which can facilitate confirmation of output measurement and appliances check at one time was requested. Produced the phantom formal daily check device which can confirm a lot of appliances check (output measurement and laser alignment. field size, SSD indicator) with one time of set up at a time, and measurement observed a linear accelerator (4 machine) for four months and evaluated efficiency. We were able to confirm an laser alignment, field size, SSD indicator check at the same time, and out put measurement was possible with the same set up, so daily Q.A time was reduced, and we were able to confirm an objective basis about each item measurement. As a result of having measured for four months, output measurement within ±2%, and measured laser alignment, field size, SSD indicator in range within ±1 mm. We can enforce output measurement and appliances check conveniently, and time was reduced and was able to raise efficiency of business. We were able to bring a cost reduction by substitution expensive commercialized equipment. Further It is necessary to makes a product as strong and slight materials, and improve convenience of use.

From Field Notes to Data Portal - A Scalable Data QA/QC Framework for Tower Networks: Progress and Preliminary Results

Science.gov (United States)

Sturtevant, C.; Hackley, S.; Lee, R.; Holling, G.; Bonarrigo, S.

2017-12-01

Quality assurance and control (QA/QC) is one of the most important yet challenging aspects of producing research-quality data. Data quality issues are multi-faceted, including sensor malfunctions, unmet theoretical assumptions, and measurement interference from humans or the natural environment. Tower networks such as Ameriflux, ICOS, and NEON continue to grow in size and sophistication, yet tools for robust, efficient, scalable QA/QC have lagged. Quality control remains a largely manual process heavily relying on visual inspection of data. In addition, notes of measurement interference are often recorded on paper without an explicit pathway to data flagging. As such, an increase in network size requires a near-proportional increase in personnel devoted to QA/QC, quickly stressing the human resources available. We present a scalable QA/QC framework in development for NEON that combines the efficiency and standardization of automated checks with the power and flexibility of human review. This framework includes fast-response monitoring of sensor health, a mobile application for electronically recording maintenance activities, traditional point-based automated quality flagging, and continuous monitoring of quality outcomes and longer-term holistic evaluations. This framework maintains the traceability of quality information along the entirety of the data generation pipeline, and explicitly links field reports of measurement interference to quality flagging. Preliminary results show that data quality can be effectively monitored and managed for a multitude of sites with a small group of QA/QC staff. Several components of this framework are open-source, including a R-Shiny application for efficiently monitoring, synthesizing, and investigating data quality issues.

A Voice of the US Southwestern Border: The 2012 “We the Border: Envisioning a Narrative for Our Future” Conference

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Josiah McC. Heyman

2013-08-01

Full Text Available In July 2012, a diverse group of US residents living near the US-Mexico border met in El Paso, Texas for a conference entitled, We the Border: Envisioning a Narrative for Our Future.  This paper describes a vision for the US-Mexico border by diverse border residents that is at odds with the widespread view of the border as a threat to the United States. These border residents viewed their region as a set of human communities with rights, capacities, and valuable insights and knowledge. They embraced an alternative vision of border enforcement that would focus on “quality” (dangerous entrants and contraband over “quantity” (mass migration enforcement.  They called for investments in the functionality and security of ports of entry, rather than in between ports of entry.  They noted the low crime rate in US border cities, and examined how policies of not mixing local law enforcement with federal immigration enforcement contributed to this achievement. They saw the border region as the key transportation and brokerage zone of the emerging, integrated North American economy. In their view, the bilingual, bicultural, and binational skills that characterize border residents form part of a wider border culture that embraces diversity and engenders creativity. Under this vision the border region is not an empty enforcement zone, but is part of the national community and its residents should enjoy the same constitutional and human rights as other US residents. The conference participants emphasized the necessity and value of accountability and oversight of central government enforcement operations, and the need for border communities to participate in federal decision-making that affects their lives. 

Business, brokers and borders

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Walther, Olivier

2015-01-01

The objective of this paper is to show how a formal approach to networks can make a significant contribution to the study of cross-border trade in West Africa. Building on the formal tools and theories developed by Social Network Analysis, we examine the network organization of 136 large traders...... in two border regions between Niger, Nigeria, and Benin. In a business environment where transaction costs are extremely high, we find that decentralized networks are well adapted to the various uncertainties induced by long-distance trade. We also find that long-distance trade relies both on the trust...... and cooperation shared among local traders, and on the distant ties developed with foreign partners from a different origin, religion or culture. Studying the spatial structure of trade networks, we find that in those markets where trade is recent and where most of the traders are not native of the region...

SU-F-T-251: The Quality Assurance for the Heavy Patient Load Department in the Developing Country: The Primary Experience of An Entire Workflow QA Process Management in Radiotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xie, J; Wang, J; Peng, J; Chen, J; Hu, W

2016-01-01

Purpose: To implement an entire workflow quality assurance (QA) process in the radiotherapy department and to reduce the error rates of radiotherapy based on the entire workflow management in the developing country. Methods: The entire workflow QA process management starts from patient registration to the end of last treatment including all steps through the entire radiotherapy process. Error rate of chartcheck is used to evaluate the the entire workflow QA process. Two to three qualified senior medical physicists checked the documents before the first treatment fraction of every patient. Random check of the treatment history during treatment was also performed. A total of around 6000 patients treatment data before and after implementing the entire workflow QA process were compared from May, 2014 to December, 2015. Results: A systemic checklist was established. It mainly includes patient’s registration, treatment plan QA, information exporting to OIS(Oncology Information System), documents of treatment QAand QA of the treatment history. The error rate derived from the chart check decreases from 1.7% to 0.9% after our the entire workflow QA process. All checked errors before the first treatment fraction were corrected as soon as oncologist re-confirmed them and reinforce staff training was accordingly followed to prevent those errors. Conclusion: The entire workflow QA process improved the safety, quality of radiotherapy in our department and we consider that our QA experience can be applicable for the heavily-loaded radiotherapy departments in developing country.

SU-F-T-251: The Quality Assurance for the Heavy Patient Load Department in the Developing Country: The Primary Experience of An Entire Workflow QA Process Management in Radiotherapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xie, J; Wang, J; Peng, J; Chen, J; Hu, W [Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, Shanghai, Shanghai (China)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To implement an entire workflow quality assurance (QA) process in the radiotherapy department and to reduce the error rates of radiotherapy based on the entire workflow management in the developing country. Methods: The entire workflow QA process management starts from patient registration to the end of last treatment including all steps through the entire radiotherapy process. Error rate of chartcheck is used to evaluate the the entire workflow QA process. Two to three qualified senior medical physicists checked the documents before the first treatment fraction of every patient. Random check of the treatment history during treatment was also performed. A total of around 6000 patients treatment data before and after implementing the entire workflow QA process were compared from May, 2014 to December, 2015. Results: A systemic checklist was established. It mainly includes patient’s registration, treatment plan QA, information exporting to OIS(Oncology Information System), documents of treatment QAand QA of the treatment history. The error rate derived from the chart check decreases from 1.7% to 0.9% after our the entire workflow QA process. All checked errors before the first treatment fraction were corrected as soon as oncologist re-confirmed them and reinforce staff training was accordingly followed to prevent those errors. Conclusion: The entire workflow QA process improved the safety, quality of radiotherapy in our department and we consider that our QA experience can be applicable for the heavily-loaded radiotherapy departments in developing country.

Art and cartography as a critique of borders

Science.gov (United States)

Melo Ribeiro, Daniel

2018-05-01

This study focuses on the relationship between art and cartography. The main objective is to analyze how contemporary art uses maps to criticize borders. Inspired by the arguments raised by the Critical Cartography against the false neutrality of maps, we emphasize the potential of artworks to communicate different insights about how we experience and live the contemporary space. In that sense, art plays an important role not only to discuss the articulation of power and knowledge in cartography, but also to propose other categories of thought. Considering that borders are one of the most relevant visual elements on a map, we propose the following question: how the intersection between art and cartography can improve the critical thinking about borders? By questioning borders, art underlines that physical world is characterized by liminal spaces, not by absolute or strict separations. We briefly analyzed some examples of artworks that deal with political issues regarding this topic. Our findings suggest that art could reveal the impact of imposing borders in a space, whose arbitrary delimitation reflects power relations.

CROSS-BORDER E-COMMERCE – PROBLEMS IN IDENTIFICATION AND MEASUREMENT

OpenAIRE

Sylwia Talar

2017-01-01

Cross-border e-commerce is a relatively new phenomenon in the contemporary world economy and very little examined. The aim of this paper is to specify and charac-terize basic problems for the cross-border e-commerce research. It was carried out a wide literature review, including methodological manuals, studies, reports and statistics. The problems with definition of the cross-border e-commerce notion were studied, as well as the scope of official statistics and private sources of data in thi...

A mathematical framework for virtual IMRT QA using machine learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Valdes, G; Scheuermann, R; Hung, C Y; Olszanski, A; Bellerive, M; Solberg, T D

2016-07-01

It is common practice to perform patient-specific pretreatment verifications to the clinical delivery of IMRT. This process can be time-consuming and not altogether instructive due to the myriad sources that may produce a failing result. The purpose of this study was to develop an algorithm capable of predicting IMRT QA passing rates a priori. From all treatment, 498 IMRT plans sites were planned in eclipse version 11 and delivered using a dynamic sliding window technique on Clinac iX or TrueBeam Linacs. 3%/3 mm local dose/distance-to-agreement (DTA) was recorded using a commercial 2D diode array. Each plan was characterized by 78 metrics that describe different aspects of their complexity that could lead to disagreements between the calculated and measured dose. A Poisson regression with Lasso regularization was trained to learn the relation between the plan characteristics and each passing rate. Passing rates 3%/3 mm local dose/DTA can be predicted with an error smaller than 3% for all plans analyzed. The most important metrics to describe the passing rates were determined to be the MU factor (MU per Gy), small aperture score, irregularity factor, and fraction of the plan delivered at the corners of a 40 × 40 cm field. The higher the value of these metrics, the worse the passing rates. The Virtual QA process predicts IMRT passing rates with a high likelihood, allows the detection of failures due to setup errors, and it is sensitive enough to detect small differences between matched Linacs.

Development of database and QA systems for post closure performance assessment on a potential HLW repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hwang, Y. S.; Kim, S. G.; Kang, C. H.

2002-01-01

In TSPA of long-term post closure radiological safety on permanent disposal of HLW in Korea, appropriate management of input and output data through QA is necessary. The robust QA system is developed using the T2R3 principles applicable for five major steps in R and D's. The proposed system is implemented in the web-based system so that all participants in TSRA are able to access the system. In addition, the internet based input database for TSPA is developed. Currently data from literature surveys, domestic laboratory and field experiments as well as expert elicitation are applied for TSPA

Regional Joint Border Commands: A Pathway to Improving Collaboration and Effectiveness for Border Control

Science.gov (United States)

2009-12-01

Police xii SBI Secure Border Initiative SES Senior Executive Service SSP Secretaria de Seguridad Publica TSA Transportation Security...also been involvement from the Mexican law enforcement agency, Secretaria de Seguridad Publica (SSP) on the southwest border (CBP, 2009; ICE, 2009, p. 5

HIV Transmission Networks in the San Diego-Tijuana Border Region.

Science.gov (United States)

Mehta, Sanjay R; Wertheim, Joel O; Brouwer, Kimberly C; Wagner, Karla D; Chaillon, Antoine; Strathdee, Steffanie; Patterson, Thomas L; Rangel, Maria G; Vargas, Mlenka; Murrell, Ben; Garfein, Richard; Little, Susan J; Smith, Davey M

2015-10-01

HIV sequence data can be used to reconstruct local transmission networks. Along international borders, like the San Diego-Tijuana region, understanding the dynamics of HIV transmission across reported risks, racial/ethnic groups, and geography can help direct effective prevention efforts on both sides of the border. We gathered sociodemographic, geographic, clinical, and viral sequence data from HIV infected individuals participating in ten studies in the San Diego-Tijuana border region. Phylogenetic and network analysis was performed to infer putative relationships between HIV sequences. Correlates of identified clusters were evaluated and spatiotemporal relationships were explored using Bayesian phylogeographic analysis. After quality filtering, 843 HIV sequences with associated demographic data and 263 background sequences from the region were analyzed, and 138 clusters were inferred (2-23 individuals). Overall, the rate of clustering did not differ by ethnicity, residence, or sex, but bisexuals were less likely to cluster than heterosexuals or men who have sex with men (p = 0.043), and individuals identifying as white (p ≤ 0.01) were more likely to cluster than other races. Clustering individuals were also 3.5 years younger than non-clustering individuals (p Tijuana epidemics were phylogenetically compartmentalized, five clusters contained individuals residing on both sides of the border. This study sampled ~ 7% of HIV infected individuals in the border region, and although the sampled networks on each side of the border were largely separate, there was evidence of persistent bidirectional cross-border transmissions that linked risk groups, thus highlighting the importance of the border region as a "melting pot" of risk groups. NIH, VA, and Pendleton Foundation.

Canada and Mexico Border Crossings

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Homeland Security — Border Crossing Ports are points of entry for land modes along the U.S. - Canadian and U.S.- Mexcian borders. The ports of entry are located in 15 states along the...

Internal Border Controls in the European Union

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Carsten Willemoes; Sørensen, Karsten Engsig

2012-01-01

Recent events, involving inter alia France and Denmark, have stimulated renewed interest in the introduction of different forms of border controls at the internal borders within the European Union. These border control measures are aimed at checking either persons or goods or both. Against...... the background of these events, this article analyses the existing rules regulating controls of persons and goods, and explores how these rules may or may not stand in the way of introducing border controls at the European Union’s internal borders. These events have resulted in a call for reforms of the current...

three intelligence methodologies for border defence and border

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Administrator

Of these there are three intelligence methodologies applicable to this article – trends ..... globalisation associated with open and artificial borders and ever increasing costs of weapon ..... the technological development of mass tourist transport.

Transforming an EPA QA/R-2 quality management plan into an ISO 9002 quality management system.

Science.gov (United States)

Kell, R A; Hedin, C M; Kassakhian, G H; Reynolds, E S

2001-01-01

The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Emergency and Remedial Response (OERR) requires environmental data of known quality to support Superfund hazardous waste site projects. The Quality Assurance Technical Support (QATS) Program is operated by Shaw Environmental and Infrastructure, Inc. to provide EPA's Analytical Operations Center (AOC) with performance evaluation samples, reference materials, on-site laboratory auditing capabilities, data audits (including electronic media data audits), methods development, and other support services. The new QATS contract awarded in November 2000 required that the QATS Program become ISO 9000 certified. In a first for an EPA contractor, the QATS staff and management successfully transformed EPA's QA/R-2 type Quality Management Plan into a Quality Management System (QMS) that complies with the requirements of the internationally recognized ISO 9002 standard and achieved certification in the United States, Canada, and throughout Europe. The presentation describes how quality system elements of ISO 9002 were implemented on an already existing quality system. The psychological and organizational challenges of the culture change in QATS' day-to-day operations will be discussed for the benefit of other ISO 9000 aspirants.

The Nature and Functions of European Political Borders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jernej Zupančič

2008-07-01

Full Text Available The political border limits a state’s territory and symbolizes the extent of a state’s power and ownership. Borders give integrity to the inner state territory which they enclose (the role of establishing national integrity and at the same time form an outer boundary segregating the state territory from the surrounding politicial entities (the segregation role. European borders are old and reflect the political history of an old continent. The last major border changes happened after World War II. Over the centuries borders were merely lines separating one territory from another. Such borders were understood as »frontiers«. Forming an effective barrier against enemies was the overriding function of borders. Many borders were fortified and further enhanced by means of various defensive systems. In the second half of the 20th century the character of political borders changed. They became a contact area between countries, nations and cultures. Contemporary European borders reflect the colourful history of an old continent. They are predominantely functional markers: they represent the political and juridical delimitation of territories, they mark economic barriers and show their defensive nature and reveal the extent of cultural contact. As a result of European integration processes, the nature of political borders has changed: instead of division, their integration role is brought to the fore. A united Europe is nevertheless still not a borderless Europe! The borders within the »Schengen-area« have retained their political and administrative functions, it is just that the customs and security checks at the borders have been removed. During the period of European integration, borderlines were stabilized in accordance with the 1974 Helsinki Agreement. But despite this we can still observe ongoing changes to state borders, particularly in areas of conflict such as the Balkan peninsula. It seems after all that the process of demarcation

Why Sociology Is Silent Concerning Borders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S.E. Nikolov

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Border in sociological sense means a barrier that separates social groups, strata, their values, and the difference between ways of life between particular social groups. Such groups may be separated by many dividing lines, or borders: social/living conditions, opportunities/prospects, legal rights/customs, viewpoints, and so on. Sometimes mobility does not permit other than individual, or small-group, crossing of these borders. It seems really strange why border topic is almost completely absent from the sociology. It is so pertinent to the fate and shaping of various social groups, depending from the location of the border. We think of a boundary whenever we think of an entity demarcated from its surroundings. Events, too, have boundaries – temporal ones: their beginning, climax, final. All our lives are bounded in the continuum between our births and our deaths. A philosopher would imply also that even imaginary, abstract entities, such as concepts or layouts, have boundaries of their own. One may say that condition for all this boundary/border talk is coherent, and whether it reproduces the world around us’ structure, or the organizing activity of our intellect, are matters of deep philosophical controversy. Borders are difficult to disappear totally even within the European Union, providing some obstacles to the freedom of movement to those left still outside the Schengen agreement.

Selection of analytical methods for mixed waste analysis at the Hanford Site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morant, P.M.

1994-09-01

This document describes the process that the US Department of Energy (DOE), Richland Operations Office (RL) and contractor laboratories use to select appropriate or develop new or modified analytical methods. These methods are needed to provide reliable mixed waste characterization data that meet project-specific quality assurance (QA) requirements while also meeting health and safety standards for handling radioactive materials. This process will provide the technical basis for DOE's analysis of mixed waste and support requests for regulatory approval of these new methods when they are used to satisfy the regulatory requirements of the Hanford Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (Tri-party Agreement) (Ecology et al. 1992)

The resurgence of cultural borders in international finance during the financial crisis: Evidence from Eurozone cross-border depositing

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kleimeier, S.; Sander, H.; Heuchemer, S.

2014-01-01

In this paper, we demonstrate that cultural borders in international finance resurge during financial crises. To investigate the role of cultural borders during both tranquil and crisis periods, we employ a unique data set that focuses on Eurozone cross-border depositing in a gravity-model

Investigating ion recombination effects in a liquid-filled ionization chamber array used for IMRT QA measurements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Knill, Cory, E-mail: knillcor@gmail.com; Snyder, Michael; Rakowski, Joseph T.; Burmeister, Jay [Department of Radiation Oncology, Karmanos Cancer Institute, Detroit, Michigan 48201 and Department of Radiation Oncology, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, Michigan 48201 (United States); Zhuang, Ling [Department of Radiation Oncology, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, Michigan 48201 (United States); Matuszak, Martha [Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109 (United States)

2016-05-15

Purpose: PTW’s Octavius 1000 SRS array performs IMRT quality assurance (QA) measurements with liquid-filled ionization chambers (LICs) to allow closer detector spacing and higher resolution, compared to air-filled QA devices. However, reduced ion mobility in LICs relative to air leads to increased ion recombination effects and reduced collection efficiencies that are dependent on Linac pulse frequency and pulse dose. These pulse parameters are variable during an IMRT delivery, which affects QA results. In this study, (1) 1000 SRS collection efficiencies were measured as a function of pulse frequency and pulse dose, (2) two methods were developed to correct changes in collection efficiencies during IMRT QA measurements, and the effects of these corrections on QA pass rates were compared. Methods: To obtain collection efficiencies, the OCTAVIUS 1000 SRS was used to measure open fields of varying pulse frequency, pulse dose, and beam energy with results normalized to air-filled chamber measurements. Changes in ratios of 1000 SRS to chamber measured dose were attributed to changing collection efficiencies, which were then correlated to pulse parameters using regression analysis. The usefulness of the derived corrections was then evaluated using 6 MV and 10FFF SBRT RapidArc plans delivered to the OCTAVIUS 4D system using a TrueBeam (Varian Medical Systems) linear accelerator equipped with a high definition multileaf collimator. For the first correction, MATLAB software was developed that calculates pulse frequency and pulse dose for each detector, using measurement and DICOM RT Plan files. Pulse information is converted to collection efficiency, and measurements are corrected by multiplying detector dose by ratios of calibration to measured collection efficiencies. For the second correction the MU/min in the daily 1000 SRS calibration was chosen to match the average MU/min of the volumetric modulated arc therapy plan. Effects of the two corrections on QA results were

Big Data Analytics and Machine Intelligence Capability Development at NASA Langley Research Center: Strategy, Roadmap, and Progress

Science.gov (United States)

Ambur, Manjula Y.; Yagle, Jeremy J.; Reith, William; McLarney, Edward

2016-01-01

In 2014, a team of researchers, engineers and information technology specialists at NASA Langley Research Center developed a Big Data Analytics and Machine Intelligence Strategy and Roadmap as part of Langley's Comprehensive Digital Transformation Initiative, with the goal of identifying the goals, objectives, initiatives, and recommendations need to develop near-, mid- and long-term capabilities for data analytics and machine intelligence in aerospace domains. Since that time, significant progress has been made in developing pilots and projects in several research, engineering, and scientific domains by following the original strategy of collaboration between mission support organizations, mission organizations, and external partners from universities and industry. This report summarizes the work to date in Data Intensive Scientific Discovery, Deep Content Analytics, and Deep Q&A projects, as well as the progress made in collaboration, outreach, and education. Recommendations for continuing this success into future phases of the initiative are also made.

Satisfaction in border tourism: An analysis with structural equations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan Antonio Jimber del Río

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Border tourism is the temporary displacement of people to the dividing line between two countries contiguous areas. This activity promotes the economic development of these geographical regions. The aim of this research is to analyze visitors from the Dominican Republic and Haiti border. We propose the results of an empirical study with structural equations that show correlations between the attitude factor towards the border tourism, the value factors perceived by the tourist, satisfaction and loyalty of the visitor in the destination place.

Road infrastructure and mobility of consumption in the Mexicali-Imperial Valley border area

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alejandro Mungaray-Moctezuma

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study is to analyze the mobility of consumption in the Mexicali-Imperial Valley border area. The study shows that the population in the Mexicali sections closer to border crossings generates the greatest amount of consumption dynamics with places located in Imperial Valley. Conversely, Imperial Valley sections that are more distant from the border concentrate a greater number of destination sites for these cross-border trips. It is concluded that a higher quality and more integrated road infrastructure allows the new consumption centers in Imperial Valley to be located farther away from the border and that the Mexicali population with visas can cross indiscriminately through any border crossing by taking longer journeys toward these centers.

Clinical validation of an in-house EPID dosimetry system for IMRT QA at the Prince of Wales Hospital

Science.gov (United States)

Tyler, M.; Vial, P.; Metcalfe, P.; Downes, S.

2013-06-01

In this study a simple method using standard flood-field corrected Electronic Portal Imaging Device (EPID) images for routine Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) Quality Assurance (QA) was investigated. The EPID QA system was designed and tested on a Siemens Oncor Impression linear accelerator with an OptiVue 1000ST EPID panel (Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc, USA) and an Elekta Axesse linear accelerator with an iViewGT EPID (Elekta AB, Sweden) for 6 and 10 MV IMRT fields with Step-and-Shoot and dynamic-MLC delivery. Two different planning systems were used for patient IMRT field generation for comparison with the measured EPID fluences. All measured IMRT plans had >95% agreement to the planning fluences (using 3 cGy / 3 mm Gamma Criteria) and were comparable to the pass-rates calculated using a 2-D diode array dosimeter.

Clinical validation of an in-house EPID dosimetry system for IMRT QA at the Prince of Wales Hospital

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tyler, M; Downes, S; Vial, P; Metcalfe, P

2013-01-01

In this study a simple method using standard flood-field corrected Electronic Portal Imaging Device (EPID) images for routine Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) Quality Assurance (QA) was investigated. The EPID QA system was designed and tested on a Siemens Oncor Impression linear accelerator with an OptiVue 1000ST EPID panel (Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc, USA) and an Elekta Axesse linear accelerator with an iViewGT EPID (Elekta AB, Sweden) for 6 and 10 MV IMRT fields with Step-and-Shoot and dynamic-MLC delivery. Two different planning systems were used for patient IMRT field generation for comparison with the measured EPID fluences. All measured IMRT plans had >95% agreement to the planning fluences (using 3 cGy / 3 mm Gamma Criteria) and were comparable to the pass-rates calculated using a 2-D diode array dosimeter.

Beneficial Insect Borders Provide Northern Bobwhite Brood Habitat

Science.gov (United States)

Moorman, Christopher E.; Plush, Charles J.; Orr, David B.; Reberg-Horton, Chris

2013-01-01

Strips of fallow vegetation along cropland borders are an effective strategy for providing brood habitat for declining populations of upland game birds (Order: Galliformes), including northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus), but fallow borders lack nectar-producing vegetation needed to sustain many beneficial insect populations (e.g., crop pest predators, parasitoids, and pollinator species). Planted borders that contain mixes of prairie flowers and grasses are designed to harbor more diverse arthropod communities, but the relative value of these borders as brood habitat is unknown. We used groups of six human-imprinted northern bobwhite chicks as a bioassay for comparing four different border treatments (planted native grass and prairie flowers, planted prairie flowers only, fallow vegetation, or mowed vegetation) as northern bobwhite brood habitat from June-August 2009 and 2010. All field border treatments were established around nine organic crop fields. Groups of chicks were led through borders for 30-min foraging trials and immediately euthanized, and eaten arthropods in crops and gizzards were measured to calculate a foraging rate for each border treatment. We estimated arthropod prey availability within each border treatment using a modified blower-vac to sample arthropods at the vegetation strata where chicks foraged. Foraging rate did not differ among border treatments in 2009 or 2010. Total arthropod prey densities calculated from blower-vac samples did not differ among border treatments in 2009 or 2010. Our results showed plant communities established to attract beneficial insects should maximize the biodiversity potential of field border establishment by providing habitat for beneficial insects and young upland game birds. PMID:24376759

NRC [Nuclear Regulatory Commission] perspective of software QA [quality assurance] in the nuclear history

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weiss, S.H.

1988-01-01

Computer technology has been a part of the nuclear industry since its inception. However, it is only recently that computers have been integrated into reactor operations. During the early history of commercial nuclear power in the United States, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) discouraged the use of digital computers for real-time control and monitoring of nuclear power plant operation. At the time, this position was justified since software engineering was in its infancy, and horror stories on computer crashes were plentiful. Since the advent of microprocessors and inexpensive computer memories, significant advances have been made in fault-tolerant computer architecture that have resulted in highly reliable, durable computer systems. The NRC's requirement for safety parameter display system (SPDS) stemmed form the results of studies and investigations conducted on the Three Mile Island Unit 2 (TMI-2) accident. An NRC contractor has prepared a handbook of software QA techniques applicable to the nuclear industry, published as NUREG/CR-4640 in August 1987. Currently, the NRC is considering development of an inspection program covering software QA. Future efforts may address verification and validation as applied to expert systems and artificial intelligence programs

Using Analytics to Support Petabyte-Scale Science on the NASA Earth Exchange (NEX)

Science.gov (United States)

Votava, P.; Michaelis, A.; Ganguly, S.; Nemani, R. R.

2014-12-01

NASA Earth Exchange (NEX) is a data, supercomputing and knowledge collaboratory that houses NASA satellite, climate and ancillary data where a focused community can come together to address large-scale challenges in Earth sciences. Analytics within NEX occurs at several levels - data, workflows, science and knowledge. At the data level, we are focusing on collecting and analyzing any information that is relevant to efficient acquisition, processing and management of data at the smallest granularity, such as files or collections. This includes processing and analyzing all local and many external metadata that are relevant to data quality, size, provenance, usage and other attributes. This then helps us better understand usage patterns and improve efficiency of data handling within NEX. When large-scale workflows are executed on NEX, we capture information that is relevant to processing and that can be analyzed in order to improve efficiencies in job scheduling, resource optimization, or data partitioning that would improve processing throughput. At this point we also collect data provenance as well as basic statistics of intermediate and final products created during the workflow execution. These statistics and metrics form basic process and data QA that, when combined with analytics algorithms, helps us identify issues early in the production process. We have already seen impact in some petabyte-scale projects, such as global Landsat processing, where we were able to reduce processing times from days to hours and enhance process monitoring and QA. While the focus so far has been mostly on support of NEX operations, we are also building a web-based infrastructure that enables users to perform direct analytics on science data - such as climate predictions or satellite data. Finally, as one of the main goals of NEX is knowledge acquisition and sharing, we began gathering and organizing information that associates users and projects with data, publications, locations

Initial application of a geometric QA tool for integrated MV and kV imaging systems on three image guided radiotherapy systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Mao, Weihua; Speiser, Michael; Medin, Paul; Papiez, Lech; Solberg, Timothy; Xing, Lei

2011-05-01

Several linacs with integrated kilovoltage (kV) imaging have been developed for delivery of image guided radiation therapy (IGRT). High geometric accuracy and coincidence of kV imaging systems and megavoltage (MV) beam delivery are essential for successful image guidance. A geometric QA tool has been adapted for routine QA for evaluating and characterizing the geometric accuracy of kV and MV cone-beam imaging systems. The purpose of this work is to demonstrate the application of methodology to routine QA across three IGRT-dedicated linac platforms. It has been applied to a Varian Trilogy (Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA), an Elekta SynergyS (Elekta, Stockholm, Sweden), and a Brainlab Vero (Brainlab AG, Feldkirchen, Germany). Both the Trilogy and SynergyS linacs are equipped with a retractable kV x-ray tube and a flat panel detector. The Vero utilizes a rotating, rigid ring structure integrating a MV x-ray head mounted on orthogonal gimbals, an electronic portal imaging device (EPID), two kV x-ray tubes, and two fixed flat panel detectors. This dual kV imaging system provides orthogonal radiographs, CBCT images, and real-time fluoroscopic monitoring. Two QA phantoms were built to suit different field sizes. Projection images of a QA phantom were acquired using MV and kV imaging systems at a series of gantry angles. Software developed for this study was used to analyze the projection images and calculate nine geometric parameters for each projection. The Trilogy was characterized five times over one year, while the SynergyS was characterized four times and the Vero once. Over 6500 individual projections were acquired and analyzed. Quantitative geometric parameters of both MV and kV imaging systems, as well as the isocenter consistency of the imaging systems, were successfully evaluated. A geometric tool has been successfully implemented for calibration and QA of integrated kV and MV across a variety of radiotherapy platforms. X-ray source angle deviations up to

Effect of the US-Mexico border region in cardiovascular mortality: ecological time trend analysis of Mexican border and non-border municipalities from 1998 to 2012

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriel Anaya

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background An array of risk factors has been associated with cardiovascular diseases, and developing nations are becoming disproportionately affected by such diseases. Cardiovascular diseases have been reported to be highly prevalent in the Mexican population, but local mortality data is poor. The Mexican side of the US-Mexico border has a culture that is closely related to a developed nation and therefore may share the same risk factors of cardiovascular diseases. We wanted to explore if there was higher cardiovascular mortality in the border region of Mexico compared to the rest of the nation. Methods We conducted a population based cross-sectional time series analysis to estimate the effects of education, insurance and municipal size in Mexican border (n = 38 and non-border municipalities (n = 2360 and its association with cardiovascular age-adjusted mortality rates between the years 1998–2012. We used a mixed effect linear model with random effect estimation and repeated measurements to compare the main outcome variable (mortality rate, the covariates (education, insurance and population size and the geographic delimiter (border/non-border. Results Mortality due to cardiovascular disease was consistently higher in the municipalities along the US-Mexico border, showing a difference of 78 · 5 (95% CI 58 · 7-98 · 3, p < 0 · 001 more cardiovascular deaths after adjusting for covariates. Larger municipal size and higher education levels showed a reduction in cardiovascular mortality of 12 · 6 (95% CI 11 · 4-13 · 8, p < 0 · 001 deaths and 8 · 6 (95% CI 5 · 5-11 · 8, p < 0 · 001 deaths respectively. Insurance coverage showed an increase in cardiovascular mortality of 3 · 6 (95% CI 3 · 1-4 · 0, p < 0 · 001 deaths per decile point increase. There was an increase in cardiovascular mortality of 0 · 3 (95% CI −0 · 001-0 · 6

Population growth, accessibility spillovers and persistent borders: Historical growth in West-European municipalities.

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobs-Crisioni, Chris; Koomen, Eric

2017-06-01

Lack of cross-border transport supply has repeatedly been blamed for the fact that national borders limit spatial interaction and, consequently, the growth of border regions. This study applies an accessibility approach to investigate for most municipalities in ten countries in mainland West Europe if foreign transport supply is lagging behind, and if population growth in these municipalities has been affected by the limits that national borders have imposed on market access. To do so, data describing historical population changes and road networks between 1961 and 2011 have been used. The results show that in the study area, cross-border transport accessibility was not at a disadvantage in 1961 and has since then grown even more than domestic accessibility. However, municipal population growth has depended almost exclusively on domestic market access. Processes of economic international integration in the study area are found to coincide with the growth of cross-border accessibility, but do not have a clear coincidence with the effects of cross-border accessibility on population growth.

SU-F-T-308: Mobius FX Evaluation and Comparison Against a Commercial 4D Detector Array for VMAT Plan QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vazquez Quino, L; Huerta Hernandez, C; Morrow, A; Massingill, B; Rangaraj, D

2016-01-01

Purpose: To evaluate the use of MobiusFX as a pre-treatment verification IMRT QA tool and compare it with a commercial 4D detector array for VMAT plan QA. Methods: 15 VMAT plan QA of different treatment sites were delivered and measured by traditional means with the 4D detector array ArcCheck (Sun Nuclear corporation) and at the same time measurement in linac treatment logs (Varian Dynalogs files) were analyzed from the same delivery with MobiusFX software (Mobius Medical Systems). VMAT plan QAs created in Eclipse treatment planning system (Varian) in a TrueBeam linac machine (Varian) were delivered and analyzed with the gamma analysis routine from SNPA software (Sun Nuclear corporation). Results: Comparable results in terms of the gamma analysis with 99.06% average gamma passing with 3%,3mm passing rate is observed in the comparison among MobiusFX, ArcCheck measurements, and the Treatment Planning System dose calculated. When going to a stricter criterion (1%,1mm) larger discrepancies are observed in different regions of the measurements with an average gamma of 66.24% between MobiusFX and ArcCheck. Conclusion: This work indicates the potential for using MobiusFX as a routine pre-treatment patient specific IMRT method for quality assurance purposes and its advantages as a phantom-less method which reduce the time for IMRT QA measurement. MobiusFX is capable of produce similar results of those by traditional methods used for patient specific pre-treatment verification VMAT QA. Even the gamma results comparing to the TPS are similar the analysis of both methods show that the errors being identified by each method are found in different regions. Traditional methods like ArcCheck are sensitive to setup errors and dose difference errors coming from the linac output. On the other hand linac log files analysis record different errors in the VMAT QA associated with the MLCs and gantry motion that by traditional methods cannot be detected.

TU-G-BRD-06: The Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Houston (IROC Houston) QA Center International Activities Outside North America

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Followill, D; Kry, S; Molineu, A; Lowenstein, J; Alvarez, P; Taylor, P; Nguyen, H; Hernandez, N; Lujano, C; Nguyen, T; Keith, T; Roll, J; Tailor, A [UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: To describe the extent of IROC Houston’s (formerly the RPC) QA activities and audit results for radiotherapy institutions outside of North America (NA). Methods: The IROC Houston’s QA program components were designed to audit the radiation dose calculation chain from the NIST traceable reference beam calibration, to inclusion of dosimetry parameters used to calculate tumor doses, to the delivery of the radiation dose. The QA program provided to international institutions includes: 1) remote TLD/OSLD audit of machine output, 2) credentialing for advanced technologies, and 3) review of patient treatment records. IROC Houston uses the same standards and acceptance criteria for all of its audits whether for North American or international sites. Results: IROC Houston’s QA program has reached out to radiotherapy sites in 43 different countries since 2013 through their participation in clinical trials. In the past two years, 2,778 international megavoltage beam outputs were audited with OSLD/TLD. While the average IROC/Inst ratio is near unity for all sites monitored, there are international regions whose results are significantly different from the NA region. In the past 2 years, 477 and 87 IMRT H&N phantoms were irradiated at NA and international sites, respectively. Regardless of the OSLD beam audit results, the overall pass rate (87 percent) for all international sites (no region separation) is equal to the NA sites. Of the 182 international patient charts reviewed, 10.7 percent of the dose calculation points did not meet our acceptance criterion as compared to 13.6 percent for NA sites. The lower pass rate for NA sites results from a much larger brachytherapy component which has been shown to be more error prone. Conclusion: IROC Houston has expanded its QA services worldwide and continues a long history of improving radiotherapy dose delivery in many countries. Funding received for QA audit services from the Korean GOG, DAHANCA, EORTC, ICON and CMIC

TU-G-BRD-06: The Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Houston (IROC Houston) QA Center International Activities Outside North America

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Followill, D; Kry, S; Molineu, A; Lowenstein, J; Alvarez, P; Taylor, P; Nguyen, H; Hernandez, N; Lujano, C; Nguyen, T; Keith, T; Roll, J; Tailor, A

2015-01-01

Purpose: To describe the extent of IROC Houston’s (formerly the RPC) QA activities and audit results for radiotherapy institutions outside of North America (NA). Methods: The IROC Houston’s QA program components were designed to audit the radiation dose calculation chain from the NIST traceable reference beam calibration, to inclusion of dosimetry parameters used to calculate tumor doses, to the delivery of the radiation dose. The QA program provided to international institutions includes: 1) remote TLD/OSLD audit of machine output, 2) credentialing for advanced technologies, and 3) review of patient treatment records. IROC Houston uses the same standards and acceptance criteria for all of its audits whether for North American or international sites. Results: IROC Houston’s QA program has reached out to radiotherapy sites in 43 different countries since 2013 through their participation in clinical trials. In the past two years, 2,778 international megavoltage beam outputs were audited with OSLD/TLD. While the average IROC/Inst ratio is near unity for all sites monitored, there are international regions whose results are significantly different from the NA region. In the past 2 years, 477 and 87 IMRT H&N phantoms were irradiated at NA and international sites, respectively. Regardless of the OSLD beam audit results, the overall pass rate (87 percent) for all international sites (no region separation) is equal to the NA sites. Of the 182 international patient charts reviewed, 10.7 percent of the dose calculation points did not meet our acceptance criterion as compared to 13.6 percent for NA sites. The lower pass rate for NA sites results from a much larger brachytherapy component which has been shown to be more error prone. Conclusion: IROC Houston has expanded its QA services worldwide and continues a long history of improving radiotherapy dose delivery in many countries. Funding received for QA audit services from the Korean GOG, DAHANCA, EORTC, ICON and CMIC

An Analysis on Religious-Ethnic Geopolitics, Security and Development in Border Towns. Case Study: Sistan and Baluchestan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ISSA EBRAHIMZADEH

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Borders and border areas require security measures, which are very important to create security on the borders. The paper also analyzes the role of ethnic groups living near borderlines. Iran is an ethnically varied country and distinguishing characteristics of ethnic groups from each other in Iran is particularly concentrated on language, religion and ethnic components. These ethnic groups have been scattered as certain minority groups in border provinces and areas. The presence of Iranian nationals in the Western, Eastern and Northern borders which are contiguous with countries with the same religion and language creates by itself an appropriate context for the occurrence of ethnic crises in border areas and boundary underdevelopment is an another cause for this problem. In addition, the three components, namely religion, ethnicity, and language, should be taken into consideration in adopting policies and strategies to deal with these areas. In Sistan and Baluchestan, Iran, there are effective national strategies taking advantage of the presence and existence of religious and ethnic groups in the border towns, adopting security and development policies taking into account these two issues. They have a deep effect on regional development and national solidarity due to construction activities and infrastructure investments on the one hand and reducing insecurity and trafficking on the other hand.

The structure of borders in a small world.

Science.gov (United States)

Thiemann, Christian; Theis, Fabian; Grady, Daniel; Brune, Rafael; Brockmann, Dirk

2010-11-18

Territorial subdivisions and geographic borders are essential for understanding phenomena in sociology, political science, history, and economics. They influence the interregional flow of information and cross-border trade and affect the diffusion of innovation and technology. However, it is unclear if existing administrative subdivisions that typically evolved decades ago still reflect the most plausible organizational structure of today. The complexity of modern human communication, the ease of long-distance movement, and increased interaction across political borders complicate the operational definition and assessment of geographic borders that optimally reflect the multi-scale nature of today's human connectivity patterns. What border structures emerge directly from the interplay of scales in human interactions is an open question. Based on a massive proxy dataset, we analyze a multi-scale human mobility network and compute effective geographic borders inherent to human mobility patterns in the United States. We propose two computational techniques for extracting these borders and for quantifying their strength. We find that effective borders only partially overlap with existing administrative borders, and show that some of the strongest mobility borders exist in unexpected regions. We show that the observed structures cannot be generated by gravity models for human traffic. Finally, we introduce the concept of link significance that clarifies the observed structure of effective borders. Our approach represents a novel type of quantitative, comparative analysis framework for spatially embedded multi-scale interaction networks in general and may yield important insight into a multitude of spatiotemporal phenomena generated by human activity.

The patterns of language choice at the border of Malaysia-Thailand

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Fadzeli Jaafar

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Any activities conducted at the boundary area between countries will only be successful if the community of speakers has mutual understanding in terms of language, especially those involving business. This study focuses on a community in the northern part of Malaysia near the Thailand border where majority of people are bilingual in Malay and Thai. This study aims to investigate the patterns of language used by speakers in the Malaysia-Thailand border, in the context of language maintenance and language shift. Both countries use different languages; with Malaysians use Malay and the Thais use Thai language. In this cross-border context, activities pertaining to business, visit or personal matters will have an impact on the development of the two languages. This study presents the findings on the language choice from a survey involving 202 respondents that was conducted in two border towns at the Malaysia-Thailand border, namely Rantau Panjang (Malaysian side and Golok (Thailand side. By utilizing the domain concept that was introduced by Fishman (1972, this study focuses on two domains namely, business and family. In addition to the questionnaire, participant observations and interviews were also conducted as supplements. The data on the patterns of language choice were analyzed statistically. The findings show that although Malaysians and Thais speak two different languages, Kelantanese dialect, which is a variety of the standard Malay, was the most dominant language at the border. This study also found that age was a significant factor in determining the patterns of language use. The younger generations were using Kelantanese dialect and Thai language in domains where older people would only use Kelantanese dialect. This points to the occurrence of language shift at the border. However, the community at the Thai side of the border tends to choose Kelantanese dialect in their daily activities, which seems to indicate language maintenance in

Reprint of: Dream vs. reality: seven case-studies on the desirability and feasibility of cross-border hospital collaboration in Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Glinos, Irene A; Baeten, Rita

2015-01-01

Despite being a niche phenomenon, cross-border health care collaboration receives a lot of attention in the EU and figures visibly on the policy agenda, in particular since the policy process which eventually led to the adoption of Directive 2011/24/EU. One of the underlying assumptions is that cross-border collaboration is desirable, providing justification to both the European Commission and to border-region stakeholders for promoting it. The purpose of this paper is to question this assumption and to examine the role of actors in pushing (or not) for cross-border collaboration. The analysis takes place in two parts. First, the EU policies to promote cross-border collaboration and the tools employed are examined, namely (a) use of European funds to sponsor concrete border-region collaboration projects, (b) use of European funds to sponsor research which gives visibility to cross-border collaboration, and (c) use of the European Commission's newly acquired legal mandate to encourage "Member States to cooperate in cross-border health care provision in border-regions" (Art. 10) and support "Member States in the development of European reference networks between health care providers and centres of expertise" (Art. 12). Second, evidence gathered in 2011-2013 from seven European border-regions on hospital cross-border collaboration is systematically reviewed to assess the reality of cross-border collaboration - can it work and when, and why do actors engage in cross-border collaboration? The preliminary findings suggest that while the EU plays a prominent role in some border-region initiatives, cross-border collaboration needs such a specific set of circumstances to work that it is questionable whether it can effectively be promoted. Moreover, local actors make use of the EU (as a source of funding, legislation or legitimisation) to serve their needs. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Requirements for cross-border spatial planning technologies in the European context

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frank Susanne

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This communication paper investigates requirements for cross-border spatial planning technologies. We refer to European cross-border regions, which are located in the European Baltic Sea Region. We hypothesize that there is no efficient cross-border spatial planning without engagement from various stakeholders, supported by novel spatial planning technologies. This study presents the results from a survey that identifies the requirements for spatial planning technologies adequate for cross - border regions. On the basis of this survey, carried out within the INTECRE project partners coming from the Baltic Sea Region, the study provides general recommendations about cross - border spatial planning technologies. Addressed in the survey are the following central issues: definition of the scope of such technologies, the data base and international planning data provision, features and properties of planning technologies, and stakeholder involvement. The research findings are transferable to wider European and extra- European contexts.

14 April 1895, Ljubljana earthquake - A new, cross-border study

Science.gov (United States)

Albini, Paola; Cecić, Ina; Hammerl, Christa

2014-05-01

Though it has been the object of both contemporary and modern investigations, the 14 April 1895, Ljubljana event (Mw ~6, according to the European catalogue SHEEC) is still not fully described in its effects. One manifest reason for this is that being the 1895 earthquake a cross-border event, it affected an area that today pertains to three different countries, Slovenia, Austria, and Italy, as well as accounted for in sources today scattered in different archives and libraries. In addition, the 1895 Ljubljana earthquake was a turning point for many aspects. Imperial Vienna sent help to rebuild the damaged city and its surroundings, and the architects brought modern ideas about urban planning, public hygiene and contemporary design. It was also the beginning of organised seismological observations in Slovenia - macroseismic, right after the earthquake, and instrumental, in 1896. The macroseismic data about this earthquake are plentiful and very well preserved. In this new, cross-border study we intend to re-evaluate the already known as well as the newly collected data sources. Specific attention is devoted to the archival documentation on damage, and to the far-field data, which were not comprehensively taken into account beforehand. As the earthquake was felt in a large part of central and Eastern Europe, a considerable effort is put into collecting and interpreting the coeval sources, written in many different languages.

Inverting the Telescope on Borders that Matter: Conversations in Café Europa

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Anderson, D.J.; Kramsch, O.T.; Sandberg, M.

2015-01-01

Proposing an ‘inverted telescope’ for border studies, we problematized existing calls to ‘see like a border’, arguing that such moves miss an opportunity to define what is properly political about b/ordering space. Inverting the telescope on borders that matter reveals an ontologically grounded

TU-E-BRB-02: DIR QA Options and Research Development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kirby, N.

2015-01-01

Deformable image registration (DIR) is developing rapidly and is poised to substantially improve dose fusion accuracy for adaptive and retreatment planning and motion management and PET fusion to enhance contour delineation for treatment planning. However, DIR dose warping accuracy is difficult to quantify, in general, and particularly difficult to do so on a patient-specific basis. As clinical DIR options become more widely available, there is an increased need to understand the implications of incorporating DIR into clinical workflow. Several groups have assessed DIR accuracy in clinically relevant scenarios, but no comprehensive review material is yet available. This session will also discuss aspects of the AAPM Task Group 132 on the Use of Image Registration and Data Fusion Algorithms and Techniques in Radiotherapy Treatment Planning official report, which provides recommendations for DIR clinical use. We will summarize and compare various commercial DIR software options, outline successful clinical techniques, show specific examples with discussion of appropriate and inappropriate applications of DIR, discuss the clinical implications of DIR, provide an overview of current DIR error analysis research, review QA options and research phantom development and present TG-132 recommendations. Learning Objectives: Compare/contrast commercial DIR software and QA options Overview clinical DIR workflow for retreatment To understand uncertainties introduced by DIR Review TG-132 proposed recommendations

TU-E-BRB-02: DIR QA Options and Research Development

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kirby, N. [University of Texas HSC SA (United States)

2015-06-15

Deformable image registration (DIR) is developing rapidly and is poised to substantially improve dose fusion accuracy for adaptive and retreatment planning and motion management and PET fusion to enhance contour delineation for treatment planning. However, DIR dose warping accuracy is difficult to quantify, in general, and particularly difficult to do so on a patient-specific basis. As clinical DIR options become more widely available, there is an increased need to understand the implications of incorporating DIR into clinical workflow. Several groups have assessed DIR accuracy in clinically relevant scenarios, but no comprehensive review material is yet available. This session will also discuss aspects of the AAPM Task Group 132 on the Use of Image Registration and Data Fusion Algorithms and Techniques in Radiotherapy Treatment Planning official report, which provides recommendations for DIR clinical use. We will summarize and compare various commercial DIR software options, outline successful clinical techniques, show specific examples with discussion of appropriate and inappropriate applications of DIR, discuss the clinical implications of DIR, provide an overview of current DIR error analysis research, review QA options and research phantom development and present TG-132 recommendations. Learning Objectives: Compare/contrast commercial DIR software and QA options Overview clinical DIR workflow for retreatment To understand uncertainties introduced by DIR Review TG-132 proposed recommendations.

Geological evolution of the North Sea: Cross-border basin modeling study on the schillground high

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heim, S.; Lutz, R.; Nelskamp, S.; Verweij, J.M.; Kaufmann, D.; Reinhardt, L.

2013-01-01

This study presents the results of a basin modeling study covering the cross-border area of the southern Schillground High in the Dutch-German offshore area. A high resolution petroleum system model has been constructed with the aim to evaluate the hydrocarbon generation potential of Carboniferous

U.S. Border Patrol Fiscal Year Statistics Southwest border sector deaths - FY 1998 through FY 2013

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Homeland Security — Southwest Border Sectors include: Del Rio, El Centro, El Paso, Laredo, Rio Grande Valley, San Diego, Tucson, Yuma Southwest Border Deaths By Fiscal Year (Oct. 1st...

Network communities within and across borders

OpenAIRE

Cerina, Federica; Chessa, Alessandro; Pammolli, Fabio; Riccaboni, Massimo

2014-01-01

We investigate the impact of borders on the topology of spatially embedded networks. Indeed territorial subdivisions and geographical borders significantly hamper the geographical span of networks thus playing a key role in the formation of network communities. This is especially important in scientific and technological policy-making, highlighting the interplay between pressure for the internationalization to lead towards a global innovation system and the administrative borders imposed by t...

The Cosmopolitanization of the EU’s Borders?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Damian Spruce

2007-08-01

Full Text Available For centuries the political geography of Europe has been based around borders of its nation states. The ability of the nation state to control its territory has been essential to the practices of war and diplomacy, the legitimacy of governments, immigration policies and trade. But processes of globalization and EU integration have transformed the borders of the European nation state. While globalization theorists tend to posit an opening up of borders to global flows of capital, information and people, the changed nature of the border is itself often left unexamined and is assumed to have simply disappeared. But scholars and activists are now arguing that, rather than fading away, borders are proliferating in the globalized world and their functions spreading into many different areas of society. This article examines the transformation of the ‘classical’ border of the nation-state into its recent forms, using the work of theorists such as Balibar, Mezzadra, Rigo and Walters. It then examines how these theories have been applied in recent literature, and in particular Chris Rumford’s analysis of the European Neighbourhood policy and his argument that this represents a ‘cosmopolitanisation’ of European borders.

INTERCEPTION OF ANIMAL-ORIGIN PRODUCTS AT LAND BORDERS IN BRAZIL

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mirela Janice Eidt

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Infectious agents and veterinary diseases can be disseminated across borders and contribute to change the country sanitary status. The aim of this study was to identify the main animal products intercepted and seized by the agricultural surveillance units. This paper studied three Agricultural Surveillance Units located at land borders in the North region of Brazil: Assis Brasil and Epitaciolândia (Acre State and Pacaraima (Roraima State, respectively borders with Peru, Bolivia and Venezuela. The main animal products confiscated were dairy products, fish, meat, sausage, veterinary products (drugs, animal food (pet foods and apiculture products. Given the clandestine nature of animal transit and its products in these borders, the possibilities of introduction of infectious agents and diseases must be better evaluated, considering the type of products confiscated, as well as the sanitary status of the countries of origin.

On the assessment of cross-border regions' development potential

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bilchak Mikhail

2011-06-01

Full Text Available This article sets out to assess the potential of cross-border region development on the basis of theoretical and methodological materials. The study examines the Kaliningrad region and Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. The article is focused on the modelling of interindustry balance and export/import functions of border territories.

European Banks Straddling Borders: Risky or Rewarding?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

P. Duijm (Patty); D. Schoenmaker (Dirk)

2017-01-01

textabstractTheory suggests that cross-border banking is beneficial as long as there is a non-perfect correlation across country-specific risks. Using a unique hand-collected dataset with cross-border loans for the 61 largest European banks, we find that cross-border banking in general decreases

Building Watson: An Overview of the DeepQA Project

OpenAIRE

Ferrucci, David; Brown, Eric; Chu-Carroll, Jennifer; Fan, James; Gondek, David; Kalyanpur, Aditya A.; Lally, Adam; Murdock, J. William; Nyberg, Eric; Prager, John; Schlaefer, Nico; Welty, Chris

2010-01-01

IBM Research undertook a challenge to build a computer system that could compete at the human champion level in real time on the American TV Quiz show, Jeopardy! The extent of the challenge includes fielding a real-time automatic contestant on the show, not merely a laboratory exercise. The Jeopardy! Challenge helped us address requirements that led to the design of the DeepQA architecture and the implementation of Watson. After 3 years of intense research and development by a core team of ab...

From Q&A to Slumdog Millionaire: it’s written

OpenAIRE

Bulger, Laura Fernanda

2009-01-01

In this paper, we seek to analyse the film adaptation of Vikas Swarup’ novel, Q&A, published in 2005. Slumdog Millionaire was directed by British filmmaker Danny Boyle and released in 2008. Thus, three years after its publication, Vikas Swarup’s novel was turned into a blockbuster earning successive awards including the 2009 Best Picture Award from the Hollywood Academy. Its success was not the result of a mega “business strategy”; it was largely due to Danny Boyle’s direction and Simon Beauf...

A soft kinetic data structure for lesion border detection.

Science.gov (United States)

Kockara, Sinan; Mete, Mutlu; Yip, Vincent; Lee, Brendan; Aydin, Kemal

2010-06-15

The medical imaging and image processing techniques, ranging from microscopic to macroscopic, has become one of the main components of diagnostic procedures to assist dermatologists in their medical decision-making processes. Computer-aided segmentation and border detection on dermoscopic images is one of the core components of diagnostic procedures and therapeutic interventions for skin cancer. Automated assessment tools for dermoscopic images have become an important research field mainly because of inter- and intra-observer variations in human interpretations. In this study, a novel approach-graph spanner-for automatic border detection in dermoscopic images is proposed. In this approach, a proximity graph representation of dermoscopic images in order to detect regions and borders in skin lesion is presented. Graph spanner approach is examined on a set of 100 dermoscopic images whose manually drawn borders by a dermatologist are used as the ground truth. Error rates, false positives and false negatives along with true positives and true negatives are quantified by digitally comparing results with manually determined borders from a dermatologist. The results show that the highest precision and recall rates obtained to determine lesion boundaries are 100%. However, accuracy of assessment averages out at 97.72% and borders errors' mean is 2.28% for whole dataset.

Infectious disease morbidity in the US region bordering Mexico, 1990-1998.

Science.gov (United States)

Doyle, T J; Bryan, R T

2000-11-01

The United States and Mexico share an international boundary approximately 3000 km long. This border separates 2 nations with great differences in health status. The objective of this study was to assess morbidity due to infectious diseases in the US region bordering Mexico. The incidence between 1990 and 1998 of 22 nationally notifiable infectious diseases was compared between border and nonborder regions. Disease rates, reflected as rate ratios, were higher in the border region for botulism, brucellosis, diphtheria, hepatitis A, measles, mumps, rabies, rubella, salmonellosis, and shigellosis than in either of 2 nonborder comparison regions. These data indicate that incidence rates for a variety of infectious diseases of public health importance are significantly higher in the United States along the Mexican border than in nonborder regions. These results suggest that an inadequate public health infrastructure may contribute to excess morbidity due to infectious diseases in the border region.

Dimeric assembly of enterocyte brush border enzymes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Danielsen, E M

1994-01-01

The noncovalent, dimeric assembly of small intestinal brush border enzymes was studied by sedimentation analysis in density gradients of extracts of pulse-labeled pig jejunal mucosal explants. Like aminopeptidase N (EC 3.4.11.2), sucrase-isomaltase (EC 3.2.1.48-10), aminopeptidase A (EC 3...... appearance of the liposome-reconstituted enzyme [Norén et al. (1986) J. Biol. Chem. 261, 12306-12309], showing only the inner, membrane-anchored domains of the monomers to be in close contact with one another while the outer domains are far apart. In contrast to the other brush border enzymes studied...

Competitive implications of cross-border banking

OpenAIRE

Claessens, Stijn

2006-01-01

This paper reviews the recent literature on cross-border banking, with a focus on policy implications. Cross-border banking has increased sharply in recent decades, particularly in the form of entry, and has affected the development of financial systems, access to financial services, and stability. Reviewing the empirical literature, the author finds much, although not uniform, evidence that cross-border banking supports the development of an efficient and stable financial system that offers ...

Regional trade and border markets between Niger, Benin and Nigeria

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Walther, Olivier; Tenikué, Michel; Kuepié, Mathias

The objective of this methodological paper is to identify a number of products or sectors whose trade is relevant for border regions in West Africa. Focusing on Niger, Benin and Nigeria, we start with contextualising the importance of border markets by quantifying the changes in the relative values...... and volumes of imports and exports passing through border posts. In a second step, we determine which are the products most commonly found among the imports and exports of the border posts. The study shows that seven products are recognised as being heavily imported, subject to significant trade from large...... traders, and considered as re-export products: building materials, cereals and flour, textile, used clothing, used vehicles, cigarettes and oil....

WE-AB-BRB-10: Filmless QA of CyberKnife MLC-Collimated and Iris-Collimated Fields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gersh, J

2015-01-01

Purpose: Current methods of CK field shape QA is based on the use of radiochromic film. Though accurate results can be attained, these methods are prone to error, time consuming, and expensive. The techniques described herein perform similar QA using the FOIL Detector (Field, Output, and Image Localization). A key feature of this in-house QA solution, and central to this study, is an aSi flat-panel detector which provides the user with the means to perform accurate, immediate, and quantitative field analysis. Methods: The FOIL detector is automatically aligned in the CK beam using fiducial markers implanted within the detector case. Once the system is aligned, a treatment plan is delivered which irradiates the flat-panel imager using the field being tested. The current study tests each of the clinically-used fields shaped using the Iris variable-aperture collimation system using a plan which takes 6 minutes to deliver. The user is immediately provided with field diameter and beam profile, as well as a comparison to baseline values. Additionally, the detector is used to acquire and analyze leaf positions of the InCise multi-leaf collimation system. Results: Using a 6-minute plan consisting of 11 beams of 25MU-per-beam, the FOIL detector provided the user with a quantitative analysis of all clinically-used field shapes. The FOIL detector was also able to clearly resolve field edge junctions in a picket fence test, including slight over-travel of individual leaves as well as inter-leaf leakage. Conclusion: The FOIL system provided comparable field diameter and profile data when compared to methods using film; providing results much faster and with 5% of the MU used for film. When used with the MLC system, the FOIL detector provided the means for immediate quantification of the performance of the system through analysis of leaf positions in a picket fence test field. Author is the President/Owner of Spectrum Medical Physics, LLC, a company which maintains contracts

SU-F-T-236: Comparison of Two IMRT/VMAT QA Systems Using Gamma Index Analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dogan, N [University of Miami, Miami, FL (United States); Denissova, S [Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center Deerfield, Weston, FL (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: The goal of this study is to assess differences in the Gamma index pass rates when using two commercial QA systems and provide optimum Gamma index parameters for pre-treatment patient specific QA. Methods: Twenty-two VMAT cases that consisted of prostate, lung, head and neck, spine, brain and pancreas, were included in this study. The verification plans have been calculated using AcurosXB(V11) algorithm for different dose grids (1.5mm, 2.5mm, 3mm). The measurements were performed on TrueBeam(Varian) accelerator using both EPID(S1000) portal imager and ArcCheck(SunNuclearCorp) devices. Gamma index criteria variation of 3%/3mm, 2%/3mm, 2%/2mm and threshold (TH) doses of 5% to 50% were used in analysis. Results: The differences in Gamma pass rates between two devices are not statistically significant for 3%/3mm, yielding pass rate higher than 95%. Increase of lower dose TH showed reduced pass rates for both devices. ArcCheck’s more pronounced effect can be attributed to higher contribution of lower dose region spread. As expected, tightening criteria to 2%/2mm (TH: 10%) decreased Gamma pass rates below 95%. Higher EPID (92%) pass rates compared to ArcCheck (86%) probably due to better spatial resolution. Portal Dosimetry results showed lower Gamma pass rates for composite plans compared to individual field pass rates. This may be due to the expansion in the analyzed region which includes pixels not included in the separate field analysis. Decreasing dose grid size from 2.5mm to 1.5mm did not show statistically significant (p<0.05) differences in Gamma pass rates for both QA devices. Conclusion: Overall, both system measurements agree well with calculated dose when using gamma index criteria of 3%/3mm for a variety of VMAT cases. Variability between two systems increases using different dose GRID, TH and tighter gamma criteria and must be carefully assessed prior to clinical use.

WE-AB-BRB-10: Filmless QA of CyberKnife MLC-Collimated and Iris-Collimated Fields

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gersh, J [Gibbs Cancer Center and Research Institute - Pelham, Greer, SC (United States); Spectrum Medical Physics, LLC, Greenville, SC (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: Current methods of CK field shape QA is based on the use of radiochromic film. Though accurate results can be attained, these methods are prone to error, time consuming, and expensive. The techniques described herein perform similar QA using the FOIL Detector (Field, Output, and Image Localization). A key feature of this in-house QA solution, and central to this study, is an aSi flat-panel detector which provides the user with the means to perform accurate, immediate, and quantitative field analysis. Methods: The FOIL detector is automatically aligned in the CK beam using fiducial markers implanted within the detector case. Once the system is aligned, a treatment plan is delivered which irradiates the flat-panel imager using the field being tested. The current study tests each of the clinically-used fields shaped using the Iris variable-aperture collimation system using a plan which takes 6 minutes to deliver. The user is immediately provided with field diameter and beam profile, as well as a comparison to baseline values. Additionally, the detector is used to acquire and analyze leaf positions of the InCise multi-leaf collimation system. Results: Using a 6-minute plan consisting of 11 beams of 25MU-per-beam, the FOIL detector provided the user with a quantitative analysis of all clinically-used field shapes. The FOIL detector was also able to clearly resolve field edge junctions in a picket fence test, including slight over-travel of individual leaves as well as inter-leaf leakage. Conclusion: The FOIL system provided comparable field diameter and profile data when compared to methods using film; providing results much faster and with 5% of the MU used for film. When used with the MLC system, the FOIL detector provided the means for immediate quantification of the performance of the system through analysis of leaf positions in a picket fence test field. Author is the President/Owner of Spectrum Medical Physics, LLC, a company which maintains contracts

[A Quality Assurance (QA) System with a Web Camera for High-dose-rate Brachytherapy].

Science.gov (United States)

Hirose, Asako; Ueda, Yoshihiro; Oohira, Shingo; Isono, Masaru; Tsujii, Katsutomo; Inui, Shouki; Masaoka, Akira; Taniguchi, Makoto; Miyazaki, Masayoshi; Teshima, Teruki

2016-03-01

The quality assurance (QA) system that simultaneously quantifies the position and duration of an (192)Ir source (dwell position and time) was developed and the performance of this system was evaluated in high-dose-rate brachytherapy. This QA system has two functions to verify and quantify dwell position and time by using a web camera. The web camera records 30 images per second in a range from 1,425 mm to 1,505 mm. A user verifies the source position from the web camera at real time. The source position and duration were quantified with the movie using in-house software which was applied with a template-matching technique. This QA system allowed verification of the absolute position in real time and quantification of dwell position and time simultaneously. It was evident from the verification of the system that the mean of step size errors was 0.31±0.1 mm and that of dwell time errors 0.1±0.0 s. Absolute position errors can be determined with an accuracy of 1.0 mm at all dwell points in three step sizes and dwell time errors with an accuracy of 0.1% in more than 10.0 s of the planned time. This system is to provide quick verification and quantification of the dwell position and time with high accuracy at various dwell positions without depending on the step size.

A quality assurance (QA) system with a web camera for high-dose-rate brachytherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirose, Asako; Ueda, Yoshihiro; Ohira, Shingo

2016-01-01

The quality assurance (QA) system that simultaneously quantifies the position and duration of an 192 Ir source (dwell position and time) was developed and the performance of this system was evaluated in high-dose-rate brachytherapy. This QA system has two functions to verify and quantify dwell position and time by using a web camera. The web camera records 30 images per second in a range from 1,425 mm to 1,505 mm. A user verifies the source position from the web camera at real time. The source position and duration were quantified with the movie using in-house software which was applied with a template-matching technique. This QA system allowed verification of the absolute position in real time and quantification of dwell position and time simultaneously. It was evident from the verification of the system that the mean of step size errors was 0.3±0.1 mm and that of dwell time errors 0.1 ± 0.0 s. Absolute position errors can be determined with an accuracy of 1.0 mm at all dwell points in three step sizes and dwell time errors with an accuracy of 0.1% in more than 10.0 s of the planned time. This system is to provide quick verification and quantification of the dwell position and time with high accuracy at various dwell positions without depending on the step size. (author)

Picking and Choosing the ‘Sovereign’Border

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Parker, Noel; Adler-Nissen, Rebecca

2012-01-01

We argue that the continued persistence of borders is an effect of their constitutive role for the many dimensions of a social particular. States cannot choose to have a border; but they can and do make choices amongst the materials available on the various planes of inscription for bordering. Fo...

Evaluation of Uncertainty of IMRT QA Using 2 Dimensional Array Detector for Head and Neck Patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ban, Tae Joon; Lee, Woo Suk; Kim, Dae Sup; Baek, Geum Mun; Kwak, Jung Won

2011-01-01

IMRT QA using 2 Dimensional array detector is carried out with condition for discrete dose distribution clinically. And it can affect uncertainty of evaluation using gamma method. We analyze gamma index variation according to grid size and suggest validate range of grid size for IMRT QA in Hospital. We performed QA using OniPro I'mRT system software version 1.7b on 10 patients (head and neck) for IMRT. The reference dose plane (grid size, 0.1 cm; location, [0, 0, 0]) from RTP was compared with the dose plane that has different grid size (0.1 cm, 0.5 cm, 1.0 cm, 2.0 cm, 4.0 cm) and different location (along Y-axis 0 cm, 0.2 cm, 0.5 cm, 1.0 cm). The gamma index variation was evaluated by observing the level of changes in Gamma pass rate, Average signal, Standard deviation for each case. The average signal for each grid size showed difference levels of 0%, -0.19%, -0.04%, -0.46%, -8.32% and the standard deviation for each grid size showed difference levels of 0%, -0.30%, 1.24%, -0.70%, -7.99%. The gamma pass rate for each grid size showed difference levels of 0%, 0.27%, -1.43%, 5.32%, 5.60%. The gamma evaluation results according to distance in grid size range of 0.1 cm to 1.0 cm showed good agreement with reference condition (grid size 0.1 cm) within 1.5% and over 5% in case of the grid size was greater than 2.0 cm. We recognize that the grid size of gamma evaluation can make errors of IMRT QA. So we have to consider uncertainty of gamma evaluation according to the grid size and apply smaller than 2 cm grid size to reduce error and increase accuracy clinically.

Energetics and formation mechanism of borders between hexagonal boron nitride and graphene

Science.gov (United States)

Sawahata, Hisaki; Yamanaka, Ayaka; Maruyama, Mina; Okada, Susumu

2018-06-01

We studied the energetics of two-dimensional heterostructures consisting of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) and graphene with respect to the border structure and heterobond species using density functional theory. A BC heterobond is energetically preferable at the border between h-BN and graphene. We also found that the polarization at the zigzag border increases the total energy of the heterostructures. Competition between the bond formation energy and the polarization energy leads to chiral borders at which BC heterobonds are dominant. By taking the formation process of the heterostructures into account, the zigzag border with BC heterobonds is found to be preferentially synthesized from graphene edges under hydrogen-rich conditions.

Decision Model for U.S.- Mexico Border Security Measures

Science.gov (United States)

2017-09-01

missions that the I&A focuses on is, “border security, including narcotics smuggling, alien and human smuggling, and money laundering ...and money assigned to border security investments. 14. SUBJECT TERMS Department of Homeland Security (DHS), border security, U.S.–Mexico border...and money assigned to border security investments. vi THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK vii TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION

Border Crossing/Entry Data - Boarder Crossing

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Transportation — Border Crossing/Entry Data provides summary statistics for incoming crossings at the U.S.-Canadian and the U.S.-Mexican border at the port level. Data are available...

Quality assurance in microbiology

OpenAIRE

Arora D

2004-01-01

Quality assurance (QA) is the total process whereby the quality of laboratory reports can be guaranteed. The term quality control covers that part of QA, which primarily concerns the control of errors in the performance of tests and verification of test results. All materials, equipment and procedures must be adequately controlled. Culture media must be tested for sterility and performance. Each laboratory must have standard operating procedures (SOPs). QA of pre-analytical, analytical and po...

SU-E-I-83: Error Analysis of Multi-Modality Image-Based Volumes of Rodent Solid Tumors Using a Preclinical Multi-Modality QA Phantom

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Y [University of Kansas Hospital, Kansas City, KS (United States); Fullerton, G; Goins, B [University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: In our previous study a preclinical multi-modality quality assurance (QA) phantom that contains five tumor-simulating test objects with 2, 4, 7, 10 and 14 mm diameters was developed for accurate tumor size measurement by researchers during cancer drug development and testing. This study analyzed the errors during tumor volume measurement from preclinical magnetic resonance (MR), micro-computed tomography (micro- CT) and ultrasound (US) images acquired in a rodent tumor model using the preclinical multi-modality QA phantom. Methods: Using preclinical 7-Tesla MR, US and micro-CT scanners, images were acquired of subcutaneous SCC4 tumor xenografts in nude rats (3–4 rats per group; 5 groups) along with the QA phantom using the same imaging protocols. After tumors were excised, in-air micro-CT imaging was performed to determine reference tumor volume. Volumes measured for the rat tumors and phantom test objects were calculated using formula V = (π/6)*a*b*c where a, b and c are the maximum diameters in three perpendicular dimensions determined by the three imaging modalities. Then linear regression analysis was performed to compare image-based tumor volumes with the reference tumor volume and known test object volume for the rats and the phantom respectively. Results: The slopes of regression lines for in-vivo tumor volumes measured by three imaging modalities were 1.021, 1.101 and 0.862 for MRI, micro-CT and US respectively. For phantom, the slopes were 0.9485, 0.9971 and 0.9734 for MRI, micro-CT and US respectively. Conclusion: For both animal and phantom studies, random and systematic errors were observed. Random errors were observer-dependent and systematic errors were mainly due to selected imaging protocols and/or measurement method. In the animal study, there were additional systematic errors attributed to ellipsoidal assumption for tumor shape. The systematic errors measured using the QA phantom need to be taken into account to reduce measurement

ATLAS IBL Stave QA - In and Around SR1

CERN Document Server

Carney, Rebecca

2013-01-01

During the Phase-I upgrade the ATLAS Inner tracker will have a whole new layer of pixels inserted between the existing B-layer and a new, smaller, beam pipe. Briefly, there are 14 assemblies of 32 single and double-chip hybrid silicon pixel chips arranged side-by-side on light-weight, thermally conductive carbon-fibre coated carbon foam supports called staves. When the staves arrive at CERN, fully assembled, they undergo a QA procedure, which checks the power characteristics of sensors and read-out chips, and assess the quality of individual pixels.

Aymara paradiplomacy: Empowerment in the border

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gilberto Aranda Bustamante

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This article analyzes the border paradiplomacy used by more than 50 municipalities from Bolivia, Chile and Peru, named “Aymaras without Borders Strategic Alliance”. In spite of the differentiated historical construction of national identities, according to a literature review, it could be argued that there is an unprecedented border relation between these three countries. Furthermore, it is possible to conclude that this non-violent strategy has been successful in the last 15 years.

Introduction to "Stories and Histories from the China-Vietnam Border"

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hue-Tam Ho Tai

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Whether on land or at sea, border areas are not just sites of conflict. For the ethnically diverse communities who live at the margins of empires or nations, border crossing is a facet of everyday life. It may involve trade and smuggling, pillaging raids, flight from fighting or from the state, human trafficking, marriage, or family visits. These historical events and trends are often narrated within the confines of national histories. Yet they highlight the fuzziness of national boundaries and the importance of forms of social organization that cut across borders and unite individuals and communities that nations seek to separate and distinguish. Not only does the study of border areas and border crossings “rescue history from the nation,” to borrow from Prasenjit Duara (1995, but it also points out that the highly local can be transnational, and that apparently remote places can be linked to global currents of people, ideas, and commodities...

The use of a commercial QA device for daily output check of a helical tomotherapy unit

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alaei, Parham; Hui, Susanta K.; Higgins, Patrick D.; Gerbi, Bruce J.

2006-01-01

Helical tomotherapy radiation therapy units, due to their particular design and differences from a traditional linear accelerator, require different procedures by which to perform routine quality assurance (QA). One of the principal QA tasks that should be performed daily on any radiation therapy equipment is the output constancy check. The daily output check on a Hi-Art TomoTherapy unit is commonly performed utilizing ionization chambers placed inside a solid water phantom. This provides a good check of output at one point, but does not give any information on either energy or symmetry of the beam, unless more than one point is measured. This also has the added disadvantage that it has to be done by the physics staff. To address these issues, and to simplify the process, such that it can be performed by radiation therapists, we investigated the use of a commercially available daily QA device to perform this task. The use of this device simplifies the task of daily output constancy checks and eliminates the need for continued physics involvement. This device can also be used to monitor the constancy of beam energy and cone profile and can potentially be used to detect gross errors in the couch movement or laser alignment

Experience Using DosimetryCheck software for IMRT and RapidArc Patient Pre-treatment QA and a New Feature for QA during Treatment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pinkerton, Arthur; Hannon, Michael; Kwag, Jae; Renner, Wendel Dean

2010-01-01

We have used the DosimetryCheck program with the EPID's on our Varian 2100EX's to perform pre-treatment QA on more than 350 patients, between the last quarter of 2006 and the present. The software uses the EPID measured fluences of the treatment fields to reconstruct the dose distribution in the CT planning model of the patient. Since the dose calculation algorithm, is different from that used by our Eclipse planning system, this provides an independent check of planning accuracy as well as treatment delivery. 2D and 3D dose distributions, point doses, Gamma distributions, DVH statistics and MU calculations can be compared. Absolute differences of Reference Point doses between Dosimetry Check and Eclipse average 1.20%, which is similar to the ionization chamber dose differences of 1.29% for the same patient verification plans. Examples of cases for various treatment sites and delivery modes will be presented. A Special Report in Medical Physics Vol. 37 Number 6 Pg. 2638-2644 from Mans et al at The Netherlands Cancer Institute demonstrated the ability of in vivo EPID dosimetry to detect treatment errors, that escaped other QA checks. A new version of DosimetryCheck awaiting FDA approval, is capable of successfully reconstructing the dose distribution in the patient from the EPID measured exit fluences. This can also be applied to CBCT images providing actual patient dose verification for a treatment session. This should be particularly useful for monitoring hypo-fractionated treatment regimens. Examples of this method will also be presented.

Voces de la frontera/Voices from the Border: Using Case Studies of Pregnancy, Birth and Parenting along the U.S.-Mexico Border to Identify Shared Measures of Success.

Science.gov (United States)

Selchau, Katherine; Babuca, Maricela; Bower, Kara; Castro, Yara; Flores, Araceli; Garcia, Jonah O; Reyes, Maria Lourdes F; Rojas, Yvonne; Shattuck, Laura

2017-12-01

Purpose This research analyzes the cases of five women living along the U.S.-Mexico border who overcame challenges during pregnancy or parenting with the support of a federally funded Healthy Start program, designed to eliminate disparities in perinatal health in disadvantaged communities with the poorest birth outcomes. Study objectives were to: (1) identify common factors that affect healthy maternal and child outcomes for Healthy Start participants; and (2) identify a shared definition of what success looks like for Healthy Start participants and opportunities for further study. Description Five border Healthy Start sites (CA, AZ, NM, and TX) contributed case stories from participants who had overcome access barriers to achieve positive pregnancy, birth or parenting outcomes. Case studies were collected using review of successful participant cases and non-structured interviews by Healthy Start staff, and analyzed using participatory methods and thematic analysis. Assessment Common barriers were: lack of insurance; isolation or unsupportive family relationships; timidness and lack of self-advocacy. Healthy Start programs have been successful in securing supportive relationships through the community health worker model; reducing isolation; obtaining insurance access and a medical home; building self-advocacy skills; and supporting participants to pursue their goals. Conclusion Identified barriers are in line with available literature on health care access and provide a U.S.-Mexico border-specific view. The Healthy Start model is effective at helping women to overcome barriers. Learning from this research may contribute to development of shared measures for more impactful evaluation of Healthy Start and similar programs.

How Neighbours Communicate: The Role of Language in Border Relations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sonni Olsen

2014-10-01

Full Text Available This paper reports on a study of the linguistic situation in the border region where Norway meets Russia in the north. The aim of the study was to investigate language use when contact is revitalised after a long period with closed borders. The Norwegian and Russian languages are very different in vocabulary and structure, which makes communication difficult. How are the two languages affected by extended contact and migration across the border? The study was carried out by the author and Marit Bjerkeng through interviews, a questionnaire and observation of the linguistic situations in two Norwegian communities. The results show an ongoing development where the neighbouring language is increasingly noticeable, and there is a clear link between attitudes, identity and language use. The role of public policy seems to play an important role for the developing linguistic situation, as the Barents region as a political concept introduced in the 1990s has led to cross-border contact within various fields and also inspired local language policy, contributing to cultural pride an

The 'border within': inhabiting the border in Trieste

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bialasiewicz, L.; Minca, C.

2010-01-01

In this paper we look to the Italian border city of Trieste-at various points in its past, a cosmopolitan port, Austria's urbs europeissima, but also a battleground for competing understandings of territoriality, identity, and belonging and a paragon of the violent application of an ethnoterritorial

Analytical laboratory quality assurance guidance in support of EM environmental sampling and analysis activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-05-01

This document introduces QA guidance pertaining to design and implementation of laboratory procedures and processes for collecting DOE Environmental Restoration and Waste Management (EM) ESAA (environmental sampling and analysis activities) data. It addresses several goals: identifying key laboratory issues and program elements to EM HQ and field office managers; providing non-prescriptive guidance; and introducing environmental data collection program elements for EM-263 assessment documents and programs. The guidance describes the implementation of laboratory QA elements within a functional QA program (development of the QA program and data quality objectives are not covered here)

Robust simultaneous detection of coronary borders in complex images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sonka, M.; Winniford, M.D.; Collins, S.M.

1995-01-01

Visual estimation of coronary obstruction severity from angiograms suffers from poor inter- and intraobserver reproducibility and is often inaccurate. In spite of the widely recognized limitations of visual analysis, automated methods have not found widespread clinical use, in part because they too frequently fail to accurately identify vessel borders. The authors have developed a robust method for simultaneous detection of left and right coronary borders that is suitable for analysis of complex images with poor contrast, nearby or overlapping structures, or branching vessels. The reliability of the simultaneous border detection method and that of their previously reported conventional border detection method were tested in 130 complex images, selected because conventional automated border detection might be expected to fail. Conventional analysis failed to yield acceptable borders in 65/130 or 50% of images. Simultaneous border detection was much more robust (p < .001) and failed in only 15/130 or 12% of complex images. Simultaneous border detection identified stenosis diameters that correlated significantly better with observer-derived stenosis diameters than did diameters obtained with conventional border detection (p < 0.001). Simultaneous detection of left and right coronary borders is highly robust and has substantial promise for enhancing the utility of quantitative coronary angiography in the clinical setting

Spectrum of critical illness in undocumented border crossers. The Arizona-Mexico border experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Candy; Hsu, Wendy; Carr, Gordon E

2015-03-01

Approximately 150-250 migrants die each year while attempting to cross the border from Mexico to the Southwest United States. Many border crossers survive the journey, but some develop life-threatening medical complications. Such complications have been subject to little formal analysis. We sought to determine the causes of critical illness in this population and to analyze the hospital course and outcomes of these patients. We retrospectively identified border crossers admitted to the intensive care units (ICUs) of two major teaching hospitals in southern Arizona. We recorded admitting diagnoses, severity of illness, length of stay, resource use, discharge diagnoses, and mortality. Our investigation identified 55 admissions to adult ICUs between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2012. The median age of patients was 27 years. The median hospital length of stay was 7 days, with a median ICU length of stay of 3 days. The median temperature on arrival to the emergency department was 36.8°C. The most common admission diagnoses included trauma (40), rhabdomyolysis (27), acute liver injury (25), dehydration (24), acute kidney injury (19), and encephalopathy (17). Thirteen patients presented with respiratory failure, six patients with severe sepsis, and two with septic shock. A total of 19 patients required ventilator support during their hospital stay, and 30 required at least one surgical intervention. One patient required renal replacement therapy. The median Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score was 6. All but one patient survived to discharge from the hospital. Border crossers are a unique population of young individuals exposed to high temperatures and extreme conditions. Our review of border crosser admissions showed that most patients demonstrated signs of dehydration and leukocytosis, despite a normal median temperature. The median ICU stay was short, despite a high number of patients requiring ventilator support and surgical intervention. Only

Unresolved legal questions in cross-border health care in Europe: liability and data protection.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Molen, I N; Commers, M J

2013-11-01

Directive 2011/24/EU was designed to clarify the rights of EU citizens in evaluating, accessing and obtaining reimbursement for cross-border care. Based on three regional case studies, the authors attempted to assess the added value of the Directive in helping clarify issues in to two key areas that have been identified as barriers to cross-border care: liability and data protection. Qualitative case study employing secondary data sources including research of jurisprudence, that set up a Legal framework as a base to investigate liability and data protection in the context of cross-border projects. By means of three case studies that have tackled liability and data protection hurdles in cross-border care implementation, this article attempts to provide insight into legal certainty and uncertainty regarding cross-border care in Europe. The case studies reveal that the Directive has not resolved core uncertainties related to liability and data protection issues within cross-border health care. Some issues related to the practice of cross-border health care in Europe have been further clarified by the Directive and some direction has been given to possible solutions for issues connected to liability and data protection. Directive 2011/24/EU is clearly a transposition of existing regulations on data protection and ECJ case law, plus a set of additional, mostly, voluntary rules that might enhance regional border cooperation. Therefore, as shown in the case studies, a practical and case by case approach is still necessary in designing and providing cross-border care. © 2013 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Developing a simulation for border safeguarding

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Van Rooyen, S

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Border safeguarding is the defence of territorial integrity and sovereignty, and this is a joint responsibility of the military and the police. Military doctrine for conventional warfare is not sufficient for Border Safeguarding operations due...

Responses of Crop Pests and Natural Enemies to Wildflower Borders Depends on Functional Group.

Science.gov (United States)

McCabe, Ellie; Loeb, Gregory; Grab, Heather

2017-07-25

Increased homogeneity of agricultural landscapes in the last century has led to a loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. However, management practices such as wildflower borders offer supplementary resources to many beneficial arthropods. There is evidence that these borders can increase beneficial arthropod abundance, including natural enemies of many pests. However, this increase in local habitat diversity can also have effects on pest populations, and these effects are not well-studied. In this study, we investigated how wildflower borders affect both natural enemies and pests within an adjacent strawberry crop. Significantly more predators were captured in strawberry plantings with wildflower borders versus plantings without wildflowers, but this effect depended on sampling method. Overall, herbivore populations were lower in plots with a wildflower border; however, responses to wildflower borders varied across specific pest groups. Densities of Lygus lineolaris (Tarnished Plant Bug), a generalist pest, increased significantly in plots that had a border, while Stelidota geminata (Strawberry Sap Beetle) decreased in strawberry fields with a wildflower border. These results suggest that wildflower borders may support the control of some pest insects; however, if the pest is a generalist and can utilize the resources of the wildflower patch, their populations may increase within the crop.

Laboratory QA/QC improvements for small drinking water systems at Savannah River Site

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Turner, R.D.

1995-12-01

The Savannah River Site (SRS), a 310 square mile facility located near Aiken, S.C., is operated by Westinghouse Savannah River Company for the US Department of Energy. SRS has 28 separate drinking water systems with average daily demands ranging from 0.0002 to 0.5 MGD. All systems utilize treated groundwater. Until recently, the water laboratories for each system operated independently. As a result, equipment, reagents, chemicals, procedures, personnel, and quality control practices differed from location to location. Due to this inconsistency, and a lack of extensive laboratory OA/QC practices at some locations, SRS auditors were not confident in the accuracy of daily water quality analyses results. The Site`s Water Services Department addressed these concerns by developing and implementing a practical laboratory QA/QC program. Basic changes were made which can be readily adopted by most small drinking water systems. Key features of the program include: Standardized and upgraded laboratory instrumentation and equipment; standardized analytical procedures based on vendor manuals and site requirements; periodic accuracy checks for all instrumentation; creation of a centralized laboratory to perform metals digestions and chlorine colorimeter accuracy checks; off-site and on-site operator training; proper storage, inventory and shelf life monitoring for reagents and chemicals. This program has enhanced the credibility and accuracy of SRS drinking water system analyses results.

Cross-border entrepreneurship in a global world

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Emontspool, Julie; Servais, Per

2017-01-01

This paper shows that international entrepreneurship and immigrant entrepreneurship increasingly intersect in a global world. Both research streams address cross-border entrepreneurial activity in parallel to each other. International entrepreneurship focuses on outgoing entrepreneurial activity......, while immigrant entrepreneurship mainly considers incoming entrepreneurial activity. This paper critically discusses such a dichotomy, highlighting how differentiating immigrant entrepreneurs and international entrepreneurs perpetuates orientalist assumptions about cross-border business activity....... Focusing on a entrepreneurship as behaviour, the paper proposes an alternative perspective to cross-border entrepreneurship, discussing cross-border opportunity identification and exploitation between an entrepreneur’s country of residence and a foreign country. This perspective provides a number...

Sensitivity of volumetric modulated arc therapy patient specific QA results to multileaf collimator errors and correlation to dose volume histogram based metrics.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Coleman, Linda

2013-11-01

This study investigates the impact of systematic multileaf collimator (MLC) positional errors on gamma analysis results used for quality assurance (QA) of Rapidarc treatments. In addition, this study evaluates the relationship of these gamma analysis results and clinical dose volume histogram metrics (DVH) for Rapidarc treatment plans.

[Malaria in the triple border region between Brazil, Colombia and Peru].

Science.gov (United States)

Peiter, Paulo César; Franco, Vivian da Cruz; Gracie, Renata; Xavier, Diego Ricardo; Suárez-Mutis, Martha Cecilia

2013-12-01

This article aims to analyze the malaria surveillance situation on the triple border between Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. This was a qualitative study using questionnaires in the border towns in 2011. The results were analyzed with the SWOT matrix methodology, pointing to significant differences between the malaria surveillance systems along the border. Weaknesses included lack of linkage between actors, lack of trained personnel, high turnover in teams, and lack of malaria specialists in the local hospitals. The study also showed lack of knowledge on malaria and its prevention in the local population. The strengths are the inclusion of new institutional actors, improvement of professional training, distribution of insecticide-treated bed nets, and possibilities for complementary action between surveillance systems through cooperation between health teams on the border. Malaria control can only be successful if the region is dealt with as a whole.

Conception of integrator in cross-border E-commerce

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arkadiusz Kawa

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Background:  E-commerce is one of the most dynamic and important sectors of the economy. The latest trend in this market is cross-border trade. It is based on selling products to customers who are located in other countries. However, it is connected to several problems, such as a high cost and long time of delivery, language barriers, different legal and tax conditionings, etc. Methods: The studies were conducted on the basis of the authors' experience in the field of e-commerce. The issue of cross-border commerce was mainly analysed with the use of reports of the European Commission. The aim of the article is to propose a conception of an integrator of cross-border e-commerce, which will make it possible, among other things, to solve logistic problems. Results: The article presents an authorial conception of an integrator in cross-border e-commerce. Its main task is to integrate the whole supply chain. Thanks to the economies of scale, obtained as a result of consolidation of parcels from many e-shops, the integrator is able to achieve lower delivery costs in international transport, make returns of goods more effective and serve customers from different countries better. Conclusions: The conception of an integrator in cross-border commerce proposed in the article may increase competitiveness of micro and small e-enterprises, especially in the international arena. Moreover, applying this conception may contribute to a rise in the attractiveness of cross-border commerce, which, as result of a greater sale level, would contribute to an increase in the total e-commerce.

VAP/VAT: video analytics platform and test bed for testing and deploying video analytics

Science.gov (United States)

Gorodnichy, Dmitry O.; Dubrofsky, Elan

2010-04-01

Deploying Video Analytics in operational environments is extremely challenging. This paper presents a methodological approach developed by the Video Surveillance and Biometrics Section (VSB) of the Science and Engineering Directorate (S&E) of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to resolve these problems. A three-phase approach to enable VA deployment within an operational agency is presented and the Video Analytics Platform and Testbed (VAP/VAT) developed by the VSB section is introduced. In addition to allowing the integration of third party and in-house built VA codes into an existing video surveillance infrastructure, VAP/VAT also allows the agency to conduct an unbiased performance evaluation of the cameras and VA software available on the market. VAP/VAT consists of two components: EventCapture, which serves to Automatically detect a "Visual Event", and EventBrowser, which serves to Display & Peruse of "Visual Details" captured at the "Visual Event". To deal with Open architecture as well as with Closed architecture cameras, two video-feed capture mechanisms have been developed within the EventCapture component: IPCamCapture and ScreenCapture.

U.S.-Mexico cross-border workforce training needs: survey implementation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosales, Cecilia B; Nuno, Tomas; Dieke, Ada; Galvez, Francisco Navarro; Dutton, Ronald J; Guerrero, Robert; Dulin, Paul; Jiménez, Elisa Aguilar; Granillo, Brenda; de Zapien, Jill Guernsey

2011-01-01

Since the tragic events experienced on September 11, 2001, and other recent events such as the hurricane devastation in the southeastern parts of the country and the emergent H1N1 season, the need for a competent public health workforce has become vitally important for securing and protecting the greater population. The primary objective of the study was to assess the training needs of the U.S. Mexico border states public health workforce. The Arizona Center for Public Health Preparedness of the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health at The University of Arizona implemented a border-wide needs assessment. The online survey was designed to assess and prioritize core public health competencies as well as bioterrorism, infectious disease, and border/binational training needs. Approximately 80% of the respondents were employed by agencies that serve both rural and urban communities. Respondents listed 23 different functional roles that best describe their positions. Approximately 35% of the respondents were primarily employed by state health departments, twenty-seven percent (30%) of the survey participants reported working at the local level, and 19% indicated they worked in other government settings (e.g. community health centers and other non-governmental organizations). Of the 163 survey participants, a minority reported that they felt they were well prepared in the Core Bioterrorism competencies. The sections on Border Competency, Surveillance/Epidemiology, Communications/Media Relations and Cultural Responsiveness, did not generate a rating of 70% or greater on the importance level of survey participants. The study provided the opportunity to examine the issues of public health emergency preparedness within the framework of the border as a region addressing both unique needs and context. The most salient findings highlight the need to enhance the border competency skills of individuals whose roles include a special focus on emergency preparedness and

How social Q&A sites are changing knowledge sharing in open source software communities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vasilescu, B.N.; Serebrenik, A.; Devanbu, P.; Filkov, V.

2014-01-01

Historically, mailing lists have been the preferred means for coordinating development and user support activities. With the emergence and popularity growth of social Q&A sites such as the StackExchange network (e.g., StackOverflow), this is beginning to change. Such sites offer different

Cross-border transfer of knowledge: Cultural lessons from project GLOBE

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Javidan, Mansour; Stahl, Günther K.; Brodbeck, Felix; Wilderom, Celeste P.M.

2005-01-01

Distant cross-border business is on the rise. It necessitates effective transfer of knowledge across geographic and cultural borders. In this article we present the key results from the GLOBE study of 62 cultures and apply them to a real-life case of a North European business school designing and

Monte Carlo generated spectra for QA/QC of automated NAA routine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jackman, K.R.; Biegalski, S.R.

2007-01-01

A quality check for an automated system of analyzing large sets of neutron activated samples has been developed. Activated samples are counted with an HPGe detector, in conjunction with an automated sample changer and spectral analysis tools, controlled by the Canberra GENIE 2K and REXX software. After each sample is acquired and analyzed, a Microsoft Visual Basic program imports the results into a template Microsoft Excel file where the final concentrations, uncertainties, and detection limits are determined. Standard reference materials are included in each set of 40 samples as a standard quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) test. A select group of sample spectra are also visually reviewed to check the peak fitting routines. A reference spectrum was generated in MCNP 4c2 using an F8, pulse-height, tally with a detector model of the actual detector used in counting. The detector model matches the detector resolution, energy calibration, and counting geometry. The generated spectrum also contained a radioisotope matrix that was similar to what was expected in the samples. This spectrum can then be put through the automated system and analyzed along with the other samples. The automated results are then compared to expected results for QA/QC assurance. (author)

Poster - 10: QA of Ultrasound Images for Prostate Brachytherapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Szpala, Stanislaw; Kohli, Kirpal S. [BCCA-Fraser Valley Centre (Canada)

2016-08-15

Purpose: The current QA protocol of ultrasound systems used in prostate brachytherapy (TG128) addresses geometrical verifications, but the scope of evaluation of image quality is limited. We recognized importance of the latter in routine practice, and designed a protocol for QA of the images. Methods: Images of an ultrasound prostate phantom (CIRS053) were collected with BK Flex Focus 400. The images were saved as bmp after adjusting the gain to 50% for consistent results. Mean pixel values and signal to noise ratio were inspected in the representative sections of the phantom, including the mock prostate and the unechoic medium. Constancy of these numbers over a one year period was looked at. Results: The typical intensity in the mock prostate region in the transverse images ranged between 95 and 118 (out of 256), and the signal to noise was about 10. The intensity in the urethra region was about 170±40, and the unechoic medium was 2±2. The mean and the signal to noise ratio remained almost unchanged after a year, while the signal in the unechoic medium increased to about 7±4. Similar values were obtained in the sagittal images. Conclusions: The image analysis discussed above allows quick evaluation of constancy of the image quality. This may be also useful in troubleshooting image-quality problems during routine exams, which might not be due to deterioration of the US system, but other reasons, e.g. variations in tissue properties or air being trapped between the probe and the anatomy.

The Teacher's Role in Quality Classroom Interactions: Q&A with Dr. Drew Gitomer. REL Mid-Atlantic Teacher Effectiveness Webinar Series

Science.gov (United States)

Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic, 2013

2013-01-01

In this webinar, Dr. Drew Gitomer, professor at Rutgers University, shared results from recent studies of classroom observations that helped participants understand both general findings about the qualities of classroom interactions and also the challenges to carrying out valid and reliable observations. This Q&A addressed the questions…

Determination of Matric Suction and Saturation Degree for Unsaturated Soils, Comparative Study - Numerical Method versus Analytical Method

Science.gov (United States)

Chiorean, Vasile-Florin

2017-10-01

Matric suction is a soil parameter which influences the behaviour of unsaturated soils in both terms of shear strength and permeability. It is a necessary aspect to know the variation of matric suction in unsaturated soil zone for solving geotechnical issues like unsaturated soil slopes stability or bearing capacity for unsaturated foundation ground. Mathematical expression of the dependency between soil moisture content and it’s matric suction (soil water characteristic curve) has a powerful character of nonlinearity. This paper presents two methods to determine the variation of matric suction along the depth included between groundwater level and soil level. First method is an analytical approach to emphasize one direction steady state unsaturated infiltration phenomenon that occurs between the groundwater level and the soil level. There were simulated three different situations in terms of border conditions: precipitations (inflow conditions on ground surface), evaporation (outflow conditions on ground surface), and perfect equilibrium (no flow on ground surface). Numerical method is finite element method used for steady state, two-dimensional, unsaturated infiltration calculus. Regarding boundary conditions there were simulated identical situations as in analytical approach. For both methods, was adopted the equation proposed by van Genuchten-Mualen (1980) for mathematical expression of soil water characteristic curve. Also for the unsaturated soil permeability prediction model was adopted the equation proposed by van Genuchten-Mualen. The fitting parameters of these models were adopted according to RETC 6.02 software in function of soil type. The analyses were performed in both methods for three major soil types: clay, silt and sand. For each soil type were concluded analyses for three situations in terms of border conditions applied on soil surface: inflow, outflow, and no flow. The obtained results are presented in order to highlight the differences

Structure of the human vitreoretinal border region

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heegaard, Steffen

1994-01-01

Øjenpatologi, vitreoretinal border region, inner limiting membrane, retina, topographical variation, human......Øjenpatologi, vitreoretinal border region, inner limiting membrane, retina, topographical variation, human...

IDentity, crude data and narrative at the border

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møhl, Perle

Based on ethnographic fieldwork among border control agents at a Schengen border point, the paper explores the linkages and dissociations between human and computer intelligence work in the daily operation of border control where voyagers are profiled, their IDs verified and their intentions scru...

Atmospheric Science Without Borders

Science.gov (United States)

Panday, Arnico; Praveen, Ps; Adhikary, Bhupesh; Bhave, Prakash; Surapipith, Vanisa; Pradhan, Bidya; Karki, Anita; Ghimire, Shreta; Thapa, Alpha; Shrestha, Sujan

2016-04-01

The Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) in northern South Asia are among the most polluted and most densely populated places in the world, and they are upwind of vulnerable ecosystems in the Himalaya mountains. They are also fragmented across 5 countries between which movement of people, data, instruments and scientific understanding have been very limited. ICIMOD's Atmosphere Initiative has for the past three years been working on filling data gaps in the region, while facilitating collaborations across borders. It has established several atmospheric observatories at low and mid elevations in Bhutan and Nepal that provide new data on the inflow of pollutants from the IGP towards the mountains, as well as quantify the effects of local emissions on air quality in mountain cities. EGU will be the first international conference where these data will be presented. ICIMOD is in the process of setting up data servers through which data from the region will be shared with scientists and the general public across borders. Meanwhile, to promote cross-border collaboration among scientists in the region, while addressing an atmospheric phenomenon that affects the lives of the several hundred million people, ICIMOD' Atmosphere Initiative has been coordinating an interdisciplinary multi-year study of persistent winter fog over the Indo-Gangetic Plains, with participation by researchers from Pakistan, India, China, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh. Using a combination of in-situ measurements and sample collection, remote sensing, modeling and community based research, the researchers are studying how changing moisture availability and air pollution have led to increases in fog frequency and duration, as well as the fog's impacts on local communities and energy demand that may affect air pollution emissions. Preliminary results of the Winter 2015-2016 field campaign will be shown.

Studying students' attitudes towards science from a cultural perspective but with a quantitative methodology: border crossing into the physics classroom

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Krogh, L.; Thomsen, Poul V.

2005-01-01

This study applies the concept of cultural border (or boundary) crossing first introduced by Phelan et al. (1991) to the investigation of students' attitudes towards physics and to their choice of physics for A-level. A typology of border crossings is introduced and a number of possible crossings...... for attitudes towards physics as well as for choice of A-level physics in the Danish upper secondary school ('gymnasium')....

A model for international border management systems.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Duggan, Ruth Ann

2008-09-01

To effectively manage the security or control of its borders, a country must understand its border management activities as a system. Using its systems engineering and security foundations as a Department of Energy National Security Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories has developed such an approach to modeling and analyzing border management systems. This paper describes the basic model and its elements developed under Laboratory Directed Research and Development project 08-684.

Surveillance at sea: The transactional politics of border control in the Aegean.

Science.gov (United States)

Dijstelbloem, Huub; van Reekum, Rogier; Schinkel, Willem

2017-06-01

The relationship between vision and action is a key element of both practices and conceptualizations of border surveillance in Europe. This article engages with what we call the 'operative vision' of surveillance at sea, specifically as performed by the border control apparatus in the Aegean. We analyse the political consequences of this operative vision by elaborating on three examples of fieldwork conducted in the Aegean and on the islands of Chios and Lesbos. One of the main aims is to bring the figure of the migrant back into the study of border technologies. By combining insights from science and technology studies with border, mobility and security studies, the article distinguishes between processes of intervention, mobilization and realization and emphasizes the role of migrants in their encounter with surveillance operations. Two claims are brought forward. First, engaging with recent scholarly work on the visual politics of border surveillance, we circumscribe an ongoing 'transactional politics'. Second, the dynamic interplay between vision and action brings about a situation of 'recalcitrance', in which mobile objects and subjects of various kinds are drawn into securitized relations, for instance in encounters between coast guard boats and migrant boats at sea. Without reducing migrants to epiphenomena of those relations, this recalcitrance typifies the objects of surveillance as both relatable as well as resistant, particularly in the tensions between border control and search and rescue.

Rethinking Borders in Japan: Internal, Cultural, and Geopolitical

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ingyu Oh

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Christopher Bondy. Voice, Silence, and Self: Negotiations of Buraku Identity in Contemporary Japan. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Asia Center, 2015. 184 pp. $40 (cloth. Koichi Iwabuchi. Resilient Borders and Cultural Diversity. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2015. 137 pp. $75 (cloth/e-book. Akihiro Iwashita. Japan’s Border Issues: Pitfalls and Prospects. New York: Routledge, 2016. 144 pp. $160 (cloth. The books reviewed here address three different borders in present-day Japanese society: internal, cultural, and geopolitical. It is rare for three different authors to concurrently publish monographs on Japanese borders from three different angles. This may be a sign of increasing consciousness within Japan on the issues of diversity, multiethnicity, old and new forms of discrimination, and continuing border conflicts with neighboring countries...

Land ECVs from QA4ECV using an optimal estimation framework

Science.gov (United States)

Muller, Jan-Peter; Kharbouche, Said; Lewis, Philip; Danne, Olaf; Blessing, Simon; Giering, Ralf; Gobron, Nadine; Lanconelli, Christian; Govaerts, Yves; Schulz, Joerg; Doutriaux-Boucher, Marie; Lattanzio, Alessio; Aoun, Youva

2017-04-01

In the ESA-DUE GlobAlbedo project (http://www.GlobAlbedo.org), a 15 year record of land surface albedo was generated from the European VEGETATION & MERIS sensors using optimal estimation. This was based on 3 broadbands (0.4-0.7, 0.7-3, 0.4-3µm) and fused data at level-2 after converting from spectral narrowband to these 3 broadbands with surface BRFs. A 10 year long record of land surface albedo climatology was generated from Collection 5 of the MODIS BRDF product for these same broadbands. This was employed as an a priori estimate for an optimal estimation based retrieval of land surface albedo when there were insufficient samples from the European sensors. This so-called MODIS prior was derived at 1km from the 500m MOD43A1,2 BRDF inputs every 8 days using the QA bits and the method described in the GlobAlbedo ATBD which is available from the website (http://www.globalbedo.org/docs/GlobAlbedo_Albedo_ATBD_V4.12.pdf). In the ESA-STSE WACMOS-ET project, FastOpt generated fapar & LAI based on this GlobAlbedo BRDF with associated per pixel uncertainty using the TIP framework. In the successor EU-FP7-QA4ECV* project, we have developed a 33 year record (1981-2014) of Earth surface spectral and broadband albedo (i.e. including the ocean and sea-ice) using optimal estimation for the land and where available, relevant sensors for "instantaneous" retrievals over the poles (Kharbouche & Muller, this conference). This requires the longest possible land surface spectral and broadband BRDF record that can only be supplied by a 16 year of MODIS Collection 6 BRDFs at 500m but produced on a daily basis. The CEMS Big Data computer at RAL was used to generate 7 spectral bands and 3 broadband BRDF with and without snow and snow_only. We will discuss the progress made since the start of the QA4ECV project on the production of a new fused land surface BRDF/albedo spectral and broadband CDR product based on four European sensors: MERIS, (A)ATSR(2), VEGETATION, PROBA-V and two US sensors

Introduction : Borders, Informality, International Trade and Customs

OpenAIRE

Cantens, Thomas; Ireland, Robert; Raballand, Gael

2015-01-01

Trading goods is an original human activity that precedes borders (Renfrew, 1969). With the rise of nation-states with demarcated political boundaries, trade that crosses borders became regulated by government institutions such as Customs, with tariffs, quotas, or outright prohibitions. While borders are perhaps not quite “the dead, the fixed, the undialectical, the immobile” (Foucault, 1970, p. 70), they are a formal structure that places less flexibility on trade activities. Focusing on inf...

Border Security: The Role of the U.S. Border Patrol

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Nunez-Neto, Blas

2005-01-01

.... Today, the USBP's primary mission is to detect and prevent the entry of terrorists, weapons of mass destruction, and illegal aliens into the country, and to interdict drug smugglers and other criminals along the border...

SU-F-BRE-08: Feasibility of 3D Printed Patient Specific Phantoms for IMRT/IGRT QA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ehler, E; Higgins, P; Dusenbery, K

2014-01-01

Purpose: Test the feasibility of 3D printed, per-patient phantoms for IMRT QA to analyze the treatment delivery quality within the patient geometry. Methods: Using the head and neck region of an anthropomorphic phantom as a substitute for an actual patient, a soft-tissue equivalent model was constructed with the use of a 3D printer. A nine-field IMRT plan was constructed and dose verification measurements were performed for the 3D printed phantom. During the delivery of the IMRT QA on to the 3D printed phantom, the same patient positioning indexing system was used on the phantom and image guidance (cone beam CT) was used to localize the phantom, serving as a test of the IGRT system as well. The 3D printed phantom was designed to accommodate four radiochromic film planes (two axial, one coronal and one sagittal) and an ionization chamber measurement. As a frame of comparison, the IMRT QA was also performed on traditional phantoms. Dosimetric tolerance levels such as 3mm / 3% Gamma Index as well as 3% and 5% dose difference were considered. All detector systems were calibrated against a NIST traceable ionization chamber. Results: Comparison of results 3D printed patient phantom with the standard IMRT QA systems showed similar passing rates for the 3D printed phantom and the standard phantoms. However, the locations of the failing regions did not necessarily correlate. The 3D printed phantom was localized within 1 mm and 1° using on-board cone beam CT. Conclusion: A custom phantom was created using a 3D printer. It was determined that the use of patient specific phantoms to perform dosimetric verification and estimate the dose in the patient is feasible. In addition, end-to-end testing on a per-patient basis was possible with the 3D printed phantom. Further refinement of the phantom construction process is needed for routine clinical use

SU-F-BRE-08: Feasibility of 3D Printed Patient Specific Phantoms for IMRT/IGRT QA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ehler, E; Higgins, P; Dusenbery, K [University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN (United States)

2014-06-15

Purpose: Test the feasibility of 3D printed, per-patient phantoms for IMRT QA to analyze the treatment delivery quality within the patient geometry. Methods: Using the head and neck region of an anthropomorphic phantom as a substitute for an actual patient, a soft-tissue equivalent model was constructed with the use of a 3D printer. A nine-field IMRT plan was constructed and dose verification measurements were performed for the 3D printed phantom. During the delivery of the IMRT QA on to the 3D printed phantom, the same patient positioning indexing system was used on the phantom and image guidance (cone beam CT) was used to localize the phantom, serving as a test of the IGRT system as well. The 3D printed phantom was designed to accommodate four radiochromic film planes (two axial, one coronal and one sagittal) and an ionization chamber measurement. As a frame of comparison, the IMRT QA was also performed on traditional phantoms. Dosimetric tolerance levels such as 3mm / 3% Gamma Index as well as 3% and 5% dose difference were considered. All detector systems were calibrated against a NIST traceable ionization chamber. Results: Comparison of results 3D printed patient phantom with the standard IMRT QA systems showed similar passing rates for the 3D printed phantom and the standard phantoms. However, the locations of the failing regions did not necessarily correlate. The 3D printed phantom was localized within 1 mm and 1° using on-board cone beam CT. Conclusion: A custom phantom was created using a 3D printer. It was determined that the use of patient specific phantoms to perform dosimetric verification and estimate the dose in the patient is feasible. In addition, end-to-end testing on a per-patient basis was possible with the 3D printed phantom. Further refinement of the phantom construction process is needed for routine clinical use.

a cross-sectional analytic study 2014

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Assessment of HIV/AIDS comprehensive correct knowledge among Sudanese university: a cross-sectional analytic study 2014. ... There are limited studies on this topic in Sudan. In this study we investigated the Comprehensive correct ...

Border Security: Barriers Along the U.S. International Border

Science.gov (United States)

2006-10-30

Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress CRS Report for Congress Received through the CRS Web Order Code RL33659 Border Security...Presidencia,” May 12, 2005. Translation by CRS. Available at [http://www.presidencia.gob.mx/actividades/crecimiento/?contenido=18195& pagina =31]. Last

The Humanitarian Drone and the Borders: Unveiling the Rationales Underlying the Deployment of Drones in Border Surveillance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Marin, Luisa; Custers, Bart

2016-01-01

In these days economic and political pressures push for the deployment of drones’ technology in civil and commercial domains. This chapter focuses in particular on the deployment of drones in the context of border surveillance. Border surveillance is a shared competence between the European Union,

Structure of the animal vitreoretinal border region

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heegaard, Steffen

1994-01-01

Øjenpatologi, vitreoretinal border region, inner limiting membrane of the retina, animals, ultrastructure, comparative anatomy......Øjenpatologi, vitreoretinal border region, inner limiting membrane of the retina, animals, ultrastructure, comparative anatomy...

8 CFR 1212.6 - Border crossing identification cards.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... combined B-1/B-2 visitor visa and non-biometric border crossing identification card or (a similar stamp in... non-biometric border crossing identification card (or similar stamp in a passport), issued by the DOS... 8 Aliens and Nationality 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Border crossing identification cards. 1212...

Accelerator based-boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT)-clinical QA and QC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suzuki, Minoru; Tanaka, Hiroki; Sakurai, Yoshinori; Yong, Liu; Kashino, Genro; Kinashi, Yuko; Masunaga, Shinichiro; Ono, Koji; Maruhashi, Akira

2009-01-01

Alpha-particle and recoil Li atom yielded by the reaction ( 10 B, n), due to their high LET properties, efficiently and specifically kill the cancer cell that has incorporated the boron. Efficacy of this boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) has been demonstrated mainly in the treatment of recurrent head/neck and malignant brain cancers in Kyoto University Research Reactor Institute (KUR). As the clinical trial of BNCT is to start from 2009 based on an accelerator (not on the Reactor), this paper describes the tentative outline of the standard operation procedure of BNCT for its quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) along the flow of its clinical practice. Personnel concerned in the practice involve the attending physician, multiple physicians in charge of BNCT, medical physicists, nurses and reactor stuff. The flow order of the actual BNCT is as follows: Pre-therapeutic evaluation mainly including informed consent and confirmation of the prescription; Therapeutic planning including setting of therapy volume, and of irradiation axes followed by meeting for stuffs' agreement, decision of irradiating field in the irradiation room leading to final decision of the axis, CT for the planning, decision of the final therapeutic plan according to Japan Atomic Energy Agency-Computational Dosimetry System (JCDS) and meeting of all related personnel for the final confirmation of therapeutic plan; and BNCT including the transport of patient to KUR, dripping of boronophenylalanine, setting up of the patient on the machine, blood sampling for pharmacokinetics, boron level measurement for decision of irradiating time, switch on/off of the accelerator, confirmation of patient's movement in the irradiated field after the neutron irradiation, blood sampling for confirmation of the boron level, and patient's leave from the room. The QA/QC check is principally to be conducted with the two-person rule. The purpose of the clinical trial is to establish the usefulness of BNCT

Liouville gravity on bordered surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jaskolski, Z.

1991-11-01

The functional quantization of the Liouville gravity on bordered surfaces in the conformal gauge is developed. It was shown that the geometrical interpretation of the Polyakov path integral as a sum over bordered surfaces uniquely determines the boundary conditions for the fields involved. The gravitational scaling dimensions of boundary and bulk operators and the critical exponents are derived. In particular, the boundary Hausdorff dimension is calculated. (author). 21 refs

A novel approach to EPID-based 3D volumetric dosimetry for IMRT and VMAT QA

Science.gov (United States)

Alhazmi, Abdulaziz; Gianoli, Chiara; Neppl, Sebastian; Martins, Juliana; Veloza, Stella; Podesta, Mark; Verhaegen, Frank; Reiner, Michael; Belka, Claus; Parodi, Katia

2018-06-01

Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) are relatively complex treatment delivery techniques and require quality assurance (QA) procedures. Pre-treatment dosimetric verification represents a fundamental QA procedure in daily clinical routine in radiation therapy. The purpose of this study is to develop an EPID-based approach to reconstruct a 3D dose distribution as imparted to a virtual cylindrical water phantom to be used for plan-specific pre-treatment dosimetric verification for IMRT and VMAT plans. For each depth, the planar 2D dose distributions acquired in air were back-projected and convolved by depth-specific scatter and attenuation kernels. The kernels were obtained by making use of scatter and attenuation models to iteratively estimate the parameters from a set of reference measurements. The derived parameters served as a look-up table for reconstruction of arbitrary measurements. The summation of the reconstructed 3D dose distributions resulted in the integrated 3D dose distribution of the treatment delivery. The accuracy of the proposed approach was validated in clinical IMRT and VMAT plans by means of gamma evaluation, comparing the reconstructed 3D dose distributions with Octavius measurement. The comparison was carried out using (3%, 3 mm) criteria scoring 99% and 96% passing rates for IMRT and VMAT, respectively. An accuracy comparable to the one of the commercial device for 3D volumetric dosimetry was demonstrated. In addition, five IMRT and five VMAT were validated against the 3D dose calculation performed by the TPS in a water phantom using the same passing rate criteria. The median passing rates within the ten treatment plans was 97.3%, whereas the lowest was 95%. Besides, the reconstructed 3D distribution is obtained without predictions relying on forward dose calculation and without external phantom or dosimetric devices. Thus, the approach provides a fully automated, fast and easy QA

Study on Mode of Laos-China Cross-Border Collaboration Strategy Facing Symbiosis Relation

OpenAIRE

Thiravong , Sisavath; Xu , Jingrong; Jing , Qin

2015-01-01

International audience; Laos is a country with abundant natural resources, low labor costs and land rents, which has natural geo-economic relationship with China, and gradually became one of the important destinations of Chinese enterprises’ foreign direct investment. Meanwhile, China has become the largest overseas investment country in Laos. Based on the symbiotic relationship between Laos and China, this paper studies the dynamics of Laos-China cross-border cooperation from three aspects, ...

Developing a mailed phantom to implement a local QA program in Egypt radiotherapy centers

Science.gov (United States)

Soliman, H. A.; Aletreby, M.

2016-07-01

In this work, a simple method that differs from the IAEA/WHO Thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLD) postal quality assurance (QA) program is developed. A small perspex; polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), phantom measured 50 mm × 50 mm × 50 mm is constructed to be used for absorbed dose verification of high-energy photon beams in some major radiotherapy centers in Egypt. The phantom weighted only 140.7 g with two buildup covers weighted 14.8 and 43.19 g for the Cobalt-60 and the 6-MV X-ray beams, respectively. This phantom is aimed for use in the future's external audit/QA services in Egypt for the first time. TLD-700 chips are used for testing and investigating a convenient and national dosimetry QA program. Although the used methodology is comparable to previously introduced but new system; it has smaller size, less weight, and different more available material. Comparison with the previous similar designs is introduced. Theoretical calculations were done by the commercial Eclipse treatment planning system, implementing the pencil beam convolution algorithm to verify the accuracy of the experimental calculation of the dose conversion factor of water to the perspex phantom. The new constructed small phantom and methodology was applied in 10 participating radiotherapy centers. The absorbed dose was verified under the reference conditions for both 60Co and 6-MV high-energy photon beams. The checked beams were within the 5% limit except for four photon beams. There was an agreement of 0.2% between our experimental data and those previously published confirming the validity of the applied method in verifying radiotherapy absorbed dose.

SU-F-T-227: A Comprehensive Patient Specific, Structure Specific, Pre-Treatment 3D QA Protocol for IMRT, SBRT and VMAT - Clinical Experience

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gueorguiev, G; Cotter, C; Young, M; Toomeh, D [Massachusetts General Hospital Boston MA (United States); University of Massachusetts Lowell Lowell, MA (United States); Khan, F; Crawford, B; Turcotte, J; Sharp, G [Massachusetts General Hospital Boston MA (United States); Mah’D, M [University of Massachusetts Lowell Lowell, MA (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: To present a 3D QA method and clinical results for 550 patients. Methods: Five hundred and fifty patient treatment deliveries (400 IMRT, 75 SBRT and 75 VMAT) from various treatment sites, planned on Raystation treatment planning system (TPS), were measured on three beam-matched Elekta linear accelerators using IBA’s COMPASS system. The difference between TPS computed and delivered dose was evaluated in 3D by applying three statistical parameters to each structure of interest: absolute average dose difference (AADD, 6% allowed difference), absolute dose difference greater than 6% (ADD6, 4% structure volume allowed to fail) and 3D gamma test (3%/3mm DTA, 4% structure volume allowed to fail). If the allowed value was not met for a given structure, manual review was performed. The review consisted of overlaying dose difference or gamma results with the patient CT, scrolling through the slices. For QA to pass, areas of high dose difference or gamma must be small and not on consecutive slices. For AADD to manually pass QA, the average dose difference in cGy must be less than 50cGy. The QA protocol also includes DVH analysis based on QUANTEC and TG-101 recommended dose constraints. Results: Figures 1–3 show the results for the three parameters per treatment modality. Manual review was performed on 67 deliveries (27 IMRT, 22 SBRT and 18 VMAT), for which all passed QA. Results show that statistical parameter AADD may be overly sensitive for structures receiving low dose, especially for the SBRT deliveries (Fig.1). The TPS computed and measured DVH values were in excellent agreement and with minimum difference. Conclusion: Applying DVH analysis and different statistical parameters to any structure of interest, as part of the 3D QA protocol, provides a comprehensive treatment plan evaluation. Author G. Gueorguiev discloses receiving travel and research funding from IBA for unrelated to this project work. Author B. Crawford discloses receiving travel funding from

Semivolatile organic compounds in residential air along the Arizona - Mexico border

Science.gov (United States)

Gale, R.W.; Cranor, W.L.; Alvarez, D.A.; Huckins, J.N.; Petty, J.D.; Robertson, G.L.

2009-01-01

Concerns about indoor air quality and the potential effects on people living in these environments are increasing as more reports about the toxicities and the potential indoor air exposure levels of household-use chemicals and chemicals fromhousingandfurnishingmanufactureinairarebeingassessed. Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry was used to confirm numerous airborne contaminants obtained from the analysis of semipermeable membrane devices deployed inside of 52 homes situated along the border between Arizona and Mexico. We also describe nontarget analytes in the organochlorine pesticide fractions of 12 of these homes; this fraction is also the most likelytocontainthebroadestscopeofbioconcentratablechemicals accumulated from the indoor air. Approximately 400 individual components were identified, ranging from pesticides to a wide array of hydrocarbons, fragrances such as the musk xylenes, flavors relating to spices, aldehydes, alcohols, esters and phthalate esters, and other miscellaneous types of chemicals. The results presented in this study demonstrate unequivocally that the mixture of airborne chemicals present indoors is far more complex than previously demonstrated. ?? 2009 American Chemical Society.

Establishing QC/QA system in the fabrication of nuclear fuel assemblies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suh, K.S.; Choi, S.K.; Park, H.G.; Park, T.G.; Chung, J.S.

1980-01-01

Quality control instruction manuals and inspection methods for UO 2 powder and zircaloy materials as the material control, and for UO 2 pellets and nuclear fuel rods as the process control were established. And for the establishment of Q.A programme, the technical specifications of the purchased materials, the control regulation of the measuring and testing equipments, and traceability chart as a part of document control have also been provided and practically applied to the fuel fabrication process

Policing and Transgressing Borders: Soldiers, Slave Rebels, and the Early Modern Atlantic

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marjoleine Kars

2009-12-01

Full Text Available In 1763, a regiment of mercenary soldiers stationed on the border of Suriname and Berbice in South America, rebelled. The men had been sent to help subdue a large slave rebellion. Instead, they mutinied and joined the rebelling slaves. This paper reconstructs the mutiny from Dutch records and uses it to look at the role of soldiers as border crosser in the Atlantic world. Colonial historians have usually studied soldiers in their capacity of border enforcers, men who maintained the cultural and legal divisions that supported colonial authority. However, as I show, soldiers with great regularity crossed those same borders, threatening the very foundations of colonialism.

Quality assurance in biomarker measurement.

Science.gov (United States)

Aitio, A; Apostoli, P

1995-05-01

Quality assurance (QA) concerns the validity of all the analytical processes (from collection of the samples to interpretation of the results). It is not an abstract concept but must be adapted to the different situations such as the different exposure levels, the different analytical methods, and the context of use (risk assessment procedures, research, routine determinations). The main requirements in QA programmes regard the control of all the known sources of preanalytical and analytical variations, while the instruments with which adequate QA can be implemented are the certified materials and the quality control programmes (quality manual, internal and external quality controls). Another important concept in QA is that measurements must be placed a different metrological levels: at the highest there are the methods (definitive, reference) to be used for assessing accuracy of routine methods. QA programmes should enable a grading of biomarkers (from experimental only to full evaluated) and of the laboratories in order to identify the significance of the test and to assess the level at which a laboratory could operate.

Probing endocytosis from the enterocyte brush border using fluorescent lipophilic dyes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Danielsen, E Michael

2015-01-01

The small intestinal brush border is a specialized cell membrane that needs to withstand the solubilizing effect of bile salts during assimilation of dietary nutrients and to achieve detergent resistance; it is highly enriched in glycolipids organized in lipid raft microdomains. In the present work......-toluenesulfonate), and CellMask Orange plasma membrane stain were used to study endocytosis from the enterocyte brush border of organ-cultured porcine mucosal explants. All the dyes readily incorporated into the brush border but were not detectably endocytosed by 5 min, indicating a slow uptake compared with other cell types...

Border Collision Route to Quasiperiodicity: Numerical Investigation and Experimental Confirmation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zhusubaliyev, Zhanybai; Mosekilde, Erik; Maity, S.

2006-01-01

Numerical studies of higher-dimensional piecewise-smooth systems have recently shown how a torus can arise from a periodic cycle through a special type of border-collision bifurcation. The present article investigates this new route to quasiperiodicity in the two-dimensional piecewise-linear normal...... form map. We have obtained the chart of the dynamical modes for this map and showed that border-collision bifurcations can lead to the birth of a stable closed invariant curve associated with quasiperiodic or periodic dynamics. In the parameter regions leading to the existence of an invariant closed...... to quasiperiodicity through a border-collision bifurcation. ©2006 American Institute of Physics...

Characterization of a prototype MR-compatible Delta4 QA system in a 1.5 tesla MR-linac

Science.gov (United States)

de Vries, J. H. W.; Seravalli, E.; Houweling, A. C.; Woodings, S. J.; van Rooij, R.; Wolthaus, J. W. H.; Lagendijk, J. J. W.; Raaymakers, B. W.

2018-01-01

To perform patient plan quality assurance (QA) on a newly installed MR-linac (MRL) it is necessary to have an MR-compatible QA device. An MR compatible device (MR-Delta4) has been developed together with Scandidos AB (Uppsala, Sweden). The basic characteristics of the detector response, such as short-term reproducibility, dose linearity, field size dependency, dose rate dependency, dose-per-pulse dependency and angular dependency, were investigated for the clinical Delta4-PT as well as for the MR compatible version. All tests were performed with both devices on a conventional linac and the MR compatible device was tested on the MRL as well. No statistically significant differences were found in the short-term reproducibility (tesla magnetic field of the Elekta MR-linac

From Borders to Margins

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Parker, Noel

2009-01-01

of entities that are ever open to identity shifts.  The concept of the margin possesses a much wider reach than borders, and focuses continual attention on the meetings and interactions between a range of indeterminate entities whose interactions may determine both themselves and the types of entity...... upon Deleuze's philosophy to set out an ontology in which the continual reformulation of entities in play in ‘post-international' society can be grasped.  This entails a strategic shift from speaking about the ‘borders' between sovereign states to referring instead to the ‘margins' between a plethora...

TU-A-304-00: Imaging, Treatment Planning, and QA for Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-01-01

Increased use of SBRT and hypo fractionation in radiation oncology practice has posted a number of challenges to medical physicist, ranging from planning, image-guided patient setup and on-treatment monitoring, to quality assurance (QA) and dose delivery. This symposium is designed to provide updated knowledge necessary for the safe and efficient implementation of SBRT in various linac platforms, including the emerging digital linacs equipped with high dose rate FFF beams. Issues related to 4D CT, PET and MRI simulations, 3D/4D CBCT guided patient setup, real-time image guidance during SBRT dose delivery using gated/un-gated VMAT or IMRT, and technical advancements in QA of SBRT (in particular, strategies dealing with high dose rate FFF beams) will be addressed. The symposium will help the attendees to gain a comprehensive understanding of the SBRT workflow and facilitate their clinical implementation of the state-of-art imaging and planning techniques. Learning Objectives: Present background knowledge of SBRT, describe essential requirements for safe implementation of SBRT, and discuss issues specific to SBRT treatment planning and QA. Update on the use of multi-dimensional (3D and 4D) and multi-modality (CT, beam-level X-ray imaging, pre- and on-treatment 3D/4D MRI, PET, robotic ultrasound, etc.) for reliable guidance of SBRT. Provide a comprehensive overview of emerging digital linacs and summarize the key geometric and dosimetric features of the new generation of linacs for substantially improved SBRT. Discuss treatment planning and quality assurance issues specific to SBRT. Research grant from Varian Medical Systems

TU-A-304-00: Imaging, Treatment Planning, and QA for Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2015-06-15

Increased use of SBRT and hypo fractionation in radiation oncology practice has posted a number of challenges to medical physicist, ranging from planning, image-guided patient setup and on-treatment monitoring, to quality assurance (QA) and dose delivery. This symposium is designed to provide updated knowledge necessary for the safe and efficient implementation of SBRT in various linac platforms, including the emerging digital linacs equipped with high dose rate FFF beams. Issues related to 4D CT, PET and MRI simulations, 3D/4D CBCT guided patient setup, real-time image guidance during SBRT dose delivery using gated/un-gated VMAT or IMRT, and technical advancements in QA of SBRT (in particular, strategies dealing with high dose rate FFF beams) will be addressed. The symposium will help the attendees to gain a comprehensive understanding of the SBRT workflow and facilitate their clinical implementation of the state-of-art imaging and planning techniques. Learning Objectives: Present background knowledge of SBRT, describe essential requirements for safe implementation of SBRT, and discuss issues specific to SBRT treatment planning and QA. Update on the use of multi-dimensional (3D and 4D) and multi-modality (CT, beam-level X-ray imaging, pre- and on-treatment 3D/4D MRI, PET, robotic ultrasound, etc.) for reliable guidance of SBRT. Provide a comprehensive overview of emerging digital linacs and summarize the key geometric and dosimetric features of the new generation of linacs for substantially improved SBRT. Discuss treatment planning and quality assurance issues specific to SBRT. Research grant from Varian Medical Systems.

Divided we fall... or rise? Tajikistan–Kyrgyzstan border dilemma

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna Matveeva

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The Kyrgyzstan–Tajikistan border remains one of the last undefined frontiers in the Commonwealth of Independent States, where the governments are reluctant to act against the wishes of their border communities and force delimitation solutions that may cause social protests. Uncertainty of territorial arrangements persists; however, the era of commonality and interdependence may be at its end due to the establishment of a border as a means of spatial control. Border drawing reflects the divergent development trajectories of the new states, seeking to break out of an interdependence pattern. Borderlands’ interactions become more conflictual. Generation change and a loss of common language work to widen the inter-communal gap. Ethnicity and identity factors grew in significance as association with the nation-states increased, and a border expresses a symbol of nationhood in this paradigm. Crucially, a border justifies a security regime, reinforced by international assistance policies, to project power over the territory. Actions of security structures cause grievances but also signify a protective arm of the state, a role that the border communities appreciate, themselves acting as a collective border guard and projecting their fears of encroachment onto the borders. The expansion of the Eurasian Economic Union became a new factor that could have served to alleviate the pressure to divide territory and assets, but this could work only if two countries joined it at the same period. With this option unavailable, a territorial impasse has been reached.

Conservative Libertarianism and the Ethics of Borders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Enrique Camacho Beltran

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Many conservatives endorse a defence of closed borders grounded in basic liberal rights such as the basic right of association. Some conservatives also endorse libertarian principles of legitimacy. It is not clear though that this sort of defence of closed borders is somehow coherent with these libertarian ideals. I argue that conservative libertarians of this kind must reject this defence of closed borders because either it collapses into a form of statism incoherent with libertarian principles of legitimacy, or into an ideal precept without appeal regarding reality in the here and now that could only be applied to changing the very nature of the societies we know. As a result, at least conservative libertarians need to find a different source of justification for closed borders.

Domestic banking sector development and cross border mergers and acquisitions in Africa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elikplimi K. Agbloyor

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Recently, economists have started taking a closer look at cross border mergers and acquisitions (M&As due to its phenomenal rise in the past two decades. This study investigates the relation between banking sector development and cross M&As in Africa. Our sample consists of 11 African countries with data covering the period, 1993–2008. We use a Baltagi panel instrumental variable Error Component Two Stage Least Squares (EC2SLS estimator with the Baltagi-Chang estimators of the variance components to deal with endogeneity. The results of the study indicate that banking sector development promotes cross border M&A activity in Africa. We also document evidence suggesting that cross border M&A activity drives banking sector development in Africa. Overall, our evidence suggests a two-way causation between banking sector development and cross border M&As.

Evaluation of MotionSim XY/4D for patient specific QA of respiratory gated treatment for lung cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wen, C.; Ackerly, T.; Lancaster, C.; Bailey, N.

2011-01-01

Full text: A commercial system-MotionSim XY/4D(TM) capable of simulating two-dimensional tumour motion and measuring planar dose with diode-matrix was evaluated at the Alfred Hospital, for establishing patient-specific QA programme of respiratory gated treatment of lung cancer. This study presents the investigation of accuracies, limitations and the practical aspects of that system. Planar doses generated on iPlan-TM by mapping clinical beams to a scanned-in water phantom were measured by MotionSim XY/4D-TM with 5 cm water equivalent build-up at normal incidence. The gated delivery using ExacTrac-TM through tracking infrared markers simulating external respiration surrogate was measured simultaneously with Gaf-ChromicR RTQA2 film and MapCHECK 2TM . Dose maps of both non-gated and gated beams with 30% duty cycle were compared with both film and diodes measurements. Differences in dose distribution were analysed with built-in tools in MapCHECK2 TM and the effect of residual motion within the beamenabled window was then assessed. Preliminary results indicate that difference between Gafchromic film and MapCHECK2 measurements of same beam was ignorable. Gated dose delivery to a target at 9 mm maximum motion was in good agreement with planned dose. Complement to measurements suggested in AAPM Report No.9 I I, this QA device can detect any random error and assess the magnitude of residual target motion through analysing differences between planned and delivered doses as gamma function. Although some user-friendliness aspects could be improved, it meets its specification and can be used for routine clinical QA purposes provided calibrations were performed and procedures were followed.

A multi-institutional survey evaluating patient related QA – phase II

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Teichmann Tobias

2017-09-01

Full Text Available In phase I of the survey a planning intercomparison of patient-related QA was performed at 12 institutions. The participating clinics created phantom based IMRT and VMAT plans which were measured utilizing the ArcCheck diode array. Mobius3D (M3D was used in phase II. It acts as a secondary dose verification tool for patient-specific QA based on average linac beam data collected by Mobius Medical Systems. All Quasimodo linac plans will be analyzed for the continuation of the intercomparison. We aim to determine if Mobius3D is suited for use with diverse treatment techniques, if beam model customization is needed. Initially we computed first Mobius3D results by transferring all plans from phase I to our Mobius3D server. Because of some larger PTV mean dose differences we checked if output factor customization would be beneficial. We performed measurements and output factor correction to account for discrepancies in reference conditions. Compared to Mobius3D's preconfigured average beam data values, these corrected output factors differed by ±1.5% for field sizes between 7x7cm2 and 30x30cm2 and to −3.9% for 3x3cm2. Our method of correcting the output factors turns out good congruence to M3D's reference values for these medium field sizes.

International Border Management Systems (IBMS) Program : visions and strategies.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McDaniel, Michael; Mohagheghi, Amir Hossein

2011-02-01

Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), International Border Management Systems (IBMS) Program is working to establish a long-term border security strategy with United States Central Command (CENTCOM). Efforts are being made to synthesize border security capabilities and technologies maintained at the Laboratories, and coordinate with subject matter expertise from both the New Mexico and California offices. The vision for SNL is to provide science and technology support for international projects and engagements on border security.

Crossing borders: The Case of ethnic Dagestani in Georgia

OpenAIRE

Meurmishvili, Giorgi

2014-01-01

According to William Zartman Borders run across land but through people. On maps they appear as fine one-dimensional lines, whereas on the ground they have many dimensions. Borders are boundaries in depth, space around a line, place where state meets society" (Zartman 2010:16). It is impossible to understand borders, without peripheral relations between the states and societies they contain. Itself borders are zones in which people create special relationship with other people. ...

Confocal Microscopy and Flow Cytometry System Performance: Assessment of QA Parameters that affect data Quanitification

Science.gov (United States)

Flow and image cytometers can provide useful quantitative fluorescence data. We have devised QA tests to be used on both a flow cytometer and a confocal microscope to assure that the data is accurate, reproducible and precise. Flow Cytometry: We have provided two simple perform...

Experiences in Regional Cross Border Co-operation in River Management. Comparing Three Cases at the Dutch–German Border

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wiering, M.A.; Verwijmeren, J.A.; Lulofs, K.; Feld, C.

2010-01-01

Cross border co-operation is increasingly viewed as an obvious and logical consequence of an integrated perspective on river management. Consequently, we would expect an increase of cross border co-operation and collaboration in EU member states, through joint planning, co-management or

Worldwide QA networks for radiotherapy dosimetry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Izewska, J.; Svensson, H.; Ibbott, G.

2002-01-01

institutions participating in the U.S. National Cancer Institute's (NCI's) co-operative clinical trials. The RPC currently monitors approximately 1300 centres throughout the USA, Canada and several other countries. The audit tools include, in addition to mailed TLD, review of the institution's dosimetry data, the treatment records of patients entered into trials, and the institution's QA programme. Anthropomorphic phantoms have been developed to evaluate specific treatment techniques. Other currently operating external audit programmes have been either associated with national and international clinical trial groups, similarly to RPC, e.g. EORTC (European Organisation for Research in Treatment of Cancer) in Europe, MRC (Medical Research Council) in the UK, or have been one-off national dosimetry intercomparison exercises, carried out to test various levels of radiotherapy dosimetry, e.g. in Sweden, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Australia. Some individual countries have set up comprehensive regular audits of radiotherapy centres, including QA programmes, equipment and dosimetry, e.g. Finland, New Zealand. The IAEA supports its Member States in developing national programmes for TLD based QA audits in radiotherapy dosimetry and whenever possible, establishes links between the national programmes and the IAEA's Dosimetry Laboratory. It disseminates its standardised TLD methodology and provides technical back up to national TLD networks assuring at the same time traceability to primary dosimetry standards. There are several countries (Argentina, Algeria, Brazil, China, Colombia, Cuba, Czech Republic, India, Israel, Malaysia, Philippines, Poland and Vietnam) that have established TLD programmes to audit radiotherapy beams in their countries with assistance of the IAEA. Recently a new IAEA project has been initiated for national TLD audits in non-reference conditions as significant numbers of deviations in non-reference situations, as used clinically on patients, have been

Meeting report on third regional workshop on quality assurance and quality control of nuclear analytical techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

Over the last 20 years, the Agency, through its Technical Co-operation Programme, has helped to establish many nuclear analytical laboratories in nuclear institutions and universities of Member States. The project RER/2/004 has been approved in 1999 for a period of two years aiming at the implementation of a comprehensive QA/QC protocol in laboratories of Member States following the ISO guide 17025. The project involved 13 laboratories from 12 countries. This report presents the project setup, intended outputs and outcomes, achievements and conclusions. It also contains reports from participating laboratories. Each of the reports has been provided with an abstract and indexed separately

Migrant and Refugee Patient Perspectives on Travel and Tuberculosis along the Thailand-Myanmar Border: A Qualitative Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Tschirhart, Naomi; Sein, Tabitha; Nosten, Francois; Foster, Angel M

2016-01-01

The Thailand-Myanmar border separates two very different health systems. The healthcare system in eastern Myanmar remains underdeveloped as a result of decades of instability. Comparatively, Tak province, Thailand has more healthcare resources. In this Thai border province government hospitals and non-governmental organizations provide tuberculosis (TB) treatment to migrants and refugees. Our overall study aimed to explore accessibility of TB treatment, TB surveillance and health system responsiveness specific to migrant and refugee populations in Tak province. In this paper, we focus on the perspectives of migrant and refugee TB patients with respect to travel and treatment in Tak province. In 2014 we conducted focus group discussions with 61 TB, Tuberculosis and Human Immunodeficiency Virus co-infection, and multidrug-resistant TB patients in Tak province. We analyzed the data for content and themes and documented individual travel trajectories. Migrants are travelling with active TB within the country and between Thailand and Myanmar. Migrants primarily travelled to obtain treatment but two participants reported travelling home to seek family care in Myanmar before returning to Thailand for treatment. Travel, while expensive and arduous, is an adaptive strategy that migrants use to access healthcare. Migrant's need for travel points to larger difficulties associated with healthcare access in the border region. Long distance travel with an infectious disease can be seen as an indicator that local healthcare is not available or affordable. These findings suggest that public health officials from both sides of the border should discuss the factors that contribute to travel with active TB and explore potential solutions to mitigate disease transmission in migrant populations.

Cross-border regional innovation system integration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Makkonen, Teemu; Weidenfeld, Adi; Williams, Allan

2017-01-01

The importance of inter-regional cooperation and innovation are widely accepted in the development rhetoric of the European Union. The highlighted importance of both themes in the context of borderlands has recently led to the coining of a new concept, cross-border regional innovation system...... of cross-border cooperation in a regional innovation system setting. The framework was further tested with illustrative empirical cases that demonstrate its feasibility........ However, little attention has been given to the empirical analysis of the concept. This paper suggests a framework for empirically validating the concept by examining the levels of integration between cross-border regions. The outcome is a proposed framework can be operationalized by measurable indicators...

Antecedents of Cross-Border Acquisition Performance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Daojuan; Moini, Hamid; Kuada, John Ernest

2017-01-01

This study investigates the impacts of main implementation activities on the success of cross-border acquisitions (CBAs), using survey data from a sample of 103 CBAs conducted by the companies in Nordic countries. The results of OLS regression analysis indicate that due diligence, integration...

Implementation Issues of Cross-border Acquisitions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Daojuan; Moini, Hamid; Kuada, John

This study investigates the impacts of main implementation activities on the success of cross-border acquisitions (CBAs) using the survey data from a sample of 103 CBAs conducted by the companies in Scandinavia. The results of regression analysis indicate that due diligence, integration extent...

77 FR 59206 - U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-26

... DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency Information Collection Activities: Foreign Assembler's Declaration AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Department of... written comments to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Attn: Tracey Denning, Regulations and Rulings...

Cross-Border Tourism and its Significance for Tourism Destinations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roman LIVANDOVSCHI

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This article is concerned with cross-border tourism. It enhances the importance of cross-border cooperation in tourism. Cross-border cooperation is a form of international cooperation, along with interregional, transitional and trans-frontier cooperation. Cross-border regions often share the same historical and cultural traditions and attractive natural landscapes, such is the case of the Republic of Moldova and Romania. In both cases, cross-border regions can benefit from cooperation – cooperation can help create greater diversity and differentiation of the range of tourism and environmental products; create economies of scale and make promotion more effective, and can help better address specific problems or issues for tourism development.