Cyanide and Aflatoxin Loads of Processed Cassava (Manihot esculenta) Tubers (Garri) in Njaba, Imo State, Nigeria

Science.gov (United States)

Chikezie, Paul Chidoka; Ojiako, Okey A.

2013-01-01

Objectives: The present study sought to investigate the role of palm oil, in conjunction with the duration of fermentation, on cyanide and aflatoxin (AFT) loads of processed cassava tubers (Garri). Materials and Methods: Matured cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) tubers were harvested from three different locations (Akunna, Mkporo-Oji and Durungwu) in Njaba Local Government Area, Imo State, Nigeria. The cassava tubers were processed into Garri according to standard schemes with required modifications and measured for cyanide content using titrimetric methods. Samples of Garri for determination of AFT levels were stored for 30 days before the commencement of spectrophotometric analysis. Results: Cyanide content of peeled cassava tubers was within the range of 4.07 ± 0.16-5.20 ± 0.19 mg hydrocyanic acid (HCN) equivalent/100 g wet weight, whereas the various processed cassava tubers was within the range of 1.44 ± 0.34-3.95 ± 0.23 mg HCN equivalents/100 g. For the 48 h fermentation scheme, Garri treated with palm oil exhibited marginal reduction in cyanide contents by 0.96%, 3.52% and 3.69%, whereas 4 h fermentation scheme is in concurrence with palm oil treatment caused 4.42%, 7.47% and 5.15% elimination of cyanide contents compared with corresponding untreated Garri samples (P > 0.05). Levels of AFT of the various Garri samples ranged between 0.26 ± 0.07 and 0.55 ± 0.04 ppb/100 g. There was no significant difference (P > 0.05) in AFT levels among the various samples in relation to their corresponding sources. Conclusion: The present study showed that the 48 h fermentation scheme for Garri production caused significant (P < 0.05) reduction, but did not obliterate the cyanide content of cassava tubers. Conversely, the 48 h fermentation scheme promoted the elevation of AFT levels, but was relatively reduced in Garri samples treated with palm oil. PMID:24403736

Artistic Chess

Science.gov (United States)

Blackwood, Christine Horvatis

2011-01-01

Chess is one of the world's oldest games, invented in India before 600 AD. The original pieces were inspired by the infantry, cavalry, elephants, and chariots of the ancient Indian army. The design of chess pieces changed when the game spread to the West, reflecting the society of medieval Europe. The king remained, pawns were the foot soldiers,…

Garri Processing And Fish Smoking Enterprises: Sustainable ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Garri Processing And Fish Smoking Enterprises: Sustainable Development Projects In Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Of Rivers State, Nigeria. ... Alternatively, you can download the PDF file directly to your computer, from where it can be opened using a PDF reader. To download the PDF, click the Download link ...

Artificial intelligence

OpenAIRE

Duda, Antonín

2009-01-01

Abstract : Issue of this work is to acquaint the reader with the history of artificial inteligence, esspecialy branch of chess computing. Main attention is given to progress from fifties to the present. The work also deals with fighting chess programs against each other, and against human opponents. The greatest attention is focused on 1997 and duel Garry Kasparov against chess program Deep Blue. The work is divided into chapters according to chronological order.

Chess Evolution Visualization.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Wei-Li; Wang, Yu-Shuen; Lin, Wen-Chieh

2014-05-01

We present a chess visualization to convey the changes in a game over successive generations. It contains a score chart, an evolution graph and a chess board, such that users can understand a game from global to local viewpoints. Unlike current graphical chess tools, which focus only on highlighting pieces that are under attack and require sequential investigation, our visualization shows potential outcomes after a piece is moved and indicates how much tactical advantage the player can have over the opponent. Users can first glance at the score chart to roughly obtain the growth and decline of advantages from both sides, and then examine the position relations and the piece placements, to know how the pieces are controlled and how the strategy works. To achieve this visualization, we compute the decision tree using artificial intelligence to analyze a game, in which each node represents a chess position and each edge connects two positions that are one-move different. We then merge nodes representing the same chess position, and shorten branches where nodes on them contain only two neighbors, in order to achieve readability. During the graph rendering, the nodes containing events such as draws, effective checks and checkmates, are highlighted because they show how a game is ended. As a result, our visualization helps players understand a chess game so that they can efficiently learn strategies and tactics. The presented results, evaluations, and the conducted user studies demonstrate the feasibility of our visualization design.

[Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and improving chess performance in promising young chess-players].

Science.gov (United States)

Ruiz, Francisco J; Luciano, Carmen

2009-08-01

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is shown to be effective in relatively distant fields from the so-called psychological disorders. One of these areas is sport performance improvement. The aim of the current study is to expand the application of brief ACT protocols to improve chess-players' performance. In a previous study, a brief protocol was applied to international-level adult chess-players that was effective. The current study aims to apply an equivalent brief ACT protocol, but in this case, applied in a group format to promising young chess-players. In addition, this brief protocol is compared to a non-intervention control condition. Results show that the ACT brief protocol improved the performance in 5 out of 7 participants, and that none of the chess-players in the control condition reached the established change criterion. The differences between the conditions in chess performance were statistically significant. The results are discussed, emphasizing the replicated impact of a brief ACT protocol on the improvement of chess-players' performance.

Garri Processing And Fish Smoking Enterprises: Sustainable ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study examines the status of garri processing and fish smoking projects as viable and sustainable projects in the Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni local government area of Rivers State. This is because the projects provided employment to the unemployed and the unemployable thereby sustaining them and improving the lot of the ...

Auditory memory function in expert chess players.

Science.gov (United States)

Fattahi, Fariba; Geshani, Ahmad; Jafari, Zahra; Jalaie, Shohreh; Salman Mahini, Mona

2015-01-01

Chess is a game that involves many aspects of high level cognition such as memory, attention, focus and problem solving. Long term practice of chess can improve cognition performances and behavioral skills. Auditory memory, as a kind of memory, can be influenced by strengthening processes following long term chess playing like other behavioral skills because of common processing pathways in the brain. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the auditory memory function of expert chess players using the Persian version of dichotic auditory-verbal memory test. The Persian version of dichotic auditory-verbal memory test was performed for 30 expert chess players aged 20-35 years and 30 non chess players who were matched by different conditions; the participants in both groups were randomly selected. The performance of the two groups was compared by independent samples t-test using SPSS version 21. The mean score of dichotic auditory-verbal memory test between the two groups, expert chess players and non-chess players, revealed a significant difference (p≤ 0.001). The difference between the ears scores for expert chess players (p= 0.023) and non-chess players (p= 0.013) was significant. Gender had no effect on the test results. Auditory memory function in expert chess players was significantly better compared to non-chess players. It seems that increased auditory memory function is related to strengthening cognitive performances due to playing chess for a long time.

Experience, Spatial Abilities, and Chess Skill.

Science.gov (United States)

Horgan, Dianne D.; Morgan, David

A study examined chess expertise in 113 children in grades 1-12 who played competitive chess. Specific attention was given to the relationship between experience, as measured by number of games played, and skill, as measured by national chess ratings. For the top 15 players, emphasis was placed on relationships among chess skill, spatial…

Playing Chess Unconsciously

Science.gov (United States)

Kiesel, Andrea; Kunde, Wilfried; Pohl, Carsten; Berner, Michael P.; Hoffmann, Joachim

2009-01-01

Expertise in a certain stimulus domain enhances perceptual capabilities. In the present article, the authors investigate whether expertise improves perceptual processing to an extent that allows complex visual stimuli to bias behavior unconsciously. Expert chess players judged whether a target chess configuration entailed a checking configuration.…

Does Chess Need Intelligence?--A Study with Young Chess Players

Science.gov (United States)

Bilalic, Merim; McLeod, Peter; Gobet, Fernand

2007-01-01

Although it is widely acknowledged that chess is the best example of an intellectual activity among games, evidence showing the association between any kind of intellectual ability and chess skill has been remarkably sparse. One of the reasons is that most of the studies investigated only one factor (e.g., intelligence), neglecting other factors…

Viktor Dordzhiev, Bone Carving: Chess

OpenAIRE

Ubushieva, Bamba; Kornyakova, Saglara; Babaev, Andrei

2016-01-01

Viktor has been playing chess since childhood. He can carve chess pieces in 10 different ways or styles. The chess pieces that he shows in this video have been carved in a historically informed style from cow and sheep bones. In Kalmykia chess pieces have different names to what they are called in Europe. For example, the rook is called yurt, the bishop is the camel and the king is called the khan.Another item that Viktor shows is a vase for incenses made from a cow bone. Arcadia

Why Chess in the Schools.

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Ralph L.

The game of chess is recommended as a school activity. In addition to requiring that individuals become actively involved in a mentally demanding competition, its effects are stimulating, wholesome, and healthy. Several benefits accrue from the teaching and promoting of chess in schools. Chess limits the element of luck (teaching the importance of…

Chess in Schools: Evaluation Report and Executive Summary

Science.gov (United States)

Jerrim, John; Macmillan, Lindsey; Micklewright, John; Sawtell, Mary; Wiggins, Meg

2016-01-01

Chess in Primary Schools is a whole-school approach to teaching primary school children how to play chess. Children take 30 hours of chess lessons delivered by a tutor who is an experienced chess player, and the school is given the option to set up a chess club as a lunchtime or after-school activity. Chess classes are delivered during the school…

Frontal lobe function in chess players.

Science.gov (United States)

Nejati, Majid; Nejati, Vahid

2012-01-01

Chess is considered as a cognitive game because of severe engagement of the mental resources during playing. The purpose of this study is evaluation of frontal lobe function of chess players with matched non-players. Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) data showed no difference between the player and non-player groups in preservation error and completed categories but surprisingly showed significantly lower grade of the player group in correct response. Our data reveal that chess players don't have any preference in any stage of Stroop test. Chess players don't have any preference in selective attention, inhibition and executive cognitive function. Chess players' have lower shifting abilities than non-players.

The architecture of the chess player's brain.

Science.gov (United States)

Hänggi, Jürgen; Brütsch, Karin; Siegel, Adrian M; Jäncke, Lutz

2014-09-01

The game of chess can be seen as a typical example for an expertise task requiring domain-specific training and experience. Despite intensive behavioural studies the neural underpinnings of chess performance and expertise are not entirely understood. A few functional neuroimaging studies have shown that expert chess players recruit different psychological functions and activate different brain areas while they are engaged in chess-related activities. Based on this functional literature, we predicted to find morphological differences in a network comprised by parietal and frontal areas and especially the occipito-temporal junction (OTJ), fusiform gyrus, and caudate nucleus. Twenty expert chess players and 20 control subjects were investigated using voxel-based and surface-based morphometry as well as diffusion tensor imaging. Grey matter volume and cortical thickness were reduced in chess players compared with those of control men in the OTJ and precunei. The volumes of both caudate nuclei were not different between groups, but correlated inversely with the years of chess playing experience. Mean diffusivity was increased in chess players compared with that of controls in the left superior longitudinal fasciculus and the Elo score (a chess tournament ranking) was inversely related to mean diffusivity within the right superior longitudinal fasciculus. To the best of our knowledge we showed for the first time that there are specific differences in grey and white matter morphology between chess players and control subjects in brain regions associated with cognitive functions important for playing chess. Whether these anatomical alterations are the cause or consequence of the intensive and long-term chess training and practice remains to be shown in future studies. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Frontal Lobe Function in Chess Players

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vahid Nejati

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Chess is considered as a cognitive game because of severe engagement of the mental resources during playing. The purpose of this study is evaluation of frontal lobe function of chess players with matched non-players. Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST data showed no difference between the player and non-player groups in preservation error and completed categories but surprisingly showed significantly lower grade of the player group in correct response. Our data reveal that chess players dont have any preference in any stage of Stroop test. Chess players dont have any preference in selective attention, inhibition and executive cognitive function. Chess players' have lower shifting abilities than non-players.

Chess players' eye movements reveal rapid recognition of complex visual patterns: Evidence from a chess-related visual search task.

Science.gov (United States)

Sheridan, Heather; Reingold, Eyal M

2017-03-01

To explore the perceptual component of chess expertise, we monitored the eye movements of expert and novice chess players during a chess-related visual search task that tested anecdotal reports that a key differentiator of chess skill is the ability to visualize the complex moves of the knight piece. Specifically, chess players viewed an array of four minimized chessboards, and they rapidly searched for the target board that allowed a knight piece to reach a target square in three moves. On each trial, there was only one target board (i.e., the "Yes" board), and for the remaining "lure" boards, the knight's path was blocked on either the first move (the "Easy No" board) or the second move (i.e., "the Difficult No" board). As evidence that chess experts can rapidly differentiate complex chess-related visual patterns, the experts (but not the novices) showed longer first-fixation durations on the "Yes" board relative to the "Difficult No" board. Moreover, as hypothesized, the task strongly differentiated chess skill: Reaction times were more than four times faster for the experts relative to novices, and reaction times were correlated with within-group measures of expertise (i.e., official chess ratings, number of hours of practice). These results indicate that a key component of chess expertise is the ability to rapidly recognize complex visual patterns.

Expertise in chess

OpenAIRE

Gobet, F

2006-01-01

This chapter provides an overview of research into chess expertise. After an historical background and a brief description of the game and the rating system, it discusses the information processes enabling players to choose good moves, and in particular the trade-offs between knowledge and search. Other topics include blindfold chess, talent, and the role of deliberate practice and tournament experience.

The neural organization of perception in chess experts.

Science.gov (United States)

Krawczyk, Daniel C; Boggan, Amy L; McClelland, M Michelle; Bartlett, James C

2011-07-20

The human visual system responds to expertise, and it has been suggested that regions that process faces also process other objects of expertise including chess boards by experts. We tested whether chess and face processing overlap in brain activity using fMRI. Chess experts and novices exhibited face selective areas, but these regions showed no selectivity to chess configurations relative to other stimuli. We next compared neural responses to chess and to scrambled chess displays to isolate areas relevant to expertise. Areas within the posterior cingulate, orbitofrontal cortex, and right temporal cortex were active in this comparison in experts over novices. We also compared chess and face responses within the posterior cingulate and found this area responsive to chess only in experts. These findings indicate that the configurations in chess are not strongly processed by face-selective regions that are selective for faces in individuals who have expertise in both domains. Further, the area most consistently involved in chess did not show overlap with faces. Overall, these results suggest that expert visual processing may be similar at the level of recognition, but need not show the same neural correlates. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated theorem proving theory and practice

CERN Document Server

Newborn, Monty

2001-01-01

As the 21st century begins, the power of our magical new tool and partner, the computer, is increasing at an astonishing rate. Computers that perform billions of operations per second are now commonplace. Multiprocessors with thousands of little computers - relatively little! -can now carry out parallel computations and solve problems in seconds that only a few years ago took days or months. Chess-playing programs are on an even footing with the world's best players. IBM's Deep Blue defeated world champion Garry Kasparov in a match several years ago. Increasingly computers are expected to be more intelligent, to reason, to be able to draw conclusions from given facts, or abstractly, to prove theorems-the subject of this book. Specifically, this book is about two theorem-proving programs, THEO and HERBY. The first four chapters contain introductory material about automated theorem proving and the two programs. This includes material on the language used to express theorems, predicate calculus, and the rules of...

Effects of weather anomalies on the intellectual performance: Chess mistakes of the world top-ranked players

Science.gov (United States)

Mika, J.; Verőci, Zs.; Fülöp, A.; Hirsch, T.; Dúll, A.

2009-04-01

Weather disturbances like fronts, influence human biorhythm, our biological balance becomes manipulated, and adaptation mechanisms are impaired. Our working hypothesis is that even the best chess players of the world are not exceptions from this rule. As their movements on the chess board, as well as the best possible ones, if they missed to make, are already assessed by computers objectively, we can use this game as a model of intellectual performance. By the date of the Abstract edition, 580 wrong chess moves were selected with the threshold of over 1/3 peasant to be lost. I.e. this is the minimum difference between the assessment of the positions after the best possible and the really performed move. (Obviously, all moves both sides in ca. the same number of games were checked, i.e. over 35,000 moves were assessed.) For assessing the moves, the most popular database is MegaDatabase 2006 (ChessBase- Hamburg), Chess Informant Expert from Chess Informant Beograd and the program ChessBase 9.0 together with the engines Fritz 10, Rybka 2.3, Junior 10. First of all the World Chess Champions, Karpov, Kasparov, Kramnik and Anand were examined played in the traditional big chess tournaments, category 19th and more (average rating more the 2701 Elo-points). We further selected the games by the top-ranked players of the world between 2005 and 2008. This selection is explained by the likely fact that they make the less wrong moves for simply the lack of chess understanding, moreover, as full professionals, they allow the minimum of non-weather disturbing circumstances (e.g. imperfect sleeping before the game, etc.). Their moves were selected as (i) very wrong move with more than 3.0 differences, (i.e. unforced loss of a knight, or a bishop, (ii) very weak move with an assessment of 1.0-3.0, (i.e. unforced loss between one peasant and one bishop/knight) and (iii) weak move with less than 1.0 assessment of the passed chance, or unforced loss of less than one peasant. These new

Computer analysis and comparison of chess players' game-playing styles

OpenAIRE

Krevs, Urša

2015-01-01

Today's computer chess programs are very good at evaluating chess positions. Research has shown that we can rank chess players by the quality of their game play, using a computer chess program. In the master's thesis Computer analysis and comparison of chess players' game-playing styles, we focus on the content analysis of chess games using a computer chess program's evaluation and attributes we determined for each individual position. We defined meaningful attributes that can be used for com...

"Strategic" and "tactical" chess differentiate in their hippocampal and precuneus requirements in expert chess players

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wallentin, Mikkel; Roepstorff, Andreas; Vestergaard-Poulsen, Peter

Introduction Expert chess players have been a popular population for research in acquired expertise. The putative cognitive underpinnings of chess-expertise (eg. IQ and memory) have been sought for with mixed results. We suggest that this may be partly due to a lack of detail in the analysis...... of the game itself. We investigated whether different types of chess positions, known as "tactical" and "strategic", activates different neurocognitive structures. In a tactical position the choice of move determines the game, whereas strategic moves are based on long term considerations and do not imply...... an immediate determination. We therefore hypothesised that tactical considerations rely more on working memory (WM) brain structures, such as the precuneus , while strategic rely on long term memory (LTM), i.e. hippocampus. Methods 22 chess-players participated, 9 during fMRI scanning in a 3T scanner while...

Children and Chess: A Guide for Educators

Science.gov (United States)

Root, Alexey

2006-01-01

"Children and Chess: A Guide for Educators" is the first book to show the connection between accepted educational theories and chess. The relationship of chess to academic and humanistic educational goals is convincingly illustrated as curriculum and psychological theories from John D. McNeil, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, and Howard Gardner are…

Practice, intelligence, and enjoyment in novice chess players: A prospective study at the earliest stage of a chess career

NARCIS (Netherlands)

De Bruin, Anique; Kok, Ellen; Leppink, Jimmie; Camp, Gino

2018-01-01

Previous studies have generally found no relation between IQ and chess skill in chess experts. This lack of a relation could be due to the influence of practice being more important than IQ in chess expertise. An alternative explanation is that IQ is relatively high and might therefore

On the Interfaces among Educational Technology, Creativity, and Chess

Science.gov (United States)

Bart, William

2016-01-01

This article provides an examination of interrelationships among educational technology, creativity, and chess. It presents the argument that chess training fosters significant gains in scholastic achievement and cognitive ability. As a vital component in chess training programs, contemporary chess software such as Fritz serves as impressive…

Sequencing chess

Science.gov (United States)

Atashpendar, Arshia; Schilling, Tanja; Voigtmann, Thomas

2016-10-01

We analyze the structure of the state space of chess by means of transition path sampling Monte Carlo simulations. Based on the typical number of moves required to transpose a given configuration of chess pieces into another, we conclude that the state space consists of several pockets between which transitions are rare. Skilled players explore an even smaller subset of positions that populate some of these pockets only very sparsely. These results suggest that the usual measures to estimate both the size of the state space and the size of the tree of legal moves are not unique indicators of the complexity of the game, but that considerations regarding the connectedness of states are equally important.

Checkmate: Capturing Gifted Students' Logical Thinking Using Chess.

Science.gov (United States)

Rifner, Philip J.; Feldhusen, John F.

1997-01-01

Describes the use of chess instruction to develop abstract thinking skills and problem solving among gifted students. Offers suggestions for starting school chess programs, teaching and evaluating chess skills, and measuring the success of both student-players and the program in general. (PB)

Teaching Chess to Young Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Bankauskas, Deborah

2000-01-01

Presents suggestions for teaching chess to young children as part of the problem-solving component of a kindergarten mathematics curriculum. Discusses the introduction of pairs of chess characters, playing challenge games with teachers to enhance skill development, and writing down the rules of the game. Notes that children's problem-solving and…

A multimodal MRI dataset of professional chess players.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Kaiming; Jiang, Jing; Qiu, Lihua; Yang, Xun; Huang, Xiaoqi; Lui, Su; Gong, Qiyong

2015-01-01

Chess is a good model to study high-level human brain functions such as spatial cognition, memory, planning, learning and problem solving. Recent studies have demonstrated that non-invasive MRI techniques are valuable for researchers to investigate the underlying neural mechanism of playing chess. For professional chess players (e.g., chess grand masters and masters or GM/Ms), what are the structural and functional alterations due to long-term professional practice, and how these alterations relate to behavior, are largely veiled. Here, we report a multimodal MRI dataset from 29 professional Chinese chess players (most of whom are GM/Ms), and 29 age matched novices. We hope that this dataset will provide researchers with new materials to further explore high-level human brain functions.

Studies on the fungal flora of Garri, processed cassava ( Manihot ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In Nsukka area of southeastern Nigeria, garri is usually displayed in the open market for sale which no doubt exposes the food stuff to dust particles from moving vehicles, wind and other sources. Thus, fungal spores from the air and soil environment could serve as major sources of fungal contamination of this product.

Want to Improve Your Leadership Skills? Play Chess!

Science.gov (United States)

Hunt, Samuel J.; Cangemi, Joseph

2014-01-01

This paper explores the value of the "Game of Kings," Chess, as a tool for developing highly successful leaders. This paper highlights and demonstrates how the methods of the game of Chess can have strong influence on the ability and performance of exceptional leaders in any field, and how the game of Chess can enhance the cognitive…

A psychometric analysis of chess expertise

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Maas, H.L.J.; Wagenmakers, E.J.

2005-01-01

This study introduces the Amsterdam Chess Test (ACT). The ACT measures chess playing proficiency through 5 tasks: a choose-a-move task (comprising two parallel tests), a motivation questionnaire, a predict-a-move task, a verbal knowledge questionnaire, and a recall task. The validity of these tasks

Relative Age Effect in Mind Games: The Evidence from Elite Chess.

Science.gov (United States)

Breznik, Kristijan; Law, Kris M Y

2016-04-01

Numerous studies have attempted to investigate the factors affecting superior intellectual performance, and it has been proposed that a possible biological marker for superior intellectual performance is the month of birth. In this study, birth details of chess players were obtained from the official international chess federation website. The rating lists of top junior female chess players ("Girls" category), top junior male chess players ("Boys"), top female chess players ("Female"), and top male chess players ("Male") were collected between July 2000 and August 2015. The birth months of each player that appeared in the top rating list were categorized into quarters. Additionally, relative age of chess players was calculated. Results supported the existence of the relative age effect in chess in all categories although a "reverse" RAE was found in the "Male" category. © The Author(s) 2016.

Innovation and nested preferential growth in chess playing behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Perotti, J. I.; Jo, H.-H.; Schaigorodsky, A. L.; Billoni, O. V.

2013-11-01

Complexity develops via the incorporation of innovative properties. Chess is one of the most complex strategy games, where expert contenders exercise decision making by imitating old games or introducing innovations. In this work, we study innovation in chess by analyzing how different move sequences are played at the population level. It is found that the probability of exploring a new or innovative move decreases as a power law with the frequency of the preceding move sequence. Chess players also exploit already known move sequences according to their frequencies, following a preferential growth mechanism. Furthermore, innovation in chess exhibits Heaps' law suggesting similarities with the process of vocabulary growth. We propose a robust generative mechanism based on nested Yule-Simon preferential growth processes that reproduces the empirical observations. These results, supporting the self-similar nature of innovations in chess are important in the context of decision making in a competitive scenario, and extend the scope of relevant findings recently discovered regarding the emergence of Zipf's law in chess.

Using a down-scaled bioclimate envelope model to determine long-term temporal connectivity of Garry oak (Quercus garryana) habitat in western North America: implications for protected area planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Pellatt, Marlow G; Goring, Simon J; Bodtker, Karin M; Cannon, Alex J

2012-04-01

Under the Canadian Species at Risk Act (SARA), Garry oak (Quercus garryana) ecosystems are listed as "at-risk" and act as an umbrella for over one hundred species that are endangered to some degree. Understanding Garry oak responses to future climate scenarios at scales relevant to protected area managers is essential to effectively manage existing protected area networks and to guide the selection of temporally connected migration corridors, additional protected areas, and to maintain Garry oak populations over the next century. We present Garry oak distribution scenarios using two random forest models calibrated with down-scaled bioclimatic data for British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon based on 1961-1990 climate normals. The suitability models are calibrated using either both precipitation and temperature variables or using only temperature variables. We compare suitability predictions from four General Circulation Models (GCMs) and present CGCM2 model results under two emissions scenarios. For each GCM and emissions scenario we apply the two Garry oak suitability models and use the suitability models to determine the extent and temporal connectivity of climatically suitable Garry oak habitat within protected areas from 2010 to 2099. The suitability models indicate that while 164 km(2) of the total protected area network in the region (47,990 km(2)) contains recorded Garry oak presence, 1635 and 1680 km(2) of climatically suitable Garry oak habitat is currently under some form of protection. Of this suitable protected area, only between 6.6 and 7.3% will be "temporally connected" between 2010 and 2099 based on the CGCM2 model. These results highlight the need for public and private protected area organizations to work cooperatively in the development of corridors to maintain temporal connectivity in climatically suitable areas for the future of Garry oak ecosystems.

Many faces of expertise: fusiform face area in chess experts and novices.

Science.gov (United States)

Bilalić, Merim; Langner, Robert; Ulrich, Rolf; Grodd, Wolfgang

2011-07-13

The fusiform face area (FFA) is involved in face perception to such an extent that some claim it is a brain module for faces exclusively. The other possibility is that FFA is modulated by experience in individuation in any visual domain, not only faces. Here we test this latter FFA expertise hypothesis using the game of chess as a domain of investigation. We exploited the characteristic of chess, which features multiple objects forming meaningful spatial relations. In three experiments, we show that FFA activity is related to stimulus properties and not to chess skill directly. In all chess and non-chess tasks, experts' FFA was more activated than that of novices' only when they dealt with naturalistic full-board chess positions. When common spatial relationships formed by chess objects in chess positions were randomly disturbed, FFA was again differentially active only in experts, regardless of the actual task. Our experiments show that FFA contributes to the holistic processing of domain-specific multipart stimuli in chess experts. This suggests that FFA may not only mediate human expertise in face recognition but, supporting the expertise hypothesis, may mediate the automatic holistic processing of any highly familiar multipart visual input.

The Gymnasium of the Mind: Teaching Chess in Early Childhood

Science.gov (United States)

Costello, Patrick J. M.

2013-01-01

The central aim of this paper is to undertake a critical review of arguments which propose that chess should be taught in schools and other educational settings. In particular, I offer an answer to the question: "Should chess be taught in early childhood?" Many claims have been made about the educational benefits of chess instruction. In…

Chess therapy: A new approach to curing panic attack.

Science.gov (United States)

Barzegar, Kazem; Barzegar, Somayeh

2017-12-01

To study the effect of playing cell phone chess game on treating panic attack. The chess game on an android cell phone was played by the researcher who was affected by panic attack as a post-traumatic disorder immediately after or before feeling of the start of symptoms. The right level of difficulty, i.e., levels 2-4, was selected for optimal results. Playing chess game on the android cell phone prevented the manifestation of panic attack and led to the cure of this traumatic condition. Chess therapy with the right level of difficulty can be recommended as a very effective non-pharmaceutical method for the successful treatment of panic attacks. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Impact of Heavy Metals on the Quality of Garri and Cassava Flour ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A study was carried out to determine the level of heavy metals in garri and cassava flour in the month of August, September and October 2007 at Imolisa village and the adjoining sale point along Lagos- Ibadan Expressway. The results obtained showed that only lead was detected in the two foodstuff in both locations with ...

Intelligences Developed by the Student Chess Player

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuraima Margelis Matos De Rojas

2018-05-01

Full Text Available To strengthen cognitive development in students requires the use of innovative, creative and formative strategies that allow it to achieve, being one of the didactic strategies chess. For what was proposed as research purpose: Identify the intelligences developed by the student athlete of the Sports Talent Education Unit that play chess, to suggest some recommendations that can be put into practice in educational institutions. Methodologically it was approached from the qualitative paradigm through a phenomenological method that reveals the reality from the experiences and experiences of the social actors. Six key students of the institution were chess players, to whom an open interview was applied to obtain the necessary information, which was systematized to extract the categories, codifications and triangulate the information. As results, it was obtained that the students develop the intelligences: logical-mathematical, linguistic, spatial and visual, as the intrapersonal during the game of chess and in the learning processes. Configured in categories, analyzed and interpreted from the voices of social actors, theorists and researchers. Suggesting some recommendations that can be put into practice to strengthen the intelligences in the student.

[Physical fitness in relation to age and body build of young chess players].

Science.gov (United States)

Fornal-Urban, Agnieszka; Keska, Anna; Dobosz, Janusz; Nowacka-Dobosz, Sylwia

2009-01-01

Specificity of chess training promotes sedentary lifestyle and may reduce chess players participation in different physical activities. Limited physical activity leads to decrease of physical fitness and may augment the risk of overweight and obesity. It is suggested that these athletes will characterize more frequently lower physical fitness and weight/height proportions disorders. The aim of the study was evaluation of physical fitness and its relationship with age and body build of athletes. A sample of 73 individuals (35 girls--48% and 38 boys--52%) aged 8-19 years took part in this study. All competitors were members of national team and Polish representatives for the European and world chess championship. Chess players' physical fitness was measured by EUROFIT tests. With reference to the Polish population chess players characterized higher level of physical fitness. In six tests of EUROFIT chess players had better standardized results than controls. Sit ups (mean standardized result 0.842), shuttle run 10 x 5 m (0.577), standing broad jump (0.552) and flamingo balance (0.371) were very well performed by chess players. Only in one test, bent arm hang, sportsmen achieved worse results (-0.719). Permanent decrease of chess players' physical fitness with age was also observed. Although chess players' physical fitness was satisfied in comparison to age-matched control, it is recommended to include in their training more exercises developing strength. Because of changes in body build with age and decrease of physical fitness, chess players ought to participate in regular physical activity. Therefore chess organisers should provide the variety of active forms that can be chosen by competitors in their leisure time.

Graduation 2010: The Chess Component of Critical Thinking.

Science.gov (United States)

Englehardt, Cathy Willis; Hauser, Brenda Bennett

This paper describes the chess program for elementary school students in the Daviess County School District, Kentucky. The Critical Thinking committee of the school system's Graduation 2010 initiative explored various ways to promote critical thinking in the classroom and arrived at a program to put chess boards in the classrooms and to encourage…

Check Mate! The CERN vs Fermilab Chess Competition

CERN Multimedia

2001-01-01

7,000 kilometers and a 7 hour time difference had no impact upon the enthusiasm that pervaded the chess competition between CERN and Fermilab. In spite of the computer era, one game was played over a real wooden board.  Tomas Davidek and Irwin Gaines took advantage of Irwin's momentary presence at CERN. Several chess servers span the world and they are used by all sorts of people from many walks of life. However in mid-November on freechess.org there was a sudden influx of physicists as CERN and Fermilab faced off in their first online chess match. While technically a competition, the aim of the match was above all a 'friendly' contest between the two sister labs.  Usually, in serious chess competitions, each team plays in its strongest available constellation at the moment of the match.  But both CERN and Fermilab did quite the opposite and made getting all interested players involved the top priority. 'This was all put together for the purpose of having good fun' said Tibor Sim...

Your move: The effect of chess on mathematics test scores.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosholm, Michael; Mikkelsen, Mai Bjørnskov; Gumede, Kamilla

2017-01-01

We analyse the effect of substituting a weekly mathematics lesson in primary school grades 1-3 with a lesson in mathematics based on chess instruction. We use data from the City of Aarhus in Denmark, combining test score data with a comprehensive data set obtained from administrative registers. We use two different methodological approaches to identify and estimate treatment effects and we tend to find positive effects, indicating that knowledge acquired through chess play can be transferred to the domain of mathematics. We also find larger impacts for unhappy children and children who are bored in school, perhaps because chess instruction facilitates learning by providing an alternative approach to mathematics for these children. The results are encouraging and suggest that chess may be an important and effective tool for improving mathematical capacity in young students.

A Study of Memory Effects in a Chess Database.

Science.gov (United States)

Schaigorodsky, Ana L; Perotti, Juan I; Billoni, Orlando V

2016-01-01

A series of recent works studying a database of chronologically sorted chess games-containing 1.4 million games played by humans between 1998 and 2007- have shown that the popularity distribution of chess game-lines follows a Zipf's law, and that time series inferred from the sequences of those game-lines exhibit long-range memory effects. The presence of Zipf's law together with long-range memory effects was observed in several systems, however, the simultaneous emergence of these two phenomena were always studied separately up to now. In this work, by making use of a variant of the Yule-Simon preferential growth model, introduced by Cattuto et al., we provide an explanation for the simultaneous emergence of Zipf's law and long-range correlations memory effects in a chess database. We find that Cattuto's Model (CM) is able to reproduce both, Zipf's law and the long-range correlations, including size-dependent scaling of the Hurst exponent for the corresponding time series. CM allows an explanation for the simultaneous emergence of these two phenomena via a preferential growth dynamics, including a memory kernel, in the popularity distribution of chess game-lines. This mechanism results in an aging process in the chess game-line choice as the database grows. Moreover, we find burstiness in the activity of subsets of the most active players, although the aggregated activity of the pool of players displays inter-event times without burstiness. We show that CM is not able to produce time series with bursty behavior providing evidence that burstiness is not required for the explanation of the long-range correlation effects in the chess database. Our results provide further evidence favoring the hypothesis that long-range correlations effects are a consequence of the aging of game-lines and not burstiness, and shed light on the mechanism that operates in the simultaneous emergence of Zipf's law and long-range correlations in a community of chess players.

A Study of Memory Effects in a Chess Database.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana L Schaigorodsky

Full Text Available A series of recent works studying a database of chronologically sorted chess games-containing 1.4 million games played by humans between 1998 and 2007- have shown that the popularity distribution of chess game-lines follows a Zipf's law, and that time series inferred from the sequences of those game-lines exhibit long-range memory effects. The presence of Zipf's law together with long-range memory effects was observed in several systems, however, the simultaneous emergence of these two phenomena were always studied separately up to now. In this work, by making use of a variant of the Yule-Simon preferential growth model, introduced by Cattuto et al., we provide an explanation for the simultaneous emergence of Zipf's law and long-range correlations memory effects in a chess database. We find that Cattuto's Model (CM is able to reproduce both, Zipf's law and the long-range correlations, including size-dependent scaling of the Hurst exponent for the corresponding time series. CM allows an explanation for the simultaneous emergence of these two phenomena via a preferential growth dynamics, including a memory kernel, in the popularity distribution of chess game-lines. This mechanism results in an aging process in the chess game-line choice as the database grows. Moreover, we find burstiness in the activity of subsets of the most active players, although the aggregated activity of the pool of players displays inter-event times without burstiness. We show that CM is not able to produce time series with bursty behavior providing evidence that burstiness is not required for the explanation of the long-range correlation effects in the chess database. Our results provide further evidence favoring the hypothesis that long-range correlations effects are a consequence of the aging of game-lines and not burstiness, and shed light on the mechanism that operates in the simultaneous emergence of Zipf's law and long-range correlations in a community of chess

There Is Time for Calculation in Speed Chess, and Calculation Accuracy Increases With Expertise.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Yu-Hsuan A; Lane, David M

2016-01-01

The recognition-action theory of chess skill holds that expertise in chess is due primarily to the ability to recognize familiar patterns of pieces. Despite its widespread acclaim, empirical evidence for this theory is indirect. One source of indirect evidence is that there is a high correlation between speed chess and standard chess. Assuming that there is little or no time for calculation in speed chess, this high correlation implies that calculation is not the primary factor in standard chess. Two studies were conducted analyzing 100 games of speed chess. In Study 1, we examined the distributions of move times, and the key finding was that players often spent considerable time on a few moves. Moreover, stronger players were more likely than weaker players to do so. Study 2 examined skill differences in calculation by examining poor moves. The stronger players made proportionally fewer blunders (moves that a 2-ply search would have revealed to be errors). Overall, the poor moves made by the weaker players would have required a less extensive search to be revealed as poor moves than the poor moves made by the stronger players. Apparently, the stronger players are searching deeper and more accurately. These results are difficult to reconcile with the view that speed chess does not allow players time to calculate extensively and call into question the assertion that the high correlation between speed chess and standard chess supports recognition-action theory.

Is Chess Just a Game, or Is It a Mirror That Reflects the Child's Inner World?

Science.gov (United States)

Gunes, Gokhan; Tugrul, Belma

2017-01-01

Children learn so many things (rules, science, mathematics, etc.) by the help of the games. Chess is also an enjoyable game for most children. The chess grandmaster Karpov stated that chess is everything--art, science, and sport. However, this raises the questions concerning how children evaluate chess and whether chess reflects the child's inner…

Decoding the data : chess game no match for the complexity of an oilwell

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Byfield, M.

2006-07-15

A single offshore well can frequently generate a gigabyte of data per day, and constant monitoring of wells is beyond the capacity of surveillance engineers. Well data can often become garbled with meaningless noise from a variety of sources and causes. Noise generates a number of false alarms that in turn waste a lot of human surveillance time. This article presented details of the IBM Intelligent Oil Fields (IOF) Early Warning Solution, a component in the company's overall IOF software suite. The technology is based on an anomaly detection algorithm to detect or predict downhole problems in oil and gas production. Designed by the same team that created the Deep Blue super computer that defeated Garry Kasparov in a chess tournament, the IOF system is capable of monitoring an entire data stream on a 24 hour basis. The IOF Early Warning Solution is capable of distinguishing between noise and genuine problems by tracking multiple data channels using an algorithm that detects clusters of abnormal behaviour and assesses their significance. Surveillance engineers can specify candidate data channels, define relevant behaviours for the channels, and set time scales. The customized algorithms generate alerts when relevant and significant deviations from normal well behaviour occur. To date, development of the system has included testing and evaluation using historical data and evaluation based on near-real-time data. It was concluded that as skilled personnel have become scarcer and more expensive, operator resistance to the introduction of the new technology is likely to be minimal. 1 fig.

Chess Is Too Easy.

Science.gov (United States)

Bringsjord, Selmer

1998-01-01

Discusses artificial intelligence (AI) and the ideas of strong versus weak AI in relation to chess-playing computers. The concept of creativity is considered, and an attempt to develop a computer program capable of writing short stories is described. (LRW)

Your move: The effect of chess on mathematics test scores

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rosholm, Michael; Mikkelsen, Mai Bjørnskov; Gumede, Kamilla Trille

2017-01-01

We analyse the effect of substituting a weekly mathematics lesson in primary school grades 1–3 with a lesson in mathematics based on chess instruction. We use data from the City of Aarhus in Denmark, combining test score data with a comprehensive data set obtained from administrative registers. We...... use two different methodological approaches to identify and estimate treatment effects and we tend to find positive effects, indicating that knowledge acquired through chess play can be transferred to the domain of mathematics. We also find larger impacts for unhappy children and children who...... are bored in school, perhaps because chess instruction facilitates learning by providing an alternative approach to mathematics for these children. The results are encouraging and suggest that chess may be an important and effective tool for improving mathematical capacity in young students....

Your move: The effect of chess on mathematics test scores.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael Rosholm

Full Text Available We analyse the effect of substituting a weekly mathematics lesson in primary school grades 1-3 with a lesson in mathematics based on chess instruction. We use data from the City of Aarhus in Denmark, combining test score data with a comprehensive data set obtained from administrative registers. We use two different methodological approaches to identify and estimate treatment effects and we tend to find positive effects, indicating that knowledge acquired through chess play can be transferred to the domain of mathematics. We also find larger impacts for unhappy children and children who are bored in school, perhaps because chess instruction facilitates learning by providing an alternative approach to mathematics for these children. The results are encouraging and suggest that chess may be an important and effective tool for improving mathematical capacity in young students.

Moisture Sorption Behaviour and Mould Ecology of Trade Garri Sold in South Eastern Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tochukwu Samuel

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Garri is a creamy white or yellow starchy grit produced by roasting to gelatinization and dryness of peeled, washed, mashed, and fermented dewatered cassava roots. It is the most important product of cassava in West and Central Africa. Mean moisture content of yellow and white garri was 11.11% and 10.81% within 24 hrs of sampling from the market, increasing to 17.27% and 16.14%, respectively, following 3 months of storage at room temperature. The water activity of samples varied from initial 0.587 to 0.934 following storage. Moisture sorption isotherms, determined by static gravimetric techniques at 20° and 30°C, showed temperature dependent BET Sigmoidal type II behaviour typical of carbohydrate rich foods but modulated very slightly by the content of palm oil. Equilibrium moisture content decreased with increase in temperature at constant water activity. A total of 10 fungal species belonging to the genera Mucor, Penicillium, Cephalosporium, Aspergillus, Scopulariopsis, Rhizopus, and Paecilomyces were identified, with range increasing with water activity of samples.

The new CHESS wiggler

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finkelstein, K.D.

1992-01-01

A 25-pole permanent magnet hybrid wiggler has been built at CHESS and installed on the CESR (Cornell Electron Storage Ring). This device has a magnetic period of 19.6 cm, a peak on-axis field of 1.2 T at the nominal operating gap of 4.0 cm, and a K parameter of 22. The wiggler has been designed to provide radiation for two new experimental stations with approximately four times the flux available from the present CHESS six-pole electromagnet wiggler. Under normal running conditions at 100 mA currents, the total power radiated should exceed 6 kW making this one of the highest flux x-ray sources below 1 A critical wavelength. In this paper an overview of the development of the wiggler is given, including the unique features in its design and construction as well as results of measurements obtained on its magnetic and spectral properties

Structure constrained by metadata in networks of chess players.

Science.gov (United States)

Almeira, Nahuel; Schaigorodsky, Ana L; Perotti, Juan I; Billoni, Orlando V

2017-11-09

Chess is an emblematic sport that stands out because of its age, popularity and complexity. It has served to study human behavior from the perspective of a wide number of disciplines, from cognitive skills such as memory and learning, to aspects like innovation and decision-making. Given that an extensive documentation of chess games played throughout history is available, it is possible to perform detailed and statistically significant studies about this sport. Here we use one of the most extensive chess databases in the world to construct two networks of chess players. One of the networks includes games that were played over-the-board and the other contains games played on the Internet. We study the main topological characteristics of the networks, such as degree distribution and correlations, transitivity and community structure. We complement the structural analysis by incorporating players' level of play as node metadata. Although both networks are topologically different, we show that in both cases players gather in communities according to their expertise and that an emergent rich-club structure, composed by the top-rated players, is also present.

Microcrystallography, high-pressure cryocooling and BioSAXS at MacCHESS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Englich, Ulrich, E-mail: ue22@cornell.edu; Kriksunov, Irina A. [MacCHESS (Macromolecular Diffraction Facility at CHESS), Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States); Cerione, Richard A. [MacCHESS (Macromolecular Diffraction Facility at CHESS), Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States); Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States); Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS), Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States); Cook, Michael J.; Gillilan, Richard [MacCHESS (Macromolecular Diffraction Facility at CHESS), Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States); Gruner, Sol M. [Field of Biophysics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States); Physics Department, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States); Huang, Qingqui; Kim, Chae Un; Miller, William; Nielsen, Soren; Schuller, David; Smith, Scott; Szebenyi, Doletha M. E. [MacCHESS (Macromolecular Diffraction Facility at CHESS), Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States)

2011-01-01

Three research initiatives pursued by the Macromolecular Diffraction Facility at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (MacCHESS) are presented. The Macromolecular Diffraction Facility at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (MacCHESS) is a national research resource supported by the National Center for Research Resources of the US National Institutes of Health. MacCHESS is pursuing several research initiatives designed to benefit both CHESS users and the wider structural biology community. Three initiatives are presented in further detail: microcrystallography, which aims to improve the collection of diffraction data from crystals a few micrometers across, or small well diffracting regions of inhomogeneous crystals, so as to obtain high-resolution structures; pressure cryocooling, which can stabilize transient structures and reduce lattice damage during the cooling process; and BioSAXS (small-angle X-ray scattering on biological solutions), which can extract molecular shape and other structural information from macromolecules in solution.

Use of Biotechnological Devices in the Quantification of Psychophysiological Workload of Professional Chess Players.

Science.gov (United States)

Fuentes, Juan P; Villafaina, Santos; Collado-Mateo, Daniel; de la Vega, Ricardo; Gusi, Narcis; Clemente-Suárez, Vicente Javier

2018-01-19

Psychophysiological requirements of chess players are poorly understood, and periodization of training is often made without any empirical basis. For this reason, the aim of the present study was to investigate the psychophysiological response and quantify the player internal load during, and after playing a chess game. The participant was an elite 33 year-old male chess player ranked among the 300 best chess players in the world. Thus, cortical arousal by critical flicker fusion threshold, electroencephalogram by the theta Fz/alpha Pz ratio and autonomic modulation by heart rate variability were analyzed. Data revealed that cortical arousal by critical flicker fusion threshold and theta Fz/alpha Pz ratio increased and heart rate variability decreased during chess game. All these changes indicated that internal load increased during the chess game. In addition, pre-activation was detected in pre-game measure, suggesting that the prefrontal cortex might be preparatory activated. For these reasons, electroencephalogram, critical flicker fusion threshold and heart rate variability analysis may be highly applicable tools to control and monitor workload in chess player.

Deliberate practice predicts performance over time in adolescent chess players and drop-outs: a linear mixed models analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

de Bruin, Anique B H; Smits, Niels; Rikers, Remy M J P; Schmidt, Henk G

2008-11-01

In this study, the longitudinal relation between deliberate practice and performance in chess was examined using a linear mixed models analysis. The practice activities and performance ratings of young elite chess players, who were either in, or had dropped out of the Dutch national chess training, were analysed since they had started playing chess seriously. The results revealed that deliberate practice (i.e. serious chess study alone and serious chess play) strongly contributed to chess performance. The influence of deliberate practice was not only observable in current performance, but also over chess players' careers. Moreover, although the drop-outs' chess ratings developed more slowly over time, both the persistent and drop-out chess players benefited to the same extent from investments in deliberate practice. Finally, the effect of gender on chess performance proved to be much smaller than the effect of deliberate practice. This study provides longitudinal support for the monotonic benefits assumption of deliberate practice, by showing that over chess players' careers, deliberate practice has a significant effect on performance, and to the same extent for chess players of different ultimate performance levels. The results of this study are not in line with critique raised against the deliberate practice theory that the factors deliberate practice and talent could be confounded.

Improvement of chemical shift selective saturation (CHESS) pulse for MR angiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishimori, Yoshiyuki; Sashie, Hiroyuki; Hiraga, Akira; Matsuda, Tsuyoshi

2000-01-01

We improved the fat suppression technique based on chemical shift selective saturation (CHESS). To do this, we shortened the duration of the CHESS pulse to achieve a short repetition time (TR) for MR angiography (MRA). A short-duration CHESS pulse causes broad frequency band saturation, creating extensive offset from the resonance frequency of water. In our phantom experiment, the best parameters of the short-duration CHESS pulse were 3.84 ms in duration, -650 Hz in offset frequency from water resonance, and had a 130-degree flip angle. With this technique, MRA will be able to be carried out without a significant increase in TR. Thus, better vessel contrast will be maintained in time-of-flight (TOF) MRA or contrast-enhanced MRA when using the maximum intensity projection (MIP) method. (author)

The Chess and Mathematics Connection: More than Just a Game

Science.gov (United States)

Berkman, Robert M.

2004-01-01

This article describes connections between chess and mathematics, including examples of activities that connect chess with set theory, patterns, algebra, geometry, combinatorics, and Pascal's triangle. The author observes that competitive games play a dual purpose in advancing the work of mathematics educators: to reinforce a specific skill and to…

Response time distributions in rapid chess: a large-scale decision making experiment.

Science.gov (United States)

Sigman, Mariano; Etchemendy, Pablo; Slezak, Diego Fernández; Cecchi, Guillermo A

2010-01-01

Rapid chess provides an unparalleled laboratory to understand decision making in a natural environment. In a chess game, players choose consecutively around 40 moves in a finite time budget. The goodness of each choice can be determined quantitatively since current chess algorithms estimate precisely the value of a position. Web-based chess produces vast amounts of data, millions of decisions per day, incommensurable with traditional psychological experiments. We generated a database of response times (RTs) and position value in rapid chess games. We measured robust emergent statistical observables: (1) RT distributions are long-tailed and show qualitatively distinct forms at different stages of the game, (2) RT of successive moves are highly correlated both for intra- and inter-player moves. These findings have theoretical implications since they deny two basic assumptions of sequential decision making algorithms: RTs are not stationary and can not be generated by a state-function. Our results also have practical implications. First, we characterized the capacity of blunders and score fluctuations to predict a player strength, which is yet an open problem in chess softwares. Second, we show that the winning likelihood can be reliably estimated from a weighted combination of remaining times and position evaluation.

Response time distributions in rapid chess: A large-scale decision making experiment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mariano Sigman

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Rapid chess provides an unparalleled laboratory to understand decision making in a natural environment. In a chess game, players choose consecutively around 40 moves in a finite time budget. The goodness of each choice can be determined quantitatively since current chess algorithms estimate precisely the value of a position. Web-based chess produces vast amounts of data, millions of decisions per day, incommensurable with traditional psychological experiments. We generated a database of response times and position value in rapid chess games. We measured robust emergent statistical observables: 1 Response time (RT distributions are long-tailed and show qualitatively distinct forms at different stages of the game, 2 RT of successive moves are highly correlated both for intra- and inter-player moves. These findings have theoretical implications since they deny two basic assumptions of sequential decision making algorithms: RTs are not stationary and can not be generated by a state function. Our results also have practical implications. First, we characterized the capacity of blunders and score fluctuations to predict a player strength, which is yet an open problem in chess softwares. Second, we show that the winning likelihood can be reliably estimated from a weighted combination of remaining times and position evaluation.

Rice pads. Devices to improve the effect of fat suppression of CHESS images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moriya, Susumu; Yokobayashi, Tsuneo; Miki, Yukio

2013-01-01

The chemical shift selective (CHESS) method is often used for fat suppression in magnetic resonance imaging. CHESS has several advantages, including versatility, quick imaging, and applicability to contrast examinations. One disadvantage of CHESS is the lingering fat signal generated as a result of nonuniformity of the static magnetic field. To overcome this drawback, some researchers have used pads made with polished rice (rice pads), a simple method in which rice pads are placed outside the area to be imaged. We describe ways to improve CHESS images, characteristics of the rice pad, its application to imaging, and methods of placing the pad. (author)

Female Chess Players Outperform Expectations When Playing Men.

Science.gov (United States)

Stafford, Tom

2018-03-01

Stereotype threat has been offered as a potential explanation of differential performance between men and women in some cognitive domains. Questions remain about the reliability and generality of the phenomenon. Previous studies have found that stereotype threat is activated in female chess players when they are matched against male players. I used data from over 5.5 million games of international tournament chess and found no evidence of a stereotype-threat effect. In fact, female players outperform expectations when playing men. Further analysis showed no influence of degree of challenge, player age, nor prevalence of female role models in national chess leagues on differences in performance when women play men versus when they play women. Though this analysis contradicts one specific mechanism of influence of gender stereotypes, the persistent differences between male and female players suggest that systematic factors do exist and remain to be uncovered.

Revising superior planning performance in chess players: the impact of time restriction and motivation aspects.

Science.gov (United States)

Unterrainer, Josef Martin; Kaller, Christoph Philipp; Leonhart, Rainer; Rahm, Benjamin

2011-01-01

In a previous study (Unterrainer, Kaller, Halsband, & Rahm, 2006), chess players outperformed non-chess players in the Tower of London planning task but exhibited disproportionately longer processing times. This pattern of results raises the question of whether chess players' planning capabilities are superior or whether the results reflect differences in the speed-accuracy trade-off between the groups, possibly attributable to sports motivation. The present study was designed to disambiguate these alternative suggestions by implementing various constraints on planning time and by assessing self-reported motivation. In contrast to the previous study, chess players' performance was not superior, independently of whether problems had to be solved with (Experiment 1) or without (Experiment 2) time limits. As expected, chess players reported higher overall trait and state motivation scores across both experiments. These findings revise the notion of superior planning performance in chess players. In consequence, they do not conform with the assumption of a general transfer of chess-related planning expertise to other cognitive domains, instead suggesting that superior performance may be possible only under specific circumstances such as receiving competitive instructions.

Chess databases as a research vehicle in psychology: Modeling large data.

Science.gov (United States)

Vaci, Nemanja; Bilalić, Merim

2017-08-01

The game of chess has often been used for psychological investigations, particularly in cognitive science. The clear-cut rules and well-defined environment of chess provide a model for investigations of basic cognitive processes, such as perception, memory, and problem solving, while the precise rating system for the measurement of skill has enabled investigations of individual differences and expertise-related effects. In the present study, we focus on another appealing feature of chess-namely, the large archive databases associated with the game. The German national chess database presented in this study represents a fruitful ground for the investigation of multiple longitudinal research questions, since it collects the data of over 130,000 players and spans over 25 years. The German chess database collects the data of all players, including hobby players, and all tournaments played. This results in a rich and complete collection of the skill, age, and activity of the whole population of chess players in Germany. The database therefore complements the commonly used expertise approach in cognitive science by opening up new possibilities for the investigation of multiple factors that underlie expertise and skill acquisition. Since large datasets are not common in psychology, their introduction also raises the question of optimal and efficient statistical analysis. We offer the database for download and illustrate how it can be used by providing concrete examples and a step-by-step tutorial using different statistical analyses on a range of topics, including skill development over the lifetime, birth cohort effects, effects of activity and inactivity on skill, and gender differences.

Based on Short Motion Paths and Artificial Intelligence Method for Chinese Chess Game

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chien-Ming Hung

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The article develops the decision rules to win each set of the Chinese chess game using evaluation algorithm and artificial intelligence method, and uses the mobile robot to be instead of the chess, and presents the movement scenarios using the shortest motion paths for mobile robots. Player can play the Chinese chess game according to the game rules with the supervised computer. The supervised computer decides the optimal motion path to win the set using artificial intelligence method, and controls mobile robots according to the programmed motion paths of the assigned chesses moving on the platform via wireless RF interface. We uses enhance A* searching algorithm to solve the shortest path problem of the assigned chess, and solve the collision problems of the motion paths for two mobile robots moving on the platform simultaneously. We implement a famous set to be called lwild horses run in farmr using the proposed method. First we use simulation method to display the motion paths of the assigned chesses for the player and the supervised computer. Then the supervised computer implements the simulation results on the chessboard platform using mobile robots. Mobile robots move on the chessboard platform according to the programmed motion paths and is guided to move on the centre line of the corridor, and avoid the obstacles (chesses, and detect the cross point of the platform using three reflective IR modules.

The third flight of the Colorado high-resolution echelle stellar spectrograph (CHESS): improvements, calibrations, and preliminary results

Science.gov (United States)

Kruczek, Nicholas; Nell, Nicholas; France, Kevin; Hoadley, Keri; Fleming, Brian; Kane, Robert; Ulrich, Stefan; Egan, Arika; Beatty, Dawson

2017-08-01

In this proceeding, we describe the scientific motivation and technical development of the Colorado HighResolution Echelle Stellar Spectrograph (CHESS), focusing on the hardware advancements and testing of components for the third launch of the payload (CHESS-3). CHESS is a far ultraviolet rocket-borne instrument designed to study the atomic-to-molecular transitions within translucent cloud regions in the interstellar medium. CHESS is an objective echelle spectrograph, which uses a mechanically-ruled echelle and a powered (f/12.4) crossdispersing grating, and is designed to achieve a resolving power R > 100,000 over the bandpass λλ 1000-1600 Å. Results from final efficiency and reflectivity measurements for the optical components of CHESS-3 are presented. An important role of sounding rocket experiments is the testing and verification of the space flight capabilities of experimental technologies. CHESS-3 utilizes a 40mm-diameter cross-strip anode microchannel plate detector fabricated by Sensor Sciences LLC, capable of achieving high spatial resolution and a high global count rate (˜1 MHz). We present pre-flight laboratory spectra and calibration results, including wavelength solution and resolving power of the instrument. The fourth launch of CHESS (CHESS-4) will demonstrate a δ-doped CCD, assembled in collaboration with the Microdevices Laboratory at JPL and Arizona State University. In support of CHESS-4, the CHESS-3 payload included a photomultiplier tube, used as a secondary confirmation of the optical alignment of the payload during flight. CHESS-3 launched on 26 June 2017 aboard NASA/CU sounding rocket mission 36.323 UG. We present initial flight results for the CHESS-3 observation of the β1 Scorpii sightline.

Does Far Transfer Exist? Negative Evidence From Chess, Music, and Working Memory Training.

Science.gov (United States)

Sala, Giovanni; Gobet, Fernand

2017-12-01

Chess masters and expert musicians appear to be, on average, more intelligent than the general population. Some researchers have thus claimed that playing chess or learning music enhances children's cognitive abilities and academic attainment. We here present two meta-analyses assessing the effect of chess and music instruction on children's cognitive and academic skills. A third meta-analysis evaluated the effects of working memory training-a cognitive skill correlated with music and chess expertise-on the same variables. The results show small to moderate effects. However, the effect sizes are inversely related to the quality of the experimental design (e.g., presence of active control groups). This pattern of results casts serious doubts on the effectiveness of chess, music, and working memory training. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these findings; extend the debate to other types of training such as spatial training, brain training, and video games; and conclude that far transfer of learning rarely occurs.

Is chess the drosophila of artificial intelligence? A social history of an algorithm.

Science.gov (United States)

Ensmenger, Nathan

2012-02-01

Since the mid 1960s, researchers in computer science have famously referred to chess as the 'drosophila' of artificial intelligence (AI). What they seem to mean by this is that chess, like the common fruit fly, is an accessible, familiar, and relatively simple experimental technology that nonetheless can be used productively to produce valid knowledge about other, more complex systems. But for historians of science and technology, the analogy between chess and drosophila assumes a larger significance. As Robert Kohler has ably described, the decision to adopt drosophila as the organism of choice for genetics research had far-reaching implications for the development of 20th century biology. In a similar manner, the decision to focus on chess as the measure of both human and computer intelligence had important and unintended consequences for AL research. This paper explores the emergence of chess as an experimental technology, its significance in the developing research practices of the AI community, and the unique ways in which the decision to focus on chess shaped the program of AI research in the decade of the 1970s. More broadly, it attempts to open up the virtual black box of computer software--and of computer games in particular--to the scrutiny of historical and sociological analysis.

Inside help: An integrative review of champions in healthcare-related implementation.

Science.gov (United States)

Miech, Edward J; Rattray, Nicholas A; Flanagan, Mindy E; Damschroder, Laura; Schmid, Arlene A; Damush, Teresa M

2018-01-01

The idea that champions are crucial to effective healthcare-related implementation has gained broad acceptance; yet the champion construct has been hampered by inconsistent use across the published literature. This integrative review sought to establish the current state of the literature on champions in healthcare settings and bring greater clarity to this important construct. This integrative review was limited to research articles in peer-reviewed, English-language journals published from 1980 to 2016. Searches were conducted on the online MEDLINE database via OVID and PubMed using the keyword "champion." Several additional terms often describe champions and were also included as keywords: implementation leader, opinion leader, facilitator, and change agent. Bibliographies of full-text articles that met inclusion criteria were reviewed for additional references not yet identified via the main strategy of conducting keyword searches in MEDLINE. A five-member team abstracted all full-text articles meeting inclusion criteria. The final dataset for the integrative review consisted of 199 unique articles. Use of the term champion varied widely across the articles with respect to topic, specific job positions, or broader organizational roles. The most common method for operationalizing champion for purposes of analysis was the use of a dichotomous variable designating champion presence or absence. Four studies randomly allocated of the presence or absence of champions. The number of published champion-related articles has markedly increased: more articles were published during the last two years of this review (i.e. 2015-2016) than during its first 30 years (i.e. 1980-2009).The number of champion-related articles has continued to increase sharply since the year 2000. Individual studies consistently found that champions were important positive influences on implementation effectiveness. Although few in number, the randomized trials of champions that have been

Multiple Wheel Throwing: And Chess Sets.

Science.gov (United States)

Sapiro, Maurice

1978-01-01

A chess set project is suggested to teach multiple throwing, the creation on a potter's wheel of several pieces of similar configuration. Processes and finished sets are illustrated with photographs. (SJL)

Does playing blindfold chess reduce the quality of game: comments on chabris and hearst (2003).

Science.gov (United States)

Jeremic, Veljko; Vukmirovic, Dragan; Radojicic, Zoran

2010-01-01

Blindfold chess is a special type of chess game where both the board and pieces are not visible to its players. This paper aims to determine whether the quality of the game played blindfolded is lower than when played under normal conditions. The best chess program was used to analyze games played by the world's top Grandmasters under both conditions. We have analyzed the Monaco 1993-1998 data set introduced by Chabris and Hearst (2003). The results showed that although a larger number of mistakes occurred while playing blindfolded, no significant statistical difference between the rapid and blindfold games has been found. Nevertheless, by applying the same methodology to the Monaco 2002-2007 data set a substantial difference between the blindfold and the rapid chess game was noticed. In this paper, we have addressed the possible improvement of the chess game quality and the advances in chess programs that may be responsible for detecting more blunders. Copyright © 2009 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

How to Teach Chess in the Public Schools: A Course Outline.

Science.gov (United States)

Schmidt, Bernard

Educational objectives and course outlines for beginning, intermediate, and advanced chess instruction in elementary and secondary schools are provided. Objectives are that students will develop analytical, synthetic, and decision-making skills, learn to engage in thorough chess research that will enhance their ability to do any research, and gain…

The temporo-parietal junction contributes to global gestalt perception—evidence from studies in chess experts

Science.gov (United States)

Rennig, Johannes; Bilalić, Merim; Huberle, Elisabeth; Karnath, Hans-Otto; Himmelbach, Marc

2013-01-01

In a recent neuroimaging study the comparison of intact vs. disturbed perception of global gestalt indicated a significant role of the temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) in the intact perception of global gestalt (Huberle and Karnath, 2012). This location corresponded well with the areas known to be damaged or impaired in patients with simultanagnosia after stroke or due to neurodegenerative diseases. It was concluded that the TPJ plays an important role in the integration of individual items to a holistic percept. Thus, increased BOLD signals should be found in this region whenever a task calls for the integration of multiple visual items. Behavioral experiments in chess experts suggested that their superior skills in comparison to chess novices are partly based on fast holistic processing of chess positions with multiple pieces. We thus analyzed BOLD data from four fMRI studies that compared chess experts with chess novices during the presentation of complex chess-related visual stimuli (Bilalić et al., 2010, 2011a,b, 2012). Three regions of interests were defined by significant TPJ clusters in the abovementioned study of global gestalt perception (Huberle and Karnath, 2012) and BOLD signal amplitudes in these regions were compared between chess experts and novices. These cross-paradigm ROI analyses revealed higher signals at the TPJ in chess experts in comparison to novices during presentations of complex chess positions. This difference was consistent across the different tasks in five independent experiments. Our results confirm the assumption that the TPJ region identified in previous work on global gestalt perception plays an important role in the processing of complex visual stimulus configurations. PMID:24009574

The temporo-parietal junction contributes to global gestalt perception-evidence from studies in chess experts.

Science.gov (United States)

Rennig, Johannes; Bilalić, Merim; Huberle, Elisabeth; Karnath, Hans-Otto; Himmelbach, Marc

2013-01-01

In a recent neuroimaging study the comparison of intact vs. disturbed perception of global gestalt indicated a significant role of the temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) in the intact perception of global gestalt (Huberle and Karnath, 2012). This location corresponded well with the areas known to be damaged or impaired in patients with simultanagnosia after stroke or due to neurodegenerative diseases. It was concluded that the TPJ plays an important role in the integration of individual items to a holistic percept. Thus, increased BOLD signals should be found in this region whenever a task calls for the integration of multiple visual items. Behavioral experiments in chess experts suggested that their superior skills in comparison to chess novices are partly based on fast holistic processing of chess positions with multiple pieces. We thus analyzed BOLD data from four fMRI studies that compared chess experts with chess novices during the presentation of complex chess-related visual stimuli (Bilalić et al., 2010, 2011a,b, 2012). Three regions of interests were defined by significant TPJ clusters in the abovementioned study of global gestalt perception (Huberle and Karnath, 2012) and BOLD signal amplitudes in these regions were compared between chess experts and novices. These cross-paradigm ROI analyses revealed higher signals at the TPJ in chess experts in comparison to novices during presentations of complex chess positions. This difference was consistent across the different tasks in five independent experiments. Our results confirm the assumption that the TPJ region identified in previous work on global gestalt perception plays an important role in the processing of complex visual stimulus configurations.

The Examination Of Preschool Period Children’s Problem Solving Skills According To Their Chess Training Status

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ayşe ÇUBUKCU

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study is to determine whether chess education makes a difference in social problem solving skills of the preschool children or not. Totally 160 samples were reached; including 80 preschool students who had chess education and 80 preschool students who did not have chess education. In order to examine the problem solving skills of the children who had chess education and the ones who did not, “Problem Solving Skills Scale”, which was developed by Oğuz and Koksal-Akyol (2015, was used. In order to examine the problem solving skills of the children who took chess education and the ones who did not, Independent Samples t-Test was used and the findings obtained were interpreted. According to the findings obtained from the research, a significance difference was encountered between the problem solving skills of the children on behalf of the ones who took chess education. This research indicate that chess education affect the problem solving skills of the children in a positive way

Algorithm Design on Network Game of Chinese Chess

Science.gov (United States)

Xianmei, Fang

This paper describes the current situation of domestic network game. Contact the present condition of the local network game currently, we inquired to face to a multithread tcp client and server, such as Chinese chess, according to the information, and study the contents and meanings. Combining the Java of basic knowledge, the article study the compiling procedure facing to the object according to the information in Java Swing usage, and the method of the network procedure. The article researched the method and processes of the network procedure carry on the use of Sprocket under the Java Swing. Understood the basic process of compiling procedure using Java and how to compile a network procedure. The most importance is how a pair of machines correspondence-C/S the service system-is carried out. From here, we put forward the data structure,the basic calculate way of the network game- Chinese chess, and how to design and realize the server and client of that procedure. The online games -- chess design can be divided into several modules as follows: server module, client module and the control module.

Inhibition of irrelevant information is not necessary to performance of expert chess players.

Science.gov (United States)

Postal, Virginie

2012-08-01

Some studies on expertise have demonstrated that the difference between novices and experts can be partly due to a lack of knowledge about which information is relevant for a given situation. This lack of knowledge seems to be associated with the selection of correct information and with inhibitory processes. However, while the efficiency of inhibitory processes can lead to better performance in the normal population, it seems that experts in chess do not base their performance on this process but rather on an automatic and parallel encoding of information. Two experiments investigated the processes involved in a check detection task. The congruence of the information was manipulated in a Stroop situation similar to Reingold, Charness, Scheltetus, & Stampe (2001). The results showed that the experts did not benefit from cuing with a congruent cue and that they did not show any interference effect by the incongruent cue, contrary to less skilled chess players who benefited from cuing (Exp. 1). An attentional priming procedure confirmed the automatic encoding of chess relations in the more skilled chess players by showing no advantage from the prime in this group (Exp. 2). Taken together, the results indicate that the processing was serial for the less skilled chess players and that it was automatic and parallel for the more expert chess players. The inhibition of irrelevant information does not seem necessary to process information rapidly and efficiently.

School-Age Children Talk about Chess: Does Knowledge Drive Syntactic Complexity?

Science.gov (United States)

Nippold, Marilyn A.

2009-01-01

Purpose: This study examined language productivity and syntactic complexity in school-age children in relation to their knowledge of the topic of discussion--the game of chess. Method: Children (N = 32; mean age = 10;11 [years;months]) who played chess volunteered to be interviewed by an adult examiner who had little or no experience playing…

Super champions, champions and almosts: Important differences and commonalities on the rocky road

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dave eCollins

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The real-world experiences of young athletes follow a non-linear and dynamic trajectory and there is growing recognition that facing and overcoming a degree of challenge is desirable for aspiring elites and as such, should be recognized and employed. However, there are some misunderstandings of this talent needs trauma perspective with some research focusing excessively or incorrectly on the incidence of life and sport challenge as a feature of effective talent development. The objective of the study was to examine what factors associated with such trauma experiences may or may not discriminate between high, medium and low achievers in sport, classified as super-champions, champions or almosts. A series of retrospective interviews were used with matched triads (i.e., super-champions, champions or almosts of performers (N = 54 from different sports. Data collection was organized in three phases. In the first phase, a graphic time line of each performer’s career was developed. The second phase explored the specific issues highlighted by each participant in a chronological sequence. The third phase was a retrospective reflection on traumatic motivators, coach/significant other inputs and psychological challenges experienced and skills employed. Data suggested qualitative differences between categories of performers, relating to several perceptual and experiential features of their development. No evidence was found for the necessity of major trauma as a feature of development. There was a lack of discrimination across categories of performers associated with the incidence of trauma and, more particularly, life or non-sport trauma. These findings suggest that differences between levels of adult achievement relate more to what performers bring to the challenges than what they experience. A periodized and progressive set of challenge, preceded and associated with specific skill development, would seem to offer the best pathway to success for the

Developing chemometrics with the tools of information sciences (CHESS) - MASIT23

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simula, O.; Corona, F.; Lendasse, A. (Helsinki University of Technology, Adaptive Informatics Research Centre, Espoo (Finland)) (and others)

2008-07-01

In the CHESS project, novel algorithms and variations of existing algorithms are developed for process data analysis, visualization, and monitoring. The algorithms are implemented in a variety of industrial applications under five test cases, including oil production, food production, process monitoring, plastics production, and environmental analysis and forecasting. In the first phase of CHESS, data sets from industrial partners were analyzed. Based on this study, the research partners have created a set of general-purpose information science tools. The emphasis is on real-time implementation of the methods in practical industrial environment. The final implementation of the methods and algorithms in products will be further developed by the small partner companies of CHESS. (orig.)

The temporo-parietal junction contributes to global gestalt perception – evidence from studies in chess experts

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Johannes eRennig

2013-08-01

Full Text Available In a recent neuroimaging study the comparison of intact versus disturbed perception of global gestalt indicated a significant role of the temporo-parietal junction (TPJ in the intact perception of global gestalt (Huberle and Karnath, 2012. This location corresponded well with the areas known to be damaged or impaired in patients with simultanagnosia after stroke or due to neurodegenerative diseases. It was concluded that the TPJ plays an important role in the integration of individual items to a holistic percept. Thus, increased BOLD signals should be found in this region whenever a task calls for the integration of multiple visual items. Behavioral experiments in chess experts suggested that their superior skills in comparison to chess novices are partly based on fast holistic processing of chess positions with multiple pieces. We thus analyzed BOLD data from four fMRI studies that compared chess experts with chess novices during the presentation of complex chess-related visual stimuli (Bilalić et al., 2011a, 2010, 2011b, 2012. Three regions of interests were defined by significant TPJ clusters in the abovementioned study of global gestalt perception (Huberle and Karnath, 2012 and BOLD signal amplitudes in these regions were compared between chess experts and novices. These cross-paradigm ROI analyses revealed higher signals at the TPJ in chess experts in comparison to novices during presentations of complex chess positions. This difference was consistent across the different tasks in five independent experiments. Our results confirm the assumption that the TPJ region identified in previous work on global gestalt perception plays an important role in the processing of complex visual stimulus configurations.

The Role of Domain-Specific Practice, Handedness, and Starting Age in Chess

Science.gov (United States)

Gobet, Fernand; Campitelli, Guillermo

2007-01-01

The respective roles of the environment and innate talent have been a recurrent question for research into expertise. The authors investigated markers of talent, environment, and critical period for the acquisition of expert performance in chess. Argentinian chess players (N = 104), ranging from weak amateurs to grandmasters, completed a…

Fat suppression at 2D MR imaging of the hands: Dixon method versus CHESS technique and STIR sequence.

Science.gov (United States)

Kirchgesner, Thomas; Perlepe, Vasiliki; Michoux, Nicolas; Larbi, Ahmed; Vande Berg, Bruno

2017-04-01

To compare the effectiveness of fat suppression and the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the Dixon method with those of the CHESS (Chemical Shift-Selective) technique and STIR (Short Tau Inversion Recovery) sequence in hands of normal subjects at 2D MR imaging. 14 healthy volunteers (mean age of 29.4 years) consented to have both hands prospectively imaged with SE T1 Dixon, T1 CHESS, T2 Dixon, T2 CHESS and STIR sequences in a 1.5T MR scanner. Three radiologists scored the effectiveness of fat suppression in bone marrow (EFS BM ) and soft tissues (EFS ST ) in 20 joints per subject. One radiologist measured the SNR in 10 bones per subject. Statistical analysis used two-way ANOVA with random effects, paired t-test and observed agreement to assess differences in effectiveness of fat suppression, differences in SNR and inter-observer agreement. EFS BM was statistically significantly higher for T1 Dixon than for T1 CHESS and for T2 Dixon than for T2 CHESS (pCHESS and for T2 Dixon than for STIR (pCHESS (pCHESS technique at 2D T1-weighted MR imaging of the hands. At T2-weighted MR imaging, fat suppression is more effective with the Dixon method while SNR is higher with the CHESS technique. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cognitive Effects of Chess Instruction on Students at Risk for Academic Failure

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Saahoon; Bart, William M.

2007-01-01

Cognitive effects of chess instruction on students at risk for academic failure was examined. Thirty-eight students, from three elementary schools, participated in this study. The experimental group received a ninety-minute chess lesson once per week over a three-month period; and the control group students regularly attended school activities…

Deliberate practice predicts performance throughout time in adolescent chess players and dropouts: A linear mixed models analysis.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Bruin, A.B.H.; Smits, N.; Rikers, R.M.J.P.; Schmidt, H.G.

2008-01-01

In this study, the longitudinal relation between deliberate practice and performance in chess was examined using a linear mixed models analysis. The practice activities and performance ratings of young elite chess players, who were either in, or had dropped out of the Dutch national chess training,

High pressure research at CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brister, K.

1992-01-01

Since February 1990 there has been a dedicated high pressure line at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS). This facility provides X-ray instrumentation for energy dispersive X-ray diffraction and Laue diffraction using diamond anvil cells. Both hard-bend magnet and wiggler radiation are available as well as focused monochromatic radiation. In addition, support instrumentation is also available; a ruby system, laser heating, sample loading, and data analysis software. Experienced users need only to bring their diamond anvil cells and samples and can leave with the initial data analysis finished. Research using diamond anvil cells will be introduced and the facility will be described. Some of the diamond anvil cell research done at CHESS will be reviewed, including crystalline to amorphous transitions (R.R. Winters et al., Chem. Phys, in press), properties of C 6 0 under stress (S.J. Duclos et al., Nature 351 (1991) 380), deep earthquakes (T.C. Wu et al., submitted to J. Geophys. Res.)l, and reaching pressures of the center of Earth (A.L. Ruoff et al., Rev. Sci. Instr. 61 (1990) 3830). (orig.)

The beginnings of women in the practice of chess in Spain (1922-1935

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jordi Brasó Rius

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Early feminist movements in different fields won’t appear until the end of nineteenth century. One of these fields is sport, which includes chess: the object of study of this article. Using a methodology based on hermeneutic analysis of the principal information sources, it is possible to conclude that the introduction of women in chess associations toke place in the middle of the nineteenth century in England. In Spain, Barcelona led this practice. Spanish chess societies include women at the beginnings of Twentieth century, but it was not until the thirties when significant female movements appear in this sport.

Video-based beam position monitoring at CHESS

Science.gov (United States)

Revesz, Peter; Pauling, Alan; Krawczyk, Thomas; Kelly, Kevin J.

2012-10-01

CHESS has pioneered the development of X-ray Video Beam Position Monitors (VBPMs). Unlike traditional photoelectron beam position monitors that rely on photoelectrons generated by the fringe edges of the X-ray beam, with VBPMs we collect information from the whole cross-section of the X-ray beam. VBPMs can also give real-time shape/size information. We have developed three types of VBPMs: (1) VBPMs based on helium luminescence from the intense white X-ray beam. In this case the CCD camera is viewing the luminescence from the side. (2) VBPMs based on luminescence of a thin (~50 micron) CVD diamond sheet as the white beam passes through it. The CCD camera is placed outside the beam line vacuum and views the diamond fluorescence through a viewport. (3) Scatter-based VBPMs. In this case the white X-ray beam passes through a thin graphite filter or Be window. The scattered X-rays create an image of the beam's footprint on an X-ray sensitive fluorescent screen using a slit placed outside the beam line vacuum. For all VBPMs we use relatively inexpensive 1.3 Mega-pixel CCD cameras connected via USB to a Windows host for image acquisition and analysis. The VBPM host computers are networked and provide live images of the beam and streams of data about the beam position, profile and intensity to CHESS's signal logging system and to the CHESS operator. The operational use of VBPMs showed great advantage over the traditional BPMs by providing direct visual input for the CHESS operator. The VBPM precision in most cases is on the order of ~0.1 micron. On the down side, the data acquisition frequency (50-1000ms) is inferior to the photoelectron based BPMs. In the future with the use of more expensive fast cameras we will be able create VBPMs working in the few hundreds Hz scale.

Fat suppression at 2D MR imaging of the hands: Dixon method versus CHESS technique and STIR sequence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kirchgesner, Thomas; Perlepe, Vasiliki; Michoux, Nicolas; Larbi, Ahmed; Vande Berg, Bruno

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Dixon yields effective fat suppression at 2D MRI of the hands. • CHESS fat suppression is less effective especially in the coronal plane. • SNR is higher with Dixon than with CHESS at T1-weighted MR imaging. • SNR is higher with CHESS than with Dixon and STIR at T2-weighted MR imaging. - Abstract: Objective: To compare the effectiveness of fat suppression and the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the Dixon method with those of the CHESS (Chemical Shift-Selective) technique and STIR (Short Tau Inversion Recovery) sequence in hands of normal subjects at 2D MR imaging. Material and methods: 14 healthy volunteers (mean age of 29.4 years) consented to have both hands prospectively imaged with SE T1 Dixon, T1 CHESS, T2 Dixon, T2 CHESS and STIR sequences in a 1.5T MR scanner. Three radiologists scored the effectiveness of fat suppression in bone marrow (EFS BM ) and soft tissues (EFS ST ) in 20 joints per subject. One radiologist measured the SNR in 10 bones per subject. Statistical analysis used two-way ANOVA with random effects, paired t-test and observed agreement to assess differences in effectiveness of fat suppression, differences in SNR and inter-observer agreement. Results: EFS BM was statistically significantly higher for T1 Dixon than for T1 CHESS and for T2 Dixon than for T2 CHESS (p < 0.0001). EFS BM was significantly higher for T2 Dixon than for STIR in the coronal plane (p = 0.0020). The SNR was significantly higher for T1 Dixon than for T1 CHESS and for T2 Dixon than for STIR (p < 0.0001). The SNR was significantly lower for T2 Dixon than for T2 CHESS (p < 0.0001). Conclusion: The Dixon method yields more effective fat suppression and higher SNR than the CHESS technique at 2D T1-weighted MR imaging of the hands. At T2-weighted MR imaging, fat suppression is more effective with the Dixon method while SNR is higher with the CHESS technique.

Fat suppression at 2D MR imaging of the hands: Dixon method versus CHESS technique and STIR sequence

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kirchgesner, Thomas, E-mail: Thomas.Kirchgesner@uclouvain.be; Perlepe, Vasiliki, E-mail: Vasiliki.Perlepe@uclouvain.be; Michoux, Nicolas, E-mail: Nicolas.Michoux@uclouvain.be; Larbi, Ahmed, E-mail: Ahmed.Larbi@chu-nimes.fr; Vande Berg, Bruno, E-mail: Bruno.VandeBerg@uclouvain.be

2017-04-15

Highlights: • Dixon yields effective fat suppression at 2D MRI of the hands. • CHESS fat suppression is less effective especially in the coronal plane. • SNR is higher with Dixon than with CHESS at T1-weighted MR imaging. • SNR is higher with CHESS than with Dixon and STIR at T2-weighted MR imaging. - Abstract: Objective: To compare the effectiveness of fat suppression and the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the Dixon method with those of the CHESS (Chemical Shift-Selective) technique and STIR (Short Tau Inversion Recovery) sequence in hands of normal subjects at 2D MR imaging. Material and methods: 14 healthy volunteers (mean age of 29.4 years) consented to have both hands prospectively imaged with SE T1 Dixon, T1 CHESS, T2 Dixon, T2 CHESS and STIR sequences in a 1.5T MR scanner. Three radiologists scored the effectiveness of fat suppression in bone marrow (EFS{sup BM}) and soft tissues (EFS{sup ST}) in 20 joints per subject. One radiologist measured the SNR in 10 bones per subject. Statistical analysis used two-way ANOVA with random effects, paired t-test and observed agreement to assess differences in effectiveness of fat suppression, differences in SNR and inter-observer agreement. Results: EFS{sup BM} was statistically significantly higher for T1 Dixon than for T1 CHESS and for T2 Dixon than for T2 CHESS (p < 0.0001). EFS{sup BM} was significantly higher for T2 Dixon than for STIR in the coronal plane (p = 0.0020). The SNR was significantly higher for T1 Dixon than for T1 CHESS and for T2 Dixon than for STIR (p < 0.0001). The SNR was significantly lower for T2 Dixon than for T2 CHESS (p < 0.0001). Conclusion: The Dixon method yields more effective fat suppression and higher SNR than the CHESS technique at 2D T1-weighted MR imaging of the hands. At T2-weighted MR imaging, fat suppression is more effective with the Dixon method while SNR is higher with the CHESS technique.

Status of CHESS facility and research programs: 2010

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fontes, Ernest, E-mail: ef11@cornell.edu [Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States); Bilderback, Donald H.; Gruner, Sol M. [Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States)

2011-09-01

CHESS is a hard X-ray synchrotron radiation national facility located at Cornell University and funded by the National Science Foundation. It is open to all scientists by peer-reviewed proposal and serves 500-1000 visitors each year. The CHESS scientific and technical staff develops forefront research tools and X-ray instrumentation and methods and supports 12 experimental stations delivering high intensity X-ray beams produced at 5.3 GeV and 250 mA. The facility consists of a mix of dedicated and flexible experimental stations that are easily configured for general X-ray diffraction (wide- and small-angle), spectroscopy, imaging applications, etc. Dedicated stations support high-pressure powder X-ray diffraction, pulsed-laser deposition for layer-by-layer growth of surfaces, and three dedicated stations for protein crystallography. Specialized resource groups at the laboratory include: an X-ray detector group; MacCHESS, an NIH-supported research resource for protein crystallography; the G-line division, which primarily organizes graduate students and Cornell faculty members around three X-ray stations; a high-pressure diamond-anvil cell support laboratory; and a monocapillary drawing facility for making microbeam X-ray optics. Research is also ongoing to upgrade CHESS to a first-ever 5 GeV, 100 mA Energy Recovery Linac (ERL) hard X-ray source. This source will provide ultra-high spectral-brightness and <100 fs short-pulse capability at levels well in advance of those possible with existing storage rings. It will produce diffraction-limited X-rays beams of up to 10 keV energy and be capable of providing 1 nm round beams. Prototyping for this facility is under way now to demonstrate critical DC photoelectron injector and superconducting linac technologies needed for the full-scale ERL.

Status of CHESS facility and research programs: 2010

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fontes, Ernest; Bilderback, Donald H.; Gruner, Sol M.

2011-01-01

CHESS is a hard X-ray synchrotron radiation national facility located at Cornell University and funded by the National Science Foundation. It is open to all scientists by peer-reviewed proposal and serves 500-1000 visitors each year. The CHESS scientific and technical staff develops forefront research tools and X-ray instrumentation and methods and supports 12 experimental stations delivering high intensity X-ray beams produced at 5.3 GeV and 250 mA. The facility consists of a mix of dedicated and flexible experimental stations that are easily configured for general X-ray diffraction (wide- and small-angle), spectroscopy, imaging applications, etc. Dedicated stations support high-pressure powder X-ray diffraction, pulsed-laser deposition for layer-by-layer growth of surfaces, and three dedicated stations for protein crystallography. Specialized resource groups at the laboratory include: an X-ray detector group; MacCHESS, an NIH-supported research resource for protein crystallography; the G-line division, which primarily organizes graduate students and Cornell faculty members around three X-ray stations; a high-pressure diamond-anvil cell support laboratory; and a monocapillary drawing facility for making microbeam X-ray optics. Research is also ongoing to upgrade CHESS to a first-ever 5 GeV, 100 mA Energy Recovery Linac (ERL) hard X-ray source. This source will provide ultra-high spectral-brightness and <100 fs short-pulse capability at levels well in advance of those possible with existing storage rings. It will produce diffraction-limited X-rays beams of up to 10 keV energy and be capable of providing 1 nm round beams. Prototyping for this facility is under way now to demonstrate critical DC photoelectron injector and superconducting linac technologies needed for the full-scale ERL.

‘A Croatian champion with a Croatian name’

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sindbæk, Tea

2013-01-01

‘A Croatian champion with a Croatian name’: national identity and uses of history in Croatian football culture – the case of Dinamo Zagreb......‘A Croatian champion with a Croatian name’: national identity and uses of history in Croatian football culture – the case of Dinamo Zagreb...

The role of the organizational champion in achieving health system change.

Science.gov (United States)

Hendy, Jane; Barlow, James

2012-02-01

In healthcare there is a long held wisdom that 'champions' are a key aspect of organizational change. Drawing on organizational management theory, we examine the role of champions in three health and social care organizations in England as they attempt to move services to a remote model of delivery, 'telecare'. The delivery of remote care is a significant policy in the U.K. and elsewhere, but its introduction has been challenging. Over three years ethnographic methods (observations, informed discussions and interviews) were used to analyze the role of organizational champions in implementing remote care. Cases were local authorities and associated primary care trusts. Participants were champions and organizational members involved in implementation. Our study shows that organizational champions are highly effective in the first phase of adoption, when change is contained within distinct sub-sets of practice. Moving beyond local contexts the effectiveness of the champions varied. Identification centered on the remote care work. This identification enabled the champions to motivate others and move beyond their normally prescribed roles, contributing to innovation ideas, processes and practices. When required to shift their work organization-wide, and share ideas outside their professional culture, some champions responded with resistance, resulting in a lack of innovation spread. These results caution against allowing change to become positioned within the remit of a few individuals. Whilst this strategy may be initially beneficial, the role of champion may be less useful, even detrimental to progress, in the later stages of implementation, particularly if identification with the new circumstances is not established. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Flour pads: devices to improve CHESS fat suppression.

Science.gov (United States)

Moriya, Susumu; Miki, Yukio; Miyati, Tosiaki; Kanagaki, Mitsunori; Yokobayashi, Tsuneo

2014-01-01

We compared the suppression of lingering fat signals in chemical shift selective (CHESS) images by pads filled with flour and pads filled with rice in a phantom and human subjects. First, we prepared a phantom by creating an empty space in a mass of lard and filling the space with air, rice, or flour. Then, we obtained MR images of the phantoms in the center of the magnetic field and at a position 8 cm to the left (off-center) to compare lingering fat signals. MR images of the knee were obtained in 10 healthy volunteers using CHESS after placing a polyurethane sponge pillow, rice pad, or flour pad in the popliteal space under the flexed knee. We visually assessed the number of areas with lingering fat signals and the statistical differences among the groups were assessed using Tukey's test. Similarly to rice, flour clearly decreased lingering fat signals in the phantom study. A similar effect was obtained in the off-center images. In the volunteer study, the mean number of areas with lingering fat signals was 2.5 with a sponge pillow, 0.5 with the rice pad, and 0.3 with the flour pad. Those numbers were significantly different using flour pad and rice pad compared with sponge pillow (P CHESS images.

Helping students mathematical construction on square and rectangle’s area by using Sarong motive chess

Science.gov (United States)

Zuliana, Eka; Setyawan, Fariz; Veloo, Arsaythamby

2017-12-01

The aim of this study is developing the learning trajectory to construct students’ understanding of the concept of the area of square and rectangle by using Sarong Motive Chess. This research is a design research which is consists of three stages. The stages are preparing for the experiment, designing experiment, and making a retrospective analysis. The activities started by the activity of using sarong motive chess as the manipulative measurement unit. The Sarong motive chess helps students to understand the concept of area of square and rectangle. In the formal stage of cognitive level, students estimate the area of square and rectangle by determining the square unit at the surface area of sarong through many ways. The result of this study concludes that Sarong motive chess can be used for mathematics learning process. It helps the students to construct the concept of a square and rectangle’s area. This study produces learning trajectory to construct the concept of a square and rectangle’s area by using Sarong motive chess, especially for elementary school students.

Strategy and Sociability: The Mind, the Body, and the Soul of Chess

Science.gov (United States)

Fine, Gary Alan

2014-01-01

Chess is a game of minds, bodies, and emotions. Most players recognize each of these as essential to playful competition, and all three are embedded in social relations. Thus chess, despite its reputation as a game of the mind, is not only a deeply thoughtful exercise, but also a test of physical endurance and strong emotions in its joys and…

Improving International-Level Chess Players' Performance with an Acceptance-Based Protocol: Preliminary Findings

Science.gov (United States)

Ruiz, Francisco J.; Luciano, Carmen

2012-01-01

This study compared an individual, 4-hr intervention based on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) versus a no-contact control condition in improving the performance of international-level chess players. Five participants received the brief ACT protocol, with each matched to another chess player with similar characteristics in the control…

Comparison of the effects of the CHESS sequence and the SPAIR sequence for fat saturation

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Kyung-Rae; Goo, Eun-Hoe; Kweon, Dae-Cheol; Chung, Woon-Kwan; Lee, Jong-Woong

2013-06-01

This study compared the abilities of the chemical-shift selective saturation(CHESS) and the spectrally-adiabatic inversion recovery (SPAIR) fat-saturation techniques to resolve the recent problems in fat saturation caused by areas of changing volume such as the head and the neck and by metal artifacts when T1 fat-saturation techniques representing the anatomical images and T2 fat-saturation techniques representing pathological images are used. To compare the abilities of CHESS and SPAIR, we acquired images of the head and the neck and of the pelvis, and we compared the contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) and the signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) of the signals from the flexed body parts. Images were taken of the abdomens, heads and necks, and pelvises of 15 men and 15 women (30 in total). In all scanning techniques, the SNRs and the CNRs were calculated based on a quantitative analysis method with a view to obtaining uniform data. According to the study results, the CNRs of the SPAIR and the CHESS techniques for the pelvis in the T1-weighted image were 55.10 and 67.23, respectively. The SNRs of the SPAIR technique were70.61 for muscle and 15.50 for fat whereas the SNRs of the CHESS technique were 79.23 for muscle and 12.00 for fat. For the pelvis in the T2-weighted image, the CNRs of the SPAIR and the CHESS technique were 12.50 and 16.66, respectively. The SNRs of the SPAIR technique were 16.98 for muscle and 5.14 for fat. In contrast, the SNRs of the CHESS technique were 27.90 for muscle and 11.23 for fat. Consequently, the signal intensity was higher in the CHESS than in the SPAIR technique. Nevertheless, with regard to the clinical usefulness, the image quality was higher in the SPAIR technique than in the CHESS technique.

Upgrades and expansion of the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

White, Jeffrey A.

2000-01-01

The Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS) is a user-oriented National Facility that provides state-of-the-art synchrotron radiation facilities to scientists worldwide. With major new funding in 1999, we now have 5 ongoing upgrade and expansion projects: 1) a new building addition that will house a new wiggler beamline (CHESS G-line) with three new experimental stations; 2) a new more powerful wiggler source for both A and G beamlines; 3) an upgrade to the A-line optics for better heat load handling and focussing; 4) a rebuild of the F-cave optics room with new optics to handle higher machine current; and 5) a renovation to the user laboratory space surrounding the F1 and F2 crystallography stations. We expect these upgrades and a new G line Cornell faculty collaborating group to raise the level of excitement and productivity at CHESS for many years to come

Memory for Chess Positions: Resistance to Interference

Science.gov (United States)

Charness, Neil

1976-01-01

An information processing model, Memory-Aided Pattern Perceiver (MAPP), that simulates the recall of briefly presented chess positions, was subjected to a test of its assumption that such positions are encoded and stored as chunks in short-term memory. (Editor)

'Checkmating HIV&AIDS': Using chess to break the silence in the classroom.

Science.gov (United States)

Esau, Omar

2012-12-01

In this article, I give an account of my 'Checkmating HIV&AIDS' action research project, which was an attempt to break the 'culture of silence' concerning HIV&AIDS and sex and sexuality in my classroom. In this project, I focused specifically on one code of sport, namely chess, and I point out and discuss the potential of using chess as an educational tool in addressing HIV&AIDS. It was found that learners enjoy playing chess and that it can be used in the Life Orientation classroom to promote HIV&AIDS awareness. This type of alternative awareness is relevant as learners in most schools were becoming fatigued by HIV&AIDS information overload. The project portrays the role of the teacher as a researcher and critical change agent in an HIV&AIDS-challenged society.

Does Chess Training Affect Conceptual Development of Six-Year-Old Children in Turkey?

Science.gov (United States)

Sigirtmac, Ayperi Dikici

2012-01-01

Many studies propose that chess is a game requiring cognitive skills and has positive effects on mental development. In recent years, chess training has also been emphasised as important during the early childhood period. However, no studies have been done with six-year-old children. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether or not…

Relative Age Effects in a Cognitive Task: A Case Study of Youth Chess

Science.gov (United States)

Helsen, Werner F.; Baker, Joseph; Schorer, Joerg; Steingröver, Christina; Wattie, Nick; Starkes, Janet L.

2016-01-01

The relative age effect (RAE) has been demonstrated in many youth and professional sports. In this study, we hypothesized that there would also be a RAE among youth chess players who are typically involved in a complex cognitive task without significant physical requirements. While typical RAEs have been observed in adult chess players, in this…

Rapid directed evolution of stabilized proteins with cellular high-throughput encapsulation solubilization and screening (CHESS).

Science.gov (United States)

Yong, K J; Scott, D J

2015-03-01

Directed evolution is a powerful method for engineering proteins towards user-defined goals and has been used to generate novel proteins for industrial processes, biological research and drug discovery. Typical directed evolution techniques include cellular display, phage display, ribosome display and water-in-oil compartmentalization, all of which physically link individual members of diverse gene libraries to their translated proteins. This allows the screening or selection for a desired protein function and subsequent isolation of the encoding gene from diverse populations. For biotechnological and industrial applications there is a need to engineer proteins that are functional under conditions that are not compatible with these techniques, such as high temperatures and harsh detergents. Cellular High-throughput Encapsulation Solubilization and Screening (CHESS), is a directed evolution method originally developed to engineer detergent-stable G proteins-coupled receptors (GPCRs) for structural biology. With CHESS, library-transformed bacterial cells are encapsulated in detergent-resistant polymers to form capsules, which serve to contain mutant genes and their encoded proteins upon detergent mediated solubilization of cell membranes. Populations of capsules can be screened like single cells to enable rapid isolation of genes encoding detergent-stable protein mutants. To demonstrate the general applicability of CHESS to other proteins, we have characterized the stability and permeability of CHESS microcapsules and employed CHESS to generate thermostable, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) resistant green fluorescent protein (GFP) mutants, the first soluble proteins to be engineered using CHESS. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Mechanical efficiency of a champion walker | Wyndham | South ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Oxygen consumptions were measured on a champion walker, while walking at between 6·4 and 16·9 km / hand while running at between 11.3 and 17.7 km/h. Above 9.7 km /h the curve of oxygen consumption against speed for walking was almost twice as steep as that for running, indicating that even champion walkers are ...

The third flight of CHESS: Preliminary analysis of interstellar H2 on the β1 Sco sightline

Science.gov (United States)

Kruczek, Nick; France, Kevin

2018-01-01

We describe the scientific motivation and technical development of the Colorado High-resolution Echelle Stellar Spectrograph (CHESS), focusing on the preliminary science results for the third launch of the payload (CHESS-3). CHESS is a far ultraviolet rocket-borne instrument designed to study the atomic-to-molecular transitions within translucent cloud regions in the interstellar medium. CHESS is an objective echelle spectrograph, which uses a mechanically-ruled echelle and a powered (f/12.4) cross-dispersing grating, and is designed to achieve a resolving power R > 100,000 over the band pass λλ 1000-1600 Å. CHESS-3 launched on 14 June 2017 aboard NASA/CU sounding rocket mission 36.323 UG. The target for the flight was β1 Sco, a B1V star with a sightline that is likely sampling translucent material. We present flight results of interstellar molecular hydrogen excitation, including initial measurements of the column density and temperature, on the sightline.

An Investigation on the Effectiveness of Chess Training on Creativity and Theory of Mind Development at Early Childhood

Science.gov (United States)

Sigirtmac, Ayperi Dikici

2016-01-01

In recent years, chess training is offered as a compulsory elective course in some pre-schools, whereas it is not offered in some other pre-schools. There are children who attend chess clubs outside of schools. Chess is considered to be a game of intelligence, and its effects on individuals have been the subject of many researches. This study was…

High resolution, monochromatic x-ray topography capability at CHESS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Finkelstein, K. D., E-mail: kdf1@cornell.edu; Pauling, A.; Brown, Z. [CHESS, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY (United States); Jones, R. [Department of Physics, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT (United States); Tarun, A.; Misra, D. S. [IIa Technologies (Singapore); Jupitz, S. [St. Mary’s College of Maryland, St. Mary’s City, MD (United States); Sagan, D. C. [CLASSE, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY (United States)

2016-07-27

CHESS has a monochromatic x-ray topography capability serving continually expanding user interest. The setup consists of a beam expanding monochromator, 6-circle diffactometer, and CHESS designed CMOS camera with real time sample-alignment capability. This provides rocking curve mapping with angle resolution as small as 2 µradians, spatial resolution to 3 microns, and field of view up to 7mm. Thus far the capability has been applied for: improving CVD-diamond growth, evaluating perfection of ultra-thin diamond membranes, correlating performance of diamond-based electronics with crystal defect structure, and defect analysis of single crystal silicon carbide. This paper describes our topography system, explains its capabilities, and presents experimental results from several applications.

High resolution, monochromatic x-ray topography capability at CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finkelstein, K. D.; Pauling, A.; Brown, Z.; Jones, R.; Tarun, A.; Misra, D. S.; Jupitz, S.; Sagan, D. C.

2016-01-01

CHESS has a monochromatic x-ray topography capability serving continually expanding user interest. The setup consists of a beam expanding monochromator, 6-circle diffactometer, and CHESS designed CMOS camera with real time sample-alignment capability. This provides rocking curve mapping with angle resolution as small as 2 µradians, spatial resolution to 3 microns, and field of view up to 7mm. Thus far the capability has been applied for: improving CVD-diamond growth, evaluating perfection of ultra-thin diamond membranes, correlating performance of diamond-based electronics with crystal defect structure, and defect analysis of single crystal silicon carbide. This paper describes our topography system, explains its capabilities, and presents experimental results from several applications.

CHESS improves cancer caregivers' burden and mood: results of an eHealth RCT.

Science.gov (United States)

DuBenske, Lori L; Gustafson, David H; Namkoong, Kang; Hawkins, Robert P; Atwood, Amy K; Brown, Roger L; Chih, Ming-Yuan; McTavish, Fiona; Carmack, Cindy L; Buss, Mary K; Govindan, Ramaswamy; Cleary, James F

2014-10-01

Informal caregivers (family and friends) of people with cancer are often unprepared for their caregiving role, leading to increased burden or distress. Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (CHESS) is a Web-based lung cancer information, communication, and coaching system for caregivers. This randomized trial reports the impact on caregiver burden, disruptiveness, and mood of providing caregivers access to CHESS versus the Internet with a list of recommended lung cancer websites. A total of 285 informal caregivers of patients with advanced nonsmall cell lung cancer were randomly assigned to a comparison group that received Internet or a treatment group that received Internet and CHESS. Caregivers were provided a computer and Internet service if needed. Written surveys were completed at pretest and during the intervention period bimonthly for up to 24 months. Analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) compared the intervention's effect on caregivers' disruptiveness and burden (CQOLI-C), and negative mood (combined Anxiety, Depression, and Anger scales of the POMS) at 6 months, controlling for blocking variables (site, caregiver's race, and relationship to patient) and the given outcome at pretest. Caregivers randomized to CHESS reported lower burden, t(84) = 2.36, p = .021, d = .39, and negative mood, t(86) = 2.82, p = .006, d = .44, than those in the Internet group. The effect on disruptiveness was not significant. Although caring for someone with a terminal illness will always exact a toll on caregivers, eHealth interventions like CHESS may improve caregivers' understanding and coping skills and, as a result, ease their burden and mood.

CHESS Improves Cancer Caregivers’ Burden and Mood: Results of an eHealth RCT

Science.gov (United States)

DuBenske, Lori L.; Gustafson, David H.; Namkoong, Kang; Hawkins, Robert P.; Atwood, Amy K.; Brown, Roger L.; Chih, Ming-Yuan; McTavish, Fiona; Carmack, Cindy L.; Buss, Mary K.; Govindan, Ramaswamy; Cleary, James F.

2014-01-01

Objective Informal caregivers (family and friends) of people with cancer are often unprepared for their caregiving role, leading to increased burden or distress. CHESS (Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System) is a web-based lung cancer information, communication and coaching system for caregivers. This randomized trial reports the impact on caregiver burden, disruptiveness and mood of providing caregivers access to CHESS versus the Internet with a list of recommended lung cancer websites. Methods 285 informal caregivers of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer were randomly assigned to a comparison group that received Internet or a treatment group that received Internet and CHESS. Caregivers were provided a computer and Internet service if needed. Written surveys were completed at pretest and during the intervention period bimonthly for up to 24 months. ANCOVA analyses compared the intervention’s effect on caregivers’ disruptiveness and burden (CQOLI-C), and negative mood (combined Anxiety, Depression, and Anger scales of the POMS) at six months, controlling for blocking variables (site, caregiver’s race, and relationship to patient) and the given outcome at pretest. Results Caregivers randomized to CHESS reported lower burden [t (84) = 2.36, p = .021, d= .39] and negative mood [t (86) = 2.82, p = .006, d= .44] than those in the Internet group. The effect on disruptiveness was not significant. Conclusions Although caring for someone with a terminal illness will always exact a toll on caregivers, eHealth interventions like CHESS may improve caregivers’ understanding and coping skills and, as a result, ease their burden and mood. PMID:24245838

QEEG-based neural correlates of decision making in a well-trained eight year-old chess player.

Science.gov (United States)

Alipour, Abolfazl; Seifzadeh, Sahar; Aligholi, Hadi; Nami, Mohammad

2017-10-25

The neurocognitive substrates of decision making (DM) in the context of chess has appealed to researchers' interest for decades. Expert and beginner chess players are hypothesized to employ different brain functional networks when involved in episodes of critical DM upon chess. Cognitive capacities including, but not restricted to pattern recognition, visuospatial search, reasoning, planning and DM are perhaps the key determinants of rewarding and judgmental decisions in chess. Meanwhile, the precise neural correlates of DM in this context has largely remained elusive. The quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG) is an investigation tool possessing a proper temporal resolution in the study of neural correlates of cognitive tasks at cortical level. Here, we used a 22-channel EEG setup and digital polygraphy in a well-trained 8 year-old boy while engaged in playing chess against the computer. Quantitative analyses were done to map and source-localize the EEG signals. Our analyses indicated a lower power spectral density (PSD) for higher frequency bands in the right hemisphere upon DM-related epochs. Moreover, the information flow upon DM blocks in this particular case was more of posterior towards anterior brain regions.

"Chess-board pattern" spatial modulation of magnetization. Assessment of myocardial function

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thomsen, C

1992-01-01

. Through spatial modulation of the magnetization the entire image can be labeled in different patterns. Two new pulse sequences are presented, giving a chess-board like spatial modulation. These pulse sequences have several advantages compared with the previously published methods, as the modulation time...... is half that required to obtain a 2-dimensional grid, the area in the image with high signal intensity was significantly larger, and the radiofrequency power deposition was substantially decreased. By labeling the heart at diastole the chess-board pattern tagging of the heart wall could be followed...

Reduced caudate volume and enhanced striatal-DMN integration in chess experts.

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, Xujun; He, Sheng; Liao, Wei; Liang, Dongmei; Qiu, Lihua; Wei, Luqing; Li, Yuan; Liu, Chengyi; Gong, Qiyong; Chen, Huafu

2012-04-02

The superior capability of chess experts largely depends on quick automatic processing skills which are considered to be mediated by the caudate nucleus. We asked whether continued practice or rehearsal of the skill over a long period of time can lead to structural changes in this region. We found that, comparing to novice controls, grandmaster and master level Chinese chess players (GM/Ms), who had a mean period of over 10years of tournament and training practice, exhibited significant smaller gray-matter volume in the bilateral caudate nuclei. When these regions were used as seeds in functional connectivity analysis in resting-state fMRI, significantly enhanced integration was found in GM/Ms between the caudate and the default mode network (DMN), a constellation of brain areas important for goal-directed cognitive performance and theory of mind. These findings demonstrate the structural changes in the caudate nucleus in response to its extensive engagement in chess problem solving, and its enhanced functional integration with widely distributed circuitry to better support high-level cognitive control of behavior. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Quantum Chess: Making Quantum Phenomena Accessible

Science.gov (United States)

Cantwell, Christopher

Quantum phenomena have remained largely inaccessible to the general public. There tends to be a scare factor associated with the word ``Quantum''. This is in large part due to the alien nature of phenomena such as superposition and entanglement. However, Quantum Computing is a very active area of research and one day we will have games that run on those quantum computers. Quantum phenomena such as superposition and entanglement will seem as normal as gravity. Is it possible to create such games today? Can we make games that are built on top of a realistic quantum simulation and introduce players of any background to quantum concepts in a fun and mentally stimulating way? One of the difficulties with any quantum simulation run on a classical computer is that the Hilbert space grows exponentially, making simulations of an appreciable size physically impossible due largely to memory restrictions. Here we will discuss the conception and development of Quantum Chess, and how to overcome some of the difficulties faced. We can then ask the question, ``What's next?'' What are some of the difficulties Quantum Chess still faces, and what is the future of quantum games?

Does chess instruction improve mathematical problem-solving ability? Two experimental studies with an active control group.

Science.gov (United States)

Sala, Giovanni; Gobet, Fernand

2017-12-01

It has been proposed that playing chess enables children to improve their ability in mathematics. These claims have been recently evaluated in a meta-analysis (Sala & Gobet, 2016, Educational Research Review, 18, 46-57), which indicated a significant effect in favor of the groups playing chess. However, the meta-analysis also showed that most of the reviewed studies used a poor experimental design (in particular, they lacked an active control group). We ran two experiments that used a three-group design including both an active and a passive control group, with a focus on mathematical ability. In the first experiment (N = 233), a group of third and fourth graders was taught chess for 25 hours and tested on mathematical problem-solving tasks. Participants also filled in a questionnaire assessing their meta-cognitive ability for mathematics problems. The group playing chess was compared to an active control group (playing checkers) and a passive control group. The three groups showed no statistically significant difference in mathematical problem-solving or metacognitive abilities in the posttest. The second experiment (N = 52) broadly used the same design, but the Oriental game of Go replaced checkers in the active control group. While the chess-treated group and the passive control group slightly outperformed the active control group with mathematical problem solving, the differences were not statistically significant. No differences were found with respect to metacognitive ability. These results suggest that the effects (if any) of chess instruction, when rigorously tested, are modest and that such interventions should not replace the traditional curriculum in mathematics.

Comprehensive Investigation of White Matter Tracts in Professional Chess Players and Relation to Expertise: Region of Interest and DMRI Connectometry.

Science.gov (United States)

Mayeli, Mahsa; Rahmani, Farzaneh; Aarabi, Mohammad Hadi

2018-01-01

Purpose: Expertise is the product of training. Few studies have used functional connectivity or conventional diffusometric methods to identify neural underpinnings of chess expertise. Diffusometric variables of white matter might reflect these adaptive changes, along with changes in structural connectivity, which is a sensitive measure of microstructural changes. Method: Diffusometric variables of 29 professional chess players and 29 age-sex matched controls were extracted for white matter regions based on John Hopkin's Mori white matter atlas and partially correlated against professional training time and level of chess proficiency. Diffusion MRI connectometry was implemented to identify changes in structural connectivity in professional players compared to novices. Result: Compared to novices, higher planar anisotropy (CP) was observed in inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF), superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF) and cingulate gyrus, in professional chess players, which correlated with higher RPM score in this group. Higher fractional anisotropy (FA) was observed in ILF, uncinate fasciculus (UF) and hippocampus and correlated with better scores in Raven's progressive matrices (RPM) score and longer duration of chess training in professional players. Consistently, radial diffusivity in bilateral IFOF, bilateral ILF and bilateral SLF was inversely correlated with level of training in professional players. DMRI connectometry analysis identified increased connectivity in bilateral UF, bilateral IFOF, bilateral cingulum, and corpus callosum in chess player's compared to controls. Conclusion: Structural connectivity of major associational subcortical white matter fibers are increased in professional chess players. FA and CP of ILF, SLF and UF directly correlates with duration of professional training and RPM score, in professional chess players.

CHESS upgrade 1995: Improved radiation shielding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finkelstein, K.

1996-01-01

The Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR) stores electrons and positrons at 5.3 GeV for the production and study of B mesons, and, in addition, it supplies synchrotron radiation for CHESS. The machine has been upgraded for 300 mA operation. It is planned that each beam will be injected in about 5 minutes and that particle beam lifetimes will be several hours. In a cooperative effort, staff members at CHESS and LNS have studied sources in CESR that produce radiation in the user areas. The group has been responsible for the development and realization of new tunnel shielding walls that provide a level of radiation protection from 20 to approx-gt 100 times what was previously available. Our experience has indicated that a major contribution to the environmental radiation is not from photons, but results from neutrons that are generated by particle beam loss in the ring. Neutrons are stopped by inelastic scattering and absorption in thick materials such as heavy concrete. The design for the upgraded walls, the development of a mix for our heavy concrete, and all the concrete casting was done by CHESS and LNS personnel. The concrete incorporates a new material for this application, one that has yielded a significant cost saving in the production of over 200 tons of new wall sections. The material is an artificially enriched iron oxide pellet manufactured in vast quantities from hematite ore for the steel-making industry. Its material and chemical properties (iron and impurity content, strength, size and uniformity) make it an excellent substitute for high grade Brazilian ore, which is commonly used as heavy aggregate in radiation shielding. Its cost is about a third that of the natural ore. The concrete has excellent workability, a 28 day compressive strength exceeding 6000 psi and a density of 220 lbs/cu.ft (3.5 gr/cc). The density is limited by an interesting property of the pellets that is motivated by efficiency in the steel-making application. (Abstract Truncated)

SWFSC/MMTD/ETP: Chase Encirclement Stress Studies (CHESS) 2001

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The CHase Encirclement Stress Studies (CHESS) are part of a comprehensive research program designed to investigate the status of dolphin stocks that are involved in...

Improved CHESS imaging with the use of rice pads: Investigation in the neck, shoulder, and elbow.

Science.gov (United States)

Moriya, Susumu; Miki, Yukio; Yokobayashi, Tsuneo; Yamamoto, Akira; Kanagaki, Mitsunori; Komori, Yoshiaki; Fujimoto, Koji; Ishikawa, Mitsunori

2010-06-01

To investigate the feasibility of rice pads for improving nonuniform fat suppression in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the neck, shoulder, and elbow using the chemical shift selective (CHESS) technique. CHESS imaging of the neck, shoulder, and elbow was performed on 10 healthy volunteers with and without the use of rice pads. Images were visually assessed by one radiologist and one radiologic technologist using a four-point scale. Results were compared using Wilcoxon's signed rank sum test. Images with and without rice pads were rated 3.9 and 1.5 for the neck (P = 0.002), 3.85 and 2.5 for the shoulder (P = 0.002), and 3.4 and 2.45 for the elbow (P = 0.004). Fat-suppressed images obtained using the CHESS technique were significantly improved by rice pads for the neck, shoulder, and elbow, indicating that image deterioration with CHESS caused by magnetic field nonuniformity can be improved by rice pads in all body areas.

Organizational Champions of IT Innovation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heng, S.H.; Trauth, E.; Fischer, S.J.

1999-01-01

This paper reports on an investigation of the characteristics of 10 organisational champions of information technology (IT) innovation in The Netherlands. The institutions at which they work are in the financial, transport, government and software sectors. Much of the research in this area has

Fat suppression at three-dimensional T1-weighted MR imaging of the hands: Dixon method versus CHESS technique.

Science.gov (United States)

Kirchgesner, T; Perlepe, V; Michoux, N; Larbi, A; Vande Berg, B

2018-01-01

To compare the effectiveness of fat suppression and the image quality of the Dixon method with those of the chemical shift-selective (CHESS) technique in hands of normal subjects at non-enhanced three-dimensional (3D) T1-weighted MR imaging. Both hands of 14 healthy volunteers were imaged with 3D fast spoiled gradient echo (FSPGR) T1-weighted Dixon, 3D FSPGR T1-weighted CHESS and 3D T1-weighted fast spin echo (FSE) CHESS sequences in a 1.5T MR scanner. Three radiologists scored the effectiveness of fat suppression in bone marrow (EFS BM ) and soft tissues (EFS ST ) in 20 joints per subject. One radiologist measured the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in 10 bones per subject. Statistical analysis used two-way ANOVA with random effects (PCHESS sequence and the 3D FSE T1-weighted CHESS sequence (PCHESS sequence (PCHESS sequence in the axial plane (P=0.0028). Mean SNR was statistically significantly higher for 3D FSPGR T1-weighted Dixon sequence than for 3D FSPGR T1-weighted CHESS and 3D FSE T1-weighted CHESS sequences (PCHESS technique at 3D T1-weighted MR imaging of the hands. Copyright © 2017 Éditions françaises de radiologie. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Impact of Chess Training on Mathematics Performance and Concentration Ability of Children with Learning Disabilities

Science.gov (United States)

Scholz, Markus; Niesch, Harald; Steffen, Olaf; Ernst, Baerbel; Loeffler, Markus; Witruk, Evelin; Schwarz, Hans

2008-01-01

The aim of this study is to evaluate the benefit of chess in mathematics lessons for children with learning disabilities based on lower intelligence (IQ 70-85). School classes of four German schools for children with learning disabilities were randomly assigned to receive one hour of chess lesson instead of one hour of regular mathematics lessons…

The benefits of chess for the intellectual and social-emotional enrichment in schoolchildren.

Science.gov (United States)

Aciego, Ramón; García, Lorena; Betancort, Moisés

2012-07-01

This paper examines the benefits of regularly playing chess for the intellectual and social-emotional enrichment of a group of 170 schoolchildren from 6-16 years old. It is based on a quasi-experimental design, where the independent variable was the extracurricular activity of chess (n = 170) versus extracurricular activities of soccer or basketball (n = 60). The dependent variable was intellectual and socio-affective competence, which was measured by an IQ test (WISC-R), a self-report test (TAMAI) and a hetero-report questionnaire (teacher-tutor's criterion) applied at the beginning and the end of the academic year. In contrast to the comparison group, it was found that chess improves cognitive abilities, coping and problem-solving capacity, and even socioaffective development of children and adolescents who practice it. The results are modulated, particularly in the area socioaffective, by the personal profile of students who choose practice this activity.

Successful Organizational Strategies to Sustain Use of A-CHESS: A Mobile Intervention for Individuals With Alcohol Use Disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, James H; Alagoz, Esra; Dinauer, Susan; Johnson, Kimberly A; Pe-Romashko, Klaren; Gustafson, David H

2015-08-18

Mobile health (mHealth) services are growing in importance in health care research with the advancement of wireless networks, tablets, and mobile phone technologies. These technologies offer a wide range of applications that cover the spectrum of health care delivery. Although preliminary experiments in mHealth demonstrate promising results, more robust real-world evidence is needed for widespread adoption and sustainment of these technologies. Our aim was to identify the problems/challenges associated with sustained use of an mHealth addiction recovery support app and to determine strategies used by agencies that successfully sustained client use of A-CHESS. Qualitative inquiry assessed staff perceptions about organizational attributes and strategies associated with sustained use of the mobile app, A-CHESS. A total of 73 interviews of clinicians and administrators were conducted. The initial interviews (n=36) occurred at the implementation of A-CHESS. Follow-up interviews (n=37) occurred approximately 12 and 24 months later. A coding scheme was developed and Multiuser NVivo was used to manage and analyze the blinded interview data. Successful strategies used by treatment providers to sustain A-CHESS included (1) strong leadership support, (2) use of client feedback reports to follow up on non-engaged clients, (3) identify passionate staff and incorporate A-CHESS discussions in weekly meetings, (4) develop A-CHESS guidelines related to client use, (5) establish internal work groups to engage clients, and (6) establish a financial strategy to sustain A-CHESS use. The study also identified attributes of A-CHESS that enhanced as well as inhibited its sustainability. Mobile apps can play an important role in health care delivery. However, providers will need to develop strategies for engaging both staff and patients in ongoing use of the apps. They will also need to rework business processes to accommodate the changes in communication frequency and style, learn to use

Memory and long-range correlations in chess games

Science.gov (United States)

Schaigorodsky, Ana L.; Perotti, Juan I.; Billoni, Orlando V.

2014-01-01

In this paper we report the existence of long-range memory in the opening moves of a chronologically ordered set of chess games using an extensive chess database. We used two mapping rules to build discrete time series and analyzed them using two methods for detecting long-range correlations; rescaled range analysis and detrended fluctuation analysis. We found that long-range memory is related to the level of the players. When the database is filtered according to player levels we found differences in the persistence of the different subsets. For high level players, correlations are stronger at long time scales; whereas in intermediate and low level players they reach the maximum value at shorter time scales. This can be interpreted as a signature of the different strategies used by players with different levels of expertise. These results are robust against the assignation rules and the method employed in the analysis of the time series.

A confidence in itself, as mortgage of successful competition activity of the young chess-players

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Khoroshavina A.V.

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Presents the results of the study the basic aspects of self-confidence of young players. The study involved 54 young chess players. Of these, 34 students Kherson CYSS Chess. 20 players from different regions of Ukraine. Age investigated from 10 to 15 years. The dependence of the confidence of participation in competitions for young players on the level of anxiety, motivational set, strong-willed self-control. In the result of performance of young chess players in the competition is directly proportional to the strength of motivation to succeed installation. Most athletes have been observed high levels of self-willed. Self-control depends on the experience of participation of young players in the competition, as well as facilities manager.

Champions and e-books: using student Library Champions to inform e-book purchasing strategies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Caroline Gale

2016-07-01

Full Text Available How students really use e-books is a subject of much interest to library professionals. This has particular relevance when it comes to selecting suppliers and e-book platforms for institutional use. The question of preferred formats (print versus digital has been asked exhaustively, but technology develops fast and is here to stay in higher education, so a more pressing question is how we evaluate which platforms offer the best user experience for our students. At the University of Exeter we used our student Library Champion volunteers as a focus group, repeating the process over two years, to help determine which platforms were preferred. Champions examined multiple interfaces, but concentrated primarily on aggregators. They were encouraged to use their own laptops and tablets to access the e-books, which proved particularly valuable as it allowed interfaces to be rated for their compatibility across devices. Positive and negative feedback was collated, sent to providers and also used directly to inform and alter the Library’s purchasing preference list.

The re-flight of the Colorado high-resolution Echelle stellar spectrograph (CHESS): improvements, calibrations, and post-flight results

Science.gov (United States)

Hoadley, Keri; France, Kevin; Kruczek, Nicholas; Fleming, Brian; Nell, Nicholas; Kane, Robert; Swanson, Jack; Green, James; Erickson, Nicholas; Wilson, Jacob

2016-07-01

In this proceeding, we describe the scientific motivation and technical development of the Colorado High- resolution Echelle Stellar Spectrograph (CHESS), focusing on the hardware advancements and testing supporting the second flight of the payload (CHESS-2). CHESS is a far ultraviolet (FUV) rocket-borne instrument designed to study the atomic-to-molecular transitions within translucent cloud regions in the interstellar medium (ISM). CHESS is an objective f/12.4 echelle spectrograph with resolving power > 100,000 over the band pass 1000 - 1600 Å. The spectrograph was designed to employ an R2 echelle grating with "low" line density. We compare the FUV performance of experimental echelle etching processes (lithographically by LightSmyth, Inc. and etching via electron-beam technology by JPL Microdevices Laboratory) with traditional, mechanically-ruled gratings (Bach Research, Inc. and Richardson Gratings). The cross-dispersing grating, developed and ruled by Horiba Jobin-Yvon, is a holographically-ruled, "low" line density, powered optic with a toroidal surface curvature. Both gratings were coated with aluminum and lithium fluoride (Al+LiF) at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). Results from final efficiency and reflectivity measurements for the optical components of CHESS-2 are presented. CHESS-2 utilizes a 40mm-diameter cross-strip anode readout microchannel plate (MCP) detector fabricated by Sensor Sciences, Inc., to achieve high spatial resolution with high count rate capabilities (global rates 1 MHz). We present pre-flight laboratory spectra and calibration results. CHESS-2 launched on 21 February 2016 aboard NASA/CU sounding rocket mission 36.297 UG. We observed the intervening ISM material along the sightline to epsilon Per and present initial characterization of the column densities, temperature, and kinematics of atomic and molecular species in the observation.

When Words were Wanted, But Woefully Wanting, We Waged War With Chess.

Science.gov (United States)

Seitler, Burton Norman

2016-12-01

What do you say to a child who rarely speaks? How do you work with such a youngster? What are the sine qua nons or guiding principles upon which analysts can draw? And, how do we know if we are being helpful? Sam was 9-years when I began treating him. He was extremely withdrawn and rarely spoke more than a few words. Instead, he mainly played chess. I did not know at first whether Sam's taciturn demeanor was due to shyness, limited verbal abilities, or the stultifying effects of trauma. Fortuitously, during one of many seemingly "innocent" games of chess, Sam happened to make a bold move, to which I admiringly remarked, "What a move, you're killing me." His surprising reaction permanently altered the trajectory of treatment. Curiously, upon returning from summer vacation, not only did Sam no longer need to play chess, but he also found his voice. It was then that he began to discuss things for the first time. Initially, what he said was cloaked in symbolic and indirect referents, suggesting that there were things about which he still could not speak. I proceeded with patience and eventually Sam was able to disclose what he had been harboring inside. In this article, I will discuss the role and psychoanalytic meaning of chess in Sam's play therapy and how it served as a means of symbolically expressing an unspoken, yet ongoing trauma; how it non-verbally, and thus safely communicated Sam's desperate need for understanding and his urgent (but silent) disguised plea for help.

Efficient Computation of Sparse Matrix Functions for Large-Scale Electronic Structure Calculations: The CheSS Library.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohr, Stephan; Dawson, William; Wagner, Michael; Caliste, Damien; Nakajima, Takahito; Genovese, Luigi

2017-10-10

We present CheSS, the "Chebyshev Sparse Solvers" library, which has been designed to solve typical problems arising in large-scale electronic structure calculations using localized basis sets. The library is based on a flexible and efficient expansion in terms of Chebyshev polynomials and presently features the calculation of the density matrix, the calculation of matrix powers for arbitrary powers, and the extraction of eigenvalues in a selected interval. CheSS is able to exploit the sparsity of the matrices and scales linearly with respect to the number of nonzero entries, making it well-suited for large-scale calculations. The approach is particularly adapted for setups leading to small spectral widths of the involved matrices and outperforms alternative methods in this regime. By coupling CheSS to the DFT code BigDFT, we show that such a favorable setup is indeed possible in practice. In addition, the approach based on Chebyshev polynomials can be massively parallelized, and CheSS exhibits excellent scaling up to thousands of cores even for relatively small matrix sizes.

Use of the interRAI CHESS scale to predict mortality among persons with neurological conditions in three care settings.

Science.gov (United States)

Hirdes, John P; Poss, Jeffrey W; Mitchell, Lori; Korngut, Lawrence; Heckman, George

2014-01-01

Persons with certain neurological conditions have higher mortality rates than the population without neurological conditions, but the risk factors for increased mortality within diagnostic groups are less well understood. The interRAI CHESS scale has been shown to be a strong predictor of mortality in the overall population of persons receiving health care in community and institutional settings. This study examines the performance of CHESS as a predictor of mortality among persons with 11 different neurological conditions. Survival analyses were done with interRAI assessments linked to mortality data among persons in home care (n = 359,940), complex continuing care hospitals/units (n = 88,721), and nursing homes (n = 185,309) in seven Canadian provinces/territories. CHESS was a significant predictor of mortality in all 3 care settings for the 11 neurological diagnostic groups considered after adjusting for age and sex. The distribution of CHESS scores varied between diagnostic groups and within diagnostic groups in different care settings. CHESS is a valid predictor of mortality in neurological populations in community and institutional care. It may prove useful for several clinical, administrative, policy-development, evaluation and research purposes. Because it is routinely gathered as part of normal clinical practice in jurisdictions (like Canada) that have implemented interRAI assessment instruments, CHESS can be derived without additional need for data collection.

Use of the interRAI CHESS scale to predict mortality among persons with neurological conditions in three care settings.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John P Hirdes

Full Text Available Persons with certain neurological conditions have higher mortality rates than the population without neurological conditions, but the risk factors for increased mortality within diagnostic groups are less well understood. The interRAI CHESS scale has been shown to be a strong predictor of mortality in the overall population of persons receiving health care in community and institutional settings. This study examines the performance of CHESS as a predictor of mortality among persons with 11 different neurological conditions.Survival analyses were done with interRAI assessments linked to mortality data among persons in home care (n = 359,940, complex continuing care hospitals/units (n = 88,721, and nursing homes (n = 185,309 in seven Canadian provinces/territories.CHESS was a significant predictor of mortality in all 3 care settings for the 11 neurological diagnostic groups considered after adjusting for age and sex. The distribution of CHESS scores varied between diagnostic groups and within diagnostic groups in different care settings.CHESS is a valid predictor of mortality in neurological populations in community and institutional care. It may prove useful for several clinical, administrative, policy-development, evaluation and research purposes. Because it is routinely gathered as part of normal clinical practice in jurisdictions (like Canada that have implemented interRAI assessment instruments, CHESS can be derived without additional need for data collection.

Methylphenidate, modafinil, and caffeine for cognitive enhancement in chess: A double-blind, randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Franke, Andreas G; Gränsmark, Patrik; Agricola, Alexandra; Schühle, Kai; Rommel, Thilo; Sebastian, Alexandra; Balló, Harald E; Gorbulev, Stanislav; Gerdes, Christer; Frank, Björn; Ruckes, Christian; Tüscher, Oliver; Lieb, Klaus

2017-03-01

Stimulants and caffeine have been proposed for cognitive enhancement by healthy subjects. This study investigated whether performance in chess - a competitive mind game requiring highly complex cognitive skills - can be enhanced by methylphenidate, modafinil or caffeine. In a phase IV, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 39 male chess players received 2×200mg modafinil, 2×20mg methylphenidate, and 2×200mg caffeine or placebo in a 4×4 crossover design. They played twenty 15-minute games during two sessions against a chess program (Fritz 12; adapted to players' strength) and completed several neuropsychological tests. Marked substance effects were observed since all three substances significantly increased average reflection time per game compared to placebo resulting in a significantly increased number of games lost on time with all three treatments. Treatment effects on chess performance were not seen if all games (n=3059) were analysed. Only when controlling for game duration as well as when excluding those games lost on time, both modafinil and methylphenidate enhanced chess performance as demonstrated by significantly higher scores in the remaining 2876 games compared to placebo. In conjunction with results from neuropsychological testing we conclude that modifying effects of stimulants on complex cognitive tasks may in particular result from more reflective decision making processes. When not under time pressure, such effects may result in enhanced performance. Yet, under time constraints more reflective decision making may not improve or even have detrimental effects on complex task performance. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. and ECNP. All rights reserved.

Community Health Environment Scan Survey (CHESS): a novel tool that captures the impact of the built environment on lifestyle factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Fiona; Stevens, Denise; O'Connor-Duffany, Kathleen; Siegel, Karen; Gao, Yue

2011-03-07

Novel efforts and accompanying tools are needed to tackle the global burden of chronic disease. This paper presents an approach to describe the environments in which people live, work, and play. Community Health Environment Scan Survey (CHESS) is an empirical assessment tool that measures the availability and accessibility, of healthy lifestyle options lifestyle options. CHESS reveals existing community assets as well as opportunities for change, shaping community intervention planning efforts by focusing on community-relevant opportunities to address the three key risk factors for chronic disease (i.e. unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and tobacco use). The CHESS tool was developed following a review of existing auditing tools and in consultation with experts. It is based on the social-ecological model and is adaptable to diverse settings in developed and developing countries throughout the world. For illustrative purposes, baseline results from the Community Interventions for Health (CIH) Mexico site are used, where the CHESS tool assessed 583 food stores and 168 restaurants. Comparisons between individual-level survey data from schools and community-level CHESS data are made to demonstrate the utility of the tool in strategically guiding intervention activities. The environments where people live, work, and play are key factors in determining their diet, levels of physical activity, and tobacco use. CHESS is the first tool of its kind that systematically and simultaneously examines how built environments encourage/discourage healthy eating, physical activity, and tobacco use. CHESS can help to design community interventions to prevent chronic disease and guide healthy urban planning. © 2011 Fiona Wong et al.

Stalemate: Girls and a Mixed-Gender Chess Club.

Science.gov (United States)

Galitis, Ingrid

2002-01-01

Observed and conducted discussions with female members of an elementary-level, mixed-gender, Australian chess club to investigate why girls left and boys came to dominate the club. Results indicated that both home values and schooling transmitted and reinforced inequalities between the sexes, though in more subtle and less overt forms than in the…

The nature of chess expertise: knowledge or search?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ekaterina E. Vasyukova

2012-01-01

Full Text Available In this article, we briefl y survey studies of the nature of expertise, and we presentthe results of research directed at evidence of the complicated nature of expertise,which is most eff ectively seen in experts’ use of a transfer mechanism. Thephenomenon of the transfer of verbalized operational senses (VOS is analyzedand is investigated on the basis of the sense theory of thinking, as proposed byTikhomirov (1969, 1984.It is shown that VOS transfer manifests itself in diverse forms. It seems to be dependenton the factors of chess position and the age and skill level of the player.Diverse forms of transferring are associated with a change in separate indices ofVOS volume, structure, depth, and degree of consciousness in a connected position.VOS transfer is found more in skilled than in unskilled chess players; skilledplayers demonstrate selectivity of search in a connected position. VOS transfer isassociated not simply with the repetition and copying of some forecasts, whichgive the direction of search, but also with using and transforming the results ofprevious verbal searches.

Community Health Environment Scan Survey (CHESS: a novel tool that captures the impact of the built environment on lifestyle factors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fiona Wong

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Background: Novel1 1This study was performed on behalf of the Community Interventions for Health (CIH collaboration. efforts and accompanying tools are needed to tackle the global burden of chronic disease. This paper presents an approach to describe the environments in which people live, work, and play. Community Health Environment Scan Survey (CHESS is an empirical assessment tool that measures the availability and accessibility, of healthy lifestyle options lifestyle options. CHESS reveals existing community assets as well as opportunities for change, shaping community intervention planning efforts by focusing on community-relevant opportunities to address the three key risk factors for chronic disease (i.e. unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and tobacco use. Methods: The CHESS tool was developed following a review of existing auditing tools and in consultation with experts. It is based on the social-ecological model and is adaptable to diverse settings in developed and developing countries throughout the world. Results: For illustrative purposes, baseline results from the Community Interventions for Health (CIH Mexico site are used, where the CHESS tool assessed 583 food stores and 168 restaurants. Comparisons between individual-level survey data from schools and community-level CHESS data are made to demonstrate the utility of the tool in strategically guiding intervention activities. Conclusion: The environments where people live, work, and play are key factors in determining their diet, levels of physical activity, and tobacco use. CHESS is the first tool of its kind that systematically and simultaneously examines how built environments encourage/discourage healthy eating, physical activity, and tobacco use. CHESS can help to design community interventions to prevent chronic disease and guide healthy urban planning.

Bertolette Selected as EHS Champion of Safety | Poster

Science.gov (United States)

Dan Bertolette has been selected as the most recent NCI at Frederick Champion of Safety, as part of the Champions of Safety Program sponsored by the Environment, Health, and Safety Program (EHS). The goal of the program, which began last year, is to raise awareness and promote a culture of safety by showing NCI at Frederick staff at work in their respective workplaces, according to Terri Bray, director, EHS. “Since we have so many varied work environments here, safety often takes on a different look, according to workplace. We want to take the opportunity to show real people in real situations, to encourage safety everywhere,” Bray said.

Risk taking in adversarial situations: Civilization differences in chess experts.

Science.gov (United States)

Chassy, Philippe; Gobet, Fernand

2015-08-01

The projections of experts in politics predict that a new world order will emerge within two decades. Being multipolar, this world will inevitably lead to frictions where civilizations and states will have to decide whether to risk conflict. Very often these decisions are informed if not taken by experts. To estimate risk-taking across civilizations, we examined strategies used in 667,599 chess games played over eleven years by chess experts from 11 different civilizations. We show that some civilizations are more inclined to settle for peace. Similarly, we show that once engaged in the battle, the level of risk taking varies significantly across civilizations, the boldest civilization using the riskiest strategy about 35% more than the most conservative civilization. We discuss which psychological factors might underpin these civilizational differences. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Influence of actual and virtual chess on neurophysiology and cognition

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... activity, as required in the cognitive activity of planning and processing the consequences and sequels of alternative chess moves. Integrative findings have valuable implications for future neurophysiologic, neuropsychological and cognitive psychological assessment and training of players, clinicians and researchers.

Expert vs. novice differences in the detection of relevant information during a chess game: evidence from eye movements.

Science.gov (United States)

Sheridan, Heather; Reingold, Eyal M

2014-01-01

The present study explored the ability of expert and novice chess players to rapidly distinguish between regions of a chessboard that were relevant to the best move on the board, and regions of the board that were irrelevant. Accordingly, we monitored the eye movements of expert and novice chess players, while they selected white's best move for a variety of chess problems. To manipulate relevancy, we constructed two different versions of each chess problem in the experiment, and we counterbalanced these versions across participants. These two versions of each problem were identical except that a single piece was changed from a bishop to a knight. This subtle change reversed the relevancy map of the board, such that regions that were relevant in one version of the board were now irrelevant (and vice versa). Using this paradigm, we demonstrated that both the experts and novices spent more time fixating the relevant relative to the irrelevant regions of the board. However, the experts were faster at detecting relevant information than the novices, as shown by the finding that experts (but not novices) were able to distinguish between relevant and irrelevant information during the early part of the trial. These findings further demonstrate the domain-related perceptual processing advantage of chess experts, using an experimental paradigm that allowed us to manipulate relevancy under tightly controlled conditions.

Expert versus novice differences in the detection of relevant information during a chess game: Evidence from eye movements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heather eSheridan

2014-08-01

Full Text Available The present study explored the ability of expert and novice chess players to rapidly distinguish between regions of a chessboard that were relevant to the best move on the board, and regions of the board that were irrelevant. Accordingly, we monitored the eye movements of expert and novice chess players, while they selected white’s best move for a variety of chess problems. To manipulate relevancy, we constructed two different versions of each chess problem in the experiment, and we counterbalanced these versions across participants. These two versions of each problem were identical except that a single piece was changed from a bishop to a knight. This subtle change reversed the relevancy map of the board, such that regions that were relevant in one version of the board were now irrelevant (and vice versa. Using this paradigm, we demonstrated that both the experts and novices spent more time fixating the relevant relative to the irrelevant regions of the board. However, the experts were faster at detecting relevant information than the novices, as shown by the finding that experts (but not novices were able to distinguish between relevant and irrelevant information during the early part of the trial. These findings further demonstrate the domain-related perceptual processing advantage of chess experts, using an experimental paradigm that allowed us to manipulate relevancy under tightly controlled conditions.

Diabetes Champions: Culture Change Through Education

OpenAIRE

Jornsay, Donna L.; Garnett, E. Dessa

2014-01-01

In Brief This article describes a diabetes champion program in its fifth year of operation. This educational intervention was designed to increase direct diabetes patient education and has grown into a vehicle for improving quality of care and patient safety and reducing gaps in the transitions of care.

Chess players' fame versus their merit.

Science.gov (United States)

Simkin, M V; Roychowdhury, V P

2015-12-12

We investigate a pool of international chess title holders born between 1901 and 1943. Using Elo ratings, we compute for every player his expected score in a game with a randomly selected player from the pool. We use this figure as the player's merit. We measure players' fame as the number of Google hits. The correlation between fame and merit is 0.38. At the same time, the correlation between the logarithm of fame and merit is 0.61. This suggests that fame grows exponentially with merit.

The Fourth Flight of CHESS: Analysis of Interstellar H2 on the γ Ara Sightline

Science.gov (United States)

Kruczek, Nick E.; France, Kevin; Nell, Nicholas; Fleming, Brian

2018-06-01

In this talk, we describe the scientific motivation and technical development of the Colorado High-resolution Echelle Stellar Spectrograph (CHESS) sounding rocket, focusing on the preliminary science results for the fourth launch of the payload (CHESS-4). CHESS is a far ultraviolet rocket-borne instrument designed to study the atomic-to-molecular transitions within translucent cloud regions in the interstellar medium. CHESS-4 launched on 13 April 2018 aboard NASA/CU sounding rocket mission 36.333 UG. The target for this flight was γ Ara, a B1I star that is known to display a variable and equatorially enhanced stellar wind. We present flight results of interstellar molecular hydrogen excitation, including initial measurements of the column density and temperature, on the sightline. These results are compared to previous values that were calculated using the damping wings of low-J H2 absorption features in Copernicus spectra. We also present analogous flight data for the sightline toward β Sco, finding that the derived column density of the J” = 1 rotational level differs by a factor of ~2 when compared to the previous observations. We discuss the discrepancies between the two measurements and show that the source of the difference is likely due to the opacity of higher rotational levels contributing to the J” = 1 absorption wing, increasing the inferred column density in the previous work.

Fat-suppressed MR images of both hands obtained using CHESS can be improved by rice pads

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moriya, Susumu, E-mail: smoyari@yahoo.co.jp [Ishikawa Clinic, 46-1 Shimokamo-Umenoki-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto 606-0851 (Japan); Miki, Yukio [Department of Radiology, Osaka City University Graduate School of Medicine, 1-4-3 Asahi-machi, Abeno-ku, Osaka 545-8585 (Japan); Kamishima, Tamotsu [Department of Biomedical Sciences and Engineering, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Health Science, North-12 West-5 Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0812 (Japan); Kanagaki, Mitsunori [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University, 54 Shogoin-kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan); Yokobayashi, Tsuneo; Ishikawa, Mitsunori [Ishikawa Clinic, 46-1 Shimokamo-Umenoki-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto 606-0851 (Japan)

2012-09-15

When chemical shift selective (CHESS) imaging is used with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for simultaneous imaging of both hands for the evaluation of rheumatoid arthritis, the fat suppression effect is poor. We investigated whether these fat-suppressed images using CHESS could be improved with the use of rice pads. T1-weighted images were obtained with CHESS and the same imaging parameters were used with and without rice pads on the coronal plane of both hands in 10 healthy volunteers. Patients were placed in a prone position with both hands extended overhead. The fat-suppression effect was classified into four categories and scored for both sets of images, and visual assessments were made by one radiologist and one radiologic technologist. The evaluation score was 1.1 for the images made without rice pads, and 3.2 for the images made with rice pads. The fat suppression effect was thus significantly better in the images made using rice pads (P < 0.0001). Lingering fat signals disappeared almost completely in images of both hands using CHESS with rice pads, and it was confirmed that the images were improved and had good fat suppression. More accurate evaluation of inflammatory sites that occur in rheumatoid arthritis may thus be possible, promising better diagnostic accuracy.

Fat-suppressed MR images of both hands obtained using CHESS can be improved by rice pads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moriya, Susumu; Miki, Yukio; Kamishima, Tamotsu; Kanagaki, Mitsunori; Yokobayashi, Tsuneo; Ishikawa, Mitsunori

2012-01-01

When chemical shift selective (CHESS) imaging is used with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for simultaneous imaging of both hands for the evaluation of rheumatoid arthritis, the fat suppression effect is poor. We investigated whether these fat-suppressed images using CHESS could be improved with the use of rice pads. T1-weighted images were obtained with CHESS and the same imaging parameters were used with and without rice pads on the coronal plane of both hands in 10 healthy volunteers. Patients were placed in a prone position with both hands extended overhead. The fat-suppression effect was classified into four categories and scored for both sets of images, and visual assessments were made by one radiologist and one radiologic technologist. The evaluation score was 1.1 for the images made without rice pads, and 3.2 for the images made with rice pads. The fat suppression effect was thus significantly better in the images made using rice pads (P < 0.0001). Lingering fat signals disappeared almost completely in images of both hands using CHESS with rice pads, and it was confirmed that the images were improved and had good fat suppression. More accurate evaluation of inflammatory sites that occur in rheumatoid arthritis may thus be possible, promising better diagnostic accuracy

Champion Island, Galapagos Stable Oxygen Calibration Data

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Galapagos Coral Stable Oxygen Calibration Data. Sites: Bartolome Island: 0 deg, 17 min S, 90 deg 33 min W. Champion Island: 1 deg, 15 min S, 90 deg, 05 min W. Urvina...

Does Fat Suppression via Chemically Selective Saturation (CHESS) Affect R2*-MRI for Transfusional Iron Overload Assessment? A Clinical Evaluation at 1.5 and 3 Tesla

Science.gov (United States)

Krafft, Axel J.; Loeffler, Ralf B.; Song, Ruitian; Bian, Xiao; McCarville, M. Beth; Hankins, Jane S.; Hillenbrand, Claudia M.

2015-01-01

Purpose Fat suppression (FS) via chemically selective saturation (CHESS) eliminates fat-water oscillations in multi-echo gradient echo (mGRE) R2*-MRI. However, for increasing R2* values as seen with increasing liver iron content (LIC), the water signal spectrally overlaps with the CHESS band, which may alter R2*. Here, we investigate the effect of CHESS on R2* and describe a heuristic correction for the observed CHESS-induced R2* changes. Methods Eighty patients (49/31 female/male, mean age: 18.3±11.7 years) with iron overload were scanned with a non-FS and a CHESS-FS mGRE sequence at 1.5T and 3T. Mean liver R2* values were evaluated using 3 published fitting approaches. Measured and model-corrected R2* values were compared and statistically analyzed. Results At 1.5T, CHESS led to a systematic R2* reduction (PCHESS-induced R2* bias after correction (linear regression slopes: 1.032/0.927/0.981). No CHESS-induced R2* reductions were found at 3T. Conclusion The CHESS-induced R2* bias at 1.5T needs to be considered when applying R2*-LIC biopsy calibrations for clinical LIC assessment which were established without FS at 1.5T. The proposed model corrects the R2* bias and could therefore improve clinical iron overload assessment based on linear R2*-LIC calibrations. PMID:26308155

Application of CHESS single-bounce capillaries at synchrotron beamlines

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, R.; Szebenyi, T.; Pfeifer, M.; Woll, A.; Smilgies, D.-M.; Finkelstein, K.; Dale, D.; Wang, Y.; Vila-Comamala, J.; Gillilan, R.; Cook, M.; Bilderback, D. H.

2014-03-01

Single-bounce capillaries are achromatic X-ray focusing optics that can provide efficient and high demagnification focusing with large numerical apertures. Capillary fabrication at CHESS can be customized according to specific application requirements. Exemplary applications are reviewed in this paper, as well as recent progress on condensers for high-resolution transmission X-ray microscopy and small focal size capillaries.

The Behavior of Warm Molecules in Planet-forming Disks and CHESS: a Pathfinder UV Spectrograph for the LUVOIR Surveyor

Science.gov (United States)

Hoadley, Keri; France, Kevin

2017-01-01

Understanding the evolution of gas over the lifetime of protoplanetary disks provides us with important clues about how planet formation mechanisms drive the diversity of exoplanetary systems observed to date. In the first part of my talk, I will discuss how we use emission line observations of molecular hydrogen (H2) in the far-ultraviolet (far-UV) with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) on the Hubble Space Telescope to study the warm molecular regions (a CHESS), built as a demonstration of one component of the LUVOIR spectrograph and new technological improvements to UV optical components for the next generation of near- to far-UV astrophysical observatories. CHESS is a far-UV sounding rocket experiment designed to probe the warm and cool atoms and molecules near sites of recent star formation in the local interstellar medium. I will talk about the science goals, design, research and development (R&D) components, and calibration of the CHESS instrument. I will end by presenting the initial data reduction and results of the flight observations taken during the second launch of CHESS.

User-friendly interfaces for control of crystallographic experiments at CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szebenyi, D. M. E.; Deacon, A.; Ealick, S. E.; LaIuppa, J. M.; Thiel, D. J.

1997-01-01

In designing a system to collect high quality diffraction data in an efficient manner, both hardware and software must be considered. This work focuses on the data collection software used at CHESS, the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron source, with emphasis on the interface between the user and the experimental components. For each type of detector used at CHESS, there is a graphical user interface (GUI) enabling the user to easily set up and run an experiment. For the CCD detector from Area Detector Systems Corp., this is a commercial product from ADSC, customized for CHESS. For the Princeton CCD detectors, a GUI has recently been developed to streamline communication between the user and the TV6 program which controls the detector. For Fuji imaging plates, a new GUI controls operation of the oscillation camera, including the imaging plate carousel; scanning of plates is done using the software provided by Fuji. Although these GUI's are not identical, they have numerous similarities, making it easier for users to learn operation of a new detector. They also incorporate error-checking to avoid problems such as overwriting data files or collecting data with no x-rays. Common to experiments with all detectors is a GUI used for operations such as alignment of the optical table on which the oscillation camera is mounted. Integral to a good data collection system is the capability to process diffraction images, for evaluation of crystal quality, determination of data collection strategy, screening of potential derivatives, and so forth. The mccview graphical front-end has been developed to conveniently initiate processing programs, including preliminary routines (correct, getbeam), main analysis routines (xdisp, denzo, scalepack), and the strategy routine m.simulate

Expertise in complex decision making: the role of search in chess 70 years after de Groot.

Science.gov (United States)

Connors, Michael H; Burns, Bruce D; Campitelli, Guillermo

2011-01-01

One of the most influential studies in all expertise research is de Groot's (1946) study of chess players, which suggested that pattern recognition, rather than search, was the key determinant of expertise. Many changes have occurred in the chess world since de Groot's study, leading some authors to argue that the cognitive mechanisms underlying expertise have also changed. We decided to replicate de Groot's study to empirically test these claims and to examine whether the trends in the data have changed over time. Six Grandmasters, five International Masters, six Experts, and five Class A players completed the think-aloud procedure for two chess positions. Findings indicate that Grandmasters and International Masters search more quickly than Experts and Class A players, and that both groups today search substantially faster than players in previous studies. The findings, however, support de Groot's overall conclusions and are consistent with predictions made by pattern recognition models. Copyright © 2011 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

A Case Study of MasterMind Chess: Comparing Mouse/Keyboard Interaction with Kinect-Based Gestural Interface

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriel Alves Mendes Vasiljevic

2016-01-01

Full Text Available As gestural interfaces emerged as a new type of user interface, their use has been vastly explored by the entertainment industry to better immerse the player in games. Despite being mainly used in dance and sports games, little use was made of gestural interaction in more slow-paced genres, such as board games. In this work, we present a Kinect-based gestural interface for an online and multiplayer chess game and describe a case study with users with different playing skill levels. Comparing the mouse/keyboard interaction with the gesture-based interaction, the results of the activity were synthesized into lessons learned regarding general usability and design of game control mechanisms. These results could be applied to slow-paced board games like chess. Our findings indicate that gestural interfaces may not be suitable for competitive chess matches, yet it can be fun to play while using them in casual matches.

Optimal dimensionality reduction of complex dynamics: the chess game as diffusion on a free-energy landscape.

Science.gov (United States)

Krivov, Sergei V

2011-07-01

Dimensionality reduction is ubiquitous in the analysis of complex dynamics. The conventional dimensionality reduction techniques, however, focus on reproducing the underlying configuration space, rather than the dynamics itself. The constructed low-dimensional space does not provide a complete and accurate description of the dynamics. Here I describe how to perform dimensionality reduction while preserving the essential properties of the dynamics. The approach is illustrated by analyzing the chess game--the archetype of complex dynamics. A variable that provides complete and accurate description of chess dynamics is constructed. The winning probability is predicted by describing the game as a random walk on the free-energy landscape associated with the variable. The approach suggests a possible way of obtaining a simple yet accurate description of many important complex phenomena. The analysis of the chess game shows that the approach can quantitatively describe the dynamics of processes where human decision-making plays a central role, e.g., financial and social dynamics.

Test procedure for the Master-Lee and the modified Champion four inch hydraulic cutters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crystal, J.B.

1995-01-01

The Master-Lee and the modified Champion 4 Inch hydraulic cutters are being retested to gather and document information related to the following: determine if the Master-Lee cutters will cut the trunnions of an Aluminum fuel canister and a Stainless Steel fuel canister; determine if the Master-Lee cutters will cut 1 1/2 inch diameter fire hose; determine if the modified Champion 4 inch blade will cut sections of piping; and determine the effectiveness of the centering device for the Champion 4 Inch cutters. Determining the limitations of the hydraulic cutter will aid in the process of debris removal in the K-Basin. Based on a previous test, the cutters were returned to the manufacturer for modifications. The modifications to the Champion 4 Inch Cutter and further testing of the Master-Lee Cutter are the subjects of these feature tests

The neural correlates of theory of mind and their role during empathy and the game of chess: A functional magnetic resonance imaging study.

Science.gov (United States)

Powell, Joanne L; Grossi, Davide; Corcoran, Rhiannon; Gobet, Fernand; García-Fiñana, Marta

2017-07-04

Chess involves the capacity to reason iteratively about potential intentional choices of an opponent and therefore involves high levels of explicit theory of mind [ToM] (i.e. ability to infer mental states of others) alongside clear, strategic rule-based decision-making. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used on 12 healthy male novice chess players to identify cortical regions associated with chess, ToM and empathizing. The blood-oxygenation-level-dependent (BOLD) response for chess and empathizing tasks was extracted from each ToM region. Results showed neural overlap between ToM, chess and empathizing tasks in right-hemisphere temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) [BA40], left-hemisphere superior temporal gyrus [BA22] and posterior cingulate gyrus [BA23/31]. TPJ is suggested to underlie the capacity to reason iteratively about another's internal state in a range of tasks. Areas activated by ToM and empathy included right-hemisphere orbitofrontal cortex and bilateral middle temporal gyrus: areas that become active when there is need to inhibit one's own experience when considering the internal state of another and for visual evaluation of action rationality. Results support previous findings, that ToM recruits a neural network with each region sub-serving a supporting role depending on the nature of the task itself. In contrast, a network of cortical regions primarily located within right- and left-hemisphere medial-frontal and parietal cortex, outside the internal representational network, was selectively recruited during the chess task. We hypothesize that in our cohort of novice chess players the strategy was to employ an iterative thinking pattern which in part involved mentalizing processes and recruited core ToM-related regions. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

CHESS upgrade with compact undulator magnets: Operating experience and first results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Temnykh, A., E-mail: abt6@cornell.edu; Dale, D.; Fontes, E.; Lyndaker, A.; Li, Y.; Ruff, J.; Revesz, P.; Woll, A. [Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (United States)

2016-07-27

In November 2014 two in-air 1.5 m CHESS Compact Undulator (CCU) magnets built by KYMA S.R.l. were installed in Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR) in canted arrangement and after few days of commissioning their regular operation started. CCU magnets are compact, lightweight and cost efficient devices. They have very stable magnetic field integrals independent of deflection parameter value. This feature greatly simplifies the storage ring operation. The CCU concept was developed at Cornell in 2011 and the first 1 m in-vacuum CCU magnet was beam-tested in 2012. The article presents CCU concept and some details of the design. It describes also the layout of CCUs installation in CESR, their performance and characteristics. The current status of operation and future plans are discussed as well. Presently, at CHESS two CCU magnets provide radiation for 5 out of 11 experimental stations.

CHESS upgrade with compact undulator magnets: Operating experience and first results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Temnykh, A.; Dale, D.; Fontes, E.; Lyndaker, A.; Li, Y.; Ruff, J.; Revesz, P.; Woll, A.

2016-01-01

In November 2014 two in-air 1.5 m CHESS Compact Undulator (CCU) magnets built by KYMA S.R.l. were installed in Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR) in canted arrangement and after few days of commissioning their regular operation started. CCU magnets are compact, lightweight and cost efficient devices. They have very stable magnetic field integrals independent of deflection parameter value. This feature greatly simplifies the storage ring operation. The CCU concept was developed at Cornell in 2011 and the first 1 m in-vacuum CCU magnet was beam-tested in 2012. The article presents CCU concept and some details of the design. It describes also the layout of CCUs installation in CESR, their performance and characteristics. The current status of operation and future plans are discussed as well. Presently, at CHESS two CCU magnets provide radiation for 5 out of 11 experimental stations.

MECHANICAL EFFICIENCY OF A CHAMPION WALKER* • • • • .o •

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Oxygen consumplions were measured on a champion walker, while walking at between 6·4 and 16·9 km / hand while running at between lJ·] and 17-7 km/h. Above. 9-7 km / h the curve of oxygen consumption against speed for walking was almost twice as steep as that for rlInning, indicating that el'en champion walkers are ...

Development of a health-related website for parents of children receiving hematopoietic stem cell transplant: HSCT-CHESS.

Science.gov (United States)

Mayer, Deborah K; Ratichek, S; Berhe, H; Stewart, S; McTavish, F; Gustafson, D; Parsons, S K

2010-03-01

Parents of pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) play a pivotal role in the care of their child during and after transplant. In addition to the child's comforter, parents also serve as care coordinators and conduits of communication between various health care providers, family and community members. The stress on the parent and family is enormous during this process, which for many is compounded by geographic dislocation to accompany their child during the rigorous treatment and recovery process. For many parents, their own recovery spans months to years. Parental activation, a process of becoming informed to participate in decisions, collaborate with health care providers, and manage care provided the conceptual framework to develop an eHealth approach for this population. HSCT-CHESS was developed, based on previous success with an existing eHealth system of integrated services, the Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (CHESS). CHESS(TM) is designed to help individuals and families cope with a health crisis or medical concern. The iterative user-centered development process for HSCT-CHESS included parents of HSCT recipients, representatives from an HSCT Advocacy Group, and members of the clinical, research, development and design teams. This rigorous process, including online focus groups and surveys, utilization of a parental user group, and an editorial and development process are described. As the population of cancer survivors and caregivers increase and as the oncology workforce becomes more stretched; developing eHealth applications may be an approach to address many of caregivers unmet needs. The purpose in describing this process is to help others when considering such an endeavor. HSCT-CHESS is now being tested in a randomized controlled trial versus standard care to evaluate its impact on the quality of life of both the parent and child HSCT recipient.

Characteristics of Quality Improvement Champions in Nursing Homes: A Systematic Review With Implications for Evidence-Based Practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Woo, Kyungmi; Milworm, Gvira; Dowding, Dawn

2017-12-01

Improving care quality while reducing cost has always been a focus of nursing homes. Certified nursing assistants comprise the largest proportion of the workforce in nursing homes and have the potential to contribute to the quality of care provided. Quality improvement (QI) initiatives using certified nursing assistants as champions have the potential to improve job satisfaction, which has been associated with care quality. To identify the role, use and preparation of champions in a nursing home setting as a way of informing future QI strategies in nursing homes. A systematic literature review. Medical Subject Headings and text words for "quality improvement" were combined with those for "champion*" to search Medline, CINAHL, Joanna Briggs Institute, MedLine In-Process, and other Nonindexed Citations. After duplicates were removed, a total of 337 potential articles were identified for further review. After full text review, seven articles from five original studies met inclusion criteria and were included in the synthesis. Various types of QI initiatives and implementation strategies were used together with champions. Champions were identified by study authors as one of the single most effective strategies employed in all studies. The majority of studies described the champion role as that of a leader, who fosters and reinforces changes for improvement. Although all the included studies suggested that implementing nurse or aid champions in their QI initiatives were important facilitators of success, how the champions were selected and trained in their role is either missing or not described in any detail in the studies included in the review. Utilizing certified nursing assistants as QI champions can increase participation in QI projects and has the potential to improve job satisfaction and contribute to improve quality of care and improved patient outcomes in nursing homes. © 2017 Sigma Theta Tau International.

What makes a champion! over fifty extraordinary individuals share their insights

CERN Document Server

2014-01-01

What drives great and successful individuals — be they athletes, artists, or scientists — or businesses, to achieve the extraordinary? Over fifty champions from all walks of life, brought together by Allan Snyder, draw on their experiences to explore the secrets of success in this inspiring, revealing and thought-provoking book. Hear from the authors what made a McDonalds' branch become the most successful in the world; how a cottage business is catapulted into a world brand; how a visual artist's works crosses almost every medium imaginable; how an Ernst and Young setup becomes a top-notch employer; or why many geniuses or brilliant individuals never become champions, while many 'ordinary' individuals do; why many people don't know about their talent; what constitutes a champion outcome; and the neurological explanation for championship. Straddling academia and practitioners in all fields — government, entertainment, sports, business, arts, education, medicine, media — the authors include business...

Development of Embedded CAPTCHA Elements for Bot Prevention in Fischer Random Chess

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ryan McDaniel

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Cheating in chess can take many forms and has existed almost as long as the game itself. The advent of computers has introduced a new form of cheating into the game. Thanks to the computational power of modern-day computers, a player can use a program to calculate thousands of moves for him or her, and determine the best possible scenario for each move and countermove. These programs are often referred to as “bots,” and can even play the game without any user interaction. In this paper, we describe a methodology aimed at preventing bots from participating in online chess games. The proposed approach is based on the integration of a CAPTCHA protocol into a game scenario, and the subsequent inability of bots to accurately track the game states. This is achieved by rotating the images of the individual chess pieces and adjusting their resolution in an attempt to render them unreadable by a bot. Feedback from users during testing shows that there is minimal impact on their ability to play the game. Players rated the difficulty of reading the pieces on a scale of one to ten, with an average rank of 6.5. However, the average number of moves to adjust to the distorted pieces was only 3.75. This tells us that, although it is difficult to read the pieces at first, it is easy to adjust quickly to the new image.

'Checkmating HIV&AIDS': Using chess to break the silence in the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Omar Esau

2012-12-13

Dec 13, 2012 ... I seemed to be doing all the talking and it appeared ... In this article, I focus specifically on chess to ... thinking; memory pattern recognition; calculation; inductive and deductive reasoning; visual imagery; creativity; problem-solving; and decision-making. ... abilities in abstract reasoning and problem-solving.

Current status of CHESS - the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mills, D.; Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY

1982-01-01

This paper reviews the status of CHESS through its three-year construction period, which ends in the fall of 1981. Included are a brief description of beam lines, monochromators, station instrumentations and support facilities. Our experiences with source size and stability over the last year are reported, along with planned fall revisions and running schedule. (orig.)

Meta-analysis of age and skill effects on recalling chess positions and selecting the best move.

Science.gov (United States)

Moxley, Jerad H; Charness, Neil

2013-10-01

A meta-analysis was conducted of studies that measured the effects of both age and skill in chess on the tasks of selecting the best move for chess positions (the best move task) as well as recalling chess game positions (the recall task). Despite a small sample of studies, we demonstrated that there are age and skill effects on both tasks: age being negatively associated with performance on both tasks and skill being positively associated with performance on both tasks. On the best move task, we found that skill was the dominant effect, while on the recall task, skill and age were approximately equally strong effects. We also found that skill was best measured by the best move task. In the case of the best move task, this result is consistent with the argument that it accurately replicates expert performance (Ericsson & Smith, 1991). Results for the recall task argue that this task captures effects related to skill, but also effects likely due to a general aging process. Implications for our understanding of aging in skilled domains are also discussed.

Hamas may evolve as peace champion like Sharon-Musharraf

CERN Multimedia

2006-01-01

"Radical palestinian movement Hamas may follow a political evolution like Israel's premier Ariel Sharon and become champion for peace in the Middle East, pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said" (1/2 page)

Measuring chess experts' single-use sequence knowledge: an archival study of departure from 'theoretical' openings.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Philippe Chassy

Full Text Available The respective roles of knowledge and search have received considerable attention in the literature on expertise. However, most of the evidence on knowledge has been indirect--e.g., by inferring the presence of chunks in long-term memory from performance in memory recall tasks. Here we provide direct estimates of the amount of monochrestic (single use and rote knowledge held by chess players of varying skill levels. From a large chess database, we analyzed 76,562 games played in 2008 by individuals ranging from Class B players (average players to Masters to measure the extent to which players deviate from previously known initial sequences of moves ("openings". Substantial differences were found in the number of moves known by players of different skill levels, with more expert players knowing more moves. Combined with assumptions independently made about the branching factor in master games, we estimate that masters have memorized about 100,000 opening moves. Our results support the hypothesis that monochrestic knowledge is essential for reaching high levels of expertise in chess. They provide a direct, quantitative estimate of the number of opening moves that players have to know to reach master level.

Evaluation Champions: What They Do, Why They Do It, and Why It Matters to Organizations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Benjamin Silliman

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Evaluation champions are individuals who serve as catalysts for building evaluation capacity within an organization. They advocate for the importance of program evaluation, model good evaluation behaviors, and mentor their peers in program evaluation skills and competencies. Interviews with 40 peer-nominated champions in four purposively-sampled Extension organizations identified the roles, contexts, and motivations of staff who act as evaluation champions. Findings underline the importance—and the limits—of mentors and project teams in building evaluation capacity in complex organizations. Implications for practice, research, and policy are discussed

The CHESS score: a simple tool for early prediction of shunt dependency after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Jabbarli, R; Bohrer, A-M; Pierscianek, D; Müller, D; Wrede, K H; Dammann, P; El Hindy, N; Özkan, N; Sure, U; Müller, O

2016-05-01

Acute hydrocephalus is an early and common complication of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). However, considerably fewer patients develop chronic hydrocephalus requiring shunt placement. Our aim was to develop a risk score for early identification of patients with shunt dependency after SAH. Two hundred and forty-two SAH individuals who were treated in our institution between January 2008 and December 2013 and survived the initial impact were retrospectively analyzed. Clinical parameters within 72 h after the ictus were correlated with shunt dependency. Independent predictors were summarized into a new risk score which was validated in a subsequent SAH cohort treated between January and December 2014. Seventy-five patients (31%) underwent shunt placement. Of 23 evaluated variables, only the following five showed independent associations with shunt dependency and were subsequently used to establish the Chronic Hydrocephalus Ensuing from SAH Score (CHESS, 0-8 points): Hunt and Hess grade ≥IV (1 point), location of the ruptured aneurysm in the posterior circulation (1 point), acute hydrocephalus (4 points), the presence of intraventricular hemorrhage (1 point) and early cerebral infarction on follow-up computed tomography scan (1 point). The CHESS showed strong correlation with shunt dependency (P = 0.0007) and could be successfully validated in both internal SAH cohorts tested. Patients scoring ≥6 CHESS points had significantly higher risk of shunt dependency (P CHESS may become a valuable diagnostic tool for early estimation of shunt dependency after SAH. Further evaluation and external validation will be required in prospective studies. © 2016 EAN.

Redesigned front end for the upgrade at CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Headrick, R.L.; Smolenski, K.W.

1996-01-01

We will report on beamline front-end upgrades for the 24-pole wiggler beamlines at CHESS. A new design for primary x-ray beamstops based on a tapered, water-cooled copper block has been implemented and installed in the CHESS F beamline. The design uses a horizontally tapered open-quote open-quote V close-quote close-quote shape to reduce the power density on the internal surfaces and internal water channels in the block to provide efficient water cooling. Upstream of the beam stops, we have installed a new photoelectron style beam position monitor with separate monitoring of the wiggler and dipole vertical beam positions and with micron-level sensitivity. The monitor close-quote s internal surfaces are designed to absorb the full x-ray power in case of beam missteering, and the uncooled photoelectron collecting plates are not visible to the x-ray beam. A graphite prefilter has been installed to protect the beryllium windows that separate the front end from the x-ray optics downstream. The redesigned front end is required by the upgrade of the Cornell storage ring, now in progress, which will allow stored electron and positron currents of 300 mA by 1996, and 500 mA by 1998. At 500 mA, the wiggler power output will be over 32 kW. copyright 1996 American Institute of Physics

Roles of organizers and champions in building campus-community prevention partnerships.

Science.gov (United States)

Zakocs, Ronda C; Tiwari, Rashmi; Vehige, Tamara; DeJong, William

2008-01-01

A campus-community partnership can be an effective vehicle for launching environmental strategies to prevent college alcohol-related problems. In this study, the authors' primary aim was identifying key factors that facilitate or impede colleges' efforts to build campus-community partnerships. From fall 2004 to summer 2006, administrators at five 4-year colleges participated in a multisite case study. Level of partnership development was the primary outcome. Three interrelated factors facilitated higher-developed partnerships: college staff assigned to facilitate the partnerships who worked as community organizers, higher-level college administrators who served as aggressive champions, and community initiation of the partnership. The authors did not observe this trio of factors among the less-developed partnerships. A lack of administrative support made it more difficult for a champion to emerge, a college administrator who staunchly advocated for a campus-community partnership, and for those assigned to facilitate the partnership to carry out their work. Colleges should appoint higher-level administrators to serve as champions, while also ensuring that those assigned to facilitate a partnership can apply community organizing skills.

Efficacy of chess training for the treatment of ADHD: A prospective, open label study.

Science.gov (United States)

Blasco-Fontecilla, Hilario; Gonzalez-Perez, Marisa; Garcia-Lopez, Raquel; Poza-Cano, Belen; Perez-Moreno, Maria Rosario; de Leon-Martinez, Victoria; Otero-Perez, Jose

2016-01-01

To examine the effectiveness of playing chess as a treatment option for children with ADHD. Parents of 44 children ages 6 to 17 with a primary diagnosis of ADHD consented to take part in the study. Parents completed the Spanish version of the Swanson, Nolan and Pelham Scale for parents (SNAP-IV) and the Abbreviated Conner's Rating Scales for parents (CPRS-HI) prior to an 11-week chess-training program. We used a paired t-test to compare pre- and post-intervention outcomes, and Cohen-d calculations to measure the magnitude of the effect. The statistical significance was set at Pchess could be included within the multimodal treatment of ADHD. Copyright © 2014 SEP y SEPB. Published by Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

Champion data comparison in nuclear research institutes in Europe, the U. S., and Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kazuaki Yanagisawa; Cutler, D.E.

2011-01-01

Bibliometric analysis was carried out for champion data comparisons among prestigious nuclear research institutes (PNRI) existed in Japan, the U. S., France, and Germany. The analysis was relied on database INIS (IAEA), ECD (DOE), WOS (Thomson), and SCOPUS (Elsevier). INIS is advanced, key ex-post evaluating tool for determining general research paper-based champion. Over the 30-year time span of research paper publication, the world champion among 11 PNRI is JAERI confirmed by INIS but ORNL confirmed by ECD, WOS, and SCOPUS, the latter two collected journal submitted research paper. Five years ago JAERI is the 3rd ranked institutes following ORNL and ANL. INIS database results revealed that CEA/Grenoble is the French domestic champion regarding research paper publication. Five years ago it was CEA/Saclay. Results from analytical tools used in bibliometric studies should be viewed with careful consideration to learn of any influencing factors because different characteristics exhibited by individual databases can sometimes generate conflicting bibliometric results. This was true among INIS, ECD, WOS, and SCOPUS when looking at trends especially between 5-year periods. (author)

The assembly, calibration, and preliminary results from the Colorado high-resolution Echelle stellar spectrograph (CHESS)

Science.gov (United States)

Hoadley, Keri; France, Kevin; Nell, Nicholas; Kane, Robert; Schultz, Ted; Beasley, Matthew; Green, James; Kulow, Jen; Kersgaard, Eliot; Fleming, Brian

2014-07-01

The Colorado High-resolution Echelle Stellar Spectrograph (CHESS) is a far ultraviolet (FUV) rocket-borne experiment designed to study the atomic-to-molecular transitions within translucent interstellar clouds. CHESS is an objective echelle spectrograph operating at f/12.4 and resolving power of 120,000 over a band pass of 100 - 160 nm. The echelle flight grating is the product of a research and development project with LightSmyth Inc. and was coated at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) with Al+LiF. It has an empirically-determined groove density of 71.67 grooves/mm. At the Center for Astrophysics and Space Astronomy (CASA) at the University of Colorado (CU), we measured the efficiencies of the peak and adjacent dispersion orders throughout the 90 - 165 nm band pass to characterize the behavior of the grating for pre-flight calibrations and to assess the scattered-light behavior. The crossdispersing grating, developed and ruled by Horiba Jobin-Yvon, is a holographically-ruled, low line density (351 grooves/mm), powered optic with a toroidal surface curvature. The CHESS cross-disperser was also coated at GSFC; Cr+Al+LiF was deposited to enhance far-UV efficiency. Results from final efficiency and reflectivity measurements of both optics are presented. We utilize a cross-strip anode microchannel plate (MCP) detector built by Sensor Sciences to achieve high resolution (25 μm spatial resolution) and data collection rates (~ 106 photons/second) over a large format (40mm round, digitized to 8k x 8k) for the first time in an astronomical sounding rocket flight. The CHESS instrument was successfully launched from White Sands Missile Range on 24 May 2014. We present pre-flight sensitivity, effective area calculations, lab spectra and calibration results, and touch on first results and post-flight calibration plans.

Chess games: a model for RNA based computation.

Science.gov (United States)

Cukras, A R; Faulhammer, D; Lipton, R J; Landweber, L F

1999-10-01

Here we develop the theory of RNA computing and a method for solving the 'knight problem' as an instance of a satisfiability (SAT) problem. Using only biological molecules and enzymes as tools, we developed an algorithm for solving the knight problem (3 x 3 chess board) using a 10-bit combinatorial pool and sequential RNase H digestions. The results of preliminary experiments presented here reveal that the protocol recovers far more correct solutions than expected at random, but the persistence of errors still presents the greatest challenge.

Championing mental health at work: emerging practice from innovative projects in the UK.

Science.gov (United States)

Robinson, Mark; Tilford, Sylvia; Branney, Peter; Kinsella, Karina

2014-09-01

This paper examines the value of participatory approaches within interventions aimed at promoting mental health and wellbeing in the workplace. Specifically the paper explores data from the thematic evaluation of the Mental Health and Employment project strand within the Altogether Better programme being implemented in England in the Yorkshire and Humber region, which was funded through the BIG Lottery and aimed to empower people across the region to lead better lives. The evaluation combined a systematic evidence review with semi-structured interviews across mental health and employment projects. Drawing on both evaluation elements, the paper examines the potential of workplace-based 'business champions' to facilitate organizational culture change within enterprises within a deprived regional socio-economic environment. First, the paper identifies key policy drivers for interventions around mental health and employment, summarizes evidence review findings and describes the range of activities within three projects. The role of the 'business champion' emerged as crucial to these interventions and therefore, secondly, the paper examines how champions' potential to make a difference depends on the work settings and their existing roles, skills and motivation. In particular, champions can proactively coordinate project strands, embed the project, encourage participation, raise awareness, encourage changes to work procedures and strengthen networks and partnerships. The paper explores how these processes can facilitate changes in organizational culture. Challenges of implementation are identified, including achieving leverage with senior management, handover of ownership to fellow employees, assessing impact and sustainability. Finally, implications for policy and practice are discussed, and conclusions drawn concerning the roles of champions within different workplace environments. © The Author (2013). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For

The mechanisms and boundary conditions of the Einstellung effect in chess: evidence from eye movements.

Science.gov (United States)

Sheridan, Heather; Reingold, Eyal M

2013-01-01

In a wide range of problem-solving settings, the presence of a familiar solution can block the discovery of better solutions (i.e., the Einstellung effect). To investigate this effect, we monitored the eye movements of expert and novice chess players while they solved chess problems that contained a familiar move (i.e., the Einstellung move), as well as an optimal move that was located in a different region of the board. When the Einstellung move was an advantageous (but suboptimal) move, both the expert and novice chess players who chose the Einstellung move continued to look at this move throughout the trial, whereas the subset of expert players who chose the optimal move were able to gradually disengage their attention from the Einstellung move. However, when the Einstellung move was a blunder, all of the experts and the majority of the novices were able to avoid selecting the Einstellung move, and both the experts and novices gradually disengaged their attention from the Einstellung move. These findings shed light on the boundary conditions of the Einstellung effect, and provide convergent evidence for Bilalić, McLeod, & Gobet (2008)'s conclusion that the Einstellung effect operates by biasing attention towards problem features that are associated with the familiar solution rather than the optimal solution.

Move-by-move dynamics of the advantage in chess matches reveals population-level learning of the game.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Haroldo V Ribeiro

Full Text Available The complexity of chess matches has attracted broad interest since its invention. This complexity and the availability of large number of recorded matches make chess an ideal model systems for the study of population-level learning of a complex system. We systematically investigate the move-by-move dynamics of the white player's advantage from over seventy thousand high level chess matches spanning over 150 years. We find that the average advantage of the white player is positive and that it has been increasing over time. Currently, the average advantage of the white player is 0.17 pawns but it is exponentially approaching a value of 0.23 pawns with a characteristic time scale of 67 years. We also study the diffusion of the move dependence of the white player's advantage and find that it is non-Gaussian, has long-ranged anti-correlations and that after an initial period with no diffusion it becomes super-diffusive. We find that the duration of the non-diffusive period, corresponding to the opening stage of a match, is increasing in length and exponentially approaching a value of 15.6 moves with a characteristic time scale of 130 years. We interpret these two trends as a resulting from learning of the features of the game. Additionally, we find that the exponent [Formula: see text] characterizing the super-diffusive regime is increasing toward a value of 1.9, close to the ballistic regime. We suggest that this trend is due to the increased broadening of the range of abilities of chess players participating in major tournaments.

Move-by-move dynamics of the advantage in chess matches reveals population-level learning of the game.

Science.gov (United States)

Ribeiro, Haroldo V; Mendes, Renio S; Lenzi, Ervin K; del Castillo-Mussot, Marcelo; Amaral, Luís A N

2013-01-01

The complexity of chess matches has attracted broad interest since its invention. This complexity and the availability of large number of recorded matches make chess an ideal model systems for the study of population-level learning of a complex system. We systematically investigate the move-by-move dynamics of the white player's advantage from over seventy thousand high level chess matches spanning over 150 years. We find that the average advantage of the white player is positive and that it has been increasing over time. Currently, the average advantage of the white player is 0.17 pawns but it is exponentially approaching a value of 0.23 pawns with a characteristic time scale of 67 years. We also study the diffusion of the move dependence of the white player's advantage and find that it is non-Gaussian, has long-ranged anti-correlations and that after an initial period with no diffusion it becomes super-diffusive. We find that the duration of the non-diffusive period, corresponding to the opening stage of a match, is increasing in length and exponentially approaching a value of 15.6 moves with a characteristic time scale of 130 years. We interpret these two trends as a resulting from learning of the features of the game. Additionally, we find that the exponent [Formula: see text] characterizing the super-diffusive regime is increasing toward a value of 1.9, close to the ballistic regime. We suggest that this trend is due to the increased broadening of the range of abilities of chess players participating in major tournaments.

Chips challenging champions games, computers and artificial intelligence

CERN Document Server

Schaeffer, J

2002-01-01

One of the earliest dreams of the fledgling field of artificial intelligence (AI) was to build computer programs that could play games as well as or better than the best human players. Despite early optimism in the field, the challenge proved to be surprisingly difficult. However, the 1990s saw amazing progress. Computers are now better than humans in checkers, Othello and Scrabble; are at least as good as the best humans in backgammon and chess; and are rapidly improving at hex, go, poker, and shogi. This book documents the progress made in computers playing games and puzzles. The book is the

The protostar OMC-2 FIR 4: Results from the CHESS Herschel/HIFI spectral survey

Science.gov (United States)

Kama, Mihkel; Lopez-Sepulcre, Ana; Ceccarelli, Cecilia; Dominik, Carsten; Caux, Emmanuel; Fuente, Asuncion

2013-07-01

The intermediate-mass protostar OMC-2 FIR 4 in Orion is the focus of several ongoing studies, including a CHESS key programme Herschel/HIFI spectral survey. In this poster, we review recent CHESS results on this source, including the properties of the central hot core, the presence of a compact outflow, the spatial variation of the chemical composition, and the discovery of a tenuous foreground cloud. The HIFI spectrum of FIR 4 contains 719 lines from 40 species and isotopologs. Cooling by lines detectable with our sensitivity contributes 2% of the total in the 480 to 1900 GHz range. The total line flux is dominated by CO, followed by H2O and CH3OH. Initial comparisons with spectral surveys of other sources will also be presented.

Proposed dedicated high pressure beam lines at CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruoff, A.L.; Vohra, Y.K.; Bassett, W.A.; Batterman, B.W.; Bilderback, D.H.

1988-01-01

An instrumentation proposal for dedicated high pressure beam lines at CHESS is described. It is the purpose of this proposed program to provide researchers in high pressure science with beam lines for X-ray diffraction studies in the megabar regime. This will involve radiation from a bending magnet as well as from a wiggler. Examples of the high pressure results up to 2.16 Mbar are shown. Diffraction patterns from bending magnet and wiggler beams are shown and compared. The need for this facility by the high pressure community is discussed. (orig.)

Comparison between morphometric measurements os current herd Mangalarga Marchador males and breed champions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juliano Martins Santiago

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Equines morphometric analysis is an important method of selection related to functionality of the species. Mangalarga Marchador is the most important horse Brazilian breed and its evolution can be observed in specialized exhibition where owners expase their herd with the breed exponents, adopting them as selection parameters. In this context the study aimed to compare the morphometric measures of Mangalarga Marchador males herd with the champions of breed, using as parameters breed standards and Eclectic System of Proportions for saddle horse. Experimental design was completely randomized and treatments were the Mangalarga Marchador male herd, represented by all horses registered from 2000 to 2012, wich had measurements stored in Associação Brasileira de Criadores do Cavalo Mangalarga Marchador (ABCCMM service studbook database, totaling 15,482 animals, and the champions of breed, represented by 222 horses champions who participated of the 29th, 30th or 31th Exposição Nacional do Cavalo Mangalarga Marchador. Variables evaluated were height at withers and at rump, length of the head, neck, dorse, rump, shoulder and body, width of head and of rump, thoracic perimeter and cannon perimeter. Average linear measurements were related to length of head, according to Eclectic System of Proportions for saddle horse. Results were submitted to variance analysis and averages were compared by Fisher test (p<0.05. Regarding the current herd of males Mangalarga Marchador, the champions of the race showed greater length of neck, dorse, rump and body, height at withers and at rump, width of rump, cannon perimeter and shorter length of the shoulder. It was concluded that although larger, the champions horses Mangalarga Marchador are proportionally similar to current herd. Mangalarga Marchador horses have not yet reached the height considered ideal by breed standard and their proportions are different from those recommended by Eclectic System of Proportions for

The Roles of recognition processes and look-ahead search in time-constrained expert problem solving: Evidence from grandmaster level chess.

OpenAIRE

Gobet, F; Simon, H A

1996-01-01

Chess has long served as an important standard task environment for research on human memory and problem-solving abilities and processes. In this paper, we report evidence on the relative importance of recognition processes and planning (look-ahead) processes in very high level expert performance in chess. The data show that the rated skill of a top-level grandmaster is only slightly lower when he is playing simultaneously against a half dozen grandmaster opponents than under tournament con...

The mechanisms and boundary conditions of the Einstellung effect in chess: evidence from eye movements.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heather Sheridan

Full Text Available In a wide range of problem-solving settings, the presence of a familiar solution can block the discovery of better solutions (i.e., the Einstellung effect. To investigate this effect, we monitored the eye movements of expert and novice chess players while they solved chess problems that contained a familiar move (i.e., the Einstellung move, as well as an optimal move that was located in a different region of the board. When the Einstellung move was an advantageous (but suboptimal move, both the expert and novice chess players who chose the Einstellung move continued to look at this move throughout the trial, whereas the subset of expert players who chose the optimal move were able to gradually disengage their attention from the Einstellung move. However, when the Einstellung move was a blunder, all of the experts and the majority of the novices were able to avoid selecting the Einstellung move, and both the experts and novices gradually disengaged their attention from the Einstellung move. These findings shed light on the boundary conditions of the Einstellung effect, and provide convergent evidence for Bilalić, McLeod, & Gobet (2008's conclusion that the Einstellung effect operates by biasing attention towards problem features that are associated with the familiar solution rather than the optimal solution.

Fat-suppressed MR images of both hands obtained using CHESS can be improved by rice pads.

Science.gov (United States)

Moriya, Susumu; Miki, Yukio; Kamishima, Tamotsu; Kanagaki, Mitsunori; Yokobayashi, Tsuneo; Ishikawa, Mitsunori

2012-09-01

When chemical shift selective (CHESS) imaging is used with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for simultaneous imaging of both hands for the evaluation of rheumatoid arthritis, the fat suppression effect is poor. We investigated whether these fat-suppressed images using CHESS could be improved with the use of rice pads. T1-weighted images were obtained with CHESS and the same imaging parameters were used with and without rice pads on the coronal plane of both hands in 10 healthy volunteers. Patients were placed in a prone position with both hands extended overhead. The fat-suppression effect was classified into four categories and scored for both sets of images, and visual assessments were made by one radiologist and one radiologic technologist. The evaluation score was 1.1 for the images made without rice pads, and 3.2 for the images made with rice pads. The fat suppression effect was thus significantly better in the images made using rice pads (PCHESS with rice pads, and it was confirmed that the images were improved and had good fat suppression. More accurate evaluation of inflammatory sites that occur in rheumatoid arthritis may thus be possible, promising better diagnostic accuracy. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Making good use of synchrotron radiation, The role of CHESS at Cornell and as a national facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batterman, B.W.

1986-01-01

Atom smashers is what the New York Times calls them when it publishes a piece about particle accelerators. Historically, particle accelerators were in fact used to break apart atoms, but modern machines do more exotic things. One of them is a spin-off of acceleration - the production of high-energy synchrotron radiation. Once considered a nuisance, this radiation has become valuable in almost every field of science and engineering. It is the basis of a national facility, the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS), that operates in conjunction with the Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR). CHESS provides the highest-energy synchrotron radiation available in the United States

Paper or Plastic Revisited: Let's Keep Them Both--Reply to Broderick and Stone (2006); Tennen, Affleck, Coyne, Larsen, and DeLongis (2006); and Takarangi, Garry, and Loftus (2006)

Science.gov (United States)

Bolger, Niall; Shrout, Patrick E.; Green, Amie S.; Rafaeli, Eshkol; Reis, Harry T.

2006-01-01

The authors review commentaries by J. E. Broderick and A. A. Stone (2006); H. Tennen, G. Affleck, J. C. Coyne, R. J. Larsen, and A. DeLongis (2006); and M. K. T. Takarangi, M. Garry, and E. F. Loftus (2006) on their original article (A. S. Green, E. Rafaeli, N. Bolger, P. Shrout, & H. T. Reis, 2006). The authors were pleased to find more agreement…

Becoming the Physical Activity Champion: Empowerment through Social Marketing

Science.gov (United States)

Colquitt, Gavin; Alfonso, Moya L.; Walker, Ashley

2014-01-01

Physical education teachers can champion their profession through marketing the importance of physical activity to children and families in the communities they serve. Social marketing, a consumer-based approach to behavior change, is an excellent choice for physical education teachers who want to "sell" physical activity to their…

Examining the Impact of Chess Instruction for the Visual Impairment on Mathematics

Science.gov (United States)

Aydin, Mensure

2015-01-01

The purpose of the study is to explore the impact of chess instruction for visually impaired children on math achievement. The study group consists of a total of 26 visually impaired students from inclusion classes in inclusive secondary schools of MoNE (Ministry of National Education), 9 male and 5 female students in the experiment group and 8…

Workplace Wellness Champions: Lessons Learned and Implications for Future Programming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Megan Amaya

2017-05-01

Conclusions: The Wellness Innovator program is an important strategy in encouraging faculty and staff to participate in wellness activities and services. More research is needed to determine the impact of wellness champion teams on health and wellness outcomes.

The cost of severe haemophilia in Europe: the CHESS study.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Hara, Jamie; Hughes, David; Camp, Charlotte; Burke, Tom; Carroll, Liz; Diego, Daniel-Anibal Garcia

2017-05-31

Severe haemophilia is associated with major psychological and economic burden for patients, caregivers, and the wider health care system. This burden has been quantified and documented for a number of European countries in recent years. However, few studies have taken a standardised methodology across multiple countries simultaneously, and sought to amalgamate all three levels of burden for severe disease. The overall aim of the 'Cost of Haemophilia in Europe: a Socioeconomic Survey' (CHESS) study was to capture the annualised economic and psychosocial burden of severe haemophilia in five European countries. A cross-section of haemophilia specialists (surveyed between January and April 2015) provided demographic and clinical information and 12-month ambulatory and secondary care activity for patients via an online survey. In turn, patients provided corresponding direct and indirect non-medical cost information, including work loss and out-of-pocket expenses, as well as information on quality of life and adherence. The direct and indirect costs for the patient sample were calculated and extrapolated to population level. Clinical reports for a total of 1,285 patients were received. Five hundred and fifty-two patients (43% of the sample) provided information on indirect costs and health-related quality of life via the PSC. The total annual cost of severe haemophilia across the five countries for 2014 was estimated at EUR 1.4 billion, or just under EUR 200,000 per patient. The highest per-patient costs were in Germany (mean EUR 319,024) and the lowest were in the United Kingdom (mean EUR 129,365), with a study average of EUR 199,541. As expected, consumption of clotting factor replacement therapy represented the vast majority of costs (up to 99%). Indirect costs are driven by patient and caregiver work loss. The results of the CHESS study reflect previous research findings suggesting that costs of factor replacement therapy account for the vast majority of the cost

Learning curves in highly skilled chess players: a test of the generality of the power law of practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Howard, Robert W

2014-09-01

The power law of practice holds that a power function best interrelates skill performance and amount of practice. However, the law's validity and generality are moot. Some researchers argue that it is an artifact of averaging individual exponential curves while others question whether the law generalizes to complex skills and to performance measures other than response time. The present study tested the power law's generality to development over many years of a very complex cognitive skill, chess playing, with 387 skilled participants, most of whom were grandmasters. A power or logarithmic function best fit grouped data but individuals showed much variability. An exponential function usually was the worst fit to individual data. Groups differing in chess talent were compared and a power function best fit the group curve for the more talented players while a quadratic function best fit that for the less talented. After extreme amounts of practice, a logarithmic function best fit grouped data but a quadratic function best fit most individual curves. Individual variability is great and the power law or an exponential law are not the best descriptions of individual chess skill development. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Practice other than playing games apparently has only a modest role in the development of chess expertise.

Science.gov (United States)

Howard, Robert W

2013-02-01

Evidence that chess expertise rests on practice alone mostly comes from studies using a correlational retrospective recall paradigm, which confounds amount of study with number of games played and possible innate talent. Researchers also often use latest performance rating and include participants who play and study little. Study 1 partially replicated such studies with improvements such as use of peak rating and a large, skilled sample. Number of internationally-rated games played was the strongest predictor of peak rating. Total study hours was a significant but weaker predictor. Study 2 controlled for sampling confounds by including only very well-practiced players who had played at least 350 internationally-rated games. Total study hours did not predict rating at 350 games. Study 3 found that the subjective phenomenon of reaching a performance ceiling and undertaking specific practice to get beyond it does occur but does not distinguish between stronger and weaker players. Study 4 found that many players play relatively few internationally-rated games mostly because of other commitments, such as work and education. Extensive study may go along with great interest in and persistence at chess but apparently lacks a major causative role in chess performance level. © 2012 The British Psychological Society.

Fat suppression with short inversion time inversion-recovery and chemical-shift selective saturation: a dual STIR-CHESS combination prepulse for turbo spin echo pulse sequences.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanabe, Koji; Nishikawa, Keiichi; Sano, Tsukasa; Sakai, Osamu; Jara, Hernán

2010-05-01

To test a newly developed fat suppression magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) prepulse that synergistically uses the principles of fat suppression via inversion recovery (STIR) and spectral fat saturation (CHESS), relative to pure CHESS and STIR. This new technique is termed dual fat suppression (Dual-FS). To determine if Dual-FS could be chemically specific for fat, the phantom consisted of the fat-mimicking NiCl(2) aqueous solution, porcine fat, porcine muscle, and water was imaged with the three fat-suppression techniques. For Dual-FS and STIR, several inversion times were used. Signal intensities of each image obtained with each technique were compared. To determine if Dual-FS could be robust to magnetic field inhomogeneities, the phantom consisting of different NiCl(2) aqueous solutions, porcine fat, porcine muscle, and water was imaged with Dual-FS and CHESS at the several off-resonance frequencies. To compare fat suppression efficiency in vivo, 10 volunteer subjects were also imaged with the three fat-suppression techniques. Dual-FS could suppress fat sufficiently within the inversion time of 110-140 msec, thus enabling differentiation between fat and fat-mimicking aqueous structures. Dual-FS was as robust to magnetic field inhomogeneities as STIR and less vulnerable than CHESS. The same results for fat suppression were obtained in volunteers. The Dual-FS-STIR-CHESS is an alternative and promising fat suppression technique for turbo spin echo MRI. Copyright 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Turn-Based War Chess Model and Its Search Algorithm per Turn

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hai Nan

2016-01-01

Full Text Available War chess gaming has so far received insufficient attention but is a significant component of turn-based strategy games (TBS and is studied in this paper. First, a common game model is proposed through various existing war chess types. Based on the model, we propose a theory frame involving combinational optimization on the one hand and game tree search on the other hand. We also discuss a key problem, namely, that the number of the branching factors of each turn in the game tree is huge. Then, we propose two algorithms for searching in one turn to solve the problem: (1 enumeration by order; (2 enumeration by recursion. The main difference between these two is the permutation method used: the former uses the dictionary sequence method, while the latter uses the recursive permutation method. Finally, we prove that both of these algorithms are optimal, and we analyze the difference between their efficiencies. An important factor is the total time taken for the unit to expand until it achieves its reachable position. The factor, which is the total number of expansions that each unit makes in its reachable position, is set. The conclusion proposed is in terms of this factor: Enumeration by recursion is better than enumeration by order in all situations.

Macromolecular crystallographic results obtained using a 2048x2048 CCD detector at CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thiel, D.J.; Ealick, S.E.; Tate, M.W.; Gruner, S.M.; Eikenberry, E.F.

1996-01-01

We present results of macromolecular crystallographic experiments performed at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS) with a new CCD-based detector. This detector, installed in January 1995, complements a 1024x1024 CCD detector that has been in continuous operation at CHESS since December 1993. The new detector is based on a 4-port, 2048x2048 pixel CCD that is directly coupled to a Gd 2 O 2 S:Tb phosphor by a 3:1 tapered fiber optic. The active area of the phosphor is a square 82 mm on an edge. The readout time is 7 seconds. In the standard mode of operation, the pixel size at the active area is 41 μm on the edge leading to the capability of resolving approximately 200 orders of diffraction across the detector face. The detector also operates in a 1024x1024 mode in which the pixel size is electronically increased by a factor of 4 in area resulting in smaller data files and faster detector readout but at the expense of spatial resolution. Most of the data that has been collected by this detector has been collected in this mode. Dozens of data sets have been collected by many experimenters using this detector at CHESS during the four month period from its installation until the start of the six-month down period of the storage ring. The capabilities of the detector will be illustrated with results from various crystallographic measurements including experiments in which the recorded diffraction patterns extend in resolution as far as 1 A. The results demonstrate that this detector is capable of collecting data of quality at least equal to that of imaging plates but, in many circumstances, with much greater beamline efficiency. copyright 1996 American Institute of Physics

CHESS-the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batterman, B.W.; Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY

1980-01-01

The Wilson Laboratory at Cornell University has done pioneering work on development of high energy synchrotrons. In the last decade, the 12 GeV synchrotron has been the most energetic electron synchrotron in the world. In 1975 plans were formulated to build a 4-8 GeV storage ring in the same tunnel as the synchrotron and to use the latter as the injector for the storage ring. This small radius (the normal bend magnets have R = 87 m), coupled with the relatively high electron energy of the storage ring, makes these magnets potent sources of synchrotron radiation. In June of 1978 the National Science Foundation funded a project to create CHESS, the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source. (orig./FKS)

Mechanisms and Neural Basis of Object and Pattern Recognition: A Study with Chess Experts

Science.gov (United States)

Bilalic, Merim; Langner, Robert; Erb, Michael; Grodd, Wolfgang

2010-01-01

Comparing experts with novices offers unique insights into the functioning of cognition, based on the maximization of individual differences. Here we used this expertise approach to disentangle the mechanisms and neural basis behind two processes that contribute to everyday expertise: object and pattern recognition. We compared chess experts and…

The SLICE, CHESS, and SISTINE Ultraviolet Spectrographs: Rocket-Borne Instrumentation Supporting Future Astrophysics Missions

Science.gov (United States)

France, Kevin; Hoadley, Keri; Fleming, Brian T.; Kane, Robert; Nell, Nicholas; Beasley, Matthew; Green, James C.

2016-03-01

NASA’s suborbital program provides an opportunity to conduct unique science experiments above Earth’s atmosphere and is a pipeline for the technology and personnel essential to future space astrophysics, heliophysics, and atmospheric science missions. In this paper, we describe three astronomy payloads developed (or in development) by the Ultraviolet Rocket Group at the University of Colorado. These far-ultraviolet (UV) (100-160nm) spectrographic instruments are used to study a range of scientific topics, from gas in the interstellar medium (accessing diagnostics of material spanning five orders of magnitude in temperature in a single observation) to the energetic radiation environment of nearby exoplanetary systems. The three instruments, Suborbital Local Interstellar Cloud Experiment (SLICE), Colorado High-resolution Echelle Stellar Spectrograph (CHESS), and Suborbital Imaging Spectrograph for Transition region Irradiance from Nearby Exoplanet host stars (SISTINE) form a progression of instrument designs and component-level technology maturation. SLICE is a pathfinder instrument for the development of new data handling, storage, and telemetry techniques. CHESS and SISTINE are testbeds for technology and instrument design enabling high-resolution (R>105) point source spectroscopy and high throughput imaging spectroscopy, respectively, in support of future Explorer, Probe, and Flagship-class missions. The CHESS and SISTINE payloads support the development and flight testing of large-format photon-counting detectors and advanced optical coatings: NASA’s top two technology priorities for enabling a future flagship observatory (e.g. the LUVOIR Surveyor concept) that offers factors of ˜50-100 gain in UV spectroscopy capability over the Hubble Space Telescope. We present the design, component level laboratory characterization, and flight results for these instruments.

Expertise and processing distorted structure in chess.

Science.gov (United States)

Bartlett, James C; Boggan, Amy L; Krawczyk, Daniel C

2013-01-01

A classic finding in research on human expertise and knowledge is that of enhanced memory for stimuli in a domain of expertise as compared to either stimuli outside that domain, or within-domain stimuli that have been degraded or distorted in some way. However, we do not understand how experts process degradation or distortion of stimuli within the expert domain (e.g., a face with the eyes, nose, and mouth in the wrong positions, or a chessboard with pieces placed randomly). Focusing on the domain of chess, we present new fMRI evidence that when experts view such distorted/within-domain stimuli, they engage an active search for structure-a kind of exploratory chunking-that involves a component of a prefrontal-parietal network linked to consciousness, attention and working memory.

Molecular computation: RNA solutions to chess problems.

Science.gov (United States)

Faulhammer, D; Cukras, A R; Lipton, R J; Landweber, L F

2000-02-15

We have expanded the field of "DNA computers" to RNA and present a general approach for the solution of satisfiability problems. As an example, we consider a variant of the "Knight problem," which asks generally what configurations of knights can one place on an n x n chess board such that no knight is attacking any other knight on the board. Using specific ribonuclease digestion to manipulate strands of a 10-bit binary RNA library, we developed a molecular algorithm and applied it to a 3 x 3 chessboard as a 9-bit instance of this problem. Here, the nine spaces on the board correspond to nine "bits" or placeholders in a combinatorial RNA library. We recovered a set of "winning" molecules that describe solutions to this problem.

The APS x-ray undulator photon beam position monitor and tests at CHESS and NSLS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shu, D.; Rodricks, B.; Barraza, J.; Sanchez, T.; Kuzay, T.M.

1992-01-01

The advent of third generation synchrotron radiation sources, like the Advanced Photon Source (APS), will provide significant increases in brilliance over existing synchrotron sources. The APS x-ray undulators will increase the brilliance in the 3-40 KeV range by several orders of magnitude. Thus, the design of the photon beam position monitor is a challenging engineering task. The beam position monitors must withstand the high thermal load, be able to achieve sub-micron spatial resolution while maintaining their stability, and be compatible with both undulators and wigglers. A preliminary APS prototype photon beam position monitor consisting of a CVD-diamond-based, tungsten-coated blade was tested on the APS/CHESS undulator at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Radiation Source (CHESS) and on the NSLS X-13 undulator beamline. Results from these tests, as well as the design of this prototype APS photon beam position monitor, will be discussed in this paper

The APS X-ray undulator photon beam position monitor and tests at CHESS and NSLS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shu, D.; Rodricks, B.; Barraza, J.; Sanchez, T.; Kuzay, T.M.

1992-01-01

The advent of thirs generation synchrotron sources, like the Advanced Photon Source (APS), will provide significant increases in brilliance over existing synchrotron sources. The APS X-ray undulators will increase the brilliance in the 3-40 keV range by several orders of magnitude. Thus, the design of the photon beam position monitor is a challenging engineering task. The beam position monitors must withstand the high thermal load, be able to achieve submicron spatial resolution while maintaining their stability, and be compatible with both undulators and wigglers. A preliminary APS prototype photon beam position monitor consisting of a CVD-diamond-based, tungsten-coated blade was tested on the APS/CHESS undulator at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Radiation Source (CHESS) and on the NSLS X-13 undulator beamline. Results from these tests, as well as the design of this prototype APS photon beam position monitor, will be discussed in this paper. (orig.)

The role of peer physical activity champions in the workplace: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Edmunds, Sarah; Clow, Angela

2016-05-01

Peer health champions have been suggested as an important component of multilevel workplace interventions to promote healthy behaviours such as physical activity (PA). There is accumulating quantitative evidence of their effectiveness but as yet little exploration of why and how champions influence peer behaviour. The current study explores the role of peer physical activity champions (PPACs) in influencing colleagues' PA behaviour from the perspectives of both champions and colleagues. Seven months after the introduction of a workplace PA programme in 17 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), two focus groups were held with PPACs and four with programme participants. Data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. Three overarching themes were developed: how PPACs encourage PA, valuable PPAC characteristics and sustaining motivation for the PPAC role. Both direct encouragement from PPACs and facilitation of wider PA supportive social networks within the workplace encouraged behaviour change. PA behaviour change is a delicate subject and it was important that PPACs provided enthusiastic and persistent encouragement without seeming judgemental. Being a PA role model was also a valuable characteristic. The PPACs found it satisfying to see positive changes in their colleagues who had become more active. However, colleagues often did not engage in suggested activities and PPACs required resilience to maintain personal motivation for the role despite this. Incorporating PPACs into SME-based PA interventions is acceptable to employees. It is recommended that PPAC training includes suggestions for facilitating social connections between colleagues. Sensitivity is required when initiating and engaging in conversations with colleagues about increasing their PA. Programmes should ensure PPACs themselves are provided with social support, especially from others in the same role, to help sustain motivation for their role. These findings will be useful to health

Defending Champions Reign Supreme at 2017 Student Science Jeopardy Tournament | Poster

Science.gov (United States)

Anuk Dayaprema and Evan Yamaguchi, champions of the 2016 Student Science Jeopardy Tournament, have done it again. After a grueling competition, they emerged victorious for the second year in a row at the 2017 Student Science Jeopardy Tournament, sponsored by the Scientific Library.

Linking Extreme Precocity and Adult Eminence: A Study of Eight Prodigies at International Chess

Science.gov (United States)

Howard, Robert W.

2008-01-01

Do prodigies have extraordinary innate talent or do they just start very early and get much practice? Why do relatively few become eminent as adults? Is it because early and later success often need somewhat different abilities and gatekeepers rule? International chess is a good test domain for both issues because it has objective longitudinal…

Becoming a Hidden Champion: From Selective use of Customer Intimacy and Product Leadership to Business Attractiveness

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Balas Rant Melita

2017-04-01

Full Text Available This paper sheds light on factors that support SMEs becoming market leaders on an international scale. Specifically, it studies the hidden champion type of companies, defined as SMEs that hold market leadership in narrow business segments on a regional or wider international scale. The market positioning of hidden champions is defined subjectively by CEOs in such a way that they create a high level of business attractiveness. This explorative study reveals that product leadership and customer intimacy are two blocks that build the business attractiveness of hidden champions. More specifically, the study on data from 93 niche leaders from Central and Eastern Europe showed that product leadership negatively moderates the business attractiveness-performance relationship, while the impact of the combination of product leadership and customer intimacy on the business attractiveness-firm performance relationship is not straightforward and depends on different combinations of these values.

A Chess-Like Game for Teaching Engineering Students to Solve Large System of Simultaneous Linear Equations

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Duc T.; Mohammed, Ahmed Ali; Kadiam, Subhash

2010-01-01

Solving large (and sparse) system of simultaneous linear equations has been (and continues to be) a major challenging problem for many real-world engineering/science applications [1-2]. For many practical/large-scale problems, the sparse, Symmetrical and Positive Definite (SPD) system of linear equations can be conveniently represented in matrix notation as [A] {x} = {b} , where the square coefficient matrix [A] and the Right-Hand-Side (RHS) vector {b} are known. The unknown solution vector {x} can be efficiently solved by the following step-by-step procedures [1-2]: Reordering phase, Matrix Factorization phase, Forward solution phase, and Backward solution phase. In this research work, a Game-Based Learning (GBL) approach has been developed to help engineering students to understand crucial details about matrix reordering and factorization phases. A "chess-like" game has been developed and can be played by either a single player, or two players. Through this "chess-like" open-ended game, the players/learners will not only understand the key concepts involved in reordering algorithms (based on existing algorithms), but also have the opportunities to "discover new algorithms" which are better than existing algorithms. Implementing the proposed "chess-like" game for matrix reordering and factorization phases can be enhanced by FLASH [3] computer environments, where computer simulation with animated human voice, sound effects, visual/graphical/colorful displays of matrix tables, score (or monetary) awards for the best game players, etc. can all be exploited. Preliminary demonstrations of the developed GBL approach can be viewed by anyone who has access to the internet web-site [4]!

The Effects of Chess Instruction on the Mathematics Achievement of Southern, Rural, Black Secondary Students.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, James P.; Cage. Bob N.

2000-01-01

Studied the effects of 120 hours of chess instruction on the mathematics achievement of southern, rural, black secondary students. Analysis of covariance results show the treatment group (11 females, 9 males) scored significantly higher than the control group (10 females, 10 males) in mathematics achievement. Discusses results in terms of altering…

Our Move: Using Chess to Improve Math Achievement for Students Who Receive Special Education Services

Science.gov (United States)

Barrett, David C.; Fish, Wade W.

2011-01-01

This causal-comparative study evaluated a 30-week chess instructional program implemented within special education math classes for students in the sixth, seventh, and eighth grades in a suburban middle school located in the southwestern United States. An analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was utilized to compare the adjusted means for the comparison…

Calculation of heat transfer in transversely stream-lined tube bundles with chess arrangement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Migaj, V.K.

1978-01-01

A semiempirical theory of heat transfer in transversely stream-lined chess-board tube bundles has been developed. The theory is based on a single cylinder model and involves external flow parameter evaluation on the basis of the solidification principle of a vortex zone. The effect of turbulence is estimated according to experimental results. The method is extended to both average and local heat transfer coefficients. Comparison with experiment shows satisfactory agreement

5G CHAMPION - rolling out 5G in 2018

OpenAIRE

Mueck, M.; Strinati, E.C.; Kim, I.-G.; Clemente, A.; Dore, J.-B.; Domenico, A. de; Kim, T.; Choi, T.; Chung, H.K.; Destino, G.; Pärssinen, A.; Pouttu, A.; Latva-aho, M.; Chuberre, N.; Gineste, M.

2016-01-01

The 5G CHAMPION Consortium will provide the first fully integrated and operational 5G prototype in 2018 - this effort is a major leap ahead compared to existing punctual technology trials, such as, e.g., Proof-of-Concept platforms focusing on mm Wave communication in specific bands, etc. This paper describes the overall set-up including a synergetic combination of technologies such as beamforming based mm Wave & Satellite service provisioning, virtualized infrastructure, software reconfigurat...

Herschel CHESS discovery of the fossil cloud that gave birth to the Trapezium and Orion KL

NARCIS (Netherlands)

López-Sepulcre, A.; Kama, M.; Ceccarelli, C.; Dominik, C.; Caux, E.; Fuente, A.; Alonso-Albi, T.

2013-01-01

Context. The Orion A molecular complex is a nearby (420 pc), very well studied stellar nursery that is believed to contain examples of triggered star formation. Aims. As part of the Herschel guaranteed time key programme CHESS, we present the discovery of a diffuse gas component in the foreground of

Preparing the next generation of maternal and newborn health leaders: the maternal and newborn health champions initiatives.

Science.gov (United States)

Dao, Blami; Otolorin, Emmanuel; Gomez, Patricia P; Carr, Catherine; Sanghvi, Harshad

2015-06-01

A champion in health care can be defined as any health professional who has the requisite knowledge and skills in a relevant health field, who is respected by his/her peers and supported by his/her supervisors, and who takes the lead to promote or introduce evidence-based interventions to improve the quality of care. Jhpiego used a common approach during two distinct initiatives to identify individuals in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean whose expertise in their clinical service area and whose leadership capacity could be strengthened to enable them to serve as champions for maternal and newborn health (MNH). These champions have gone on to contribute to the improvement of MNH in their respective countries and regions. The lessons learned from this approach are shared so they can be used by other organizations to design leadership development strategies for MNH in low-resource countries. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

The tell-tale heart: heart rate fluctuations index objective and subjective events during a game of chess.

Science.gov (United States)

Leone, María J; Petroni, Agustín; Fernandez Slezak, Diego; Sigman, Mariano

2012-01-01

During a decision-making process, the body changes. These somatic changes have been related to specific cognitive events and also have been postulated to assist decision-making indexing possible outcomes of different options. We used chess to analyze heart rate (HR) modulations on specific cognitive events. In a chess game, players have a limited time-budget to make about 40 moves (decisions) that can be objectively evaluated and retrospectively assigned to specific subjectively perceived events, such as setting a goal and the process to reach a known goal. We show that HR signals events: it predicts the conception of a plan, the concrete analysis of variations or the likelihood to blunder by fluctuations before to the move, and it reflects reactions, such as a blunder made by the opponent, by fluctuations subsequent to the move. Our data demonstrate that even if HR constitutes a relatively broad marker integrating a myriad of physiological variables, its dynamic is rich enough to reveal relevant episodes of inner thought.

Energy dispersive X-ray diffraction at high pressure in CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruoff, A.L.; Baublitz, M.A. Jr.

1981-01-01

Energy dispersive X-ray techniques were used with a diamond anvil cell in the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS). It was shown that quantitative relative intensity measurement could be made when the pressure was hydrostatic and the crystals were relatively defect free. The crystal structures of the high pressure polymorphs of Ge, GaAs, GaP, and AlSb were studied. Ge exhibits the β-tetragonal structure as found by Jamieson; however, the transition pressure is 80 +- 5 kbars. GaAs exhibits an orthorhombic structure above 172 +- 7 kbars, GaP the β-Sn structure above 215 +- 8 kbars, and AlSb an orthorhombic structure above 77 +- 5 kbars. (Auth.)

The African Union System of Refugee Protection : A Champion not a Recipient?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nicolosi, S.

2014-01-01

Africa has often been treated as a mere recipient of legal systems, particularly by the former colonial powers. However, an examination of the African practice of international law reveals that, in the specific area of refugee protection, Africa has been championing a legal framework capable of

Un canoéiste du CERN vice-champion de France V3

CERN Multimedia

Canoe-Kayak Club

2016-01-01

Le monde du canoë-kayak slalom à rendez-vous depuis le 23 juillet à Bourg Saint Maurice pour une semaine de compétition pour disputer les championnats de France. Les  hostilités ont commencé par les catégories masters qui comptent d’anciens membres de l’équipe de France et des grands noms qui ont fait la gloire du canoë kayak, comme le duo Adisson-Forgues  champion olympique de canoë biplace en 1996, Philippe Quemerais double champion du monde de canoë biplace en 1999, 2002 et 5ème des jeux d’Athènes et des participants au passé plus modeste comme Olivier Barrière qui représentait le Canoë Kayak CERN en canoë monoplace ‘’C1’’ et en kayak ‘’K1’’ dans la catégorie homme V3 (45-50ans). A l&am...

The Impact of Chess Instruction on the Critical Thinking Ability and Mathematical Achievement of Developmental Mathematics Students

Science.gov (United States)

Berkley, Darrin K.

2012-01-01

This sequential explanatory mixed-methods study determined whether the game of chess can be used as an educational tool to improve critical thinking skills of developmental mathematics students and improve mathematics achievement for these students. Five research questions were investigated. These questions were as follows: (a) Is there a…

E-line: A new crystal collimator beam line for source size measurements at CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

White, Jeffrey A.; Revesz, Peter; Finkelstein, Ken

2007-01-01

A new X-ray beam line has been constructed at cornell high energy synchrotron source (CHESS) to measure the vertical and horizontal source size of the positron particle beam. The cornell laboratory of elementary particle physics (LEPP) operates the storage ring (CESR) for X-ray generation for the CHESS user community by circulating electrons and their antimatter counterpart positrons in counter-rotating beams. As the laboratory reduces the emittances of particle beams to increase X-ray brilliance, there has been an increasing need for diagnostic tools to measure and monitor source size. A beam line front end that accesses the positron synchrotron light has been fitted with an experimental chamber and apparatus of compact design capable of horizontal and vertical source size measurement using the 'crystal collimator' technique, and an additional setup for vertical beam position monitoring using a luminescence-based X-ray video beam position monitoring system. The crystal collimators each consist of two Si(2 2 0) crystals in a dispersive (+,+) arrangement that diffract X-rays to a fluorescent material coated on a view port observed with a CCD camera. Measurements of the positron vertical beam size using the crystal collimation method at E-line are compared with measurements of visible synchrotron light at a remotely located dedicated port on the storage ring

65 Years & Counting: AASL and School Librarians--Still Champions of Intellectual Freedom

Science.gov (United States)

Adams, Helen R.

2016-01-01

The American Association of School Librarians and its members have always been champions of intellectual freedom. It is a core value of school librarians and has been--and remains--an integral part of AASL's culture. Intellectual freedom is deeply embedded in AASL's standards, position statements, member-focused publications, conferences, award…

Supporting Nurse Health Champions: Developing a "New Generation" of Health Improvement Facilitators

Science.gov (United States)

Blake, H.; Chambers, D.

2012-01-01

In efforts to respond to key government public health initiatives for settings-based health promotion, the "Workplace Health Champion" role has emerged as a method of promoting health within the UK healthcare setting. Health promotion techniques used by these individuals are based on psychological theories that are known to motivate…

ERP to chess stimuli reveal expert-novice differences in the amplitudes of N2 and P3 components.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Michael J; Gobet, Fernand; Chassy, Philippe; Ramchandani, Payal Nanik

2013-10-01

ERP experiments were conducted to analyze the underlying neural events when chess players make simple judgments of a board position. Fourteen expert players and 14 age-matched novices viewed, for each of four tasks, 128 unique positions on a mini (4 × 4) chess board each presented for 0.5 s. The tasks were to respond: (a) if white king was in check, (b) if black knight was present, (c) if white king was not in check, and (d) if no black knight was present. Experts showed an enhanced N2 with check targets and a larger P3 with knight targets, relative to novices. Expert-novice differences in posterior N2 began as early as 240 ms on check-related searches. Results were consistent with the view that prolonged N2 components reflect matching of current perceptual input to memory, and thus are sensitive to experts' superior pattern recognition and memory retrieval of chunks. Copyright © 2013 Society for Psychophysiological Research.

CHESS (CgHExpreSS): a comprehensive analysis tool for the analysis of genomic alterations and their effects on the expression profile of the genome.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Mikyung; Kim, Yangseok

2009-12-16

Genomic alterations frequently occur in many cancer patients and play important mechanistic roles in the pathogenesis of cancer. Furthermore, they can modify the expression level of genes due to altered copy number in the corresponding region of the chromosome. An accumulating body of evidence supports the possibility that strong genome-wide correlation exists between DNA content and gene expression. Therefore, more comprehensive analysis is needed to quantify the relationship between genomic alteration and gene expression. A well-designed bioinformatics tool is essential to perform this kind of integrative analysis. A few programs have already been introduced for integrative analysis. However, there are many limitations in their performance of comprehensive integrated analysis using published software because of limitations in implemented algorithms and visualization modules. To address this issue, we have implemented the Java-based program CHESS to allow integrative analysis of two experimental data sets: genomic alteration and genome-wide expression profile. CHESS is composed of a genomic alteration analysis module and an integrative analysis module. The genomic alteration analysis module detects genomic alteration by applying a threshold based method or SW-ARRAY algorithm and investigates whether the detected alteration is phenotype specific or not. On the other hand, the integrative analysis module measures the genomic alteration's influence on gene expression. It is divided into two separate parts. The first part calculates overall correlation between comparative genomic hybridization ratio and gene expression level by applying following three statistical methods: simple linear regression, Spearman rank correlation and Pearson's correlation. In the second part, CHESS detects the genes that are differentially expressed according to the genomic alteration pattern with three alternative statistical approaches: Student's t-test, Fisher's exact test and Chi square

Make Chess games the Lubricant of Children＇s Development%让棋类游戏成为孩子发展的润滑剂

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

陈抒

2011-01-01

棋类游戏是中华民族文化的瑰宝，被人们称为“智慧的体操”，是老少皆宜的竞赛游戏。幼儿园中班教育教学中，引入融趣味性、益智性于一体的飞行棋游戏，让孩子们在游戏中学习下棋，体验下棋带来的愉悦与成就感，不仅可以开发幼儿智力、训练幼儿思维，还可以培养幼儿的专注力、意志力、合作能力以及规则意识、创新意识等，养成做事认真、专注的好习惯。促进幼儿的全面发展。%Chess games arc a treasure of Chinese culture, known as the ＂wisdom of gymnastics,＂ is the ages of racing game. Intermediate nursery education, the introduction of f＇mancial interest, puzzle games in one flight chess, so that children learn in the game chess, chess experience the pleasure and sense of accomplishment, not only can develop children＇s intelligence, training children thought to cultivate children＇s concentration, willpower, ability to cooperate and awareness of the rules, innovation, etc., to develop a serious work, focus on good habits, to promote children＇s overall development.

Tapering Practices of Croatian Open-Class Powerlifting Champions.

Science.gov (United States)

Grgic, Jozo; Mikulic, Pavle

2017-09-01

Grgic, J and Mikulic, P. Tapering practices of Croatian open-class powerlifting champions. J Strength Cond Res 31(9): 2371-2378, 2017-The aim of this study was to explore tapering practices among 10 Croatian open-class powerlifting champions (mean ± SD: age 29.2 ± 3.2 years; Wilks coefficient 355.1 ± 54.8). The athletes were interviewed about their tapering practices using a semi-structured interview after which the audio content was transcribed. The athletes reported decreasing training volume during the taper by 50.5 ± 11.7% using a step type or an exponential type of taper with a fast decay. Training intensity was maintained or increased during the taper, and it reached its highest values 8 ± 3 days before the competition. Training frequency was reduced or maintained during the taper. The final week included a reduction in training frequency by 47.9 ± 17.5% with the last training session performed 3 ± 1 days before the competition. The participants typically stated that the main reasons for conducting the taper were maintaining strength and reducing the amount of fatigue. They also stated that (a) the taper was structured identically for the squat, bench press, and the deadlift; (b) the training during the taper was highly specific, the assistance exercises were removed, and the same equipment was used as during competition; (c) the source of information for tapering was their coach, and training fluctuated based on the coach's feedback; and (d) nutrition, foam rolling, static stretching, and massage were all given extra attention during the taper. These results may aid athletes and coaches in strength sports in terms of the optimization of tapering variables.

New X-ray beam position monitors with submicron resolution utilizing imaging of scattered X-rays at CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Revesz, Peter; Temnykh, Alexander B.; Pauling, Alan K.

2011-01-01

At CHESS' A, F and G wiggler beam lines three new video beam position monitors (VBPMs) have been commissioned. These new VBPMs utilize X-rays scattered from the graphite filter (A and F line) or from a beryllium window (G-line) as the white wiggler beam passes through them. As the X-rays scatter in all directions from the scattering medium, a slit camera creates an image of the beam's footprint on a fluorescent screen. This image is then viewed by a CCD camera and analyzed using a computer program to calculate the intensity centroid, the beam profile and integrated intensity. These data are delivered to the CHESS signal archiving system for storage and display. The new systems employ digital cameras. These cameras are free of the noise inherent to the analog systems with long video signal connections. As a result, the beam position data delivered by the new systems are more reliable and accurate as shown by beam position traces using different beam position monitors on the same beam line.

New X-ray beam position monitors with submicron resolution utilizing imaging of scattered X-rays at CHESS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Revesz, Peter, E-mail: pr20@cornell.edu [Cornell University, Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source, Ithaca 14850, NY (United States); Temnykh, Alexander B. [Cornell University, Laboratory for Elem-Particle Physics, Ithaca 14850, NY (United States); Pauling, Alan K. [Cornell University, Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source, Ithaca 14850, NY (United States)

2011-09-01

At CHESS' A, F and G wiggler beam lines three new video beam position monitors (VBPMs) have been commissioned. These new VBPMs utilize X-rays scattered from the graphite filter (A and F line) or from a beryllium window (G-line) as the white wiggler beam passes through them. As the X-rays scatter in all directions from the scattering medium, a slit camera creates an image of the beam's footprint on a fluorescent screen. This image is then viewed by a CCD camera and analyzed using a computer program to calculate the intensity centroid, the beam profile and integrated intensity. These data are delivered to the CHESS signal archiving system for storage and display. The new systems employ digital cameras. These cameras are free of the noise inherent to the analog systems with long video signal connections. As a result, the beam position data delivered by the new systems are more reliable and accurate as shown by beam position traces using different beam position monitors on the same beam line.

E-line: A new crystal collimator beam line for source size measurements at CHESS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

White, Jeffrey A. [CHESS, Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14850-8001 (United States)], E-mail: jaw7@cornell.edu; Revesz, Peter; Finkelstein, Ken [CHESS, Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14850-8001 (United States)

2007-11-11

A new X-ray beam line has been constructed at cornell high energy synchrotron source (CHESS) to measure the vertical and horizontal source size of the positron particle beam. The cornell laboratory of elementary particle physics (LEPP) operates the storage ring (CESR) for X-ray generation for the CHESS user community by circulating electrons and their antimatter counterpart positrons in counter-rotating beams. As the laboratory reduces the emittances of particle beams to increase X-ray brilliance, there has been an increasing need for diagnostic tools to measure and monitor source size. A beam line front end that accesses the positron synchrotron light has been fitted with an experimental chamber and apparatus of compact design capable of horizontal and vertical source size measurement using the 'crystal collimator' technique, and an additional setup for vertical beam position monitoring using a luminescence-based X-ray video beam position monitoring system. The crystal collimators each consist of two Si(2 2 0) crystals in a dispersive (+,+) arrangement that diffract X-rays to a fluorescent material coated on a view port observed with a CCD camera. Measurements of the positron vertical beam size using the crystal collimation method at E-line are compared with measurements of visible synchrotron light at a remotely located dedicated port on the storage ring.

Multimodal Observation and Classification of People Engaged in Problem Solving: Application to Chess Players

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas Guntz

2018-03-01

Full Text Available In this paper we present the first results of a pilot experiment in the interpretation of multimodal observations of human experts engaged in solving challenging chess problems. Our goal is to investigate the extent to which observations of eye-gaze, posture, emotion and other physiological signals can be used to model the cognitive state of subjects, and to explore the integration of multiple sensor modalities to improve the reliability of detection of human displays of awareness and emotion. Domains of application for such cognitive model based systems are, for instance, healthy autonomous ageing or automated training systems. Abilities to observe cognitive abilities and emotional reactions can allow artificial systems to provide appropriate assistance in such contexts. We observed chess players engaged in problems of increasing difficulty while recording their behavior. Such recordings can be used to estimate a participant’s awareness of the current situation and to predict ability to respond effectively to challenging situations. Feature selection has been performed to construct a multimodal classifier relying on the most relevant features from each modality. Initial results indicate that eye-gaze, body posture and emotion are good features to capture such awareness. This experiment also validates the use of our equipment as a general and reproducible tool for the study of participants engaged in screen-based interaction and/or problem solving.

Cornell's LEPP, CHESS research labs expected to get $124 million in NSF funding for elementary particle and X-ray research

CERN Multimedia

2003-01-01

"Cornell University will be awarded up to $124 million over the next five years by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support research at the Laboratory for Elementary-Particle Physics (LEPP) and the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS), a national user facility" (1 page).

Effect of palliative care nurse champions on the quality of dying in the hospital according to bereaved relatives: A controlled before-and-after study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

F.E. Witkamp (Frederika); L. van Zuylen (Lia); C.C.D. van der Rijt (Carin); A. van der Heide (Agnes)

2016-01-01

textabstractBackground: To improve the quality of end-of-life care, hospitals increasingly appoint palliative care nurse champions. Aim: We investigated the effect of nurse champions on the quality of life during the last 3 days of life and the quality of dying as experienced by bereaved relatives.

Collaboration, campaigns and champions for appropriate imaging: feedback from the Zagreb workshop.

Science.gov (United States)

Remedios, D; Brkljacic, B; Ebdon-Jackson, S; Hierath, M; Sinitsyn, V; Vassileva, J

2018-04-01

Leading radiologists and representatives from national radiation protection regulatory authorities and health ministries from 19 countries of the European region worked together with five experts at the workshop on justification and appropriate use of imaging in Zagreb, Croatia, from 26 to 28 October 2017 jointly organised by the IAEA and the European Society of Radiology. The workshop served as a forum to exchange information on challenges and solutions for improving justification and the appropriate use of diagnostic imaging. Common barriers to improving the use of imaging referral guidelines were discussed and the need for increased collaboration identified. Examples of good practices were presented, including use of Clinical Decision Support (CDS) systems to facilitate rapid and good justification decisions. The workshop identified some of the needs of European countries for achieving more appropriate imaging proposing wider use of collaboration, campaigns and champions. • Drivers for appropriate imaging in Europe are similar to those elsewhere globally. • Implementing imaging referral guidelines is the main barrier to more appropriate imaging. • Clinical Decision Support systems (CDS) facilitates good referral practice and justification decisions. • Collaboration, campaigns and champions may improve awareness, appropriateness and audit.

Champion comparison of prestigious nuclear research institutes by thirty-year research papers written in nuclear advanced countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yanagisawa, Kazuaki

2010-08-01

A champion of research paper at JAERI and those of foreign prestigious nuclear research institutes (5 from the U.S., 3 from the France and 2 from the Germany) was studied taking the timeframe as long as 30 years (1978-2007) Tools for this bibliometric study were INIS, ECD, WOS and SCOPUS. The former two were general database collected all papers related to nuclear, while the latter two were specified database collected research papers submitted to journals for natural, social sciences and human learning. (1) INIS for the world-wide general tool focused on nuclear judged that JAERI (32,859 papers) was the champion and ORNL (32,395 papers) was the second position. (2) ECD for the US-oriented energy database judged that the ranking was of the order of ORNL(36,608 papers), ANL(26,530) and SNL(24,687). (3) The trend observed in the WOS for the US-oriented database roughly coincided with that of ECD, where ORNL(34,331 papers) was the champion, where JAERI was the 7th position. (4) SCOPUS, basically originated from the Europe judged that that ORNL (32,728 papers) was the champion, where JAERI (16,860) was the 7th position. (5) Different characteristics exhibited by individual databases can sometimes generate conflicting bibliometric results. This was true among INIS, ECD, WOS and SCOPUS when looking at trends between 5-year periods. It implies that results from analytical tools used in bibliometric studies should be viewed with careful consideration to learn of any influencing factors. (6) Use of INIS has predominance in Japan, and use of ECD has predominance in the U.S. Users from developed and developing countries assigned as the Member State of IAEA would be better served using INIS and ECD as the intellectual data source. As the recent trend, WOS and SCOPUS are used as the evaluation tools. (author)

Hidden Champions in Spain: The Path to Successful Business Decisions || Hidden Champions en España: el camino hacia la toma de decisiones empresariales de éxito

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Perea Muñoz, Eva

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The last three decades have been a story of lost opportunities for Spanish industry to transform and improve their international competitiveness. However, there are some paradigmatic examples that violate this rule. This is the case of two Spanish companies: Hidden Champions and Brand Champions. These companies behave differently from the European and Spanish ones of similar size. They are more resilient in times of economic recession and are able to maintain and even increase their employment levels, while significantly increasing its sales and added value. This research therefore seeks to ascertain whether the Spanish hidden champions are good indicators of maturity, stability and growth of the Spanish economy; in addition to determining the reasons that have brought success and allowed these companies to recover faster than other firms. To do this, we have considered the quantitative and qualitative results collected by 75 Spanish companies to identify key management decisions. All this information is supplemented by personal interviews in order to capture more qualitative aspects about the nature of companies' management practices. The results show a typology of companies that behave differently from other companies. Managers believe that the development of close relations with customers is the first reason related to management that has led where they are today. The second is the continued development of new products and technology through innovation. Thirdly, managers consider internationalization, global approach and international alliances; whereas the fourth reason corresponds to high product specialization. Other reasons include talent management, strong leadership and company identity, quality and service, and close cooperation between managers and employees. || Las tres últimas décadas han sido una historia de oportunidades perdidas para transformar la industria española y mejorar su competitividad internacional. Sin embargo

Children’s Environmental Health Faculty Champions Initiative: A Successful Model for Integrating Environmental Health into Pediatric Health Care

Science.gov (United States)

Rogers, Bonnie; McCurdy, Leyla Erk; Slavin, Katie; Grubb, Kimberly; Roberts, James R.

2009-01-01

Background Pediatric medical and nursing education lack the environmental health content needed to properly prepare health care professionals to prevent, recognize, manage, and treat environmental exposure–related diseases. The need for improvements in health care professionals’ environmental health knowledge has been expressed by leading institutions. However, few studies have evaluated the effectiveness of programs that incorporate pediatric environmental health (PEH) into curricula and practice. Objective We evaluated the effectiveness of the National Environmental Education Foundation’s (NEEF) Children’s Environmental Health Faculty Champions Initiative, which is designed to build environmental health capacity among pediatric health care professionals. Methods Twenty-eight pediatric health care professionals participated in a train-the-trainer workshop, in which they were educated to train other health care professionals in PEH and integrate identified PEH competencies into medical and nursing practice and curricula. We evaluated the program using a workshop evaluation tool, action plan, pre- and posttests, baseline and progress assessments, and telephone interviews. Results During the 12 months following the workshop, the faculty champions’ average pretest score of 52% was significantly elevated (p < 0.0001) to 65.5% on the first posttest and to 71.5% on the second posttest, showing an increase and retention of environmental health knowledge. Faculty champions trained 1,559 health care professionals in PEH, exceeding the goal of 280 health care professionals trained. Ninety percent of faculty champions reported that PEH had been integrated into the curricula at their institution. Conclusion The initiative was highly effective in achieving its goal of building environmental health capacity among health care professionals. The faculty champions model is a successful method and can be replicated in other arenas. PMID:19478972

Implementation of the guidelines for targeted temperature management after cardiac arrest: a longitudinal qualitative study of barriers and facilitators perceived by hospital resuscitation champions

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Young-Min; Lee, Seung Joon; Jo, Sun Jin; Park, Kyu Nam

2016-01-01

Objectives To identify the barriers to and facilitators of implementing guidelines for targeted temperature management (TTM) after cardiac arrest perceived by hospital resuscitation champions and to investigate the changes in their perceptions over the early implementation period. Design A longitudinal qualitative study (up to 2 serial semistructured interviews over 1 year and focus groups). The individual interviews and focus groups were transcribed and coded by 2 independent assessors. Contents were analysed thematically; group interaction was also examined. Setting 21 hospitals, including community and tertiary care centres in South Korea. Participants 21 hospital champions (14 acting champions and 7 managerial champions). Results The final data set included 40 interviews and 2 focus groups. The identified barriers and facilitators could be classified into 3 major themes: (1) healthcare professionals’ perceptions of the guidelines and protocols, (2) interdisciplinary and interprofessional collaboration and (3) organisational resources. Lack of resources was the most commonly agreed on barrier for the acting champions, whereas lack of interdisciplinary collaboration was the most common barrier for the managerial champions. Educational activities and sharing successfully treated cases were the most frequently identified facilitators. Most of the participants identified and agreed that cooling equipment was an important barrier as well as a facilitator of successful TTM implementation. Perception of the guidelines and protocols has improved with the accumulation of clinical experience over the study period. Conclusions Healthcare professionals’ internal barriers to TTM implementation may be influenced by new guidelines and can be changed with the accumulation of successful clinical experiences during the early implementation period. Promoting interprofessional and interdisciplinary collaboration through educational activities and the use of cooling equipment

Kinanthropometric profile of Cuban women Olympic volleyball champions.

Science.gov (United States)

Carvajal, Wiliam; Betancourt, Hamlet; León, Sofia; Deturnel, Yanel; Martínez, Miriam; Echevarría, Ivis; Castillo, María Eugenia; Serviat, Noemí

2012-04-01

Athletes' kinanthropometric profiles are widely addressed in the scientific literature. Such profiles are particularly important in volleyball because absolute size contributes a significant percentage of total variance associated with athletic success. As in other team sports, volleyball players' kinanthropometric attributes correlate with the game's tactical demands. From 1992 through 2000, the Cuban women's volleyball team achieved top global performance, winning first place in three successive Summer Olympic Games. Describe the kinanthropometric profiles of Cuban women Olympic volleyball champions during 1992-2000 and compare these by position played. Measurements were taken of body composition, somatotype, proportionality and several anthropometric indicators in 41 Cuban women volleyball players, grouped by playing position. All were members of the national team that participated in the Summer Olympic Games in Barcelona (1992), Atlanta (1996) and Sydney (2000). Mean and standard deviations were calculated for all study variables. Analysis of variance was used to compare means for different positions for the variables weight; height; percent adipose, muscle and bone mass; body mass index; and muscle-to-bone ratio. Discriminant analysis was performed to identify anthropometric dimensions differentiating playing positions (center, spiker and setter), using pvolleyball players was balanced mesomorphic (2.7-3.6-2.9). Classified by position, centers (2.9-3.4-3.4) and spikers (2.8-3.6-2.9) presented an average mesomorphic-ectomorphic somatotype, and setters (2.6-3.7-2.6) were balanced mesomorphic. On assessing Somatotype Attitudinal Mean (SAM), centers and spikers showed more intrapositional homogeneity than that of setters. Centers were significantly taller (187.1±2.5 cm) than players in other positions. Centers' percent adipose tissue mass (28.9±2.7%) was significantly higher than that of setters (24.3±2.7%), who were leanest of all positions. The

Giuseppe Sergi, "champion" of Darwinism?

Science.gov (United States)

Volpone, Alessandro

2011-01-01

The Italian anthropologist, psychologist and evolutionist Giuseppe Sergi (1841-1936) may be regarded in some respects today as an "atypical" Darwinist, but, almost paradoxically, he was considered a "champion" of Darwinism by colleagues and commentators of his own time. Probably, two aspects of his work are responsible for this apparent anomaly: his faith in the so-called soft inheritance and his claims regarding a theory concerning the polyphyletic origin of human races. The soft inheritance theory, however, was needed by Sergi to support ideas regarding the complexity of inheritance in man, a fact that, in his opinion, could not completely be put down to mechanical laws, and polygeny was useful when trying to rectify the problem concerning the incompleteness of the fossil record. In both cases, it is possible to show that he was involved in supporting Darwinian theory during the most severe crisis of its consensus in Italy and at International level, between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. Finally, the apparent unorthodox features which can be found in Sergi's ideas appear to be, in Kuhnian terms, ad hoc hypotheses put forward by Sergi himself in order to support the paradigm.

Tapering of the CHESS-APS undulator: Results and modelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lai, B.; Viccaro, P.J.; Dejus, R.; Gluskin, E.; Yun, W.B.; McNulty, I.; Henderson, C.; White, J.; Shen, Q.; Finkelstein, K.

1992-01-01

When the magnetic gap of an undulator is tapered along the beam direction, the slowly varying peak field B o introduces a spread in the value of the deflection parameter K. The result is a broad energy-band undulator that still maintains high degree of spatial collimation. These properties are very useful for EXAFS and energy dispersive techniques. We have characterized the CHESS-APS undulator (1 υ = 3.3cm) at one tapered configuration (10% change of the magnetic gap from one end of the undulator to the other). Spatial distribution and energy spectra of the first three harmonics through a pinhole were measured. The on-axis first harmonic width increased from 0.27 keV to 0.61 keV (FWHM) at the central energy of E 1 = 6.6 keV (K average = 0.69). Broadening in the angular distribution due to tapering was minimal. These results will be compared with computer modelling which simulates the actual electron trajectory in the tapered case

Supporting nurse health champions: developing a 'new generation' of health improvement facilitators

OpenAIRE

Blake, Holly; Chambers, D.

2011-01-01

In efforts to respond to key government public health initiatives for settings-based health promotion, the ‘Workplace Health Champion’ role has emerged as a method of promoting health within the UK healthcare setting. Health promotion techniques used by these individuals are based on psychological theories that are known to motivate people to change behaviours associated with ill-health. Health Champions, like NHS Health Trainers, assist individuals in setting personal goals to change behavio...

Challenges Facing Healthwatch, a New Consumer Champion in England.

Science.gov (United States)

Carter, Pam; Martin, Graham

2016-01-21

This article engages with debates about the conceptualisation and practical challenges of patient and public involvement (PPI) in health and social care services. Policy in this area in England has shifted numerous times but increasingly a consumerist discourse seems to override more democratic ideas concerning the relationship between citizens and public services. Recent policy change in England has seen the creation of new consumer champion bodies in the form of local Healthwatch. The article describes these new organisational structures for PPI and shows how those who seek to influence planning and delivery of services or comment or complain about aspects of their care face considerable complexity. This is due, in part, to the ambiguous remit set out for newly instigated Healthwatch organisations by government. Drawing on governance theory, we show that it can also be understood as a function of an increasingly polycentric governance arena. Challenges that flow from this include problems of specifying jurisdictional responsibility, accountability, and legitimacy. We review Healthwatch progress to date, then we set out four challenges facing local Healthwatch organisations before discussing the implications of these for patients and the public. The first challenge relates to non-coterminous boundaries and jurisdictional integrity. Secondly, establishing the unique features of Healthwatch is problematic in the crowded PPI arena. The third challenge arises from limited resources as well as the fact that resources flow to Healthwatch from the local authorities that Healthwatch are expected to hold to account. The fourth challenge we identify is how local Healthwatch organisations negotiate the complexity of being a partner to statutory and other organisations, while at the same time being expected to champion local people's views. © 2016 by Kerman University of Medical Sciences.

MR imaging of articular cartilage disorders: Specificity of fast imaging and CHESS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Konig, H.; Sauter, R.; Kueper, K.; Deimling, M.; Vogt, M.

1986-01-01

MR imaging is the first imaging method that allows visualization of cartilage tissues. The authors compared standard spin-echo sequences and selective water images obtained using the CHESS method as well as fast sequences in patients with inflammatory, degenerative, and traumatic alterations of the hip, knee, and radiocarpal joint. Measurements were carried out using Magnetom imaging systems operating at 1.0 and 1.5 T. With the use of different types of surface coils high spatial resolution (pixel size, 0.5-1.0 mm; section thickness, 3-8 mm) could be obtained. Pure water images are superior for showing changes of the hyaline cartilage, whereas spin-echo sequences remain the basic procedure, especially for imaging fibrocartilage disorders

Critical Competencies for the Innovativeness of Value Creation Champions : Identifying Challenges and Work-integrated Solutions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kinkel, Steffen; Schemmann, Brita; Lichtner, Ralph

2017-01-01

Medium-sized manufacturers of technical products with a high degree of in-house value adding activities – so-called value creation champions – are very important to the success of German industry and to safeguarding attractive jobs in Germany. Key to their success is their distinct innovativeness.

Plataforma neurotecnológica aplicada al estudio y entrenamiento de la actividad cognitiva del ajedrecista / Neurotechnical platform applied to the study and training of the cognitive activity of the chess player

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Osvaldo León-Bravo

2017-10-01

Full Text Available El ajedrez es un juego que demanda una continua actividad atencional en la solución de problemas. El entrenamiento adecuado de la atención en el ajedrecista mediante el empleo de técnicas psicológicas permite una mayor regulación de la precisión perceptiva, capacidad para integrar y procesar estímulos simultáneamente, fiabilidad de la respuesta, tiempo de reacción y concentración. En correspondencia con estos particulares la investigación tiene como objetivo diseñar una plataforma neurotecnológica que permita el estudio y entrenamiento de la actividad cognitiva de los ajedrecistas. El sistema neurotecnológico presentado es pertinente para el entrenamiento de los ajedrecistas en los marcos de los sistemas de entrenamientos contemporáneos. Su instrumentación permite la regulación del componente cognitivo, incrementa la tolerancia a la interferencia atencional, la concentración, el control espacial del tablero de ajedrez, la resistencia atencional y la velocidad de procesamiento de la información en la solución de problemas ajedrecísticos. ABSTRACT Chess is a game that demands a continuous attention activity in the solution of problems. The adequate training of the attention in the chess player through the use of psychological techniques allows a greater regulation of the perceptive precision, ability to integrate and process stimuli simultaneously, reliability of the response, reaction time and concentration. In correspondence with these individuals, the research aims to design a neurotechnological platform that allows the study and training of the cognitive activity of chess players. The neurotechnological system presented is relevant for the training of chess players in the frames of contemporary training systems. Its instrumentation allows the regulation of the cognitive component, it increases the tolerance to the attentional interference, the concentration, the spatial control of the chessboard, the attentional resistance

Women Managers in Higher Education: Summary Report of the ACU-CHESS Steering Committee Meeting (London, England, United Kingdom, May 25-27, 1993).

Science.gov (United States)

Commonwealth Secretariat, London (England).

This publication describes a meeting of the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) and the Commonwealth Higher Education Support Scheme (CHESS) to design an agenda to facilitate the advancement of women administrators in Commonwealth universities, to further use of their skills in contributing to university development, and to increasing…

A comparative quantitative analysis of the IDEAL (iterative decomposition of water and fat with echo asymmetry and least-squares estimation) and the CHESS (chemical shift selection suppression) techniques in 3.0 T L-spine MRI

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Eng-Chan; Cho, Jae-Hwan; Kim, Min-Hye; Kim, Ki-Hong; Choi, Cheon-Woong; Seok, Jong-min; Na, Kil-Ju; Han, Man-Seok

2013-03-01

This study was conducted on 20 patients who had undergone pedicle screw fixation between March and December 2010 to quantitatively compare a conventional fat suppression technique, CHESS (chemical shift selection suppression), and a new technique, IDEAL (iterative decomposition of water and fat with echo asymmetry and least squares estimation). The general efficacy and usefulness of the IDEAL technique was also evaluated. Fat-suppressed transverse-relaxation-weighed images and longitudinal-relaxation-weighted images were obtained before and after contrast injection by using these two techniques with a 1.5T MR (magnetic resonance) scanner. The obtained images were analyzed for image distortion, susceptibility artifacts and homogenous fat removal in the target region. The results showed that the image distortion due to the susceptibility artifacts caused by implanted metal was lower in the images obtained using the IDEAL technique compared to those obtained using the CHESS technique. The results of a qualitative analysis also showed that compared to the CHESS technique, fewer susceptibility artifacts and more homogenous fat removal were found in the images obtained using the IDEAL technique in a comparative image evaluation of the axial plane images before and after contrast injection. In summary, compared to the CHESS technique, the IDEAL technique showed a lower occurrence of susceptibility artifacts caused by metal and lower image distortion. In addition, more homogenous fat removal was shown in the IDEAL technique.

Hopelessness is associated with decreased heart rate variability during championship chess games.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwarz, Alfons M; Schächinger, Hartmut; Adler, Rolf H; Goetz, Stefan M

2003-01-01

Clinical observations suggest that negative affects such as helplessness/hopelessness (HE/HO) may induce autonomic duration; affects were assessed for every move after reconstruction of the games. In all games compiled, 18 situation of intense confidence/optimism and 20 of intense helplessness/hopelessness were observed. Intense affects of HE/HO were associated with decreasing HF-HRV (Fisher exact test, p =.003), increasing "nervousness" (p =.0005), decreasing "optimism" (p =.0005), and decreasing "calmness" (p =.0005). Investigation of championship chess game players with an ELO strength > or = 2300 in a natural field setting revealed increasing HE/HO being associated with reduced HF-HRV suggestive of vagal withdrawal. Thus, our data may help link negative mood states, autonomic nervous system disturbances, and cardiac events.

Friendship through Interaction and Interaction through Friendship: Manifestations of Positive Politeness and Footing Changes in the Interaction of Two Friends Playing Chess

Science.gov (United States)

Shigenaga, Yasumasa

2016-01-01

The present study uses a video recording of two friends playing chess to observe, through the concept of "positive politeness, what strategies the participants employ to construct and maintain their relationship as close friends during an activity that includes moments of heightened tension. The study also examines the dynamics of the…

Playing off the curve - testing quantitative predictions of skill acquisition theories in development of chess performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Gaschler, Robert; Progscha, Johanna; Smallbone, Kieran; Ram, Nilam; Bilalić, Merim

2014-01-01

Learning curves have been proposed as an adequate description of learning processes, no matter whether the processes manifest within minutes or across years. Different mechanisms underlying skill acquisition can lead to differences in the shape of learning curves. In the current study, we analyze the tournament performance data of 1383 chess players who begin competing at young age and play tournaments for at least 10 years. We analyze the performance development with the goal to test the adequacy of learning curves, and the skill acquisition theories they are based on, for describing and predicting expertise acquisition. On the one hand, we show that the skill acquisition theories implying a negative exponential learning curve do a better job in both describing early performance gains and predicting later trajectories of chess performance than those theories implying a power function learning curve. On the other hand, the learning curves of a large proportion of players show systematic qualitative deviations from the predictions of either type of skill acquisition theory. While skill acquisition theories predict larger performance gains in early years and smaller gains in later years, a substantial number of players begin to show substantial improvements with a delay of several years (and no improvement in the first years), deviations not fully accounted for by quantity of practice. The current work adds to the debate on how learning processes on a small time scale combine to large-scale changes.

Cherenkov and scintillation light separation on the CheSS experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Caravaca, Javier; Land, Benjamin; Descamps, Freija; Orebi Gann, Gabriel D.

2016-09-01

Separation of the scintillation and Cherenkov light produced in liquid scintillators enables outstanding capabilities for future particle detectors, the most relevant being: particle directionality information in a low energy threshold detector and improved particle identification. The CheSS experiment uses an array of small, fast photomultipliers (PMTs) and state-of-the-art electronics to demonstrate the reconstruction of a Cherenkov ring in liquid scintillator using two techniques: based on the photon density and using the photon hit time information. A charged particle ionizing a scintillation medium produces a prompt Cherenkov cone and late isotropic scintillation light, typically delayed by several ns. The fast response of our PMTs and DAQ provides a precision well below the ns level, making possible the time separation. Furthermore, the usage of the new developed water-based liquid scintillators (WbLS) enhances the separation since it allows tuning of the Cherenkov/Scintillation ratio. Latest results on the separation for pure liquid scintillators and WbLS will be presented.

The Impact of Scholastic Instrumental Music and Scholastic Chess Study on the Standardized Test Scores of Students in Grades Three, Four, and Five

Science.gov (United States)

Martinez, Edwin E.

2012-01-01

This study examines the impact of instrumental music study and group chess lessons on the standardized test scores of suburban elementary public school students (grades three through five) in Levittown, New York. The study divides the students into the following groups and compares the standardized test scores of each: a) instrumental music…

Championing person-first language: a call to psychiatric mental health nurses.

Science.gov (United States)

Jensen, Mary E; Pease, Elizabeth A; Lambert, Kris; Hickman, Diane R; Robinson, Ora; McCoy, Kathleen T; Barut, Jennifer K; Musker, Kathleen M; Olive, Dana; Noll, Connie; Ramirez, Jeffery; Cogliser, Dawn; King, Joan Kenerson

2013-01-01

At the heart of recovery-oriented psychiatric mental health care are the dignity and respect of each person and the ways in which helping professionals convey a person's uniqueness, strengths, abilities, and needs. "Person-first language" is a form of linguistic expression relying on words that reflect awareness, a sense of dignity, and positive attitudes about people with disabilities. As such, person-first language places emphasis on the person first rather than the disability (e.g., "person with schizophrenia" rather than "a schizophrenic"). This article champions the use of person-first language as a foundation for recovery-oriented practice and enhanced collaborative treatment environments that foster respect, human dignity, and hope.

Reconnaissance blind multi-chess: an experimentation platform for ISR sensor fusion and resource management

Science.gov (United States)

Newman, Andrew J.; Richardson, Casey L.; Kain, Sean M.; Stankiewicz, Paul G.; Guseman, Paul R.; Schreurs, Blake A.; Dunne, Jeffrey A.

2016-05-01

This paper introduces the game of reconnaissance blind multi-chess (RBMC) as a paradigm and test bed for understanding and experimenting with autonomous decision making under uncertainty and in particular managing a network of heterogeneous Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) sensors to maintain situational awareness informing tactical and strategic decision making. The intent is for RBMC to serve as a common reference or challenge problem in fusion and resource management of heterogeneous sensor ensembles across diverse mission areas. We have defined a basic rule set and a framework for creating more complex versions, developed a web-based software realization to serve as an experimentation platform, and developed some initial machine intelligence approaches to playing it.

Improving the apo-state detergent stability of NTS1 with CHESS for pharmacological and structural studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Scott, Daniel J; Kummer, Lutz; Egloff, Pascal; Bathgate, Ross A D; Plückthun, Andreas

2014-11-01

The largest single class of drug targets is the G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) family. Modern high-throughput methods for drug discovery require working with pure protein, but this has been a challenge for GPCRs, and thus the success of screening campaigns targeting soluble, catalytic protein domains has not yet been realized for GPCRs. Therefore, most GPCR drug screening has been cell-based, whereas the strategy of choice for drug discovery against soluble proteins is HTS using purified proteins coupled to structure-based drug design. While recent developments are increasing the chances of obtaining GPCR crystal structures, the feasibility of screening directly against purified GPCRs in the unbound state (apo-state) remains low. GPCRs exhibit low stability in detergent micelles, especially in the apo-state, over the time periods required for performing large screens. Recent methods for generating detergent-stable GPCRs, however, offer the potential for researchers to manipulate GPCRs almost like soluble enzymes, opening up new avenues for drug discovery. Here we apply cellular high-throughput encapsulation, solubilization and screening (CHESS) to the neurotensin receptor 1 (NTS1) to generate a variant that is stable in the apo-state when solubilized in detergents. This high stability facilitated the crystal structure determination of this receptor and also allowed us to probe the pharmacology of detergent-solubilized, apo-state NTS1 using robotic ligand binding assays. NTS1 is a target for the development of novel antipsychotics, and thus CHESS-stabilized receptors represent exciting tools for drug discovery. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Agency Agreements Process Champion Support Intern

Science.gov (United States)

Miksa, Ember

2018-01-01

This document will provide information on the 2018 Spring semester NIFS Intern who represented the Office of Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) as a Reimbursable Accountant at Kennedy Space Center (KSC). This intern supported the Agency Agreements Process Champions and Team Lead, Susan Kroskey, Sandy Massey and Mecca Murphy, with major initiatives to advance the KSC OCFO's vision of creating and innovating healthy financial management practices that maximize the value of resources entrusted to NASA. These initiatives include, but are not limited to: updating the Agency Guidance and NASA Procedural Guidance 9090.1 Agreements, implementing a new budget structure to be utilized across all centers, submitting a Call Request (CRQ) to enhance non-federal customer reporting, initiating a discussion to incorporate a 3-year funding program for NASA agreements, and undertaking the Office of Inspector General (OIG) Audit. In support of these initiatives, this intern identified technical methods to enhance and reduce the workload of financial processes for reimbursable and non-reimbursable agreements, prepared reports in support of accounting functions, and performed administrative work and miscellaneous technical tasks in support of the OCFO as requested. In conclusion of the internship, the intern will become knowledgeable on reimbursable accounting, reimbursable policy, types of reimbursable agreements, the agreements process, estimated pricing reports, and the roles and responsibilities of the Financial Accounting and Financial Services offices.

Motivational interviewing combined with chess accelerates improvement in executive functions in cocaine dependent patients: a one-month prospective study.

Science.gov (United States)

Gonçalves, Priscila Dib; Ometto, Mariella; Bechara, Antoine; Malbergier, André; Amaral, Ricardo; Nicastri, Sergio; Martins, Paula A; Beraldo, Livia; dos Santos, Bernardo; Fuentes, Daniel; Andrade, Arthur G; Busatto, Geraldo F; Cunha, Paulo Jannuzzi

2014-08-01

In cocaine-dependent individuals, executive function (EF) deficits are associated with poor treatment outcomes. Psychological interventions and pharmacological approaches have produced only modest effect sizes. To date, studies of this topic have been few and limited. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of a new model of intervention, which integrates chess and Motivational Interviewing, Motivational Chess (MC) METHODS: We evaluated 46 cocaine-dependent inpatients (aged 18-45), in two groups-MC (n=26); and active comparison-AC (n=20). Using neuropsychological tests and an impulsivity scale, we assessed the subjects before and after the study period (one month of abstinence monitored by urine toxicology screening). The MC and AC groups did not differ at baseline. In the post-intervention assessment (after one month), both groups showed significant improvements in attention, mental flexibility, inhibitory control, abstraction abilities, and decision-making (p<0.01). In addition, the improvement in working memory was more significant in the MC group than in the AC group (group-by-time interaction, p=01). One month of abstinence was sufficient to improve various attentional and executive domains in cocaine-dependent subjects. The MC intervention was associated with greater improvements in EFs, especially working memory, suggesting that tailored interventions focusing on complex EFs accelerate the process of cognitive recovery during the initial period of abstinence. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Liberalisation of the European Electricity Industry: Internal Market or National Champions?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Domanico, F.

2007-07-01

This article offers an analysis of the present competitive and regulatory framework of the European electricity sector. Considering the complexity of this industry, the focus in this work is mainly on the problem of market concentration of incumbents in the sector as a result of the liberalisation process. The new trend toward the creation of ''national champions'' as well as recent mergers between gas suppliers and electricity producers raised serious concerns about abuses of market power and risks of future collusion. Taking account of investment in interconnection as well as other international and regional experiences, the internal market issue is investigated as the solution to the''risks'' from liberalisation. (auth)

Competency champions in the clinical competency committee: a successful strategy to implement milestone evaluations and competency coaching.

Science.gov (United States)

Ketteler, Erika R; Auyang, Edward D; Beard, Kathy E; McBride, Erica L; McKee, Rohini; Russell, John C; Szoka, Nova L; Nelson, M Timothy

2014-01-01

To create a clinical competency committee (CCC) that (1) centers on the competency-based milestones, (2) is simple to implement, (3) creates competency expertise, and (4) guides remediation and coaching of residents who are not progressing in milestone performance evaluations. We created a CCC that meets monthly and at each meeting reviews a resident class for milestone performance, a competency (by a faculty competency champion), a resident rotation service, and any other resident or issue of concern. University surgical residency program. The CCC members include the program director, associate program directors, director of surgical curriculum, competency champions, departmental chair, 2 at-large faculty members, and the administrative chief residents. Seven residents were placed on remediation (later renamed as coaching) during the academic year after falling behind on milestone progression in one or more competencies. An additional 4 residents voluntarily placed themselves on remediation for medical knowledge after receiving in-training examination scores that the residents (not the CCC membership) considered substandard. All but 2 of the remediated/coached residents successfully completed all area milestone performance but some chose to stay on the medical knowledge competency strategy. Monthly meetings of the CCC make milestone evaluation less burdensome. In addition, the expectations of the residents are clearer and more tangible. "Competency champions" who are familiar with the milestones allow effective coaching strategies and documentation of clear performance improvements in competencies for successful completion of residency training. Residents who do not reach appropriate milestone performance can then be placed in remediation for more formal performance evaluation. The function of our CCC has also allowed us opportunity to evaluate the required rotations to ensure that they offer experiences that help residents achieve competency performance necessary

La capacitación en el proceso de masificación del ajedrez en las comunidades urbanas / The role of training in the process of spreading chess in urban communities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Darvin Manuel Ramírez-Guerra

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Resumen Se diseñó un curso con el propósito de capacitar a los actores implicados en el proceso de masificación del ajedrez en las comunidades urbanas del municipio Calixto García. Se partió de un diagnóstico para determinar las necesidades e insuficiencias en relación con la temática y se utilizaron diversos métodos científicos e instrumentos para la recolección, procesamiento e interpretación de la información; entre ellos el histórico-lógico, análisis-síntesis, inducción deducción, la observación participante, el Análisis porcentual, encuestas y entrevistas. Se analizó la importancia que tiene la masificación del ajedrez y se realizó la propuesta metodológica que involucra a diversos centros e instituciones de la comunidad. Esta propuesta contribuye a la gestión del proceso y es un instrumento organizativo importante para lograr la masificación en el ajedrez. Los resultados obtenidos luego de su aplicación fueron evaluados y evidencian que se cumplió el objetivo propuesto. Abstract A course was designed with the purpose of trainingthe actors involved in the spreading process of chess in urban communities of Calixto García municipality. The starting point was a diagnostic to determine the needs and lack of resources in relation to chess. Various scientific methods and instruments were used to gather, process and interpret information; among them the Historical-Logical, Analysis-Synthesis, Induction-Deduction, Observation, Percentage analysis, surveys and interviews. The authors analyzed the importance of spreading chess and had a methodological proposal that includes several community centers and institutions. This proposal contributes to the management of the process and constitutes an important organizational instrument to attain the diffusion of chess. The results obtained after the application of the course were assessed d it proved to have fulfilled the set goal.

The Evolution of Champion Cross-Country-Skier Training: From Lumberjacks to Professional Athletes.

Science.gov (United States)

Sandbakk, Øyvind

2017-02-01

Competitive cross-country (XC) skiing has traditions extending back to the mid-19th century and was included as a men's event in the first Winter Games in 1924. Since then, tremendous improvements in equipment, track preparation, and knowledge about training have prompted greater increases in XC-skiing speeds than in any other Olympic sport. In response, this commentary focuses on how the training of successful XC skiers has evolved, with interviews and training data from surviving Norwegian world and Olympic XC champions as primary sources. Before 1970, most male champion XC skiers were lumberjacks who ran or skied long distances to and from felling areas while working long days in the woods. In addition, they trained as much as possible, with increased intensity during the autumn, while less work but more ski-specific training and competitions were done during the winter. Until the 1970s, few XC skiers were women, whom coaches believed tolerated less training than men did. Today's XC skiers are less physically active, but the influence of both science and the systematic approaches of former athletes and coaches have gradually taught XC skiers to adopt smarter, more goal-oriented training practices. Although the very high VO 2 max of world-class XC skiers has remained the same since the 1960s, new events in modern XC skiing have additionally required superior upper-body power, high-speed techniques, and tactical flexibility. These elements also emerge in the training of today's best skiers; women's physiological capacities and training routines especially seem to have improved dramatically.

BCS or Just BS: How College Football Could Crown the Wrong National Champion? Just Do the Math--Correctly!

Science.gov (United States)

Teasley, C.E. Wynn; Hornyak, Martin

2010-01-01

The 2009 college football season is here, but there has been a continuing controversy swirling over how the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) selects its national champion. College football uses a multi-criterion decision matrix (MCDM) evaluation technique to determine which two teams will play for the national championship. We analyzed the BCS…

The life history and immature stages of the weevil Anthonomus monostigma Champion (Coleoptera: Curculiondidae) on Miconia calvescens DC (Melastomataceae)

Science.gov (United States)

Eduardo Chacón-Madrigal; M.Tracy Johnson; Paul. Hanson

2012-01-01

We describe and illustrate the life history and immature stages of Anthonomus monostigma Champion (Curculionidae: Curculioninae: Anthonomini). This weevil is a fruit borer in Miconia calvescens DC (Melastomataceae), a Neotropical tree that is invasive in Pacific islands. The larva has three instars, and development from egg to...

CHESS BOOKS IN SPAIN (1900-1939: A BIO-BIBLIOGRAPHIC DIRECTORY AND A BIBLIOMETRIC STUDY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jordi Brasó Rius

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The work presents a description and analysis of chess books in Spain in the period 1900 to 1939. The tools used have been the main database of the Spanish libraries, along with bibliographical indexes of the subject matter. This has been contextualized with secondary sources. This allows us to locate the works analyzed in the social context of the time. Subsequently, a bibliometric statistical analysis used to assess and interpret issues of authorship, place of publication, publishers, years of increased circulation of works or controlling specific contents of the contributions. The results are useful to check that Barcelona and Madrid topped the printing of books. Also it manifests high Spanish and foreign production around the year 30. Other data is remarkable the informative function that had the most publications.

Comparison of visual acuity in reduced lumination and facility of ocular accommodation in table tennis champions and non- players.

Science.gov (United States)

Jafarzadehpur, Ebrahim; Yarigholi, Mohammad R

2004-03-01

A table tennis player should fixate at different distances; track the objects with different speed, and in different visual environment. Their visual skills must be well developed for these capabilities. Therefore, visual acuity in reduced lumination and facility of ocular accommodation those are two criteria for visual skills have been compared in table tennis players and normal non-players. Twenty-nine young table tennis champions and 29 normal matched non-players (did not take part in any racket sports game) were evaluated. Basic visual and eye examinations were done for both of them. Normal results in basic examination were fundamental requirement for all the subjects. +/-2.00 sphere lenses for accommodation facility are used. An electrical current regulator changed the output light intensity of a conventional chart projector (Topcon). Light intensity decreased to 10 cd·m(-2) and visual acuity tested. In comparison of visual acuity in reduced lumination and facility of ocular accommodation in table tennis champions and non-players there are significant differences (p reflecting a better perceptual system of experts to the constraints encountered during table tennis and its use in practical settings for evaluating athletes or detecting sport talents. However some visual and perceptual training that usually used in orthoptics can be used for novice table tennis player to improve their abilities. Key PointsThat the ability of a champion depends on many sensory, motor and perceptual factors.Visual factors such as facility of accommodation and visual acuity in reduced lumination should be considered in table tennis players.Visual training may be useful for novice and also for experts.

What makes champions? A review of the relative contribution of genes and training to sporting success.

Science.gov (United States)

Tucker, Ross; Collins, Malcolm

2012-06-01

Elite sporting performance results from the combination of innumerable factors, which interact with one another in a poorly understood but complex manner to mould a talented athlete into a champion. Within the field of sports science, elite performance is understood to be the result of both training and genetic factors. However, the extent to which champions are born or made is a question that remains one of considerable interest, since it has implications for talent identification and management, as well as for how sporting federations allocate scarce resources towards the optimisation of high-performance programmes. The present review describes the contributions made by deliberate practice and genetic factors to the attainment of a high level of sporting performance. The authors conclude that although deliberate training and other environmental factors are critical for elite performance, they cannot by themselves produce an elite athlete. Rather, individual performance thresholds are determined by our genetic make-up, and training can be defined as the process by which genetic potential is realised. Although the specific details are currently unknown, the current scientific literature clearly indicates that both nurture and nature are involved in determining elite athletic performance. In conclusion, elite sporting performance is the result of the interaction between genetic and training factors, with the result that both talent identification and management systems to facilitate optimal training are crucial to sporting success.

What makes you clever the puzzle of intelligence

CERN Document Server

Partridge, Derek

2014-01-01

From Black Holes and Big Bangs to the Higgs boson and the infinitesimal building blocks of all matter, modern science has been spectacularly successful, with one glaring exception - intelligence. Intelligence still remains as one of the greatest mysteries in science. How do you chat so effortlessly? How do you remember, and why do you forget? From a basis of ten maxims What Makes You Clever explains the difficulties as well as the persuasive and persistent over-estimations of progress in Artificial Intelligence. Computers have transformed our lives, and will continue to do so for many years to come. But ever since the Turing Test proposed in 1950 up to IBM's Deep Blue computer that won the second six-game match against world champion Garry Kasparov, the science of artificial intelligence has struggled to make progress. The reader's expertise is engaged to probe human language, machine learning, neural computing, holistic systems and emergent phenomenon. What Makes You Clever reveals the difficulties that s...

Molecular chess? Hallmarks of anti-cancer drug resistance.

Science.gov (United States)

Cree, Ian A; Charlton, Peter

2017-01-05

The development of resistance is a problem shared by both classical chemotherapy and targeted therapy. Patients may respond well at first, but relapse is inevitable for many cancer patients, despite many improvements in drugs and their use over the last 40 years. Resistance to anti-cancer drugs can be acquired by several mechanisms within neoplastic cells, defined as (1) alteration of drug targets, (2) expression of drug pumps, (3) expression of detoxification mechanisms, (4) reduced susceptibility to apoptosis, (5) increased ability to repair DNA damage, and (6) altered proliferation. It is clear, however, that changes in stroma and tumour microenvironment, and local immunity can also contribute to the development of resistance. Cancer cells can and do use several of these mechanisms at one time, and there is considerable heterogeneity between tumours, necessitating an individualised approach to cancer treatment. As tumours are heterogeneous, positive selection of a drug-resistant population could help drive resistance, although acquired resistance cannot simply be viewed as overgrowth of a resistant cancer cell population. The development of such resistance mechanisms can be predicted from pre-existing genomic and proteomic profiles, and there are increasingly sophisticated methods to measure and then tackle these mechanisms in patients. The oncologist is now required to be at least one step ahead of the cancer, a process that can be likened to 'molecular chess'. Thus, as well as an increasing role for predictive biomarkers to clinically stratify patients, it is becoming clear that personalised strategies are required to obtain best results.

Construction of CHESS compact undulator magnets at Kyma

Science.gov (United States)

Temnykh, Alexander B.; Lyndaker, Aaron; Kokole, Mirko; Milharcic, Tadej; Pockar, Jure; Geometrante, Raffaella

2015-05-01

In 2014 KYMA S.r.l. has built two CHESS Compact Undulator (CCU) magnets that are at present installed and successfully operate at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring. This type of undulator was developed for upgrade of Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source beam-lines, but it can be used elsewhere as well. CCU magnets are compact, lightweight, cost efficient and in-vacuum compatible. They are linearly polarized undulators and have a fixed gap. Magnetic field tuning is achieved by phasing (shifting) top magnetic array relative bottom. Two CCUs constructed by KYMA S.r.l. have 28.4 mm period, 6.5 mm gap, 0.93 T peak field. Magnetic structure is of PPM type, made with NdFeB (40UH grade) permanent magnet material. Transitioning from the laboratory to industrial environment for a novel design required additional evaluation, design adjusting and extensive testing. Particular attention was given to the soldering technique used for fastening of the magnetic blocks to holders. This technique had thus far never been used before for undulator magnet construction by industry. The evaluation included tests of different types of soldering paste, measurements of strength of solder and determining the deformations of the soldered magnet and holder under simulated loading forces. This paper focuses on critical features of the CCU design, results of the soldering technique testing and the data regarding permanent magnets magnetization change due to soldering. In addition it deals with optimization-assisted assembly and the performance of the assembled devices and assesses some of the results of the CCU magnets operation at CESR.

Technical progress and efficiency changes in football teams participating in the UEFA Champions League

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucía Isabel García Cebrián

2015-09-01

Full Text Available This paper commits to calculate and analyze productivy levels and its components for teams that participated in the UEFA Champions League between 2003 and 2012. It will pursue three objectives: 1 evaluate resources usage, 2 analyze the productivity levels of the football teams and the sports results, and 3 see the influence of participation experience in reference to productivity and sports results. Using Malmquist Productivity Index, the results reflect a lack of consistent progression of efficiency, productivity, and technical change. This competition does not reward the efficient usage of resources and there is not a conclusive relationshop between permanence in the competition and productivity.

Functional organization of intrinsic connectivity networks in Chinese-chess experts.

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, Xujun; Long, Zhiliang; Chen, Huafu; Liang, Dongmei; Qiu, Lihua; Huang, Xiaoqi; Liu, Timon Cheng-Yi; Gong, Qiyong

2014-04-16

The functional architecture of the human brain has been extensively described in terms of functional connectivity networks, detected from the low-frequency coherent neuronal fluctuations during a resting state condition. Accumulating evidence suggests that the overall organization of functional connectivity networks is associated with individual differences in cognitive performance and prior experience. Such an association raises the question of how cognitive expertise exerts an influence on the topological properties of large-scale functional networks. To address this question, we examined the overall organization of brain functional networks in 20 grandmaster and master level Chinese-chess players (GM/M) and twenty novice players, by means of resting-state functional connectivity and graph theoretical analyses. We found that, relative to novices, functional connectivity was increased in GM/Ms between basal ganglia, thalamus, hippocampus, and several parietal and temporal areas, suggesting the influence of cognitive expertise on intrinsic connectivity networks associated with learning and memory. Furthermore, we observed economical small-world topology in the whole-brain functional connectivity networks in both groups, but GM/Ms exhibited significantly increased values of normalized clustering coefficient which resulted in increased small-world topology. These findings suggest an association between the functional organization of brain networks and individual differences in cognitive expertise, which might provide further evidence of the mechanisms underlying expert behavior. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Status report of the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Radiation Source (CHESS)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batterman, B.W.

1980-01-01

The Wilson Laboratory at Cornell University has done pioneering work on the development of high energy synchrotrons. In the last decade the 12 GeV Wilson Synchrotron was the most energetic electron synchrotron in the world. In 1975 plans were formulated at the Wilson Laboratory to build a new electron-positron storage ring to cover the range from 4-8 GeV. The storage ring was to be constructed in the same tunnel as the present synchrotron and to use the latter as an injector for the ring. A novel injection feature was to be incorporated, namely, vernier phase compression. In this scheme, positron coalesence is to be performed by compressing a 30-60 bunch positron beam by tranferring individual bunches from the storage ring to the synchrotron and stacking back into the storage ring. This procedure takes advantage of the slight circumferential difference between the storage ring and the synchrotron. Positron beams of 10 mA have been achieved in CESR at the present time. The first colliding beam studies were performed in an October 1979 two-week running period at which time CHESS, the synchrotron radiation source associated with CESR, also had its first extended experience with synchrotron light. (orig.)

Public Understanding of Science in turbulent times III: Deficit to dialogue, champions to critics.

Science.gov (United States)

Smallman, Melanie

2016-02-01

As part of the 20th Anniversary of the Public Understanding of Science journal, the journal has been reflecting on how the field and journal have developed. This research note takes a closer look at some of the trends, considering the journal's 50 most cited papers and using IRaMuTeQ, an open-source computer text analysis technique. The research note presents data that show that the move within public engagement from deficit to dialogue has been followed by a further shift from championing dialogue to criticising its practice. This shift has taken place alongside a continued, but changing, interest in media coverage, surveys and models of public understanding. © The Author(s) 2014.

Champions are racers, not pacers: an analysis of qualification patterns of Olympic and IAAF World Championship middle distance runners.

Science.gov (United States)

Hanley, Brian; Hettinga, Florentina J

2018-05-03

The aim of this study was to analyse qualification patterns in middle distance running and identify whether athletes adopt theoretically optimal tactics, or whether the will to win overrides these. The performances of 295 men and 258 women finalists in the Olympic and IAAF World Championship 800 m and 1500 m events from 1999 to 2017 were analysed across all three rounds of competition. Finishing position, time and ranking amongst all competitors were found for each athlete. Position in the final was correlated with finishing position in the heats and semi-finals (all P < 0.001), but not with finishing times in those rounds. Of the 57 champions, 40 won both their heat and semi-final, even though a lower automatic qualification position would have been sufficient, and only 18 achieved a season's best time in the final. The will to win amongst the eventual champions (and other medallists) suggests predominantly ego oriented behaviour that is encouraged by a performance climate, and which did not appear to differ between men and women. Coaches and athletes are recommended to note that championship-specific physiological and psychological factors are important to develop in training and prior competition to improve both short- and long-term championship strategies.

Learned helplessness in chess players: the importance of task similarity and the role of skill.

Science.gov (United States)

Gobet, F R

1992-01-01

The effects of noncontingency between subjects' responses and outcomes were examined with respect to treatment-and-posttest similarity and skill in the task. The experimental design consisted of three groups. The first group had to solve chess problems with objective solutions and received veridical feedback; each member of the second group faced problems with no objective solutions, and received the same feedback as the member of the first group he was yoked with, but without any control on it; the control group received a waiting task. It was found at the end of the experiment that the group with unsolvable problems was more depressed than the two other groups. The mid-strength players were the most sensitive to the manipulation, and the weakest players showed little effect of learned helplessness. It was also found that the effects were proportional to the degree of similarity between the treatment and the posttest. The results limit the domain of applicability of the learned-helplessness model.

Herschel CHESS discovery of the fossil cloud that gave birth to the Trapezium and Orion KL

Science.gov (United States)

López-Sepulcre, A.; Kama, M.; Ceccarelli, C.; Dominik, C.; Caux, E.; Fuente, A.; Alonso-Albi, T.

2013-01-01

Context. The Orion A molecular complex is a nearby (420 pc), very well studied stellar nursery that is believed to contain examples of triggered star formation. Aims: As part of the Herschel guaranteed time key programme CHESS, we present the discovery of a diffuse gas component in the foreground of the intermediate-mass protostar OMC-2 FIR 4, located in the Orion A region. Methods: Making use of the full HIFI spectrum of OMC-2 FIR 4 obtained in CHESS, we detected several ground-state lines from OH+, H2O+, HF, and CH+, all of them seen in absorption against the dust continuum emission of the protostar's envelope. We derived column densities for each species, as well as an upper limit to the column density of the undetected H3O+. In order to model and characterise the foreground cloud, we used the Meudon PDR code to run a homogeneous grid of models that spans a reasonable range of densities, visual extinctions, cosmic ray ionisation rates and far-ultraviolet (FUV) radiation fields, and studied the implications of adopting the Orion Nebula extinction properties instead of the standard interstellar medium ones. Results: The detected absorption lines peak at a velocity of 9 km s-1, which is blue-shifted by 2 km s-1 with respect to the systemic velocity of OMC-2 FIR 4 (VLSR = 11.4 km s-1). The results of our modelling indicate that the foreground cloud is composed of predominantly neutral diffuse gas (nH = 100 cm-3) and is heavily irradiated by an external source of FUV that most likely arises from the nearby Trapezium OB association. The cloud is 6 pc thick and bears many similarities with the so-called C+ interface between Orion-KL and the Trapezium cluster, 2 pc south of OMC-2 FIR 4. Conclusions: We conclude that the foreground cloud we detected is an extension of the C+ interface seen in the direction of Orion KL, and interpret it to be the remains of the parental cloud of OMC-1, which extends from OMC-1 up to OMC-2.

Attacks of the soccer teams participating in the champions league and the Serbian super liga

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Janković Aleksandar

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The area of tactics in soccer game is of particular importance for modern soccer development. The analysis and improvement of spatio-temporal indicators as well as the game principles related to tactics may be crucial to the achievement of competitive results. This study is aimed at comparing tactical manifestations of the teams competing in the top quality European club competition, the Champions League, and the best Serbian soccer championship by analyzing competitive activity. The results of the conducted research were obtained by observing an overall of 20 randomly selected matches, 10 of the Champions League (CL and 10 of the Serbian Super Liga (SSL, which is a sufficient number of matches for making conclusions about the competitions respectively. In the previously designed observing protocol, using a method of notation, we analyzed all the attacks completed by shooting at the opponent's goal. The structure of successfully realized attacks was assessed on the basis of: accuracy, types of realized offensive actions; area of starting the action, manner of realization of passes completed (assists and distance from the goal from which a shot on goal was executed. The study showed that there are certain common characteristics, but also there are differences in the structure of successfully realized attacks between the two analyzed competitions. The teams of the CL competition had significantly greater number of effective attacks per match (p = 0. 006, they realized their offensive activities with slightly greater number of players (p = 0.002 and number of passes (p = 0.000, whereas there are no significant differences in the area of starting successful attacks, the manner of realization of assists and distance from which shots on goal were executed. The study results may define certain guidelines in training technology when preparing the teams of the SSL competition for taking part in the European soccer cups.

Promoting wellbeing and improving access to mental health care through community champions in rural India: the Atmiyata intervention approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Shields-Zeeman, Laura; Pathare, Soumitra; Walters, Bethany Hipple; Kapadia-Kundu, Nandita; Joag, Kaustubh

2017-01-01

There are limited accounts of community-based interventions for reducing distress or providing support for people with common mental disorders (CMDs) in low and middle-income countries. The recently implemented Atmiyata programme is one such community-based mental health intervention focused on promoting wellness and reducing distress through community volunteers in a rural area in the state of Maharashtra, India. This case study describes the content and the process of implementation of Atmiyata and how community volunteers were trained to become Atmiyata champions and mitras ( friends ). The Atmiyata programme trained Atmiyata champions to provide support and basic counselling to community members with common mental health disorders, facilitate access to mental health care and social benefits, improve community awareness of mental health issues, and to promote well-being. Challenges to implementation included logistical challenges (difficult terrain and weather conditions at the implementation site), content-related challenges (securing social welfare benefits for people with CMDs), and partnership challenges (turnover of public health workers involved in referral chain, resistance from public sector mental health specialists). The case study serves as an example for how such a model can be sustained over time at low cost. The next steps of the programme include evaluation of the impact of the Atmiyata intervention through a pre-post study and adapting the intervention for further scale-up in other settings in India.

What is the impact of research champions on integrating research in mental health clinical practice? A quasiexperimental study in South London, UK.

Science.gov (United States)

Oduola, Sherifat; Wykes, Til; Robotham, Dan; Craig, Tom K J

2017-09-11

Key challenges for mental health healthcare professionals to implement research alongside clinical activity have been highlighted, such as insufficient time to apply research skills and lack of support and resources. We examined the impact of employing dedicated staff to promote research in community mental health clinical settings. Quasiexperiment before and after study. South London and Maudsley National Health Service Foundation Trust. 4455 patients receiving care from 15 community mental health teams between 1 December 2013 and 31 December 2014. The proportion of patients approached for research participation in clinical services where research champions were present (intervention group), and where research champions were not present (comparison group). Patients in the intervention group were nearly six times more likely to be approached for research participation (Adj. OR=5.98; 95% CI 4.96 to 7.22). Investing in staff that promote and drive research in clinical services increases opportunities for patients to hear about and engage in clinical research studies. However, investment needs to move beyond employing short-term staff. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

variances in consumers prices of selected food items among ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Admin

the consumer prices of rice, beans and garri in the three markets; rice and garri had insignificant differences in ... and inappropriate response by farmers to price ... supply or demand side or both). .... road network, storage facilities, subsidized.

How to use a sponsorship platform to support an international master brand strategy: The UniCredit UEFA champions league sponsorship

OpenAIRE

Penna Daniele; Guenzi Paolo

2014-01-01

Managers need a better understanding of critical success factors in sponsorship. An excellent example how a multinational company successfully approached this challenge is the case study of UniCredit. This European Bank is one of the sponsors of the UEFA Champions League with an exclusive running from July 2009 until June 2015. This sponsorship is an essential element within the group-wide marketing communication strategy of UniCredit. It is also a good example of how a multinational co...

"The Major Forces that Need to Back Medical Tourism Were … in Alignment": Championing Development of Barbados's Medical Tourism Sector.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnston, Rory; Crooks, Valorie A; Snyder, Jeremy; Whitmore, Rebecca

2015-01-01

Governments around the world have expressed interest in developing local medical tourism sectors, framing the industry as an opportunity for economic growth and health system improvement. This article addresses questions about how the desire to develop a medical tourism sector in a country emerges and which stakeholders are involved in both creating momentum and informing its progress. Presenting a thematic analysis of 19 key informant interviews conducted with domestic and international stakeholders in Barbados's medical tourism sector in 2011, we examine the roles that "actors" and "champions" at home and abroad have played in the sector's development. Physicians and the Barbadian government, along with international investors, the Medical Tourism Association, and development agencies, have promoted the industry, while actors such as medical tourists and international hospital accreditation companies are passively framing the terms of how medical tourism is unfolding in Barbados. Within this context, we seek to better understand the roles and relationships of various actors and champions implicated in the development of medical tourism in order to provide a more nuanced understanding of how the sector is emerging in Barbados and elsewhere and how its development might impact equitable health system development. © The Author(s) 2015 Reprints and permissions:]br]sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Championing telemedicine adoption and utilization in healthcare organizations in New Zealand.

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Qirim, Nabeel

2007-01-01

This research explored the adoption and the utilisation of telemedicine (TM) in two healthcare organizations (HCOs) in New Zealand (NZ). The research utilised the technological innovation theories, as a guiding theoretical framework, to develop a set of potential determinants which could assist in understanding the adoption and the depth of the TM phenomenon in the two HCOs. Using case studies design, the findings across the two cases revealed that TM was adopted according to its cost-benefit analysis. Although this approach was found to be important in assessing the adoption of TM, not considering the importance of other factors, highlighted in this research, such as the compatibility and the trialability aspects of the TM technology had a detrimental impact on the success of TM in both cases. This research stressed the need for the tight coupling between the roles of both the administrative and the clinical managers in HCOs in order to champion TM adoption and diffusion and to overcome many of the barriers that could hinder telemedicine success in HCOs in NZ. The research points to other implications with respect to the literature and highlights further research in this important area.

Understanding How Participants Become Champions and Succeed in Adopting Healthy Lifestyles: A Storytelling of a Community Health and Nutrition Program at a Land-Grant University

Science.gov (United States)

Keo, Phalla Duong

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate and understand the experiences of participants who become champions and succeed in adopting healthy lifestyles. The setting was a health and nutrition educational program at University of Minnesota Extension. The main research questions were: How do participants in the Community Health Education Program…

Community health promotion and medical provision for neonatal health-CHAMPION cluster randomised trial in Nagarkurnool district, Telangana (formerly Andhra Pradesh, India.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Boone

2017-07-01

Full Text Available In the mid-2000s, neonatal mortality accounted for almost 40% of deaths of children under 5 years worldwide, and constituted 65% of infant deaths in India. The neonatal mortality rate in Andhra Pradesh was 44 per 1,000 live births, and was higher in the rural areas and tribal regions, such as the Nagarkurnool division of Mahabubnagar district (which became Nagarkurnool district in Telangana in 2014. The aim of the CHAMPION trial was to investigate whether a package of interventions comprising community health promotion and provision of health services (including outreach and facility-based care could lead to a reduction of the order of 25% in neonatal mortality.The design was a trial in which villages (clusters in Nagarkurnool with a population < 2,500 were randomised to the CHAMPION package of health interventions or to the control arm (in which children aged 6-9 years were provided with educational interventions-the STRIPES trial. A woman was eligible for the CHAMPION package if she was married and <50 years old, neither she nor her husband had had a family planning operation, and she resided in a trial village at the time of a baseline survey before randomisation or married into the village after randomisation. The CHAMPION intervention package comprised community health promotion (including health education via village health worker-led participatory discussion groups and provision of health services (including outreach, with mobile teams providing antenatal check-ups, and facility-based care, with subsidised access to non-public health centres [NPHCs]. Villages were stratified by travel time to the nearest NPHC and tribal status, and randomised (1:1 within strata. The primary outcome was neonatal mortality. Secondary outcomes included maternal mortality, causes of death, health knowledge, health practices including health service usage, satisfaction with care, and costs. The baseline survey (enumeration was carried out between August and

Lingering fat signals with CHESS in simultaneous imaging of both hands can be improved with rice pads in both 1.5 T and 3.0 T

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moriya, Susumu, E-mail: smoyari@yahoo.co.jp [Division of Health Sciences, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 5-11-80 Kodatsuno, Kanazawa 920-0942 (Japan); Ishikawa Clinic, 46-1 Shimokamo-Umenoki-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto 606-0851 (Japan); Miki, Yukio, E-mail: yukio.miki@med.osaka-cu.ac.jp [Department of Radiology, Osaka City University Graduate School of Medicine, 1-4-3 Asahi-machi, Abeno-ku, Osaka 545-8585 (Japan); Kamishima, Tamotsu, E-mail: ktamotamo2@yahoo.co.jp [Department of Biomedical Sciences and Engineering, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Health Science, North-12 West-5 Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0812 (Japan); Miyati, Tosiaki, E-mail: ramiyati@mhs.mp.kanazawa-u.ac.jp [Division of Health Sciences, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 5-11-80 Kodatsuno, Kanazawa 920-0942 (Japan); Kanagaki, Mitsunori, E-mail: mitsuk@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp [Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University, 54 Shogoin-kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan); Matsuno, Yukako, E-mail: ynoma2000jp@yahoo.co.jp [Oike Clinic, 11 Nishinokyo-Shimoai-cho, Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto 604-8436 (Japan); Yokobayashi, Tsuneo, E-mail: mri@mrnet.jp [Ishikawa Clinic, 46-1 Shimokamo-Umenoki-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto 606-0851 (Japan)

2013-09-15

Objectives: To investigate whether rice pads can eliminate lingering fat signals of the complex surface shape of both hands that occur with chemical shift selective (CHESS) at 1.5 T and 3.0 T. Materials and methods: T1-weighted images were obtained with CHESS using 1.5 T and 3.0 T systems. The same imaging parameters were used with and without rice pads on the coronal plane of both hands in 10 healthy volunteers. The fat-suppression effects were classified into four categories and scored for images, and visual evaluations were performed by one radiologist and one radiologic technologist. Results: At 1.5 T, the mean evaluation score was 1.55 for images obtained without rice pads and 3.50 for images obtained with rice pads. At 3.0 T, the mean evaluation score was 1.10 for images obtained without rice pads and 3.20 for images obtained with rice pads. With both systems, images obtained with the rice pads showed significantly better fat suppression effects than images obtained without rice pads (P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001). Conclusions: It was confirmed that lingering fat signals are eliminated and good fat-suppressed images are obtained with the use of rice pads at 1.5 T and 3.0 T. Rice pads are therefore useful with at 1.5 T and 3.0 T, which are currently becoming more widely used.

Lingering fat signals with CHESS in simultaneous imaging of both hands can be improved with rice pads in both 1.5 T and 3.0 T

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moriya, Susumu; Miki, Yukio; Kamishima, Tamotsu; Miyati, Tosiaki; Kanagaki, Mitsunori; Matsuno, Yukako; Yokobayashi, Tsuneo

2013-01-01

Objectives: To investigate whether rice pads can eliminate lingering fat signals of the complex surface shape of both hands that occur with chemical shift selective (CHESS) at 1.5 T and 3.0 T. Materials and methods: T1-weighted images were obtained with CHESS using 1.5 T and 3.0 T systems. The same imaging parameters were used with and without rice pads on the coronal plane of both hands in 10 healthy volunteers. The fat-suppression effects were classified into four categories and scored for images, and visual evaluations were performed by one radiologist and one radiologic technologist. Results: At 1.5 T, the mean evaluation score was 1.55 for images obtained without rice pads and 3.50 for images obtained with rice pads. At 3.0 T, the mean evaluation score was 1.10 for images obtained without rice pads and 3.20 for images obtained with rice pads. With both systems, images obtained with the rice pads showed significantly better fat suppression effects than images obtained without rice pads (P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001). Conclusions: It was confirmed that lingering fat signals are eliminated and good fat-suppressed images are obtained with the use of rice pads at 1.5 T and 3.0 T. Rice pads are therefore useful with at 1.5 T and 3.0 T, which are currently becoming more widely used

Lingering fat signals with CHESS in simultaneous imaging of both hands can be improved with rice pads in both 1.5T and 3.0T.

Science.gov (United States)

Moriya, Susumu; Miki, Yukio; Kamishima, Tamotsu; Miyati, Tosiaki; Kanagaki, Mitsunori; Matsuno, Yukako; Yokobayashi, Tsuneo

2013-09-01

To investigate whether rice pads can eliminate lingering fat signals of the complex surface shape of both hands that occur with chemical shift selective (CHESS) at 1.5T and 3.0T. T1-weighted images were obtained with CHESS using 1.5T and 3.0T systems. The same imaging parameters were used with and without rice pads on the coronal plane of both hands in 10 healthy volunteers. The fat-suppression effects were classified into four categories and scored for images, and visual evaluations were performed by one radiologist and one radiologic technologist. At 1.5T, the mean evaluation score was 1.55 for images obtained without rice pads and 3.50 for images obtained with rice pads. At 3.0T, the mean evaluation score was 1.10 for images obtained without rice pads and 3.20 for images obtained with rice pads. With both systems, images obtained with the rice pads showed significantly better fat suppression effects than images obtained without rice pads (P<0.0001, P<0.0001). It was confirmed that lingering fat signals are eliminated and good fat-suppressed images are obtained with the use of rice pads at 1.5T and 3.0T. Rice pads are therefore useful with at 1.5T and 3.0T, which are currently becoming more widely used. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Declines in swimming performance with age: a longitudinal study of Masters swimming champions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rubin RT

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Robert T Rubin,1,2 Sonia Lin,3 Amy Curtis,4 Daniel Auerbach,5 Charlene Win6 1Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA; 2UCLA Bruin Masters Swim Club, Los Angeles, CA, USA; 3Saint Louis University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO, USA; 4Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA; 5University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA; 6Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA, USA Introduction: Because of its many participants and thorough records, competitive Masters swimming offers a rich data source for determining the rate of physical decline associated with aging in physically fit individuals. The decline in performance among national champion swimmers, both men and women and in short and long swims, is linear, at about 0.6% per year up to age 70–75, after which it accelerates in quadratic fashion. These conclusions are based primarily on cross-sectional studies, and little is known about individual performance declines with aging. Herein we present performance profiles of 19 male and 26 female national and international champion Masters swimmers, ages 25 to 96 years, participating in competitions for an average of 23 years. Methods and results: Swimmers’ longitudinal data were compared with the fastest times of world record holders across ages 35–100 years by two regression methods. Neither method proved to accurately model this data set: compared with the rates of decline estimated from the world record data, which represent the best recorded times at given ages, there was bias toward shallower rates of performance decline in the longitudinal data, likely owing to a practice effect in some swimmers as they began their Masters programs. In swimmers’ later years, once maximum performance had been achieved, individual profiles followed the decline represented in the world records, and a few swimmers became the world record holders. In some instances

Dementia in a retired world boxing champion: case report and literature review.

Science.gov (United States)

Nowak, L A; Smith, G G; Reyes, P F

2009-01-01

Dementia in retired boxers, also referred to as "dementia pugilistica" (DP), is usually attributed to repeated concussive and subconcussive blows to the head. We report the case of a former world boxing champion whose progressive cognitive decline could be ascribed to DP, cerebral infarcts and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. This case demonstrates that dementia in retired boxers may be caused and/or exacerbated by etiologic factors other than DP. We correlated the clinical features with the histochemical and immunohistochemical changes observed on autopsy brain material from a retired boxer, reviewed the literature on boxing-related dementia, and compared our findings with previous reports on DP. Neuropathologic examination revealed numerous neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs), rare neuritic plaques (NPs), multiple cerebral infarcts, fenestrated septum pellucidum, atrophic and gliotic mamillary bodies, and pale substantia nigra and locus ceruleus. Our neuropathologic data confirmed the notion that dementia in retired boxers could be due to several factors such as DP, multiple cerebral infarcts and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. Our findings illustrate the need to comprehensively examine former boxers with dementia as well as carefully evaluate the neuropathologic changes that may cause or contribute to the patient's cognitive and behavioral symptoms. Such an approach is crucial in order to provide prompt and more definitive therapies.

The HIFI spectral survey of AFGL 2591 (CHESS). II. Summary of the survey

Science.gov (United States)

Kaźmierczak-Barthel, M.; van der Tak, F. F. S.; Helmich, F. P.; Chavarría, L.; Wang, K.-S.; Ceccarelli, C.

2014-07-01

Aims: This paper presents the richness of submillimeter spectral features in the high-mass star forming region AFGL 2591. Methods: As part of the Chemical Herschel Survey of Star Forming Regions (CHESS) key programme, AFGL 2591 was observed by the Herschel (HIFI) instrument. The spectral survey covered a frequency range from 480 to 1240 GHz as well as single lines from 1267 to 1901 GHz (i.e. CO, HCl, NH3, OH, and [CII]). Rotational and population diagram methods were used to calculate column densities, excitation temperatures, and the emission extents of the observed molecules associated with AFGL 2591. The analysis was supplemented with several lines from ground-based JCMT spectra. Results: From the HIFI spectral survey analysis a total of 32 species were identified (including isotopologues). Although the lines are mostly quite weak (∫TmbdV ~ few K km s-1), 268 emission and 16 absorption lines were found (excluding blends). Molecular column densities range from 6 × 1011 to 1 × 1019 cm-2 and excitation temperatures from 19 to 175 K. Cold (e.g. HCN, H2S, and NH3 with temperatures below 70 K) and warm species (e.g. CH3OH, SO2) in the protostellar envelope can be distinguished. Herschel is an ESA space observatory with science instruments provided by European-led Principal Investigator consortia and with important participation from NASA.Appendix A is available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

COMPARISON OF VISUAL ACUITY IN REDUCED LUMINATION AND FACILITY OF OCULAR ACCOMMODATION IN TABLE TENNIS CHAMPIONS AND NON- PLAYERS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ebrahim Jafarzadehpur

2004-03-01

Full Text Available A table tennis player should fixate at different distances; track the objects with different speed, and in different visual environment. Their visual skills must be well developed for these capabilities. Therefore, visual acuity in reduced lumination and facility of ocular accommodation those are two criteria for visual skills have been compared in table tennis players and normal non-players. Twenty-nine young table tennis champions and 29 normal matched non-players (did not take part in any racket sports game were evaluated. Basic visual and eye examinations were done for both of them. Normal results in basic examination were fundamental requirement for all the subjects. +/-2.00 sphere lenses for accommodation facility are used. An electrical current regulator changed the output light intensity of a conventional chart projector (Topcon. Light intensity decreased to 10 cd·m-2 and visual acuity tested. In comparison of visual acuity in reduced lumination and facility of ocular accommodation in table tennis champions and non-players there are significant differences (p < 0.001. In the preliminary visual tests there was not any significant different in the two groups but the results in the top level table tennis player was very uniform and in every test and the standard deviation was lesser in tennis player group than non-players. These results show that motor and sensorial functions of expert players are well developed. That is consistent with other researchers. This result was interpreted as reflecting a better perceptual system of experts to the constraints encountered during table tennis and its use in practical settings for evaluating athletes or detecting sport talents. However some visual and perceptual training that usually used in orthoptics can be used for novice table tennis player to improve their abilities

Effect of Value- Addition on the Benefits of Women Participation in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This means that those who trade on garri make about 37% above what the Akpu dealers make in the area within the period under review. The marketing margin for garri against raw cassava purchased from the farmers is 0.62 or 62%, while that of Akpu against raw cassava is 0.22 or 22%. Based on the above findings, the ...

Selective Catalytic Synthesis Using the Combination of Carbon Dioxide and Hydrogen: Catalytic Chess at the Interface of Energy and Chemistry.

Science.gov (United States)

Klankermayer, Jürgen; Wesselbaum, Sebastian; Beydoun, Kassem; Leitner, Walter

2016-06-20

The present Review highlights the challenges and opportunities when using the combination CO2 /H2 as a C1 synthon in catalytic reactions and processes. The transformations are classified according to the reduction level and the bond-forming processes, covering the value chain from high volume basic chemicals to complex molecules, including biologically active substances. Whereas some of these concepts can facilitate the transition of the energy system by harvesting renewable energy into chemical products, others provide options to reduce the environmental impact of chemical production already in today's petrochemical-based industry. Interdisciplinary fundamental research from chemists and chemical engineers can make important contributions to sustainable development at the interface of the energetic and chemical value chain. The present Review invites the reader to enjoy this exciting area of "catalytic chess" and maybe even to start playing some games in her or his laboratory. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Charakterystyka budowy ciała tancerzy stylu standardowego tańca sportowego na przykładzie pary mistrzów świata = Characteristics of body building standard style dancers on the example of pair of world champions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wiesława Pilewska

2015-11-01

Abstract Aim of the study The aim of the study was to determine the specificity of somatic build ballroom dancers sporting standard style. Materials The research material was sporting ballroom dancing couple having the highest international dance class "S". World Champions of 2013, the standard style. The length of the internship dance couples was 19 years. Subjects were trained from 6 to 7 days a week, after 3-4 hours a day. They were both 28 years. Methods Physical development assessment was based on anthropometric measurements of body weight and height, the length of the neck, upper and lower limbs, torso, thigh and lower leg, foot length, width, shoulders, pelvis, feet, chest, deep chest, circuits, waist, hips, thighs and ankles. Typological classification was also used to assess the specificity of physique subjects. Conclusions A pair of dance sport sporty style with a high level of standard sports (with the 2013 World Champions. characterized by a specific construction of somatic manifested a certain size characteristics and indicators of body (shown in this work.Presented by their size parameters of somatic and morphological indicators should be considered as a result of the impact of dance training and the requirements of the standard style of discipline and separately for dancers and dance together for a couple as the specifics of their selection.   Key words: ballroom dancing, standard style, construction somatic, World Champions.

A Cascade of Champions: A Qualitative Study about the MA-CORD Media Competition Implementation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shaniece Criss

2016-04-01

Full Text Available A media competition was part of the Massachusetts Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration (MA-CORD Study. Criss et al., previously outlined the development and implementation of the competition, including variation in reach and adoption of the intervention across schools and afterschool programs. In this qualitative study, we examine community, provider, and organizational factors that explain the variation of media competition reach in school and afterschool programs, and describe the awareness of the media competition across other community sectors. Durlak and DuPre’s ecological framework for understanding effective implementation provided the theoretical underpinnings for this study. Fifty-four key informant interviews were conducted, transcribed, and analyzed. Organizational capacity of committed teachers/staff and adaptability of the media competition seemed to be drivers for higher reach within school and afterschool programs. Salient themes that emerged as facilitators of effective implementation were having a cascade of champions and providing opportunity to participate in the media competition outside traditional class time. Clinics and coalitions were identified as additional sectors aware of the media competition. Specifically, our findings offer a new perspective on intervention design and a recommended direction for further study.

Garri Pottera obideli

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

2002-01-01

J.K. Rowling'u Harry Potteri lugude teine film "Harry Potter ja saladuste kamber" ("Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets") : režissöör Chris Columbus ja filmi kassatulu võrdlus teiste suurfilmidega esilinastuse nädalal USAs, Itaalias ja Suurbritannias

Garri Potter nasledil

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

2007-01-01

Esilinastus Harry Potteri viies film "Harry Potter ja Fööniksi ordu", režissöör David Yates. Peaosatäitjad Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson ja Rupert Grint jätsid oma käe ja võlukepikeste jäljendid Los Angelese esilinastuse eel Hollywoodi Grauman's Chinese theater' esisele avenüüle. Ka kassatuludest

Zhutkii Garri Potter

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

2005-01-01

Järjekorras neljas Potteri ekraniseering "Harry Potter ja tulepeeker" ("Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire") sai oma sünguse tõttu reitingu, mille järgi alla 12. aastased lapsed võivad vaadata filmi vaid koos vanematega. Rezh. Mike Newell

Garry Rumbles | NREL

Science.gov (United States)

. Rumbles' current research interests are in solar energy with a focus on the basic science of solar . His primary research expertise lies in photochemistry and photophysics, with a specialty in kinetics College awards for excellence in teaching. Dr. Rumbles joined NREL as a sabbatical scientist in 2000

O conhecimento tático declarativo dos levantadores campeões de voleibol The tactical declarative knowledge of the volleyball champions setters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristino Julio Alves da Silva Matias

2013-03-01

Full Text Available O objetivo do estudo consistiu em analisar o conhecimento tático declarativo do levantador de voleibol, expert, dos Escalões Iniciais ao Adulto. Como voluntários a amostra teve dezoito levantadores. Dois levantadores, um de cada sexo, campeões estaduais (SP-MG dos escalões: Mirim (sub-14, Infantil (sub-15, Infanto (sub-17 e Juvenil (sub-20. Houve também a participação dos campeões do escalão Adulto (Superliga, um masculino e outro feminino. Empregou-se como instrumento o Teste de Conhecimento Tático Declarativo do Levantador (MATIAS; GRECO, 2009. Os resultados demonstraram a expertise tática declarativa dos levantadores, pois todos foram capazes de tomar a decisão correta e justificar com exatidão a decisão. Para tal, aplicou-se o teste de correlação de Spearman que demonstrou uma associação significativa em todos os escalões (p=0,000. Por meio da aplicação do teste de Kruskall-Wallis e Mann-Whitney verificou-se a diferença do escalão Adulto perante os demais, em ambos os sexo, pois o valor de significância dos testes foram inferiores a 0,05. Os resultados apurados sugerem que equipes campeãs possuem, como responsável pela organização ofensiva, levantadores com compreensão declarativa das ações inerentes a distribuição de jogo.The aim of this study consisted of the volleyball setter's (expert declarative knowledge analysis. The sample counted on eighteen setters as volunteers. Two of them, each one of a different gender, distributed equally among categories of competition: 14 under division, 15 under division, 17 under division and 20 under division. All champions for the state of SP or MG. There was also a participation of two setters that were champions in the Adult category (Professional National Championship: Superliga, each one of a different gender. It was employed the Setter's Tactical Declarative Knowledge Test (MATIAS; GRECO, 2009. The results showed the setter's tactical declarative expertise, because

Diversity, Replication, Pathogenicity and Cell Biology of Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

1990. Hen egg white lysozyme expressed in, and secreted from, Aspergillus niger is correctly processed and folded. Biotechnology (New York) 8:741–745. 7...in bunyavirus-infected cells. J. Virol. 41:643–648. 18. Garry, C. E., and R. F. Garry. 2004. Proteomics computational analyses suggest that the...2005). Proteomic identification of proteins conjugated to ISG15 in mouse and human cells. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 336, 496–506. Haas, A.L

A taxonomic monograph of the genus Tylodinus Champion (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Cryptorhynchinae: Tylodina) of Chiapas, Mexico.

Science.gov (United States)

Luna-Cozar, Jesús; Anderson, Robert S; Jones, Robert W; León-Corté, Jorge L

2014-04-15

The species of the genus Tylodinus from the Mexican state of Chiapas are revised. We examined 989 specimens representing 36 species; 23 species are grouped into eight species groups with 13 species considered as Incertae sedis. A total of 32 species are described as new and one species is a new record for México. Species groups  (numbers of species in parentheses) and species are: Tylodinus buchanani species group (6) T. buchanani new species (type locality: Chiapas, Unión Juárez, Volcán Tacan), T. exiguus new species (type locality: Chiapas, Motozintla, 7 km SSW Motozintla de Mendoza), T. ixchel new species (type locality: Chiapas, Unión Juarez, Volcán Tacan), T. jonesi new species (type locality: Chiapas, Angel Albino Corzo, Reserva de la Biosfera el Triunfo, Campamento el Quetzal), T. variabilis new species (type locality: Chiapas, San Cristóbal de las Casas, Cerro Huitepec), T. wibmeri new species (type locality: Chiapas, Motozintla, 7 km SSW Motozintla de Mendoza); Tylodinus canaliculatus species group (3) T. canaliculatus Champion (Chiapas, Unión Juárez, Volcán Tacan, new record for  México), T. sepulturaensis new species (Type locality: Chiapas, Villa Corzo, Ejido Sierra Morena), T. triumforium new species (Type locality: Chiapas, La Concordia, 4 km SE Custepec); Tylodinus cavicrus species group (3) T. cavicrus Champion, T. pseudocavicrus new species (type locality: Chiapas, San Cristóbal de las Casas, Cerro Huitepec), T. rugosus new species (type locality: Chiapas, Villa Flores, Sierra Morena); Tylodinus coapillensis species group (2) T. coapillensis new species (type locality: Chiapas, Coapilla, ca. 10.5 km NE Coapilla), T. leoncortesi new species (type locality: Chiapas, Pueblo Nuevo Solistahuacán, La Yerbabuena); Tylodinus mutabilis species group (2) Tylodinus mutabilis new species (type locality: Chiapas, Villa Corzo, Ejido Sierra Morena), T. parvus new species (type locality: Chiapas, Trinitaria, Lagunas de Montebello); Tylodinus

Champions for social change: Photovoice ethics in practice and 'false hopes' for policy and social change.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnston, Gloria

2016-01-01

Photovoice methodology is growing in popularity in the health, education and social sciences as a research tool based on the core values of community-based participatory research. Most photovoice projects state a claim to the third goal of photovoice: to reach policy-makers or effect policy change. This paper examines the concerns of raising false hopes or unrealistic expectations amongst the participants of photovoice projects as they are positioned to be the champions for social change in their communities. The impetus for social change seems to lie in the hands of those most affected by the issue. This drive behind collective social action forms, what could be termed, a micro-social movement or comparative interest group. Looking to the potential use of social movement theory and resource mobilisation concepts, this paper poses a series of unanswered questions about the ethics of photovoice projects. The ethical concern centres on the focus of policy change as a key initiative; yet, most projects remain vague about the implementation and outcomes of this focus.

Single-Nanoflake Photo-Electrochemistry Reveals Champion and Spectator Flakes in Exfoliated MoSe2 Films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Link, Elisa M [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Nanayakkara, Sanjini U [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Todt, Michael A. [Colorado State University; Isenberg, Allan E. [Colorado State University; Sambur, Justin B. [Colorado State University

2018-03-06

Semiconducting transition-metal dichalcogenide (TMD) nanoflake thin films are promising large-area electrodes for photo-electrochemical solar energy conversion applications. However, their energy conversion efficiencies are typically much lower than those of bulk electrodes. It is unclear to what extent this efficiency gap stems from differences among nanoflakes (e.g., area, thickness, and surface structural features). It is also unclear whether individual exfoliated nanoflakes can achieve energy conversion efficiencies similar to those of bulk crystals. Here, we use a single-nanoflake photo-electrochemical approach to show that there are both highly active and completely inactive nanoflakes within a film. For the exfoliated MoSe2 samples studied herein, 7% of nanoflakes are highly active champions, whose photocurrent efficiency exceeds that of the bulk crystal. However, 66% of nanoflakes are inactive spectators, which are mostly responsible for the overall lower photocurrent efficiency compared to the bulk crystal. The photocurrent collection efficiency increases with nanoflake area and decreases more at perimeter edges than at interior step edges. These observations, which are hidden in ensemble-level measurements, reveal the underlying performance issues of exfoliated TMD electrodes for photo-electrochemical energy conversion applications.

Comparison of the oxygen uptake kinetics of club and olympic champion rowers.

Science.gov (United States)

Ingham, Stephen A; Carter, Helen; Whyte, Gregory P; Doust, Jonathan H

2007-05-01

To test the hypothesis that elite rowers would possess a faster, more economic oxygen uptake response than club standard rowers. Eight Olympic champion (ELITE) rowers were compared with a cohort of eight club standard (CLUB) rowers. Participants completed a progressive exercise test to exhaustion, repeated 6-min moderate and heavy square-wave transitions, and a maximal 2000-m ergometer time trial. The time constant (tau) of the primary component (PC) was faster for the ELITE group compared with CLUB for moderate-intensity (13.9 vs 19.4 s, P = 0.02) and heavy-intensity (18.7 vs 22.4 s, P = 0.005) exercise. ELITE rowers consumed less oxygen for moderate (14.2 vs 15.6 mL x min(-1) x W(-1); P = 0.009) and heavy (12.1 vs 13.7 mL x min(-1) x W(-1); P = 0.01) exercise. A greater absolute slow component was observed in the ELITE group (P = 0.009), but no differences were noted when the slow component was expressed relative to work rate performed (P = 0.14). Intergroup correlation with time trial performance speed was significant for tauPC during heavy-intensity exercise (r = -0.59, P = 0.02). Compared with CLUB rowers, the shorter time constant response and greater economy observed in ELITE rowers may suggest advantageous adjustment of oxidative processes from rest to work. Training status or performance level do not seem to be associated with a smaller slow component when comparing CLUB and ELITE oarsmen.

Implementasi Strategi Regional Chaser Dan Local Champion Plus Global Market Online Pada Industri Spesial ?óÔé¼?ØGreen Batik?óÔé¼?Ø Dan Interpreneurs Building Di Jawa Tengah

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rasiman Rasiman

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract - Batik has various motives and its manufacture for basic materials. In mathematics kinds of batik motif can be made easily and pull through some mathematical concepts. Batik motifs that evolve at this point is still quite monotonous. In order motif sell high value, it can be modified to become more attractive in accordance with a pattern emerging at this time. The research objective is (1 make creative engineering design green batik motif, (2 maximize marketing with the implementation of regional strategies and local champion chaser plus global online market, and (3 maximizing the potential of local knowledge so as to boost the economy in some areas in Central Java. This research approach, focuses on the empowerment of exploiting Information and Communication Technology in the creation of batik motif design and marketing to penetrate the international market. Research result : (1 batik craftsmen can design green batik motif with lots of patterns and shades, (2 some craftsmen used to market batik online, and (3increasing the community's economy ?óÔé¼?ôbatik?óÔé¼?Ø artisans in some areas. Keyword: Regional Chaser, Local Champion, Global Market Online, Green Batik.

Exploring the use patterns of a mobile health application for alcohol addiction before the initial lapse after detoxification.

Science.gov (United States)

Chih, Ming-Yuan

2014-01-01

How patients used Addiction-Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (A-CHESS)1, a mobile health intervention, while quitting drinking is worthy exploring. This study is to explore A-CHESS use patterns prior to the initial lapse reported after discharge from inpatient detoxification programs. 142 patients with alcohol addiction from two treatment agencies in the U.S. were included. A comprehensive set of A-CHESS use measures were developed based on a three-level system use framework and three A-CHESS service categories. In latent profile analyses, three A-CHESS system use patterns-inactive, passive, and active users-were found. Compared to the passive users (with the highest chance of the initial lapse), the active users (with the lowest chance of such behavior) participated more in online social activities, used more sessions, viewed more pages, and used A-CHESS longer. However, the chances of the initial lapse between A-CHESS user profiles were not statistically different. Implications of this finding were provided.

The CHESS Survey of the L1157-B1 Shock Region: CO Spectral Signatures of Jet-driven Bow Shocks

Science.gov (United States)

Lefloch, B.; Cabrit, S.; Busquet, G.; Codella, C.; Ceccarelli, C.; Cernicharo, J.; Pardo, J. R.; Benedettini, M.; Lis, D. C.; Nisini, B.

2012-10-01

The unprecedented sensitivity of Herschel coupled with the high resolution of the HIFI spectrometer permits studies of the intensity-velocity relationship I(v) in molecular outflows, over a higher excitation range than possible up to now. Over the course of the CHESS Key Program, we have observed toward the bright bow shock region L1157-B1, the CO rotational transitions between J = 5-4 and J = 16-15 with HIFI, and the J = 1-0, 2-1, and 3-2 with the IRAM 30 m and the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory telescopes. We find that all the line profiles I CO(v) are well fit by a linear combination of three exponential laws vpropexp (- |v/v 0|) with v 0 = 12.5, 4.4, and 2.5 km s-1. The first component dominates the CO emission at J >= 13, as well as the high-excitation lines of SiO and H2O. The second component dominates for 3 = 105-106 cm-3) close to LTE up to J = 20. We find that the CO J = 2-1 intensity-velocity relation observed in various other molecular outflows is satisfactorily fit by similar exponential laws, which may hold an important clue to their entrainment process.

High heat load performance of an inclined crystal monochromator with liquid gallium cooling on the CHESS-ANL undulator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Macrander, A.T.; Lee, W.K.; Smither, R.K.; Mills, D.M.

1992-01-01

Recent results for the performance of a novel double crystal monochromator subjected to high heat loads on an APS prototype undulator at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS) are presented. The monochromator was designed to achieve symmetric diffraction from asymmetric planes to spread out the beam footprint thereby lowering the incident power density. Both crystals had (111) oriented surfaces and were arranged such that the beam was diffracted from the (11 bar 1) planes at 5 KeV. Rocking curves with minimal distortion were obtained at a ring electron current of 100 mA. This corresponded to 380 Watts total power and an average power density of 40 Watts/mm 2 normal to the incident beam. These results are compared to data obtained from the same crystals in the standard geometry (diffracting planes parallel to surface). The footprint area in the inclined case was three times that of the standard case. We also obtained rocking curve data for the (333) reflection at 15 KeV for both standard and inclined cases, and these data also showed a minimal distortion only for the inclined case. In addition, thermal data were obtained via infrared pyrometry. Liquid gallium flow rates of up to 2 gallons per minute were investigated. The diffraction data revealed a dramatically improved performance for the inclined crystal case

The CHESS survey of the L1157-B1 bow-shock: Dissecting the water content

Science.gov (United States)

Busquet, Gemma; Lefloch, Bertrand; Benedettini, Milena; Ceccarelli, Cecilia; Codella, Claudio; Cabrit, Sylvie; Nisini, Brunella; Viti, Serena; Gómez-Ruiz, Arturo; Gusdorf, Antoine; Di Giorgio, Anna Maria; Wiesenfeld, Laurent

2013-07-01

Molecular outflows powered by young protostars strongly affect the kinematics and chemistry of the natal molecular cloud through strong shocks, resulting in an increase of the abundance of several species. In particular, water is a powerful tracer of shocked material due to its sensitivity to both physical conditions and chemical processes. The observations of the "Chemical Herschel Survey of Star forming regions" (CHESS) key program towards the shock region L1157-B1 offered a unique and comprehensive view of the water emission in a typical protostellar bow shock across the submillimeter and far-infrared window. A grand total of 13 water lines have been detected with the PACS and HIFI instruments, probing a wide range of excitation conditions and providing us with a detailed picture on both the kinematics and the spatial distribution of water emission. Several gas components have been identified coexisting in the L1157-B1 shock region. Large Velocity Gradient (LVG) analysis reveals that these components have different excitation conditions: i) a warm (T~250 K) and dense (n(H2)~10^6 cm-3) gas component seen also with the CO lines and associated with the partly dissociative shock produced by the impact of the protostellar jet against the bow shock; ii) a compact (size~5''), hot (T~700 K), and less dense (n(H2)~10^4 cm-3) gas component, and iii) an extended component associated with the B1 outflow cavity. These three components present clear differences in terms of water enrichment. Finally, we confront the physical and chemical properties of the H2O emission to the predictions of current shock models.

The Trojan Lifetime Champions Health Survey: Development, Validity, and Reliability

Science.gov (United States)

Sorenson, Shawn C.; Romano, Russell; Scholefield, Robin M.; Schroeder, E. Todd; Azen, Stanley P.; Salem, George J.

2015-01-01

Context Self-report questionnaires are an important method of evaluating lifespan health, exercise, and health-related quality of life (HRQL) outcomes among elite, competitive athletes. Few instruments, however, have undergone formal characterization of their psychometric properties within this population. Objective To evaluate the validity and reliability of a novel health and exercise questionnaire, the Trojan Lifetime Champions (TLC) Health Survey. Design Descriptive laboratory study. Setting A large National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I university. Patients or Other Participants A total of 63 university alumni (age range, 24 to 84 years), including former varsity collegiate athletes and a control group of nonathletes. Intervention(s) Participants completed the TLC Health Survey twice at a mean interval of 23 days with randomization to the paper or electronic version of the instrument. Main Outcome Measure(s) Content validity, feasibility of administration, test-retest reliability, parallel-form reliability between paper and electronic forms, and estimates of systematic and typical error versus differences of clinical interest were assessed across a broad range of health, exercise, and HRQL measures. Results Correlation coefficients, including intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for continuous variables and κ agreement statistics for ordinal variables, for test-retest reliability averaged 0.86, 0.90, 0.80, and 0.74 for HRQL, lifetime health, recent health, and exercise variables, respectively. Correlation coefficients, again ICCs and κ, for parallel-form reliability (ie, equivalence) between paper and electronic versions averaged 0.90, 0.85, 0.85, and 0.81 for HRQL, lifetime health, recent health, and exercise variables, respectively. Typical measurement error was less than the a priori thresholds of clinical interest, and we found minimal evidence of systematic test-retest error. We found strong evidence of content validity, convergent

Summing Up / Garry Johnson

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Johnson, Garry

2003-01-01

Kokkuvõte 22.-23. septembrini 2003 Vilniuses toimunud seminari "South Caucasus: making the best use of external assistance for stability building and for co-operation with NATO" ettekannetest Balti- ja Lõuna-Kaukaasia regiooni riikide vahelise sõjalis- ja julgeolekualase koostöö arendamisest

Comparison of diffusion-weighted images using short inversion time inversion recovery or chemical shift selective pulse as fat suppression in patients with breast cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kazama, Toshiki; Nasu, Katsuhiro; Kuroki, Yoshifumi; Nawano, Shigeru; Ito, Hisao

2009-01-01

Fat suppression is essential for diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) in the body. However, the chemical shift selective (CHESS) pulse often fails to suppress fat signals in the breast. The purpose of this study was to compare DWI using CHESS and DWI using short inversion time inversion recovery (STIR) in terms of fat suppression and the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value. DWI using STIR, DWI using CHESS, and contrast-enhanced T1-weighted images were obtained in 32 patients with breast carcinoma. Uniformity of fat suppression, ADC, signal intensity, and visualization of the breast tumors were evaluated. In 44% (14/32) of patients there was insufficient fat suppression in the breasts on DWI using CHESS, whereas 0% was observed on DWI using STIR (P<0.0001). The ADCs obtained for DWI using STIR were 4.3% lower than those obtained for DWI using CHESS (P<0.02); there was a strong correlation of the ADC measurement (r=0.93, P<0.001). DWI using STIR may be excellent for fat suppression; and the ADC obtained in this sequence was well correlated with that obtained with DWI using CHESS. DWI using STIR may be useful when the fat suppression technique in DWI using CHESS does not work well. (author)

Greater involvement of HIV-infected peer-mothers in provision of reproductive health services as "family planning champions" increases referrals and uptake of family planning among HIV-infected mothers.

Science.gov (United States)

Mudiope, Peter; Musingye, Ezra; Makumbi, Carolyne Onyango; Bagenda, Danstan; Homsy, Jaco; Nakitende, Mai; Mubiru, Mike; Mosha, Linda Barlow; Kagawa, Mike; Namukwaya, Zikulah; Fowler, Mary Glenn

2017-06-27

In 2012, Makerere University Johns - Hopkins University, and Mulago National Referral Hospital, with support from the National Institute of Health (under Grant number: NOT AI-01-023) undertook operational research at Mulago National Hospital PMTCT/PNC clinics. The study employed Peer Family Planning Champions to offer health education, counselling, and triage aimed at increasing the identification, referral and family planning (FP) uptake among HIV positive mothers attending the clinic. The Peer Champion Intervention to improve FP uptake was introduced into Mulago Hospital PMTCT/PNC clinic, Kampala Uganda. During the intervention period, peers provided additional FP counselling and education; assisted in identification and referral of HIV Positive mothers in need of FP services; and accompanied referred mothers to FP clinics. We compiled and compared the average proportions of mothers in need that were referred and took up FP in the pre-intervention (3 months), intervention (6 months), and post-intervention(3 months) periods using interrupted time series with segmented regression models with an autoregressive term of one. Overall, during the intervention, the proportion of referred mothers in need of FP increased by 30.4 percentage points (P family planning can be a valuable addition to clinic staff in limited-resource settings. The study provides additional evidence on the utilization of peer mothers in HIV care, improves health services uptake including family planning which is a common practice in many donor supported programs. It also provides evidence that may be used to advocate for policy revisions in low-income countries to include peers as support staff especially in busy clinic settings with poor services uptake.

Teenusestandardid kasvatavad kliendi usaldust / Kate-Riin Kont

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Kont, Kate-Riin, 1971-

2007-01-01

16.-18. oktoobril 2007 toimus Tallinnas CHESS Initiativeþi world café seminar. Euroopa Standardikomitee teenuste horisontaalse standardimise strateegia ehk CHESS Initiative on loodud selleks, et anda hinnang teenuste standardimise teostatavusele. Euroopa Standardikomitee teenuste horisontaalse standardimise programmist (CHESS Initiative) ja selle raames korraldatavatest world café seminaridest, teenusestandardite vajalikkusest, teenuse osutamise ohuriskidest, kaebuste käsitlemisest

Middle-Out Approaches to Reform of University Teaching and Learning: Champions striding between the top-down and bottom-up approaches

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rick Cummings

2005-03-01

Full Text Available In recent years, Australian universities have been driven by a diversity of external forces, including funding cuts, massification of higher education, and changing student demographics, to reform their relationship with students and improve teaching and learning, particularly for those studying off-campus or part-time. Many universities have responded to these forces either through formal strategic plans developed top-down by executive staff or through organic developments arising from staff in a bottom-up approach. By contrast, much of Murdoch University’s response has been led by a small number of staff who have middle management responsibilities and who have championed the reform of key university functions, largely in spite of current policy or accepted practice. This paper argues that the ‘middle-out’ strategy has both a basis in change management theory and practice, and a number of strengths, including low risk, low cost, and high sustainability. Three linked examples of middle-out change management in teaching and learning at Murdoch University are described and the outcomes analyzed to demonstrate the benefits and pitfalls of this approach.

Galvanizers, Guides, Champions, and Shields: The Many Ways That Policymakers Use Public Health Researchers

Science.gov (United States)

Haynes, Abby S; Gillespie, James A; Derrick, Gemma E; Hall, Wayne D; Redman, Sally; Chapman, Simon; Sturk, Heidi

2011-01-01

Context Public health researchers make a limited but important contribution to policy development. Some engage with policy directly through committees, advisory boards, advocacy coalitions, ministerial briefings, intervention design consultation, and research partnerships with government, as well as by championing research-informed policy in the media. Nevertheless, the research utilization literature has paid little attention to these diverse roles and the ways that policymakers use them. This article describes how policymakers use researchers in policymaking and examines how these activities relate to models of research utilization. It also explores the extent to which policymakers’ accounts of using researchers concur with the experiences of “policy-engaged” public health researchers. Methods We conducted semi-structured interviews with thirty-two Australian civil servants, parliamentary ministers, and ministerial advisers identified as “research-engaged” by public health researchers. We used structured and inductive coding to generate categories that we then compared with some of the major research utilization models. Findings Policymakers were sophisticated and multifaceted users of researchers for purposes that we describe as Galvanizing Ideas, Clarification and Advice, Persuasion, and Defense. These categories overlapped but did not wholly fit with research utilization models. Despite the negative connotation, “being used” was reported as reciprocal and uncompromising, although researchers and policymakers were likely to categorize these uses differently. Policymakers countered views expressed by some researchers. That is, they sought robust dialogue and creative thinking rather than compliance, and they valued expert opinion when research was insufficient for decision making. The technical/political character of policy development shaped the ways in which researchers were used. Conclusions Elucidating the diverse roles that public health

Galvanizers, guides, champions, and shields: the many ways that policymakers use public health researchers.

Science.gov (United States)

Haynes, Abby S; Gillespie, James A; Derrick, Gemma E; Hall, Wayne D; Redman, Sally; Chapman, Simon; Sturk, Heidi

2011-12-01

Public health researchers make a limited but important contribution to policy development. Some engage with policy directly through committees, advisory boards, advocacy coalitions, ministerial briefings, intervention design consultation, and research partnerships with government, as well as by championing research-informed policy in the media. Nevertheless, the research utilization literature has paid little attention to these diverse roles and the ways that policymakers use them. This article describes how policymakers use researchers in policymaking and examines how these activities relate to models of research utilization. It also explores the extent to which policymakers' accounts of using researchers concur with the experiences of "policy-engaged" public health researchers. We conducted semi-structured interviews with thirty-two Australian civil servants, parliamentary ministers, and ministerial advisers identified as "research-engaged" by public health researchers. We used structured and inductive coding to generate categories that we then compared with some of the major research utilization models. Policymakers were sophisticated and multifaceted users of researchers for purposes that we describe as Galvanizing Ideas, Clarification and Advice, Persuasion, and Defense. These categories overlapped but did not wholly fit with research utilization models. Despite the negative connotation, "being used" was reported as reciprocal and uncompromising, although researchers and policymakers were likely to categorize these uses differently. Policymakers countered views expressed by some researchers. That is, they sought robust dialogue and creative thinking rather than compliance, and they valued expert opinion when research was insufficient for decision making. The technical/political character of policy development shaped the ways in which researchers were used. Elucidating the diverse roles that public health researchers play in policymaking, and the multiple ways

Liberalising Dutch Energy Markets. Champions and governance, rules and regulations. The 1995-2005 stories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Jong, J.

2006-09-01

Liberalisation of Dutch energy markets was not a sudden change of policy direction, but rather the result of policy evaluations and discussions which had already been going on for quite some time when the Minister of Economic Affairs issued an Energy White Paper in early 1996, and the EU Directives for the electricity market (1996) and the gas market (1998) were introduced. The Dutch followed a two-way track, aiming at a phased market liberalisation for gas and electricity with full legal electricity network unbundling and a merger of the four large power generators into a national champion. For gas, the Dutch position as a major natural gas producer led to the proposition of a structure that was much more careful, following the EU Directive to the millimetre. Some ten years since the White Paper was issued, Dutch decision-making, legislation and regulation of the energy market has gone through a fascinating, burdensome and complex, and sometimes chaotic and frustrating process. This study highlights the importance of market dynamics and the almost unbearable and unsolvable balance between policy, legislation and regulation. Further attention is given to the role of Dte ( Office of Energy Regulation) and its evolution into a full merger with the NMa (Netherlands Competition Authority), and ownership and privatisation discussions against the backdrop of the developments in the wider European energy markets. Overall, the study concludes that it appears to be too early to tell whether energy market policies of the last decade have delivered the expected results in either quantitative or monetary terms. What the process did deliver, however, was a lot of turbulence and dynamics, a boost for innovation in marketing and technology drives, and increased awareness about consumer power in which the threat to switch in itself produces results of improved service, more transparency and increased accountability

Snimajetsja novõi "Garri Potter"

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

2008-01-01

David Yates tegeleb kuuenda Harry Potteri sarja raamatu "Harry Potter ja segavereline prints" ("Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince") filmivõtetega. Fotod filmist on ilmunud ajakirjanduses, esilinastus 18. novembril

MISTERIJA ŠAHOVSKE IGRE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dragan Drobnjak

2006-06-01

Full Text Available If we relife of enigmatic, unexplainable, and partly mysterious, the chess game would lose much of its genuine nature, which wouldne, to be characterized any more by that original allure of enchanting.Chess game does not reveal all its secrets neither in regard to its origin nor in regard to its place in the life of an individual or the society.Therefore, chess game is extremely interesting filed of research from the sociological, socio-psychological, anthropological, cultural and other aspects. While elaborating this theme from all these aspects i have tried to come up with the answer to the question:Where is the beginning and the end of the chess game?On this questin, until now no one has given the precise answer, the answer which acknoweledges the thesis that mystery of the chess game has not yet been resolved, and we dont, know if will be and when it will be resolved.

Cognitive and neuronal bases of expertise

OpenAIRE

Campitelli, Guillermo

2003-01-01

This thesis examines the cognitive and neural bases of expertise. In so doing, several psychological phenomena were investigated-imagery. memory and thinking-using different tasks, and a variety of techniques of data gathering, including standard behavioural experiments, questionnaires, eye-movement recording, and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Chess players participated in all the studies, and chess tasks were used. The data confirmed the versatility and power of chess as ...

How Cancer Patients Use and Benefit from an Interactive Cancer Communication System.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Jeong Yeob; Hawkins, Robert; Baker, Timothy; Shah, Dhavan V; Pingree, Suzanne; Gustafson, David H

2017-10-01

Despite the mounting evidence of efficacy of eHealth interventions, their mechanisms of action remain unknown. The current study analyzed patient log data as each patient engaged in an eHealth system called the Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (CHESS) and reports on how patients engage with different combinations of eHealth services over time. Newly diagnosed breast cancer patients (N = 443) were given access for 6 months to one of four different configurations of CHESS: (1) Information, (2) Information and Support, (3) Information, Support, and Coaching (Full CHESS), and (4) Full CHESS and Mentor. Besides a baseline survey, three follow-up posttests were administered. Action log data on how patients engaged with the CHESS were also collected and merged with surveys to examine how patients benefit during the cancer experience. The findings suggest that usage patterns were not competitive, implying that cancer patients' access to more complex tools generates more use with their time spreading out over the diverse services. Despite overall decline in usage rates, it was less severe in Full CHESS and Mentor condition, suggesting that communication functions drive long-term engagement with the system. Notably, the strongest relation between use and cancer information competence appeared late in the follow-up period.

Peer teaching and information retrieval: the role of the NICE Evidence search student champion scheme in enhancing students' confidence.

Science.gov (United States)

Sbaffi, Laura; Hallsworth, Elaine; Weist, Anne

2018-03-01

This research reports on the NICE Evidence search (ES) student champion scheme (SCS) first five years of activity (2011-2016) in terms of its impact on health care undergraduate students' information search skills and search confidence. A review of students' evaluation of the scheme was carried out to chart the changes in attitude towards NICE Evidence search as an online health care information source and to monitor students' approach to information seeking. This study is based on the results of questionnaires distributed to students before and after attending a training session on NICE Evidence search delivered by their own peers. The exercise was implemented in health related universities in England over a period of five consecutive academic years. (i) Students' search confidence improved considerably after the training; (ii) ES was perceived as being an increasingly useful resource of evidence based information for their studies; (iii) the training helped students develop discerning search skills and use evidence based information sources more consistently and critically. The NICE SCS improves confidence in approaching information tasks amongst health care undergraduate students. Future developments could involve offering the training at the onset of a course of study and adopting online delivery formats to expand its geographical reach. © 2018 Health Libraries Group.

El diseño de un juego de ajedrez público y su tablero: una instalación itinerante para un recinto universitario./The design of a mega game of chess and board: a group traveling to a college campus.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Poirier Arangua, Franklin

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Se informa el diseño y construcción de un juego de ajedrez de gran formato, resistente y transportable para ser localizado en espacios abiertos y a la intemperie, o en espacios cubiertos. Se generó los volúmenes a partir de láminas de acero livianas y maleables; concebido artísticamente, su diseño permite la contemplación y la interacción./It informs the design and construction of a chess set of large format, rugged and portable to be located in open areas or covered spaces. Volumes were generated from sheets of light and malleable steel, its design allows for contemplation and interaction.

Training Intensity Distribution Over a Four-Year Cycle in Olympic Champion Rowers: Different Roads Lead to Rio.

Science.gov (United States)

Plews, Daniel J; Laursen, Paul B

2017-09-27

The purpose of this study was to compare the training intensity distribution (TID) of the undefeated world champion male rowing New Zealand (kiwi) pair over a four-year Olympic cycle, across training phases, training years, and between individuals. Training data, including heart rate and boat speed, were recorded in the athletes rowing in the same boat between March 2013 and August 2016, ending with the Rio Olympics final. Progressive exercise tests assessed first (LT 1 ) and second (LT 2 ) lactate thresholds and associated heart rates, to determine the percentage of training performed below, between and above these demarcation points. Training an average of only 12-15 h/wk throughout the Olympic cycle, the mean percent distribution of time (±SD) at each training intensity was 80.4 ± 5.5% LT 2 for Rower A and 67.3 ± 9.0% LT 2 for Rower B. Across the years 2014-2016, Rower A performed most likely more training training between LT 1 -LT 2 . Training appeared to become more polarised, with greater amounts of time spent training duration (R=0.38-0.43). Two of the world's best rowers, rowing together in the same boat with an undefeated record across an Olympic cycle, travelled markedly different "roads to Rio" within the context of their TID, with one rower displaying a polarised model of TID, and the other pyramidal. However, TID trended towards becoming more polarised in both rowers with increased training duration.

The Azteca Chess experience: learning how to share concepts of ecological complexity with small coffee farmers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luís García-Barrios

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Small-scale coffee farmers understand certain complex ecological processes, and successfully navigate some of the challenges emerging from the ecological complexity on their farms. It is generally thought that scientific knowledge is able to complement farmers' knowledge. However, for this collaboration to be fruitful, the gap between the knowledge frameworks of both farmers and scientists will need to be closed. We report on the learning results of 14 workshops held in Chiapas, Mexico during 2015 in which 117 small-scale coffee farmers of all genders (30% women and ages who had little schooling were exposed by researchers to a natural history narrative, a multispecies network representation, a board game, and a series of graphical quizzes, all related to a nine-species complex ecological network with potential for autonomous control of the ongoing and devastating coffee rust epidemic that was affecting them. Farmers' retention and understanding of direct and indirect bilateral interactions among organisms was assessed with different methods to elucidate the effect of adding Azteca Chess gaming sessions to a detailed and very graphical lecture. Evaluation methods that were better adapted to farmers' conditions improved learning scores and showed statistically significant age effect (players older than 40 had lower retention scores and gaming effect (lower retention of interactions included in the lecture but not in the game. The combination of lecture and game sessions helped participants better understand cascades of trait-mediated interactions. Participants' debriefings confirmed qualitatively that they learned that beneficial organisms and interactions occur on their farms, and that gaming was enjoyable, motivating, and critical to grasp complex interactions. Many of the farmers concluded that the outcome of these interactions is not unique and not always in favor of rust control but is context dependent. Many concluded that there are

Network Characteristics of Successful Performance in Association Football. A Study on the UEFA Champions League

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tiago J. Pina

2017-07-01

Full Text Available The synergistic interaction between teammates in association football has properties that can be captured by Social Network Analysis (SNA. The analysis of networks formed by team players passing a ball in a match shows that team success is correlated with high network density and clustering coefficient, as well as with reduced network centralization. However, oversimplification needs to be avoided, as network metrics events associated with success should not be considered equally to those that are not. In the present study, we investigated whether network density, clustering coefficient and centralization can predict successful or unsuccessful team performance. We analyzed 12 games of the Group Stage of UEFA Champions League 2015/2016 Group C by using public records from TV broadcasts. Notational analyses were performed to categorize attacking sequences as successful or unsuccessful, and to collect data on the ball-passing networks. The network metrics were then computed. A hierarchical logistic-regression model was used to predict the successfulness of the offensive plays from network density, clustering coefficient and centralization, after controlling for the effect of total passes on successfulness of offensive plays. Results confirmed the independent effect of network metrics. Density, but not clustering coefficient or centralization, was a significant predictor of the successfulness of offensive plays. We found a negative relation between density and successfulness of offensive plays. However, reduced density was associated with a higher number of offensive plays, albeit mostly unsuccessful. Conversely, high density was associated with a lower number of successful offensive plays (SOPs, but also with overall fewer offensive plays and “ball possession losses” before the attacking team entered the finishing zone. Independent SNA of team performance is important to minimize the limitations of oversimplifying effective team synergies.

Spatial part-set cuing facilitation.

Science.gov (United States)

Kelley, Matthew R; Parasiuk, Yuri; Salgado-Benz, Jennifer; Crocco, Megan

2016-07-01

Cole, Reysen, and Kelley [2013. Part-set cuing facilitation for spatial information. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, & Cognition, 39, 1615-1620] reported robust part-set cuing facilitation for spatial information using snap circuits (a colour-coded electronics kit designed for children to create rudimentary circuit boards). In contrast, Drinkwater, Dagnall, and Parker [2006. Effects of part-set cuing on experienced and novice chess players' reconstruction of a typical chess midgame position. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 102(3), 645-653] and Watkins, Schwartz, and Lane [1984. Does part-set cuing test for memory organization? Evidence from reconstructions of chess positions. Canadian Journal of Psychology/Revue Canadienne de Psychologie, 38(3), 498-503] showed no influence of part-set cuing for spatial information when using chess boards. One key difference between the two procedures was that the snap circuit stimuli were explicitly connected to one another, whereas chess pieces were not. Two experiments examined the effects of connection type (connected vs. unconnected) and cue type (cued vs. uncued) on memory for spatial information. Using chess boards (Experiment 1) and snap circuits (Experiment 2), part-set cuing facilitation only occurred when the stimuli were explicitly connected; there was no influence of cuing with unconnected stimuli. These results are potentially consistent with the retrieval strategy disruption hypothesis, as well as the two- and three-mechanism accounts of part-set cuing.

77 FR 50113 - ASTM International-Food and Drug Administration Workshop on Absorbable Medical Devices: Lessons...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-08-20

... disability, please contact Cindy Garris, Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 66, rm... that the implant must withstand and perform. Moreover, the optimal preclinical/bench testing paradigm...

The training program self-correcting and developing leadership qualities of sportsmen of high qualification.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vysochina Nadezhda Leonidovna

2011-09-01

Full Text Available The influence of level of self-esteem on the effectiveness of game of skilled chess players. It is shown the program of correction of self-appraisal of sportsmen of high qualification. Introduced correction technology developed self-esteem in the process of training of sportsmen chess players of high qualification as a set of training exercises aimed at improving the efficiency of sports activity. It is shown that high self-esteem has a positive effect on sports results chess players.

Effects of automated smartphone mobile recovery support and telephone continuing care in the treatment of alcohol use disorder: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

McKay, James R; Gustafson, David H; Ivey, Megan; McTavish, Fiona; Pe-Romashko, Klaren; Curtis, Brenda; Oslin, David A; Polsky, Daniel; Quanbeck, Andrew; Lynch, Kevin G

2018-01-30

New smartphone communication technology provides a novel way to provide personalized continuing care support following alcohol treatment. One such system is the Addiction version of the Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (A-CHESS), which provides a range of automated functions that support patients. A-CHESS improved drinking outcomes over standard continuing care when provided to patients leaving inpatient treatment. Effective continuing care can also be delivered via telephone calls with a counselor. Telephone Monitoring and Counseling (TMC) has demonstrated efficacy in two randomized trials with alcohol-dependent patients. A-CHESS and TMC have complementary strengths. A-CHESS provides automated 24/7 recovery support services and frequent assessment of symptoms and status, but does not involve regular contact with a counselor. TMC provides regular and sustained contact with the same counselor, but no ongoing support between calls. The future of continuing care for alcohol use disorders is likely to involve automated mobile technology and counselor contact, but little is known about how best to integrate these services. To address this question, the study will feature a 2 × 2 design (A-CHESS for 12 months [yes/no] × TMC for 12 months [yes/no]), in which 280 alcohol-dependent patients in intensive outpatient programs (IOPs) will be randomized to one of the four conditions and followed for 18 months. We will determine whether adding TMC to A-CHESS produces fewer heavy drinking days than TMC or A-CHESS alone and test for TMC and A-CHESS main effects. We will determine the costs of each of the four conditions and the incremental cost-effectiveness of the three active conditions. Analyses will also examine secondary outcomes, including a biological measure of alcohol use, and hypothesized moderation and mediation effects. The results of the study will yield important information on improving patient alcohol use outcomes by integrating mobile

Treatment seeking as a mechanism of change in a randomized controlled trial of a mobile health intervention to support recovery from alcohol use disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Glass, Joseph E; McKay, James R; Gustafson, David H; Kornfield, Rachel; Rathouz, Paul J; McTavish, Fiona M; Atwood, Amy K; Isham, Andrew; Quanbeck, Andrew; Shah, Dhavan

2017-06-01

We estimated the efficacy of the Addiction-Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (A-CHESS) in increasing the use of services for addiction and examined the extent to which this use of services mediated the effects of A-CHESS on risky drinking days and abstinence from drinking. We conducted secondary data analyses of the A-CHESS randomized controlled trial. Recruitment occurred in five residential treatment programs operated by two addiction treatment organizations. Participants were 349 adults with alcohol use disorders recruited two weeks before discharge from residential treatment. We provided intervention arm participants with a smartphone, the A-CHESS application, and an 8-month service plan. Control arm participants received treatment as usual. Telephone interviews at 4, 8, and 12-month follow-ups assessed past-month risky drinking days, past-month abstinence, and post-discharge service utilization (past-month outpatient addiction treatment and past-week mutual help including Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous). Using mixed effects latent variable models, we estimated the indirect effects of A-CHESS on drinking outcomes, as mediated by post-discharge service utilization. Approximately 50.5% of participants reported outpatient addiction treatment and 75.5% reported mutual help at any follow-up interview in the year following randomization. Assignment to the A-CHESS intervention was associated with an increased odds of outpatient addiction treatment across follow-ups, but not mutual help. This use of outpatient addiction treatment mediated the effect of A-CHESS on risky drinking days, but not abstinence. The effect of A-CHESS through outpatient addiction treatment appeared to reduce the expected number of risky drinking days across follow-ups by 11%. The mobile health (mHealth) intervention promoted the use of outpatient addiction treatment, which appeared to contribute to its efficacy in reducing risky drinking. Future research should

Use of a Smartphone Recovery Tool for Latinos with Co-Occurring Alcohol and Other Drug Disorders and Mental Disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Muroff, Jordana; Robinson, Winslow; Chassler, Deborah; López, Luz M; Gaitan, Erika; Lundgren, Lena; Guauque, Claudia; Dargon-Hart, Susan; Stewart, Emily; Dejesus, Diliana; Johnson, Kimberly; Pe-Romashko, Klaren; Gustafson, David H

2017-01-01

Addressing alcohol and other drug disorders and other mental disorders among adult Hispanics/Latinos is of critical concern, as they are one of the fastest-growing ethnic groups with a disproportionate rate of disease, mental disorders, and poverty. Although improvement in outcomes is associated with sustained participation in ongoing treatment for co-occurring alcohol and other drug disorders/mental disorders, continuing care is rare for these chronic conditions, especially for Latinos with more limited access to culturally and linguistically competent services. The evidence-based smartphone recovery application Addiction-Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (A-CHESS) was translated and adapted for Spanish-speaking Latinos with alcohol and other drug disorders/mental disorders, thus developing CASA-CHESS to address a high level of need for services, high rates of relapse, and lack of existing culturally competent services for Latinos. Of the 79 Latino clients who completed residential treatment and received a smartphone equipped with CASA-CHESS, 26.6% discontinued using CASA-CHESS and 73.4% remained active for four or more months. CASA-CHESS usage was sustained over the four months across all three tenets of self-determination theory (competence, relatedness, and autonomy), with the most commonly utilized services being relevant to relatedness (e.g., messaging, discussion boards). CASA-CHESS clients demonstrated a similar pattern of usage to A-CHESS clients. Findings illustrate that Spanish-speaking Latinos with alcohol and other drug disorders/mental disorders will use a smartphone application to assist with their recovery, continuing their access to resources, case management, and quality information after leaving residential treatment. Consistent with previous findings, our results also emphasize the importance of social support during the four months post-discharge. Such evidence-based, theory-driven digital interventions may extend access to

Perceptron Genetic to Recognize Openning Strategy Ruy Lopez

Science.gov (United States)

Azmi, Zulfian; Mawengkang, Herman

2018-01-01

The application of Perceptron method is not effective for coding on hardware based systems because it is not real time learning. With Genetic algorithm approach in calculating and searching the best weight (fitness value) system will do learning only one iteration. And the results of this analysis were tested in the case of the introduction of the opening pattern of chess Ruy Lopez. The Analysis with Perceptron Model with Algorithm Approach Genetics from group Artificial Neural Network for open Ruy Lopez. The data is processed with base open chess, with step eight a position white Pion from end open chess. Using perceptron method have many input and one output process many weight and refraction until output equal goal. Data trained and test with software Matlab and system can recognize the chess opening Ruy Lopez or Not open Ruy Lopez with Real time.

Deterministic Graphical Games Revisited

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersson, Klas Olof Daniel; Hansen, Kristoffer Arnsfelt; Miltersen, Peter Bro

2012-01-01

Starting from Zermelo’s classical formal treatment of chess, we trace through history the analysis of two-player win/lose/draw games with perfect information and potentially infinite play. Such chess-like games have appeared in many different research communities, and methods for solving them......, such as retrograde analysis, have been rediscovered independently. We then revisit Washburn’s deterministic graphical games (DGGs), a natural generalization of chess-like games to arbitrary zero-sum payoffs. We study the complexity of solving DGGs and obtain an almost-linear time comparison-based algorithm...

Kas elu maal läheb paremaks? / interv. Sirje Niitra

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

2007-01-01

Uue valitsuse koalitsioonileppe maainimest enim puudutavaid peatükke kommenteerivad: EMÜ majandus- ja sotsiaalinstituudi direktor Rando Värnik, sotsioloog Ülo Vooglaid, TÜ Pärnu kolledzhi direktor Garri Raagmaa, ärimees Urmas Sõõrumaa

Projektiklass: Rise and Fall / Garri Raagmaa

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Raagmaa, Garri, 1966-

2011-01-01

Eestisse tulevad eurotoetused võivad põhjustada mõnes valdkonnas liigse sõltuvuse ja neist võib saada järgmise kriisi põhjus. Autor leiab, et euroraha ümber on tekkinud projektiklass, seletab selle mõiste lahti ning märgib, et oleks tark jagada rohkem euroraha mitte projektikonkursside, vaid eelarveliste programmide põhjal

Kasparov vernjotsja

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

2006-01-01

Venemaa väljaande Kommersant teatel lööb eksmaailmameister Garri Kasparov kaasa Šveitsi panga Credit Suisse korraldatud kiirturniiril 22. augustil, kus lisaks Kasparovile mängivad ka Anatoli Karpov, Viktor Kotshnoi ja Judit Polgar

Spilteorien og (et par af) dens fædre

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Sune Welling

2011-01-01

Boganmeldelse af Robert Leonard's "Von Neumann, Morgenstern, and the Creation of Game Theory: From Chess to Social Science, 1900-1960". Cambridge University Press.......Boganmeldelse af Robert Leonard's "Von Neumann, Morgenstern, and the Creation of Game Theory: From Chess to Social Science, 1900-1960". Cambridge University Press....

La resiliencia en ajedrecistas escolares de la EIDE de matanzas / The resilience in school chess players of the EIDE of Matanzas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wilson Hernando Bravo Navarro

2017-10-01

Full Text Available El presente artículo tiene como objetivo diagnosticar el nivel de tolerancia psíquica o resiliencia del equipo escolar de ajedrecistas de la EIDE (Escuela de Iniciación Deportiva de Matanzas, que repercute en una disminución en el rendimiento cuando se encuentra bajo situaciones de presión. Para la medición de este parámetro se aplicó el test de síntomas de carga, el cual se manifiesta dentro de tres esferas fundamentales, las cuales son: la estabilidad psíquica ante condiciones objetivas del medio, estabilidad social-personal, y estabilidad neurovegetativa y de éxito-fracaso. La tolerancia psíquica o resiliencia es de gran relevancia en el juego de los trebejos, su función es contrarrestar los estímulos estresantes que se originan en la contienda según las diferentes circunstancias del juego / The objective of this article is to diagnose the level of psychic tolerance or resilience of the school team of chess players of the EIDE (School of Sports Initiation of Matanzas, which has repercussions in a decrease in performance when under pressure. For the measurement of this parameter the load symptom test was applied, which manifests itself in three fundamental spheres, which are: psychic stability before objective environmental conditions, social-personal stability, and neurovegetative stability and success- failure. The psychic tolerance or resilience is of great relevance in the game of the games, its function is to counteract the stressful stimuli that originate in the fight according to the different circumstances of the game.

Upper limit for the D2H+ ortho-to-para ratio in the prestellar core 16293E (CHESS)

Science.gov (United States)

Vastel, C.; Caselli, P.; Ceccarelli, C.; Bacmann, A.; Lis, D. C.; Caux, E.; Codella, C.; Beckwith, J. A.; Ridley, T.

2012-11-01

The H_3^+ ion plays a key role in the chemistry of dense interstellar gas clouds where stars and planets are forming. The low temperatures and high extinctions of such clouds make direct observations of H_3^+ impossible, but lead to large abundances of H2D+ and D2H+, which are very useful probes of the early stages of star and planet formation. The ground-state rotational ortho-D2H+ 11,1-00,0 transition at 1476.6 GHz in the prestellar core 16293E has been searched for with the Herschel HIFI instrument, within the CHESS (Chemical HErschel Surveys of Star forming regions) Key Program. The line has not been detected at the 21 mK km s-1 level (3σ integrated line intensity). We used the ortho-H2D+ 11,0-11,1 transition and para-D2H+ 11,0-10,1 transition detected in this source to determine an upper limit on the ortho-to-para D2H+ ratio as well as the para-D2H+/ortho-H2D+ ratio from a non-local thermodynamic equilibrium analysis. The comparison between our chemical modeling and the observations suggests that the CO depletion must be high (larger than 100), with a density between 5 × 105 and 106 cm-3. Also the upper limit on the ortho-D2H+ line is consistent with a low gas temperature (~11 K) with a ortho-to-para ratio of 6 to 9, i.e. 2 to 3 times higher than the value estimated from the chemical modeling, making it impossible to detect this high frequency transition with the present state of the art receivers. The chemical network is only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/547/A33Herschel is an ESA space observatory with science instruments provided by European-led Principal Investigator consortia and with important participation from NASA.

Computational Intelligence in a Human Brain Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Viorel Gaftea

2016-06-01

Full Text Available This paper focuses on the current trends in brain research domain and the current stage of development of research for software and hardware solutions, communication capabilities between: human beings and machines, new technologies, nano-science and Internet of Things (IoT devices. The proposed model for Human Brain assumes main similitude between human intelligence and the chess game thinking process. Tactical & strategic reasoning and the need to follow the rules of the chess game, all are very similar with the activities of the human brain. The main objective for a living being and the chess game player are the same: securing a position, surviving and eliminating the adversaries. The brain resolves these goals, and more, the being movement, actions and speech are sustained by the vital five senses and equilibrium. The chess game strategy helps us understand the human brain better and easier replicate in the proposed ‘Software and Hardware’ SAH Model.

Ja protiv zabivanija gvozdei / Aleksandr Gordon ; interv. Nikolai Hrustaljov

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Gordon, Aleksandr

2003-01-01

Venemaal Gatshina filmifestivalil "Kirandus ja kino" ("Literatura i kino") sai žürii eriauhinna "Parima debüüdi eest" Aleksandr Gordoni mängufilm oma isa Garri Gordoni jutustuse järgi "Oma lehmade karjane" ("Pastuhh svoihh korov")

Genotype–phenotype relationship of F7 R353Q polymorphism and ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

morphism in the F7 gene in 139 Indian families with CAD, comprising of 222 affected subjects, 105 unaffected .... drugs (statins: 65% vs 3%), anti-hypertensive agents (ACE ..... support extended by the Tata Social Welfare Trust, Garry and Mary.

Fat-suppressed dynamic MR imaging for the postoperative evaluation of pituitary adenomas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akada, Kiyohiro

2000-01-01

The usefulness of the early post operative evaluation of pituitary adenomas with fat-suppressed MR imaging was studied. Thirty patients with pituitary adenoma, who underwent trans-sphenoidal surgery were analyzed. These include 22 with macroadenoma (3 recurrent cases) and 8 with microadenoma (2 recurrent cases). In all cases after adenoma resection, fat tissue was placed into the sella turcica to prevent postoperative cerebro-spinal fluid leakage and infections. T1-weighted and Gd DTPA-enhanced MR images were obtained using a 1.5-T superconductive MRI system (Shimadzu Co., Ltd.) by a standard technique and also by a fat suppression technique (chemical shift selective presaturation: CHESS) after surgery. It was difficult to discriminate between hematoma, fat tissue and pituitary posterior lobe on T1-weighted images within 1 month after surgery because of high-signal intensity. However, these regions could be distinguished one another by the CHESS technique. Normal pituitary anterior lobe could be identified in 86% of macroadenoma cases using Gd CHESS dynamic study, whereas it was identified only in 23% by standard technique. Normal anterior lobe was identified in 100% of microadenoma cases using Gd CHESS dynamic study. The residual tumors were found to invade into the supra sella or cavernous sinus, and these lesions could be distinguished from the surrounding tissue by the CHESS dynamic study in 83%, whereas only 33% could be distinguished by the standard technique. Although the fat tissue showed a time-sequence decrease in volume, high-signal intensity sometimes lasted long in association with degenerative granulation. In conclusion, CHESS dynamic MR Imaging study is useful for detection of the normal pituitary lobe and residual adenomas after trans-sphenoidal surgery. (author)

chemical properties of soil in rivers state, nigeria *ch

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Osondu

Organic C, total N and available P increased by 0.82%, 0.15% and 13.10mg/kg ... processing activities such as fish smoking, garri frying ... through their effects on nutrient availability and ..... ferralsol of the Central Amazon Basin; Fertilizer,.

Building beyond the Evaluation Of Environmental Education and Sustainable Development in African Schools and Communities: The Women Global Green Action Network (WGGAN) Africa Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Enie, Rosemary Olive Mbone

2006-01-01

This article describes the Community Health Education and School Sanitation (CHESS) Project, an initiative by the Women Global Green Action Network International to support community-based environmental projects in Africa. The CHESS Project uses women, children and youth to develop more sustainable health and sanitation systems in urban and rural…

It takes two-skilled recognition of objects engages lateral areas in both hemispheres.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Merim Bilalić

Full Text Available Our object recognition abilities, a direct product of our experience with objects, are fine-tuned to perfection. Left temporal and lateral areas along the dorsal, action related stream, as well as left infero-temporal areas along the ventral, object related stream are engaged in object recognition. Here we show that expertise modulates the activity of dorsal areas in the recognition of man-made objects with clearly specified functions. Expert chess players were faster than chess novices in identifying chess objects and their functional relations. Experts' advantage was domain-specific as there were no differences between groups in a control task featuring geometrical shapes. The pattern of eye movements supported the notion that experts' extensive knowledge about domain objects and their functions enabled superior recognition even when experts were not directly fixating the objects of interest. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI related exclusively the areas along the dorsal stream to chess specific object recognition. Besides the commonly involved left temporal and parietal lateral brain areas, we found that only in experts homologous areas on the right hemisphere were also engaged in chess specific object recognition. Based on these results, we discuss whether skilled object recognition does not only involve a more efficient version of the processes found in non-skilled recognition, but also qualitatively different cognitive processes which engage additional brain areas.

Hopeless love and other lattice walks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verhoeff, T.; Verhoeff, Koos; Swart, David; Séquin, Carlo H.; Fenyvesi, Kristóf

The Hopeless Love theme arose from observations about chess bishops and their walks on the chessboard. In chess, there are two types of bishops: one confined to the white squares and the other to the black squares. If two bishops of opposite type fall in love, then they can walk around each other,

Overextension in Verb Conjunctions

Science.gov (United States)

Jönsson, Martin L.

2015-01-01

Hampton (1988) discovered that people are subject to "overextension"--they categorize some things as falling under a conjunction (e.g., they categorize chess as a "sport which is also a game") but not as falling under both of the corresponding conjuncts (e.g., they do not categorize chess as a "sport"). Although…

Browse Title Index

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Items 201 - 224 of 224 ... Vol 13, No 2 (2010), Spatial Analysis of Particle Size Distribution of Soils Formed on ... swelling index and moisture content of white and yellow garri in ... and Composition of Milk of West African Dwarf (Wad) Sheep Fed ...

From description to prescription

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

McQuaid, Sara Dybris

Problem: cases, theories and solutions (1975); Whyte: Interpreting Northern Ireland (1990); McGarry and O’Leary Explaining Northern Ireland (1995)), the paper will trace the historical development of intellectual understandings of the conflict as well as the propelling of consociational theory to its...

Hingedekuu menufilmid / Riina Sildos

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Sildos, Riina

1999-01-01

Romantiline komöödia "Põgenev pruut" : režissöör Garry Marshall : Ameerika Ühendriigid 1999 ja komöödia "Austin Powers : Spioon, kes kargas mind" : režissöör Jay Roach : Ameerika Ühendriigid 1999

"Реальная любовь" по-американски / Виктория Корпан

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Корпан, Виктория

2010-01-01

Võrdluses kaks romantilist komöödiat: režissöör Garry Marshalli "Valentinipäev" (USA 2010), osades plejaad Hollywoodi staare ja Richard Curtise "Armastus on see", milles tegid kaasa mitmed tuntud briti näitlejad (USA-Inglise 2003)

Del Ajedrez a Starcraft. Análisis comparativo de juegos tradicionales y videojuegos From Chess to StarCraft. A Comparative Analysis of Traditional Games and Videogames

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Óliver Pérez Latorre

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Desde su origen histórico, los juegos han planteado dramatizaciones sobre actividades fundamentales para la humanidad, como la siembra y recolección agrícola (juegos de mancala, la guerra (ajedrez o la construcción (puzzles, pero los juegos más populares sobre un mismo tipo de actividad varían de forma significativa en función del lugar y la época a la que pertenecen. En este sentido, el análisis comparado entre juegos tradicionales y videojuegos puede aportarnos una mirada particular y valiosa para profundizar en nuestra comprensión sobre la cultura popular de nuestro tiempo. ¿Qué rasgos distintivos presenta en los videojuegos de estrategia la dramatización de la guerra, en comparación con el ajedrez?, ¿qué distingue a las principales metáforas videolúdicas sobre la actividad de construcción de los puzzles tradicionales?... El objetivo de este artículo es abordar este tipo de cuestiones, a través de un análisis comparativo de la significación de juegos tradicionales y videojuegos populares. Los fundamentos teórico/metodológicos del trabajo se encuentran en la Historia del Juego, la Teoría del Diseño de Juegos y la Teoría de la Significación del Videojuego. Los resultados revelan elementos distintivos significativos entre los juegos tradicionales y algunos de los videojuegos más populares, y permiten verificar el interés de un modelo de análisis concebido para este estudio. Finalmente, en las conclusiones se reflexiona sobre la relación entre la significación de los videojuegos analizados y aspectos distintivos de la cultura contemporánea.From their historical origins games have provided us with dramatic models of the fundamental activities of humankind, such as sowing and harvesting (mancala games, war (chess and construction (puzzles. However, games based on the same activity change significantly depending on the place and time they belong to, and therefore a comparative analysis between traditional games and

THE CHESS SURVEY OF THE L1157-B1 SHOCK REGION: CO SPECTRAL SIGNATURES OF JET-DRIVEN BOW SHOCKS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lefloch, B.; Codella, C.; Ceccarelli, C. [UJF-Grenoble 1/CNRS-INSU, Institut de Planetologie et dAstrophysique de Grenoble (IPAG) UMR 5274, Grenoble, F-38041 (France); Cabrit, S. [Observatoire de Paris, LERMA, UMR 8112 du CNRS, ENS, UPMC, UCP, 61 Av. de l' Observatoire, F-75014 Paris (France); Busquet, G.; Benedettini, M. [INAF, Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali, Via Fosso del Cavaliere 100, I-00133 Roma (Italy); Cernicharo, J.; Pardo, J. R. [Centro de Astrobiologia, INTA, Ctra de Torrejon a Ajalvir, km 4, E-28850 Torrejon de Ardoz, E-28850 Madrid (Spain); Lis, D. C. [California Institute of Technology, Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics 301-17, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Nisini, B., E-mail: lefloch@obs.ujf-grenoble.fr [INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, Via di Frascati 33, I-00040 Monte, Porzio Catone (Italy)

2012-10-01

The unprecedented sensitivity of Herschel coupled with the high resolution of the HIFI spectrometer permits studies of the intensity-velocity relationship I(v) in molecular outflows, over a higher excitation range than possible up to now. Over the course of the CHESS Key Program, we have observed toward the bright bow shock region L1157-B1, the CO rotational transitions between J = 5-4 and J = 16-15 with HIFI, and the J = 1-0, 2-1, and 3-2 with the IRAM 30 m and the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory telescopes. We find that all the line profiles I{sub CO}(v) are well fit by a linear combination of three exponential laws {proportional_to}exp (- |v/v{sub 0}|) with v{sub 0} = 12.5, 4.4, and 2.5 km s{sup -1}. The first component dominates the CO emission at J {>=} 13, as well as the high-excitation lines of SiO and H{sub 2}O. The second component dominates for 3 {<=} J{sub up} {<=} 10 and the third one for J{sub up} {<=} 2. We show that these exponentials are the signature of quasi-isothermal shocked gas components: the impact of the jet against the L1157-B1 bow shock (T{sub k} {approx_equal} 210 K), the walls of the outflow cavity associated with B1 (T{sub k} {approx_equal} 64 K), and the older cavity L1157-B2 (T{sub k} {approx_equal} 23 K), respectively. Analysis of the CO line flux in the large-velocity gradient approximation further shows that the emission arises from dense gas (n(H{sub 2}) {>=} 10{sup 5}-10{sup 6} cm{sup -3}) close to LTE up to J = 20. We find that the CO J = 2-1 intensity-velocity relation observed in various other molecular outflows is satisfactorily fit by similar exponential laws, which may hold an important clue to their entrainment process.

THE CHESS SURVEY OF THE L1157-B1 SHOCK REGION: CO SPECTRAL SIGNATURES OF JET-DRIVEN BOW SHOCKS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lefloch, B.; Codella, C.; Ceccarelli, C.; Cabrit, S.; Busquet, G.; Benedettini, M.; Cernicharo, J.; Pardo, J. R.; Lis, D. C.; Nisini, B.

2012-01-01

The unprecedented sensitivity of Herschel coupled with the high resolution of the HIFI spectrometer permits studies of the intensity-velocity relationship I(v) in molecular outflows, over a higher excitation range than possible up to now. Over the course of the CHESS Key Program, we have observed toward the bright bow shock region L1157-B1, the CO rotational transitions between J = 5-4 and J = 16-15 with HIFI, and the J = 1-0, 2-1, and 3-2 with the IRAM 30 m and the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory telescopes. We find that all the line profiles I CO (v) are well fit by a linear combination of three exponential laws ∝exp (– |v/v 0 |) with v 0 = 12.5, 4.4, and 2.5 km s –1 . The first component dominates the CO emission at J ≥ 13, as well as the high-excitation lines of SiO and H 2 O. The second component dominates for 3 ≤ J up ≤ 10 and the third one for J up ≤ 2. We show that these exponentials are the signature of quasi-isothermal shocked gas components: the impact of the jet against the L1157-B1 bow shock (T k ≅ 210 K), the walls of the outflow cavity associated with B1 (T k ≅ 64 K), and the older cavity L1157-B2 (T k ≅ 23 K), respectively. Analysis of the CO line flux in the large-velocity gradient approximation further shows that the emission arises from dense gas (n(H 2 ) ≥ 10 5 -10 6 cm –3 ) close to LTE up to J = 20. We find that the CO J = 2-1 intensity-velocity relation observed in various other molecular outflows is satisfactorily fit by similar exponential laws, which may hold an important clue to their entrainment process.

Forklift Champions

CERN Multimedia

2005-01-01

A team of CERN forklift truck operators has come runner-up in the 2005 French Championships. It is an achievement which has put this professional activity, which plays an essential role at CERN, into the spotlight. The team, sporting CERN team colours, at the French Forklift Championships. From left to right: Jose Pereira Lages, Johann Dhote, Julien Fermanel and Franck Stach. There was never any doubt that CERN played host to the cream of the physics world, top-class engineers and computing experts. However, excellence is to be found in all professional fields. Thus, a team of three handling and transport experts from CERN came runner-up in the French Forklift Championships, which took place in Lyon on 5 October. The three CERN participants from the TS/IC Group's Logistics Section, Jose Pereira Lages (Leader of the LHC General Services Team at Points 1 and 8), Johann Dhote (Leader of the Team responsible for lowering the magnets at Point SMI2) and Julien Fermanel (a member of the General Services transpo...

Comparing frailty measures in their ability to predict adverse outcome among older residents of assisted living

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hogan David B

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Few studies have directly compared the competing approaches to identifying frailty in more vulnerable older populations. We examined the ability of two versions of a frailty index (43 vs. 83 items, the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS frailty criteria, and the CHESS scale to accurately predict the occurrence of three outcomes among Assisted Living (AL residents followed over one year. Methods The three frailty measures and the CHESS scale were derived from assessment items completed among 1,066 AL residents (aged 65+ participating in the Alberta Continuing Care Epidemiological Studies (ACCES. Adjusted risks of one-year mortality, hospitalization and long-term care placement were estimated for those categorized as frail or pre-frail compared with non-frail (or at high/intermediate vs. low risk on CHESS. The area under the ROC curve (AUC was calculated for select models to assess the predictive accuracy of the different frailty measures and CHESS scale in relation to the three outcomes examined. Results Frail subjects defined by the three approaches and those at high risk for decline on CHESS showed a statistically significant increased risk for death and long-term care placement compared with those categorized as either not frail or at low risk for decline. The risk estimates for hospitalization associated with the frailty measures and CHESS were generally weaker with one of the frailty indices (43 items showing no significant association. For death and long-term care placement, the addition of frailty (however derived or CHESS significantly improved on the AUC obtained with a model including only age, sex and co-morbidity, though the magnitude of improvement was sometimes small. The different frailty/risk models did not differ significantly from each other in predicting mortality or hospitalization; however, one of the frailty indices (83 items showed significantly better performance over the other measures in predicting long

The effect of bundling medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction with mHealth: study protocol for a randomized clinical trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Gustafson, David H; Landucci, Gina; McTavish, Fiona; Kornfield, Rachel; Johnson, Roberta A; Mares, Marie-Louise; Westergaard, Ryan P; Quanbeck, Andrew; Alagoz, Esra; Pe-Romashko, Klaren; Thomas, Chantelle; Shah, Dhavan

2016-12-12

Opioid dependence has devastating and increasingly widespread consequences and costs, and the most common outcome of treatment is early relapse. People who inject opioids are also at disproportionate risk for contracting the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV). This study tests an approach that has been shown to improve recovery rates: medication along with other supportive services (medication-assisted treatment, or MAT) against MAT combined with a smartphone innovation called A-CHESS (MAT + A-CHESS). This unblinded study will randomly assign 440 patients to receive MAT + A-CHESS or MAT alone. Eligible patients will meet criteria for having an opioid use disorder of at least moderate severity and will be taking methadone, injectable naltrexone, or buprenorphine. Patients with A-CHESS will have smartphones for 16 months; all patients will be followed for 24 months. The primary outcome is the difference between patients in the two arms in percentage of days using illicit opioids during the 24-month intervention. Secondary outcomes are differences between patients receiving MAT + A-CHESS versus MAT in other substance use, quality of life, retention in treatment, health service use, and, related to HIV and HCV, screening and testing rates, medication adherence, risk behaviors, and links to care. We will also examine mediators and moderators of the effects of MAT + A-CHESS. We will measure variables at baseline and months 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, and 24. At each point, patients will respond to a 20- to 30-min phone survey; urine screens will be collected at baseline and up to twice a month thereafter. We will use mixed-effects to evaluate the primary and secondary outcomes, with baseline scores functioning as covariates, treatment condition as a between-subject factor, and the outcomes reflecting scores for a given assessment at the six time points. Separate analyses will be conducted for each outcome. A-CHESS has been shown to

BKR.2013.032 (Oyabambi)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Femi Olorunniji

2014-03-31

Mar 31, 2014 ... Processing method influences the effect of Cassava (Manihot ... ABSTRACT: Cassava is consumed in many tropical countries and is fast becoming the major ... KEYWORDS: Processed Food; Garri, Cassava flour, Tapioca, Blood Lipid profile. ... cholesterol (LDL–Cholesterol), the “bad cholesterol”, leads to.

Effects of dietary protein level on growth and body composition of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

ELO

2013-02-27

Feb 27, 2013 ... through a meat mince machine with a 2 mm diameter to produce strands of feed. The feed ... Pellet binder (garri:cassava product). 3.00. 3.00. 3.00 ... growth period and at time 0 in days, ln = natural logarithm. Fulton's condition ...

Benefits and tensions in delivering public health in community pharmacies - a qualitative study of healthy living pharmacy staff champions.

Science.gov (United States)

Cooper, Richard J; Tsoneva, Jo

2017-10-01

Healthy Living Pharmacies (HLP) were introduced in the United Kingdom (UK) in a further attempt to deliver public health benefits in community pharmacy settings. Central to the initiative are staff trained as Healthy Living Champions (HLC) and this study sought to explore HLC perceptions of positive and negative aspect of their work and the wider scheme. A qualitative study was undertaken with a purposive sample of HLCs working in pathfinder HCPs in the Sheffield area in 2014. Participants were recruited by email to either a focus group (n = 7) held at a training event or later semi-structured one-to-one interviews in pharmacies (n = 6). Four stages of interpretative phenomenological analysis were used to code and identify themes. Four main themes emerged relating to the positive workforce development impact HLPs had upon HLCs themselves and on perceived customer and patient engagement and benefits. Tensions were identified with existing commercial business demands and negative views overall of the pharmacy setting with a perceived lack of not only integration with other services but also awareness among the public and health care staff. HLCs felt empowered and more confident in initiating conversation about health issues with patients, but identified barriers relating to workload, a lack of time to perform their role, isolation, tensions with non-HLC staff and logistical barriers such as poor Internet access. Delivering public health activities through the HLC role in UK pharmacies is associated with several perceived benefits for different stakeholders, but may be threatened by well recognised barriers in UK pharmacies related to the commercial setting. © 2016 Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

The effects of combining Web-based eHealth with telephone nurse case management for pediatric asthma control: a randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Gustafson, David; Wise, Meg; Bhattacharya, Abhik; Pulvermacher, Alice; Shanovich, Kathleen; Phillips, Brenda; Lehman, Erik; Chinchilli, Vernon; Hawkins, Robert; Kim, Jee-Seon

2012-07-26

Asthma is the most common pediatric illness in the United States, burdening low-income and minority families disproportionately and contributing to high health care costs. Clinic-based asthma education and telephone case management have had mixed results on asthma control, as have eHealth programs and online games. To test the effects of (1) CHESS+CM, a system for parents and children ages 4-12 years with poorly controlled asthma, on asthma control and medication adherence, and (2) competence, self-efficacy, and social support as mediators. CHESS+CM included a fully automated eHealth component (Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System [CHESS]) plus monthly nurse case management (CM) via phone. CHESS, based on self-determination theory, was designed to improve competence, social support, and intrinsic motivation of parents and children. We identified eligible parent-child dyads from files of managed care organizations in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, sent them recruitment letters, and randomly assigned them (unblinded) to a control group of treatment as usual plus asthma information or to CHESS+CM. Asthma control was measured by the Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) and self-reported symptom-free days. Medication adherence was a composite of pharmacy refill data and medication taking. Social support, information competence, and self-efficacy were self-assessed in questionnaires. All data were collected at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. Asthma diaries kept during a 3-week run-in period before randomization provided baseline data. Of 305 parent-child dyads enrolled, 301 were randomly assigned, 153 to the control group and 148 to CHESS+CM. Most parents were female (283/301, 94%), African American (150/301, 49.8%), and had a low income as indicated by child's Medicaid status (154/301, 51.2%); 146 (48.5%) were single and 96 of 301 (31.9%) had a high school education or less. Completion rates were 127 of 153 control group dyads (83.0%) and 132 of 148 CHESS

In vitro antimicrobial characteristics of bacteriocinproducing ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A total of 50 bacteriocin-producing Lactobacillus strains isolated from some Nigerian indigenous fermented foods and beverages (ogi, fufu, garri and nono) and characterized as L. acidophilus, L. casei, L. fermentum, L. lactis and L. plantarum were screened for their inhibitory potentials against food-borne pathogenic ...

Variances in consumers prices of selected food items among ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... had insignificant differences in their consumer prices while beans consumer prices had significant differences between Okurikang market and the other two markets. The results imply perfect information flow in garri and rice markets and hence high possibility of a perfectly competitive market structure for these products.

Possibilities of sweet potato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam] value chain ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

FAOUZIATH

2016-03-30

Mar 30, 2016 ... Key words: Benin, sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas, nutritional composition, orange flesh cultivar, value chain. INTRODUCTION ... largely consumed after processing into garri, traditional flour, lafun, and improved flour. ..... foods give them a role in human health and they can serve as substrates for the ...

Pilot-Plant for Energy Recovery from Tropical Waste Food Materials ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

An experimental unit for obtaining gaseous methane from waste food materials is discussed and results are presented for experimental tests with animal wastes and tropical waste food materials. The tropical waste food considered include garri, boiled beans and plantains. As expected, the animal wastes produced higher ...

The Herschel/HIFI spectral survey of OMC-2 FIR 4 (CHESS). An overview of the 480 to 1902 GHz range

Science.gov (United States)

Kama, M.; López-Sepulcre, A.; Dominik, C.; Ceccarelli, C.; Fuente, A.; Caux, E.; Higgins, R.; Tielens, A. G. G. M.; Alonso-Albi, T.

2013-08-01

Context. Broadband spectral surveys of protostars offer a rich view of the physical, chemical and dynamical structure and evolution of star-forming regions. The Herschel Space Observatory opened up the terahertz regime to such surveys, giving access to the fundamental transitions of many hydrides and to the high-energy transitions of many other species. Aims: A comparative analysis of the chemical inventories and physical processes and properties of protostars of various masses and evolutionary states is the goal of the Herschel CHEmical Surveys of Star forming regions (CHESS) key program. This paper focusses on the intermediate-mass protostar, OMC-2 FIR 4. Methods: We obtained a spectrum of OMC-2 FIR 4 in the 480 to 1902 GHz range with the HIFI spectrometer onboard Herschel and carried out the reduction, line identification, and a broad analysis of the line profile components, excitation, and cooling. Results: We detect 719 spectral lines from 40 species and isotopologs. The line flux is dominated by CO, H2O, and CH3OH. The line profiles are complex and vary with species and upper level energy, but clearly contain signatures from quiescent gas, a broad component likely due to an outflow, and a foreground cloud. Conclusions: We find abundant evidence for warm, dense gas, as well as for an outflow in the field of view. Line flux represents 2% of the 7 L⊙ luminosity detected with HIFI in the 480 to 1250 GHz range. Of the total line flux, 60% is from CO, 13% from H2O and 9% from CH3OH. A comparison with similar HIFI spectra of other sources is set to provide much new insight into star formation regions, a case in point being a difference of two orders of magnitude in the relative contribution of sulphur oxides to the line cooling of Orion KL and OMC-2 FIR 4. Appendix A is available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

(garri) on the performance, carcass characteristics and

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Urea and creatinine were decreased (P < 0.05) at 10 and 30% dietary treatment levels. No significant .... capable of tissue synthesis in finisher broilers under the same ..... (2000). Cyanogens in cassava flour and roots and urinary thiocyanate.

Reliability and validity of Champion's Health Belief Model Scale for breast cancer screening among Malaysian women.

Science.gov (United States)

Parsa, P; Kandiah, M; Mohd Nasir, M T; Hejar, A R; Nor Afiah, M Z

2008-11-01

Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Malaysian women, and the use of breast self-examination (BSE), clinical breast examination (CBE) and mammography remain low in Malaysia. Therefore, there is a need to develop a valid and reliable tool to measure the beliefs that influence breast cancer screening practices. The Champion's Health Belief Model Scale (CHBMS) is a valid and reliable tool to measure beliefs about breast cancer and screening methods in the Western culture. The purpose of this study was to translate the use of CHBMS into the Malaysian context and validate the scale among Malaysian women. A random sample of 425 women teachers was taken from 24 secondary schools in Selangor state, Malaysia. The CHBMS was translated into the Malay language, validated by an expert's panel, back translated, and pretested. Analyses included descriptive statistics of all the study variables, reliability estimates, and construct validity using factor analysis. The mean age of the respondents was 37.2 (standard deviation 7.1) years. Factor analysis yielded ten factors for BSE with eigenvalue greater than 1 (four factors more than the original): confidence 1 (ability to differentiate normal and abnormal changes in the breasts), barriers to BSE, susceptibility for breast cancer, benefits of BSE, health motivation 1 (general health), seriousness 1 (fear of breast cancer), confidence 2 (ability to detect size of lumps), seriousness 2 (fear of long-term effects of breast cancer), health motivation 2 (preventive health practice), and confidence 3 (ability to perform BSE correctly). For CBE and mammography scales, seven factors each were identified. Factors for CBE scale include susceptibility, health motivation 1, benefits of CBE, seriousness 1, barriers of CBE, seriousness 2 and health motivation 2. For mammography the scale includes benefits of mammography, susceptibility, health motivation 1, seriousness 1, barriers to mammography seriousness 2 and health

Women in Higher Education Administration.

Science.gov (United States)

Association of American Colleges, Washington, DC. Project on the Status and Education of Women.

Two papers are presented that examine the barriers to women in academic decision making and identify a variety of effective strategies for improving the status of women in higher education administration. "Strategies for Advancing Women in Higher Education Administration," by Garry D. Hays, proposes that commitment to increasing the…

77 FR 536 - Qualification of Drivers; Exemption Applications; Diabetes Mellitus

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-05

... INFORMATION: Electronic Access You may see all the comments online through the Federal Document Management..., except Federal holidays. Privacy Act: Anyone may search the electronic form of all comments received into...), Gerald R. Curran (PA), Shawn K. Fleming (PA), Daniel C. French (VA), Garry W. Garrison (WI), Gregory L...

The CPA Exam as a Postcurriculum Accreditation Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Barilla, Anthony G.; Jackson, Robert E.; Mooney, J. Lowell

2008-01-01

Business schools often attain accreditation to demonstrate program efficacy. J. A. Marts, J. D. Baker, and J. M. Garris (1988) hypothesized that candidates from Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International (AACSB)-accredited accounting programs perform better on the CPA exam than do candidates from non-AACSB-accredited…

Secretion Of Methionine By Microorganisms Associated With ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

methionine were secreted after 96 hours and 72 hours respectively by the lactobacilli and Leuconostoc sp. Since lactic acid bacteria are micro-aerophilic, it is suggested that lactic acid bacteria (the two lactobacilli and Leuconostoc sp.), which are the major organisms involved in cassava fermentation for garri production, ...

Generalization of results on experimental study on resistance of ribbed tube bundles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lokshin, V.A.; Fomina, V.N.

1978-01-01

On a wide experimental basis a new technique of calculating aerodynamic resistance of chess and passage tube bundles is worked out using inner diameter of carrier tube and ribbing coefficient as geometric parameters in formulae. New calculated formulae are based on a wider experimental material. Their structure is more simple. They are in good agreement with formulae for smooth tube bundles in the chess arrangement

Cost implications of intraprocedural thrombotic events and bleeding in percutaneous coronary intervention: Results from the CHAMPION PHOENIX ECONOMICS Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Tamez, Hector; Généreux, Philip; Yeh, Robert W; Amin, Amit P; Fan, Weihong; White, Harvey D; Kirtane, Ajay J; Stone, Gregg W; Gibson, C Michael; Harrington, Robert A; Bhatt, Deepak L; Pinto, Duane S

2018-05-04

Despite improvements in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), intraprocedural thrombotic events (IPTE) and bleeding complications occur and are prognostically important. These have not been included in prior economic studies. PHOENIX ECONOMICS was a substudy of the CHAMPION PHOENIX trial, evaluating cangrelor during PCI. Hospital bills were reviewed from 1,171 patients enrolled at 22 of 63 US sites. Costs were estimated using standard methods including resource-based accounting, hospital billing data, and the Medicare fee schedule. Bleeding and IPTE, defined as abrupt vessel closure (transient or sustained), new/suspected thrombus, new clot on wire/catheter, no reflow, side-branch occlusion, procedural stent thrombosis or urgent need for CABG were identified. Costs were calculated according to whether a complication occurred and type of event. Multivariate analyses were used to estimate the incremental costs of IPTE and postprocedural events. IPTE occurred in 4.3% and were associated with higher catheterization laboratory and overall index hospitalization costs by $2,734 (95%CI $1,117, $4,351; P = 0.001) and $6,354 (95% CI $4,122, $8,586; P < 0.001), respectively. IPTE were associated with MI (35.4% vs. 3.6%; P < 0.001), out-of-laboratory stent thrombosis (4.2% vs. 0.1%; 0 = 0.005), ischemia driven revascularization (12.5% vs. 0.3%; P < 0.001), but not mortality (2.1% vs. 0.2%; P = 0.12) vs. no procedural thrombotic complication. By comparison, ACUITY minor bleeding increased hospitalization cost by $1,416 (95%CI = 312, $2,519; P = 0.012). ACUITY major bleeding increased cost of hospitalization by $7,894 (95%CI $4,154, $11,635; P < 0.001). IPTE and bleeding complications, though infrequent, are associated with substantial increased cost. These complications should be collected in economic assessments of PCI. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Finger-to-beat coordination skill of non-dancers, street dancers, and the world champion of a street-dance competition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Akito eMiura

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The coordination of body movements to a musical beat is a common feature of many dance styles. However, the auditory-motor coordination skills of dancers remain largely uninvestigated. The purpose of this study was to examine the auditory-motor coordination skills of non-dancers, street dancers, and the winner of a celebrated international street dance competition, while coordinating their rhythmic finger movements to a beat. The beat rate of a metronome increased from 1.0 to 3.7 Hz. The participants were asked to either flex or extend their index fingers on the beat in each condition. Under the extend-on-the-beat condition, both the dancers and non-dancers showed a spontaneous transition from the extend-on-the-beat to the flex-on-the-beat or to a phase wandering pattern. However, the critical frequency at which the transition occurred was significantly higher in the dancers (3.3 Hz than in the non-dancers (2.6 Hz. Under the flex-on-the-beat condition, the dancers were able to maintain their coordination pattern more stably at high beat rates compared to the non-dancers. Furthermore, the world champion matched the timing of movement peak velocity to the beat across the different beat rates. This may give a sense of unity between the movement and the beat for the audience because the peak velocity of the rhythmic movement works as a temporal cue for the audiovisual synchrony perception. These results suggest that the skills of accomplished dancers lie in their small finger movements and that the sensorimotor learning of street dance is characterized by a stabilization of the coordination patterns, including the inhibition of an unintentional transition to other coordination patterns.

77 FR 73480 - Changes in Flood Hazard Determinations

Science.gov (United States)

2012-12-10

......... 060294 (12-09-1206P). Wood, Mayor, City Planning Docs/12-09-1206P- of Oceanside, 300 Department, 300... Mark St. Johns County http:// December 31, 2012...... 125147 areas of St. P. Miner, Administration www......... 120296 areas of Sumter Garry Breeden, Planning www.bakeraecom.com/ County (12-04- Chairman, Sumter...

African Journal of Biotechnology - Vol 7, No 24 (2008)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Genetic diversity in the mtDNA control region and population structure in the Sardinella ... Rate of biodegradation of crude oil by microorganisms isolated from oil ... Effect of moisture content and storage conditions on the storability of garri ... in wooden shipboard building · EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT

Biochemical and biophysical implications of the methods of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Garri samples, collected from three major-producing areas (Ihiagwu in Imo State, Aba in Abia State and Okija in Anambra State) of South- Eastern Nigeria, were packaged in three types of packages, namely, metal can (tin), plastic can can and thick gauge polyethylene bag and evaluated for long term storage effects.

77 FR 40386 - Information Collection Requests Under OMB Review

Science.gov (United States)

2012-07-09

... exhibits, news articles and events about Peace Corps; assist in documenting the history of the Peace Corps... collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval. In compliance with the.... Garry W. Stanberry, Acting Associate Director, Management. [FR Doc. 2012-16649 Filed 7-6-12; 8:45 am...

Variances in consumers prices of selected food Items among ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study focused on the determination of variances among consumer prices of rice (local white), beans (white) and garri (yellow) in Watts, Okurikang and 8 Miles markets in southern zone of Cross River State. Completely randomized design was used to test the research hypothesis. Comparing the consumer prices of rice, ...

Download this PDF file

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Role of palm oil in cassava processing into garri. Journal of. Oil Palm Research14 (1): 25-34. Cock, J.M. (1985). Cassava as food toxicity and technology. In: Nestle, B. L. and. Mancintyre, (eds). Chronic Cassava Toxicity. Oxford University Press, Ottawa, Canada. pp 27-36. Conn, E. E (1969). Cyanogenic glycosides. Journal.

Performance of spherically focusing Ge(444) backscattering analyzers for inelastic x-ray scattering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Macrander, A.T.; Kushnir, V.I.; Blasdell, R.C.

1994-01-01

A spectrometer designed to use an undulator source and having targeted resolutions of 0.01 eV in one mode of use and 0.2 eV in another will operate at the APS. We report here on analyzers that we have, constructed for use on this spectrometer for 0.2-eV resolution. We have tested them at NSLS beamline X21 using focused wiggler radiation and at CHESS using radiation from the CHESS-ANL undulator. Analyzers were constructed by gluing and pressing 90-mm-diameter, (111) oriented Ge wafers into concave glass forms having a radius near 1 m. An overall inelastic scattering resolution of 0.3 eV using the (444) reflection was demonstrated at CHESS. Recent results at X21 revealed a useful diameter of 74 mm at an 870 Bragg angle

Playfulness in Adults Revisited: The Signal Theory in German Speakers

Science.gov (United States)

Proyer, René T.; Wagner, Lisa

2015-01-01

The authors elaborate on the role of playfulness as a preferred characteristic in potential long-term partners recently espoused by Garry Chick and others. They aim to replicate the findings of such research by studying a different culture (that of German-speaking countries) and to develop them further by taking into account the participants'…

Developpement d'un module microbiologique dÉdiÉ À la modelisation hydrobiogÉochimique et application À la mobilitÉ de l'arsenic

OpenAIRE

Parmentier , Marc

2006-01-01

The geochemistry of natural system as old mine site is influenced by biological activity. Only informatics tools taking into account geochemistry, hydrodynamics and microbiology will be able to analyse, and then predict, this complex system evolution. For about ten years numerical tools, as CHESS and HYTEC, are able to take into account most of the geochemical and hydrodynamical processes present in soil. The goal of this work is to extend this tools to the microbiologic activity. CHESS calcu...

Performance of spherically focusing Ge(444) backscattering analyzers for inelastic x-ray scattering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Macrander, A.T.; Kushnir, V.I.; Blasdell, R.C.

1995-01-01

A spectrometer designed for use as an undulator source and having targeted resolutions of 0.01 eV in one mode of use and 0.2 eV in another will operate at the APS. We report here on analyzers that we have constructed for use on this spectrometer for 0.2 eV resolution. We have tested them at NSLS beamline X21 using focused wiggler radiation and at the Cornell high energy synchrotron source (CHESS) using radiation from the CHESS-ANL undulator. Analyzers were constructed by gluing and pressing 90-mm-diam, (111) oriented Ge wafers into concave glass forms having a radius near 1 m. An overall inelastic scattering resolution of 0.3 eV using the (444) reflection was demonstrated at CHESS. Recent results at X21 revealed a useful diameter of 74 mm at an 87 degree Bragg angle

75 FR 18146 - Wetlands Reserve Enhancement Program

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-09

..., Maryland 21401-5534 Phone: 410/757-0861 x315 Fax: 410/757-0687 (V) 9053-315 (E) [email protected] MA...) 9047-4352 (E) [email protected]ma.usda.gov MI--Salvador Salinas, Acting Garry D. Lee 3001 Coolidge Road.../951-6795 Fax: 802/951-6327 (V) 9000-768-1240 (E) [email protected] VA--Vicky Drew, Acting Jack...

Prioridades de Clientes de los Mercados de los Agricultores

OpenAIRE

Curtis, Kynda; Gumirakiza, J. Dominique

2014-01-01

Los mercados de los agricultores ofrecen una experiencia de compra alternativa, especialmente para aquellos consumidores que buscan productos agrícolas frescos, de alta calidad y saludables (Holloway y Kneafsey, 2000; Brown, 2001; Archer et al., 2003; McGarry-Wolf et al., 2005; Zepeda y Deal, 2009; Lyon et al., 2009; Cole 2010; y USDAAMS, 2011).

physico-chemical characteristics of effluents from garri processing

African Journals Online (AJOL)

DR. AMIN

0.62ppm all in contrast to World Health Organization maximum admissible limit of 0.07ppm. A two- ... indiscriminate discharge of industrial effluents [Salami and Egwin, 1997]. ..... Wastewater Engineering, Treatment and Refuse,. 4th edition ...

Experimental and Observational Studies of Molecular Hydrogen in Interstellar and Circumstellar Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Hoadley, Keri

2017-08-01

Understanding the evolution of gas over the lifetime of protoplanetary disks provides us with important clues about how planet formation mechanisms drive the diversity of exoplanetary systems observed to date. In the first part of my thesis, I discuss how I use fluorescent emission observations of molecular hydrogen (H2) in the far-ultraviolet (far-UV) with the Hubble Space Telescope to study the warm molecular regions (a rocket experiment designed to probe the warm and cool atoms and molecules near sites of recent star formation in the local interstellar medium. I present the science goals, design, research and development components, and calibration of the CHESS instrument. I provide results on observations taken during both launches of CHESS, with detailed analysis of the epsilon Per sightline, as inferred from the flight data. I conclude by providing future works and simple estimates of the performance of an instrument like CHESS on LUVOIR to study planet-forming environments.

Deep Blue Cannot Play Checkers: The Need for Generalized Intelligence for Mobile Robots

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Troy D. Kelley

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Generalized intelligence is much more difficult than originally anticipated when Artificial Intelligence (AI was first introduced in the early 1960s. Deep Blue, the chess playing supercomputer, was developed to defeat the top rated human chess player and successfully did so by defeating Gary Kasporov in 1997. However, Deep Blue only played chess; it did not play checkers, or any other games. Other examples of AI programs which learned and played games were successful at specific tasks, but generalizing the learned behavior to other domains was not attempted. So the question remains: Why is generalized intelligence so difficult? If complex tasks require a significant amount of development, time and task generalization is not easily accomplished, then a significant amount of effort is going to be required to develop an intelligent system. This approach will require a system of systems approach that uses many AI techniques: neural networks, fuzzy logic, and cognitive architectures.

The CHESS survey of the L1157-B1 bow-shock: high and low excitation water vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Busquet, G.; Lefloch, B.; Benedettini, M.; Ceccarelli, C.; Codella, C.; Cabrit, S.; Nisini, B.; Viti, S.; Gómez-Ruiz, A. I.; Gusdorf, A.; di Giorgio, A. M.; Wiesenfeld, L.

2014-01-01

Context. Molecular outflows powered by young protostars strongly affect the kinematics and chemistry of the natal molecular cloud through strong shocks. This results in substantial modifications of the abundance of several species. In particular, water is a powerful tracer of shocked material because of its sensitivity to both physical conditions and chemical processes. Aims: As part of the Chemical HErschel Surveys of Star-forming regions (CHESS) guaranteed time key program, we aim at investigating the physical and chemical conditions of H2O in the brightest shock region B1 of the L1157 molecular outflow. Methods: We observed several ortho- and para-H2O transitions using the HIFI and PACS instruments on board Herschel toward L1157-B1, providing a detailed picture of the kinematics and spatial distribution of the gas. We performed a large velocity gradient (LVG) analysis to derive the physical conditions of H2O shocked material, and ultimately obtain its abundance. Results: We detected 13 H2O lines with both instruments probing a wide range of excitation conditions. This is the largest data set of water lines observed in a protostellar shock and it provides both the kinematics and the spatial information of the emitting gas. The PACS maps reveal that H2O traces weak and extended emission associated with the outflow identified also with HIFI in the o-H2O line at 556.9 GHz, and a compact (~10'') bright, higher excitation region. The LVG analysis of H2O lines in the bow-shock show the presence of two gas components with different excitation conditions: a warm (Tkin ≃ 200-300 K) and dense (n(H2) ≃ (1-3) × 106 cm-3) component with an assumed extent of 10'', and a compact (~2''-5'') and hot, tenuous (Tkin ≃ 900-1400 K, n(H2) ≃ 103-4 cm-3) gas component that is needed to account for the line fluxes of high Eu transitions. The fractional abundance of the warm and hot H2O gas components is estimated to be (0.7-2) × 10-6 and (1-3) × 10-4, respectively. Finally, we

History and Surface Condition of the Lewis Chessmen in the Collection of the National Museums Scotland (Hebrides, late 12th-early 13th centuries)

OpenAIRE

Tate, Jim; Reiche, I.; Pinzari, F.; Clark, J.; Caldwell, D.

2013-01-01

This paper summarises on-going work to examine the surface condition of the 11 chess pieces in the collection of the National Museums Scotland. The chess pieces are part of the hoard found on the isle of Lewis on the west coast of Scotland and are remarkable examples of medieval ivory carving. The aim of the work is to characterise surface features that can be used to draw new information about the materials from which the pieces were made, their history from the period of their manufacture u...

A paradoxical signal intensity increase in fatty livers using opposed-phase gradient echo imaging with fat-suppression pulses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mulkern, Robert V.; Voss, Stephan; Loeb Salsberg, Sandra; Krauel, Marta Ramon; Ludwig, David S.

2008-01-01

With the increase in obese and overweight children, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease has become more prevalent in the pediatric population. Appreciating subtleties of magnetic resonance (MR) signal intensity behavior from fatty livers under different imaging conditions thus becomes important to pediatric radiologists. We report an initially confusing signal behavior - increased signal from fatty livers when fat-suppression pulses are applied in an opposed-phase gradient echo imaging sequence - and seek to explain the physical mechanisms for this paradoxical signal intensity behavior. Abdominal MR imaging at 3 T with a 3-D volumetric interpolated breath-hold (VIBE) sequence in the opposed-phase condition (TR/TE 3.3/1.3 ms) was performed in five obese boys (14±2 years of age, body mass index >95th percentile for age and sex) with spectroscopically confirmed fatty livers. Two VIBE acquisitions were performed, one with and one without the use of chemical shift selective (CHESS) pulse fat suppression. The ratios of fat-suppressed over non-fat-suppressed signal intensities were assessed in regions-of-interest (ROIs) in five tissues: subcutaneous fat, liver, vertebral marrow, muscle and spleen. The boys had spectroscopically estimated hepatic fat levels between 17% and 48%. CHESS pulse fat suppression decreased subcutaneous fat signals dramatically, by more than 85% within regions of optimal fat suppression. Fatty liver signals, in contrast, were elevated by an average of 87% with CHESS pulse fat suppression. Vertebral marrow signal was also significantly elevated with CHESS pulse fat suppression, while spleen and muscle signals demonstrated only small signal increases on the order of 10%. We demonstrated that CHESS pulse fat suppression actually increases the signal intensity from fatty livers in opposed-phase gradient echo imaging conditions. The increase can be attributed to suppression of one partner of the opposed-phase pair that normally contributes to the

A paradoxical signal intensity increase in fatty livers using opposed-phase gradient echo imaging with fat-suppression pulses

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mulkern, Robert V.; Voss, Stephan [Harvard Medical School, Department of Radiology, Children' s Hospital Boston, Boston, MA (United States); Loeb Salsberg, Sandra; Krauel, Marta Ramon; Ludwig, David S. [Harvard Medical School, Department of Medicine, Children' s Hospital Boston, Boston, MA (United States)

2008-10-15

With the increase in obese and overweight children, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease has become more prevalent in the pediatric population. Appreciating subtleties of magnetic resonance (MR) signal intensity behavior from fatty livers under different imaging conditions thus becomes important to pediatric radiologists. We report an initially confusing signal behavior - increased signal from fatty livers when fat-suppression pulses are applied in an opposed-phase gradient echo imaging sequence - and seek to explain the physical mechanisms for this paradoxical signal intensity behavior. Abdominal MR imaging at 3 T with a 3-D volumetric interpolated breath-hold (VIBE) sequence in the opposed-phase condition (TR/TE 3.3/1.3 ms) was performed in five obese boys (14{+-}2 years of age, body mass index >95th percentile for age and sex) with spectroscopically confirmed fatty livers. Two VIBE acquisitions were performed, one with and one without the use of chemical shift selective (CHESS) pulse fat suppression. The ratios of fat-suppressed over non-fat-suppressed signal intensities were assessed in regions-of-interest (ROIs) in five tissues: subcutaneous fat, liver, vertebral marrow, muscle and spleen. The boys had spectroscopically estimated hepatic fat levels between 17% and 48%. CHESS pulse fat suppression decreased subcutaneous fat signals dramatically, by more than 85% within regions of optimal fat suppression. Fatty liver signals, in contrast, were elevated by an average of 87% with CHESS pulse fat suppression. Vertebral marrow signal was also significantly elevated with CHESS pulse fat suppression, while spleen and muscle signals demonstrated only small signal increases on the order of 10%. We demonstrated that CHESS pulse fat suppression actually increases the signal intensity from fatty livers in opposed-phase gradient echo imaging conditions. The increase can be attributed to suppression of one partner of the opposed-phase pair that normally contributes to the

Final Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact Proposed Running Track Hanscom AFB, Bedford, Massachusetts

Science.gov (United States)

2004-09-01

agency response letters are included in Appendix B. Mr. Robert W. GoUedge, Jr. Commissioner, MADEP: No Comment Mr. Garry C. Waldeck MADEP...Headquarters: -Requested copy of Environmental Assessment ( No comment ). Mr. David Shakespeare MADEP - BWSC: No Comment Mr. James Sprague , ·. MADEP, NERO...Division of Watershed Management - Wetlands Program: No Comment · Mr. John Zajac MADEP, NERO Division ofWatershed Management: No Comment Mr. Todd

Clay Chess Sets

Science.gov (United States)

Cahn, Jeanne

2011-01-01

For several years, the author has taught a six-week ceramics course to students in grades six through eight. This is an elective class, so only interested and passionate students sign up. In past years, she has given three different assignments using slab, coil, and pinch construction techniques, which allowed for individual creative expression.…

Learning from Chess

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Veirum, Niels Einar; Tosti, Mikael

2006-01-01

Recent trans-architectural trends emphasize the fluid and trans-medial nature of form; the static architectural structures are challenged by dynamic interactive structures.. Being part of a faculty focusing on Architecture and Design we wanted to better grasp the idea of trans-medial form and sta...

On the Nature of Design

Science.gov (United States)

Valverde, Sergi; Solé, Ricard V.

At the attention of scientist, philosophers and layman alike. It was so extraordinary in fact that even today we are fascinated by it and by the no less uncommon people who got involved. The subject of this story was an amazing machine, more precisely an automaton. Known as the Turk, it was a mechanical chess player, made of wood and dressed in a Turkish-like costume (see Fig. 1). It played chess with Napoleon, inspired Charles Babbage and moved the great Edgar Allan Poe to write a critical essay about the nature of the automaton [1].

Refinement of Propellant Strand Burning Method to Suit Aluminised Composite Rocket Propellant

Science.gov (United States)

2014-12-01

Garry Hale and Raoul A. Pietrobon Weapons and Combat Systems Division Defence Science and Technology Organisation DSTO-TN-1396... Organisation PO Box 1500 Edinburgh South Australia 5111 Australia Telephone: 1300 362 362 Fax: (08) 7389 6567 © Commonwealth of Australia 2015 AR...with a soft brush (dedusting) and the strands were inhibited with paint diluted by water. The paint was a Super Flat acrylic, deep tint base (Line 500

Eesti regionaalne ja kohalik areng globalireeruvas maailmas / Garri Raagmaa

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Raagmaa, Garri, 1966-

2002-01-01

Eesti regionaalne areng 20. sajandil ja seda mõjutanud tegurid. Kaart ja skeem: maavaldade elanikkonna muutus aastail 1989-2000 rahvaloenduste andmetel ; Eesti 21. sajandi I poole maa-linna arengu mudel. Summary: Estonia's regional and local development in the framework of global processes

Champions of American Sport.

Science.gov (United States)

Westin, Sandra

1981-01-01

Describes an exhibition (originating at the Smithsonian Institution) which celebrates athletes and sports-related figures who became legends in their own time. Information is presented on art works, sports memorabilia, advertising posters, and photographs. (AM)

Human Capital - A Quality Factor For The Competitiveness Of IT Companies

OpenAIRE

Elisei Crăciun

2015-01-01

This paper treats quality, human capital and competitiveness concepts in order to determine in which measure the Human Capital quality influences the competitiveness of a firm. The human capital theory is a relatively new approach, the first valuable approach being that of Garry Becker which, subsequent of the modern management theoretical views, puts human capital into scientific frame. This present paper relates deeply on this theoretical frame as it is considered that, besides financial or...

More Than One Step to Financial Stability

OpenAIRE

Garry Schinasi

2009-01-01

Visiting Scholar Garry Schinasi examines the European proposals for the creation of both a European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) to oversee macroprudential regulation and a European System of Financial Supervision (ESFS) to strengthen microprudential supervision. He argues that structural vulnerabilities of this regulatory framework need to be addressed to ensure that the early-warning systems will be adequate to avoid future crises. Specifically, Schinasi points to the fact that the ESRB lacks...

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations in the competitive context: an examination of person-situation interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Abuhamdeh, Sami; Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly

2009-10-01

The current study examined Intrinsic Motivation Orientation and Extrinsic Motivation Orientation (Work Preference Inventory; Amabile, Hill, Hennessey, & Tighe, 1994) as potential trait-level moderators of the way Internet chess players responded to the intrinsic and extrinsic rewards of the chess games they played. On the basis of the defining characteristics of these 2 types of motivational orientations, we predicted that (a) Intrinsic Motivation Orientation would be associated with a stronger curvilinear relationship between challenge and enjoyment and (b) Extrinsic Motivation Orientation would be associated with a heightened affective responsivity to competitive outcome (i.e., winning vs. losing). Results supported the predictions. Implications of the findings are discussed.

The Total Performance Scorecard: Case at UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suhendra Suhendra

2016-10-01

Full Text Available This study aims to identify and analyse Total Human Resources Champions Management in relation to the Total Performance Scorecard. This study uses primary data by distributing questionnaires to the respondents, the 30 heads of department, 60 lecturers, 30 administrative staffs and 60 students of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta. Partial Least Square (PLS had been used. Results from this study showed that all dimensions of Total Human Resources Champions Management (Human Resources Strategic Management, Infrastructure Management Firm, Management Employee Contribution, Management of Transformation and Changes, Spiritual and Campaign Management, Talent Management affected on Total Human Resources Champions Management, furthermore, Total Human Resources Champions Management has a significant positive effect on the Total Performance Scorecard course at UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta.DOI: 10.15408/etk.v15i2.3864

Abstracts from the 5th International Conference for Healthcare and Medical Students (ICHAMS)

OpenAIRE

Sweeney, Yvonne; O?Neill, Hugh; Duffy, Garry; Creegan, Daniel; Bustos, Viviana; Harvey, Brian J.; Dalphy, Alexander; O?Grady, Anthony; Kay, Elaine; Samelska, Katarzyna; Izdebska, Justyna; Kurowska, Anna; Al-Zubaidy, Rena; Mroz, Magdalena; Harvey, Brian

2016-01-01

Table of contents O1: Assessing the protective effect of dexrazoxane against doxorubicin-induced toxicity in HL-1 cardiomyocytes Yvonne Sweeney, Hugh O?Neill, Garry Duffy O2: Role of KCNQ1 in epithelial barrier repair Daniel Creegan, Viviana Bustos, Brian J. Harvey O3: The suitability of non-small cell lung cancer cytology preparations for the analysis of anaplastic lymphoma kinase gene rearrangements Alexander Dalphy, Anthony O?Grady, Elaine Kay O4: Penetrating keratoplasty and descemet?s st...

Census Report: Volume VI, 1987 through 1992. Sanitized Version.

Science.gov (United States)

1994-08-01

DERUYTER, GARRY J 0661 DESPAIN, ROBERT W 0978* DETAVIS, JOHN A 0975* DEVINE, THOMAS A 0599 DIAZ , JOHN A 0533 DICKENS, JOSEPH L JR 0978* DICKENSHEETS...0975* DERYKE, JOHN C 0837 DIANE, JOHNSON S 0638* DIAZ , JOHN A 0533 DICKENS, JOSEPH L JR 0978* DICKENSHEETS, HARLEY W 0688 DICKERSON, CAROL J 0954...T J 0978* NEWMAN, ALICIA A 0923 NEWMAN, MARK W 0923 NEWTON, JAMES L 0971* SOCIAL DEEP SHALLOW SECURITY ORG DOSE DOSE NAME NUMBER CODE (mrem) (mrem

An algorithm for the detection of move repetition without the use of hash-keys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vučković Vladan

2007-01-01

Full Text Available This paper addresses the theoretical and practical aspects of an important problem in computer chess programming - the problem of draw detection in cases of position repetition. The standard approach used in the majority of computer chess programs is hash-oriented. This method is sufficient in most cases, as the Zobrist keys are already present due to the systemic positional hashing, so that they need not be computed anew for the purpose of draw detection. The new type of the algorithm that we have developed solves the problem of draw detection in cases when Zobrist keys are not used in the program, i.e. in cases when the memory is not hashed.

Physician buy-in for EMRs.

Science.gov (United States)

Yackanicz, Lori; Kerr, Richard; Levick, Donald

2010-01-01

Implementing an EMR in an ambulatory practice requires intense workflow analysis, introduction of new technologies and significant cultural change for the physicians and physician champion. This paper will relate the experience at Lehigh Valley Health Network in the implementation of an ambulatory EMR and with the physician champions that were selected to assist the effort. The choice of a physician champion involves political considerations, variation in leadership and communication styles, and a cornucopia of personalities. Physician leadership has been shown to be a critical success factor for any successful technology implementation. An effective physician champion can help develop and promote a clear vision of an improved future, enlist the support of the physicians and staff, drive the process changes needs and manage the cultural change required. The experience with various types of physician champions will be discussed, including, the "reluctant leader", the "techie leader", the "whiny leader", and the "mature leader". Experiences with each type have resulted in a valuable, "lessons learned" summary. LVHN is a tertiary academic community medical center consisting of 950 beds and over 450 employed physicians. LVHN has been named to the Health and Hospital Network's 100 Top Wired and 25 Most Wireless Hospitals.

Diffusion-weighted imaging of the rat pelvis using 3D water-excitation MP-RAGE MR sequence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Numano, Tomokazu; Homma, Kazuhiro; Hyodo, Koji; Nitta, Naotaka; Iwasaki, Nobuaki

2008-01-01

We developed a novel technique for fat-saturated, 3-dimensional (3D) diffusion-weighted (DW) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging sequencing based upon the 3D magnetization-prepared, rapid gradient-echo (3D-MP-RAGE) method. We saturated fat using 2 techniques, chemical shift selective (CHESS; FatSat)-3D-DWI sequence versus water excitation (WE)-3D-DWI method, then compared the 2 sequences in terms of degree of fat suppression. In preparing the FatSat-3D-DWI sequence, we used a ''CHESS-90deg radiofrequency (RF)-motion probing gradient (MPG)-180deg RFMPG-90deg RF'' pulse-train, to sensitize the magnetization to fat-saturated diffusion. In contrast, in the WE-3D-DWI sequence, we selected a RAGE-excitation pulse with a binominal-pulse 1-1 or 1-2-1 for water-excited (fat-saturated) diffusion imaging. Experimental results in a phantom confirmed the effects of diffusion weighting and of fat saturation. Fat saturation was much better in the WE-3D-DWI sequence than the CHESS-3D-DWI sequence. From results from animal (rat pelvis) experiments using WE-3D-DWI, we obtained fat-saturated DWI. This sequence was useful for in vivo imaging. (author)

Serous carcinomatous component championed by heparin-binding EGF-like growth factor (HB-EGF) predisposing to metastasis and recurrence in stage I uterine malignant mixed mullerian tumor.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Lei; Shimizu, David; Killeen, Jeffrey L; Honda, Stacey A; Lu, Di; Stanoyevitch, Alexander; Lin, Fritz; Wang, Beverly; Monuki, Edwin S; Carbone, Michele

2016-07-01

The stage I uterine malignant mixed mullerian tumor (MMMT) shows different potential for progression. We reason that MMMTs with high-grade carcinomatous component and positivity for HB-EGF are prone to recurrence/metastasis in the early stage. A retrospective clinical and histopathologic review with immunohistochemical staining for HB-EGF, EGFR, and integrin-α5 was performed for 62 surgically staged MMMT cases. Recurrence/metastasis (RM) is 6/18 (33%) in stage I disease. Of all the clinicopathologic variables and biomarkers analyzed for stage I MMMT, serous carcinomatous component (83% [5/6] versus 17% [1/12], P = .0015) and HB-EGF expression (100% [6/6] versus 50% [6/12], P=.0339) were significantly different between groups with RM and without RM. The presence of serous carcinoma in all stages was 83% (5/6) in stage I with RM, 8% (1/12) in stage I without RM, 20% (1/5) in stage II, 36.4% (8/22) in stage III and 64.7% (11/17) in stage IV; this was paralleled by HB-EGF expression of 100% (6/6), 50% (6/12), 40% (2/5), 50% (11/22) and 71% (12/17) with a correlation coefficient r=0.9131 (P=.027). HB-EGF and integrin-α5 were highly expressed in MMMTs bearing serous carcinoma component, compared to endometrioid and unclassifiable/miscellaneous subtypes (84.6%/47.6%/33.3%, P=.025 for HB-EGF; and 61.5%/42.9%/20.0%, P=.021 for integrin-α5). The EGFR positivity was comparable among the three subtypes (48.1%, 47.6% and 26.7%, P=.326). This study indicates that serous carcinomatous component championed by expression of HB-EGF predisposes to recurrence/metastasis in stage I MMMT. This process might involve integrin-α5 and does not seem to require overexpression of EGFR. Further study is required. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Living with Parkinson's

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

Conditions Related to Parkinson's

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

Diagnosis (Parkinson's Disease)

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

What Is Parkinson's Disease?

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

Sleep Disorders

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

Parkinson's Disease Foundation News

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

Parkinson's Foundation: For Caregivers

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

Stages of Parkinson's

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

Expert Care

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

How Is Parkinson's Disease Treated?

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

Young-Onset Parkinson's

Science.gov (United States)

... the entire Parkinson's community. Learn more Get Involved Moving Day Walk Parkinson's Champions Create Your Own Fundraiser Advocate With Us Local Resources Find an Event My PD Story Volunteer ... Support a Moving Day Walker Support a Parkinson's Champion Bequests & Planned ...

Generalization in chess thinking

OpenAIRE

D'Eredit??, Giuliano; Ferro, Mario

2015-01-01

En este trabajo abordamos la generalizaci??n en el pensamiento en el juego del ajedrez. La generalizaci??n es un complejo proceso basado en informaci??n adquirida durante experiencias previas. En el campo del ajedrez, los libros de ajedrez, la educaci??n en el ajedrez y la pr??ctica personal con el juego aportan la informaci??n que posibilita la generalizaci??n. La forma en que la generalizaci??n se produce en el ajedrez es todav??a un tema que merece m??s investigaci??n. En este art??culo...

Investigating a Possible New Heavyweight Champion for Stellar Mass Black Holes with XMM-Newton

Science.gov (United States)

Barnard, Robin

luminosities > 3E+37 erg/s (10% Eddington for the most massive known neutron star) then we classify the XB as a BHC. XBo 135 is associated with the globular cluster Bo 135 in M31, making it a very likely XB. The highest quality XMM-Newton spectrum to date revealed a low state spectrum at a luminosity of 4.4 E+38 erg/s, while Chandra observations suggest low state emission up to 6 E+38 erg/s (0.3-10 keV). We infer from these results a black hole mass >50 solar masses; the current champion is IC10 X-1, which is a dynamically confirmed BH + Wolf-Rayet binary with a 33 solar mass BH. We have been granted a 120 ks XMM-Newton observation of XBo 135 in order to test theoretical scenarios for creating such a monster. In particular, we will be estimating the metallicity of the environs of XBo 135, to determine whether direct collapse of a metal poor, high mass star is feasible. Stars with metallicity 40 solar masses are expected to form 30-80 solar mass black holes via direct collapse, because the low metallicity prevents significant mass loss from the stellar wind over the stars lifetimes. We will follow a published method that was used to determine the metallicities of several so-called ultra-luminous X-ray sources (ULXs), which have X-ray luminosities that exceed the Eddington limit for typical stellar mass black holes ( 2 E+39 erg/s). The key parameters to measure are the hydrogen abundance, a 542 eV oxygen K absorption edge, and an 851 eV iron L absorption edge. We will fit CCD (pn + MOS) and grating (RGS) spectra simultaneously to get the best measurements of these features. If XBo 135 were found to be a 50 solar mass BH formed in a globular cluster via direct collapse, then its importance would exceed that of just being the heaviest known stellar mass black hole- similar systems could form intermediate mass black holes, and possibly even supermassive black holes.

Cryptophane-Folate Biosensor for 129Xe NMR

Science.gov (United States)

2014-12-01

normal adult tissue, but as the name implies, this low affinity folate carrier is specific for the physiological form of reduced folic acid, 5- methyl ...yield. Finally, 3 was treated with 1.5 equiv of 6 and N- methyl -1,5,9-triazabicyclo[4.4.0]-decene (MTBD) in dry DMSO to give the folate recognition moiety...Cryptophane- Folate Biosensor for 129Xe NMR Najat S. Khan, Brittany A. Riggle, Garry K. Seward, Yubin Bai, and Ivan J. Dmochowski* Department of

Garri Potter povzroslel! / Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson ; interv. Stass Tõrkin

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Radcliffe, Daniel, 1989-

2005-01-01

Peaosatäitja järjekorras neljandas Potteri ekraniseeringus "Harry Potter ja tulepeeker" endast, oma tegelaskuju arengust. Samas ka lühiintervjuu näitlejanna Emma Watsoniga. Režissöör Mike Newell : Suurbritannia-USA 2005

Catalogue of Tenebrionidae (Coleoptera of North America

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yves Bousquet

2018-01-01

Full Text Available This catalogue includes all valid family-group (8 subfamilies, 52 tribes, 14 subtribes, genus-group (349 genera, 86 subgenera, and species-group names (2825 species, 215 subspecies of darkling beetles (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae known to occur in North America1 and their available synonyms. Data on extant, subfossil and fossil taxa are given. For each name the author and year and page number of the description are provided, with additional information (e.g., type species for genus-group names, author of synonymies for invalid taxa depending on the taxon rank. Several new nomenclatural acts are included. One new genus, Lepidocnemeplatia Bousquet and Bouchard, is described. Spelaebiosis Bousquet and Bouchard [for Ardoinia Özdikmen, 2004], Blapstinus marcuzzii Aalbu [for Blapstinus kulzeri Marcuzzi, 1977], and Hymenorus campbelli Bouchard [for Hymenorus oculatus Doyen and Poinar, 1994] are proposed as new replacement names. Supporting evidence is provided for the conservation of usage of Tarpela micans (Fabricius, 1798 nomen protectum over Tarpela vittata (Olivier, 1793 nomen oblitum. The generic names Psilomera Motschulsky, 1870 [= Stenomorpha Solier, 1836], Steneleodes Blaisdell, 1909 [= Xysta Eschscholtz, 1829], Ooconibius Casey, 1895 and Euconibius Casey, 1895 [= Conibius LeConte, 1851] are new synonyms (valid names in square brackets. The following 127 new synonymies of species-group names, listed in their original combination, are proposed (valid names, in their current combination, placed in square brackets: Bothrasida mucorea Wilke, 1922 [= Pelecyphorus guanajuatensis (Champion, 1884]; Parasida zacualpanicola Wilke, 1922 [= Pelecyphorus asidoides Solier, 1836]; Stenosides kulzeri Pallister, 1954, Stenosides bisinuatus Pallister, 1954, and Parasida trisinuata Pallister, 1954 [= Pelecyphorus dispar (Champion, 1892]; Asida favosa Champion, 1884 and Asida similata Champion, 1884 [= Pelecyphorus fallax (Champion, 1884]; Ologlyptus bicarinatus

78 FR 23291 - United States v. Ecolab Inc., et al.; Proposed Final Judgment and Competitive Impact Statement

Science.gov (United States)

2013-04-18

... that make Champion and Nalco successful competitors. Additionally, these other firms do not compete for... Champion as an independent competitor. 36. Successful entry into the provision of deepwater PCMS in the... and delay involved in evaluating and monitoring a new supplier unless the existing supplier exhibits...

75 FR 61739 - Combined Notice of Filings #1

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-06

.... Applicants: Champion Energy Marketing, LLC. Description: Champion Energy Marketing, LLC submits tariff filing... filings, the notices of self-certification [or self-recertification] listed above, do not institute a... submission of protests and interventions in lieu of paper, using the FERC Online links at http://www.ferc.gov...

Canoe-Kayak Club

CERN Multimedia

Canoe-Kayak Club

2015-01-01

Jeudi 9 juillet avait lieu les championnats de France Masters de canoë-kayak slalom sur le stade d’eau vive de Saint Clément dans les Hautes Alpes. Ce championnat était réservé aux meilleurs vétérans du classement national, les compétiteurs de 35 ans au plus âgé 77 ans se disputaient les titres de V1 à V5. Parmi eux d’anciens membres de l’équipe de France, qui ont fait la gloire du canoë kayak, comme le duo Adisson-Forgues  champion olympique de canoë biplace en 1996,  Benoit Peschier champion olympique de kayak en 2004, Philippe Quemerais champion du monde par équipe de canoë biplace en 2002, Jérôme Daille triple champion du monde par équipe de canoë biplace en 1987, 1989 et 1991… Lors de ces championnats, le Canoë Kayak CERN &am...

Areva: questions about a champion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bottois, P.

2009-01-01

Siemens announced in January 26, 2009 its decision to leave Areva NP, i.e. the Areva/Siemens common daughter company for reactors. This news re-launches the questions about the long-term financing strategy of the Areva group, of its capitalistic partnerships and of its position in the world nuclear market. Siemens on its side wishes to preserve its position in this market and a possible cooperation with the Russian AtomEnergoProm is under discussion. Areva, the world leader of nuclear industry, integrates a mining activity as well and is the world number 3 of uranium exploitation (15% of the world offer). It wishes to double its production by 2012 thanks to big investments in Niger, Namibia and Canada. Areva is developing its enrichment capacities as well thanks to the future Georges-Besse II ultracentrifugation facility which is under construction at Tricastin (Drome, France) and which should be put into service in 2009. And finally, a second EPR (European pressurized reactor), the new generation of Areva reactors, is to be built at Penly (Haute Normandie, France) between 2012 and 2017 and will generate 1400 employments in the region. (J.S.)

Malematš Vanemuise laval / Gerli Padar ; interv. Sirje Pärismaa

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Padar, Gerli, 1979-

2006-01-01

2. juunil esietendus Vanemuises ABBA-meeste Benny Anderssoni ja Björn Ulvaeuse kirjutatud muusikal "Chess", lavastaja Georg Malvius, osades Gerli Padar, Janika Sillamaa, Lauri Liiv, Koit Toome. Intervjuu naispeaosalise Gerli Padariga

Implementation of Energy Strategies in Communities (Annex 63) Volume 3: Application of Strategic Measures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Quitzau, Maj-Britt; Hoffmann, Birgitte; Petersen, Jens-Phillip

This report describes, for different scales (city, district and project level) and for 29 conceptualised case studies, how implementation champions can apply the strategic measues from Volume 2. Implementation champions are hereby understood as stakeholders in the city who take the initiative...... to lead and facilitate implementation processes....

Quantifying Behaviour Change in reducing environmental impact within large organisations - 3 case studies from the UK

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew F.G. Smith

2015-10-01

-\tdisplaying energy consumption data & resultant changes Well-designed IT systems have been a key enabler in allowing the programmes to operate in a manner that encourages efficient & effective operation. Not only does champion interaction increase as a result of better engagement, but the unit cost of the programme can be kept low, thereby increasing the return on investment for the organisation. The results from the three sites are presented in this paper. Within all three organisations, the champion density was around 1 - 2% (ie: 1 - 2% of staff population chose to become champions. These champions were given specific tasks, all of which centered around the online platform. The system included automated messaging to mobile phones and results-based feedback in real time. To raise awareness across the organisation, champions asked fellow staff to pledge their support online. From this action, between 25 – 40% of the organisations’ populations were reached (ie: several thousand staff members and as a consequence, became linked in to the programme’s aims. Using an online Action monitoring system, champions self-selected energy-saving actions to undertake within their workplaces. When these were performed, champions recorded these on a live Actions Feed. The immediate effect of such actions was a reduction in energy demand. However, the cumulative social effect of displaying the champions’ actions online was to create an enhanced momentum to the programme and competitive motivation between champions. Reflecting data back to champions on the effects of their actions is a powerful tool. Where metering of energy consumption exists, this is done in close to real time. Champions can thus observe the magnitude of their changes within their workplaces and learn which changes have the greatest energy-saving potential. Many results are presented in which champions have reduced their building’s energy consumption by over 20%, and a smaller number where reductions of

Chemical Entity Semantic Specification: Knowledge representation for efficient semantic cheminformatics and facile data integration

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background Over the past several centuries, chemistry has permeated virtually every facet of human lifestyle, enriching fields as diverse as medicine, agriculture, manufacturing, warfare, and electronics, among numerous others. Unfortunately, application-specific, incompatible chemical information formats and representation strategies have emerged as a result of such diverse adoption of chemistry. Although a number of efforts have been dedicated to unifying the computational representation of chemical information, disparities between the various chemical databases still persist and stand in the way of cross-domain, interdisciplinary investigations. Through a common syntax and formal semantics, Semantic Web technology offers the ability to accurately represent, integrate, reason about and query across diverse chemical information. Results Here we specify and implement the Chemical Entity Semantic Specification (CHESS) for the representation of polyatomic chemical entities, their substructures, bonds, atoms, and reactions using Semantic Web technologies. CHESS provides means to capture aspects of their corresponding chemical descriptors, connectivity, functional composition, and geometric structure while specifying mechanisms for data provenance. We demonstrate that using our readily extensible specification, it is possible to efficiently integrate multiple disparate chemical data sources, while retaining appropriate correspondence of chemical descriptors, with very little additional effort. We demonstrate the impact of some of our representational decisions on the performance of chemically-aware knowledgebase searching and rudimentary reaction candidate selection. Finally, we provide access to the tools necessary to carry out chemical entity encoding in CHESS, along with a sample knowledgebase. Conclusions By harnessing the power of Semantic Web technologies with CHESS, it is possible to provide a means of facile cross-domain chemical knowledge integration with full

The theory of remainders

CERN Document Server

Rothbart, Andrea

2012-01-01

An imaginative introduction to number theory and abstract algebra, this unique approach employs a pair of fictional characters whose dialogues explain theories and demonstrate applications in terms of football scoring, chess moves, and more.

Fast high-resolution MR imaging using the snapshot-FLASH MR sequence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthaei, D.; Haase, A.; Henrich, D.; Duhmke, E.

1990-01-01

Snapshot, fast low-angle short (FLASH) MR imaging using an accelerated FLASH-MR sequence provides MR images with measuring times far below 1 second. The short TE of this sequence prevents susceptibility artifacts in gradient-echo imaging. In this paper variations of the sequence are shown that provide high resolution images with T1-weighted IR, T2-weighted SE, and chemical shift (CHESS) contrast sequences. METHODS AND MATERIALS: A whole-body 2-T system (Bruker-Medizintechnik) were used in combination with a 60-cm gradient system (providing gradient strength of 5 mT/m) to study healthy volunteers. The measuring time for a 256 x 256 image matrix was 800 msec. This sequence has been used in combination with T1-weighted IR, T2-weighted SE, and CHESS variations

Fulltext PDF

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

particular about a system named Deep Blue which IBM was ... and we developed a program to change the parameters in ... had little information about Deep Blue and ... moves, parallel processing etc. These ... intelligent chess behaviour.

My Journey with Peter: Moving Ideas that Matter

Science.gov (United States)

Blyth, Dale A.

2012-01-01

Youth development lost a pioneer and a champion, Peter Benson, in October. Benson was a pioneer whose ideas mattered and a champion of approaches to research and its use in the community that has made a difference around the world. Benson's work, life, and spirit have helped transform people's understanding of young people, what it takes to…

Workflow standardization of a novel team care model to improve chronic care: a quasi-experimental study.

Science.gov (United States)

Panattoni, Laura; Hurlimann, Lily; Wilson, Caroline; Durbin, Meg; Tai-Seale, Ming

2017-04-19

Team-based chronic care models have not been widely adopted in community settings, partly due to their varying effectiveness in randomized control trials, implementation challenges, and concerns about physician acceptance. The Palo Alto Medical Foundation designed and implemented "Champion," a novel team-based model that includes new standard work (e.g. proactive patient outreach, pre-visit schedule grooming, depression screening, care planning, health coaching) to support patients' self-management of hypertension and diabetes. We investigated whether Champion improved clinical outcomes. We conducted a quasi-experimental study comparing the Champion clinic-level intervention (n = 38 physicians) with a usual care clinic (n = 37 physicians) in Northern California. The primary outcomes, blood pressure and glycohemoglobin (A1c), were analyzed using a piecewise linear growth curve model for patients exposed to a Champion physician visit (n = 3156) or usual care visit (n = 8034) in the two years prior and one year post implementation. Secondary outcomes were provider experience, compared at baseline and 12 months in both the intervention and usual care clinics using multi-level ordered logistic modeling, and electronic health record based fidelity measures. Compared to usual care, in the first 6 months after a Champion physician visit, diabetes patients aged 18-75 experienced an additional -1.13 mm Hg (95% CI: -2.23 to -0.04) decline in diastolic blood pressure and -0.47 (95% CI: -0.61 to -0.33) decline in A1c. There were no additional improvements in blood pressure or A1c 6 to 12 months post physician visit. At 12 months, Champion physicians reported improved experience with managing chronic care patients in 6 of 7 survey items (p work was uneven; depression screening was the most commonly documented element (85% of patients), while care plans were the least (30.8% of patients). Champion standard work improved glycemic control over the first 6�

Šach ako metafora matematiky

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Kvasz, Ladislav

2015-01-01

Roč. 70, č. 3 (2015), s. 175-187 ISSN 0046-385X Grant - others:AV ČR(CZ) Fellowship J. E. Purkyně Institutional support: RVO:67985955 Keywords : chess * mathematics * philosophy of mathematics Subject RIV: AA - Philosophy ; Religion

Effect of GarriI processing effluents [waste water] on the cyanide ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Numerous studies have described environmental exposure of humans to cyanide in African populations. Little is known about exposure to cyanide toxins from processed or unprocessed root tubers commonly consumed in Africa; and data on the food concentration of cyanide which is a potential poison and systemic toxicant ...

Pjat smertnõhh grehhov Garri Pottera (s posledujushtshim razoblatshenijem) / Nikolai Karajev

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Karajev, Nikolai, 1978-

2003-01-01

Vastukajasid J.K. Rowling'u Harry Potteri lugudele, kuna ekraanile jõuab teine nende ekraniseering "Harry Potter ja saladuste kamber" ("Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets") : režissöör Chris Columbus

R-ES-ONAN--CE

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

ment with Deep Blue, the current computer chess cham- pion. ... that branch of computer science dealing with symbolic ... machine which could beat any human being in 10 years. It turned .... Some questions are difficult to answer. Will there be ...

Enhancing the quality of oral nutrition support for hospitalized patients: a mixed methods knowledge translation study (The EQONS study).

Science.gov (United States)

Gerrish, Kate; Laker, Sara; Taylor, Carolyn; Kennedy, Fiona; McDonnell, Ann

2016-12-01

The aim of this study was to report a multifaceted knowledge translation intervention to facilitate use of the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool and innovation in nutritional care for patients at risk of malnutrition. Malnutrition among hospitalized patients is a widespread problem leading to adverse health outcomes. Despite evidence of the benefits of malnutrition screening and recommendations for achieving good nutrition, shortfalls in practice continue. A mixed method integrated knowledge translation study. The knowledge translation intervention comprised nutrition champions supported by knowledge translation facilitators and an action planning process. Data collection was undertaken over 18 months between 2011-2012 in a hospital in England. Data comprised observation of mealtimes, audit of patient records, survey of nurses and semi-structured interviews with nutrition champions, knowledge translation facilitators, senior ward nurses and nurse managers. Statistically significant relationships (Chi Square) were observed between self-reported confidence of nurses (a) to assess patients using the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool, (b) to teach colleagues how to use the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool and (c) to ensure that patients were assessed within 24 hours of admission. Ward-based nutrition champions facilitated successful innovation in nutrition support. Contextual factors operating at micro (ward), meso (organization) and macro (healthcare system) levels acted as barriers and enablers for change. Nutrition champions were successful in increasing the timely assessment of patients at risk of malnutrition and promoting innovation in nutritional care. Support from knowledge translation facilitators helped nutrition champions develop their role and work collaboratively with senior ward nurses to implement action plans for improving nutrition. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

An Economic Analysis of the Truth in Negotiations Act

Science.gov (United States)

2016-01-27

Associate Professor 1st Lt Crystal Champion, USAF Capt Meredith Ellen, USAF Capt Jenny Walk, USAF Graduate School of Business & Public Policy...Professor 1st Lt Crystal Champion, USAF Capt Meredith Ellen, USAF Capt Jenny Walk, USAF Graduate School of Business & Public Policy Naval...appropriate cases, an adjustable price. Fixed-price contracts providing for an adjustable price may include a ceiling price, a target price

On Neotropical Merophysiinae with descriptions of a new genus and new species (Coleoptera, Endomychidae)

Science.gov (United States)

Arriaga-Varela, Emmanuel; Tomaszewska, Wioletta; Huo, Lizhi; Seidel, Matthias

2018-01-01

Abstract Intensive survey of museum collections and new field collecting resulted in discovery of six new, closely related species of the Neotropical Merophysiinae. A new species of the genus Lycoperdinella Champion, L. boliviensis sp. n., from Bolivia and Brazil, and five new species from Mexico for which a new genus is proposed here as Rueckeria gen. n.: R. inecol (type species), R. nigrileonis, R. ocelotl, R. puma, R. skelleyi spp. n., have been discovered. Lycoperdinella, Rueckeria gen. n., L. subcaeca Champion and all new species are diagnosed, described, and illustrated. Keys to the species of Lycoperdinella and Rueckeria and a distribution map are provided. A lectotype of Lycoperdinella subcaeca Champion, 1913 is designated. Molecular barcodes of three new species of Rueckeria are provided in order to help with the identification of these taxa. PMID:29674866

Lebanon's ESDU: Championing research for development

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

American University in Beirut (AUB) decided that their work ... education, training, and outreach. Ultimately it would ... carried out is disconnected from reality. And we have ... since its inception, the ESDU has created a large virtual network of ...

AFROSAFE Championing Radiation Safety in Africa

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nyabanda, R.

2015-01-01

AFRASAFE is a campaign that was formed by Pan African congress of Radiology and imaging (PACOR) and other radiation health workers in Africa in Feb 2015. Its main objective is to unite with a common goal to identify and address issues arising from radiation protection in medicine in Africa. Through this campaign, we state that we shall promote adherence to policies, strategies and activities for the promotion of radiation safety and for maximization of benefits from radiological medical procedures. The campaign strengthens the overall radiation protection of patients, health workers and public. It promotes safe and appropriate use of ionizing radiation in medicine and enhances global information to help improve the benefit/risk dialogue with patients and the public. It enhances the safety and quality of radiological procedures in medicine, and encourages safety in diagnostic and therapeutic equipment and facilities. The issue of research in radiation protection and safety needs to be promoted. This presentation will outline the six strategic objectives and the implementation tools for radiation safety in medicine in Kenya, the challenges and way forward to achieve our goal. (Author)

Environmental health--champions of One Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Eddy, Christopher; Stull, Paul A; Balster, Erik

2013-01-01

The authors find overwhelming evidence among environmental health practitioners that One Health disease reporting concepts are essential to the early detection of, and expedient recovery from, pandemic disease events. The authors also find, however, extraordinary evidence that local public health is not prepared, and potentially unaware of their responsibility, to be the initiator of the zoonotic infectious disease information intelligence necessary to make such early event mitigation possible. The authors propose that NEHA take an affirmative step towards the development of local public health-initiated biosurveillance systems by organizing and leading a tabletop study group that includes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, American Veterinary Medical Association, American Medical Association, Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Institute of Medicine, and a robust panel of NEHA state affiliates. This study group should discuss the infrastructure necessary for local public health-the frontline against community-acquired infectious disease-to be the initiators of environmental health, veterinary, and medical One Health biosurveillance systems. The need to establish a community-focused, integrated disease prevention strategy that cautions people about the risks associated with food, water, animal, and contaminated environmental media, both prior to and during epidemic and pandemic events is equally important.

Ping-pong champion with adrenal insufficiency

Science.gov (United States)

Arima, Hiroshi; Imamine, Rui; Oiso, Yutaka

2009-01-01

A 62-year-old Japanese man, a bronze medal winner in the World Championship of table tennis when in his 20s, was diagnosed with secondary adrenocortical insufficiency due to isolated adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) deficiency, and steroid administration was started. About 1 year after the diagnosis, he took part in a table tennis championship which was open to those 40 years or older. He took 10 mg hydrocortisone after breakfast as usual, played 10 matches, each of which took 20–30 min, and won the championship in about 8 h. Since the man could not always win the gruelling competition even when in his 50s, it is suggested that extra steroid hormone is not necessary for patients with adrenocortical insufficiency due to ACTH deficiency in order to successfully engage in sports requiring such intensity and endurance. PMID:21686433

THE ORIENTEERING ELITE: WORLD CHAMPIONS SINGULARITIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tadeu Celestino

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The pursuit of perfection has been one of the challenges that always was followed by the human being. Currently no one is indifferent to the systematic and exceptional performances of athletes like Cristiano Ronaldo (soccer, Simone Luder Niglli and Thierry Gueorgiou (orienteering, Usain Bolt (athletics, Michael Phelps (swimming among many others, and whose characteristics, capabilities and development paths up immediately a great admiration and curiosity to know: how they developed these abilities? What characteristics and skills makes them so exceptional? How can maintain their high performance? In this sense the results have been showing that the development of excellence in sport has its origins in childhood and it is the result of an investment and long-term commitment (Barreiros, Côté, & Fonseca, 2013. But there are few studies focusing in some manner as orienteering.Objectives: This study aims to identify characteristics and peculiarities that mark the path of a group of excellent athletes in orienteering.

Championing the Joint Force: A Job for the Public and our Political Leaders – Not Just Military Professionals Alone

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stuart Beare

2015-11-01

reversible. This paper describes the functions of the Joint Force; advocates for the capabilities they require to enable partnerships, enhance understanding and advance mission preparedness; and calls for unified leadership of the joint domain and over our military’s joint culture. Our traditional international partners have travelled this road. They too see that clarity on joint functions, joint capability, joint domain leadership, and stewardship over joint culture are vital to their military’s relevance and operational effectiveness – and to their agility and flexibility in the years to come. Their progress is the result of internal professional transformation, as well as the understanding of, and requirement by political leaders and modern defence policy to make this so. Here in Canada, the forming of new government this fall calls for a relook at Defence policy, providing new opportunity to invite that same political leadership and influence. Joint functions, joint capabilities and clear joint leadership are vital to our military’s relevance to, and effectiveness in, our national defence and operations. Joint Forces and the joint domain, like strong and capable Army, Navy and Air Forces, need to be led, resourced and fully engaged before planes fly, ships sail, and troops deploy. Joint-ness requires external understanding and proponents, and, within the Forces, a clearly identifiable champion. In Canada, these range from ambiguous to absent.

Protocol for implementing the concept of citizen scientists for HealthWise Wales: a national population study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julia Townson

2017-04-01

The concept of HealthWise Champion is agreeable to members of the public but appropriate training and support will need to be provided. Materials will be developed in conjunction with the advisory group members to ensure that HealthWise Wales Champions are able to clearly and confidently disseminate the more difficult elements of the study to others e.g data linkage. An evaluation will be available by July.

Football officials activities during matches: a comparison of activity of referees and linesmen in European, Premiership and Championship matches

OpenAIRE

Di Salvo, Valter; Carmont, Michael R; Maffulli, Nicola

2012-01-01

We compared the notational activity of 68 referees and 170 referee’s assistants or linesmen officiating European matches from UEFA and the Champions League together with matches from the English Premiership and the English Championship competitions during the 2005/2006 football season using a computerised video system. We studied 328 games (14 European matches, UEFA and Champions league, 202 matches from the English Premiership and 112 from the English Championship).

to view fulltext PDF

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Problem A In a chess board with 64 squares, if a set of 64 numbers ... or changed a little such that the original method still works. ... You are encouraged to try to solve the problems .... mental equilibrium vvas definitely upset by illness) a very.

Tracing the Origins of the Netherlands’ Tax Treaty Network

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M. Evers (Maikel)

2013-01-01

textabstractThis contribution identifies the main determinants and key persons that constituted the tax treaty policy of the Netherlands. This policy is rooted in the political chess games in 19th century mainland Europe. In this century, European states gained experience in negotiating trade and

Articles on Practical Cybernetics. Computer-Developed Computers; Heuristics and Modern Sciences; Linguistics and Practice; Cybernetics and Moral-Ethical Considerations; and Men and Machines at the Chessboard.

Science.gov (United States)

Berg, A. I.; And Others

Five articles which were selected from a Russian language book on cybernetics and then translated are presented here. They deal with the topics of: computer-developed computers, heuristics and modern sciences, linguistics and practice, cybernetics and moral-ethical considerations, and computer chess programs. (Author/JY)

GdF Suez, the real energy champion;GdF Suez, le vrai champion de l'energie

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dupin, L.

2010-09-15

During summer 2010, France discovered that she owned a second energy giant, GdF Suez, ranked number two as a power producer just behind EdF, but world number one in the energy domain thanks to the taking over of International Power (UK) in 2010. Until now, GdF Suez and EdF were confronting with each other in a fair game, keeping their respective seizure on their historical monopolies, gas for GdF Suez and electricity for EdF. From now onward the two giants have started an open fight on all markets, with the exception of nuclear energy for which the French government continues to favour EdF. This paper recalls the main steps of the last 15 years of GdF Suez progress, from the Suez investment bank in 1995 to the merger with GdF in 2008 and the acquisition of International Power in 2010. Then it makes a comparative portrait of both GdF Suez and EdF energy groups with their respective advantages and, finally, it ends with an interview of G. Mestrallet, president of GdF Suez who explains the strategy of his group. (J.S.)

[The content of phenolic acids in the edible parts of selected varieties of apples].

Science.gov (United States)

Malik, Agnieszka; Kiczorowska, Bozena; Zdyb, Justyna

2009-01-01

Fruits and vegetables are essential sources of many nutritive substances which are necessary for normal function of the organism. One of the mostly consumed fruits in many European countries, including Poland is apples. The prohealthy properties of apples are associated with the contents of polyphenolic compounds, thus including in parts phenolic acids which have antioxidant properties. The concentration of these compounds depends on many factors such as variety climate and soil conditions, maturity as well as agro technical operations. The aim of this investigation was to compare the concentrations of phenolic acids and epicatechin in the varieties of apple Champion and Jonica, which were collected from different orchards around Lublin. The phenolic compounds were assayed using a Symmetry column carrier RP-C18 (Waters) integrated with a high pressure liquid chromatography apparatus. The dominant phenolic acids found in the Champion variety was chlorogenic acid, whereas in the Jonica variety, chlorogenic and homovanilic acids were the dominate once. The highest concentrations of chlorogenic acid was detected in the pulp of an apple (Jonica variety) collected from the orchards around the cities of Puławy and Lublin, whereas homovanilic acid was the highest in the other samples collected from the orchards in the vicinity of Stryjno and Góry Markuszowskie. Among the Jonica and Champion varieties of apples collected from various orchards in the vicinity of Lublin, the highest content of epicatechin (13,12 mg/kg) was found in the pulps of Champions variety collected in Puławy. In general, the Champion variety was the best source of phenolic acids and epicatechin compared to the Jonica variety independent of the harvest zone.

Construction and maintenance of SUNY facilities at the National Synchrotron Light Source. Progress report, 1 July 1983-1 July 1984. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bigeleisen, J.

1984-01-01

Research reported includes beamline facilities, X-21 beamline update, SUNY-PRT participation in the design and commissioning of the CHESS crystallography facility, surface physics, material and structure studies using EXAFS, x-ray standing wave studies of surfaces and interfaces, and surface diffraction of adsorbed polyatomic molecules

Strengthening the knowledge-policy interface through co-production of a climate adaptation plan: leveraging opportunities in Bergriver Municipality, South Africa

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Ziervogel, G

2016-10-01

Full Text Available plan was presented to the Bergrivier Council to secure buy-in from both the administrative and political spheres. Western Cape government officials, two Climate Systems Analysis Group climate scientists, councillors and officials attended... and innovation. c) d. Capacity opportunity: champions of co-production Deleted: The importance of leaders and champions has been widely cited as critical in driving urban adaptation responses. (61) Maiello et al., (62) for example, observe that public...

Visual search in ecological and non-ecological displays: evidence for a non-monotonic effect of complexity on performance.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Philippe Chassy

Full Text Available Considerable research has been carried out on visual search, with single or multiple targets. However, most studies have used artificial stimuli with low ecological validity. In addition, little is known about the effects of target complexity and expertise in visual search. Here, we investigate visual search in three conditions of complexity (detecting a king, detecting a check, and detecting a checkmate with chess players of two levels of expertise (novices and club players. Results show that the influence of target complexity depends on level of structure of the visual display. Different functional relationships were found between artificial (random chess positions and ecologically valid (game positions stimuli: With artificial, but not with ecologically valid stimuli, a "pop out" effect was present when a target was visually more complex than distractors but could be captured by a memory chunk. This suggests that caution should be exercised when generalising from experiments using artificial stimuli with low ecological validity to real-life stimuli.

Cryogenically cooled monochromators for the Advanced Photon Source

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mills, D.M.

1996-01-01

The use of cryogenically cooled monochromators looks to be a very promising possibility for the Advanced Photon Source. This position has recently been bolstered by several experiments performed on beamlines at the ESRF and CHESS. At the ESRF, several crystal geometries have been tested that were designed for high power densities (approx-gt 150 W/mm 2 ) and moderate total absorbed powers (<200 W). These geometries have proven to be very successful at handling these power parameters with measured strains on the arc-second level. The experiments performed at CHESS were focused on high total power (approx-gt 1000 W) but moderate power densities. As with the previously mentioned experiments, the crystals designed for this application performed superbly with no measurable broadening of the rocking curves on the arc-second level. These experiments will be summarized and, based on these results, the performance of cryogenic monochromators for the APS will be assessed. copyright 1996 American Institute of Physics

Predictive modeling of addiction lapses in a mobile health application.

Science.gov (United States)

Chih, Ming-Yuan; Patton, Timothy; McTavish, Fiona M; Isham, Andrew J; Judkins-Fisher, Chris L; Atwood, Amy K; Gustafson, David H

2014-01-01

The chronically relapsing nature of alcoholism leads to substantial personal, family, and societal costs. Addiction-comprehensive health enhancement support system (A-CHESS) is a smartphone application that aims to reduce relapse. To offer targeted support to patients who are at risk of lapses within the coming week, a Bayesian network model to predict such events was constructed using responses on 2,934 weekly surveys (called the Weekly Check-in) from 152 alcohol-dependent individuals who recently completed residential treatment. The Weekly Check-in is a self-monitoring service, provided in A-CHESS, to track patients' recovery progress. The model showed good predictability, with the area under receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.829 in the 10-fold cross-validation and 0.912 in the external validation. The sensitivity/specificity table assists the tradeoff decisions necessary to apply the model in practice. This study moves us closer to the goal of providing lapse prediction so that patients might receive more targeted and timely support. © 2013.

Ortho-to-para ratio of interstellar heavy water

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vastel, C.; Ceccarelli, C.; Caux, E.; Coutens, A.; Cernicharo, J.; Bottinelli, S.; Demyk, K.; Faure, A.; Wiesenfeld, L.; Scribano, Y.; Bacmann, A.; Hily-Blant, P.; Maret, S.; Walters, A.; Bergin, E.A.; Blake, G.A.; Castets, A.; Crimier, N.; Dominik, C.; Encrenaz, P.; Gérin, M.; Hennebelle, P.; Kahane, C.; Klotz, A.; Melnick, G.; Pagani, L.; Parise, B.; Schilke, P.; Wakelam, V.; Baudry, A.; Bell, T.; Benedettini, M.; Boogert, A.; Cabrit, S.; Caselli, P.; Codella, C.; Comito, C.; Falgarone, E.; Fuente, A.; Goldsmith, P.F.; Helmich, F.; Henning, T.; Herbst, E.; Jacq, T.; Kama, M.; Langer, W.; Lefloch, B.; Lis, D.; Lord, S.; Lorenzani, A.; Neufeld, D.; Nisini, B.; Pacheco, S.; Pearson, J.; Phillips, T.; Salez, M.; Saraceno, P.; Schuster, K.; Tielens, X.; van der Tak, F.; van der Wiel, M.H.D.; Viti, S.; Wyrowski, F.; Yorke, H.; Cais, P.; Krieg, J.M.; Olberg, M.; Ravera, L.

2010-01-01

Context. Despite the low elemental deuterium abundance in the Galaxy, enhanced molecular D/H ratios have been found in the environments of low-mass star-forming regions, and in particular the Class 0 protostar IRAS 16293-2422. Aims. The CHESS (Chemical HErschel Surveys of Star forming regions) key