Determination of Three-Phase Relative Permeabilities under Reservoir Conditions by Hot Water and Steamflood Experiments Détermination de perméabilités relatives tri-phasiques en conditions de réservoir, à partir d'expériences de balayages à l'eau chaude et à la vapeur

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Quettier L.

2006-11-01

Full Text Available In order to help the physical and numerical interpretation of Emeraude's steam pilot, two-phase waterfloods at four temperatures (between 30 and 240°C and a steamflood were performed in the laboratory using the same porous medium (compacted silt and under reservoir conditions. Dynamic isothermal displacements were interpreted with a thermal simulator taking into account capillary end effects. The corresponding oil-water relative permeability curves were obtained by matching observed pressure drop and oil production. Results show that temperature influences the end-point saturations but not the shape of the curves. The steamflood experiment was carried out in an adiabatic core holder. Oil stripping and production of a large amount of CO2 caused by dissolution of carbonates were pointed out. The numerical interpretation of this experiment, by making use of the oil-water relative permeabilities, provided the three-phase oil relative permeability which is an essential datum for numerical interpretation of a steam drive pilot. Then a parameter study was used to quantify the influence of the different mechanisms involved in hot water and steam floods. Dans le but de faciliter l'interprétation physique et numérique du pilote vapeur d' Emeraude, des balayages eau-huile à quatre températures (entre 30 et 240°C et un balayage à la vapeur ont été réalisés au laboratoire. Toutes ces expériences ont été effectuées sur le même milieu poreux (silt compacté et en conditions de réservoir. Les déplacements bi-phasiques isothermes, en écoulement transitoire, ont été interprétés avec un modèle numérique thermique qui prend en compte les effets capillaires aux extrémités de l'échantillon. Les courbes de perméabilités relatives dynamiques eau-huile sont déterminées par calage, sur les courbes expérimentales, de la différence de pression et de la production d'huile simulées. Les résultats montrent que la température influe sur les

Enhancing infrastructure resilience through business continuity planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, Ronald; Norman, Michael; Klett, Mary

2017-01-01

Critical infrastructure is crucial to the functionality and wellbeing of the world around us. It is a complex network that works together to create an efficient society. The core components of critical infrastructure are dependent on one another to function at their full potential. Organisations face unprecedented environmental risks such as increased reliance on information technology and telecommunications, increased infrastructure interdependencies and globalisation. Successful organisations should integrate the components of cyber-physical and infrastructure interdependencies into a holistic risk framework. Physical security plans, cyber security plans and business continuity plans can help mitigate environmental risks. Cyber security plans are becoming the most crucial to have, yet are the least commonly found in organisations. As the reliance on cyber continues to grow, it is imperative that organisations update their business continuity and emergency preparedness activities to include this.

78 FR 16447 - Rehabilitation Continuing Education Program (RCEP) for the Technical Assistance and Continuing...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-03-15

... (RCEP) for the Technical Assistance and Continuing Education Centers (TACE Centers); Proposed Extension... (RCEP) for the Technical Assistance and Continuing Education Centers (TACE Centers), the Secretary... with disabilities through enhanced technical assistance (TA) and continuing education (CE) for State...

Pulsatile delivery of a leucine supplement during long-term continuous enteral feeding enhances lean growth in term neonatal pigs

Science.gov (United States)

Neonatal pigs are used as a model to study and optimize the clinical treatment of infants who are unable to maintain oral feeding. Using this model, we have previously shown that pulsatile administration of leucine during continuous feeding over 24 h via orogastric tube enhanced protein synthesis in...

INCREASING HEAVY OIL RESERVES IN THE WILMINGTON OIL FIELD THROUGH ADVANCED RESERVOIR CHARACTERIZATION AND THERMAL PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGIES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Unknown

2001-08-08

The objective of this project is to increase the recoverable heavy oil reserves within sections of the Wilmington Oil Field, near Long Beach, California, through the testing and application of advanced reservoir characterization and thermal production technologies. The hope is that successful application of these technologies will result in their implementation throughout the Wilmington Field and, through technology transfer, will be extended to increase the recoverable oil reserves in other slope and basin clastic (SBC) reservoirs. The existing steamflood in the Tar zone of Fault Block II-A (Tar II-A) has been relatively inefficient because of several producibility problems which are common in SBC reservoirs: inadequate characterization of the heterogeneous turbidite sands, high permeability thief zones, low gravity oil and non-uniform distribution of the remaining oil. This has resulted in poor sweep efficiency, high steam-oil ratios, and early steam breakthrough. Operational problems related to steam breakthrough, high reservoir pressure, and unconsolidated sands have caused premature well and downhole equipment failures. In aggregate, these reservoir and operational constraints have resulted in increased operating costs and decreased recoverable reserves. A suite of advanced reservoir characterization and thermal production technologies are being applied during the project to improve oil recovery and reduce operating costs, including: (1) Development of three-dimensional (3-D) deterministic and stochastic reservoir simulation models--thermal or otherwise--to aid in reservoir management of the steamflood and post-steamflood phases and subsequent development work. (2) Development of computerized 3-D visualizations of the geologic and reservoir simulation models to aid reservoir surveillance and operations. (3) Perform detailed studies of the geochemical interactions between the steam and the formation rock and fluids. (4) Testing and proposed application of a

Class III Mid-Term Project, "Increasing Heavy Oil Reserves in the Wilmington Oil Field Through Advanced Reservoir Characterization and Thermal Production Technologies"

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scott Hara

2007-03-31

The overall objective of this project was to increase heavy oil reserves in slope and basin clastic (SBC) reservoirs through the application of advanced reservoir characterization and thermal production technologies. The project involved improving thermal recovery techniques in the Tar Zone of Fault Blocks II-A and V (Tar II-A and Tar V) of the Wilmington Field in Los Angeles County, near Long Beach, California. A primary objective has been to transfer technology that can be applied in other heavy oil formations of the Wilmington Field and other SBC reservoirs, including those under waterflood. The first budget period addressed several producibility problems in the Tar II-A and Tar V thermal recovery operations that are common in SBC reservoirs. A few of the advanced technologies developed include a three-dimensional (3-D) deterministic geologic model, a 3-D deterministic thermal reservoir simulation model to aid in reservoir management and subsequent post-steamflood development work, and a detailed study on the geochemical interactions between the steam and the formation rocks and fluids. State of the art operational work included drilling and performing a pilot steam injection and production project via four new horizontal wells (2 producers and 2 injectors), implementing a hot water alternating steam (WAS) drive pilot in the existing steamflood area to improve thermal efficiency, installing a 2400-foot insulated, subsurface harbor channel crossing to supply steam to an island location, testing a novel alkaline steam completion technique to control well sanding problems, and starting on an advanced reservoir management system through computer-aided access to production and geologic data to integrate reservoir characterization, engineering, monitoring, and evaluation. The second budget period phase (BP2) continued to implement state-of-the-art operational work to optimize thermal recovery processes, improve well drilling and completion practices, and evaluate the

Improvement for enhancing effectiveness of universal power system (UPS) continuous testing process

Science.gov (United States)

Sriratana, Lerdlekha

2018-01-01

This experiment aims to enhance the effectiveness of the Universal Power System (UPS) continuous testing process of the Electrical and Electronic Institute by applying work scheduling and time study methods. Initially, the standard time of testing process has not been considered that results of unaccurate testing target and also time wasting has been observed. As monitoring and reducing waste time for improving the efficiency of testing process, Yamazumi chart and job scheduling theory (North West Corner Rule) were applied to develop new work process. After the improvements, the overall efficiency of the process possibly increased from 52.8% to 65.6% or 12.7%. Moreover, the waste time could reduce from 828.3 minutes to 653.6 minutes or 21%, while testing units per batch could increase from 3 to 4 units. Therefore, the number of testing units would increase from 12 units up to 20 units per month that also contribute to increase of net income of UPS testing process by 72%.

Startup and long term operation of enhanced biological phosphorus removal in continuous-flow reactor with granules.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Dong; Lv, Yufeng; Zeng, Huiping; Zhang, Jie

2016-07-01

The startup and long term operation of enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) in a continuous-flow reactor (CFR) with granules were investigated in this study. Through reducing the settling time from 9min to 3min gradually, the startup of EBPR in a CFR with granules was successfully realized in 16days. Under continuous-flow operation, the granules with good phosphorus and COD removal performance were stably operated for more than 6months. And the granules were characterized with particle size of around 960μm, loose structure and good settling ability. During the startup phase, polysaccharides (PS) was secreted excessively by microorganisms to resist the influence from the variation of operational mode. Results of relative quantitative PCR indicated that granules dominated by polyphosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs) were easier accumulated in the CFR because more excellent settling ability was needed in the system. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Designing and evaluating an effective theory-based continuing interprofessional education program to improve sepsis care by enhancing healthcare team collaboration.

Science.gov (United States)

Owen, John A; Brashers, Valentina L; Littlewood, Keith E; Wright, Elisabeth; Childress, Reba Moyer; Thomas, Shannon

2014-05-01

Continuing interprofessional education (CIPE) differs from traditional continuing education (CE) in both the learning process and content, especially when it occurs in the workplace. Applying theories to underpin the development, implementation, and evaluation of CIPE activities informs educational design, encourages reflection, and enhances our understanding of CIPE and collaborative practice. The purpose of this article is to describe a process of design, implementation, and evaluation of CIPE through the application of explicit theories related to CIPE and workplace learning. A description of an effective theory-based program delivered to faculty and clinicians to enhance healthcare team collaboration is provided. Results demonstrated that positive changes in provider perceptions of and commitment to team-based care were achieved using this theory-based approach. Following this program, participants demonstrated a greater appreciation for the roles of other team members by indicating that more responsibility for implementing the Surviving Sepsis guideline should be given to nurses and respiratory therapists and less to physicians. Furthermore, a majority (86%) of the participants made commitments to demonstrate specific collaborative behaviors in their own practice. The article concludes with a discussion of our enhanced understanding of CIPE and a reinterpretation of the learning process which has implications for future CIPE workplace learning activities.

Enhancement or Reduction of Sonochemical Activity of Pulsed Ultrasound Compared to Continuous Ultrasound at 20 kHz?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yujing Sun

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Little is known about the efficacy of pulsed ultrasound compared with continuous ultrasound. Previous studies on the efficacy of pulsed ultrasound were not systematic and gave different results. In this study, the effects of pulse length, pulse interval, pulse length × pulse intervals, and treatment time on sonochemical activity were investigated using a simple oxidation of iodide method and a comparison of the efficacy of pulsed ultrasound and continuous ultrasound is made. The results showed that the main factor in the efficacy of pulsed ultrasound was pulse length when pulse length varied from 0.1 to 1 s. However, the main factors were pulse length, the pulse length × pulse interval, and pulse interval when pulse length varied from 1 to 9 s. Pulsed ultrasound had no effect when the pulse length was 0.1 s; however, the sonochemical activity of pulsed ultrasound decreased compared to continuous ultrasound as the pulse length varied from 0.1 to 1 s. The sonochemical activity of pulsed ultrasound either increased or decreased compared to continuous ultrasound when pulse length varied from 1 to 9 s, but the increase or decrease had no clear trend. The sonochemical activity was constant at Ton/Toff = 2 s/2 s and slightly decreased at Ton/Toff = 3 s/2 s with time, whereas the sonochemical activity of continuous ultrasound significantly decreased with time. Enhancement or reduction of sonochemical activity of pulsed ultrasound compared to continuous ultrasound depended on the pulse length and pulse interval.

Space-time relationship in continuously moving table method for large FOV peripheral contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sabati, M; Lauzon, M L; Frayne, R

2003-01-01

Data acquisition using a continuously moving table approach is a method capable of generating large field-of-view (FOV) 3D MR angiograms. However, in order to obtain venous contamination-free contrast-enhanced (CE) MR angiograms in the lower limbs, one of the major challenges is to acquire all necessary k-space data during the restricted arterial phase of the contrast agent. Preliminary investigation on the space-time relationship of continuously acquired peripheral angiography is performed in this work. Deterministic and stochastic undersampled hybrid-space (x, k y , k z ) acquisitions are simulated for large FOV peripheral runoff studies. Initial results show the possibility of acquiring isotropic large FOV images of the entire peripheral vascular system. An optimal trade-off between the spatial and temporal sampling properties was found that produced a high-spatial resolution peripheral CE-MR angiogram. The deterministic sampling pattern was capable of reconstructing the global structure of the peripheral arterial tree and showed slightly better global quantitative results than stochastic patterns. Optimal stochastic sampling patterns, on the other hand, enhanced small vessels and had more favourable local quantitative results. These simulations demonstrate the complex spatial-temporal relationship when sampling large FOV peripheral runoff studies. They also suggest that more investigation is required to maximize image quality as a function of hybrid-space coverage, acquisition repetition time and sampling pattern parameters

Continuous manganese delivery via osmotic pumps for manganese-enhanced mouse MRI does not impair spatial learning but leads to skin ulceration.

Science.gov (United States)

Vousden, Dulcie A; Cox, Elizabeth; Allemang-Grand, Rylan; Laliberté, Christine; Qiu, Lily R; Lindenmaier, Zsuzsa; Nieman, Brian J; Lerch, Jason P

2018-06-01

Manganese-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MEMRI) is a widely used technique in rodent neuroimaging studies. Traditionally, Mn 2+ is delivered to animals via a systemic injection; however, this can lead to toxic effects at high doses. Recent studies have shown that subcutaneously implanted mini-osmotic pumps can be used to continuously deliver manganese chloride (MnCl 2 ), and that they produce satisfactory contrast while circumventing many of the toxic side effects. However, neither the time-course of signal enhancement nor the effect of continuous Mn 2+ delivery on behaviour, particularly learning and memory, have been well-characterized. Here, we investigated the effect of MnCl 2 dose and route of administration on a) spatial learning in the Morris Water Maze and b) tissue signal enhancement in the mouse brain. Even as early as 3 days after pump implantation, infusion of 25-50 mg/kg/day MnCl 2 via osmotic pump produced signal enhancement as good as or better than that achieved 24 h after a single 50 mg/kg intraperitoneal injection. Neither route of delivery nor MnCl 2 dose adversely affected spatial learning and memory on the water maze. However, especially at higher doses, mice receiving MnCl 2 via osmotic pumps developed skin ulceration which limited the imaging window. With these findings, we provide recommendations for route and dose of MnCl 2 to use for different study designs. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Enhancing a Simple MODIS Cloud Mask Algorithm for the Landsat Data Continuity Mission

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Michael J.; Oreopoulos, Lazarous

2011-01-01

The presence of clouds in images acquired by the Landsat series of satellites is usually an undesirable, but generally unavoidable fact. With the emphasis of the program being on land imaging, the suspended liquid/ice particles of which clouds are made of fully or partially obscure the desired observational target. Knowing the amount and location of clouds in a Landsat scene is therefore valuable information for scene selection, for making clear-sky composites from multiple scenes, and for scheduling future acquisitions. The two instruments in the upcoming Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) will include new channels that will enhance our ability to detect high clouds which are often also thin in the sense that a large fraction of solar radiation can pass through them. This work studies the potential impact of these new channels on enhancing LDCM's cloud detection capabilities compared to previous Landsat missions. We revisit a previously published scheme for cloud detection and add new tests to capture more of the thin clouds that are harder to detect with the more limited arsenal channels. Since there are no Landsat data yet that include the new LDCM channels, we resort to data from another instrument, MODIS, which has these bands, as well as the other bands of LDCM, to test the capabilities of our new algorithm. By comparing our revised scheme's performance against the performance of the official MODIS cloud detection scheme, we conclude that the new scheme performs better than the earlier scheme which was not very good at thin cloud detection.

Transformer-based asymmetrical embedded Z-source neutral point clamped inverters with continuous input current and enhanced voltage boost capability

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mo, W.; Loh, Poh Chiang; Blaabjerg, Frede

2013-01-01

Z-source Neutral Point Clamped (NPC) inverters were introduced to integrate both the advantages of Z-source inverters and NPC inverters. However, traditional Z-source inverters suffer from high voltage stress and chopping input current. This paper proposes six types transformer-based impedance-so......-source NPC inverters which have enhanced voltage boost capability and continuous input current by utilizing of transformer and embedded dc source configuration. Experimental results are presented to verify the theory validation....

Continuous-measurement-enhanced self-trapping of degenerate ultracold atoms in a double well: Nonlinear quantum Zeno effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Weidong; Liu Jie

2006-01-01

In the present paper we investigate the influence of measurements on the quantum dynamics of degenerate Bose atoms gases in a symmetric double well. We show that continuous measurements enhance asymmetry on the density distribution of the atoms and broaden the parameter regime for self-trapping. We term this phenomenon as nonlinear quantum Zeno effect in analog to the celebrated Zeno effect in a linear quantum system. Under discontinuous measurements, the self-trapping due to the atomic interaction in the degenerate bosons is shown to be destroyed completely. Underlying physics is revealed and possible experimental realization is discussed

Enhancing energy recovery in the steel industry: Matching continuous charge with off-gas variability smoothing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dal Magro, Fabio; Meneghetti, Antonella; Nardin, Gioacchino; Savino, Stefano

2015-01-01

Highlights: • A system based on phase change material is inserted into the off-gas-line of a continuous charge electric arc furnace. • The off-gas temperature profile after scrap preheating is smoothed. • A heat transfer fluid through phase change material containers allows to control overheating issues. • The smoothed off-gas profiles enable efficient downstream power generation. • The recovery system investment cost is decreased due to lower sizes of components. - Abstract: In order to allow an efficient energy recovery from off-gas in the steel industry, the high variability of heat flow should be managed. A temperature smoothing device based on phase change materials at high temperatures is inserted into the off-gas line of a continuous charge electric arc furnace process with scrap preheating. To address overheating issues, a heat transfer fluid flowing through containers is introduced and selected by developing an analytical model. The performance of the smoothing system is analyzed by thermo-fluid dynamic simulations. The reduced maximum temperature of off-gas allows to reduce the size and investment cost of the downstream energy recovery system, while the increased minimum temperature enhances the steam turbine load factor, thus increasing its utilization. Benefits on environmental issues due to dioxins generation are also gained

La Hague Continuous Improvement Program: Enhancement of the Vitrification Throughput

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Petitjean, V.; De Vera, R.; Hollebecque, J.F.; Tronche, E.; Flament, T.; Pereira Mendes, F.; Prod'homme, A.

2006-01-01

calciner was increased from 76 l/hr to 90 l/hr in three steps. Results of each step were followed by a team of experts from CEA, AREVA/COGEMA and AREVA/SGN analyzing the impact on the vitrification facility. The results obtained at the end of this testing campaign were a success: the target feeding flow-rate was reached, improving the line productivity without consequences in equipment availability and off gas treatment performances. This paper presents the results obtained for each step of this technological improvement and illustrates the La Hague continuous improvement program performed in order to enhance the vitrification throughput. (authors)

Enhancing chemical synthesis using catalytic reactions under continuous flow conditions

OpenAIRE

Asadi, Mousa

2017-01-01

Many advantages have been demonstrated for continuous flow chemistry in comparison with batch chemistry; such as easy automation, high level of reproducibility, improved safety, and process reliability. Indeed, with continuous flow processes constant reaction parameters such as temperature, time, amount of reagents, catalyst, solvents, efficient mixing etc. can easily be assured. The research detailed in this PhD thesis takes advantages of flow chemistry applying it to the Fukuyama ...

Application of Serratia marcescens RZ-21 significantly enhances peanut yield and remediates continuously cropped peanut soil.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Hai-Yan; Yang, Bo; Wang, Hong-Wei; Yang, Qi-Yin; Dai, Chuan-Chao

2016-01-15

Continuous cropping practices cause a severe decline in peanut yield. The aim of this study was to investigate the remediation effect of Serratia marcescens on continuously cropped peanut soil. A pot experiment was conducted under natural conditions to determine peanut agronomic indices, soil microorganism characteristics, soil enzyme activities and antagonism ability to typical pathogens at different growth stages. Four treatments were applied to red soil as follows: an active fermentation liquor of S. marcescens (RZ-21), an equivalent sterilized fermentation liquor (M), an equivalent fermentation medium (P) and distilled water (CK). S. marcescens significantly inhibited the two typical plant pathogens Fusarium oxysporum A1 and Ralstonia solanacearum B1 and reduced their populations in rhizosphere soil. The RZ-21 treatment significantly increased peanut yield, vine dry weight, root nodules and taproot length by 62.3, 33, 72 and 61.4% respectively, followed by the M treatment. The P treatment also increased root nodules and root length slightly. RZ-21 also enhanced the activities of soil urease, sucrase and hydrogen peroxidase at various stages. In addition, RZ-21 and M treatments increased the average population of soil bacteria and decreased the average population of fungi in the three critical peanut growth stages, except for M in the case of the fungal population at flowering, thus balancing the structure of the soil microorganism community. This is the first report of S. marcescens being applied to continuously cropped peanut soil. The results suggest that S. marcescens RZ-21 has the potential to improve the soil environment and agricultural products and thus allow the development of sustainable management practices. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

Assessment of microorganisms from Indonesian Oil Fields

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kadarwati, S.; Udiharto, M.; Rahman, M.; Jasjfi, E.; Legowo, E.H. [Research and Development Centre for Oil and Gas Technology LEMIGAS, Jakarta Selatan (Indonesia)

1995-12-31

Petroleum resources have been the mainstay of the national development in Indonesia. However, resources are being depleted after over a century of exploitation, while the demand continues to grow with the rapid economic development of the country. In facing the problem, EOR has been applied in Indonesia, such as the steamflooding project in Duri field, but a more energy efficient technology would be preferable. Therefore, MEOR has been recommended as a promising solution. Our study, aimed at finding indigenous microorganisms which can be developed for application in MEOR, has isolated microbes from some oil fields of Indonesia. These microorganisms have been identified, their activities studied, and the effects of their metabolisms examined. This paper describes the research carried out by LEMIGAS in this respect, giving details on the methods of sampling, incubation, identification, and activation of the microbes as well as tests on the effects of their metabolites, with particular attention to those with potential for application in MEOR.

Simultaneous enhancement of phenolic compound degradations by Acinetobacter strain V2 via a step-wise continuous acclimation process.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Johnson; Sharma, Vikas; Milase, Ridwaan; Mbhense, Ntuthuko

2016-06-01

Phenol degradation enhancement of Acinetobacter strain V2 by a step-wise continuous acclimation process was investigated. At the end of 8 months, three stable adapted strains, designated as R, G, and Y, were developed with the sub-lethal concentration of phenol at 800, 1100, and 1400 mg/L, respectively, from 400 mg/L of V2 parent strain. All strains degraded phenol at their sub-lethal level within 24 h, their growth rate increased as the acclimation process continued and retained their degradation properties even after storing at -80 °C for more than 3 years. All adapted strains appeared coccoid with an ungranulated surface under electron microscope compared to typical rod-shaped parental strain V2 . The adapted Y strain also possessed superior degradation ability against aniline, benzoate, and toluene. This study demonstrated the use of long term acclimation process to develop efficient and better pollutant degrading bacterial strains with potentials in industrial and environmental bioremediation. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Pump-Enhanced Continuous-Wave Magnetometry Using Nitrogen-Vacancy Ensembles

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ahmadi, Sepehr; El-Ella, Haitham A. R.; Hansen, Jørn Otto Bindslev

2017-01-01

a bandwidth up to 159 Hz, and an extracted sensitivity ofapproximately 3 nT/√Hz, with further enhancement limited by thenoise floor of the lock-in amplifier and the laser damage threshold of theoptical components. Exploration of the microwave and optical pump-rateparameter space demonstrates a linewidth...

Does Forest Continuity Enhance the Resilience of Trees to Environmental Change?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Goddert von Oheimb

Full Text Available There is ample evidence that continuously existing forests and afforestations on previously agricultural land differ with regard to ecosystem functions and services such as carbon sequestration, nutrient cycling and biodiversity. However, no studies have so far been conducted on possible long-term (>100 years impacts on tree growth caused by differences in the ecological continuity of forest stands. In the present study we analysed the variation in tree-ring width of sessile oak (Quercus petraea (Matt. Liebl. trees (mean age 115-136 years due to different land-use histories (continuously existing forests, afforestations both on arable land and on heathland. We also analysed the relation of growth patterns to soil nutrient stores and to climatic parameters (temperature, precipitation. Tree rings formed between 1896 and 2005 were widest in trees afforested on arable land. This can be attributed to higher nitrogen and phosphorous availability and indicates that former fertilisation may continue to affect the nutritional status of forest soils for more than one century after those activities have ceased. Moreover, these trees responded more strongly to environmental changes - as shown by a higher mean sensitivity of the tree-ring widths - than trees of continuously existing forests. However, the impact of climatic parameters on the variability in tree-ring width was generally small, but trees on former arable land showed the highest susceptibility to annually changing climatic conditions. We assume that incompletely developed humus horizons as well as differences in the edaphon are responsible for the more sensitive response of oak trees of recent forests (former arable land and former heathland to variation in environmental conditions. We conclude that forests characterised by a long ecological continuity may be better adapted to global change than recent forest ecosystems.

[Continuous remediation of heavy metal contaminated soil by co-cropping system enhanced with chelator].

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Ze-Bin; Guo, Xiao-Fang; Wu, Qi-Tang; Long, Xin-Xian

2014-11-01

In order to elucidate the continuous effectiveness of co-cropping system coupling with chelator enhancement in remediating heavy metal contaminated soils and its environmental risk towards underground water, soil lysimeter (0.9 m x 0.9 m x 0.9 m) experiments were conducted using a paddy soil affected by Pb and Zn mining in Lechang district of Guangdong Province, 7 successive crops were conducted for about 2.5 years. The treatments included mono-crop of Sedum alfredii Hance (Zn and Cd hyperaccumulator), mono-crop of corn (Zea mays, cv. Yunshi-5, a low-accumulating cultivar), co-crop of S. alfredii and corn, and co-crop + MC (Mixture of Chelators, comprised of citric acid, monosodium glutamate waste liquid, EDTA and KCI with molar ratio of 10: 1:2:3 at the concentration of 5 mmol x kg(-1) soil). The changes of heavy metal concentrations in plants, soil and underground water were monitored. Results showed that the co-cropping system was suitable only in spring-summer seasons and significantly increased Zn and Cd phytoextraction. In autumn-winter seasons, the growth of S. alfredii and its phytoextraction of Zn and Cd were reduced by co-cropping and MC application. In total, the mono-crops of S. alfredii recorded a highest phytoextraction of Zn and Cd. However, the greatest reduction of soil Zn, Cd and Pb was observed with the co-crop + MC treatment, the reduction rates were 28%, 50%, and 22%, respectively, relative to the initial soil metal content. The reduction of this treatment was mainly attributed to the downwards leaching of metals to the subsoil caused by MC application. The continuous monitoring of leachates during 2. 5 year's experiment also revealed that the addition of MC increased heavy metal concentrations in the leaching water, but they did not significantly exceed the III grade limits of the underground water standard of China.

Solar-generated steam for oil recovery: Reservoir simulation, economic analysis, and life cycle assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sandler, Joel; Fowler, Garrett; Cheng, Kris; Kovscek, Anthony R.

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Integrated assessment of solar thermal enhanced oil recovery (TEOR). • Analyses of reservoir performance, economics, and life cycle factors. • High solar fraction scenarios show economic viability for TEOR. • Continuous variable-rate steam injection meets the benchmarks set by conventional steam flood. - Abstract: The viability of solar thermal steam generation for thermal enhanced oil recovery (TEOR) in heavy-oil sands was evaluated using San Joaquin Valley, CA data. The effectiveness of solar TEOR was quantified through reservoir simulation, economic analysis, and life-cycle assessment. Reservoir simulations with continuous but variable rate steam injection were compared with a base-case Tulare Sand steamflood project. For equivalent average injection rates, comparable breakthrough times and recovery factors of 65% of the original oil in place were predicted, in agreement with simulations in the literature. Daily cyclic fluctuations in steam injection rate do not greatly impact recovery. Oil production rates do, however, show seasonal variation. Economic viability was established using historical prices and injection/production volumes from the Kern River oil field. For comparison, this model assumes that present day steam generation technologies were implemented at TEOR startup in 1980. All natural gas cogeneration and 100% solar fraction scenarios had the largest and nearly equal net present values (NPV) of $12.54 B and $12.55 B, respectively. Solar fraction refers to the steam provided by solar steam generation. Given its large capital cost, the 100% solar case shows the greatest sensitivity to discount rate and no sensitivity to natural gas price. Because there are very little emissions associated with day-to-day operations from the solar thermal system, life-cycle emissions are significantly lower than conventional systems even when the embodied energy of the structure is considered. We estimate that less than 1 g of CO 2 /MJ of refined

Teamwork, Leadership, and Continuous Improvement

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Keijser, Wouter Alexander; Glaudemans, Andor; Medema, Jitze; Dierckx, Rudi; Ahaus, Kees

2017-01-01

In this chapter, we describe the enhanced TeamSTEPPS® curriculum as fundament to creating a “culture of continuous improvement” in nuclear medicine. This evidence-based and modular teamwork system is deployed in concordance with a novel medical leadership development program. It provides a

Enhancement and evaluation of an algorithm for atmospheric profiling continuity from Aqua to Suomi-NPP

Science.gov (United States)

Lipton, A.; Moncet, J. L.; Payne, V.; Lynch, R.; Polonsky, I. N.

2017-12-01

We will present recent results from an algorithm for producing climate-quality atmospheric profiling earth system data records (ESDRs) for application to data from hyperspectral sounding instruments, including the Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS) on EOS Aqua and the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS) on Suomi-NPP, along with their companion microwave sounders, AMSU and ATMS, respectively. The ESDR algorithm uses an optimal estimation approach and the implementation has a flexible, modular software structure to support experimentation and collaboration. Data record continuity benefits from the fact that the same algorithm can be applied to different sensors, simply by providing suitable configuration and data files. Developments to be presented include the impact of a radiance-based pre-classification method for the atmospheric background. In addition to improving retrieval performance, pre-classification has the potential to reduce the sensitivity of the retrievals to the climatological data from which the background estimate and its error covariance are derived. We will also discuss evaluation of a method for mitigating the effect of clouds on the radiances, and enhancements of the radiative transfer forward model.

Entanglement enhancement through multirail noise reduction for continuous-variable measurement-based quantum-information processing

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Yung-Chao; Wu, Shin-Tza

2017-09-01

We study theoretically the teleportation of a controlled-phase (cz) gate through measurement-based quantum-information processing for continuous-variable systems. We examine the degree of entanglement in the output modes of the teleported cz-gate for two classes of resource states: the canonical cluster states that are constructed via direct implementations of two-mode squeezing operations and the linear-optical version of cluster states which are built from linear-optical networks of beam splitters and phase shifters. In order to reduce the excess noise arising from finite-squeezed resource states, teleportation through resource states with different multirail designs will be considered and the enhancement of entanglement in the teleported cz gates will be analyzed. For multirail cluster with an arbitrary number of rails, we obtain analytical expressions for the entanglement in the output modes and analyze in detail the results for both classes of resource states. At the same time, we also show that for uniformly squeezed clusters the multirail noise reduction can be optimized when the excess noise is allocated uniformly to the rails. To facilitate the analysis, we develop a trick with manipulations of quadrature operators that can reveal rather efficiently the measurement sequence and corrective operations needed for the measurement-based gate teleportation, which will also be explained in detail.

Prior sleep with zolpidem enhances the effect of caffeine or modafinil during 18 hours continuous work.

Science.gov (United States)

Batéjat, Denise; Coste, Olivier; Van Beers, Pascal; Lagarde, Didier; Piérard, Christophe; Beaumont, Maurice

2006-05-01

Continuous military operations may disrupt sleep-wakefulness cycles, resulting in impaired performance and fatigue. We assessed the treatment efficacy of a hypnotic-psychostimulant combination to maintain sleep quality, performance, and alertness during a 42-h simulated military operation. A 6-h prophylactic sleep period with zolpidem (ZOL) followed by a 18-h continuous work period with administration at midway of 300 mg of slow release caffeine (CAF) or 200 mg of modafinil (MOD) was performed by eight healthy male subjects. Performance level was assessed with a reaction time test, a memory search test, a dual task, an attention test, and a computerized Stroop test. Cortical activation level was evaluated by the Critical Flicker Frequency test. Subjective sleepiness was evaluated using a visual analog scale and questionnaires. Effects of drugs on prophylactic and recovery sleep were also quantified from EEG recordings. CAF and MOD maintained performance and alertness throughout the 18-h work period. As shown by EEG recordings, ZOL improved prophylactic sleep without any deleterious effect on performance immediately after waking. As a result of its positive effects on prophylactic sleep, a lower pressure for slow wave sleep during recovery sleep was observed; nevertheless, zolpidem did not enhance the effects of either psychostimulant on performance. MOD and CAF may be of value in promoting performance and wakefulness during shiftwork or military operations while zolpidem improves prophylactic sleep quality without any deleterious effect after waking. We concluded that a zolpidem/ caffeine or modafinil combination could be useful in a context of environmental conditions not conducive to sleep.

Continuing education and professional development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adams, Edwina

2002-01-01

The success of a profession will be determined upon its education and training. A profession is required to encompass: a core body of knowledge; a set of ethical codes of practice; and have practitioners with humanistic qualities. In order to maintain the success of a profession it is necessary to have continuing education, which enhances professional development. Continuing professional education includes a form of self-regulation, which ensures the maintenance of a minimum standard of practice in this ever-changing workplace, and by regulating this standard, the discipline becomes more accountable to the client and the profession as a whole. In Australia, the Nuclear Medicine society's continuing education programs and Universities offering postgraduate programs promote continuing education. If technologists are to successfully keep up with developments in instrumentation, protocols and changing health care requirements, we must ensure that the education of practitioners does not cease at certification of entry to the workplace (Au)

The Role of Motivation in Continuing Education for Pharmacists

OpenAIRE

Tjin a Tsoi, Sharon

2017-01-01

Healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, need to continuously update their knowledge and are, therefore, expected to participate in Continuing Education (CE) and Continuous Professional Development (CPD) activities on a regular basis. Lack of intrinsic (or autonomous) motivation appears to be an important barrier for engaging in high quality learning and can have consequences for poor performance and patient safety. This thesis aims to enhance our understanding of pharmacists’ motivat...

Accuracy of subcutaneous continuous glucose monitoring in critically ill adults: improved sensor performance with enhanced calibrations.

Science.gov (United States)

Leelarathna, Lalantha; English, Shane W; Thabit, Hood; Caldwell, Karen; Allen, Janet M; Kumareswaran, Kavita; Wilinska, Malgorzata E; Nodale, Marianna; Haidar, Ahmad; Evans, Mark L; Burnstein, Rowan; Hovorka, Roman

2014-02-01

Accurate real-time continuous glucose measurements may improve glucose control in the critical care unit. We evaluated the accuracy of the FreeStyle(®) Navigator(®) (Abbott Diabetes Care, Alameda, CA) subcutaneous continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) device in critically ill adults using two methods of calibration. In a randomized trial, paired CGM and reference glucose (hourly arterial blood glucose [ABG]) were collected over a 48-h period from 24 adults with critical illness (mean±SD age, 60±14 years; mean±SD body mass index, 29.6±9.3 kg/m(2); mean±SD Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation score, 12±4 [range, 6-19]) and hyperglycemia. In 12 subjects, the CGM device was calibrated at variable intervals of 1-6 h using ABG. In the other 12 subjects, the sensor was calibrated according to the manufacturer's instructions (1, 2, 10, and 24 h) using arterial blood and the built-in point-of-care glucometer. In total, 1,060 CGM-ABG pairs were analyzed over the glucose range from 4.3 to 18.8 mmol/L. Using enhanced calibration median (interquartile range) every 169 (122-213) min, the absolute relative deviation was lower (7.0% [3.5, 13.0] vs. 12.8% [6.3, 21.8], P<0.001), and the percentage of points in the Clarke error grid Zone A was higher (87.8% vs. 70.2%). Accuracy of the Navigator CGM device during critical illness was comparable to that observed in non-critical care settings. Further significant improvements in accuracy may be obtained by frequent calibrations with ABG measurements.

Continuation and Enhancement of the MPOWIR Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lozier, Susan [Duke Univ., Durham, NC (United States)

2014-10-21

MPOWIR is a community-based program that provides mentoring to physical oceanographers from late graduate school through early careers. The overall goal of MPOWIR is to make mentoring opportunities for junior physical oceanographers universally available and of higher quality by expanding the reach of mentoring opportunities beyond individual home institutions. The aim is to reduce the barriers to career development for all junior scientists in the field, with a particular focus on improving the retention of junior women. Over the past five years MPOWIR has expanded significantly. This funding cycle saw the development and enhancement of MPOWIR’s programs and outreach opportunities. MPOWIR’s main programmatic offerings are: mentor groups, a biannual conference, a website and blog, and town hall meetings at national events. Since 2009, MPOWIR has hosted 15 mentor groups, three Pattullo conferences, and created a website that has attracted over 50,000 visitors. MPOWIR’s mentoring groups and Pattullo conferences have reached more than 130 unique participants. Mentor Groups Mentor groups were established in the fall of 2008, and continue to gain momentum after 5 years. Since 2009, 11 groups have formed, with participants mainly, but not exclusively, drawn from Pattullo attendees. To gauge the impact of mentor groups, participants are surveyed approximately annually. Based on an extensive 2011 survey, 100% of mentoring group participants reported that they made progress on their stated scientific, professional, and personal goals. As part of these surveys, participants are asked what they value about their mentoring group, what the benefit of the mentoring group is to their current position, and they are asked questions about the logistics and setup of the groups. Based on the survey conducted in 2012, all participants rated participation in these groups a valuable experience, with particular value placed on feedback on professional development (100% Excellent to

Long term operation of continuous-flow system with enhanced biological phosphorus removal granules at different COD loading.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Dong; Lv, Yufeng; Zeng, Huiping; Zhang, Jie

2016-09-01

In this study, a continuous-flow system with enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) granules was operated at different COD concentrations (200, 300 and 400mgL(-)(1)) to investigate the effect of COD loading on this system. The results showed that when the COD concentration in influent was increased to 400mgL(-)(1), the anaerobic COD removal efficiency and total phosphorus removal efficiency reduced obviously and the settling ability of granules deteriorated due to the proliferation of filamentous bacteria. Moreover, high COD loading inhibited the EPS secretion and destroyed the stability of granules. Results of high-through pyrosequencing indicated that filamentous bacteria had a competitive advantage over polyphosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs) at high COD loading. The performance of system, settling ability of granules and proportion of PAOs gradually recovered to the initial level after the COD concentration was reduced to 200mgL(-)(1) on day 81. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A clinical nurse specialist-led intervention to enhance medication adherence using the plan-do-check-act cycle for continuous self-improvement.

Science.gov (United States)

Russell, Cynthia L

2010-01-01

A clinical nurse specialist-led intervention to improve medication adherence in chronically ill adults using renal transplant recipients as an exemplar population is proposed. Meta-analyses and systematic reviews of chronically ill and transplant patients indicate that patient-specific characteristics not only are poor and inconsistent predictors for medication nonadherence but also are not amenable to intervention. Adherence has not meaningfully improved, despite meta-analyses and systematic narrative reviews of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) dealing with medication nonadherence in acutely and chronically ill persons and RCTs dealing with transplant patients. Interventions with a superior potential to enhance medication adherence must be developed. Use of a clinical nurse specialist-led continuous self-improvement intervention with adult renal transplant recipients is proposed. Continuous self-improvement focuses on improving personal systems thinking and behavior using the plan-do-check-act process. Electronic medication monitoring reports, one of several objective measures of medication adherence, are used by the clinician to provide patient feedback during the check process on medication-taking patterns. Continuous self-improvement as an intervention holds promise in supporting patient self-management and diminishing the blame that clinicians place on patients for medication nonadherence. Using an objective measure of medication adherence such as an electronic monitoring report fosters collaborative patient-clinician discussions of daily medication-taking patterns. Through collaboration, ideas for improving medication taking can be explored. Changes can be followed and evaluated for effectiveness through the continuous self-improvement process. Future studies should include RCTs comparing educational and/or behavioral interventions to improve medication adherence.

Manipulating the alkali metal charge compensation and tungsten oxide to continuously enhance the red fluorescence in (Li,Na,K)Ca(Mo,W)O4:Eu3+ solid solution compounds

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Wei; Li, Jiaxin; Tian, Canxin; Wang, Zesong; Xie, Mubiao; Zou, Changwei; Sun, Guohuan; Kang, Fengwen

2018-02-01

When compared to other phosphors typically the blue and green phosphors, red phosphors, which can be used for white light-emitting diodes (wLEDs), always suffer from various problems such as higher cost, lower luminescence efficiency and bad thermal stability. And thus, great interests have been paid to how to enhance the red fluorescence intensity in the recent years. Here we report on a red-emitting solid solutions, (Li,Na,K)Ca(Mo,W)O4:Eu3+, which enable exhibiting continuous Eu3+ emission enhancement through manipulating the alkali metal ions and the relative content ratios between tungsten and molybdenum oxides. X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) has been employed to check the phase purity, and results show that all samples crystallize in a scheelite structure with space group of I41/a (No.88). A regular blue-shifting of XRD peaks, which indicates the increase of crystal plane spacing, appears as the alkali cationic radius increases from 0.92 Å (for Li), 1.18 Å (for Na) and to 1.38 Å (for K). Replacing Mo ion (0.41 Å) by W ion (0.42 Å) enables not only forming the solid solution compounds (Li,Na,K)Ca(Mo,W)O4:Eu3+, but also blue-shifting the XRD position. Similar to the XRD position shifting, our samples also exhibit the regular change in the photoluminescence (PL) spectra, in which the charge transfer (CT) band position as the alkali cationic radii increase from Li, Na and to K and further from Mo to W shows a continuous red-shifting behavior. As for the CT and Eu3+ intensity, our experimental results show that the alkali ion that corresponds to the maximum intensity is Li, and this intensity can be further enhanced by adding W. In coincidence with the change in the excitation spectral intensity, the continuous enhanced Eu3+ emission intensity can be observed up excitation at the CT band and Eu3+ lines. We have discussed the above CT band shifting and Eu3+ fluorescence enhancement and give a feasible mechanism profile that base on the energy transfer from CT

Potential and Prospects of Continuous Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA Production

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin Koller

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Together with other so-called “bio-plastics”, Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs are expected to soon replace established polymers on the plastic market. As a prerequisite, optimized process design is needed to make PHAs attractive in terms of costs and quality. Nowadays, large-scale PHA production relies on discontinuous fed-batch cultivation in huge bioreactors. Such processes presuppose numerous shortcomings such as nonproductive time for reactor revamping, irregular product quality, limited possibility for supply of certain carbon substrates, and, most of all, insufficient productivity. Therefore, single- and multistage continuous PHA biosynthesis is increasingly investigated for production of different types of microbial PHAs; this goes for rather crystalline, thermoplastic PHA homopolyesters as well as for highly flexible PHA copolyesters, and even blocky-structured PHAs consisting of alternating soft and hard segments. Apart from enhanced productivity and constant product quality, chemostat processes can be used to elucidate kinetics of cell growth and PHA formation under constant process conditions. Furthermore, continuous enrichment processes constitute a tool to isolate novel powerful PHA-producing microbial strains adapted to special environmental conditions. The article discusses challenges, potential and case studies for continuous PHA production, and shows up new strategies to further enhance such processes economically by developing unsterile open continuous processes combined with the application of inexpensive carbon feedstocks.

Writing a continuing professional development article for publication.

Science.gov (United States)

Price, Bob

2014-07-01

Writing for journal publication is a worthwhile but challenging activity that requires clear motives, purpose, planning and execution. Continuing professional development (CPD) articles are designed to be informative and educative, with the aim of enhancing the reader's understanding of a particular subject. This article provides an overview of how to approach and plan the writing of a CPD article to enhance the success of its acceptance for publication in a professional journal.

Comparing continuous and dichotomous scoring of the balanced inventory of desirable responding.

Science.gov (United States)

Stöber, Joachim; Dette, Dorothea E; Musch, Jochen

2002-04-01

The Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding (BIDR; Paulhus, 1994) is a widely used instrument to measure the 2 components of social desirability: self-deceptive enhancement and impression management. With respect to scoring of the BIDR, Paulhus (1994) authorized 2 methods, namely continuous scoring (all answers on the continuous answer scale are counted) and dichotomous scoring (only extreme answers are counted). In this article, we report 3 studies with student samples, and continuous and dichotomous scoring of BIDR subscales are compared with respect to reliability, convergent validity, sensitivity to instructional variations, and correlations with personality. Across studies, the scores from continuous scoring (continuous scores) showed higher Cronbach's alphas than those from dichotomous scoring (dichotomous scores). Moreover, continuous scores showed higher convergent correlations with other measures of social desirability and more consistent effects with self-presentation instructions (fake-good vs. fake-bad instructions). Finally, continuous self-deceptive enhancement scores showed higher correlations with those traits of the Five-factor model for which substantial correlations were expected (i.e., Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Conscientiousness). Consequently, these findings indicate that continuous scoring may be preferable to dichotomous scoring when assessing socially desirable responding with the BIDR.

Developing Cost-Effective Dense Continuous SDC Barrier Layers for SOFCs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nguyen, Hoang Viet P.; Hardy, John S.; Coyle, Christopher A.; LU, Zigui; Stevenson, Jeffry W.

2017-12-04

Significantly improved performance during electrochemical testing of a cell with a dense continuous pulsed laser deposited (PLD) samarium doped ceria (SDC) layer spurred investigations into the fabrication of dense continuous SDC barrier layers by means of cost-effective deposition using screen printing which is amenable to industrial production of SOFCs. Many approaches to improve the SDC density have been explored including the use of powder with reduced particle sizes, inks with increased solids loading, and doping with sintering aids (1). In terms of sintering aids, dopants like Mo or binary systems of Mo+Cu or Fe+Co greatly enhance SDC sinterability. In fact, adding dopants to a screen printed, prefired, porous SDC layer made it possible to achieve a dense continuous barrier layer atop the YSZ electrolyte without sintering above 1200°C. Although the objective of fabricating a dense continuous layer was achieved, additional studies have been initiated to improve the cell performance. Underlying issues with constrained sintering and dopant-enhanced ceria-zirconia solid solubility are also addressed in this paper.

Internal factors influencing the knowledge continuity ensuring

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hana Urbancová

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of the systematic ensuring of knowledge continuity is the continuity of an organisation’s development, the quality of managerial positions and the continuity of decision-making. By ensuring knowledge continuity, organisations may gain a performance-enhancing factor. The objective of the article is to identify the level of impact of decisive internal factors determining knowledge continuity ensuring and contributing to the efficiency of the organisations. Knowledge continuity ensuring as an internal force, however, can together with the right employees, help adapt more quickly to external conditions that organisations can hardly control. Monitoring and ensuring knowledge continuity can contribute to a higher quality of processes in general, in particular processes exploiting knowledge, and thus help improve the level of management. The first part of the article presents theoretical views on the aspects of knowledge continuity ensuring in organisations while the second part analyses the findings of the surveys carried out among managers in organisations in the Czech Republic. Based on the summary of the outcomes obtained it is possible to say that internal factors influence knowledge continuity ensuring in organisations, however, the level of impact of individual factors is determined by their size. The findings regarding the impact of each of the factors show that the most significant barriers to knowledge continuity ensuring are those associated with the human factor.

Strategies for active learning in online continuing education.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, Janet M

2005-01-01

Online continuing education and staff development is on the rise as the benefits of access, convenience, and quality learning are continuing to take shape. Strategies to enhance learning call for learner participation that is self-directed and independent, thus changing the educator's role from expert to coach and facilitator. Good planning of active learning strategies promotes optimal learning whether the learning content is presented in a course or a just-in-time short module. Active learning strategies can be used to enhance online learning during all phases of the teaching-learning process and can accommodate a variety of learning styles. Feedback from peers, educators, and technology greatly influences learner satisfaction and must be harnessed to provide effective learning experiences. Outcomes of active learning can be assessed online and implemented conveniently and successfully from the initiation of the course or module planning to the end of the evaluation process. Online learning has become accessible and convenient and allows the educator to track learner participation. The future of online education will continue to grow, and using active learning strategies will ensure that quality learning will occur, appealing to a wide variety of learning needs.

Liquid phase oxidation chemistry in continuous-flow microreactors.

Science.gov (United States)

Gemoets, Hannes P L; Su, Yuanhai; Shang, Minjing; Hessel, Volker; Luque, Rafael; Noël, Timothy

2016-01-07

Continuous-flow liquid phase oxidation chemistry in microreactors receives a lot of attention as the reactor provides enhanced heat and mass transfer characteristics, safe use of hazardous oxidants, high interfacial areas, and scale-up potential. In this review, an up-to-date overview of both technological and chemical aspects of liquid phase oxidation chemistry in continuous-flow microreactors is given. A description of mass and heat transfer phenomena is provided and fundamental principles are deduced which can be used to make a judicious choice for a suitable reactor. In addition, the safety aspects of continuous-flow technology are discussed. Next, oxidation chemistry in flow is discussed, including the use of oxygen, hydrogen peroxide, ozone and other oxidants in flow. Finally, the scale-up potential for continuous-flow reactors is described.

Continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion therapy in type 1 diabetes ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2013-01-14

Jan 14, 2013 ... Metabolism and Diabetes of South Africa (SEMDSA),. Paediatric and Adolescent ... lifestyle in terms of meal times and physical exercise. It: • Enhances the .... in continuing medical education activity relating to. CSII annually.

Continuous Synthesis of Ag/TiO2 Nanoparticles with Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity by Pulsed Laser Ablation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rui Zhou

2017-01-01

Full Text Available A facile and environmental friendly synthesis strategy based on pulsed laser ablation has been developed for potential mass production of Ag-loaded TiO2 (Ag/TiO2 nanoparticles. By sequentially irradiating titanium and silver target substrates, respectively, with the same 1064 nm 100 ns fiber laser, Ag/TiO2 particles can be fabricated. A postannealing process leads to the crystallization of TiO2 to anatase phase with high photocatalytic activity. The phase composition, microstructure, and surface state of the elaborated Ag/TiO2 are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD, energy dispersive X-ray (EDX, field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM, transmission electron microscope (TEM, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS techniques. The results suggest that the presence of silver clusters deposited on the surface of TiO2 nanoparticles. The nanostructure is formed through laser interaction with materials. Photocatalytic activity evaluation shows that silver clusters could significantly enhance the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 in degradation of methylene blue (MB under UV light irradiation, which is attributed to the efficient electron traps by Ag clusters. Our developed Ag/TiO2 nanoparticles synthesized via a straightforward, continuous, and green pathway could have great potential applications in photocatalysis.

Future supply chains enabled by continuous processing--opportunities and challenges. May 20-21, 2014 Continuous Manufacturing Symposium.

Science.gov (United States)

Srai, Jagjit Singh; Badman, Clive; Krumme, Markus; Futran, Mauricio; Johnston, Craig

2015-03-01

This paper examines the opportunities and challenges facing the pharmaceutical industry in moving to a primarily "continuous processing"-based supply chain. The current predominantly "large batch" and centralized manufacturing system designed for the "blockbuster" drug has driven a slow-paced, inventory heavy operating model that is increasingly regarded as inflexible and unsustainable. Indeed, new markets and the rapidly evolving technology landscape will drive more product variety, shorter product life-cycles, and smaller drug volumes, which will exacerbate an already unsustainable economic model. Future supply chains will be required to enhance affordability and availability for patients and healthcare providers alike despite the increased product complexity. In this more challenging supply scenario, we examine the potential for a more pull driven, near real-time demand-based supply chain, utilizing continuous processing where appropriate as a key element of a more "flow-through" operating model. In this discussion paper on future supply chain models underpinned by developments in the continuous manufacture of pharmaceuticals, we have set out; The significant opportunities to moving to a supply chain flow-through operating model, with substantial opportunities in inventory reduction, lead-time to patient, and radically different product assurance/stability regimes. Scenarios for decentralized production models producing a greater variety of products with enhanced volume flexibility. Production, supply, and value chain footprints that are radically different from today's monolithic and centralized batch manufacturing operations. Clinical trial and drug product development cost savings that support more rapid scale-up and market entry models with early involvement of SC designers within New Product Development. The major supply chain and industrial transformational challenges that need to be addressed. The paper recognizes that although current batch operational

Continuous Enhancement of Science Teachers' Knowledge and Skills through Scientific Lecturing.

Science.gov (United States)

Azevedo, Maria-Manuel; Duarte, Sofia

2018-01-01

Due to their importance in transmitting knowledge, teachers can play a crucial role in students' scientific literacy acquisition and motivation to respond to ongoing and future economic and societal challenges. However, to conduct this task effectively, teachers need to continuously improve their knowledge, and for that, a periodic update is mandatory for actualization of scientific knowledge and skills. This work is based on the outcomes of an educational study implemented with science teachers from Portuguese Basic and Secondary schools. We evaluated the effectiveness of a training activity consisting of lectures covering environmental and health sciences conducted by scientists/academic teachers. The outcomes of this educational study were evaluated using a survey with several questions about environmental and health scientific topics. Responses to the survey were analyzed before and after the implementation of the scientific lectures. Our results showed that Basic and Secondary schools teachers' knowledge was greatly improved after the lectures. The teachers under training felt that these scientific lectures have positively impacted their current knowledge and awareness on several up-to-date scientific topics, as well as their teaching methods. This study emphasizes the importance of continuing teacher education concerning knowledge and awareness about health and environmental education.

Crosslinked basement membrane-based coatings enhance glucose sensor function and continuous glucose monitoring in vivo.

Science.gov (United States)

Klueh, Ulrike; Ludzinska, Izabela; Czajkowski, Caroline; Qiao, Yi; Kreutzer, Donald L

2018-01-01

Overcoming sensor-induced tissue reactions is an essential element of achieving successful continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) in the management of diabetes, particularly when used in closed loop technology. Recently, we demonstrated that basement membrane (BM)-based glucose sensor coatings significantly reduced tissue reactions at sites of device implantation. However, the biocompatible BM-based biohydrogel sensor coating rapidly degraded over a less than a 3-week period, which effectively eliminated the protective sensor coating. In an effort to increase the stability and effectiveness of the BM coating, we evaluated the impact of crosslinking BM utilizing glutaraldehyde as a crosslinking agent, designated as X-Cultrex. Sensor performance (nonrecalibrated) was evaluated for the impact of these X-Cultrex coatings in vitro and in vivo. Sensor performance was assessed over a 28-day time period in a murine CGM model and expressed as mean absolute relative difference (MARD) values. Tissue reactivity of Cultrex-coated, X-Cultrex-coated, and uncoated glucose sensors was evaluated over a 28-day time period in vivo using standard histological techniques. These studies demonstrated that X-Cultrex-based sensor coatings had no effect on glucose sensor function in vitro. In vivo, glucose sensor performance was significantly enhanced following X-Cultrex coating throughout the 28-day study. Histological evaluations of X-Cultrex-treated sensors demonstrated significantly less tissue reactivity when compared to uncoated sensors. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 106A: 7-16, 2018. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Evaluation of Continuous Membrane Chromatography Concepts with an Enhanced Process Simulation Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Steffen Zobel-Roos

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Modern biopharmaceutical products strive for small-scale, low-cost production. Continuous chromatography has shown to be a promising technology because it assures high-capacity utilization, purity and yield increases, and lower facility footprint. Membrane chromatography is a fully disposable low-cost alternative to bead-based chromatography with minor drawbacks in terms of capacity. Hence, continuous membrane chromatography should have a high potential. The evaluation of continuous processes goes often along with process modeling. Only few experiments with small feed demand need to be conducted to estimate the model parameters. Afterwards, a variety of different process setups and working points can be analyzed in a very short time, making the approach very efficient. Since the available modeling approaches for membrane chromatography modules did not fit the used design, a new modeling approach is shown. This combines the general rate model with an advanced fluid dynamic distribution. Model parameter determination and model validation were done with industrial cell cultures containing Immunoglobulin G (IgG. The validated model was used to evaluate the feasibility of the integrated Counter Current Chromatography (iCCC concept and the sequential chromatography concept for membrane adsorber modules, starting with a laboratory-type module used for sample preparation. A case study representing a fed-batch reactor with a capacity from 20 to 2000 L was performed. Compared to batch runs, a 71% higher capacity, 48.5% higher productivity, and 38% lower eluent consumption could be achieved.

Effect of sludge retention time on continuous-flow system with enhanced biological phosphorus removal granules at different COD loading.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Dong; Lv, Yufeng; Zeng, Huiping; Zhang, Jie

2016-11-01

The effect of sludge retention time (SRT) on the continuous-flow system with enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) granules at different COD loading was investigated during the operation of more than 220days. And the results showed that when the system operated at long SRT (30days) and low COD loading (200mg·L(-1)), it could maintain excellent performance. However, long SRT and high COD loading (300mg·L(-1)) deteriorated the settling ability of granules and the performance of system and resulted in the overgrowth of filamentous bacteria. Meanwhile, the transformation of poly-β-hydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) and glycogen in metabolism process was inhibited. Moreover, the results of pyrosequencing indicated that filamentous bacteria had a competitive advantage over polyphosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs) at high COD loading and long SRT. The PAOs specious of Candidatus_Accumlibater and system performance increased obviously when the SRT was reduced to 20days at high COD loading. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Estimating liver perfusion from free-breathing continuously acquired dynamic gadolinium-ethoxybenzyl-diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid-enhanced acquisition with compressed sensing reconstruction.

Science.gov (United States)

Chandarana, Hersh; Block, Tobias Kai; Ream, Justin; Mikheev, Artem; Sigal, Samuel H; Otazo, Ricardo; Rusinek, Henry

2015-02-01

The purpose of this study was to estimate perfusion metrics in healthy and cirrhotic liver with pharmacokinetic modeling of high-temporal resolution reconstruction of continuously acquired free-breathing gadolinium-ethoxybenzyl-diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid-enhanced acquisition in patients undergoing clinically indicated liver magnetic resonance imaging. In this Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-compliant prospective study, 9 cirrhotic and 10 noncirrhotic patients underwent clinical magnetic resonance imaging, which included continuously acquired radial stack-of-stars 3-dimensional gradient recalled echo sequence with golden-angle ordering scheme in free breathing during contrast injection. A total of 1904 radial spokes were acquired continuously in 318 to 340 seconds. High-temporal resolution data sets were formed by grouping 13 spokes per frame for temporal resolution of 2.2 to 2.4 seconds, which were reconstructed using the golden-angle radial sparse parallel technique that combines compressed sensing and parallel imaging. High-temporal resolution reconstructions were evaluated by a board-certified radiologist to generate gadolinium concentration-time curves in the aorta (arterial input function), portal vein (venous input function), and liver, which were fitted to dual-input dual-compartment model to estimate liver perfusion metrics that were compared between cirrhotic and noncirrhotic livers. The cirrhotic livers had significantly lower total plasma flow (70.1 ± 10.1 versus 103.1 ± 24.3 mL/min per 100 mL; P The mean transit time was higher in the cirrhotic livers (24.4 ± 4.7 versus 15.7 ± 3.4 seconds; P the hepatocellular uptake rate was lower (3.03 ± 2.1 versus 6.53 ± 2.4 100/min; P < 0.05). Liver perfusion metrics can be estimated from free-breathing dynamic acquisition performed for every clinical examination without additional contrast injection or time. This is a novel paradigm for dynamic liver imaging.

Factors associated with resident satisfaction with their continuity experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Serwint, Janet R; Feigelman, Susan; Dumont-Driscoll, Marilyn; Collins, Rebecca; Zhan, Min; Kittredge, Diane

2004-01-01

To identify factors associated with resident satisfaction concerning residents' continuity experience. Continuity directors distributed questionnaires to residents at their respective institutions. Resident satisfaction was defined as satisfied or very satisfied on a Likert scale. The independent variables included 60 characteristics of the continuity experience from 7 domains: 1) patient attributes, 2) continuity and longitudinal issues, 3) responsibility as primary care provider, 4) preceptor characteristics, 5) educational opportunities, 6) exposure to practice management, and 7) interaction with other clinic and practice staff. A stepwise logistic regression model and the Generalized Estimating Equations approach were used. Thirty-six programs participated. Of 1155 residents (71%) who provided complete data, 67% (n = 775) stated satisfaction with their continuity experience. The following characteristics (adjusted odds ratio [OR] and 95% confidence interval [CI]) were found to be most significant: preceptor as good role model, OR = 7.28 ( CI = 4.2, 12.5); appropriate amount of teaching, OR = 3.25 (CI = 2.1, 5.1); involvement during hospitalization, OR = 2.61 (CI = 1.3, 5.2); exposure to practice management, OR = 2.39 (CI = 1.5, 3.8); good balance of general pediatric patients, OR = 2.34 (CI = 1.5, 3.6); resident as patient advocate, OR = 1.74 (CI = 1.2, 2.4); and appropriate amount of nursing support, OR = 1.65 (CI = 1.1, 2.6). Future career choice, type of continuity site, and level of training were not found to be statistically significant. Pediatric resident satisfaction was significantly associated with 7 variables, the most important of which were the ability of the preceptor to serve as a role model and teacher. The type of continuity site was not significant. Residency programs may use these data to develop interventions to enhance resident satisfaction, which may lead to enhanced work performance and patient satisfaction.

Continuous auditing & continuous monitoring : Continuous value?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Hillo, Rutger; Weigand, Hans; Espana, S; Ralyte, J; Souveyet, C

2016-01-01

Advancements in information technology, new laws and regulations and rapidly changing business conditions have led to a need for more timely and ongoing assurance with effectively working controls. Continuous Auditing (CA) and Continuous Monitoring (CM) technologies have made this possible by

Continuous assessment in higher education in Denmark: Early experiences from two science courses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bjælde, Ole Eggers; Jørgensen, Tove Hedegaard; Lindberg, Annika Büchert

2017-01-01

. Such a shift to continuous assessment has the potential not only to increase efficiency but, importantly, also enhance student learning. Continuous assessment is used widely internationally and now (since 2016) also allowed at Danish Universities. Here we review the advantages and disadvantages...

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES FOR STRIPPER GAS WELL ENHANCEMENT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Charles M. Boyer II; Ronald J. MacDonald P.G.

2001-01-01

As part of Task 1 in Advanced Technologies for Stripper Gas Well Enhancement, Schlumberger-Holditch Reservoir Technologies (H-RT) has joined with two Appalachian Basin producers, Great Lakes Energy Partners, LLC, and Belden and Blake Corporation to develop methodologies for identification and enhancement of stripper wells with economic upside potential. These industry partners have provided us with data for more than 700 wells in northwestern Pennsylvania. Phase 1 goals of this project are to develop and validate methodologies that can quickly and cost-effectively identify wells with enhancement potential. We have continued to enhance and streamline our software, and we are testing the final stages of our new Microsoft(trademark) Access/Excel based software. We are continuing to process this well data and are identifying potential candidate wells that can be used in Phase 2 to validate the new methodologies. In addition, preparation of the final technical report is underway

Prototype Web-based continuing medical education using FlashPix images.

OpenAIRE

Landman, A.; Yagi, Y.; Gilbertson, J.; Dawson, R.; Marchevsky, A.; Becich, M. J.

2000-01-01

Continuing Medical Education (CME) is a requirement among practicing physicians to promote continuous enhancement of clinical knowledge to reflect new developments in medical care. Previous research has harnessed the Web to disseminate complete pathology CME case studies including history, images, diagnoses, and discussions to the medical community. Users submit real-time diagnoses and receive instantaneous feedback, eliminating the need for hard copies of case material and case evaluation fo...

Between strong continuity and almost continuity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J.K. Kohli

2010-04-01

Full Text Available As embodied in the title of the paper strong and weak variants of continuity that lie strictly between strong continuity of Levine and almost continuity due to Singal and Singal are considered. Basic properties of almost completely continuous functions (≡ R-maps and δ-continuous functions are studied. Direct and inverse transfer of topological properties under almost completely continuous functions and δ-continuous functions are investigated and their place in the hier- archy of variants of continuity that already exist in the literature is out- lined. The class of almost completely continuous functions lies strictly between the class of completely continuous functions studied by Arya and Gupta (Kyungpook Math. J. 14 (1974, 131-143 and δ-continuous functions defined by Noiri (J. Korean Math. Soc. 16, (1980, 161-166. The class of almost completely continuous functions properly contains each of the classes of (1 completely continuous functions, and (2 al- most perfectly continuous (≡ regular set connected functions defined by Dontchev, Ganster and Reilly (Indian J. Math. 41 (1999, 139-146 and further studied by Singh (Quaestiones Mathematicae 33(2(2010, 1–11 which in turn include all δ-perfectly continuous functions initi- ated by Kohli and Singh (Demonstratio Math. 42(1, (2009, 221-231 and so include all perfectly continuous functions introduced by Noiri (Indian J. Pure Appl. Math. 15(3 (1984, 241-250.

Enhancement patterns and pseudo-washout of hepatic haemangiomas on gadoxetate disodium-enhanced liver MRI

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Bohyun [University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Asan Medical Center, Department of Radiology and Research Institute of Radiology, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Ajou University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Suwon (Korea, Republic of); Byun, Jae Ho; Kim, Hyoung Jung; Won, Hyung Jin; Kim, So Yeon; Shin, Yong Moon; Kim, Pyo Nyun [University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Asan Medical Center, Department of Radiology and Research Institute of Radiology, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2016-01-15

To compare the enhancement patterns and prevalence of pseudo-washout between rapidly and slowly enhancing hepatic haemangiomas on gadoxetate disodium-enhanced MRI in patients with chronic liver disease (CLD) and healthy liver (HL). On gadoxetate disodium-enhanced MRI, the extent of intralesional arterial enhancement >50 % and ≤50 % of lesions was defined as rapid and slow enhancement, respectively. The enhancement patterns and presence of pseudo-washout during the portal venous phase (PVP) and transitional phase (TP) of 74 hepatic haemangiomas were retrospectively evaluated in the CLD and HL groups. Sequential changes of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) were measured in unenhanced phase, PVP and TP. Irrespective of hepatic health status, pseudo-washout in TP was significantly more common in the rapidly enhancing haemangiomas (p ≤ 0.026). In both groups, rapidly enhancing haemangiomas showed complete or progressive incomplete enhancement in PVP, which either lasted or transformed to pseudo-washout in TP, whereas slowly enhancing haemangiomas showed progressive incomplete enhancement in PVP and TP. SNR of hepatic parenchyma continued to rise until TP, whereas that of portal vein and haemangioma falls in TP. Regardless of CLD, pseudo-washout in TP was more common in rapidly than in slowly enhancing haemangiomas, with enhancement patterns differing in the two subgroups. (orig.)

Enhancement patterns and pseudo-washout of hepatic haemangiomas on gadoxetate disodium-enhanced liver MRI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Bohyun; Byun, Jae Ho; Kim, Hyoung Jung; Won, Hyung Jin; Kim, So Yeon; Shin, Yong Moon; Kim, Pyo Nyun

2016-01-01

To compare the enhancement patterns and prevalence of pseudo-washout between rapidly and slowly enhancing hepatic haemangiomas on gadoxetate disodium-enhanced MRI in patients with chronic liver disease (CLD) and healthy liver (HL). On gadoxetate disodium-enhanced MRI, the extent of intralesional arterial enhancement >50 % and ≤50 % of lesions was defined as rapid and slow enhancement, respectively. The enhancement patterns and presence of pseudo-washout during the portal venous phase (PVP) and transitional phase (TP) of 74 hepatic haemangiomas were retrospectively evaluated in the CLD and HL groups. Sequential changes of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) were measured in unenhanced phase, PVP and TP. Irrespective of hepatic health status, pseudo-washout in TP was significantly more common in the rapidly enhancing haemangiomas (p ≤ 0.026). In both groups, rapidly enhancing haemangiomas showed complete or progressive incomplete enhancement in PVP, which either lasted or transformed to pseudo-washout in TP, whereas slowly enhancing haemangiomas showed progressive incomplete enhancement in PVP and TP. SNR of hepatic parenchyma continued to rise until TP, whereas that of portal vein and haemangioma falls in TP. Regardless of CLD, pseudo-washout in TP was more common in rapidly than in slowly enhancing haemangiomas, with enhancement patterns differing in the two subgroups. (orig.)

Free nitrous acid pre-treatment of waste activated sludge enhances volatile solids destruction and improves sludge dewaterability in continuous anaerobic digestion.

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Wei; Wang, Qilin; Zhang, Liguo; Laloo, Andrew; Duan, Haoran; Batstone, Damien J; Yuan, Zhiguo

2018-03-01

Previous work has demonstrated that pre-treatment of waste activated sludge (WAS) with free nitrous acid (FNA i.e. HNO 2 ) enhances the biodegradability of WAS, identified by a 20-50% increase in specific methane production in biochemical methane potential (BMP) tests. This suggests that FNA pre-treatment would enhance the destruction of volatile solids (VS) in an anaerobic sludge digester, and reduce overall sludge disposal costs, provided that the dewaterability of the digested sludge is not negatively affected. This study experimentally evaluates the impact of FNA pre-treatment on the VS destruction in anaerobic sludge digestion and on the dewaterability of digested sludge, using continuously operated bench-scale anaerobic digesters. Pre-treatment of full-scale WAS for 24 h at an FNA concentration of 1.8 mg NN/L enhanced VS destruction by 17 ± 1% (from 29.2 ± 0.9% to 34.2 ± 1.1%) and increased dewaterability (centrifuge test) from 12.4 ± 0.4% to 14.1 ± 0.4%. Supporting the VS destruction data, methane production increased by 16 ± 1%. Biochemical methane potential tests indicated that the final digestate stability was also improved with a lower potential from FNA treated digestate. Further, a 2.1 ± 0.2 log improvement in pathogen reduction was also achieved. With inorganic solids representing 15-22% of the full-scale WAS used, FNA pre-treatment resulted in a 16-17% reduction in the volume of dewatered sludge for final disposal. This results in significantly reduced costs as assessed by economic analysis. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improved specifications for continuous emission monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dene, C.E.; Eggleston, T.E.; Gray, W.C. Jr.; Bisha, R.M.

1988-01-01

Continuous emission monitoring (CEM) in the electric utility industry historically has been plagued by poor performance and inconsistent system reliability. These problems have, in part, been caused by the complexity and diversity of the various systems available, and the dissimilarity of continuous emission monitors CEMs relative to conventional power plant instrumentation. Recognizing the problems faced by the utility industry in implementing CEM programs, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) initiated a multi-phase project to define the current state of technology for CEMs and to provide a comprehensive guide for the purchase and installation of a CEM system. The second phase of this project was the application of these guidelines to the actual purchase, installation, and operation of a CEM system for an electric utility generating station. Through this application of the guidelines it has been possible to determine further research needs and areas of the manual which require clarification or enhancement. This paper describes the development of the guidelines and modifications to the guidelines, and discusses EPRI's plans for future activities in the area of continuous emission monitoring

Mechanisms of Memory Enhancement

Science.gov (United States)

Stern, Sarah A.

2012-01-01

The ongoing quest for memory enhancement is one that grows necessary as the global population increasingly ages. The extraordinary progress that has been made in the past few decades elucidating the underlying mechanisms of how long-term memories are formed has provided insight into how memories might also be enhanced. Capitalizing on this knowledge, it has been postulated that targeting many of the same mechanisms, including CREB activation, AMPA/NMDA receptor trafficking, neuromodulation (e.g. via dopamine, adrenaline, cortisol or acetylcholine) and metabolic processes (e.g. via glucose and insulin) may all lead to the enhancement of memory. These and other mechanisms and/or approaches have been tested via genetic or pharmacological methods in animal models, and several have been investigated in humans as well. In addition, a number of behavioral methods, including exercise and reconsolidation, may also serve to strengthen and enhance memories. By capitalizing on this knowledge and continuing to investigate these promising avenues, memory enhancement may indeed be achieved in the future. PMID:23151999

Evidence-Based Principles for Using Technology-Enhanced Learning in the Continuing Professional Development of Health Professionals.

Science.gov (United States)

Scott, Karen M; Baur, Louise; Barrett, Jenny

2017-01-01

Increasingly, health professional training involves the use of educational technologies through what is broadly termed "Technology-Enhanced Learning" (TEL). TEL includes hardware, such as computers and mobile devices, and software, such as software applications (apps), learning management systems, and discussion boards. For many years, TEL has formed an integral part of health professional programs and is growing in acceptance, if not expectation, in postgraduate training and continuing education. TEL generally aims to be flexible, engaging, learner focused and interactive, and may involve collaboration and communication. It offers many benefits for learning and teaching, whether used on its own or in conjunction with face-to-face teaching through blended learning. The ubiquity of mobile devices in clinical settings means TEL is ideal for busy clinicians, both as learners and teachers. TEL enables participants to learn at a time and place that is convenient to them, so learners living in geographically dispersed locations can access standardized courses. To realize these potential benefits, we recommend that those developing TEL programs for health professionals take a systematic approach to planning, development, implementation, and evaluation. To that end, we propose 10 principles: clarify purpose and conduct a needs assessment; allocate adequate time and technology; incorporate proven approaches to improve learning; consider the need for a skills component; enable interaction between learners and with others; create different resources for different groups; pilot before implementing; incorporate measures to retain learners; provide opportunities for revision to aid retention; and evaluate learning outcomes, not just satisfaction.

Enhanced Input in LCTL Pedagogy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marilyn S. Manley

2009-08-01

Full Text Available Language materials for the more-commonly-taught languages (MCTLs often include visual input enhancement (Sharwood Smith 1991, 1993 which makes use of typographical cues like bolding and underlining to enhance the saliency of targeted forms. For a variety of reasons, this paper argues that the use of enhanced input, both visual and oral, is especially important as a tool for the lesscommonly-taught languages (LCTLs. As there continues to be a scarcity of teaching resources for the LCTLs, individual teachers must take it upon themselves to incorporate enhanced input into their own self-made materials. Specific examples of how to incorporate both visual and oral enhanced input into language teaching are drawn from the author’s own experiences teaching Cuzco Quechua. Additionally, survey results are presented from the author’s Fall 2010 semester Cuzco Quechua language students, supporting the use of both visual and oral enhanced input.

Enhanced Input in LCTL Pedagogy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marilyn S. Manley

2010-08-01

Full Text Available Language materials for the more-commonly-taught languages (MCTLs often include visual input enhancement (Sharwood Smith 1991, 1993 which makes use of typographical cues like bolding and underlining to enhance the saliency of targeted forms. For a variety of reasons, this paper argues that the use of enhanced input, both visual and oral, is especially important as a tool for the lesscommonly-taught languages (LCTLs. As there continues to be a scarcity of teaching resources for the LCTLs, individual teachers must take it upon themselves to incorporate enhanced input into their own self-made materials. Specific examples of how to incorporate both visual and oral enhanced input into language teaching are drawn from the author’s own experiences teaching Cuzco Quechua. Additionally, survey results are presented from the author’s Fall 2010 semester Cuzco Quechua language students, supporting the use of both visual and oral enhanced input.

Future Supply Chains Enabled by Continuous Processing—Opportunities and Challenges. May 20–21, 2014 Continuous Manufacturing Symposium

Science.gov (United States)

Srai, Jagjit Singh; Badman, Clive; Krumme, Markus; Futran, Mauricio; Johnston, Craig

2015-01-01

This paper examines the opportunities and challenges facing the pharmaceutical industry in moving to a primarily “continuous processing”-based supply chain. The current predominantly “large batch” and centralized manufacturing system designed for the “blockbuster” drug has driven a slow-paced, inventory heavy operating model that is increasingly regarded as inflexible and unsustainable. Indeed, new markets and the rapidly evolving technology landscape will drive more product variety, shorter product life-cycles, and smaller drug volumes, which will exacerbate an already unsustainable economic model. Future supply chains will be required to enhance affordability and availability for patients and healthcare providers alike despite the increased product complexity. In this more challenging supply scenario, we examine the potential for a more pull driven, near real-time demand-based supply chain, utilizing continuous processing where appropriate as a key element of a more “flow-through” operating model. In this discussion paper on future supply chain models underpinned by developments in the continuous manufacture of pharmaceuticals, we have set out; The significant opportunities to moving to a supply chain flow-through operating model, with substantial opportunities in inventory reduction, lead-time to patient, and radically different product assurance/stability regimes. Scenarios for decentralized production models producing a greater variety of products with enhanced volume flexibility. Production, supply, and value chain footprints that are radically different from today's monolithic and centralized batch manufacturing operations. Clinical trial and drug product development cost savings that support more rapid scale-up and market entry models with early involvement of SC designers within New Product Development. The major supply chain and industrial transformational challenges that need to be addressed. The paper recognizes that although current

Physical modeling of shoreline bioremediation: Continuous flow mesoscale basins

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sveum, P.; Ramstad, S.; Faksness, L.G.; Bech, C.; Johansen, B.

1995-01-01

This paper describes the design and use of continuous flow basin beach models in the study of bioremediation processes, and gives some results from an experiment designed to study the effects of different strategies for adding fertilizers. The continuous flow experimental basin system simulates an open system with natural tidal variation, wave action, and continuous supply and exchange of seawater. Biodegradation and bioremediation processes can thus be tested close to natural conditions. Results obtained using the models show a significant enhancement of biodegradation of oil in a sediment treated with an organic nutrient source, increased nutrient level in the interstitial water, and sediment microbial activity. These physical models gives biologically significant results, and can be used to simulate biodegradation and bioremediation in natural systems

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES FOR STRIPPER GAS WELL ENHANCEMENT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Charles M. Boyer II; Ronald J. MacDonald P.G.

2002-01-01

As part of Task 1 in Advanced Technologies for Stripper Gas Well Enhancement, Schlumberger-Holditch Reservoir Technologies (H-RT) has joined with two Appalachian Basin producers, Great Lakes Energy Partners, LLC, and Belden and Blake Corporation to develop methodologies for identification and enhancement of stripper wells with economic upside potential. These industry partners have provided us with data for more than 700 wells in northwestern Pennsylvania. Phase 1 goals of this project are to develop and validate methodologies that can quickly and cost-effectively identify wells with enhancement potential. We have continued to enhance and streamline our software, and we are testing the final stages of our new Microsoft(trademark) Access/Excel based software. We are continuing to process the information and are identifying potential candidate wells that can be used in Phase 2 to validate the new methodologies. In addition, preparation of the final technical report is underway. During this quarter, we have presented our project and discussed the software to numerous Petroleum Technology Transfer Council (PTTC) workshops located in various regions of the United States

Continuous Problem of Function Continuity

Science.gov (United States)

Jayakody, Gaya; Zazkis, Rina

2015-01-01

We examine different definitions presented in textbooks and other mathematical sources for "continuity of a function at a point" and "continuous function" in the context of introductory level Calculus. We then identify problematic issues related to definitions of continuity and discontinuity: inconsistency and absence of…

Fractional-Order Identification and Control of Heating Processes with Non-Continuous Materials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Riccardo Caponetto

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The paper presents a fractional order model of a heating process and a comparison of fractional and standard PI controllers in its closed loop system. Preliminarily, an enhanced fractional order model for the heating process on non-continuous materials has been identified through a fitting algorithm on experimental data. Experimentation has been carried out on a finite length beam filled with three non-continuous materials (air, styrofoam, metal buckshots in order to identify a model in the frequency domain and to obtain a relationship between the fractional order of the heating process and the different materials’ properties. A comparison between the experimental model and the theoretical one has been performed, proving a significant enhancement of the fitting performances. Moreover the obtained modelling results confirm the fractional nature of the heating processes when diffusion occurs in non-continuous composite materials, and they show how the model’s fractional order can be used as a characteristic parameter for non-continuous materials with different composition and structure. Finally, three different kinds of controllers have been applied and compared in order to keep constant the beam temperature constant at a fixed length.

Using PAT to accelerate the transition to continuous API manufacturing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

de Gouveia, Maria Francisca Dias Folque; Rahbek, Jesper P.; Mortensen, Asmus R.

2017-01-01

the following: speeding up the design of the continuous process and a better understanding of the manufacturing requirements to ensure optimal yield and avoid unreacted raw materials and by-products in the continuous reactor effluent. Graphical Abstract Using PAT to accelerate the transition to continuous API......Significant improvements can be realized by converting conventional batch processes into continuous ones. The main drivers include reduction of cost and waste, increased safety, and simpler scale-up and tech transfer activities. Re-designing the process layout offers the opportunity to incorporate...... a set of process analytical technologies (PAT) embraced in the Quality-by-Design (QbD) framework. These tools are used for process state estimation, providing enhanced understanding of the underlying variability in the process impacting quality and yield. This work describes a road map for identifying...

Future Supply Chains Enabled by Continuous Processing-Opportunities Challenges May 20-21 2014 Continuous Manufacturing Symposium.

Science.gov (United States)

Srai, Jagjit Singh; Badman, Clive; Krumme, Markus; Futran, Mauricio; Johnston, Craig

2015-03-01

This paper examines the opportunities and challenges facing the pharmaceutical industry in moving to a primarily "continuous processing"-based supply chain. The current predominantly "large batch" and centralized manufacturing system designed for the "blockbuster" drug has driven a slow-paced, inventory heavy operating model that is increasingly regarded as inflexible and unsustainable. Indeed, new markets and the rapidly evolving technology landscape will drive more product variety, shorter product life-cycles, and smaller drug volumes, which will exacerbate an already unsustainable economic model. Future supply chains will be required to enhance affordability and availability for patients and healthcare providers alike despite the increased product complexity. In this more challenging supply scenario, we examine the potential for a more pull driven, near real-time demand-based supply chain, utilizing continuous processing where appropriate as a key element of a more "flow-through" operating model. In this discussion paper on future supply chain models underpinned by developments in the continuous manufacture of pharmaceuticals, we have set out; The paper recognizes that although current batch operational performance in pharma is far from optimal and not necessarily an appropriate end-state benchmark for batch technology, the adoption of continuous supply chain operating models underpinned by continuous production processing, as full or hybrid solutions in selected product supply chains, can support industry transformations to deliver right-first-time quality at substantially lower inventory profiles. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association.

Bottom-up influences of voice continuity in focusing selective auditory attention.

Science.gov (United States)

Bressler, Scott; Masud, Salwa; Bharadwaj, Hari; Shinn-Cunningham, Barbara

2014-01-01

Selective auditory attention causes a relative enhancement of the neural representation of important information and suppression of the neural representation of distracting sound, which enables a listener to analyze and interpret information of interest. Some studies suggest that in both vision and in audition, the "unit" on which attention operates is an object: an estimate of the information coming from a particular external source out in the world. In this view, which object ends up in the attentional foreground depends on the interplay of top-down, volitional attention and stimulus-driven, involuntary attention. Here, we test the idea that auditory attention is object based by exploring whether continuity of a non-spatial feature (talker identity, a feature that helps acoustic elements bind into one perceptual object) also influences selective attention performance. In Experiment 1, we show that perceptual continuity of target talker voice helps listeners report a sequence of spoken target digits embedded in competing reversed digits spoken by different talkers. In Experiment 2, we provide evidence that this benefit of voice continuity is obligatory and automatic, as if voice continuity biases listeners by making it easier to focus on a subsequent target digit when it is perceptually linked to what was already in the attentional foreground. Our results support the idea that feature continuity enhances streaming automatically, thereby influencing the dynamic processes that allow listeners to successfully attend to objects through time in the cacophony that assails our ears in many everyday settings.

Developmental continuity in reward-related enhancement of cognitive control.

Science.gov (United States)

Strang, Nicole M; Pollak, Seth D

2014-10-01

Adolescents engage in more risky behavior than children or adults. The most prominent hypothesis for this phenomenon is that brain systems governing reward sensitivity and brain systems governing self-regulation mature at different rates. Those systems governing reward sensitivity mature in advance of those governing self-control. This hypothesis has substantial empirical support, however, the evidence supporting this theory has been exclusively derived from contexts where self-control systems are required to regulate reward sensitivity in order to promote adaptive behavior. In adults, reward promotes a shift to a proactive control strategy and better cognitive control performance. It is unclear whether children and adolescents will respond to reward in the same way. Using fMRI methodology, we explored whether children and adolescents would demonstrate a shift to proactive control in the context of reward. We tested 22 children, 20 adolescents, and 23 adults. In contrast to our hypothesis, children, adolescents, and adults all demonstrated a shift to proactive cognitive control in the context of reward. In light of the results, current neurobiological theories of adolescent behavior need to be refined to reflect that in certain contexts there is continuity in the manner reward and cognitive control systems interact across development. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Feasibility of a novel participatory multi-sector continuous improvement approach to enhance food security in remote Indigenous Australian communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Brimblecombe, J; Bailie, R; van den Boogaard, C; Wood, B; Liberato, S C; Ferguson, M; Coveney, J; Jaenke, R; Ritchie, J

2017-12-01

Food insecurity underlies and compounds many of the development issues faced by remote Indigenous communities in Australia. Multi-sector approaches offer promise to improve food security. We assessed the feasibility of a novel multi-sector approach to enhance community food security in remote Indigenous Australia. A longitudinal comparative multi-site case study, the Good Food Systems Good Food for All Project, was conducted (2009-2013) with four Aboriginal communities. Continuous improvement meetings were held in each community. Data from project documents and store sales were used to assess feasibility according to engagement, uptake and sustainability of action, and impact on community diet, as well as identifying conditions facilitating or hindering these. Engagement was established where: the community perceived a need for the approach; where trust was developed between the community and facilitators; where there was community stability; and where flexibility was applied in the timing of meetings. The approach enabled stakeholders in each community to collectively appraise the community food system and plan action. Actions that could be directly implemented within available resources resulted from developing collaborative capacity. Actions requiring advocacy, multi-sectoral involvement, commitment or further resources were less frequently used. Positive shifts in community diet were associated with key areas where actions were implemented. A multi-sector participatory approach seeking continuous improvement engaged committed Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal stakeholders and was shown to have potential to shift community diet. Provision of clear mechanisms to link this approach with higher level policy and decision-making structures, clarity of roles and responsibilities, and processes to prioritise and communicate actions across sectors should further strengthen capacity for food security improvement. Integrating this approach enabling local decision-making into

Continuous Professional Development of English Language Teachers: Perception and Practices

Science.gov (United States)

Al Asmari, AbdulRahman

2016-01-01

Professional development is considered as an essential element in enhancing the teaching and learning process to ensure student learning. Professional development can also be deemed as a cornerstone of teacher professionalism and quality. The governments and educational institutions invest significantly in Continuous Professional Development (CPD)…

Continuous variable quantum key distribution with modulated entangled states

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Madsen, Lars S; Usenko, Vladyslav C.; Lassen, Mikael

2012-01-01

Quantum key distribution enables two remote parties to grow a shared key, which they can use for unconditionally secure communication over a certain distance. The maximal distance depends on the loss and the excess noise of the connecting quantum channel. Several quantum key distribution schemes...... based on coherent states and continuous variable measurements are resilient to high loss in the channel, but are strongly affected by small amounts of channel excess noise. Here we propose and experimentally address a continuous variable quantum key distribution protocol that uses modulated fragile...... entangled states of light to greatly enhance the robustness to channel noise. We experimentally demonstrate that the resulting quantum key distribution protocol can tolerate more noise than the benchmark set by the ideal continuous variable coherent state protocol. Our scheme represents a very promising...

Using meta-differential evolution to enhance a calculation of a continuous blood glucose level.

Science.gov (United States)

Koutny, Tomas

2016-09-01

We developed a new model of glucose dynamics. The model calculates blood glucose level as a function of transcapillary glucose transport. In previous studies, we validated the model with animal experiments. We used analytical method to determine model parameters. In this study, we validate the model with subjects with type 1 diabetes. In addition, we combine the analytic method with meta-differential evolution. To validate the model with human patients, we obtained a data set of type 1 diabetes study that was coordinated by Jaeb Center for Health Research. We calculated a continuous blood glucose level from continuously measured interstitial fluid glucose level. We used 6 different scenarios to ensure robust validation of the calculation. Over 96% of calculated blood glucose levels fit A+B zones of the Clarke Error Grid. No data set required any correction of model parameters during the time course of measuring. We successfully verified the possibility of calculating a continuous blood glucose level of subjects with type 1 diabetes. This study signals a successful transition of our research from an animal experiment to a human patient. Researchers can test our model with their data on-line at https://diabetes.zcu.cz. Copyright © 2016 The Author. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Considerations and benefits of implementing an online database tool for business continuity.

Science.gov (United States)

Mackinnon, Susanne; Pinette, Jennifer

2016-01-01

In today's challenging climate of ongoing fiscal restraints, limited resources and complex organisational structures there is an acute need to investigate opportunities to facilitate enhanced delivery of business continuity programmes while maintaining or increasing acceptable levels of service delivery. In 2013, Health Emergency Management British Columbia (HEMBC), responsible for emergency management and business continuity activities across British Columbia's health sector, transitioned its business continuity programme from a manual to automated process with the development of a customised online database, known as the Health Emergency Management Assessment Tool (HEMAT). Key benefits to date include a more efficient business continuity input process, immediate situational awareness for use in emergency response and/or advanced planning and streamlined analyses for generation of reports.

A continuous wave fan beam tomography system having a best estimating filter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gordon, B.M.

1982-01-01

A continuous wave fan beam tomographic system is described which continuously samples X-ray absorption values and a means of providing a best-estimate of the X-ray absorption values at discrete points in time determined by sampling signal s(t). The means to provide the best-estimate include a continuous filter having a frequency range defined by the geometry of the mechanical system. Errors due to the statistical variation in photon emissions of the X-ray source are thereby minimized and the effective signal-to-noise ratio of signals is enhanced, which in turn allows a significant reduction in radiation dosage. (author)

Do continuous assessment results affect final exam outcomes? Evidence from a microeconomics course

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan Carlos Reboredo

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Continuous assessment aims to enhance student learning and understanding of a subject and so achieve better educational outcomes. We investigated how continuous assessment grades affected final exam grades. Using a dataset for six academic post-Bologna Process years (2009-2015 for a first-year undergraduate microeconomics course offered at a Spanish public university, we examined conditional dependence between continuous assessment and final exam grades. Our results would indicate a limited contribution of continuous assessment results to final exam results: the probability of the final exam performance improving on the continuous assessment grade was lower than the probability of the opposite occurring. A consistent exception, however, was students who obtained an A grade for continuous assessment. Our results would cast some doubt on the beneficial effects of continuous assessment advocated by the Bologna Process.

Does technology really enhance nurse education?

Science.gov (United States)

Goodchild, Tim

2018-07-01

Technology has clearly impacted upon our working lives, and the purpose of this paper is to offer a critical insight into the ubiquitous presence of technology in nurse education. This paper argues that technology enhanced learning is predicated on the promise of potential and purported transformation of teaching and learning. It suggests that there is a lack of critical engagement in the academic field of technology enhanced learning, and adds a critical voice to some of the emerging arguments in this area. There is also a lack of systematic evidence supporting the enhancement offered by technology, and yet the technology enhanced project continues to persist. The discourse surrounding technology enhanced learning has become so dominant, so pervasive, that those of us within it can no longer see alternatives. But there are alternatives, and this paper argues that we need to challenge the dominance of technology enhanced learning, and become aware of its contingent nature. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Continuous-flow sheathless diamagnetic particle separation in ferrofluids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, Yilong; Song, Le; Yu, Liandong; Xuan, Xiangchun

2016-01-01

Separating particles from a complex mixture is often necessary in many chemical and biomedical applications. This work presents a continuous-flow sheathless diamagnetic particle separation in ferrofluids through U-shaped microchannels. Due to the action of a size-dependent magnetic force, diamagnetic particles are focused into a single stream in the inlet branch of the U-turn and then continuously separated into two streams in its outlet branch. A 3D numerical model is developed to predict and understand the diamagnetic particle transport during this separation process. The numerical predictions are found to agree well with the experimental observations in a systematic study of the effects of multiple parameters including ferrofluid flow rate, concentration and magnet-channel distance. Additional numerical studies of the geometric effects of the U-turn reveal that increasing the outlet-branch width of the U-turn can significantly enhance the diamagnetic particle separation in ferrofluids. - Highlights: • Particles are focused and separated in the two branches of a U-shaped microchannel. • Negative magnetophoretic motion in ferrofluids causes the particle deflection. • A 3D numerical model is developed to simulate the particle separation. • Multiple parametric effects are studied both experimentally and numerically. • Increasing the outlet-branch width significantly enhances the particle separation.

Continuous-flow sheathless diamagnetic particle separation in ferrofluids

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou, Yilong [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634-0921 (United States); Song, Le [School of Instrument Science and Opto-electronic Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009 (China); Yu, Liandong, E-mail: liandongyu@hfut.edu.cn [School of Instrument Science and Opto-electronic Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009 (China); Xuan, Xiangchun, E-mail: xcxuan@clemson.edu [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634-0921 (United States)

2016-08-15

Separating particles from a complex mixture is often necessary in many chemical and biomedical applications. This work presents a continuous-flow sheathless diamagnetic particle separation in ferrofluids through U-shaped microchannels. Due to the action of a size-dependent magnetic force, diamagnetic particles are focused into a single stream in the inlet branch of the U-turn and then continuously separated into two streams in its outlet branch. A 3D numerical model is developed to predict and understand the diamagnetic particle transport during this separation process. The numerical predictions are found to agree well with the experimental observations in a systematic study of the effects of multiple parameters including ferrofluid flow rate, concentration and magnet-channel distance. Additional numerical studies of the geometric effects of the U-turn reveal that increasing the outlet-branch width of the U-turn can significantly enhance the diamagnetic particle separation in ferrofluids. - Highlights: • Particles are focused and separated in the two branches of a U-shaped microchannel. • Negative magnetophoretic motion in ferrofluids causes the particle deflection. • A 3D numerical model is developed to simulate the particle separation. • Multiple parametric effects are studied both experimentally and numerically. • Increasing the outlet-branch width significantly enhances the particle separation.

Using Speed Dating Sessions to Foster Collaboration in Continuing Interdisciplinary Education

Science.gov (United States)

Laprise, Rejean; Thivierge, Robert L.

2012-01-01

Introduction: There are numerous examples of care gaps that could be reduced through enhanced knowledge exchange and practice collaboration between medical specialist physicians. In this paper, we report preliminary results on using speed-dating sessions (SDSs) to stimulate the development of continuing interdisciplinary education (CIDE)…

Control systems engineering in continuous pharmaceutical manufacturing. May 20-21, 2014 Continuous Manufacturing Symposium.

Science.gov (United States)

Myerson, Allan S; Krumme, Markus; Nasr, Moheb; Thomas, Hayden; Braatz, Richard D

2015-03-01

drug manufacturing that are easily transportable to industry. Industry can facilitate the move to continuous manufacturing by working with universities on the conception of new continuous pharmaceutical manufacturing process unit operations that have the potential to make major improvements in product quality, controllability, or reduced capital and/or operating costs. Regulatory bodies should ensure that: (1) regulations and regulatory practices promote, and do not derail, the development and implementation of continuous manufacturing and control systems engineering approaches; (2) the individuals who approve specific regulatory filings are sufficiently trained to make good decisions regarding control systems approaches; (3) provide regulatory clarity and eliminate/reduce regulatory risks; (4) financially support the development of high-quality training materials for use of undergraduate students, graduate students, industrial employees, and regulatory staff; (5) enhance the training of their own technical staff by financially supporting joint research projects with universities in the development of continuous pharmaceutical manufacturing processes and the associated control systems engineering theory, numerical algorithms, and software; and (6) strongly encourage the federal agencies that support research to fund these research areas. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association.

Monitoring and modelling of a continuous from-powder-to-tablet process line

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mortier, Séverine T.F.C.; Nopens, Ingmar; De Beer, Thomas

2014-01-01

-time adjustment of critical input variables to ensure that the process stays within the Design Space. Mechanistic models are very useful for this purpose as, once validated, several tools can be applied to gain further process knowledge, for example uncertainty and sensitivity analysis. In addition, several......The intention to shift from batch to continuous production processes within the pharmaceutical industry enhances the need to monitor and control the process in-line and real-time to continuously guarantee the end-product quality. Mass and energy balances have been successfully applied to a drying...... process which is part of a continuous from-powder-to-tablet manufacturing line to calculate the residual moisture content of granules leaving the drying unit on the basis of continuously generated data from univariate sensors. Next to monitoring, the application of continuous processes demands also real...

Enhancement pattern of small hepatic hemangioma: findings on multiphase spiral CT and dynamic MRI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Byung In; Lee, Seung Koo; Kim, Myeong Jin; Chung, Jae Joon; Yoo, Hyung Sik; Lee, Jong Tae

1999-01-01

To compare the enhancement characteristics of small hemangiomas seen on multiphase spiral CT and dynamic MR imaging. Thirteen patients with 20 hepatic hemangiomas less than 25mm in diameter underwent both multiphase spiral CT and dynamic MR imaging. All lesions were assigned to one of three classified into 3 categories according to the enhancement pattern seen on multiphase spiral CT : typical delayed pooling, atypical early enhancement, or continuous low attenuation. The enhancement patterns seen on spiral CT and on dynamic MRI were correlated. On CT scans, ten lesions (50%) showed delayed pooling. Six (30%) showed early arterial enhancement and four (20%) showed continuous low attenuation. On delayed-phase MRI, all lesions showed delayed high signal intensity compared to adjacent liver parenchyma. Four of six lesions with early enhancement on CT showed peripheral globular enhancement on early arterial-phase MRI. On multiphase spiral CT scans, small hemangiomas can show variable atypical enhancement features. In this situation, contrast-enhanced dynamic MRI is helpful for the diagnosis of hemangiomas

Continuous-Wave Operation of a Frequency-Tunable 460-GHz Second-Harmonic Gyrotron for Enhanced Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

Science.gov (United States)

Torrezan, Antonio C.; Han, Seong-Tae; Mastovsky, Ivan; Shapiro, Michael A.; Sirigiri, Jagadishwar R.; Temkin, Richard J.; Griffin, Robert G.; Barnes, Alexander B.

2012-01-01

The design, operation, and characterization of a continuous-wave (CW) tunable second-harmonic 460-GHz gyrotron are reported. The gyrotron is intended to be used as a submillimeter-wave source for 700-MHz nuclear magnetic resonance experiments with sensitivity enhanced by dynamic nuclear polarization. The gyrotron operates in the whispering-gallery mode TE11,2 and has generated 16 W of output power with a 13-kV 100-mA electron beam. The start oscillation current measured over a range of magnetic field values is in good agreement with theoretical start currents obtained from linear theory for successive high-order axial modes TE11,2,q. The minimum start current is 27 mA. Power and frequency tuning measurements as a function of the electron cyclotron frequency have also been carried out. A smooth frequency tuning range of 1 GHz was obtained for the operating second-harmonic mode either by magnetic field tuning or beam voltage tuning. Long-term CW operation was evaluated during an uninterrupted period of 48 h, where the gyrotron output power and frequency were kept stable to within ±0.7% and ±6 ppm, respectively, by a computerized control system. Proper operation of an internal quasi-optical mode converter implemented to transform the operating whispering-gallery mode to a Gaussian-like beam was also verified. Based on the images of the gyrotron output beam taken with a pyroelectric camera, the Gaussian-like mode content of the output beam was computed to be 92% with an ellipticity of 12%. PMID:23761938

A Seismic Transmission System for Continuous Monitoring of the Lithosphere : A Proposition

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Unger, R.

2002-01-01

The main objective of this thesis is to enhance earthquake prediction feasibility. We present the concept and the design layout of a novel seismic transmission system capable of continuously monitoring the Lithosphere for changes in Earth physics parameters governing seismic wave propagation.

HyDE Enhancements for ISHM Deployment, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Impact Technologies LLC, with the support of Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), proposes to continue developing key enhancements to NASA's Hybrid Diagnostic Engine...

Continuous Time Structural Equation Modeling with R Package ctsem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charles C. Driver

2017-04-01

Full Text Available We introduce ctsem, an R package for continuous time structural equation modeling of panel (N > 1 and time series (N = 1 data, using full information maximum likelihood. Most dynamic models (e.g., cross-lagged panel models in the social and behavioural sciences are discrete time models. An assumption of discrete time models is that time intervals between measurements are equal, and that all subjects were assessed at the same intervals. Violations of this assumption are often ignored due to the difficulty of accounting for varying time intervals, therefore parameter estimates can be biased and the time course of effects becomes ambiguous. By using stochastic differential equations to estimate an underlying continuous process, continuous time models allow for any pattern of measurement occasions. By interfacing to OpenMx, ctsem combines the flexible specification of structural equation models with the enhanced data gathering opportunities and improved estimation of continuous time models. ctsem can estimate relationships over time for multiple latent processes, measured by multiple noisy indicators with varying time intervals between observations. Within and between effects are estimated simultaneously by modeling both observed covariates and unobserved heterogeneity. Exogenous shocks with different shapes, group differences, higher order diffusion effects and oscillating processes can all be simply modeled. We first introduce and define continuous time models, then show how to specify and estimate a range of continuous time models using ctsem.

Tolerance-based punishment in continuous public goods game

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Jia; Li, Zhi; Cong, Rui; Wang, Long

2012-08-01

Altruistic punishment for defectors is considered as a key motive for the explanation of cooperation. However, there is no clear border between the cooperative and defective behaviors in a continuous strategy game. We propose a model to study the effect of punishment on the evolution of cooperation in continuous public goods game, wherein individuals have the traits to punish the co-players based on social tolerance. We show that a reasonable punishment with a uniform tolerance can spur individuals to make more investments. Additionally, for a fixed punishment cost and a fixed fine, a moderate value of tolerance can result in the best promotion of cooperation. Furthermore, we investigate the coevolutionary dynamics of investment and tolerance. We find that the population splits into two branches: high-tolerance individuals who make high investments and low-tolerance individuals who make low investments. A dynamic equilibrium is achieved between these two types of individuals. Our work extends punishment to continuous cooperative behaviors and the results may enhance the understanding of altruistic punishment in the evolution of human cooperation.

Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Physics and Applications

CERN Document Server

Kneipp, Katrin; Kneipp, Harald

2006-01-01

Almost 30 years after the first reports on surface-enhanced Raman signals, the phenomenon of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is now well established. Yet, explaining the enhancement of a spectroscopic signal by fouteen orders of magnitude continues to attract the attention of physicists and chemists alike. And, at the same time and rapidly growing, SERS is becoming a very useful spectroscopic tool with exciting applications in many fields. SERS gained particular interest after single-molecule Raman spectroscopy had been demonstrated. This bookl summarizes and discusses present theoretical approaches that explain the phenomenon of SERS and reports on new and exciting experiments and applications of the fascinating spectroscopic effect.

Mandatory continuing professional education in pharmacy: the Singapore experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Ang, Hui-Gek; Pua, Yong-Hao; Subari, Nur Azah

2013-08-01

Mandatory Continuing Professional Education (CPE) for the renewal of pharmacists' practising certificate was implemented in Singapore in 2008 OBJECTIVE: To study pharmacists' perceptions and attitudes about the impact of mandatory CPE in Singapore. Singapore. Internet-based questionnaire survey, conducted between May and June 2011. Pharmacists' perceptions and attitudes toward mandatory CPE and the perceived difficulty in fulfilling the CPE requirements. The overall survey response rate was 52 % (840/1,609). Of the respondents, 32 % were non-practising, 49 % were practising in patient care areas, and 19 % were practising in non-patient care areas. More than half the pharmacists agreed that mandatory CPE (1) enhanced or increased their knowledge base and skills (70 %; 95 % CI 67-73 %), (2) motivated them to continually learn (64 %; 95 % CI, 60-67 %), and (3) motivated them to reflect on their professional practice or work (58 %; 95 % CI, 54-61 %). Mandatory CPE was not perceived to enhance or increase employability. Non-practising pharmacists appeared to have the greatest difficulty meeting the CPE requirements. In general, pharmacists value mandatory CPE more for positive professional reasons than for employability reasons. The survey results may serve as useful baseline data for future studies of pharmacists' perceptions and attitudes toward CPE in Singapore.

Design and control of a linearity-enhanced SMA actuator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Son, Hyung-Min; Tak, Chul-Gon; Lee, Yun-Jung; Kang, Seok-Won; Nam, Tae-Hyun; Kim, Jae-Il

2010-01-01

For the accurate and dexterous operation of mechanical systems, continuous-type actuation, rather than on/off-type actuation, is an indispensable function. However, conventional Ti-Ni alloys present difficulties for continuous positioning control, due to their hysteretic and abruptly changing relationship between strain and temperature. Therefore, this paper proposes a new linearity-enhanced SMA actuator using a temperature-gradient annealed alloy and an inverse hysteresis controller. In comparative experiments, the proposed controller and alloy exhibit superior performance for continuous actuation.

Distance learning: the future of continuing professional development.

Science.gov (United States)

Southernwood, Julie

2008-10-01

The recent development of a market economy in higher education has resulted in the need to tailor the product to the customers, namely students, employers and commissioning bodies. Distance learning is an opportunity for nurse educators and institutions to address marketing initiatives and develop a learning environment in order to enhance continuing professional development. It provides options for lifelong learning for healthcare professionals--including those working in community settings--that is effective and cost efficient. Development of continuing professional development programmes can contribute to widening the participation of community practitioners in lifelong learning, practice and role development. This paper considers the opportunities that web-based and online education programmes can provide community practitioners to promote professional skills while maintaining a work-life balance, and the role of the lecturer in successfully supporting professionals on web-based learning programmes.

Implementation of Continuous Video-Electroencephalography at a Community Hospital Enhances Care and Reduces Costs.

Science.gov (United States)

Kolls, Brad J; Mace, Brian E; Dombrowski, Keith E

2017-10-24

Despite data indicating the importance of continuous video-electroencephalography (cvEEG) monitoring, adoption has been slow outside major academic centers. Barriers to adoption include the need for technologists, equipment, and cvEEG readers. Advancements in lower-cost lead placement templates and commercial systems with remote review may reduce barriers to allow community centers to implement cvEEG. Here, we report our experience, lessons learned, and financial impact of implementing a community hospital cvEEG-monitoring program. We implemented an adult cvEEG service at Duke Regional Hospital (DRH), a community hospital affiliate, in June of 2012. Lead placement templates were used in the implementation to reduce the impact on technologists by using other bedside providers for EEG initiation. Utilization of the service, study quality, and patient outcomes were tracked over a 3-year period following initiation of service. Service was implemented at essentially no cost. Utilization varied from a number of factors: intensive care unit (ICU) attending awareness, limited willingness of bedside providers to perform lead placement, and variation in practice of the consulting neurologists. A total of 92 studies were performed on 88 patients in the first 3 years of the program, 24 in year one, 27 in year two, and 38 in year three, showing progressive adoption. Seizures were seen in 25 patients (27%), 19 were in status, of which 18 were successfully treated. Transfers to the main hospital, Duke University Medical Center, were prevented for 53 patients, producing an estimated cost savings of $145,750. The retained patients produced a direct contribution margin of about $75,000, and the margin was just over $100,000 for the entire monitored cohort. ICU cvEEG service is feasible and practical to implement at the community hospital level. Service was initiated at little to no cost and clearly enhanced care, increased breadth of care, increased ICU census, and reduced

EDITORIAL: Enhancing nanolithography Enhancing nanolithography

Science.gov (United States)

Demming, Anna

2012-01-01

Lithography was invented in late 18th century Bavaria by an ambitious young playwright named Alois Senefelder. Senefelder experimented with stone, wax, water and ink in the hope of finding a way of reproducing text so that he might financially gain from a wider distribution of his already successful scripts. His discovery not only facilitated the profitability of his plays, but also provided the world with an affordable printing press that would ultimately democratize the dissemination of art, knowledge and literature. Since Senefelder, experiments in lithography have continued with a range of innovations including the use of electron beams and UV that allow increasingly higher-resolution features [1, 2]. Applications for this have now breached the limits of paper printing into the realms of semiconductor and microelectronic mechanical systems technology. In this issue, researchers demonstrate a technique for fabricating periodic features in poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT-PSS) [3]. Their method combines field enhancements from silica nanospheres with laser-interference lithography to provide a means of patterning a polymer that has the potential to open the market of low-end, high-volume microelectronics. Laser-interference lithography has already been used successfully in patterning. Researchers in Korea used laser-interference lithography to generate stamps for imprinting a two-dimensional photonic crystal structure into green light emitting diodes (LEDs) [4]. The imprinted patterns comprised depressions 100 nm deep and 180 nm wide with a periodicity of 295 nm. In comparison with unpatterned LEDs, the intensity of photoluminescence was enhanced by a factor of seven in the LEDs that had the photonic crystal structures imprinted in them. The potential of exploiting field enhancements around nanostructures for new technologies has also attracted a great deal of attention. Researchers in the USA and Australia have used the field

Amplification of Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Due to Substrate-Mediated Localized Surface Plasmons in Gold Nanodimers

KAUST Repository

Yue, Weisheng

2017-03-28

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is ubiquitous in chemical and biochemical sensing, imaging and identification. Maximizing SERS enhancement is a continuous effort focused on the design of appropriate SERS substrates. Here we show that significant improvement in a SERS signal can be achieved with substrates combining localized surface plasmon resonances and a nonresonant plasmonic substrate. By introducing a continuous gold (Au) film underneath Au nanodimers antenna arrays, an over 10-fold increase in SERS enhancement is demonstrated. Triangular, rectangle and disc dimers were studied, with bowtie antenna providing highest SERS enhancement. Simulations of electromagnetic field distributions of the Au nanodimers on the Au film support the observed enhancement dependences. The hybridization of localized plasmonic modes with the image modes in a metal film provides a straightforward way to improve SERS enhancement in designer SERS substrate.

Development of a continuous process for α-thio-β-chloroacrylamide synthesis with enhanced control of a cascade transformation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olga C. Dennehy

2016-11-01

Full Text Available A continuous process strategy has been developed for the preparation of α-thio-β-chloroacrylamides, a class of highly versatile synthetic intermediates. Flow platforms to generate the α-chloroamide and α-thioamide precursors were successfully adopted, progressing from the previously employed batch chemistry, and in both instances afford a readily scalable methodology. The implementation of the key α-thio-β-chloroacrylamide casade as a continuous flow reaction on a multi-gram scale is described, while the tuneable nature of the cascade, facilitated by continuous processing, is highlighted by selective generation of established intermediates and byproducts.

Experimental continuous sludge microwave system to enhance dehydration ability and hydrogen production from anaerobic digestion of sludge.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Cuihong; Huang, Xintong; Zeng, Meng

2018-05-01

Dehydrating large amounts of sludge produced by sewage treatment plants is difficult. Microwave pretreatment can effectively and significantly improve the dewaterability and hydrogen production of sludge subjected to anaerobic digestion. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of different microwave conditions on hydrogen production from anaerobic digestion and dewaterability of sludge. Based on an analysis of the electric field distribution, a spiral reactor was designed and a continuous microwave system was built to conduct intermittent and continuous experiments under different conditions. Settling Volume, Capillary Suction Time, particle size, and moisture content of the sludge were measured. The results show that sludge pretreatment in continuous experiments has equally remarkable dehydration performance as in intermittent experiments; the minimum moisture content was 77.29% in the intermittent experiment under a microwave power of 300W and an exposure time of 60sec, and that in the continuous experiment was 77.56% under a microwave power of 400W and an exposure time of 60sec. The peak measured by Differential Scanning Calorimeter appeared earliest under a microwave power of 600W and an exposure time of 180sec. The heat flux at the peak was 4.343W/g, which is relatively small. This indicates that microwave pretreatment induced desirable effects. The maximum yield of hydrogen production was 7.967% under the conditions of microwave power of 500W, exposure time of 120sec, and water bath at 55°C. This research provides a theoretical and experimental basis for the development of a continuous microwave sludge-conditioning system. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Continuous quantum error correction for non-Markovian decoherence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oreshkov, Ognyan; Brun, Todd A.

2007-01-01

We study the effect of continuous quantum error correction in the case where each qubit in a codeword is subject to a general Hamiltonian interaction with an independent bath. We first consider the scheme in the case of a trivial single-qubit code, which provides useful insights into the workings of continuous error correction and the difference between Markovian and non-Markovian decoherence. We then study the model of a bit-flip code with each qubit coupled to an independent bath qubit and subject to continuous correction, and find its solution. We show that for sufficiently large error-correction rates, the encoded state approximately follows an evolution of the type of a single decohering qubit, but with an effectively decreased coupling constant. The factor by which the coupling constant is decreased scales quadratically with the error-correction rate. This is compared to the case of Markovian noise, where the decoherence rate is effectively decreased by a factor which scales only linearly with the rate of error correction. The quadratic enhancement depends on the existence of a Zeno regime in the Hamiltonian evolution which is absent in purely Markovian dynamics. We analyze the range of validity of this result and identify two relevant time scales. Finally, we extend the result to more general codes and argue that the performance of continuous error correction will exhibit the same qualitative characteristics

Continuous vs. pulsating flow boiling. Part 2: Statistical comparison using response surface methodology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kærn, Martin Ryhl; Elmegaard, Brian; Meyer, Knud Erik

2016-01-01

Response surface methodology is used to investigate an active method for flow boiling heat transfer enhancement by means of fluid flow pulsation. The flow pulsations are introduced by a flow modulating expansion device and compared with the baseline continuous flow provided by a stepper...

Anticontrol of chaos in continuous-time systems via time-delay feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xiao Fan; Chen, Guanrong; Yu, Xinghuo

2000-12-01

In this paper, a systematic design approach based on time-delay feedback is developed for anticontrol of chaos in a continuous-time system. This anticontrol method can drive a finite-dimensional, continuous-time, autonomous system from nonchaotic to chaotic, and can also enhance the existing chaos of an originally chaotic system. Asymptotic analysis is used to establish an approximate relationship between a time-delay differential equation and a discrete map. Anticontrol of chaos is then accomplished based on this relationship and the differential-geometry control theory. Several examples are given to verify the effectiveness of the methodology and to illustrate the systematic design procedure. (c) 2000 American Institute of Physics.

Continuous photocatalytic fuel production over wide-bandgap metal oxides

OpenAIRE

Bazzo, Antonio

2014-01-01

Artificial photosynthesis has been proposed as one of the possible solutions to the energetic and chemical-feedstock problems to cope with the anticipated near future depletion of fossil fuel resources. This doctoral thesis deals with the study of promising catalysts and reactor designs to enhance the reaction efficiency and understand the origin of photocatalytic activity. A continuous flow reaction system was designed and constructed to study CO2 photoreduction with H2O and photocatalytic w...

Nursing care for patients carrying indwelling catheter in target vessel for continuous chemotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wen Lihong

2009-01-01

Objective: To reduce the occurrence of undesirable catheter-related events in patients with indwelling catheter during the course of continuous chemotherapy. Methods: (1)To enhance the propaganda,education and guidance to patients. (2) To standardize the nursing care operations. (3) To establish the reasonable care rules and procedures. (4) The nurses should take the daily nursing care,observations and recording work seriously. Results: Through the analysis of a variety of problems occurred in patients with indwelling catheter during the course of continuous chemotherapy the nursing care experience was summed up. Conclusion: Proper and effective care can reduce the occurrence of undesirable catheter-related events in patients with indwelling catheter during the course of continuous chemotherapy. (authors)

Simulation and optimization of continuous extractive fermentation with recycle system

Science.gov (United States)

Widjaja, Tri; Altway, Ali; Rofiqah, Umi; Airlangga, Bramantyo

2017-05-01

Extractive fermentation is continuous fermentation method which is believed to be able to substitute conventional fermentation method (batch). The recovery system and ethanol refinery will be easier. Continuous process of fermentation will make the productivity increase although the unconverted sugar in continuous fermentation is still in high concentration. In order to make this process more efficient, the recycle process was used. Increasing recycle flow will enhance the probability of sugar to be re-fermented. However, this will make ethanol enter fermentation column. As a result, the accumulated ethanol will inhibit the growth of microorganism. This research aims to find optimum conditions of solvent to broth ratio (S:B) and recycle flow to fresh feed ratio in order to produce the best yield and productivity. This study employed optimization by Hooke Jeeves method using Matlab 7.8 software. The result indicated that optimum condition occured in S: B=2.615 and R: F=1.495 with yield = 50.2439 %.

A Taxonomy of Information Technology-Enhanced Pricing Strategies

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dixit, A.; Whipple, T.W.; Zinkhan, G.M.; Gailey, E.

2008-01-01

As a result of evolving technology, opportunities for innovative pricing strategies continuously emerge. The authors provide an updated taxonomy to show how such emerging strategies relate to recent technological advances. Specifically, they cite increased availability of information, enhanced

A Dynamic Continuation-Passing Style for Dynamic Delimited Continuations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Biernacki, Dariusz; Danvy, Olivier; Millikin, Kevin Scott

2005-01-01

We present a new abstract machine that accounts for dynamic delimited continuations. We prove the correctness of this new abstract machine with respect to a pre-existing, definitional abstract machine. Unlike this definitional abstract machine, the new abstract machine is in defunctionalized form......, which makes it possible to state the corresponding higher-order evaluator. This evaluator is in continuation+state passing style and threads a trail of delimited continuations and a meta-continuation. Since this style accounts for dynamic delimited continuations, we refer to it as `dynamic continuation......-passing style.' We show that the new machine operates more efficiently than the definitional one and that the notion of computation induced by the corresponding evaluator takes the form of a monad. We also present new examples and a new simulation of dynamic delimited continuations in terms of static ones....

Spontaneous Emission Enhancement at Finite-length Metal

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Filonenko, K.; Willatzen, Morten; Bordo, V.

2013-01-01

We study spontaneous emission enhancement of a two-level atomic emitter placed in a dielectric medium near a finite-length cylindrical metal nanowire. We calculate the dependence of the Purcell factor and the normalized decay rate to a continuous spectrum on the nanowire radius for several emitter...

Treating alcoholism as a chronic disease: approaches to long-term continuing care.

Science.gov (United States)

McKay, James R; Hiller-Sturmhofel, Susanne

2011-01-01

For many patients, alcohol and other drug (AOD) use disorders are chronic, recurring conditions involving multiple cycles of treatment, abstinence, and relapse. To disrupt this cycle, treatment can include continuing care to reduce the risk of relapse. The most commonly used treatment approach is initial intensive inpatient or outpatient care based on 12-step principles, followed by continuing care involving self-help groups, 12-step group counseling, or individual therapy. Although these programs can be effective, many patients drop out of initial treatment or do not complete continuing care. Thus, researchers and clinicians have begun to develop alternative approaches to enhance treatment retention in both initial and continuing care. One focus of these efforts has been the design of extended treatment models. These approaches increasingly blur the distinction between initial and continuing care and aim to prolong treatment participation by providing a continuum of care. Other researchers have focused on developing alternative treatment strategies (e.g., telephone-based interventions) that go beyond traditional settings and adaptive treatment algorithms that may improve outcomes for clients who do not respond well to traditional approaches.

[Effect of substrate of edible mushroom on continuously cropping obstacle of Rehmannia glutinosa].

Science.gov (United States)

Ru, Rui-Hong; Li, Xuan-Zhen; Hunag, Xiao-Shu; Gao, Feng; Wang, Jian-Ming; Li, Ben-Yin; Zhang, Zhong-Yi

2014-08-01

The continuous cultivation of Rehmannia glutinosa causes the accumulation of phenolic acids in soil. It is supposed to be the reason of the so called "continuously cropping obstacle". In this study, phenolic acids (hydroxybenzoic acid, vanillic acid, eugenol, vanillin and ferulic acid) were degraded by the extracta of all the tested spent mushroom substrate (SMS) and the maximal degradation rate was 75.3%, contributed by extraction of SMS of Pleurotus eryngii. Pot experiment indicated that hydroxybenzoic acid and vanillin in soil were also degraded effectively by SMS of P. eryngii. The employment of SMS enhanced ecophysiology index to near the normal levels, such as crown width, leaves number, leaf length, leaf width and height. At the same time, the fresh and dry weight and total catalpol concentration of tuberous root weight of R. glutinosa was increased to 2.70, 3.66, 2.25 times by employment of SMS, respectively. The increase of bacteria, fungi and actinomycetes numbers in rhizosphere soil were observed after the employment of SMS by microbial counts. The employment of SMS also enhanced the enzyme activity in soils, such as sucrase, cellulase, phosphalase, urease and catelase. These results indicated that the employment of SMS alleviated the continuously cropping obstacle of R. glutinosa in some extent.

Improving continuing medical education by enhancing interactivity: lessons from Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Faghihi, Seyed Aliakbar; Khankeh, Hamid Reza; Hosseini, Seyed Jalil; Soltani Arabshahi, Seyed Kamran; Faghih, Zahra; Parikh, Sagar V; Shirazi, Mandana

2016-04-01

Continuing Medical Education (CME) has been considered as a lifelong commitment for doctors to provide the optimal care for patients. Despite a long history of creating CME programs, outcomes are far from ideal. The present qualitative study aims to clarify the barriers affecting effectiveness of the CME programs in Iran based on the experiences of general practitioners. Sixteen general practitioners were recruited to participate in in-depth interviews and field observations concerning experiences with CME. The study was performed using a qualitative content analysis method. The codes, categories and themes were explored through an inductive process in which the researchers moved from specific to general. The participants' experiences identified a number of barriers, particularly insufficient interaction with the instructors; additional problems included the teachers' use of an undifferentiated approach; unreal and abstract CME; and ignorance of the diverse reasons to participate in CME. Based on the study results, there are multiple barriers to effective implementation of CME in Iran. The key barriers include insufficient interaction between the trainees and providers, which must be considered by other stakeholders and program designers. Such interactions would facilitate improved program design, invite more specific tailoring of the education to the participants, allow for more effective educational methods and set the stage for outcome evaluation from the learners actually applying their new knowledge in practice. Replication of these findings with another sample would improve confidence in these recommendations, but these findings are broadly consistent with findings in the educational literature on improving the efficacy of CME.

In situ recovery of oil from Utah tar sand: a summary of tar sand research at the Laramie Energy Technology Center

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Marchant, L.C.; Westhoff, J.D.

1985-10-01

This report describes work done by the United States Department of Energy's Laramie Energy Technology Center from 1971 through 1982 to develop technology for future recovery of oil from US tar sands. Work was concentrated on major US tar sand deposits that are found in Utah. Major objectives of the program were as follows: determine the feasibility of in situ recovery methods applied to tar sand deposits; and establish a system for classifying tar sand deposits relative to those characteristics that would affect the design and operation of various in situ recovery processes. Contents of this report include: (1) characterization of Utah tar sand; (2) laboratory extraction studies relative to Utah tar sand in situ methods; (3) geological site evaluation; (4) environmental assessments and water availability; (5) reverse combustion field experiment, TS-1C; (6) a reverse combustion followed by forward combustion field experiment, TS-2C; (7) tar sand permeability enhancement studies; (8) two-well steam injection experiment; (9) in situ steam-flood experiment, TS-1S; (10) design of a tar sand field experiment for air-stream co-injection, TS-4; (11) wastewater treatment and oil analyses; (12) economic evaluation of an in situ tar sand recovery process; and (13) appendix I (extraction studies involving Utah tar sands, surface methods). 70 figs., 68 tabs.

Continuous microwave flow synthesis of mesoporous hydroxyapatite

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akram, Muhammad; Alshemary, Ammar Z.; Goh, Yi-Fan; Wan Ibrahim, Wan Aini; Lintang, Hendrik O.; Hussain, Rafaqat

2015-01-01

We have successfully used continuous microwave flow synthesis (CMFS) technique for the template free synthesis of mesoporous hydroxyapatite. The continuous microwave flow reactor consisted of a modified 2.45 GHz household microwave, peristaltic pumps and a Teflon coil. This cost effective and efficient system was exploited to produce semi-crystalline phase pure nano-sized hydroxyapatite. Effect of microwave power, retention time and the concentration of reactants on the phase purity, degree of crystallinity and surface area of the final product was studied in detail. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were used to study the phase purity and composition of the product, while transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to study the effect of process parameters on the morphology of hydroxyapatite. The TEM analysis confirmed the formation of spherical particles at low microwave power; however the morphology of the particles changed to mesoporous needle and rod-like structure upon exposing the reaction mixture to higher microwave power and longer retention time inside the microwave. The in-vitro ion dissolution behavior of the as synthesized hydroxyapatite was studied by determining the amount of Ca 2+ ion released in SBF solution. - Highlights: • Continuous microwave flow synthesis method was used to prepare hydroxyapatite. • Increase in microwave power enhanced the degree of crystallinity. • TEM images confirmed the presence of mesopores on the surface of HA

Continuous microwave flow synthesis of mesoporous hydroxyapatite

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Akram, Muhammad; Alshemary, Ammar Z.; Goh, Yi-Fan; Wan Ibrahim, Wan Aini [Department of Chemistry, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor (Malaysia); Lintang, Hendrik O. [Centre for Sustainable Nanomaterials (CSNano), Ibnu Sina Institute for Scientific and Industrial Research, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor (Malaysia); Hussain, Rafaqat, E-mail: rafaqat@kimia.fs.utm.my [Centre for Sustainable Nanomaterials (CSNano), Ibnu Sina Institute for Scientific and Industrial Research, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor (Malaysia)

2015-11-01

We have successfully used continuous microwave flow synthesis (CMFS) technique for the template free synthesis of mesoporous hydroxyapatite. The continuous microwave flow reactor consisted of a modified 2.45 GHz household microwave, peristaltic pumps and a Teflon coil. This cost effective and efficient system was exploited to produce semi-crystalline phase pure nano-sized hydroxyapatite. Effect of microwave power, retention time and the concentration of reactants on the phase purity, degree of crystallinity and surface area of the final product was studied in detail. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were used to study the phase purity and composition of the product, while transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to study the effect of process parameters on the morphology of hydroxyapatite. The TEM analysis confirmed the formation of spherical particles at low microwave power; however the morphology of the particles changed to mesoporous needle and rod-like structure upon exposing the reaction mixture to higher microwave power and longer retention time inside the microwave. The in-vitro ion dissolution behavior of the as synthesized hydroxyapatite was studied by determining the amount of Ca{sup 2+} ion released in SBF solution. - Highlights: • Continuous microwave flow synthesis method was used to prepare hydroxyapatite. • Increase in microwave power enhanced the degree of crystallinity. • TEM images confirmed the presence of mesopores on the surface of HA.

75 FR 20717 - Federal Housing Administration: Continuation of FHA Reform; Strengthening Risk Management Through...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-20

... Administration: Continuation of FHA Reform; Strengthening Risk Management Through Responsible FHA-Approved...) that are designed to strengthen FHA by improving its management of risk. This final rule increases the... designed to enhance FHA's risk management functions. The announcement preceded completion of an independent...

Continuing and ceasing leisure activities in later life: a longitudinal study.

Science.gov (United States)

Strain, Laurel A; Grabusic, Carmen C; Searle, Mark S; Dunn, Nicole J

2002-04-01

This study examined changes in leisure activities of older adults over an 8-year period, and associated sociodemographic and health characteristics. Data were from a longitudinal study conducted in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; 380 respondents were interviewed in-person in both 1985 and 1993. Changes in ten specific activities and the overall number of activities continued were examined. Theater/movies/spectator sports and travel were the activities least likely to be continued over the 8-year period; watching television and reading were most likely to be continued. Characteristics significantly related to changes in activities were age, gender, education, and self-rated health in 1985 as well as changes in marital status, self-rated health, and functional ability between 1985 and 1993, although no consistent pattern emerged. Leisure education is discussed as a means of introducing modifications to enhance older adults' participation in desired activities. Directions for future research are highlighted.

Interval and continuous exercise enhances aerobic capacity and hemodynamic function in CHF rats

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramiro B. Nunes

2015-08-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to compare the effects of continuous versus interval aerobic exercise training on hemodynamic parameters, cardiac remodeling, and maximal exercise capacity (MEC in chronic heart failure (CHF rats.METHOD: Twenty-four male Wistar rats were subjected to myocardial infarction (MI surgery. Five weeks post MI, the animals were assigned to one of three groups: sedentary group (CHF-Sed, n=8, aerobic continuous training group (CHF-ACT, n=8, and aerobic interval training group (CHF-AIT, n=8. Treadmill training was performed five times a week for 8 weeks (ACT: 50 min/day at 15 m/min and AIT: 40 min/day with 8 min of warm-up at 10 m/min and exercise at 15 m/min 4×4 min interspersed with 4×4 min at 23 m/min. MEC was evaluated pre and post exercise program.RESULTS: Left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP, left ventricular mass/body mass ratio (LVM:BM, and total collagen volume fraction were lower in the trained groups compared with the sedentary group, but no difference was found between the trained groups. Systolic ventricular pressure (SVP and maximum positive derivative of LV pressure (+dP/dtmax were higher in the trained groups, but CHF-ACT showed higher +dP/dtmax compared to CHF-AIT. Both training regimens were able to increase MEC. However, the aerobic interval training was superior for improving MEC.CONCLUSION: Aerobic training is an important intervention to improve cardiac function and remodeling and physical capacity in CHF rats. Interval training is a potential strategy to maximize the results, but exercise type and intensity are still topics to be explored.

Enhancements in the thorp reprocessing plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wakem, M.J.; Brownridge, M. [Thorp Technical Dept. and Research and Technology, BNFL plc, Sellafield, seascale, Cumbria, CA (United Kingdom)

2000-07-01

A number of successful enhancements have been made to the process at the Thorp reprocessing plant at Sellafield. After a long and detailed Research and Development programme followed by an intensive design/construction project, Thorp was inactively commissioned with first active shear in March 1994. The plant has now reached a mature stage in its development, following successful active commissioning demonstrating flowsheet or better performance in the solvent extraction cycles. Enhancements are now sought to achieve a range of objectives. Against a background of ever tighter regulatory control both in terms of safety and environmental discharge, BNFL are continuing to invest in further improvements with short, medium and longer term objectives to improve plant throughput; expand the range of feed fuels; reduce environmental discharges and reduce running costs. This paper describes a few of these enhancements. (authors)

Enhancements in the thorp reprocessing plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wakem, M.J.; Brownridge, M.

2000-01-01

A number of successful enhancements have been made to the process at the Thorp reprocessing plant at Sellafield. After a long and detailed Research and Development programme followed by an intensive design/construction project, Thorp was inactively commissioned with first active shear in March 1994. The plant has now reached a mature stage in its development, following successful active commissioning demonstrating flowsheet or better performance in the solvent extraction cycles. Enhancements are now sought to achieve a range of objectives. Against a background of ever tighter regulatory control both in terms of safety and environmental discharge, BNFL are continuing to invest in further improvements with short, medium and longer term objectives to improve plant throughput; expand the range of feed fuels; reduce environmental discharges and reduce running costs. This paper describes a few of these enhancements. (authors)

Contrast Enhanced US in the Abdomen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chung, Yong Eun; Kim, Ki Whang

2012-01-01

Contrast enhanced ultrasound, which was introduced in 1996, has been widely used in Europe and Eastern Asia. Ultrasound contrast agent can be classified as first generation and second generation, depending on the gas within the microbubble. With the first generation contrast agent, the high MI technique was used, and only intermittent scanning was possible due to destruction of the microbubble during scanning. Use of the second generation contrast agent with the low MI technique makes continuous scanning possible. Contrast enhanced US can be used in detection and differentiation of focal liver lesions. It is also helpful for monitoring of radiofrequency ablation and for targeting of US guided biopsy. Currently, because morphologic criteria alone may not reflect the response of the tumor to treatment, new criteria are needed for treatment evaluation after administration of anti-angiogenic agents. Contrast enhanced US could provide quantitative markers for evaluation of the response to treatment via use of dynamic contrast enhanced US. Due to cost-effectiveness, contrast enhanced US is not yet widely used in Korea; however, considering recent issues regarding contrast agent related adverse reaction, such as contrast induced nephropathy and nephrogenic systemic fibrosis, and radiation exposure, contrast enhanced US might be more widely used in Korea, as an alternative imaging modality in the future.

The influence of continuous historical velocity difference information on micro-cooperative driving stability

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Liang-Yi; Sun, Di-Hua; Zhao, Min; Cheng, Sen-Lin; Zhang, Geng; Liu, Hui

2018-03-01

In this paper, a new micro-cooperative driving car-following model is proposed to investigate the effect of continuous historical velocity difference information on traffic stability. The linear stability criterion of the new model is derived with linear stability theory and the results show that the unstable region in the headway-sensitivity space will be shrunk by taking the continuous historical velocity difference information into account. Through nonlinear analysis, the mKdV equation is derived to describe the traffic evolution behavior of the new model near the critical point. Via numerical simulations, the theoretical analysis results are verified and the results indicate that the continuous historical velocity difference information can enhance the stability of traffic flow in the micro-cooperative driving process.

Completely continuous and weakly completely continuous abstract ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

An algebra A is called right completely continuous (right weakly completely continuous) ... Moreover, some applications of these results in group algebras are .... A linear subspace S(G) of L1(G) is said to be a Segal algebra, if it satisfies the.

Factors Affecting Resident Satisfaction in Continuity Clinic-a Systematic Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Stepczynski, J; Holt, S R; Ellman, M S; Tobin, D; Doolittle, Benjamin R

2018-05-07

In recent years, with an increasing emphasis on time spent in ambulatory training, educators have focused attention on improving the residents' experience in continuity clinic. The authors sought to review the factors associated with physician trainee satisfaction with outpatient ambulatory training. A systematic literature review was conducted for all English language articles published between January 1980 and December 2016 in relevant databases, including Medline (medicine), CINAHL (nursing), PSYCHinfo (psychology), and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Clinical Trials. Search terms included internship and residency, satisfaction, quality of life, continuity of care, ambulatory care, and medical education. We included studies that directly addressed resident satisfaction in the ambulatory setting through interventions that we considered reproducible. Three hundred fifty-seven studies were reviewed; 346 studies were removed based on exclusion criteria with 11 papers included in the final review. Seven studies emphasized aspects of organizational structure such as block schedules, working in teams, and impact on resident-patient continuity (continuity between resident provider and patient as viewed from the provider's perspective). Four studies emphasized the importance of a dedicated faculty for satisfaction. The heterogeneity of the studies precluded aggregate analysis. Clinic structures that limit inpatient and outpatient conflict and enhance continuity, along with a dedicated outpatient faculty, are associated with greater resident satisfaction. Implications for further research are discussed.

Enhanced natural radiation exposure enhanced by human activity: the largest contributor to the Chinese population dose

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pan Ziqiang; Liu Yanyang

2011-01-01

For the radiation exposure caused by human activities, the enhanced natural radiation exposure is the largest contributor to Chinese population dose. This problem has attracted social attention in recent years. Efforts have been made in several fields, such as radon indoors and in workplace, environmental problems associated with NORMs, occupational radiation hazards of non-uranium mine, and radiation dose evaluation for energy chain, but there are still many problems to be solved. In order to protect the health of workers and the public, while ensuring industrial production and economic development, it is also necessary to continue to strengthen research in all aspects above mentioned, and gradually promote the control of natural radiation exposure enhanced by human activities. (authors)

Enhancement of mechanical and electrical properties of continuous-fiber-reinforced epoxy composites with stacked graphene.

Science.gov (United States)

Naveh, Naum; Shepelev, Olga; Kenig, Samuel

2017-01-01

Impregnation of expandable graphite (EG) after thermal treatment with an epoxy resin containing surface-active agents (SAAs) enhanced the intercalation of epoxy monomer between EG layers and led to further exfoliation of the graphite, resulting in stacks of few graphene layers, so-called "stacked" graphene (SG). This process enabled electrical conductivity of cured epoxy/SG composites at lower percolation thresholds, and improved thermo-mechanical properties were measured with either Kevlar, carbon or glass-fiber-reinforced composites. Several compositions with SAA-modified SG led to higher dynamic moduli especially at high temperatures, reflecting the better wetting ability of the modified nanoparticles. The hydrophilic/hydrophobic nature of the SAA dictates the surface energy balance. More hydrophilic SAAs promoted localization of the SG at the Kevlar/epoxy interface, and morphology seems to be driven by thermodynamics, rather than the kinetic effect of viscosity. This effect was less obvious with carbon or glass fibers, due to the lower surface energy of the carbon fibers or some incompatibility with the glass-fiber sizing. Proper choice of the surfactant and fine-tuning of the crosslink density at the interphase may provide further enhancements in thermo-mechanical behavior.

Enhancement of mechanical and electrical properties of continuous-fiber-reinforced epoxy composites with stacked graphene

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Naum Naveh

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Impregnation of expandable graphite (EG after thermal treatment with an epoxy resin containing surface-active agents (SAAs enhanced the intercalation of epoxy monomer between EG layers and led to further exfoliation of the graphite, resulting in stacks of few graphene layers, so-called “stacked” graphene (SG. This process enabled electrical conductivity of cured epoxy/SG composites at lower percolation thresholds, and improved thermo-mechanical properties were measured with either Kevlar, carbon or glass-fiber-reinforced composites. Several compositions with SAA-modified SG led to higher dynamic moduli especially at high temperatures, reflecting the better wetting ability of the modified nanoparticles. The hydrophilic/hydrophobic nature of the SAA dictates the surface energy balance. More hydrophilic SAAs promoted localization of the SG at the Kevlar/epoxy interface, and morphology seems to be driven by thermodynamics, rather than the kinetic effect of viscosity. This effect was less obvious with carbon or glass fibers, due to the lower surface energy of the carbon fibers or some incompatibility with the glass-fiber sizing. Proper choice of the surfactant and fine-tuning of the crosslink density at the interphase may provide further enhancements in thermo-mechanical behavior.

A PAT-based qualification of pharmaceutical excipients produced by batch or continuous processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Hertrampf, A; Müller, H; Menezes, J C; Herdling, T

2015-10-10

Pharmaceutical excipients have an influence on the main requirements for medicinal products (viz., quality, safety and efficacy) but also on their manufacturability. During product lifecycle it may become necessary to introduce minor changes (e.g., to continuously improve it) or major changes in the validated process (e.g., moving it to a new production site, replacing process version or even disruptively changing processing type). Those changes can influence the critical to quality attributes of the product. Therefore, it is important to enhance process understanding to avoid the risk of any significant quality changes. Process analytical technology can support better decision making and risk-management as required in quality by design - viz., by many pharmaceutical regulatory authorities. This study compares the quality of the pharmaceutical excipient sodium carbonate (anhydrous) produced either in a batch or a continuous process. For continuous processing two different production lines were available that differed on the dryer and crystallizer types used. Therefore their influence on critical to quality attributes of sodium carbonate was investigated for each of the three processing alternatives. The overall goal was to identify which of the continuous processes ensures a similar product quality to batch processing. Namely, changes on chemical and physical attributes of the product were investigated with Raman spectroscopy, laser diffraction and X-ray powder diffraction. Principal component analysis, a very common multivariate analysis technique, was applied to extract relevant information from small differences at multiple spectral regions from samples from each process type and from each analytical technique used. Changing processing from batch to continuous improved consistency of certain attributes (e.g., particle size distribution) but affected others. However, the increased process/product knowledge gained can lead to an enhanced control strategy and

Enhanced performance hybrid-arq

KAUST Repository

Fareed, Muhammad Mehboob

2016-06-16

Apparatuses, computer readable media, and methods are provided for enhancing hybrid automatic repeat request (ARQ) performance. In an example method, a communication device transmits a first element of a vector, where the vector is selected using the information bits to be transmitted as an index in a code book. In some embodiments, this code book is constructed using Linear Constellation Precoding (LCP). If a NACK is received, the communication device transmits a second element of the vector. The process of transmitting elements of the vector continues until an ACK is received or the maximum number of transmission attempts is reached. If an ACK is received, the communication device transmits a first element of another vector of the code book that encodes a second set of information bits. This procedure may continue until all information bits have been transmitted successfully.

Enhanced performance hybrid-arq

KAUST Repository

Fareed, Muhammad Mehboob; Yang, Hong-Chuan; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim

2016-01-01

Apparatuses, computer readable media, and methods are provided for enhancing hybrid automatic repeat request (ARQ) performance. In an example method, a communication device transmits a first element of a vector, where the vector is selected using the information bits to be transmitted as an index in a code book. In some embodiments, this code book is constructed using Linear Constellation Precoding (LCP). If a NACK is received, the communication device transmits a second element of the vector. The process of transmitting elements of the vector continues until an ACK is received or the maximum number of transmission attempts is reached. If an ACK is received, the communication device transmits a first element of another vector of the code book that encodes a second set of information bits. This procedure may continue until all information bits have been transmitted successfully.

Enhancing Canadian Civil Society Research and Knowledge-Based ...

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

Enhancing Canadian Civil Society Research and Knowledge-Based Practice in a Rapidly Changing Landscape for International Development ... Women in the developing world continue to face obstacles that limit their ability to establish careers and become leaders in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and ...

Continuity and change in mothers' narratives of perinatal hospice.

Science.gov (United States)

Lathrop, Anthony; VandeVusse, Leona

2011-01-01

(1) To broadly explore the experiences of women who chose to continue pregnancies affected by lethal fetal diagnoses and (2) to develop knowledge useful to nurses and other healthcare professionals who provide perinatal hospice (PH) care. Qualitative descriptive study using narrative analysis. Fifteen women who learned during their pregnancies of a lethal fetal diagnosis and chose to continue the affected pregnancies. Participants' stories of their PH experiences were recorded in face-to-face interviews. A qualitative approach using narrative analysis was used to identify themes and develop suggestions for care. The element of time was prevalent in mothers' stories. Some aspects of mothers' experiences continued, particularly feelings of love and connection to their babies. Mothers also reported evolving changes in their thoughts and feelings. Personal changes such as increased compassion, faith, and strength were frequently mentioned. Mothers described transient phases of highs and lows. Drawing personal meanings or life lessons was the main way mothers connected their experiences to their present lives. Mothers' descriptions of their experiences can enhance nurses' understanding of perinatal loss. Established care practices, such as birth planning and creating mementoes, were supported. Nurses can help mothers experiencing loss by elucidating and reflecting their personal meanings.

Continuous tokamaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peng, Y.K.M.

1978-04-01

A tokamak configuration is proposed that permits the rapid replacement of a plasma discharge in a ''burn'' chamber by another one in a time scale much shorter than the elementary thermal time constant of the chamber first wall. With respect to the chamber, the effective duty cycle factor can thus be made arbitrarily close to unity minimizing the cyclic thermal stress in the first wall. At least one plasma discharge always exists in the new tokamak configuration, hence, a continuous tokamak. By incorporating adiabatic toroidal compression, configurations of continuous tokamak compressors are introduced. To operate continuous tokamaks, it is necessary to introduce the concept of mixed poloidal field coils, which spatially groups all the poloidal field coils into three sets, all contributing simultaneously to inducing the plasma current and maintaining the proper plasma shape and position. Preliminary numerical calculations of axisymmetric MHD equilibria in continuous tokamaks indicate the feasibility of their continued plasma operation. Advanced concepts of continuous tokamaks to reduce the topological complexity and to allow the burn plasma aspect ratio to decrease for increased beta are then suggested

Continuous Groundwater Monitoring Collocated at USGS Streamgages

Science.gov (United States)

Constantz, J. E.; Eddy-Miller, C.; Caldwell, R.; Wheeer, J.; Barlow, J.

2012-12-01

USGS Office of Groundwater funded a 2-year pilot study collocating groundwater wells for monitoring water level and temperature at several existing continuous streamgages in Montana and Wyoming, while U.S. Army Corps of Engineers funded enhancement to streamgages in Mississippi. To increase spatial relevance with in a given watershed, study sites were selected where near-stream groundwater was in connection with an appreciable aquifer, and where logistics and cost of well installations were considered representative. After each well installation and surveying, groundwater level and temperature were easily either radio-transmitted or hardwired to existing data acquisition system located in streamgaging shelter. Since USGS field personnel regularly visit streamgages during routine streamflow measurements and streamgage maintenance, the close proximity of observation wells resulted in minimum extra time to verify electronically transmitted measurements. After field protocol was tuned, stream and nearby groundwater information were concurrently acquired at streamgages and transmitted to satellite from seven pilot-study sites extending over nearly 2,000 miles (3,200 km) of the central US from October 2009 until October 2011, for evaluating the scientific and engineering add-on value of the enhanced streamgage design. Examination of the four-parameter transmission from the seven pilot study groundwater gaging stations reveals an internally consistent, dynamic data suite of continuous groundwater elevation and temperature in tandem with ongoing stream stage and temperature data. Qualitatively, the graphical information provides appreciation of seasonal trends in stream exchanges with shallow groundwater, as well as thermal issues of concern for topics ranging from ice hazards to suitability of fish refusia, while quantitatively this information provides a means for estimating flux exchanges through the streambed via heat-based inverse-type groundwater modeling. In June

Supporting continuous media communications and applications by exploiting their special characteristics

OpenAIRE

Fan, C.

1998-01-01

Distributed multimedia applications need end-to-end support from both the networks and the endsystems. The operating systems are critical both for accessing networking services and for controlling the activities on the endsystems. It is therefore vital to enhance the functionality and performance of the operating system in order to provide feasible support for multimedia communications and applications. The work proposes to support multimedia, especially continuous media, communications and a...

Characterization and optimization of the visualization performance of continuous flow overhauser DNP hyperpolarized water MRI: Inversion recovery approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Terekhov, Maxim; Krummenacker, Jan; Denysenkov, Vasyl; Gerz, Kathrin; Prisner, Thomas; Schreiber, Laura Maria

2016-03-01

Overhauser dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) allows the production of liquid hyperpolarized substrate inside the MRI magnet bore as well as its administration in continuous flow mode to acquire MR images with enhanced signal-to-noise ratio. We implemented inversion recovery preparation in order to improve contrast-to-noise ratio and to quantify the overall imaging performance of Overhauser DNP-enhanced MRI. The negative enhancement created by DNP in combination with inversion recovery (IR) preparation allows canceling selectively the signal originated from Boltzmann magnetization and visualizing only hyperpolarized fluid. The theoretical model describing gain of MR image intensity produced by steady-state continuous flow DNP hyperpolarized magnetization was established and proved experimentally. A precise quantification of signal originated purely from DNP hyperpolarization was achieved. A temperature effect on longitudinal relaxation had to be taken into account to fit experimental results with numerical prediction. Using properly adjusted IR preparation, the complete zeroing of thermal background magnetization was achieved, providing an essential increase of contrast-to-noise ratio of DNP-hyperpolarized water images. To quantify and optimize the steady-state conditions for MRI with continuous flow DNP, an approach similar to that incorporating transient-state thermal magnetization equilibrium in spoiled fast field echo imaging sequences can be used. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Satisfaction with a distance continuing education program for health professionals.

Science.gov (United States)

Bynum, Ann B; Irwin, Cathy A; Cohen, Betty

2010-09-01

This study assessed differences in program satisfaction among health professionals participating in a distance continuing education program by gender, ethnicity, discipline, and community size. A one-group posttest design was used with a sample of 45,996 participants in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Rural Hospital, Distance Continuing Medical Education Program during 1995-2007. This program provided 2,219 continuing education programs for physicians (n = 7,047), nurses (n = 21,264), allied health (n = 3,230) and dental (n = 305) professionals, pharmacists (n = 4,088), administrators (n = 1,211), and marketing/finance/human resources professionals (n = 343). These programs were provided in Arkansas hospitals, clinics, and area health education centers. Interactive video technology and the Internet were used to deliver these programs. The program satisfaction instrument demonstrated adequate internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.91) and construct validity. Participants had high levels of satisfaction regarding knowledge and skills, use of information to enhance patient care, program quality, and convenience of the technology (mean total satisfaction score = 4.44, range: 1-5). Results from the t-test for independent samples and one-way analysis of variance indicated that men (p = 0.01), African-Americans and Hispanics (p affect satisfaction with distance continuing education programs.

Financial Control Measures and the Enhancement of Administrative ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study was focused on the determination of the relationship between financial control measures and enhancement of administrative effectiveness of secondary school Principals in Akwa Ibom State. The choice of this topic was necessitated by the fact that despite the continuous personnel auditing conducted in the ...

Enhancement of mechanical and electrical properties of continuous-fiber-reinforced epoxy composites with stacked graphene

OpenAIRE

Naveh, Naum; Shepelev, Olga; Kenig, Samuel

2017-01-01

Impregnation of expandable graphite (EG) after thermal treatment with an epoxy resin containing surface-active agents (SAAs) enhanced the intercalation of epoxy monomer between EG layers and led to further exfoliation of the graphite, resulting in stacks of few graphene layers, so-called “stacked” graphene (SG). This process enabled electrical conductivity of cured epoxy/SG composites at lower percolation thresholds, and improved thermo-mechanical properties were measured with either Kevlar, ...

Eliminating the Attentional Blink through Binaural Beats: A Case for Tailored Cognitive Enhancement

OpenAIRE

Reedijk, Susan A.; Bolders, Anne; Colzato, Lorenza S.; Hommel, Bernhard

2015-01-01

Enhancing human cognitive performance is a topic that continues to spark scientific interest. Studies into cognitive-enhancement techniques often fail to take inter-individual differences into account, however, which leads to underestimation of the effectiveness of these techniques. The current study investigated the effect of binaural beats, a cognitive-enhancement technique, on attentional control in an attentional blink (AB) task. As predicted from a neurocognitive approach to cognitive co...

Peer groups and operational cycle enhancements to the performance indicator report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stromberg, H.M.; DeHaan, M.S.; Gentillon, C.D.; Wilson, G.E.; Vanden Heuvel, L.N.

1992-01-01

Accurate performance evaluation and plant trending by the performance indicator program are integral parts of monitoring the operation of commercial nuclear power plants. The presentations of the NRC/AEOD performance indicator program have undergone a number of enhancements. The diversity of the commercial nuclear plants, coupled with continued improvements in the performance indicator program, has resulted in the evaluation of plants in logical peer groups and highlighted the need to evaluate the impact of plant operational conditions on the performance indicators. These enhancements allow a more-meaningful evaluation of operating commercial nuclear power plant performance. This report proposes methods to enhance the presentation of the performance indicator data by analyzing the data in logical peer groups and displaying the performance indicator data based on the operational status of the plants. Previously, preliminary development of the operational cycle displays of the performance indicator data was documented. This report extends the earlier findings and presents the continued development of the peer groups and operational cycle trend and deviation data and displays. This report describes the peer groups and enhanced PI data presentations by considering the operational cycle phase breakdowns, calculation methods, and presentation methods

Magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) of the calf station at 3.0 T: intraindividual comparison of non-enhanced ECG-gated flow-dependent MRA, continuous table movement MRA and time-resolved MRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haneder, Stefan; Attenberger, Ulrike I.; Riffel, Philipp; Henzler, Thomas; Schoenberg, Stefan O.; Michaely, Henrik J.

2011-01-01

To compare 3D non-enhanced ECG-gated inflow-dependent MRA (NE-MRA) vs. continuous table movement (CTM) MR-angiography and time-resolved TWIST-MRA in the calf station at 3.0 T in a clinical patient collective. 36 patients (27 male/9 female, 66.1 ± 14.4 years) with PAOD (stage II-IV) underwent during a single MRI: NE-MRA, contrast-enhanced CTM-MRA and TWIST-MRA with a single dose of a gadolinium-based contrast agent. The image quality (IQ) and the degree of stenoses were rated on a four-point scale. Positive (PPV) and negative predictive values (NPV), sensitivity (SS) and specificity (SP) for stenoses detection were calculated for NE-MRA vs. CTM-MRA and vs. TWIST-MRA. Values were obtained for overall graduation of wall changes and for severe stenoses (>70%). With NE-MRA 122/288 segments were not assessable. Compared with CTM-MRA and TWIST-MRA the IQ was significantly inferior (p < 0.0001 to p = 0.0426). CTM-MRA/TWIST-MRA detected stenoses in 44.9%/46.1% of the segments, NE-MRA in 53.5%. SS/NPV of the NE-MRA ranged from 97.8 to 100%. The SP and PPV ranged from 72.7 to 85.5% and 66.7 to 78.2%. Contrast-enhanced MRA techniques are superior to NE-MRA regarding IQ and correct identification of stenoses. If technically successful, NE-MRA is characterised by high NPV and overestimation of the degree of stenoses. (orig.)

Deconvolution-based resolution enhancement of chemical ice core records obtained by continuous flow analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Sune Olander; Andersen, Katrine K.; Johnsen, Sigfus Johann

2005-01-01

Continuous flow analysis (CFA) has become a popular measuring technique for obtaining high-resolution chemical ice core records due to an attractive combination of measuring speed and resolution. However, when analyzing the deeper sections of ice cores or cores from low-accumulation areas...... of the data for high-resolution studies such as annual layer counting. The presented method uses deconvolution techniques and is robust to the presence of noise in the measurements. If integrated into the data processing, it requires no additional data collection. The method is applied to selected ice core...

Continuing education in athletic training: an alternative approach based on adult learning theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Pitney, W A

1998-01-01

To offer an alternative perspective on current continuing education practices and to propose a model for facilitating continuing education in the athletic training workplace. Professional knowledge can quickly become outdated, and the personal/professional contexts of allied medical fields such as athletic training are becoming increasingly more complex, making continuing education paramount. Adult learning theory suggests that individuals are self- directed, autonomous learners in nature and that experience is a rich source for learning, subsequently making the workplace a fruitful environment in which to engage in continuing education. Unfortunately, mandating continuing education may violate the voluntary nature of adult learning, making the practice questionable. Therefore, alternative aspects of continuing education may be helpful. This article consists of a brief synthesis of related literature that offers an alternative perspective of continuing education and proposes a model for facilitating continuing education in the workplace. The model's foundation includes preparing an environment conducive to learning and then focuses on identifying learning needs, setting goals, implementing specific strategies to facilitate self-directed learning, and assessing leaming. Additionally, the model suggests that ongoing reflection is a key factor in enhancing the identification of learning needs, goals, and strategies. The model may best be used by clinical coordinators, directors, and supervisors to better facilitate employee learning and subsequently improve patient care delivery.

Firefly Mating Algorithm for Continuous Optimization Problems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amarita Ritthipakdee

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes a swarm intelligence algorithm, called firefly mating algorithm (FMA, for solving continuous optimization problems. FMA uses genetic algorithm as the core of the algorithm. The main feature of the algorithm is a novel mating pair selection method which is inspired by the following 2 mating behaviors of fireflies in nature: (i the mutual attraction between males and females causes them to mate and (ii fireflies of both sexes are of the multiple-mating type, mating with multiple opposite sex partners. A female continues mating until her spermatheca becomes full, and, in the same vein, a male can provide sperms for several females until his sperm reservoir is depleted. This new feature enhances the global convergence capability of the algorithm. The performance of FMA was tested with 20 benchmark functions (sixteen 30-dimensional functions and four 2-dimensional ones against FA, ALC-PSO, COA, MCPSO, LWGSODE, MPSODDS, DFOA, SHPSOS, LSA, MPDPGA, DE, and GABC algorithms. The experimental results showed that the success rates of our proposed algorithm with these functions were higher than those of other algorithms and the proposed algorithm also required fewer numbers of iterations to reach the global optima.

Competency-based continuing professional development.

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, Craig; Silver, Ivan; Sherbino, Jonathan; Cate, Olle Ten; Holmboe, Eric S

2010-01-01

Competence is traditionally viewed as the attainment of a static set of attributes rather than a dynamic process in which physicians continuously use their practice experiences to "progress in competence" toward the attainment of expertise. A competency-based continuing professional development (CPD) model is premised on a set of learning competencies that include the ability to (a) use practice information to identify learning priorities and to develop and monitor CPD plans; (b) access information sources for innovations in development and new evidence that may potentially be integrated into practice; (c) establish a personal knowledge management system to store and retrieve evidence and to select and manage learning projects; (d) construct questions, search for evidence, and record and track conclusions for practice; and (e) use tools and processes to measure competence and performance and develop action plans to enhance practice. Competency-based CPD emphasizes self-directed learning processes and promotes the role of assessment as a professional expectation and obligation. Various approaches to defining general competencies for practice require the creation of specific performance metrics to be meaningful and relevant to the lifelong learning strategies of physicians. This paper describes the assumptions, advantages, and challenges of establishing a CPD system focused on competencies that improve physician performance and the quality and safety of patient care. Implications for competency-based CPD are discussed from an individual and organizational perspective, and a model to bridge the transition from residency to practice is explored.

Optimizing laser crater enhanced Raman spectroscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Lednev, V N; Sdvizhenskii, P A; Grishin, M Ya; Filichkina, V A; Shchegolikhin, A N; Pershin, S M

2018-03-20

Raman signal enhancement by laser crater production was systematically studied for 785 nm continuous wave laser pumping. Laser craters were produced in L-aspartic acid powder by a nanosecond pulsed solid state neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet laser (532 nm, 8 ns, 1 mJ/pulse), while Raman spectra were then acquired by using a commercial spectrometer with 785 nm laser beam pumping. The Raman signal enhancement effect was studied in terms of the number of ablating pulses used, the lens-to-sample distance, and the crater-center-laser-spot offset. The influence of the experiment parameters on Raman signal enhancement was studied for different powder materials. Maximum Raman signal enhancement reached 11 fold for loose powders but decreased twice for pressed tablets. Raman signal enhancement was demonstrated for several diverse powder materials like gypsum or ammonium nitrate with better results achieved for the samples tending to give narrow and deep craters upon the laser ablation stage. Alternative ways of cavity production (steel needle tapping and hole drilling) were compared with the laser cratering technique in terms of Raman signal enhancement. Drilling was found to give the poorest enhancement of the Raman signal, while both laser ablation and steel needle tapping provided comparable results. Here, we have demonstrated for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, that a Raman signal can be enhanced 10 fold with the aid of simple cavity production by steel needle tapping in rough highly reflective materials. Though laser crater enhancement Raman spectroscopy requires an additional pulsed laser, this technique is more appropriate for automatization compared to the needle tapping approach.

Providing Continuous Assurance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kocken, Jonne; Hulstijn, Joris

2017-01-01

It has been claimed that continuous assurance can be attained by combining continuous monitoring by management, with continuous auditing of data streams and the effectiveness of internal controls by an external auditor. However, we find that in existing literature the final step to continuous

Translating continuing professional development education to nursing practice in Rwanda: Enhancing maternal and newborn health

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yvonne Kasine

Full Text Available Introduction: Approximately 99% of the three million neonatal deaths that occur annually are in developing countries. In Rwanda, neonatal asphyxia is the leading cause of neonatal mortality accounting for 38% of all neonatal deaths. The Helping Babies Breathe (HBB© course was initiated by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP in 2010 to reduce neonatal mortality in resource limited areas. Despite the provision of HBB© courses to practicing nurses in Rwanda, little is known about nurses’ experiences of applying the knowledge and skills acquired from those courses to practice. This study was conducted in 2014 in five district hospitals (Nyamata, Rwamagana, Gahini, Kiziguro, and Kibungo located in the Eastern Province of Rwanda. Purpose: Explore nurses’ experiences of translating continuing professional development (CPD education utilizing the HBB© course to nursing practice in Rwanda. Methods: Qualitative descriptive design. A purposive sample of 10 nurses participated in individual interviews. NVIVO computer software was used to manage qualitative data. Content analysis was used for generating categories from the data. Findings: Three categories emerged from the analysis: 1 application of competencies acquired from education sessions to practice, 2 benefits of CPD, and 3 facilitators and barriers to the application of competencies into practice. Qualitative interviews revealed that Nurses’ perceived confidence in performing newborn resuscitation improved after taking part in HBB© courses. Nonetheless, nurses voiced the existence of conditions in their work environment that hindered their ability to apply the acquired knowledge and skills including insufficient materials, shortages of nurses, and potential inadequate human resource allocation. Recommendations and conclusion: Regular offerings of newborn resuscitation CPD courses to health professionals in developing countries could increase their knowledge and skills, which could

New Evidence to Enhance Employment and Education for ...

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

A decade of continuous growth, coupled with enhanced social investment, has reduced poverty and increased labour market opportunities in Latin America. However, some groups - in particular women and youth - are yet to see the benefits of this growth. Despite higher educational levels, the employment outlook for young ...

Modification of chemical and physical factors in steamflood to increase heavy oil recovery

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yortsos, Yanis C.

2000-01-19

This report covers the work performed in the various physicochemical factors for the improvement of oil recovery efficiency. In this context the following general areas were studied: (1) The understanding of vapor-liquid flows in porous media, including processes in steam injection; (2) The effect of reservoir heterogeneity in a variety of foams, from pore scale to macroscopic scale; (3) The flow properties of additives for improvement of recovery efficiency, particularly foams and other non-Newtonian fluids; and (4) The development of optimization methods to maximize various measures of oil recovery.

Study on the relationship of continuous laser printing and the distance of trace on the OPC

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xingzhou Han

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This thesis aims to seek the relationship between photosensitive drum cyclical trace distance of two pages (shorted for L' and continuity printing of laser printers. Characteristics quantification, statistics are chosen to evaluate the data and results. It is indicated that the regularity is existed between L' and continuity printing, and regular performance between different models of HP and Canon printers are consistent. According to the data, L' of continuous printing are summed up, the probability of replacing the front page and the middle page which can meet the continuity regularity are analyzed. The numerical interval is given of noncontinuous printing. The study can enhance the scientificity of printing document examination and have innovation and practical significance in civil disputes, criminal cases, and social community.

Using community partners to deliver low-cost and effective emergency management and business continuity services.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Joan; Roggiero, Jean Paul; Silva, Brian

2010-11-01

Small to medium-sized organisations enhance their business mission as well as their communities by continuing to offer services in extreme circumstances. Developing emergency preparedness and business continuity plans that are cost-effective, comprehensive and operational for small to medium-sized organisations with limited resources requires a consistent, supportive, hands-on approach over time with professionals to create appropriate and sustainable strategies. Using a unique, multi-layered and applied approach to emergency preparedness training, organisations have successfully created plans that are effective and sustainable.

Increased performance of continuous stirred tank reactor with calcium supplementation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yuan, Zhuliang; Yang, Haijun; Zhi, Xiaohua; Shen, Jianquan [Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences (BNLMS), New Materials Laboratory, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190 (China)

2010-04-15

Continuous biohydrogen production with calcium supplementation at low hydraulic retention time (HRT) in a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) was studied to maximize the hydrogen productivity of anaerobic mixed cultures. After stable operations at HRT of 8-4 h, the bioreactor became unstable when the HRT was lowered to 2 h. Supplementation of 100 mg/L calcium at HRT 2 h improved the operation stability through enhancement of cell retention with almost two-fold increase in cell density than that without calcium addition. Hydrogen production rate and hydrogen yield reached 24.5 L/d/L and 3.74 mol H{sub 2}/mol sucrose, respectively, both of which were the highest values our group have ever achieved. The results showed that calcium supplementation can be an effective way to improve the performance of CSTR at low HRT. (author)

Diffuse pachymeningeal enhancement on brain MRI: spontaneous intracranial hypotension and head trauma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryu, Chang Woo; Lee, Byung Hee; Lee, Seung Ik; Kim, Young A; Kim, Hee Jin; Ko, Young Sik

1998-01-01

We evaluated the MRI finding of pachymeningeal enhancement in patients with intracranial hypotension and head trauma with particular attention to differential findings and change in follow-up study, and in order to support the knowledge about the pathophysiology of dural enhancement. The findings of enhanced brain MRI of fifteen patients who showed diffuse pachymeningeal enhancement were retrospectively examined. Seven of fifteen patients were finally diagnosed as spontaneous intracranial hypotension (SIH). Eight of fifteen patients had a recent history of head trauma. We analyzed the shape, thickness, continuity and extent of dural enhancement, and the others concerned with positive MR findings. We also analyzed findings suggested displacement of brain parenchyma-displacement of the iter and cerebellar tonsil, and flattening of the anterior aspect of the pons-. Four of seven patients with SIH and four of eight patients with head trauma, underwent follow-up MRI. In the follow-up study, the presence of resolving pachymeningeal enhancement and symptom improvement was investigated. In all cases of SIH, the dura showed diffuse, even 3(1mm thick, global and contiguous enhancement along both cerebral convexities, both tentoria, and the falx. Displacement of the iter was noted in six cases and flattening of the anterior aspect of the pons in five. Displacement of the cerebellar tonsil was noted in one case. Five of seven cases showed small amount of subdural fluid collection. In all cases of head trauma, the dura was enhanced diffusely and asymmetrically, and showed no contiguity. Its distribution was consistent with the locations of traumatic lesions. Displacement of the iter was noted in one case. In four cases of SIH, clinical symptoms had improved, and three showed complete resolution of dural enhancement, in one patient continuously showed partial dural enhancement. Four cases of head trauma showed complete resolution of dural enhancement. Reversible diffuse

Networked Learning and Network Science: Potential Applications to Health Professionals' Continuing Education and Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Margolis, Alvaro; Parboosingh, John

2015-01-01

Prior interpersonal relationships and interactivity among members of professional associations may impact the learning process in continuing medical education (CME). On the other hand, CME programs that encourage interactivity between participants may impact structures and behaviors in these professional associations. With the advent of information and communication technologies, new communication spaces have emerged that have the potential to enhance networked learning in national and international professional associations and increase the effectiveness of CME for health professionals. In this article, network science, based on the application of network theory and other theories, is proposed as an approach to better understand the contribution networking and interactivity between health professionals in professional communities make to their learning and adoption of new practices over time. © 2015 The Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions, the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education, and the Council on Continuing Medical Education, Association for Hospital Medical Education.

The renaissance of continuous culture in the post-genomics age.

Science.gov (United States)

Bull, Alan T

2010-10-01

The development of continuous culture techniques 60 years ago and the subsequent formulation of theory and the diversification of experimental systems revolutionised microbiology and heralded a unique period of innovative research. Then, progressively, molecular biology and thence genomics and related high-information-density omics technologies took centre stage and microbial growth physiology in general faded from educational programmes and research funding priorities alike. However, there has been a gathering appreciation over the past decade that if the claims of systems biology are going to be realised, they will have to be based on rigorously controlled and reproducible microbial and cell growth platforms. This revival of continuous culture will be long lasting because its recognition as the growth system of choice is firmly established. The purpose of this review, therefore, is to remind microbiologists, particularly those new to continuous culture approaches, of the legacy of what I call the first age of continuous culture, and to explore a selection of researches that are using these techniques in this post-genomics age. The review looks at the impact of continuous culture across a comprehensive range of microbiological research and development. The ability to establish (quasi-) steady state conditions is a frequently stated advantage of continuous cultures thereby allowing environmental parameters to be manipulated without causing concomitant changes in the specific growth rate. However, the use of continuous cultures also enables the critical study of specified transition states and chemical, physical or biological perturbations. Such dynamic analyses enhance our understanding of microbial ecology and microbial pathology for example, and offer a wider scope for innovative drug discovery; they also can inform the optimization of batch and fed-batch operations that are characterized by sequential transitions states.

Enhancing High Value Care in Gastroenterology Practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Camilleri, Michael; Katzka, David A

2016-10-01

The objective of this review is to identify common areas in gastroenterology practice where studies performed provide an opportunity for enhancing value or lowering costs. We provide examples of topics in gastroenterology where clinicians could enhance value by either using less invasive testing, choosing a single best test, or by using patient symptoms to guide additional testing. The topics selected for review are selected in esophageal, pancreatic, and colorectal cancer; functional gastrointestinal diseases (irritable bowel syndrome, bacterial overgrowth, constipation); immune-mediated gastrointestinal diseases; and pancreaticobiliary pathology. We propose guidance to alter practice based on current evidence. These studies support the need to review current practice and to continue performing research to further validate the proposed guidance to enhance value of care in gastroenterology and hepatology. Copyright © 2016 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Continuous-time quantum walks on multilayer dendrimer networks

Science.gov (United States)

Galiceanu, Mircea; Strunz, Walter T.

2016-08-01

We consider continuous-time quantum walks (CTQWs) on multilayer dendrimer networks (MDs) and their application to quantum transport. A detailed study of properties of CTQWs is presented and transport efficiency is determined in terms of the exact and average return probabilities. The latter depends only on the eigenvalues of the connectivity matrix, which even for very large structures allows a complete analytical solution for this particular choice of network. In the case of MDs we observe an interplay between strong localization effects, due to the dendrimer topology, and good efficiency from the linear segments. We show that quantum transport is enhanced by interconnecting more layers of dendrimers.

Role Management in a Privacy-Enhanced Collaborative Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Lorenz, Anja; Borcea-Pfitzmann, Katrin

2010-01-01

Purpose: Facing the dilemma between collaboration and privacy is a continual challenge for users. In this setting, the purpose of this paper is to discuss issues of a highly flexible role management integrated in a privacy-enhanced collaborative environment (PECE). Design/methodology/approach: The general framework was provided by former findings…

Enhanced muscle glucose metabolism after exercise

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Richter, Erik; Garetto, L P; Goodman, M N

1984-01-01

Studies in the rat suggest that after voluntary exercise there are two phases of glycogen repletion in skeletal muscle (preceding study). In phase I glucose utilization and glycogen synthesis are enhanced both in the presence and absence of insulin, whereas in phase II only the increase in the pr......Studies in the rat suggest that after voluntary exercise there are two phases of glycogen repletion in skeletal muscle (preceding study). In phase I glucose utilization and glycogen synthesis are enhanced both in the presence and absence of insulin, whereas in phase II only the increase...... in the stimulated leg closely mimicked that observed previously after voluntary exercise on a treadmill. With no insulin added to the perfusate, glucose incorporation into glycogen was markedly enhanced in muscles that were glycogen depleted as were the uptake of 2-deoxyglucose and 3-O-methylglucose. Likewise......, the stimulation of these processes by insulin was enhanced and continued to be so 2 h later when the muscles of the stimulated leg had substantially repleted their glycogen stores. The results suggest that the increases in insulin-mediated glucose utilization and glycogen synthesis in muscle after exercise...

Experimental and analytical investigation of reinforced high strength concrete continuous beams strengthened with fiber reinforced polymer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akbarzadeh, H.; Maghsoudi, A.A.

2010-01-01

Carbon and glass fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP and GFRP) are two materials suitable for strengthening the reinforced concrete (RC) beams. Although many in situ RC beams are of continuous constructions, there has been very limited research on the behavior of such beams with externally applied FRP laminate. In addition, most design guidelines were developed for simply supported beams with external FRP laminates. This paper presents an experimental program conducted to study the flexural behavior and redistribution in moment of reinforced high strength concrete (RHSC) continuous beams strengthened with CFRP and GFRP sheets. Test results showed that with increasing the number of CFRP sheet layers, the ultimate strength increases, while the ductility, moment redistribution, and ultimate strain of CFRP sheet decrease. Also, by using the GFRP sheet in strengthening the continuous beam reduced loss in ductility and moment redistribution but it did not significantly increase ultimate strength of beam. The moment enhancement ratio of the strengthened continuous beams was significantly higher than the ultimate load enhancement ratio in the same beam. An analytical model for moment-curvature and load capacity are developed and used for the tested continuous beams in current and other similar studies. The stress-strain curves of concrete, steel and FRP were considered as integrity model. Stress-strain model of concrete is extended from Oztekin et al.'s model by modifying the ultimate strain. Also, new parameters of equivalent stress block are obtained for flexural calculation of RHSC beams. Good agreement between experiment and prediction values is achieved.

Multisite Assessment of Nursing Continuing Education Learning Needs Using an Electronic Tool.

Science.gov (United States)

Winslow, Susan; Jackson, Stephanie; Cook, Lesley; Reed, Joanne Williams; Blakeney, Keshia; Zimbro, Kathie; Parker, Cindy

2016-02-01

A continued education needs assessment and associated education plan are required for organizations on the journey for American Nurses Credentialing Center Magnet® designation. Leveraging technology to support the assessment and analysis of continuing education needs was a new venture for a 12-hospital regional health system. The purpose of this performance improvement project was to design and conduct an enhanced process to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of gathering data on nurses' preferences and increase nurse satisfaction with the learner assessment portion of the process. Educators trialed the use of a standardized approach via an electronic survey tool to replace the highly variable processes previously used. Educators were able to view graphical summary of responses by category and setting, which substantially decreased analysis and action planning time for education implementation plans at the system, site, or setting level. Based on these findings, specific continuing education action plans were drafted for each category and classification of nurses. Copyright 2016, SLACK Incorporated.

Organizational learning perspective on continuous improvement and innovation in product realization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møller, Christina Villefrance

with cross-functional collaboration in solving problems that subsequently restraining continuous improvement and innovation (CII) in product realization. This research project apply an organizational learning perspective on cross-functional problem solving in product realization processes. The research...... project has two main objectives, first to develop and test a CIIprogram that integrates cross-functional work practices into product realization. The second objective is to enhance understanding of organizational learning processes in cross-functional and multilevel settings within manufacturing....

The RISE Framework: Using Learning Analytics to Automatically Identify Open Educational Resources for Continuous Improvement

Science.gov (United States)

Bodily, Robert; Nyland, Rob; Wiley, David

2017-01-01

The RISE (Resource Inspection, Selection, and Enhancement) Framework is a framework supporting the continuous improvement of open educational resources (OER). The framework is an automated process that identifies learning resources that should be evaluated and either eliminated or improved. This is particularly useful in OER contexts where the…

Enhanced Westinghouse WWER-1000 fuel design for Ukraine reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dye, M.; Shah, H.

2015-01-01

Westinghouse has completed design, development, and region quantity delivery of an enhanced Westinghouse fuel assembly for WWER-1000 reactors to support continued safe reactor operations. The enhanced design builds on the successful performance of an earlier generation design which has operated in the South Ukraine 3 reactor for multiple cycles without any fuel rod failures. Incorporated design enhancements include a thicker spacer grid outer strap, an enhanced spacer grid outer strap profile to limit the risk for, and impact of, mechanical interaction/interference with coresident fuel, an all Alloy 718 grid structure for improved stability and strength, and improvements to the top and bottom nozzles. Capable of meeting increased lateral loads generated from using a higher axial trip limit for the refueling machine crane, the design was verified by extensive mechanical and thermalhydraulic testing, which included a newly developed fuel assembly-to-fuel assembly handling test rig to assess performance during bounding core loading and unloading conditions. Through these extensive design enhancements and comprehensive testing program, the enhanced WWER-1000 design provides additional performance, handling, and reliability margins for safe reactor operation. (authors)

Analysing the mechanisms of sludge digestion enhanced by iron.

Science.gov (United States)

Hao, Xiaodi; Wei, Jing; van Loosdrecht, Mark C M; Cao, Daqi

2017-06-15

Carbon-neutral operation of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) requires enhancing anaerobic digestion (AD) of excess sludge for a higher energy conversion efficiency. Among others, iron has been identified to function on enhancing methane production in AD. As an industrial residual, waste iron scraps (WISs) have been reported as potentially enhancing CH 4 production in AD. With this study, the mechanisms of AD enhanced by WISs are analysed in a two-phase process: acidogenic phase (AP) and methanogenic phase (MP). Semi-continuous tests substantially excluded ORP reduction and hydrogen-evolution corrosion induced by WISs in enhancing CH 4 production, although WISs (10 g Fe/L) could indeed increase CH 4 production by 10.1% and 21.4% when added in AP and MP respectively. Detection on both FISH and enzymatic activities of involved microorganisms revealed that the stimulating effects of WISs on anaerobes (both catabolism and anabolism) could play an important (96.3%) role in enhancing CH 4 production, which would facilitate hydrolysis of refractory organics and improvement of electron transport rate (ETR). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The importance of clinical monitoring for compliance with Continuous Positive Airway Pressure.

Science.gov (United States)

Pelosi, Lucas B; Silveira, Mariana L C; Eckeli, Alan L; Chayamiti, Emilia M P C; Almeida, Leila A; Sander, Heidi H; Küpper, Daniel S; Valera, Fabiana C P

Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome is currently a public health problem of great importance. When misdiagnosed or improperly treated, it can lead to serious consequences on patients' quality of life. The gold standard treatment for cases of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, especially in mild to severe and symptomatic cases, is continuous positive airway pressure therapy. Compliance with continuous positive airway pressure therapy is directly dependent on the active participation of the patient, which can be influenced by several factors. The objective of this study is to describe the factors related to compliance with continuous positive airway pressure therapy, and to analyze which associated factors directly influence the efficiency of the treatment. Patients who received continuous positive airway pressure therapy through the Municipal Health Department of the city of Ribeirão Preto were recruited. A structured questionnaire was administered to the patients. Compliance with continuous positive airway pressure therapy was assessed by average hours of continuous positive airway pressure therapy usage per night. Patients with good compliance (patients using continuous positive airway pressure therapy ≥4h/night) were compared to those with poor compliance (patients using <4h/night). 138 patients were analyzed: 77 (55.8%) were considered compliant while 61 (44.2%) were non-compliant. The comparison between the two groups showed that regular monitoring by a specialist considerably improved compliance with continuous positive airway pressure therapy (odds ratio, OR=2.62). Compliance with continuous positive airway pressure therapy is related to educational components, which can be enhanced with continuous and individualized care to patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. Copyright © 2016 Associação Brasileira de Otorrinolaringologia e Cirurgia Cérvico-Facial. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

How deformation enhances mobility in a polymer glass

Science.gov (United States)

Lacks, Daniel

2013-03-01

Recent experiments show that deformation of a polymer glass can lead to orders-of-magnitude enhancement in the atomic level dynamics. To determine why this change in dynamics occurs, we carry out molecular dynamics simulations and energy landscape analyses. The simulations address the coarse-grained polystyrene model of Kremer and co-workers, and the dynamics, as quantified by the van Hove function, are examined as the glass undergoes shear deformation. In agreement with experiment, the simulations find that deformation enhances the atomic mobility. The enhanced mobility is shown to arise from two mechanisms: First, active deformation continually reduces barriers for hopping events, and the importance of this mechanism is modulated by the rate of thermally activated transitions between adjacent energy minima. Second, deformation moves the system to higher-energy regions of the energy landscape, characterized by lower barriers. Both mechanisms enhance the dynamics during deformation, and the second mechanism is also relevant after deformation has ceased.

The use of computer based instructions to enhance Rwandan ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Annestar

(2) To what extent the newly acquired ICT skills impact on teachers' competency? (3) How suitable is computer based instruction to enhance teachers' continuous professional development? Literature review. ICT competency for teachers. Regardless of the quantity and quality of technology available in classrooms, the key ...

Continuous and Discontinuous Modelling of Fracture in Concrete Using FEM

CERN Document Server

Tejchman, Jacek

2013-01-01

The book analyzes a quasi-static fracture process in concrete and reinforced concrete by means of constitutive models formulated within continuum mechanics. A continuous and discontinuous modelling approach was used. Using a continuous approach, numerical analyses were performed using a finite element method and three different enhanced continuum models: isotropic elasto-plastic, isotropic damage and anisotropic smeared crack one. The models were equipped with a characteristic length of micro-structure by means of a non-local and a second-gradient theory. So they could properly describe the formation of localized zones with a certain thickness and spacing and a related deterministic size effect. Using a discontinuous FE approach, numerical results of cracks using a cohesive crack model and XFEM were presented which were also properly regularized. Finite element analyses were performed with concrete elements under monotonic uniaxial compression, uniaxial tension, bending and shear-extension. Concrete beams un...

The Continued Assessment of Self-Continuity and Identity

Science.gov (United States)

Dunkel, Curtis S.; Minor, Leslie; Babineau, Maureen

2010-01-01

Studies have found that self-continuity is predictive of a substantial number of important outcome variables. However, a recent series of studies brings into question the traditional method of measuring self-continuity in favor of an alternative (B. M. Baird, K. Le, & R. E. Lucas, 2006). The present study represents a further comparison of…

Self-Reliability and Motivation in a Nuclear Security Culture Enhancement Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Crawford,C.; de Boer,G.; De Castro, K; Landers, Ph.D., J; Rogers, E

2009-10-19

The threat of nuclear terrorism has become a global concern. Many countries continue to make efforts to strengthen nuclear security by enhancing systems of nuclear material protection, control, and accounting (MPC&A). Though MPC&A systems can significantly upgrade nuclear security, they do not eliminate the "human factor." This paper will describe some of the key elements of a comprehensive, sustainable nuclear security culture enhancement program and how implementation can mitigate the insider threat.

The role of continuous low-frequency harmonicity cues for interrupted speech perception in bimodal hearing.

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, Soo Hee; Donaldson, Gail S; Kong, Ying-Yee

2016-04-01

Low-frequency acoustic cues have been shown to enhance speech perception by cochlear-implant users, particularly when target speech occurs in a competing background. The present study examined the extent to which a continuous representation of low-frequency harmonicity cues contributes to bimodal benefit in simulated bimodal listeners. Experiment 1 examined the benefit of restoring a continuous temporal envelope to the low-frequency ear while the vocoder ear received a temporally interrupted stimulus. Experiment 2 examined the effect of providing continuous harmonicity cues in the low-frequency ear as compared to restoring a continuous temporal envelope in the vocoder ear. Findings indicate that bimodal benefit for temporally interrupted speech increases when continuity is restored to either or both ears. The primary benefit appears to stem from the continuous temporal envelope in the low-frequency region providing additional phonetic cues related to manner and F1 frequency; a secondary contribution is provided by low-frequency harmonicity cues when a continuous representation of the temporal envelope is present in the low-frequency, or both ears. The continuous temporal envelope and harmonicity cues of low-frequency speech are thought to support bimodal benefit by facilitating identification of word and syllable boundaries, and by restoring partial phonetic cues that occur during gaps in the temporally interrupted stimulus.

A comparative study of the plasmon effect in nanoelectrode THz emitters: Pulse vs. continuous-wave radiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moon, Kiwon; Lee, Eui Su; Lee, Il-Min; Han, Sang-Pil; Kim, Hyun-Soo; Park, Kyung Hyun, E-mail: khp@etri.re.kr [Terahertz Basic Research Section, Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), Daejeon 305-700 (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Jeongyong [Metal-Insulator Transition Research Section, Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), Daejeon 305-700 (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Donghun [Optical Internet Components Research Section, Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), Daejeon 305-700 (Korea, Republic of)

2016-08-15

Plasmonic field enhancement in terahertz (THz) generation is one of the recently arisen techniques in the THz field that has attracted considerable interest. However, the reported levels of enhancement of THz output power in the literature are significantly different from each other, from less than two times to about two orders of magnitude of enhancement in power, which implies the existence of other major limiting factors yet to be revealed. In this work, the contribution of the plasmonic effect to the power enhancement of THz emitters is revisited. We show that the carrier collection efficiency in a THz emitter with plasmonic nanostructures is more critical to the device performance than the plasmonic field enhancement itself. The strong reverse fields induced by the highly localized plasmonic carriers in the vicinity of the nanoelectrodes screen the carrier collections and seriously limit the power enhancement. This is supported by our experimental observations of the significantly enhanced power in a plasmonic nanoelectrode THz emitter in continuous-wave radiation mode, while the same device has limited enhancement with pulsed radiation. We hope that our study may provide an intuitive but practical guideline in adopting plasmonic nanostructures with an aim of enhancing the efficiency of optoelectronic devices.

Modification of an OSCE format to enhance patient continuity in a high-stakes assessment of clinical performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cuncic Cary

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Traditional Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs are psychometrically sound but have the limitation of fragmenting complex clinical cases into brief stations. We describe a pilot study of a modified OSCE that attempts to balance a typical OSCE format with a semblance of a continuous, complex, patient case. Methods Two OSCE scenarios were developed. Each scenario involved a single standardized patient and was subdivided into three sequential 10 minute sections that assessed separate content areas and competencies. Twenty Canadian PGY-4 internal medicine trainees were assessed by trained examiner pairs during each OSCE scenario. Paired examiners rated participant performance independent of each other, on each section of each scenario using a validated global rating scale. Inter-rater reliabilities and Pearson correlations between ratings of the 3 sections of each scenario were calculated. A generalizability study was conducted. Participant and examiner satisfaction was surveyed. Results There was no main effect of section or scenario. Inter-rater reliability was acceptable. The g-coefficient was 0.68; four scenarios would achieve 0.80. Moderate correlations between sections of a scenario suggest a possible halo effect. The majority of examiners and participants felt that the modified OSCE provided a sense of patient continuity. Conclusions The modified OSCE provides another approach to the assessment of clinical performance. It attempts to balance the advantages of a traditional OSCE with a sense of patient continuity.

Microfluidic device for continuous single cells analysis via Raman spectroscopy enhanced by integrated plasmonic nanodimers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perozziello, Gerardo; Candeloro, Patrizio; De Grazia, Antonio

2016-01-01

In this work a Raman flow cytometer is presented. It consists of a microfluidic device that takes advantages of the basic principles of Raman spectroscopy and flow cytometry. The microfluidic device integrates calibrated microfluidic channels-where the cells can flow one-by-one -, allowing single...... cell Raman analysis. The microfluidic channel integrates plasmonic nanodimers in a fluidic trapping region. In this way it is possible to perform Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy on single cell. These allow a label-free analysis, providing information about the biochemical content of membrane and cytoplasm...

Enhancing the safety of elderly victims after the close of an APS investigation.

Science.gov (United States)

Jackson, Shelly L; Hafemeister, Thomas L

2013-04-01

The purpose of this study was to test whether particular actions on the part of adult protective services (APS), the elderly victim, and/or society's response to abusive individuals, are associated with the continuation of abuse after the close of an APS investigation and thereby compromise victim safety. Interviews were conducted with 71 APS caseworkers, 55 of the elderly victims of substantiated abuse, and 35 third-party persons. A small proportion of elderly victims continue to experience abuse after the close of an APS investigation. Elderly victims were more likely to experience continued abuse when they chose to have ongoing contact with their abusers, vis-à-vis cohabitation or otherwise, and when their abusers experienced no consequences. Although continuation of abuse did not differ by the type of maltreatment involved, reasons for the cessation of abuse, and other safety indicators, did. To enhance victim safety, greater monitoring may be warranted in cases wherein elderly victims continue to have contact with their abuser and when abusive individuals experience no consequences. To further enhance victim safety, abusive individuals must be incorporated into an overall strategic response to elder abuse. A potential avenue for facilitating victim safety while maintaining victim autonomy is to understand their motivations for desiring continued contact with their abuser and developing interventions based upon such knowledge.

A new device for administration of continuous positive airway pressure in preterm infants: comparison with a standard nasal CPAP continuous positive airway pressure system.

Science.gov (United States)

Trevisanuto, Daniele; Grazzina, Nicoletta; Doglioni, Nicoletta; Ferrarese, Paola; Marzari, Francesco; Zanardo, Vincenzo

2005-06-01

We compared the effectiveness of a new continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device (neonatal helmet CPAP) with a conventional nasal CPAP system in preterm neonates needing continuous distending pressure. Randomized, physiological, cross-over study in a tertiary referral, neonatal intensive care unit in a university teaching hospital. Twenty very low birth weight infants with a postnatal age greater than 24 h who were receiving nasal CPAP for apnea and/or mild respiratory distress were enrolled. CPAP delivered by neonatal helmet CPAP and nasal CPAP in random order for two subsequent 90-min periods. Were continuously measured the Neonatal Infant Pain Scale (NIPS) score, oxygen requirements, respiratory rate, heart rate, oxygen saturation, transcutaneous PO(2) (tcPO(2)) and PCO(2) (tcPCO(2)), blood pressure, and desaturations. NIPS scores were significantly lower when the infants were on the neonatal helmet CPAP than when they were on nasal CPAP (0.26+/-0.07 vs. 0.63+/-0.12). The other studied parameters did not differ between the two CPAP modes. The number of desaturations was reduced during the neonatal helmet CPAP treatment (18 vs. 32), although this difference was not significant. In this short-term physiological study the neonatal helmet CPAP appears to be as good as the golden standard for managing preterm infants needing continuous distending pressure, with enhanced tolerability. Further evaluation in a randomized clinical trial is needed to confirm these findings.

Formal and Informal Continuing Education Activities and Athletic Training Professional Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Armstrong, Kirk J.; Weidner, Thomas G.

2010-01-01

Abstract Context: Continuing education (CE) is intended to promote professional growth and, ultimately, to enhance professional practice. Objective: To determine certified athletic trainers' participation in formal (ie, approved for CE credit) and informal (ie, not approved for CE credit) CE activities and the perceived effect these activities have on professional practice with regard to improving knowledge, clinical skills and abilities, attitudes toward patient care, and patient care itself. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Athletic training practice settings. Patients or Other Participants: Of a geographic, stratified random sample of 1000 athletic trainers, 427 (42.7%) completed the survey. Main Outcome Measure(s): The Survey of Formal and Informal Athletic Training Continuing Education Activities was developed and administered electronically. The survey consisted of demographic characteristics and Likert-scale items regarding CE participation and perceived effect of CE on professional practice. Internal consistency of survey items was determined using the Cronbach α (α  =  0.945). Descriptive statistics were computed for all items. An analysis of variance and dependent t tests were calculated to determine differences among respondents' demographic characteristics and their participation in, and perceived effect of, CE activities. The α level was set at .05. Results: Respondents completed more informal CE activities than formal CE activities. Participation in informal CE activities included reading athletic training journals (75.4%), whereas formal CE activities included attending a Board of Certification–approved workshop, seminar, or professional conference not conducted by the National Athletic Trainers' Association or affiliates or committees (75.6%). Informal CE activities were perceived to improve clinical skills or abilities and attitudes toward patient care. Formal CE activities were perceived to enhance knowledge. Conclusions: More

The use of computer based instructions to enhance Rwandan ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study intended to investigate into the extent to which computers and Internet that are being availed to schools in Rwanda can be used to enhance teachers' ICT competency and continuous professional development. In order to attain this ultimate aim, researchers undertook a Problem Solving and Theory Testing ...

Exploring ward nurses' perceptions of continuing education in clinical settings.

Science.gov (United States)

Govranos, Melissa; Newton, Jennifer M

2014-04-01

Health care systems demand that nurses are flexible skilful workers who maintain currency and competency in order to deliver safe effective patient centered care. Nurses must continually build best practice into their care and acquire lifelong learning. Often this learning is acquired within the work environment and is facilitated by the clinical nurse educator. Understanding clinical nurses' values and needs of continuing education is necessary to ensure appropriate education service delivery and thus enhance patient care. To explore clinical ward-based nurses' values and perceptions towards continuing education and what factors impact on continuing education in the ward. A case study approach was utilized. A major teaching hospital in Melbourne, Australia. A range of clinical nursing staff (n=23). Four focus groups and six semi-structured individual interviews were undertaken. Focus group interviews explored participants' values and perceptions on continuing education through a values clarification tool. Thematic analysis of interviews was undertaken to identify themes and cluster data. Three central themes: 'culture and attitudes', 'what is learning?' and 'being there-being seen', emerged reflecting staffs' values and perceptions of education and learning in the workplace. Multiple factors influence ward nurses' ability and motivation to incorporate lifelong learning into their practice. Despite variance in nurses' values and perceptions of CE in clinical environments, CE was perceived as important. Nurses yearned for changes to facilitate lifelong learning and cultivate a learning culture. Clinical nurse educators need to be cognizant of adult learners' characteristics such as values, beliefs, needs and potential barriers, to effectively facilitate support in a challenging and complex learning environment. Organizational support is essential so ward managers in conjunction with educational departments can promote and sustain continuing education, lifelong

75 FR 64411 - Lowering Miners' Exposure to Respirable Coal Mine Dust, Including Continuous Personal Dust Monitors

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-19

... industries, such as mining, by reducing workplace deaths and improving the health of coal miners. This..., enhanced enforcement, collaborative outreach, and education and training. The initiative will reduce, and... reducing the respirable coal mine dust levels, miners continue to develop black lung. Based on recent data...

21 CFR Appendix A to Part 201 - Examples of Graphic Enhancements Used by FDA

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Examples of Graphic Enhancements Used by FDA A... (CONTINUED) DRUGS: GENERAL LABELING Pt. 201, App. A Appendix A to Part 201—Examples of Graphic Enhancements.... Examples of § 201.66 Standard Labeling and Modified Labeling Formats A. Section 201.66 Standard Labeling...

Effects of continuous nicotine treatment and subsequent termination on cocaine versus food choice in male rhesus monkeys.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwienteck, Kathryn L; Negus, S Stevens; Poklis, Justin L; Banks, Matthew L

2015-10-01

One complicating factor in cocaine addiction may be concurrent exposure and potential dependence on nicotine. The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of continuous nicotine treatment and subsequent termination on cocaine versus food choice in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta). For comparison, we also determined effects of the nicotinic receptor antagonist mecamylamine on cocaine versus food choice during continuous saline and nicotine treatment. Rhesus monkeys (N = 3) responded under a concurrent schedule of food pellet (1 g) and intravenous cocaine (0-0.1 mg/kg/injection) availability. Saline and ascending nicotine doses (0.1-1.0 mg/kg/hr, intravenous) were continuously infused for 7-day treatment periods and separated by 24-hr saline treatment periods. Acute effects of mecamylamine (0.32-1.8 mg/kg, intramuscular, 15 min pretreatment) were determined during continuous saline and 0.32-mg/kg/hr nicotine treatments. During saline treatment, cocaine maintained a dose-dependent increase in cocaine choice. Nicotine treatment did not alter cocaine versus food choice. In contrast, preference of 0.032 mg/kg/injection cocaine was attenuated 24 hr following termination of 0.32-mg/kg/hr nicotine treatment, despite no somatic abstinence signs being observed. Acute mecamylamine enhanced cocaine choice during saline treatment and mainly suppressed rates of behavior during nicotine treatment. Overall, continuous nicotine exposure, up to 1 mg/kg/hr, does not enhance cocaine choice and does not produce nicotine dependence, as demonstrated by the lack of abstinence signs. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Continued benefits of a technical assistance web site to local tobacco control coalitions during a state budget shortfall.

Science.gov (United States)

Buller, David B; Young, Walter F; Bettinghaus, Erwin P; Borland, Ron; Walther, Joseph B; Helme, Donald; Andersen, Peter A; Cutter, Gary R; Maloy, Julie A

2011-01-01

A state budget shortfall defunded 10 local tobacco coalitions during a randomized trial but defunded coalitions continued to have access to 2 technical assistance Web sites. To test the ability of Web-based technology to provide technical assistance to local tobacco control coalitions. Randomized 2-group trial with local tobacco control coalitions as the unit of randomization. Local communities (ie, counties) within the State of Colorado. Leaders and members in 34 local tobacco control coalitions funded by the state health department in Colorado. Two technical assistance Web sites: A Basic Web site with text-based information and a multimedia Enhanced Web site containing learning modules, resources, and communication features. Use of the Web sites in minutes, pages, and session and evaluations of coalition functioning on coalition development, conflict resolution, leadership satisfaction, decision-making satisfaction, shared mission, personal involvement, and organization involvement in survey of leaders and members. Coalitions that were defunded but had access to the multimedia Enhanced Web site during the Fully Funded period and after defunding continued to use it (treatment group × funding status × period, F(3,714) = 3.18, P = .0234). Coalitions with access to the Basic Web site had low Web site use throughout and use by defunded coalitions was nearly zero when funding ceased. Members in defunded Basic Web site coalitions reported that their coalitions functioned worse than defunded Enhanced Web site coalitions (coalition development: group × status, F(1,360) = 4.81, P = .029; conflict resolution: group × status, F(1,306) = 5.69, P = .018; leadership satisfaction: group × status, F(1,342) = 5.69, P = .023). The Enhanced Web site may have had a protective effect on defunded coalitions. Defunded coalitions may have increased their capacity by using the Enhanced Web site when fully funded or by continuing to use the available online resources after defunding

Optical Detection and Sizing of Single Nano-Particles Using Continuous Wetting Films

Science.gov (United States)

Hennequin, Yves; McLeod, Euan; Mudanyali, Onur; Migliozzi, Daniel; Ozcan, Aydogan; Dinten, Jean-Marc

2013-01-01

The physical interaction between nano-scale objects and liquid interfaces can create unique optical properties, enhancing the signatures of the objects with sub-wavelength features. Here we show that the evaporation on a wetting substrate of a polymer solution containing sub-micrometer or nano-scale particles creates liquid micro-lenses that arise from the local deformations of the continuous wetting film. These micro-lenses have properties similar to axicon lenses that are known to create beams with a long depth of focus. This enhanced depth of focus allows detection of single nanoparticles using a low magnification microscope objective lens, achieving a relatively wide field-of-view, while also lifting the constraints on precise focusing onto the object plane. Hence, by creating these liquid axicon lenses through spatial deformations of a continuous thin wetting film, we transfer the challenge of imaging individual nano-particles to detecting the light focused by these lenses. As a proof of concept, we demonstrate the detection and sizing of single nano-particles (100 and 200 nm), CpGV granuloviruses as well as Staphylococcus epidermidis bacteria over a wide field of view of e.g., 5.10×3.75 mm2 using a ×5 objective lens with a numerical aperture of 0.15. In addition to conventional lens-based microscopy, this continuous wetting film based approach is also applicable to lensfree computational on-chip imaging, which can be used to detect single nano-particles over a large field-of-view of e.g., >20-30 mm2. These results could be especially useful for high-throughput field-analysis of nano-scale objects using compact and cost-effective microscope designs. PMID:23889001

The roles of constraint-based and dedication-based influences on user's continued online shopping behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Su-Chao; Chou, Chi-Min

2012-11-01

The objective of this study was to determine empirically the role of constraint-based and dedication-based influences as drivers of the intention to continue using online shopping websites. Constraint-based influences consist of two variables: trust and perceived switching costs. Dedication-based influences consist of three variables: satisfaction, perceived usefulness, and trust. The current results indicate that both constraint-based and dedication-based influences are important drivers of the intention to continue using online shopping websites. The data also shows that trust has the strongest total effect on online shoppers' intention to continue using online shopping websites. In addition, the results indicate that the antecedents of constraint-based influences, technical bonds (e.g., perceived operational competence and perceived website interactivity) and social bonds (e.g., perceived relationship investment, community building, and intimacy) have indirect positive effects on the intention to continue using online shopping websites. Based on these findings, this research suggests that online shopping websites should build constraint-based and dedication-based influences to enhance user's continued online shopping behaviors simultaneously.

Using technology to deliver cost-effective Continuing Professional Development (CPD

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kuldeep Singh

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The work is based on engineering the audio video contents of the didactic presentations at the Regional Symposium on Sleep Medicine delivered to the target audience at NAMSCON 2013. The audio was extracted and then synchronized with Power Points, re-synthesized as SCORM (Sharable Content Object Reference Model compliant packages and integrated with Moodle (Modular Object-Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment as Learning Management System (LMS. The preliminary evaluation results showed high satisfaction with the content, its short loading time and smooth playback. These attributes were demonstrated to be effective in enhancing learning. The Moodle as LMS also allows tracking the participants' progress, involving them in social groups and open discussion forum for further enriching the online content and also helps in statistical analysis through its inbuilt web analytics. The technology is not only flexible and economical but also an effective delivery method for Continuing Professional Development Programmes.Key words: Continuing Professional Development, Learning Management System

High Temperature Smart Structures for Engine Noise Reduction and Performance Enhancement, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Noise mitigation for subsonic transports is a continuing high priority, and recent work has identified successful exhaust mixing enhancement devices (chevrons) that...

High Temperature Smart Structures for Engine Noise Reduction and Performance Enhancement, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Noise mitigation for subsonic transports is a continuing high priority, and recent work has identified successful exhaust mixing enhancement devices that have...

Continuous Re-Exposure to Environmental Sound Cues During Sleep Does Not Improve Memory for Semantically Unrelated Word Pairs

OpenAIRE

Donohue, Kelly C.; Spencer, Rebecca M. C.

2011-01-01

Two recent studies illustrated that cues present during encoding can enhance recall if re-presented during sleep. This suggests an academic strategy. Such effects have only been demonstrated with spatial learning and cue presentation was isolated to slow wave sleep (SWS). The goal of this study was to examine whether sounds enhance sleep-dependent consolidation of a semantic task if the sounds are re-presented continuously during sleep. Participants encoded a list of word pairs in the evening...

[Modeling continuous scaling of NDVI based on fractal theory].

Science.gov (United States)

Luan, Hai-Jun; Tian, Qing-Jiu; Yu, Tao; Hu, Xin-Li; Huang, Yan; Du, Ling-Tong; Zhao, Li-Min; Wei, Xi; Han, Jie; Zhang, Zhou-Wei; Li, Shao-Peng

2013-07-01

Scale effect was one of the very important scientific problems of remote sensing. The scale effect of quantitative remote sensing can be used to study retrievals' relationship between different-resolution images, and its research became an effective way to confront the challenges, such as validation of quantitative remote sensing products et al. Traditional up-scaling methods cannot describe scale changing features of retrievals on entire series of scales; meanwhile, they are faced with serious parameters correction issues because of imaging parameters' variation of different sensors, such as geometrical correction, spectral correction, etc. Utilizing single sensor image, fractal methodology was utilized to solve these problems. Taking NDVI (computed by land surface radiance) as example and based on Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) image, a scheme was proposed to model continuous scaling of retrievals. Then the experimental results indicated that: (a) For NDVI, scale effect existed, and it could be described by fractal model of continuous scaling; (2) The fractal method was suitable for validation of NDVI. All of these proved that fractal was an effective methodology of studying scaling of quantitative remote sensing.

The uptake of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) by Ghanaian radiographers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gawugah, James N.K.; Jadva-Patel, Hansa; Jackson, Marcus T.

2011-01-01

Continuing professional development (CPD) currently gains a priority within healthcare professions all over the globe. It is playing important roles in achieving improved quality care delivery. Healthcare practitioners are expected to continuously undertake CPD to maintain, enhance and improve quality of service delivery to meet the consumers' expectations. CPD offers practitioners the opportunity to retain and enhance the basic knowledge and skills through their working life; thus enhancing competency within one's professional range of practice. In Ghana, awareness of CPD participation has not been created among healthcare practitioners to enable them engage in effective CPD activities in order to improve their knowledge and skills. Purpose: To examine the level of radiographers' participation in CPD activities in Ghana. Method: A 21-item questionnaire was constructed to collect data from 80 participants drawn from among radiographers currently practising in the radiology/X-ray departments of the ten regional hospitals in Ghana. The questionnaire comprised of 3 sections: demographics, CPD and education specific sections. Out of 80 questionnaires administered, 42 were completed and returned representing 52.5%. Out of the percentage, 74% were males and 26% females. The findings highlight that majority (44%) of the participants are currently within the age group of 31-40 years, while 2% is/are 60 or more years. The article also reveals that the radiographers have access to few peer review journals which serve as sources of information on contemporary issues in radiography and CPD learning activities. Again, a generally poor level of CPD awareness among the Ghanaian radiographers has been established. Lack of effective recording of learning and CPD activities have also been revealed. Conclusion: The article concludes by recommending CPD policy guidelines; a regulatory body to register all healthcare professionals under one body to ensure effective CPD participation by

Continuous equilibrium scores: factoring in the time before a fall.

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, Scott J; Reschke, Millard F; Owen Black, F

2012-07-01

The equilibrium (EQ) score commonly used in computerized dynamic posturography is normalized between 0 and 100, with falls assigned a score of 0. The resulting mixed discrete-continuous distribution limits certain statistical analyses and treats all trials with falls equally. We propose a simple modification of the formula in which peak-to-peak sway data from trials with falls is scaled according the percent of the trial completed to derive a continuous equilibrium (cEQ) score. The cEQ scores for trials without falls remain unchanged from the original methodology. The cEQ factors in the time before a fall and results in a continuous variable retaining the central tendencies of the original EQ distribution. A random set of 5315 Sensory Organization Test trials were pooled that included 81 falls. A comparison of the original and cEQ distributions and their rank ordering demonstrated that trials with falls continue to constitute the lower range of scores with the cEQ methodology. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (0.997) demonstrates that the cEQ retained near-perfect discrimination between trials with and without falls. We conclude that the cEQ score provides the ability to discriminate between ballistic falls from falls that occur later in the trial. This approach of incorporating time and sway magnitude can be easily extended to enhance other balance tests that include fall data or incomplete trials. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Continuous, but not intermittent, antipsychotic drug delivery intensifies the pursuit of reward cues.

Science.gov (United States)

Bédard, Anne-Marie; Maheux, Jérôme; Lévesque, Daniel; Samaha, Anne-Noël

2011-05-01

Chronic exposure to antipsychotic medications can persistently change brain dopamine systems. Most studies on the functional significance of these neural changes have focused on motor behavior and few have addressed how long-term antipsychotic treatment might influence dopamine-mediated reward function. We asked, therefore, whether a clinically relevant antipsychotic treatment regimen would alter the incentive motivational properties of a reward cue. We assessed the ability of a Pavlovian-conditioned stimulus to function as a conditioned reward, as well as to elicit approach behavior in rats treated with haloperidol, either continuously (achieved via subcutaneous osmotic minipump) or intermittently (achieved via daily subcutaneous injections). Continuous, but not intermittent, treatment enhanced the ability of amphetamine to potentiate the conditioned reinforcing effects of a cue associated with water. This effect was not related to differences in the ability to attribute predictive value to a conditioned stimulus (as measured by conditioned approach behavior), but was potentially linked to the development of behavioral supersensitivity to amphetamine and to augmented amphetamine-induced immediate early-gene expression (c-fos and Nur77) in dorsal striatopallidal and striatonigral cells. By enhancing the ability of reward cues to control behavior and by intensifying dopamine-mediated striatopallidal and striatonigral cell activity, standard (ie, continuous) antipsychotic treatment regimens might exacerbate drug-seeking and drug-taking behavior in schizophrenia. Achieving regular but transiently high antipsychotic levels in the brain (as modeled in the intermittent condition) might be a viable option to prevent these changes. This possibility should be explored in the clinic.

Performance management system enhancement and maintenance

Science.gov (United States)

Cleaver, T. G.; Ahour, R.; Johnson, B. R.

1984-01-01

The research described in this report concludes a two-year effort to develop a Performance Management System (PMS) for the NCC computers. PMS provides semi-automated monthly reports to NASA and contractor management on the status and performance of the NCC computers in the TDRSS program. Throughout 1984, PMS was tested, debugged, extended, and enhanced. Regular PMS monthly reports were produced and distributed. PMS continues to operate at the NCC under control of Bendix Corp. personnel.

Continuous Dropout.

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Xu; Tian, Xinmei; Liu, Tongliang; Xu, Fang; Tao, Dacheng

2017-10-03

Dropout has been proven to be an effective algorithm for training robust deep networks because of its ability to prevent overfitting by avoiding the co-adaptation of feature detectors. Current explanations of dropout include bagging, naive Bayes, regularization, and sex in evolution. According to the activation patterns of neurons in the human brain, when faced with different situations, the firing rates of neurons are random and continuous, not binary as current dropout does. Inspired by this phenomenon, we extend the traditional binary dropout to continuous dropout. On the one hand, continuous dropout is considerably closer to the activation characteristics of neurons in the human brain than traditional binary dropout. On the other hand, we demonstrate that continuous dropout has the property of avoiding the co-adaptation of feature detectors, which suggests that we can extract more independent feature detectors for model averaging in the test stage. We introduce the proposed continuous dropout to a feedforward neural network and comprehensively compare it with binary dropout, adaptive dropout, and DropConnect on Modified National Institute of Standards and Technology, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research-10, Street View House Numbers, NORB, and ImageNet large scale visual recognition competition-12. Thorough experiments demonstrate that our method performs better in preventing the co-adaptation of feature detectors and improves test performance.

Numerical Solutions of the Mean-Value Theorem: New Methods for Downward Continuation of Potential Fields

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Chong; Lü, Qingtian; Yan, Jiayong; Qi, Guang

2018-04-01

Downward continuation can enhance small-scale sources and improve resolution. Nevertheless, the common methods have disadvantages in obtaining optimal results because of divergence and instability. We derive the mean-value theorem for potential fields, which could be the theoretical basis of some data processing and interpretation. Based on numerical solutions of the mean-value theorem, we present the convergent and stable downward continuation methods by using the first-order vertical derivatives and their upward continuation. By applying one of our methods to both the synthetic and real cases, we show that our method is stable, convergent and accurate. Meanwhile, compared with the fast Fourier transform Taylor series method and the integrated second vertical derivative Taylor series method, our process has very little boundary effect and is still stable in noise. We find that the characters of the fading anomalies emerge properly in our downward continuation with respect to the original fields at the lower heights.

The use of maleic anhydride-modified polypropylene for performance enhancement in continuous glass fiber-reinforced polypropylene composites

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rijsdijk, H.A.; Contant, M.; Peijs, A.A.J.M.; Miravete, A.

1993-01-01

The influence of maleic anhydride-modified polypropylene (m-PP) on static mech. properties of continuous glass fiber-reinforced polypropylene (PP) composites was studied. M-PP was added to the PP homopolymer to improve the adhesion between the matrix and the glass fiber. Three-point bending tests

Synthesis of Cyclic α-Diazo-β-keto Sulfoxides in Batch and Continuous Flow.

Science.gov (United States)

McCaw, Patrick G; Buckley, Naomi M; Eccles, Kevin S; Lawrence, Simon E; Maguire, Anita R; Collins, Stuart G

2017-04-07

Diazo transfer to β-keto sulfoxides to form stable isolable α-diazo-β-keto sulfoxides has been achieved for the first time. Both monocyclic and benzofused ketone derived β-keto sulfoxides were successfully explored as substrates for diazo transfer. Use of continuous flow leads to isolation of the desired compounds in enhanced yields relative to standard batch conditions, with short reaction times, increased safety profile, and potential to scale up.

Prototype Web-based continuing medical education using FlashPix images.

Science.gov (United States)

Landman, A; Yagi, Y; Gilbertson, J; Dawson, R; Marchevsky, A; Becich, M J

2000-01-01

Continuing Medical Education (CME) is a requirement among practicing physicians to promote continuous enhancement of clinical knowledge to reflect new developments in medical care. Previous research has harnessed the Web to disseminate complete pathology CME case studies including history, images, diagnoses, and discussions to the medical community. Users submit real-time diagnoses and receive instantaneous feedback, eliminating the need for hard copies of case material and case evaluation forms. This project extends the Web-based CME paradigm with the incorporation of multi-resolution FlashPix images and an intuitive, interactive user interface. The FlashPix file format combines a high-resolution version of an image with a hierarchy of several lower resolution copies, providing real-time magnification via a single image file. The Web interface was designed specifically to simulate microscopic analysis, using the latest Javascript, Java and Common Gateway Interface tools. As the project progresses to the evaluation stage, it is hoped that this active learning format will provide a practical and efficacious environment for continuing medical education with additional application potential in classroom demonstrations, proficiency testing, and telepathology. Using Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 and above, the working prototype Web-based CME environment is accessible at http://telepathology.upmc.edu/WebInterface/NewInterface/welcome.html.

Overexpression of TGF-β1 enhances chondrogenic differentiation and proliferation of human synovium-derived stem cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Yong Il; Ryu, Jae-Sung; Yeo, Jee Eun; Choi, Yun Jin; Kim, Yong Sang [Center for Stem Cell and Arthritis Research, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Yonsei Sarang Hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Ko, Kinarm [Center for Stem Cell Research, Institute of Advanced Biomedical Science, Konkuk University, Seoul 143-701 (Korea, Republic of); Koh, Yong-Gon, E-mail: yonseranglab@daum.net [Center for Stem Cell and Arthritis Research, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Yonsei Sarang Hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2014-08-08

Highlights: • Continuous TGF-β1 overexpression in hSD-MSCs did not influence their phenotypes. • Retroviral-mediated transduction of TGFB1 in hSD-MSCs enhances cell proliferation. • TGF-β1 overexpression did not effect to adipo- or osteogenic potential of hSD-MSCs. • TGF-β1 overexpression in hSD-MSCs could stimulate and accelerate chondrogenesis. - Abstract: Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) superfamily proteins play a critical role in proliferation, differentiation, and other functions of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). During chondrogenic differentiation of MSCs, TGF-β up-regulates chondrogenic gene expression by enhancing the expression of the transcription factor SRY (sex-determining region Y)-box9 (Sox9). In this study, we investigated the effect of continuous TGF-β1 overexpression in human synovium-derived MSCs (hSD-MSCs) on immunophenotype, differentiation potential, and proliferation rate. hSD-MSCs were transduced with recombinant retroviruses (rRV) encoding TGF-β1. The results revealed that continuous overexpression of TGF-β1 did not affect their phenotype as evidenced by flow cytometry and reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR). In addition, continuous TGF-β1 overexpression strongly enhanced cell proliferation of hSD-MSCs compared to the control groups. Also, induction of chondrogenesis was more effective in rRV-TGFB-transduced hSD-MSCs as shown by RT-PCR for chondrogenic markers, toluidine blue staining and glycosaminoglycan (GAG)/DNA ratio. Our data suggest that overexpression of TGF-β1 positively enhances the proliferation and chondrogenic potential of hSD-MSCs.

Overexpression of TGF-β1 enhances chondrogenic differentiation and proliferation of human synovium-derived stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Yong Il; Ryu, Jae-Sung; Yeo, Jee Eun; Choi, Yun Jin; Kim, Yong Sang; Ko, Kinarm; Koh, Yong-Gon

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Continuous TGF-β1 overexpression in hSD-MSCs did not influence their phenotypes. • Retroviral-mediated transduction of TGFB1 in hSD-MSCs enhances cell proliferation. • TGF-β1 overexpression did not effect to adipo- or osteogenic potential of hSD-MSCs. • TGF-β1 overexpression in hSD-MSCs could stimulate and accelerate chondrogenesis. - Abstract: Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) superfamily proteins play a critical role in proliferation, differentiation, and other functions of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). During chondrogenic differentiation of MSCs, TGF-β up-regulates chondrogenic gene expression by enhancing the expression of the transcription factor SRY (sex-determining region Y)-box9 (Sox9). In this study, we investigated the effect of continuous TGF-β1 overexpression in human synovium-derived MSCs (hSD-MSCs) on immunophenotype, differentiation potential, and proliferation rate. hSD-MSCs were transduced with recombinant retroviruses (rRV) encoding TGF-β1. The results revealed that continuous overexpression of TGF-β1 did not affect their phenotype as evidenced by flow cytometry and reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR). In addition, continuous TGF-β1 overexpression strongly enhanced cell proliferation of hSD-MSCs compared to the control groups. Also, induction of chondrogenesis was more effective in rRV-TGFB-transduced hSD-MSCs as shown by RT-PCR for chondrogenic markers, toluidine blue staining and glycosaminoglycan (GAG)/DNA ratio. Our data suggest that overexpression of TGF-β1 positively enhances the proliferation and chondrogenic potential of hSD-MSCs

Participation in online continuing education.

Science.gov (United States)

Farrell, Barbara; Ward, Natalie; Jennings, Brad; Jones, Caitlin; Jorgenson, Derek; Gubbels-Smith, Ashley; Dolovich, Lisa; Kennie, Natalie

2016-02-01

The ADAPT (ADapting pharmacists' skills and Approaches to maximize Patients' drug Therapy effectiveness) e-learning programme requires weekly participation in module activities and facilitated discussion to support skill uptake. In this study, we sought to describe the extent and pattern of, satisfaction with and factors affecting participation in the initial programme offering and reasons for withdrawal. Mixed methods - convergent parallel approach. Participation was examined in qualitative data from discussion boards, assignments and action plans. Learner estimations of time commitment and action plan submission rates were calculated. Surveys (Likert scale and open-ended questions) included mid-point and final, exit and participation surveys. Eleven of 86 learners withdrew, most due to time constraints (eight completed an exit survey; seven said they would take ADAPT again). Thirty-five of 75 remaining learners completed a participation survey. Although 50-60% of the remaining 75 learners actively continued participating, only 15/35 respondents felt satisfied with their own participation. Learners spent 3-5 h/week (average) on module activities. Factors challenging participation included difficulty with technology, managing time and group work. Factors facilitating participation included willingness to learn (content of high interest) and supportive work environment. Being informed of programme time scheduling in advance was identified as a way to enhance participation. This study determined extent of learner participation in an online pharmacist continuing education programme and identified factors influencing participation. Interactions between learners and the online interface, content and with other learners are important considerations for designing online education programmes. Recommendations for programme changes were incorporated following this evaluation to facilitate participation. © 2015 Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

Near-field enhanced optical tweezers utilizing femtosecond-laser nanostructured substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kotsifaki, D. G., E-mail: dkotsif@eie.gr; Kandyla, M. [Theoretical and Physical Chemistry Institute, National Hellenic Research Foundation, 48 Vasileos Constantinou Avenue, 11635 Athens (Greece); Lagoudakis, P. G. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ (United Kingdom)

2015-11-23

We present experimental evidence of plasmonic-enhanced optical tweezers, of polystyrene beads in deionized water in the vicinity of metal-coated nanostructures. The optical tweezers operate with a continuous wave near-infrared laser. We employ a Cu/Au bilayer that significantly improves dissipation of heat generated by the trapping laser beam and avoid de-trapping from heat convection currents. We investigate the improvement of the optical trapping force and the effective trapping quality factor, and observe an exponential distance dependence of the trapping force from the nanostructures, indicative of evanescent plasmonic enhancement.

Smarandache Continued Fractions

OpenAIRE

Ibstedt, H.

2001-01-01

The theory of general continued fractions is developed to the extent required in order to calculate Smarandache continued fractions to a given number of decimal places. Proof is given for the fact that Smarandache general continued fractions built with positive integer Smarandache sequences baving only a finite number of terms equal to 1 is convergent. A few numerical results are given.

The Effects of Cattle Manure and Garlic Rotation on Soil under Continuous Cropping of Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.).

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Ruiping; Mo, Yanling; Liu, Changming; Wang, Yongqi; Ma, Jianxiang; Zhang, Yong; Li, Hao; Zhang, Xian

2016-01-01

Continuous cropping of watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.) can lead to reduced yield and quality. We aimed to determine the effects of cattle manure addition and rotation with green garlic to improve yield and reduce disease incidence in watermelon and to examine the effects on the biological and chemical characteristics of the soil. Field experiments were performed during 2012-2014 on land previously under two years of continuous watermelon cropping in northwest China. We examined three treatment combinations: watermelon and garlic rotation, cattle manure application before watermelon planting, and combined cattle manure addition and crop rotation. Watermelon monoculture was retained as a control. Watermelon yield was significantly higher and disease incidence was lower in the treatments than the control. The populations of soil bacteria and actinomycetes and the bacteria/fungi ratio increased significantly and soil enzyme activities were generally enhanced under treatments. Available nutrients and soil organic matter contents were much higher under experimental treatments than the control. Results suggest both cattle manure application and garlic rotation can ameliorate the negative effects of continuous cropping. The combined treatment of cattle manure addition and green garlic rotation was optimal to increase yield, reduce disease incidence and enhance soil quality.

Dose Dependent Survival Response in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia under Continuous and Pulsed Targeted Therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pizzolato, N.; Valenti, D.; Spagnolo, B.; Persano Adorno, D.

2010-01-01

A simulative study of cancer growth dynamics in patients affected by Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML), under the effect of a targeted dose dependent continuous or pulsed therapy, is presented. We have developed a model for the dynamics of CML in which the stochastic evolution of white blood cell populations are simulated by adopting a Monte Carlo approach. Several scenarios in the evolutionary dynamics of white blood cells, as a consequence of the efficacy of the different modelled therapies, pulsed or continuous, are described. The best results, in terms of a permanent disappearance of the leukemic phenotype, are achieved with a continuous therapy and higher dosage. However, our findings demonstrate that an intermittent therapy could represent a valid choice in patients with high risk of toxicity, when a long-term therapy is considered. A suitably tuned pulsed therapy can enhance the treatment efficacy and reduce the percentage of patients developing resistance. (authors)

Enhancing managerial effectiveness in dietetics.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoover, L W

1983-01-01

Environmental pressures from such sources as economic conditions, the government, third-party payers, and inter-institutional competition create managerial challenges. Although cost-containment has received considerable attention, long-term cost-effectiveness is probably the significant issue. Dietitians must become more cost-conscious and effective in resource management to attain desired performance outcomes. Some of the skills and characteristics essential to managerial effectiveness are a marketing orientation, systems design skill, quantitative operations management techniques, financial expertise, and leadership. These abilities facilitate decision-making and achievement of long-term cost-effectiveness. Curriculum enhancement and continuing education are two strategies for improving managerial competency in the dietetics profession. In dietetics education, study of management topics should be enhanced to provide more advanced coverage of management theories and quantitative models so that managerial performance can be at a higher level of sophistication and competency. To assure the viability of the dietetics profession, the emphasis on management must be more comprehensive and rigorous.

Generalized analytic continuation

CERN Document Server

Ross, William T

2002-01-01

The theory of generalized analytic continuation studies continuations of meromorphic functions in situations where traditional theory says there is a natural boundary. This broader theory touches on a remarkable array of topics in classical analysis, as described in the book. This book addresses the following questions: (1) When can we say, in some reasonable way, that component functions of a meromorphic function on a disconnected domain, are "continuations" of each other? (2) What role do such "continuations" play in certain aspects of approximation theory and operator theory? The authors use the strong analogy with the summability of divergent series to motivate the subject. In this vein, for instance, theorems can be described as being "Abelian" or "Tauberian". The introductory overview carefully explains the history and context of the theory. The authors begin with a review of the works of Poincaré, Borel, Wolff, Walsh, and Gončar, on continuation properties of "Borel series" and other meromorphic func...

The Common Core State Standards: An Opportunity to Enhance Formative Assessment in History/Social Studies Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Ateh, Comfort M.; Wyngowski, Aaron J.

2015-01-01

This article discusses the opportunity that the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) present for enhancing formative assessment (FA) in history and social studies classrooms. There is evidence that FA can enhance learning for students if implemented well. Unfortunately, teachers continue to be challenged in implementing FA in their classrooms. We…

Impact of quantum–classical correspondence on entanglement enhancement by single-mode squeezing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joseph, Sijo K.; Chew, Lock Yue; Sanjuán, Miguel A.F.

2014-01-01

Quantum entanglement between two field modes can be achieved through the collective squeezing of the two respective modes. If single-mode squeezing is performed prior to such a two-mode squeezing, an enhancement of entanglement production can happen. Interestingly, the occurrence of this enhancement can be implicitly linked to the local classical dynamical behavior via the paradigm of quantum–classical correspondence. In particular, the entanglement generated through quantum chaos is found to be hardly enhanced by prior squeezing, since it is bounded by the saturation value of the maximally entangled Schmidt state with fixed energy. These results illustrate that entanglement enhancement via initial squeezing can serve as a useful indicator of quantum chaotic behaviour. - Highlights: • Continuous-variable entanglement is explored in the Pullen–Edmonds Hamiltonian. • The local phase-space structure and the entanglement enhancement are related. • Entanglement enhancement via squeezing is smaller for the chaotic orbit. • Entanglement enhancement via squeezing is higher for the regular orbit. • The magnitude of the entanglement enhancement serves as a quantum-chaos indicator

An extended continuous estimation of distribution algorithm for solving the permutation flow-shop scheduling problem

Science.gov (United States)

Shao, Zhongshi; Pi, Dechang; Shao, Weishi

2017-11-01

This article proposes an extended continuous estimation of distribution algorithm (ECEDA) to solve the permutation flow-shop scheduling problem (PFSP). In ECEDA, to make a continuous estimation of distribution algorithm (EDA) suitable for the PFSP, the largest order value rule is applied to convert continuous vectors to discrete job permutations. A probabilistic model based on a mixed Gaussian and Cauchy distribution is built to maintain the exploration ability of the EDA. Two effective local search methods, i.e. revolver-based variable neighbourhood search and Hénon chaotic-based local search, are designed and incorporated into the EDA to enhance the local exploitation. The parameters of the proposed ECEDA are calibrated by means of a design of experiments approach. Simulation results and comparisons based on some benchmark instances show the efficiency of the proposed algorithm for solving the PFSP.

The PTRC : a world leader in enhanced heavy oil recovery

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kristoff, B.; Knudsen, R.; Asghari, K. [Petroleum Technology Research Centre, Regina, SK (Canada); Pappas, E.S. [Saskatchewan Research Council, Saskatoon, SK (Canada)

2006-07-01

The Petroleum Technology Research Centre (PTRC) fosters knowledge and progressive technologies to enhance the recovery of petroleum. This paper discussed the PTRC's leadership in enhanced heavy oil recovery, with particular reference to core research program such as heavy oil (post) cold flow; enhanced waterflooding; miscible/immiscible solvent injection; and near-wellbore conformance control. Other projects that were presented included a joint implementation of vapour extraction project (JIVE); and the IEA greenhouse gas (GHG) Weyburn-Midale carbon dioxide monitoring and storage project. The JIVE project will develop, demonstrate and evaluate solvent vapour extraction processes for enhanced oil recovery in heavy oil reservoirs. The GHG Weyburn-Midale project, launched in 2000, studies carbon dioxide injection and storage in partially depleted oil reservoirs. It was concluded that the PTRC continues to develop technologies to meet the world's energy requirements while mitigating both immediate and long-term environmental impacts. 4 figs.

Continuous intravenous infusions of bromodeoxyuridine as a clinical radiosensitizer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kinsella, T.J.; Mitchell, J.B.; Russo, A.; Aiken, M.; Morstyn, G.; Hsu, S.M.; Rowland, J.; Glatstein, E.

1984-01-01

Twelve patients were treated with continuous intravenous (24-hour) infusions of bromodeoxyuridine (BUdR) at 650 or 1000 mg/m2/d for up to two weeks. Myelosuppression, especially thrombocytopenia, was the major systemic toxicity and limited the infusion period to nine to 14 days. However, bone marrow recovery occurred within seven to ten days, allowing for a second infusion in most patients. Local toxicity (within the radiation field) was minimal, with the exception of one of four patients, who underwent abdominal irradiation. Pharmacology studies revealed a steady-state arterial plasma level of 6 x 10(-7) mol/L and 1 x 10(-6) mol/L during infusion of 650 and 1000 mg/m2/d, respectively. In vivo BUdR uptake into normal bone marrow was evaluated in two patients by comparison of preinfusion and postinfusion in vitro radiation survival curves of marrow CFUc with enhancement ratios (D0-pre/D0-post) of 1.8 (with 650 mg/m2/d) and 2.5 (with 1000 mg/m2/d). In vivo BUdR incorporation into normal skin and tumor cells using an anti-BUdR monoclonal antibody and immunohistochemistry was demonstrated in biopsies from three patients revealing substantially less cellular incorporation into normal skin (less than 10%) compared with tumor (up to 50% to 70%). The authors conclude that local and systemic toxicity of continuous infusion of BUdR at 1000 mg/m2/d for approximately two weeks is tolerable. The observed normal tissue toxicity is comparable with previous clinical experience with intermittent (12 hours every day for two weeks) infusions of BUdR. Theoretically, a constant infusion should allow for greater incorporation of BUdR into cycling tumor cells and thus, for further enhancement of radiosensitization

Integrated Quantum Optics: Experiments towards integrated quantum-light sources and quantum-enhanced sensing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hoff, Ulrich Busk

The work presented in this thesis is focused on experimental application and generation of continuous variable quantum correlated states of light in integrated dielectric structures. Squeezed states are among the most exploited continuous variable optical states for free-space quantum-enhanced se...... is presented and an optimized device design is proposed. The devices have been fabricated and tested optically and preliminary interrogations of the output quantum noise have been performed....

Cardiac Rehabilitation for Patients With Coronary Artery Disease: A Practical Guide to Enhance Patient Outcomes Through Continuity of Care

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Catherine Giuliano

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Coronary artery disease (CAD is a leading cause of disease burden worldwide. Referral to cardiac rehabilitation (CR is a class I recommendation for all patients with CAD based on findings that participation can reduce cardiovascular and all-cause mortality, as well as improve functional capacity and quality of life. However, programme uptake remains low, systematic progression through the traditional CR phases is often lacking, and communication between health care providers is frequently suboptimal, resulting in fragmented care. Only 30% to 50% of eligible patients are typically referred to outpatient CR and fewer still complete the programme. In contemporary models of CR, patients are no longer treated by a single practitioner, but rather by an array of health professionals, across multiples specialities and health care settings. The risk of fragmented care in CR may be great, and a concerted approach is required to achieve continuity and optimise patient outcomes. ‘Continuity of care’ has been described as the delivery of services in a coherent, logical, and timely fashion and which entails 3 specific domains: informational, management, and relational continuity. This is examined in the context of CR.

Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Strategies with Bubble Nasal Continuous Positive Airway Pressure: Not All Bubbling Is the Same: The Seattle Positive Airway Pressure System.

Science.gov (United States)

Welty, Stephen E

2016-12-01

Premature neonates are predisposed to complications, including bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). BPD is associated with long-term pulmonary and neurodevelopmental consequences. Noninvasive respiratory support with nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) has been recommended strongly by the American Academy of Pediatrics. However, CPAP implementation has shown at least a 50% failure rate. Enhancing nasal CPAP effectiveness may decrease the need for mechanical ventilation and reduce the incidence of BPD. Bubble nasal CPAP is better than nasal CPAP using mechanical devices and the bubbling provides air exchange in distal respiratory units. The Seattle PAP system reduces parameters that assess work of breathing. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Microfluidic device for continuous single cells analysis via Raman spectroscopy enhanced by integrated plasmonic nanodimers

KAUST Repository

Perozziello, Gerardo

2015-12-11

In this work a Raman flow cytometer is presented. It consists of a microfluidic device that takes advantages of the basic principles of Raman spectroscopy and flow cytometry. The microfluidic device integrates calibrated microfluidic channels- where the cells can flow one-by-one -, allowing single cell Raman analysis. The microfluidic channel integrates plasmonic nanodimers in a fluidic trapping region. In this way it is possible to perform Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy on single cell. These allow a label-free analysis, providing information about the biochemical content of membrane and cytoplasm of the each cell. Experiments are performed on red blood cells (RBCs), peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) and myelogenous leukemia tumor cells (K562). © 2015 Optical Society of America.

Eliminating the Attentional Blink through Binaural Beats: A Case for Tailored Cognitive Enhancement.

Science.gov (United States)

Reedijk, Susan A; Bolders, Anne; Colzato, Lorenza S; Hommel, Bernhard

2015-01-01

Enhancing human cognitive performance is a topic that continues to spark scientific interest. Studies into cognitive-enhancement techniques often fail to take inter-individual differences into account, however, which leads to underestimation of the effectiveness of these techniques. The current study investigated the effect of binaural beats, a cognitive-enhancement technique, on attentional control in an attentional blink (AB) task. As predicted from a neurocognitive approach to cognitive control, high-frequency binaural beats eliminated the AB, but only in individuals with low spontaneous eye-blink rates (indicating low striatal dopamine levels). This suggests that the way in which cognitive-enhancement techniques, such as binaural beats, affect cognitive performance depends on inter-individual differences.

Eliminating the attentional blink through binaural beats: A case for tailored cognitive enhancement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susan A. Reedijk

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Enhancing human cognitive performance is a topic that continues to spark scientific interest. Studies into cognitive enhancement techniques often fail to take inter-individual differences into account, however, which leads to underestimation of the effectiveness of these techniques. The current study investigated the effect of binaural beats, a cognitive enhancement technique, on attentional control in an attentional blink task. As predicted from a neurocognitive approach to cognitive control, high-frequency binaural beats eliminated the attentional blink, but only in individuals with low spontaneous eye-blink rates (indicating low striatal dopamine levels. This suggests that the way in which cognitive enhancement techniques, such as binaural beats, affect cognitive performance depends on inter-individual differences.

Hypertension and Cardiovascular Remodelling in Rats Exposed to Continuous Light: Protection by ACE-Inhibition and Melatonin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fedor Simko

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Exposure of rats to continuous light attenuates melatonin production and results in hypertension development. This study investigated whether hypertension induced by continuous light (24 hours/day exposure induces heart and aorta remodelling and if these alterations are prevented by melatonin or angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor captopril. Four groups of 3-month-old male Wistar rats (10 per group were treated as follows for six weeks: untreated controls, exposed to continuous light, light-exposed, and treated with either captopril (100 mg/kg/day or melatonin (10 mg/kg/day. Exposure to continuous light led to hypertension, left ventricular (LV hypertrophy and fibrosis, and enhancement of the oxidative load in the LV and aorta. Increase in systolic blood pressure by continuous light exposure was prevented completely by captopril and partially by melatonin. Both captopril and melatonin reduced the wall thickness and cross-sectional area of the aorta and reduced the level of oxidative stress. However, only captopril reduced LV hypertrophy development and only melatonin reduced LV hydroxyproline concentration in insoluble and total collagen in rats exposed to continuous light. In conclusion, captopril prevented LV hypertrophy development in the continuous light-induced hypertension model, while only melatonin significantly reduced fibrosis. This antifibrotic action of melatonin may be protective in hypertensive heart disease.

Cluster Observations of Non-Time Continuous Magnetosonic Waves

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Simon N.; Demekhov, Andrei G.; Boardsen, Scott A.; Ganushkina, Natalia Y.; Sibeck, David G.; Balikhin, Michael A.

2016-01-01

Equatorial magnetosonic waves are normally observed as temporally continuous sets of emissions lasting from minutes to hours. Recent observations, however, have shown that this is not always the case. Using Cluster data, this study identifies two distinct forms of these non temporally continuous use missions. The first, referred to as rising tone emissions, are characterized by the systematic onset of wave activity at increasing proton gyroharmonic frequencies. Sets of harmonic emissions (emission elements)are observed to occur periodically in the region +/- 10 off the geomagnetic equator. The sweep rate of these emissions maximizes at the geomagnetic equator. In addition, the ellipticity and propagation direction also change systematically as Cluster crosses the geomagnetic equator. It is shown that the observed frequency sweep rate is unlikely to result from the sideband instability related to nonlinear trapping of suprathermal protons in the wave field. The second form of emissions is characterized by the simultaneous onset of activity across a range of harmonic frequencies. These waves are observed at irregular intervals. Their occurrence correlates with changes in the spacecraft potential, a measurement that is used as a proxy for electron density. Thus, these waves appear to be trapped within regions of localized enhancement of the electron density.

Effects of intermittent versus continuous parathyroid hormone administration on condylar chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Qi; Wan, Qilong; Yang, Rongtao; Zhou, Haihua; Li, Zubing

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Different PTH administration exerts different effects on condylar chondrocyte. ► Intermittent PTH administration suppresses condylar chondrocyte proliferation. ► Continuous PTH administration maintains condylar chondrocyte proliferating. ► Intermittent PTH administration enhances condylar chondrocyte differentiation. -- Abstract: Endochondral ossification is a complex process involving chondrogenesis and osteogenesis regulated by many hormones and growth factors. Parathyroid hormone (PTH), one of the key hormones regulating bone metabolism, promotes osteoblast differentiation and osteogenesis by intermittent administration, whereas continuous PTH administration inhibits bone formation. However, the effects of PTH on chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation are still unclear. In this study, intermittent PTH administration presented enhanced effects on condylar chondrocyte differentiation and bone formation, as demonstrated by increased mineral nodule formation and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, up-regulated runt-related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2), ALP, collagen type X (COL10a1), collagen type I (COL1a1), osteocalcin (OCN), bone sialoprotein (BSP), bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2) and osterix (OSX) mRNA and/or protein expression. On the contrary, continuous PTH administration promoted condylar chondrocyte proliferation and suppressed its differentiation, as demonstrated by up-regulated collagen type II (COL2a1) mRNA expression, reduced mineral nodule formation and down-regulated expression of the mRNAs and/or proteins mentioned above. Our data suggest that PTH can regulate condylar chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation, depending on the type of PTH administration. These results provide new insight into the effects of PTH on condylar chondrocytes and new evidence for using local PTH administration to cure mandibular asymmetry.

Cutting Out Continuations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bahr, Patrick; Hutton, Graham

2016-01-01

In the field of program transformation, one often transforms programs into continuation-passing style to make their flow of control explicit, and then immediately removes the resulting continuations using defunctionalisation to make the programs first-order. In this article, we show how these two...... transformations can be fused together into a single transformation step that cuts out the need to first introduce and then eliminate continuations. Our approach is calculational, uses standard equational reasoning techniques, and is widely applicable....

Beyond Continuous Delivery: An Empirical Investigation of Continuous Deployment Challenges

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Shahin, Mojtaba; Ali Babar, Muhammad; Zahedi, Mansooreh

2017-01-01

Context: A growing number of software organizations have been adopting Continuous DElivery (CDE) and Continuous Deployment (CD) practices. Researchers have started investing significant efforts in studying different aspects of CDE and CD. Many studies refer to CDE (i.e., where an application is p...

Multi-stage Continuous Culture Fermentation of Glucose-Xylose Mixtures to Fuel Ethanol using Genetically Engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae 424A

Science.gov (United States)

Multi-stage continuous (chemostat) culture fermentation (MCCF) with variable fermentor volumes was carried out to study utilizing glucose and xylose for ethanol production by means of mixed sugar fermentation (MSF). Variable fermentor volumes were used to enable enhanced sugar u...

A Framework For Enhancing Privacy In Location Based Services Using K-Anonymity Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jane Mugi

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract This paper presents a framework for enhancing privacy in Location Based Services using K-anonymity model. Users of location based services have to reveal their location information in order to use these services however this has threatened the user privacy. K-anonymity approach has been studied extensively in various forms. However it is only effective when the user location is fixed. When a user moves and continuously sends their location information the location service provider can approximate user trajectory which poses a threat to the trajectory privacy of the user. This framework will ensure that user privacy is enhanced for both snapshot and continuous queries. The efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed framework was evaluated the results indicate that the proposed framework has high success rate and good run time performance.

MR enhancement of epidural fibrosis by Gd-DTPA: Biodistribution and mechanism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ross, J.S.; Delamater, R.; Van Dyke, C.W.; Masaryk, T.J.; Hueftle, M.G.; Bohlman, H.; Modic, M.T.

1987-01-01

Epidural lumbar fibrosis was induced in eight beagle dogs at the L-6 level. Vascular injection with india ink showed abundant vessels in the scar. This agreed with light microscopy in eight patients with epidural fibrosis, which enhanced with Gd-DTPA from a clinical trial. Electron microscopy of epidural scar in humans and dogs demonstrated a continuous endothelium with scattered tight junctions. Biodistirbution was determined in four dogs with rapid MR scanning following intravenous (IV) bolus of 0.1 mmol/kg of Gd-DTPA and radioassay of tissue samples following Gd-153-DTPA IV injection. Maximum percent enhancement (70% humans, 100% dogs) occurred at 3-6 minutes in epidural fibrosis with a slow decline in enhancement over the next hour. These findings suggest that Gd-DTPA enhancement of epidural fibrosis is via an extracellular distribution within vascularized scar tissue

ICT applications enhancing energy efficiency

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. G. Matani

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Computers, laptops and mobile devices – information technology (IT accounts for 2% of human greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, as evidenced in a study by Global Action Plan, a UK based environmental organization. This figure can be reduced if the green segment, or Green IT, continues to grow. Energy can also be saved through cloud computing, namely the principle of outsourcing the programs and functions of one’s own computer to service providers over the internet. This also means sharing storage capacity with others. This paper highlights the impact of information technology applications towards enhancing energy efficiency of the systems.

Continuous Non-malleable Codes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Faust, Sebastian; Mukherjee, Pratyay; Nielsen, Jesper Buus

2014-01-01

or modify it to the encoding of a completely unrelated value. This paper introduces an extension of the standard non-malleability security notion - so-called continuous non-malleability - where we allow the adversary to tamper continuously with an encoding. This is in contrast to the standard notion of non...... is necessary to achieve continuous non-malleability in the split-state model. Moreover, we illustrate that none of the existing constructions satisfies our uniqueness property and hence is not secure in the continuous setting. We construct a split-state code satisfying continuous non-malleability. Our scheme...... is based on the inner product function, collision-resistant hashing and non-interactive zero-knowledge proofs of knowledge and requires an untamperable common reference string. We apply continuous non-malleable codes to protect arbitrary cryptographic primitives against tampering attacks. Previous...

Seasonally asymmetric enhancement of northern vegetation productivity

Science.gov (United States)

Park, T.; Myneni, R.

2017-12-01

Multiple evidences of widespread greening and increasing terrestrial carbon uptake have been documented. In particular, enhanced gross productivity of northern vegetation has been a critical role leading to observed carbon uptake trend. However, seasonal photosynthetic activity and its contribution to observed annual carbon uptake trend and interannual variability are not well understood. Here, we introduce a multiple-source of datasets including ground, atmospheric and satellite observations, and multiple process-based global vegetation models to understand how seasonal variation of land surface vegetation controls a large-scale carbon exchange. Our analysis clearly shows a seasonally asymmetric enhancement of northern vegetation productivity in growing season during last decades. Particularly, increasing gross productivity in late spring and early summer is obvious and dominant driver explaining observed trend and variability. We observe more asymmetric productivity enhancement in warmer region and this spatially varying asymmetricity in northern vegetation are likely explained by canopy development rate, thermal and light availability. These results imply that continued warming may facilitate amplifying asymmetric vegetation activity and cause these trends to become more pervasive, in turn warming induced regime shift in northern land.

Risk reduction and TQM: A corporate culture of continuous improvement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nau, D.C.

1992-01-01

A company supplying products and services to the nuclear industry that implements a cultural commitment to continuous improvement, in addition to providing higher quality products and services, also represents a significant reduction in operational risk to that industry. The implementation of a culture of total quality management (TQM), initiated by Sorrento Electronics (SE) in 1989, involves total commitment to the basic TQM principles: continuous improvement, people performing the work are the best sources of how to do it better, and employees must be empowered to make the improvements. What this means to the nuclear industry is a significant reduction in operational risk through: (1) products based on simpler, standardized, proven designs with established operational track records, enhancing confidence that they will perform as expected; (2) the highest confidence that products and supporting documentation are delivered with zero defects; (3) critical power plant schedules can be supported through the shortest possible equipment delivery times; (4) highly motivated employees with extremely positive attitudes, working together in cross-functional teams, virtually eliminate the possibility of deliberate product tampering or sabotage

The 'humble' bubble: Contrast-enhanced ultrasound

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marshall, Gill; Sykes, Anne; Berry, Jonathan; Jonker, Leon

2011-01-01

The use of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) is increasing within the field of medical imaging. Ultrasonic contrast agent (UCA) contain gas microbubbles similar in size to red corpuscles which provide highly reflective interfaces, enabling dynamic demonstration of echogenic streams of the contrast within the anatomical area of interest on real-time grey scale ultrasound. Longevity of the microbubbles has been improved by changing their composition. The application of CEUS in the UK continues to grow, bringing it into territories historically occupied by computerised tomography (CT) scanning and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Hence, the role of CEUS may be of interest to all diagnostic imaging practitioners. Here we summarise the mode of action and use of CEUS, and its role within a range of applications. The potential risks of CEUS are compared to other contrast-enhanced imaging techniques. The benefits of CEUS and its implications for diagnostic imaging practice are also covered.

Continuous hyperpolarization with parahydrogen in a membrane reactor

Science.gov (United States)

Lehmkuhl, Sören; Wiese, Martin; Schubert, Lukas; Held, Mathias; Küppers, Markus; Wessling, Matthias; Blümich, Bernhard

2018-06-01

Hyperpolarization methods entail a high potential to boost the sensitivity of NMR. Even though the "Signal Amplification by Reversible Exchange" (SABRE) approach uses para-enriched hydrogen, p-H2, to repeatedly achieve high polarization levels on target molecules without altering their chemical structure, such studies are often limited to batch experiments in NMR tubes. Alternatively, this work introduces a continuous flow setup including a membrane reactor for the p-H2, supply and consecutive detection in a 1 T NMR spectrometer. Two SABRE substrates pyridine and nicotinamide were hyperpolarized, and more than 1000-fold signal enhancement was found. Our strategy combines low-field NMR spectrometry and a membrane flow reactor. This enables precise control of the experimental conditions such as liquid and gas pressures, and volume flow for ensuring repeatable maximum polarization.

Study on shear strengthening of RC continuous T-beams using different layers of CFRP strips

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Alferjani, M. B. S.; Samad, A. A. Abdul; Mohamad, Noridah [Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Batu Pahat (Malaysia); Elrawaff, Blkasem S.; Elzaroug, Omer [Faculty of Civil Engineering Omar Al Mukhtar University, Bayda, Libya, Africa (Libya)

2015-05-15

Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates are externally bonded to reinforced concrete (RC) members to provide additional strength such as flexural, shear, etc. However, this paper presents the results of an experimental investigation for enhancing the shear capacity of reinforced concrete (RC) continuous T- beams using different layers of CFRP wrapping schemes. A total of three concrete beams were tested and various sheet configurations and layouts were studied to determine their effects on ultimate shear strength and shear capacity of the beams. One beam was kept as control beams, while other beams were strengthened with externally bonded CFRP strips with three side bonding and one or two layers of CFRP strips. From the test results, it was found that all schemes were found to be effective in enhancing the shear strength of RC beams. It was observed that the strength increases with the number of sheet layers provided the most effective strengthening for RC continuous T- beam. Beam strengthened using this scheme showed 23.21% increase in shear capacity as compared to the control beam. Two prediction models available in literature were used for computing the contribution of CFRP strips and compared with the experimental results.

Buddhism and neuroethics: the ethics of pharmaceutical cognitive enhancement.

Science.gov (United States)

Fenton, Andrew

2009-08-01

This paper integrates some Buddhist moral values, attitudes and self-cultivation techniques into a discussion of the ethics of cognitive enhancement technologies - in particular, pharmaceutical enhancements. Many Buddhists utilize meditation techniques that are both integral to their practice and are believed to enhance the cognitive and affective states of experienced practitioners. Additionally, Mahāyāna Buddhism's teaching on skillful means permits a liberal use of methods or techniques in Buddhist practice that yield insight into our selfnature or aid in alleviating or eliminating duhkha (i.e. dissatisfaction). These features of many, if not most, Buddhist traditions will inform much of the Buddhist assessment of pharmaceutical enhancements offered in this paper. Some Buddhist concerns about the effects and context of the use of pharmaceutical enhancements will be canvassed in the discussion. Also, the author will consider Buddhist views of the possible harms that may befall human and nonhuman research subjects, interference with a recipient's karma, the artificiality of pharmaceutical enhancements, and the possible motivations or intentions of healthy individuals pursuing pharmacological enhancement. Perhaps surprisingly, none of these concerns will adequately ground a reflective Buddhist opposition to the further development and continued use of pharmaceutical enhancements, either in principle or in practice. The author argues that Buddhists, from at least certain traditions - particularly Mahāyāna Buddhist traditions - should advocate the development or use of pharmaceutical enhancements if a consequence of their use is further insight into our self-nature or the reduction or alleviation of duhkha.

Ecological dynamics of continuous and categorical decision-making: the regatta start in sailing.

Science.gov (United States)

Araújo, Duarte; Davids, Keith; Diniz, Ana; Rocha, Luis; Santos, João Coelho; Dias, Gonçalo; Fernandes, Orlando

2015-01-01

Ecological dynamics of decision-making in the sport of sailing exemplifies emergent, conditionally coupled, co-adaptive behaviours. In this study, observation of the coupling dynamics of paired boats during competitive sailing showed that decision-making can be modelled as a self-sustained, co-adapting system of informationally coupled oscillators (boats). Bytracing the spatial-temporal displacements of the boats, time series analyses (autocorrelations, periodograms and running correlations) revealed that trajectories of match racing boats are coupled more than 88% of the time during a pre-start race, via continuous, competing co-adaptions between boats. Results showed that both the continuously selected trajectories of the sailors (12 years of age) and their categorical starting point locations were examples of emergent decisions. In this dynamical conception of decision-making behaviours, strategic positioning (categorical) and continuous displacement of a boat over the course in match-race sailing emerged as a function of interacting task, personal and environmental constraints. Results suggest how key interacting constraints could be manipulated in practice to enhance sailors' perceptual attunement to them in competition.

Solar oxidation and removal of arsenic--Key parameters for continuous flow applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Gill, L W; O'Farrell, C

2015-12-01

Solar oxidation to remove arsenic from water has previously been investigated as a batch process. This research has investigated the kinetic parameters for the design of a continuous flow solar reactor to remove arsenic from contaminated groundwater supplies. Continuous flow recirculated batch experiments were carried out under artificial UV light to investigate the effect of different parameters on arsenic removal efficiency. Inlet water arsenic concentrations of up to 1000 μg/L were reduced to below 10 μg/L requiring 12 mg/L iron after receiving 12 kJUV/L radiation. Citrate however was somewhat surprisingly found to promote a detrimental effect on the removal process in the continuous flow reactor studies which is contrary to results found in batch scale tests. The impact of other typical water groundwater quality parameters (phosphate and silica) on the process due to their competition with arsenic for photooxidation products revealed a much higher sensitivity to phosphate ions compared to silicate. Other results showed no benefit from the addition of TiO2 photocatalyst but enhanced arsenic removal at higher temperatures up to 40 °C. Overall, these results have indicated the kinetic envelope from which a continuous flow SORAS single pass system could be more confidently designed for a full-scale community groundwater application at a village level. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multi-detector CT urography: effect of oral hydration and contrast medium volume on renal parenchymal enhancement and urinary tract opacification - a quantitative and qualitative analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szolar, Dieter H.; Tillich, Manfred; Preidler, Klaus W.

2010-01-01

To assess the effect of oral hydration and contrast-medium volume on renal enhancement and urinary tract opacification in multi-detector CT urography. A total of 192 patients were assigned to different protocols with varying doses of contrast agent with and without oral hydration. The attenuation was measured in the renal parenchyma in the unenhanced, nephrographic and excretory phase, and in the urinary tract in excretory phase imaging, respectively. Opacification of the urinary tract was graded on volume rendered images. Oral hydration did not significantly alter renal parenchymal enhancement in both the nephrographic and the excretory phase (p > 0.001), but significantly decreased mean attenuation of the urinary tract in the excretory phase (p ≤ 0.001), and improved continuous opacification of all ureter segments (p < 0.01). Higher volumes of contrast medium improved renal parenchymal enhancement (p ≤ 0.001) and continuous opacification of the urinary tract (p ≤ 0.01). Oral hydration leads to lower attenuation values in the urinary tract but improves the continuous opacification of the tract. Increase in contrast medium volume leads to higher renal parenchymal enhancement as well as to an increased continuous opacification of the urinary tract. Decrease in contrast medium volume cannot be compensated for by oral hydration in terms of parenchymal enhancement. (orig.)

Control of three different continuous pharmaceutical manufacturing processes: Use of soft sensors.

Science.gov (United States)

Rehrl, Jakob; Karttunen, Anssi-Pekka; Nicolaï, Niels; Hörmann, Theresa; Horn, Martin; Korhonen, Ossi; Nopens, Ingmar; De Beer, Thomas; Khinast, Johannes G

2018-05-30

One major advantage of continuous pharmaceutical manufacturing over traditional batch manufacturing is the possibility of enhanced in-process control, reducing out-of-specification and waste material by appropriate discharge strategies. The decision on material discharge can be based on the measurement of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) concentration at specific locations in the production line via process analytic technology (PAT), e.g. near-infrared (NIR) spectrometers. The implementation of the PAT instruments is associated with monetary investment and the long term operation requires techniques avoiding sensor drifts. Therefore, our paper proposes a soft sensor approach for predicting the API concentration from the feeder data. In addition, this information can be used to detect sensor drift, or serve as a replacement/supplement of specific PAT equipment. The paper presents the experimental determination of the residence time distribution of selected unit operations in three different continuous processing lines (hot melt extrusion, direct compaction, wet granulation). The mathematical models describing the soft sensor are developed and parameterized. Finally, the suggested soft sensor approach is validated on the three mentioned, different continuous processing lines, demonstrating its versatility. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Overcoming institutional challenges through continuous professionalism improvement: the University of Washington experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Fryer-Edwards, Kelly; Van Eaton, Erik; Goldstein, Erika A; Kimball, Harry R; Veith, Richard C; Pellegrini, Carlos A; Ramsey, Paul G

2007-11-01

The University of Washington (UW) School of Medicine is in the midst of an emerging ecology of professionalism. This initiative builds on prior work focusing on professionalism at the student level and moves toward the complete integration of a culture of professionalism within the UW medical community of including staff, faculty, residents, and students. The platform for initiating professionalism as institutional culture is the Committee on Continuous Professionalism Improvement, established in November 2006. This article reviews three approaches to organizational development used within and outside medicine and highlights features that are useful for enhancing an institutional culture of professionalism: organizational culture, safety culture, and appreciative inquiry. UW Medicine has defined professional development as a continuous process, built on concrete expectations, using mechanisms to facilitate learning from missteps and highlighting strengths. To this end, the school of medicine is working toward improvements in feedback, evaluation, and reward structures at all levels (student, resident, faculty, and staff) as well as creating opportunities for community dialogues on professionalism issues within the institution. Throughout all the Continuous Professionalism Improvement activities, a two-pronged approach to cultivating a culture of professionalism is taken: celebration of excellence and attention to accountability.

Plants under continuous light

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Velez Ramirez, A.I.; Ieperen, van W.; Vreugdenhill, D.; Millenaar, F.F.

2011-01-01

Continuous light is an essential tool for understanding the plant circadian clock. Additionally, continuous light might increase greenhouse food production. However, using continuous light in research and practice has its challenges. For instance, most of the circadian clock-oriented experiments

Continued Multicolumns Bioleaching for Low Grade Uranium Ore at a Certain Uranium Deposit

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gongxin Chen

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Bioleaching has lots of advantages compared with traditional heap leaching. In industry, bioleaching of uranium is still facing many problems such as site space, high cost of production, and limited industrial facilities. In this paper, a continued column bioleaching system has been established for leaching a certain uranium ore which contains high fluoride. The analysis of chemical composition of ore shows that the grade of uranium is 0.208%, which is lower than that of other deposits. However, the fluoride content (1.8% of weight is greater than that of other deposits. This can be toxic for bacteria growth in bioleaching progress. In our continued multicolumns bioleaching experiment, the uranium recovery (89.5% of 4th column is greater than those of other columns in 120 days, as well as the acid consumption (33.6 g/kg. These results indicate that continued multicolumns bioleaching technology is suitable for leaching this type of ore. The uranium concentration of PLS can be effectively improved, where uranium recovery can be enhanced by the iron exchange system. Furthermore, this continued multicolumns bioleaching system can effectively utilize the remaining acid of PLS, which can reduce the sulfuric acid consumption. The cost of production of uranium can be reduced and this benefits the environment too.

A long-term study on the effect of magnetite supplementation in continuous anaerobic digestion of dairy effluent - Magnetic separation and recycling of magnetite.

Science.gov (United States)

Baek, Gahyun; Jung, Heejung; Kim, Jaai; Lee, Changsoo

2017-10-01

Promotion of direct interspecies electron transfer (DIET) between exoelectrogenic bacteria and electron-utilizing methanogens has recently been discussed as a new method for enhanced biomethanation. This study evaluated the effect of magnetite-promoted DIET in continuous anaerobic digestion of dairy effluent and tested the magnetic separation and recycling of magnetite to avoid continuous magnetite addition. The applied magnetite recycling method effectively supported enhanced DIET activity and biomethanation performance over a long period (>250days) without adding extra magnetite. DIET via magnetite particles as electrical conduits was likely the main mechanism for the enhanced biomethanation. Magnetite formed complex aggregate structures with microbes, and magnetite recycling also helped retain more biomass in the process. Methanosaeta was likely the major methanogen group responsible for DIET-based methanogenesis, in association with Proteobacteria and Chloroflexi populations as syntrophic partners. The recycling approach proved robust and effective, highlighting the potential of magnetite recycling for high-rate biomethanation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Effects of Cattle Manure and Garlic Rotation on Soil under Continuous Cropping of Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.)

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Changming; Wang, Yongqi; Ma, Jianxiang; Zhang, Yong; Li, Hao; Zhang, Xian

2016-01-01

Continuous cropping of watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.) can lead to reduced yield and quality. We aimed to determine the effects of cattle manure addition and rotation with green garlic to improve yield and reduce disease incidence in watermelon and to examine the effects on the biological and chemical characteristics of the soil. Field experiments were performed during 2012–2014 on land previously under two years of continuous watermelon cropping in northwest China. We examined three treatment combinations: watermelon and garlic rotation, cattle manure application before watermelon planting, and combined cattle manure addition and crop rotation. Watermelon monoculture was retained as a control. Watermelon yield was significantly higher and disease incidence was lower in the treatments than the control. The populations of soil bacteria and actinomycetes and the bacteria/fungi ratio increased significantly and soil enzyme activities were generally enhanced under treatments. Available nutrients and soil organic matter contents were much higher under experimental treatments than the control. Results suggest both cattle manure application and garlic rotation can ameliorate the negative effects of continuous cropping. The combined treatment of cattle manure addition and green garlic rotation was optimal to increase yield, reduce disease incidence and enhance soil quality. PMID:27258145

Application of Algae as Cosubstrate To Enhance the Processability of Willow Wood for Continuous Hydrothermal Liquefaction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sintamarean, Iulia-Maria; Pedersen, Thomas Helmer; Zhao, Xueli

2017-01-01

This work proposes a novel strategy to improve the continuous processing of wood slurries in hydrothermal liquefaction systems by coprocessing with algae. Of all algae tested, brown seaweeds and microalgae perform best in preventing slurries dewatering, the main reason for pumpability issues...... with wood slurries. Rheological tests (viscosity–shear rate profile) indicate that the addition of these two algae to the wood slurry causes the highest increase in viscosity, which coincides with improved wood slurries stability and pumpability. Hydrothermal liquefaction of wood-algae slurries at 400 °C...

Acoustically enhanced heat transport

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ang, Kar M.; Hung, Yew Mun; Tan, Ming K., E-mail: tan.ming.kwang@monash.edu [School of Engineering, Monash University Malaysia, 47500 Bandar Sunway, Selangor (Malaysia); Yeo, Leslie Y. [Micro/Nanophysics Research Laboratory, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3001 (Australia); Friend, James R. [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California, San Diego, California 92093 (United States)

2016-01-15

We investigate the enhancement of heat transfer in the nucleate boiling regime by inducing high frequency acoustic waves (f ∼ 10{sup 6} Hz) on the heated surface. In the experiments, liquid droplets (deionized water) are dispensed directly onto a heated, vibrating substrate. At lower vibration amplitudes (ξ{sub s} ∼ 10{sup −9} m), the improved heat transfer is mainly due to the detachment of vapor bubbles from the heated surface and the induced thermal mixing. Upon increasing the vibration amplitude (ξ{sub s} ∼ 10{sup −8} m), the heat transfer becomes more substantial due to the rapid bursting of vapor bubbles happening at the liquid-air interface as a consequence of capillary waves travelling in the thin liquid film between the vapor bubble and the air. Further increases then lead to rapid atomization that continues to enhance the heat transfer. An acoustic wave displacement amplitude on the order of 10{sup −8} m with 10{sup 6} Hz order frequencies is observed to produce an improvement of up to 50% reduction in the surface temperature over the case without acoustic excitation.

Molecular biological enhancement of coal biodesulfurization. [Rhodococcus rhodochrous

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kilbane, J.J.; Bielaga, B.A.

1990-07-01

The overall objective of this project is to sue molecular genetics to develop strains of bacteria with enhanced ability to remove sulfur from coal and to obtain data that will allow the performance and economics of a coal biodesulfurization process to be predicted. The work planned for the current quarter (May 1990 to July 1990) includes the following activities: (1) Construct a cloning vector that can be used in Rhodococcus rhodochrous IGTS8 from the small cryptic plasmid found in Rhodococcus rhodochrous ATCC 190607; (2) Develop techniques for the genetic analysis of IGTS8; (3) Continue biochemical experiments, particularly those that may allow the identification of desulfurization-related enzymes; (4) Continue experiments with coal to determine the kinetics of organic sulfur removal.

Applying short-duration pulses as a mean to enhance volatile organic compounds removal by air sparging.

Science.gov (United States)

Ben Neriah, Asaf; Paster, Amir

2017-10-01

Application of short-duration pulses of high air pressure, to an air sparging system for groundwater remediation, was tested in a two-dimensional laboratory setup. It was hypothesized that this injection mode, termed boxcar, can enhance the remediation efficiency due to the larger ZOI and enhanced mixing which results from the pressure pulses. To test this hypothesis, flow and transport experiments were performed. Results confirm that cyclically applying short-duration pressure pulses may enhance contaminant cleanup. Comparing the boxcar to conventional continuous air-injection shows up to a three-fold increase in the single well radius of influence, dependent on the intensity of the short-duration pressure-pulses. The cleanup efficiency of Toluene from the water was 95% higher than that achieved under continuous injection with the same average conditions. This improvement was attributed to the larger zone of influence and higher average air permeability achieved in the boxcar mode, relative to continuous sparging. Mixing enhancement resultant from recurring pressure pulses was suggested as one of the mechanisms which enhance the contaminant cleanup. The application of a boxcar mode in an existing, multiwell, air sparging setup can be relatively straightforward: it requires the installation of an on-off valve in each of the injection-wells and a central control system. Then, turning off some of the wells, for a short-duration, result in a stepwise increase in injection pressure in the rest of the wells. It is hoped that this work will stimulate the additional required research and ultimately a field scale application of this new injection mode. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of compound field on horizontal continuous casting of Al-1wt.%Si alloy

OpenAIRE

Zhong-tao Zhang; Hong-yun Yue; Jian Zhang

2015-01-01

A travelling magnetic field, a power ultrasonic field, and a compound field were used separately during the horizontal continuous casting process of Al-1wt.%Si alloy. The samples obtained were characterized using an optical microscope, a scanning electron microscope, a tensile testing machine, and an electron probe microscopic analyzer to test the microstructures, properties, and element distribution of the samples. The results show that the application of a single field can enhance the mecha...

Shared services - Implementation and continuous evolution (Article 2 of 3

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. N. Van der Linde

2006-12-01

Full Text Available Purpose: Now that an organisation understands the concept of shared services (Article 1, it needs to implement shared services as a business model. The purpose of this second article in the trilogy is to describe the phases during the implementation process, as well as the various models through which a shared services business unit will evolve to continuously add value to the organisation. Methodology: A comprehensive literature study was conducted in order to: - Determine the steps in implementing a shared services business model, - Determine the various models associated with a shared services business unit, - Determine how the continuous evolution of shared services results in moving from one shared services model to the next shared services model. Findings: In this article, a framework is generated to help organisations understand the various phases and steps it needs to go through to successfully implement a shared services business unit. This work has further potential: when applied correctly, organisations will provide a business environment where effectiveness and efficiency is a given. Implications: This article presents the context for organisations to implement a shared services business model and to continuously evolve from one shared services business model to the other to create value for the organisation. The findings are important for organisations that are in the process of implementing or have implemented shared services, as they can easily stagnate and fall into the trap of centralisation. Value: This article provides an understanding of what is required for the successful implementation of shared services. This value is further enhanced through continuous evolution from a basic shared services business model to the virtual shared services business model and beyond.

Continuity theory

CERN Document Server

Nel, Louis

2016-01-01

This book presents a detailed, self-contained theory of continuous mappings. It is mainly addressed to students who have already studied these mappings in the setting of metric spaces, as well as multidimensional differential calculus. The needed background facts about sets, metric spaces and linear algebra are developed in detail, so as to provide a seamless transition between students' previous studies and new material. In view of its many novel features, this book will be of interest also to mature readers who have studied continuous mappings from the subject's classical texts and wish to become acquainted with a new approach. The theory of continuous mappings serves as infrastructure for more specialized mathematical theories like differential equations, integral equations, operator theory, dynamical systems, global analysis, topological groups, topological rings and many more. In light of the centrality of the topic, a book of this kind fits a variety of applications, especially those that contribute to ...

Enhancing quantum entanglement for continuous variables by a coherent superposition of photon subtraction and addition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Su-Yong; Kim, Ho-Joon [Department of Physics, Texas A and M University at Qatar, P.O. Box 23874, Doha (Qatar); Ji, Se-Wan [School of Computational Sciences, Korea Institute for Advanced Study, Seoul 130-012 (Korea, Republic of); Nha, Hyunchul [Department of Physics, Texas A and M University at Qatar, P.O. Box 23874, Doha (Qatar); Institute fuer Quantenphysik, Universitaet Ulm, D-89069 Ulm (Germany)

2011-07-15

We investigate how the entanglement properties of a two-mode state can be improved by performing a coherent superposition operation ta+ra{sup {dagger}} of photon subtraction and addition, proposed by Lee and Nha [Phys. Rev. A 82, 053812 (2010)], on each mode. We show that the degree of entanglement, the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen-type correlation, and the performance of quantum teleportation can be all enhanced for the output state when the coherent operation is applied to a two-mode squeezed state. The effects of the coherent operation are more prominent than those of the mere photon subtraction a and the addition a{sup {dagger}} particularly in the small-squeezing regime, whereas the optimal operation becomes the photon subtraction (case of r=0) in the large-squeezing regime.

Lifestyle use of drugs by healthy people for enhancing cognition, creativity, motivation and pleasure.

Science.gov (United States)

d'Angelo, L-S Camilla; Savulich, George; Sahakian, Barbara J

2017-10-01

Today, there is continued, and in some cases growing, availability of not only psychoactive substances, including treatments for mental health disorders such as cognitive enhancers, which can enhance or restore brain function, but also 'recreational' drugs such as novel psychoactive substances (NPS). The use of psychoactive drugs has both benefits and risks: whilst new drugs to treat cognitive symptoms in neuropsychiatric or neurodegenerative disorders could have great benefits for many patient groups, the increasing ease of accessibility to recreational NPS and the increasing lifestyle use of cognitive enhancers by healthy people means that the effective management of psychoactive substances will be an issue of increasing importance. Clearly, the potential benefits of cognitive enhancers are large and increasingly relevant, particularly as the population ages, and for this reason, we should continue to devote resources to the development of cognitive enhancers as treatments for neurodegenerative diseases and psychiatric disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and schizophrenia. However, the increasing use of cognitive enhancers by healthy individuals raises safety, ethical and regulatory concerns, which should not be ignored. Similarly, understanding the short- and long-term consequences of the use of NPS, as well as better understanding the motivations and profiles of users could promote more effective prevention and harm reduction measures. Linked Articles This article is part of a themed section on Pharmacology of Cognition: a Panacea for Neuropsychiatric Disease? To view the other articles in this section visit http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bph.v174.19/issuetoc. © 2017 The British Pharmacological Society.

Assessing Online Asynchronous Communication Strategies Designed to Enhance Large Student Cohort Engagement and Foster a Community of Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Kebble, Paul G.

2017-01-01

With the increasing diversity of pedagogic models of delivery in higher education, universities are continually exploring practises of learning and teaching designed to enhance student experience and retention. The number of courses provided online continues to grow through, among other reasons, an escalation of higher education (HE) students…

Landsat Data Continuity Mission - Launch Fever

Science.gov (United States)

Irons, James R.; Loveland, Thomas R.; Markham, Brian L.; Masek, Jeffrey G.; Cook, Bruce; Dwyer, John L.

2012-01-01

The year 2013 will be an exciting period for those that study the Earth land surface from space, particularly those that observe and characterize land cover, land use, and the change of cover and use over time. Two new satellite observatories will be launched next year that will enhance capabilities for observing the global land surface. The United States plans to launch the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) in January. That event will be followed later in the year by the European Space Agency (ESA) launch of the first Sentinel 2 satellite. Considered together, the two satellites will increase the frequency of opportunities for viewing the land surface at a scale where human impact and influence can be differentiated from natural change. Data from the two satellites will provide images for similar spectral bands and for comparable spatial resolutions with rigorous attention to calibration that will facilitate cross comparisons. This presentation will provide an overview of the LDCM satellite system and report its readiness for the January launch.

Effects of intermittent versus continuous parathyroid hormone administration on condylar chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, Qi; Wan, Qilong; Yang, Rongtao; Zhou, Haihua [The State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Basic Science of Stomatology (Hubei-MOST) and Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedicine Ministry of Education, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, 237 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430079 (China); Li, Zubing, E-mail: lizubing0827@163.com [The State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Basic Science of Stomatology (Hubei-MOST) and Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedicine Ministry of Education, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, 237 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430079 (China); Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, 237 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430079 (China)

2012-07-20

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Different PTH administration exerts different effects on condylar chondrocyte. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Intermittent PTH administration suppresses condylar chondrocyte proliferation. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Continuous PTH administration maintains condylar chondrocyte proliferating. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Intermittent PTH administration enhances condylar chondrocyte differentiation. -- Abstract: Endochondral ossification is a complex process involving chondrogenesis and osteogenesis regulated by many hormones and growth factors. Parathyroid hormone (PTH), one of the key hormones regulating bone metabolism, promotes osteoblast differentiation and osteogenesis by intermittent administration, whereas continuous PTH administration inhibits bone formation. However, the effects of PTH on chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation are still unclear. In this study, intermittent PTH administration presented enhanced effects on condylar chondrocyte differentiation and bone formation, as demonstrated by increased mineral nodule formation and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, up-regulated runt-related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2), ALP, collagen type X (COL10a1), collagen type I (COL1a1), osteocalcin (OCN), bone sialoprotein (BSP), bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2) and osterix (OSX) mRNA and/or protein expression. On the contrary, continuous PTH administration promoted condylar chondrocyte proliferation and suppressed its differentiation, as demonstrated by up-regulated collagen type II (COL2a1) mRNA expression, reduced mineral nodule formation and down-regulated expression of the mRNAs and/or proteins mentioned above. Our data suggest that PTH can regulate condylar chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation, depending on the type of PTH administration. These results provide new insight into the effects of PTH on condylar chondrocytes and new evidence for using local PTH administration to cure mandibular

White paper on continuous bioprocessing. May 20-21, 2014 Continuous Manufacturing Symposium.

Science.gov (United States)

Konstantinov, Konstantin B; Cooney, Charles L

2015-03-01

There is a growing interest in realizing the benefits of continuous processing in biologics manufacturing, which is reflected by the significant number of industrial and academic researchers who are actively involved in the development of continuous bioprocessing systems. These efforts are further encouraged by guidance expressed in recent US FDA conference presentations. The advantages of continuous manufacturing include sustained operation with consistent product quality, reduced equipment size, high-volumetric productivity, streamlined process flow, low-process cycle times, and reduced capital and operating cost. This technology, however, poses challenges, which need to be addressed before routine implementation is considered. This paper, which is based on the available literature and input from a large number of reviewers, is intended to provide a consensus of the opportunities, technical needs, and strategic directions for continuous bioprocessing. The discussion is supported by several examples illustrating various architectures of continuous bioprocessing systems. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association.

Continuous cardiac troponin I release in Fabry disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Feustel, Andreas; Hahn, Andreas; Schneider, Christian; Sieweke, Nicole; Franzen, Wolfgang; Gündüz, Dursun; Rolfs, Arndt; Tanislav, Christian

2014-01-01

Fabry disease (FD) is a rare lysosomal storage disorder also affecting the heart. The aims of this study were to determine the frequency of cardiac troponin I (cTNI) elevation, a sensitive parameter reflecting myocardial damage, in a smaller cohort of FD-patients, and to analyze whether persistent cTNI can be a suitable biomarker to assess cardiac dysfunction in FD. cTNI values were determined at least twice per year in 14 FD-patients (6 males and 8 females) regularly followed-up in our centre. The data were related to other parameters of heart function including cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (cMRI). Three patients (21%) without specific vascular risk factors other than FD had persistent cTNI-elevations (range 0.05-0.71 ng/ml, normal: gadolinium enhancement (LGE) in all three individuals with cTNI values ≥0.01, while none of the 11 patients with cTNI <0.01 showed a pathological enhancement (p<0.01). Two subjects with increased cTNI-values underwent coronary angiography, excluding relevant stenoses. A myocardial biopsy performed in one during this procedure demonstrated substantial accumulation of globotriaosylceramide (Gb3) in cardiomyocytes. Continuous cTNI elevation seems to occur in a substantial proportion of patients with FD. The high accordance with LGE, reflecting cardiac dysfunction, suggests that cTNI-elevation can be a useful laboratory parameter for assessing myocardial damage in FD.

Focusing on changing clinical practice to enhance rational prescribing--collaboration and networking enable comprehensive approaches.

Science.gov (United States)

Helin-Salmivaara, Arja; Huupponen, Risto; Klaukka, Timo; Hoppu, Kalle

2003-10-01

Most western societies are enhancing rational pharmacotherapy to get best value for the constantly increasing expenditure on drugs. Government bodies and the medical profession took joint responsibility for the education programme for rational prescribing, launched in Finland at the end of the 1990s. The goals were to enhance critical thinking, and when appropriate, change prescribing behaviour. Various approaches that included evidence-based continuing medical education (CME), implementing clinical guidelines, delivering information, and providing prescribing feedback were used simultaneously. The commitment of the stakeholders and participants has been strong and the approaches have succeeded even though there is no clear outcome measure. The Government has recently decided to continue and widen the process, which started as a pilot programme, on a tight budget.

Continual improvement plan

Science.gov (United States)

1994-01-01

NASA's approach to continual improvement (CI) is a systems-oriented, agency-wide approach that builds on the past accomplishments of NASA Headquarters and its field installations and helps achieve NASA's vision, mission, and values. The NASA of the future will fully use the principles of continual improvement in every aspect of its operations. This NASA CI plan defines a systematic approach and a model for continual improvement throughout NASA, stressing systems integration and optimization. It demonstrates NASA's constancy of purpose for improvement - a consistent vision of NASA as a worldwide leader in top-quality science, technology, and management practices. The CI plan provides the rationale, structures, methods, and steps, and it defines NASA's short term (1-year) objectives for improvement. The CI plan presents the deployment strategies necessary for cascading the goals and objectives throughout the agency. It also provides guidance on implementing continual improvement with participation from top leadership and all levels of employees.

Business continuity 2014: From traditional to integrated Business Continuity Management.

Science.gov (United States)

Ee, Henry

As global change continues to generate new challenges and potential threats to businesses, traditional business continuity management (BCM) slowly reveals its limitations and weak points to ensuring 'business resiliency' today. Consequently, BCM professionals also face the challenge of re-evaluating traditional concepts and introducing new strategies and industry best practices. This paper points to why traditional BCM is no longer sufficient in terms of enabling businesses to survive in today's high-risk environment. It also looks into some of the misconceptions about BCM and other stumbling blocks to establishing effective BCM today. Most importantly, however, this paper provides tips based on the Business Continuity Institute's (BCI) Good Practices Guideline (GPG) and the latest international BCM standard ISO 22301 on how to overcome the issues and challenges presented.

CT features of peritonitis associated with continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yun, Ji Young; Byun, Jae Young; Lee, Sang Hoon; Kwon, Tae Ahn; Kim, Yeon Kil; Kim, Young Ok; Song, Kyung Sup [The Catholic Univ. of Korea College of Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

1999-01-01

To evaluate the CT findings of peritonitis associated with continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis(CAPD). We retrospectively analyzed CT scans of 14 symptomatic patients with peritonitis after CAPD. Diffuse abdominal pain was present in 11, fever in two, and abdominal mass with vomiting in one. The mean duration of CAPD ranged from 10 months to 5 years(mean : 3.9 years). On abdominal CT, we evaluated the presence and location of ascites, bowel wall thickening, cocoon formation, the pattern of enhancement of peritoneal thickening, the presence of calcifications in the peritoneum, and mesenteric and omental change. On enhanced CT, multiloculated ascites was observed in all cases(n=14) ; it was located mainly in the pelvic cavity with small multi-loculated fluid collections in the peritoneal cavity(n=13), including the lesser sac(n=3). In one patient, ascites was located in the space between the greater omentum and anterior peritoneal surface. CT showed ileus in 12 cases, small bowel wall thickening in 11, and cocoon formation in five. Uneven but smooth thickening of the peritoneum, with contrast enhancement, was seen in eight cases, and in five of these, peritoneal thickening was more prominent in the anterior peritoneum. Other findings included reticular opacity in two cases, hematoma of the rectus muscle in one, and umbilical hernia in one. Multiloculated fluid collection, ileus, small bowel wall thickening, uneven but smooth peritoneal thickening, and cocoon formation appear to be CT features of CAPD peritonitis.

CT features of peritonitis associated with continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yun, Ji Young; Byun, Jae Young; Lee, Sang Hoon; Kwon, Tae Ahn; Kim, Yeon Kil; Kim, Young Ok; Song, Kyung Sup

1999-01-01

To evaluate the CT findings of peritonitis associated with continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis(CAPD). We retrospectively analyzed CT scans of 14 symptomatic patients with peritonitis after CAPD. Diffuse abdominal pain was present in 11, fever in two, and abdominal mass with vomiting in one. The mean duration of CAPD ranged from 10 months to 5 years(mean : 3.9 years). On abdominal CT, we evaluated the presence and location of ascites, bowel wall thickening, cocoon formation, the pattern of enhancement of peritoneal thickening, the presence of calcifications in the peritoneum, and mesenteric and omental change. On enhanced CT, multiloculated ascites was observed in all cases(n=14) ; it was located mainly in the pelvic cavity with small multi-loculated fluid collections in the peritoneal cavity(n=13), including the lesser sac(n=3). In one patient, ascites was located in the space between the greater omentum and anterior peritoneal surface. CT showed ileus in 12 cases, small bowel wall thickening in 11, and cocoon formation in five. Uneven but smooth thickening of the peritoneum, with contrast enhancement, was seen in eight cases, and in five of these, peritoneal thickening was more prominent in the anterior peritoneum. Other findings included reticular opacity in two cases, hematoma of the rectus muscle in one, and umbilical hernia in one. Multiloculated fluid collection, ileus, small bowel wall thickening, uneven but smooth peritoneal thickening, and cocoon formation appear to be CT features of CAPD peritonitis

An integrated educational model for continuing nurse education.

Science.gov (United States)

Duff, Beverley; Gardner, Glenn; Osborne, Sonya

2014-01-01

This paper reports on the development and evaluation of an integrated clinical learning model to inform ongoing education for surgical nurses. The research aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of implementing a Respiratory Skills Update (ReSKU) education program, in the context of organisational utility, on improving surgical nurses' practice in the area of respiratory assessment. Continuous development and integration of technological innovations and research in the healthcare environment mandate the need for continuing education for nurses. Despite an increased worldwide emphasis on this, there is scant empirical evidence of program effectiveness. A quasi experimental pre test, post test non-equivalent control group design evaluated the impact of the ReSKU program on surgical nurses' clinical practice. The 2008 study was conducted in a 400 bed regional referral public hospital and was consistent with contemporary educational approaches using multi-modal, interactive teaching strategies. The study demonstrated statistically significant differences between groups regarding reported use of respiratory skills, three months after ReSKU program attendance. Between group data analysis indicated that the intervention group's reported beliefs and attitudes pertaining to subscale descriptors showed statistically significant differences in three of the six subscales. The construct of critical thinking in the clinical context, combined with clinical reasoning and purposeful reflection, was a powerful educational strategy to enhance competency and capability in clinicians. Crown Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improving Our Odds: Success through Continuous Risk Management

Science.gov (United States)

Greenhalgh, Phillip O.

2009-01-01

Launching a rocket, running a business, driving to work and even day-to-day living all involve some degree of risk. Risk is ever present yet not always recognized, adequately assessed and appropriately mitigated. Identification, assessment and mitigation of risk are elements of the risk management component of the "continuous improvement" way of life that has become a hallmark of successful and progressive enterprises. While the application of risk management techniques to provide continuous improvement may be detailed and extensive, the philosophy, ideals and tools can be beneficially applied to all situations. Experiences with the use of risk identification, assessment and mitigation techniques for complex systems and processes are described. System safety efforts and tools used to examine potential risks of the Ares I First Stage of NASA s new Constellation Crew Launch Vehicle (CLV) presently being designed are noted as examples. Recommendations from lessons learned are provided for the application of risk management during the development of new systems as well as for the improvement of existing systems. Lessons learned and suggestions given are also examined for applicability to simple systems, uncomplicated processes and routine personal daily tasks. This paper informs the reader of varied uses of risk management efforts and techniques to identify, assess and mitigate risk for improvement of products, success of business, protection of people and enhancement of personal life.

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound in diagnosis and characterization of focal hepatic lesions.

Science.gov (United States)

Molins, Inés Gómez; Font, Juan Manuel Fernández; Alvaro, Juan Carrero; Navarro, Jose Luís Lledó; Gil, Marta Fernández; Rodríguez, Conrado M Fernández

2010-12-28

The extensive use of imaging techniques in differential diagnosis of abdominal conditions and screening of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with chronic hepatic diseases, has led to an important increase in identification of focal liver lesions. The development of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) opens a new window in the diagnosis and follow-up of these lesions. This technique offers obvious advantages over the computed tomography and magnetic resonance, without a decrease in its sensitivity and specificity. The new second generation contrast agents, due to their intravascular distribution, allow a continuous evaluation of the enhancement pattern, which is crucial in characterization of liver lesions. The dual blood supply in the liver shows three different phases, namely arterial, portal and late phases. The enhancement during portal and late phases can give important information about the lesion's behavior. Each liver lesion has a different enhancement pattern that makes possible an accurate approach to their diagnosis. The role of emerging techniques as a contrast-enhanced three-dimensional US is also discussed. In this article, the advantages, indications and technique employed during CEUS and the different enhancement patterns of most benign and malignant focal liver lesions are discussed.

Enhancing saltiness in emulsion based foods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lad Mita

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The concept of enhancing saltiness perception in emulsions and a liquid food formulated with the emulsions (ambient vegetable soup through increasing salt concentration in the continuous phase while retaining the fat content of the (aqueous continuous product was evaluated. This was accomplished by increasing the droplet phase volume using duplex emulsion technology. Viscosity and droplet size distribution was measured. Saltiness evaluation was based on simple paired comparison testing (2-Alternate Forced Choice tests, BS ISO 5495:2007. Results Single and duplex emulsions and emulsion-based products had comparable mean oil droplet diameters (25 to 30 μm; however, viscosity of the duplex emulsion systems was considerably higher. Sensory assessment of saltiness of emulsion pairs (2AFC indicated duplex technology enhanced saltiness perception compared to a single emulsion product at the same salt content (6.3 g/100 g in both simple emulsions and the formulated food product (P = 0.0596 and 0.0004 respectively although assessors noted the increased viscosity of the duplex systems. The formulated food product also contained pea starch particles which may have aided product mixing with saliva and thus accelerated tastant transport to the taste buds. Lowering salt content in the duplex systems (to levels of aqueous phase salt concentration similar to the level in the single systems resulted in duplex systems being perceived as less salty than the single system. It appears that the higher viscosity of the duplex systems could not be “overruled” by enhanced mixing through increased droplet phase volume at lowered salt content. Conclusions The results showed that salt reduction may be possible despite the added technology of duplex systems increasing the overall measured viscosity of the product. The changes in viscosity behavior impact mouthfeel, which may be exploitable in addition to the contribution towards salt

Seismic enhancement of multi-span continuous bridges subjected to three-directional excitations

Science.gov (United States)

Aryan, H.; Ghassemieh, M.

2015-04-01

Considering the seismic ground motions as the excitations in only two principal horizontal directions of the bridges and ignoring the third vertical direction is a disregard for the seismic conditions of the region and the bridge distance from epicenter. Numerous cases of substantial damages have been reported among the bridges tremendously suffered from being exposed to the simultaneous three-directional seismic ground motions. Besides the significant compression and tension damages in the columns due to the presence of vertical excitation, it could lead to unexpected shear and flexural failures in the columns and other components as well. Because the axial force variation in the columns due to three-directional excitations, could affect the demands and capacities of the bridge’s components. With respect to this issue, several studies on the bridge damages during the earthquakes have urged researchers to offer efficient methods for bridges handling of the three-directional seismic excitations. Thus, this paper presents and evaluates a superelastic based system for designing as well as retrofitting the multi-span continuous (MSC) bridges that can cope with two- and three-directional seismic excitations. Efficiency evaluation of the proposed system is conducted through various nonlinear time history analyses on a three-dimensional model of a detailed MSC bridge using a suite of developed ground motions for the bridge region. Also, all the analyses are fulfilled based on variation of one influential design characteristic of the proposed system in order to achieve the optimal design. Several pertinent assessment parameters are used during the evaluation of the proposed system. Finally, the efficiency of the new system subjected to the vertical and horizontal seismic excitations is confirmed according to reduction of the bridge responses and improvement in nonlinear performance of the columns in comparison with the as-built bridge results.

Technology transfer and application of SERS continuous monitor for trace organic compounds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Swindle, D.W. Jr.; Vo-Dinh, T.; Yalcintas, M.G.

1992-01-01

An in situ-enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) continuous monitoring system was developed for exciting and collecting SERS signals generated on silver-coated microparticles deposited on a continuously rotating filter-paper support. SERS measurements were successfully conducted for several organic compounds. An in situ SERS fiber-optic system was also developed for exciting and collecting SERS signals generated from a sensing tip having silver-coated microparticles deposited on a glass-plate support. These devices will be very useful in remote identification of unknown chemicals from hazardous waste sites. This patented technology has been licensed from Oak Ridge National Laboratory to an analytical instrumentation firm which is in the process of completing development and marketing these detectors. Advantages to using this technology range from increased safety and sensitivity for detecting hazardous compounds to better statistics and reliable results. During this presentation, efforts of the Environmental Restoration Program to evaluate and support development of this technology will be described

Almost contra-g-continuous functions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Keskin, Aynur [Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science and Arts, Selcuk University Campus, 42075 Konya (Turkey); 2949-1 Shiokita-cho, Hinagu, Yatsushiro-shi, Kumamoto-ken 869-5142 (Japan)], E-mail: akeskin@selcuk.edu.tr; Noiri, Takashi [Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science and Arts, Selcuk University Campus, 42075 Konya (Turkey); 2949-1 Shiokita-cho, Hinagu, Yatsushiro-shi, Kumamoto-ken 869-5142 (Japan)], E-mail: t.noiri@nifty.com

2009-10-15

In this paper, we introduce and investigate the notion of almost contra-g-continuous functions which is weaker than both notions of contra-continuous functions [Dontchev J. Contra-continuous functions and strongly S-closed mappings. Int J Math Math Sci 1996;19:303-10] and ({theta},s)-continuous functions [Joseph JK, Kwak MK. On S-closed spaces. Proc Am Math Soc 1980;80:341-8.] in topological spaces. We discuss the relationships with some other related functions. At the same time, we show that almost-g-continuity and (LC,s)-continuity are independent of each other.

Almost contra-g-continuous functions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keskin, Aynur; Noiri, Takashi

2009-01-01

In this paper, we introduce and investigate the notion of almost contra-g-continuous functions which is weaker than both notions of contra-continuous functions [Dontchev J. Contra-continuous functions and strongly S-closed mappings. Int J Math Math Sci 1996;19:303-10] and (θ,s)-continuous functions [Joseph JK, Kwak MK. On S-closed spaces. Proc Am Math Soc 1980;80:341-8.] in topological spaces. We discuss the relationships with some other related functions. At the same time, we show that almost-g-continuity and (LC,s)-continuity are independent of each other.

Direct injection of superheated steam for continuous hydrolysis reaction

KAUST Repository

Wang, Weicheng

2012-09-01

The primary intent for previous continuous hydrolysis studies was to minimize the reaction temperature and reaction time. In this work, hydrolysis is the first step of a proprietary chemical process to convert lipids to sustainable, drop-in replacements for petroleum based fuels. To improve the economics of the process, attention is now focused on optimizing the energy efficiency of the process, maximizing the reaction rate, and improving the recovery of the glycerol by-product. A laboratory-scale reactor system has been designed and built with this goal in mind.Sweet water (water with glycerol from the hydrolysis reaction) is routed to a distillation column and heated above the boiling point of water at the reaction pressure. The steam pressure allows the steam to return to the reactor without pumping. Direct injection of steam into the hydrolysis reactor is shown to provide favorable equilibrium conditions resulting in a high quality of FFA product and rapid reaction rate, even without preheating the inlet water and oil and with lower reactor temperatures and lower fresh water demand. The high enthalpy of the steam provides energy for the hydrolysis reaction. Steam injection offers enhanced conditions for continuous hydrolysis of triglycerides to high-purity streams of FFA and glycerol. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.

Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition of aluminum oxide using ultrashort precursor injection pulses

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dingemans, G.; Sanden, van de M.C.M.; Kessels, W.M.M.

2012-01-01

An alternative plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) method is developed and applied for the deposition of high-quality aluminum oxide (AlOx) films. The PECVD method combines a continuous plasma with ultrashort precursor injection pulses. We demonstrate that the modulation of the

Continuous downstream processing of biopharmaceuticals.

Science.gov (United States)

Jungbauer, Alois

2013-08-01

Continuous manufacturing has been applied in many different industries but has been pursued reluctantly in biotechnology where the batchwise process is still the standard. A shift to continuous operation can improve productivity of a process and substantially reduce the footprint. Continuous operation also allows robust purification of labile biomolecules. A full set of unit operations is available to design continuous downstream processing of biopharmaceuticals. Chromatography, the central unit operation, is most advanced in respect to continuous operation. Here, the problem of 'batch' definition has been solved. This has also paved the way for implementation of continuous downstream processing from a regulatory viewpoint. Economic pressure, flexibility, and parametric release considerations will be the driving force to implement continuous manufacturing strategies in future. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effects of pentoxifylline on the survival of human glioma cells with continuous and intermittent stereotactic radiosurgery irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eley, Kerry W.; Benedict, Stanley H.; Chung, Theodore D.K.; Kavanagh, Brian D.; Broaddus, William C.; Schmidt-Ullrich, Rupert K.A.; Lin, P.-S.

2002-01-01

Purpose: In linac-based stereotactic radiosurgery, treatment is delivered intermittently via multiple individual small radiotherapy arcs. The time lapses between the individual arcs permit greater damage repair and increased tumor cell survival in comparison with continuous irradiation. Because pentoxifylline (PTX) has been reported to prevent radiation-induced cell cycle arrest at the G2/M checkpoint, where damage repair is critically linked to cell survival, we hypothesized that PTX would exert a favorable radiosensitization effect by reducing the recovery observed during intermittent stereotactic radiosurgery. Methods and Materials: The human glioma cell line T98G was used to study the effects of continuous vs. intermittent irradiation with or without PTX. Cell cycle patterns were studied using flow cytometry. Clonogenic assays of single cells and spheroid outgrowth assays provided a quantitative measure of PTX-mediated radiosensitization. The PTX effect upon cells in low oxygen conditions was also studied in vitro after enzymatic oxygen scavenging. Results: Flow Cytometry: T98G cells exposed to both continuous and intermittent irradiation exhibit similar arrest at the G2/M checkpoint. The addition of 2 mM PTX significantly reduced the radiation-induced G2/M block in both irradiation schemes. Clonogenic Assays: The same PTX concentration applied before a continuous dose of 12 Gy, two intermittent doses of 6 Gy, or three intermittent doses of 4 Gy, all given within a 1-h interval, consistently caused radiosensitization. The drug enhancement ratios for PTX were 1.5, 2.7, and 6.0 for the continuous and two different intermittent dose schedules, respectively. Adding PTX after irradiation yielded lower enhancement ratios than pre-irradiation application. A similar pattern was observed after total doses of 4, 6, 9, or 12 Gy, as well. In low oxygen conditions, PTX was seen to have the same effects as in normoxic conditions. Spheroid Outgrowth Assays: The in vitro PTX

Partial nitrification using aerobic granules in continuous-flow reactor: rapid startup.

Science.gov (United States)

Wan, Chunli; Sun, Supu; Lee, Duu-Jong; Liu, Xiang; Wang, Li; Yang, Xue; Pan, Xiangliang

2013-08-01

This study applied a novel strategy to rapid startup of partial nitrification in continuous-flow reactor using aerobic granules. Mature aerobic granules were first cultivated in a sequencing batch reactor at high chemical oxygen demand in 16 days. The strains including the Pseudoxanthomonas mexicana strain were enriched in cultivated granules to enhance their structural stability. Then the cultivated granules were incubated in a continuous-flow reactor with influent chemical oxygen deamnad being stepped decreased from 1,500 ± 100 (0-19 days) to 750 ± 50 (20-30 days), and then to 350 ± 50 mg l(-1) (31-50 days); while in the final stage 350 mg l(-1) bicarbonate was also supplied. Using this strategy the ammonia-oxidizing bacterium, Nitrosomonas europaea, was enriched in the incubated granules to achieve partial nitrification efficiency of 85-90% since 36 days and onwards. The partial nitrification granules were successfully harvested after 52 days, a period much shorter than those reported in literature. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Continued development of modeling tools and theory for RF heating

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

Mission Research Corporation (MRC) is pleased to present the Department of Energy (DOE) with its renewal proposal to the Continued Development of Modeling Tools and Theory for RF Heating program. The objective of the program is to continue and extend the earlier work done by the proposed principal investigator in the field of modeling (Radio Frequency) RF heating experiments in the large tokamak fusion experiments, particularly the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR) device located at Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL). An integral part of this work is the investigation and, in some cases, resolution of theoretical issues which pertain to accurate modeling. MRC is nearing the successful completion of the specified tasks of the Continued Development of Modeling Tools and Theory for RF Heating project. The following tasks are either completed or nearing completion. (1) Anisotropic temperature and rotation upgrades; (2) Modeling for relativistic ECRH; (3) Further documentation of SHOOT and SPRUCE. As a result of the progress achieved under this project, MRC has been urged to continue this effort. Specifically, during the performance of this project two topics were identified by PPPL personnel as new applications of the existing RF modeling tools. These two topics concern (a) future fast-wave current drive experiments on the large tokamaks including TFTR and (c) the interpretation of existing and future RF probe data from TFTR. To address each of these topics requires some modification or enhancement of the existing modeling tools, and the first topic requires resolution of certain theoretical issues to produce self-consistent results. This work falls within the scope of the original project and is more suited to the project's renewal than to the initiation of a new project

Visual cortex responses reflect temporal structure of continuous quasi-rhythmic sensory stimulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Keitel, Christian; Thut, Gregor; Gross, Joachim

2017-02-01

Neural processing of dynamic continuous visual input, and cognitive influences thereon, are frequently studied in paradigms employing strictly rhythmic stimulation. However, the temporal structure of natural stimuli is hardly ever fully rhythmic but possesses certain spectral bandwidths (e.g. lip movements in speech, gestures). Examining periodic brain responses elicited by strictly rhythmic stimulation might thus represent ideal, yet isolated cases. Here, we tested how the visual system reflects quasi-rhythmic stimulation with frequencies continuously varying within ranges of classical theta (4-7Hz), alpha (8-13Hz) and beta bands (14-20Hz) using EEG. Our findings substantiate a systematic and sustained neural phase-locking to stimulation in all three frequency ranges. Further, we found that allocation of spatial attention enhances EEG-stimulus locking to theta- and alpha-band stimulation. Our results bridge recent findings regarding phase locking ("entrainment") to quasi-rhythmic visual input and "frequency-tagging" experiments employing strictly rhythmic stimulation. We propose that sustained EEG-stimulus locking can be considered as a continuous neural signature of processing dynamic sensory input in early visual cortices. Accordingly, EEG-stimulus locking serves to trace the temporal evolution of rhythmic as well as quasi-rhythmic visual input and is subject to attentional bias. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Use of process monitoring data to enhance material accounting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brouns, R.J.; Smith, B.W.

1980-01-01

A study was conducted for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as part of a continuing program to estimate the effectiveness of using process monitoring data to enhance special nuclear material accounting in nuclear facilities. Two licensed fuel fabrication facilities with internal scrap recovery processes were examined. The loss detection sensitivity, timeliness, and localization capabilities of the process monitoring technique were evaluated for single and multiple (trickle) losses. 4 refs

Continuity of operations/continuity of government for state-level transportation organizations : brief.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-01

As a result of a federal requirement, all non-federal entities that own or operate critical : infrastructure are required to develop Continuity of Operations/Continuity of Government : (COOP/COG) Plans. Transportation is a critical infrastructure com...

Integrating an incident management system within a continuity of operations programme: case study of the Bank of Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Loop, Carole

2013-01-01

Carrying out critical business functions without interruption requires a resilient and robust business continuity framework. By embedding an industry-standard incident management system within its business continuity structure, the Bank of Canada strengthened its response plan by enabling timely response to incidents while maintaining a strong focus on business continuity. A total programme approach, integrating the two disciplines, provided for enhanced recovery capabilities. While the value of an effective and efficient response organisation is clear, as demonstrated by emergency events around the world, incident response structures based on normal operating hierarchy can experience unique challenges. The internationally-recognised Incident Command System (ICS) model addresses these issues and reflects the five primary incident management functions, each contributing to the overall strength and effectiveness of the response organisation. The paper focuses on the Bank of Canada's successful implementation of the ICS model as its incident management and continuity of operations programmes evolved to reflect current best practices.

Evaluation of the intraspinal enhancement for medulloblastoma on MR imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Hwa Young; Kim, In One; Kim, Woo Sun; Cheon, Jung Eun; Yeon, Kyung Mo

2004-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyze the enhancement pattern of the spinal cord for patients with medulloblastoma, and to correlate the enhancement pattern with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tumor seeding. We retrospectively reviewed 84 MR images, including the initial and follow-up studies after chemotherapy or radiation therapy, of 25 patients with medulloblastoma who were aged from 2 to 13 years. We analyzed the spinal leptomeningeal enhancement pattern on the MR images. The leptomeningeal enhancement patterns were categorized into three types: Type, I, fine or discontinuous linear enhancement, and type II, continuous linear or nodular enhancement, and type III, intradural mass formation. We correlated the enhancement pattern on MRI with the results of CSF cytology at the initial and follow-up examinations after treatment. Of total 25 patients, type I enhancement was observed for 14 patients. Twelve patients were negative on the initial CSF cytology and 2 patients were positive. On the follow-up MR studies, 14 patients showed no change or only a slight decrease of enhancement, and all were negative on the follow-up CSF cytology. Type II enhancement patterns were observed in seven patients, and all of them were positive on the initial CSF cytology. On follow-up MR study, one patient revealed an increased enhancement with the positive result on the follow-up CSF cytology, and six patients had decreased enhancement on the follow-up MR studies with negative conversion on the follow-up CSF cytology. Type III enhancement patterns were observed in four patients and all of them were positive on the initial CSF cytology. All four patients with tradural mass formations revealed progression of the lesions on follow-up MR studies, and all of them were positive on the follow-up CSF cytology. Type II and III enhancement patterns always represented CSF seeding and a type I enhancement pattern had a low probability of metastasis

Tolcapone-Enhanced Neurocognition in Healthy Adults: Neural Basis and Predictors.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhakta, Savita G; Light, Gregory A; Talledo, Jo A; Balvaneda, Bryan; Hughes, Erica; Alvarez, Alexis; Rana, Brinda K; Young, Jared W; Swerdlow, Neal R

2017-12-01

Failure of procognitive drug trials in schizophrenia may reflect the clinical heterogeneity of schizophrenia, underscoring the need to identify biomarkers of treatment sensitivity. We used an experimental medicine design to test the procognitive effects of a putative procognitive agent, tolcapone, using an electroencephalogram-based cognitive control task in healthy subjects. Healthy men and women (n=27; ages 18-35 years), homozygous for either the Met/Met or Val/Val rs4680 genotype, received placebo and tolcapone 200 mg orally across 2 test days separated by 1 week in a double-blind, randomized, counterbalanced, within-subject design. On each test day, neurocognitive performance was assessed using the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery and an electroencephalogram-based 5 Choice-Continuous Performance Test. Tolcapone enhanced visual learning in low-baseline MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery performers (d=0.35) and had an opposite effect in high performers (d=0.5), and enhanced verbal fluency across all subjects (P=.03) but had no effect on overall MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery performance. Tolcapone reduced false alarm rate (d=0.8) and enhanced frontal P200 amplitude during correctly identified nontarget trials (d=0.6) in low-baseline 5 Choice-Continuous Performance Test performers and had opposite effects in high performers (d=0.5 and d=0.25, respectively). Tolcapone's effect on frontal P200 amplitude and false alarm rate was correlated (rs=-0.4, P=.05). All neurocognitive effects of tolcapone were independent of rs4680 genotype. Tolcapone enhanced neurocognition and engaged electroencephalogram measures relevant to cognitive processes in specific subgroups of healthy individuals. These findings support an experimental medicine model for identifying procognitive treatments and provide a strong basis for future biomarker-informed procognitive studies in schizophrenia patients. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of CINP.

Improvement of thoracic aortic vasoreactivity by continuous and intermittent exercise in high-fat diet-induced obese rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Hongpeng; Yang, Zhen; Hu, Jian; Luo, Yan; Zhu, Lingqin; Yang, Huifang; Li, Guanghua

2015-07-01

The aim of the present study was to explore the effects of continuous and intermittent exercise on the thoracic aortic vasoreactivity and free radical metabolism in rats fed with a high-fat diet (HD). Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into four groups (n=8, each group): Conventional diet (CD), HD, HD with continuous exercise (HCE) and HD with intermittent exercise (HIE). HCE rats swam once/day for 90 min; HIE rats performed swimming exercises 3 times/day, 30 min each time with an interval of 4 h. In these two groups, the exercise was conducted 5 days a week for 8 weeks. Rats in the CD and HD groups were fed without swimming training. At the end of the exercise, all the rats were sacrificed and the blood, thoracic aorta and myocardium were collected immediately. The thoracic aortic vasoreactivity, the plasma total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA) and vascular endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) gene expression were measured. Compared to the control group, in the HD group the enhanced contractile response of the thoracic aortic rings to noradrenaline (NA) was observed (Pimprove the activity of the thoracic aorta in obese rats, which may be associated with enhanced antioxidant enzyme activity and reduced free radical generating. Additionally, intermittent exercise is better than the continuous exercise in improving the thoracic aorta vasoreactivity.

Enhancement of arterial pressure pulsatility by controlling continuous-flow left ventricular assist device flow rate in mock circulatory system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bozkurt, S.; van de Vosse, F.N.; Rutten, M.C.M.

Continuous-flow left ventricular assist devices (CF-LVADs) generally operate at a constant speed, which reduces pulsatility in the arteries and may lead to complications such as functional changes in the vascular system, gastrointestinal bleeding, or both. The purpose of this study is to increase

Small Steps Lead to Quality Assurance and Enhancement in Qatar University

Science.gov (United States)

Al Attiyah, Asma; Khalifa, Batoul

2009-01-01

This paper presents a brief overview of Qatar University's history since it was started in 1973. Its primary focus is on the various small, but important, steps taken by the University to address the needs of quality assurance and enhancement. The Qatar University Reform Plan is described in detail. Its aims are to continually improve the quality…

Review - On-chip diamagnetic repulsion in continuous flow

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark D Tarn, Noriyuki Hirota, Alexander Iles and Nicole Pamme

2009-01-01

Full Text Available We explore the potential of a microfluidic continuous flow particle separation system based on the repulsion of diamagnetic materials from a high magnetic field. Diamagnetic polystyrene particles in paramagnetic manganese (II chloride solution were pumped into a microfluidic chamber and their deflection behaviour in a high magnetic field applied by a superconducting magnet was investigated. Two particle sizes (5 and 10 μm were examined in two concentrations of MnCl2 (6 and 10%. The larger particles were repelled to a greater extent than the smaller ones, and the effect was greatly enhanced when the particles were suspended in a higher concentration of MnCl2. These findings indicate that the system could be viable for the separation of materials of differing size and/or diamagnetic susceptibility, and as such could be suitable for the separation and sorting of small biological species for subsequent studies.

First validation of the new continuous energy version of the MORET5 Monte Carlo code

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miss, Joachim; Bernard, Franck; Forestier, Benoit; Haeck, Wim; Richet, Yann; Jacquet, Olivier

2008-01-01

The 5.A.1 version is the next release of the MORET Monte Carlo code dedicated to criticality and reactor calculations. This new version combines all the capabilities that are already available in the multigroup version with many new and enhanced features. The main capabilities of the previous version are the powerful association of a deterministic and Monte Carlo approach (like for instance APOLLO-MORET), the modular geometry, five source sampling techniques and two simulation strategies. The major advance in MORET5 is the ability to perform calculations either a multigroup or a continuous energy simulation. Thanks to these new developments, we now have better control over the whole process of criticality calculations, from reading the basic nuclear data to the Monte Carlo simulation itself. Moreover, this new capability enables us to better validate the deterministic-Monte Carlo multigroup calculations by performing continuous energy calculations with the same code, using the same geometry and tracking algorithms. The aim of this paper is to describe the main options available in this new release, and to present the first results. Comparisons of the MORET5 continuous-energy results with experimental measurements and against another continuous-energy Monte Carlo code are provided in terms of validation and time performance. Finally, an analysis of the interest of using a unified energy grid for continuous energy Monte Carlo calculations is presented. (authors)

A continuous quality improvement program to focus a college of pharmacy on programmatic advancement.

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Philip D; Dipiro, Joseph T; Rowen, Randall C; McNair, David

2013-08-12

To enhance the achievement of a college of pharmacy's goals for education, research, and service missions by implementing an excellence program based on the Studer Group model for continuous quality improvement. The Studer model was combined with university strategic planning for a comprehensive quality-improvement program that was implemented over 5 years. The program included identifying and measuring key performance indicators, establishing specific "pillar" goals, aligning behaviors with goals and values, and training leaders. Assessment of key performance indicators over 5 years demonstrated progress toward achieving college goals for student and faculty satisfaction, research funding, numbers of students seeking formal postgraduate training, and private giving. Implementation of a continuous quality-improvement program based on the Studer program enabled the college to focus on and meet its yearly and strategic goals for all components of its mission.

Field enhanced luminescence of irradiated organics due to electron tunnelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Charlesby, A.

1981-01-01

Many organic materials, following exposure to high energy radiation at low temperatures, continue to emit light for long periods. One possible mechanism is that electrons trapped near their parent cations can tunnel back over long times depending on trap depth and distance. This luminescence can be greatly enhanced by the post-radiation application of an external electric field. Calculations on the kinetics of recombination by tunnelling for various trap depths and distances are extended to allow for the effect of an electrical field subsequently applied. The quantitative results lead to two methods of assessing trap depth, depending on immediate light enhancement and on its subsequent decay. The effect of field reversal is also explained. (author)

Capabilities of R Package mixAK for Clustering Based on Multivariate Continuous and Discrete Longitudinal Data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arnošt Komárek

2014-09-01

Full Text Available R package mixAK originally implemented routines primarily for Bayesian estimation of finite normal mixture models for possibly interval-censored data. The functionality of the package was considerably enhanced by implementing methods for Bayesian estimation of mixtures of multivariate generalized linear mixed models proposed in Komrek and Komrkov (2013. Among other things, this allows for a cluster analysis (classification based on multivariate continuous and discrete longitudinal data that arise whenever multiple outcomes of a different nature are recorded in a longitudinal study. This package also allows for a data-driven selection of a number of clusters as methods for selecting a number of mixture components were implemented. A model and clustering methodology for multivariate continuous and discrete longitudinal data is overviewed. Further, a step-by-step cluster analysis based jointly on three longitudinal variables of different types (continuous, count, dichotomous is given, which provides a user manual for using the package for similar problems.

Continuous cardiac troponin I release in Fabry disease.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreas Feustel

Full Text Available Fabry disease (FD is a rare lysosomal storage disorder also affecting the heart. The aims of this study were to determine the frequency of cardiac troponin I (cTNI elevation, a sensitive parameter reflecting myocardial damage, in a smaller cohort of FD-patients, and to analyze whether persistent cTNI can be a suitable biomarker to assess cardiac dysfunction in FD.cTNI values were determined at least twice per year in 14 FD-patients (6 males and 8 females regularly followed-up in our centre. The data were related to other parameters of heart function including cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (cMRI.Three patients (21% without specific vascular risk factors other than FD had persistent cTNI-elevations (range 0.05-0.71 ng/ml, normal: <0.01. cMRI disclosed late gadolinium enhancement (LGE in all three individuals with cTNI values ≥0.01, while none of the 11 patients with cTNI <0.01 showed a pathological enhancement (p<0.01. Two subjects with increased cTNI-values underwent coronary angiography, excluding relevant stenoses. A myocardial biopsy performed in one during this procedure demonstrated substantial accumulation of globotriaosylceramide (Gb3 in cardiomyocytes.Continuous cTNI elevation seems to occur in a substantial proportion of patients with FD. The high accordance with LGE, reflecting cardiac dysfunction, suggests that cTNI-elevation can be a useful laboratory parameter for assessing myocardial damage in FD.

Memory Transformation Enhances Reinforcement Learning in Dynamic Environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Santoro, Adam; Frankland, Paul W; Richards, Blake A

2016-11-30

Over the course of systems consolidation, there is a switch from a reliance on detailed episodic memories to generalized schematic memories. This switch is sometimes referred to as "memory transformation." Here we demonstrate a previously unappreciated benefit of memory transformation, namely, its ability to enhance reinforcement learning in a dynamic environment. We developed a neural network that is trained to find rewards in a foraging task where reward locations are continuously changing. The network can use memories for specific locations (episodic memories) and statistical patterns of locations (schematic memories) to guide its search. We find that switching from an episodic to a schematic strategy over time leads to enhanced performance due to the tendency for the reward location to be highly correlated with itself in the short-term, but regress to a stable distribution in the long-term. We also show that the statistics of the environment determine the optimal utilization of both types of memory. Our work recasts the theoretical question of why memory transformation occurs, shifting the focus from the avoidance of memory interference toward the enhancement of reinforcement learning across multiple timescales. As time passes, memories transform from a highly detailed state to a more gist-like state, in a process called "memory transformation." Theories of memory transformation speak to its advantages in terms of reducing memory interference, increasing memory robustness, and building models of the environment. However, the role of memory transformation from the perspective of an agent that continuously acts and receives reward in its environment is not well explored. In this work, we demonstrate a view of memory transformation that defines it as a way of optimizing behavior across multiple timescales. Copyright © 2016 the authors 0270-6474/16/3612228-15$15.00/0.

ENHANCED PRACTICAL PHOTOSYNTHETIC CO2 MITIGATION

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dr. David J. Bayless; Dr. Morgan Vis; Dr. Gregory Kremer; Dr. Michael Prudich; Dr. Keith Cooksey; Dr. Jeff Muhs

2001-04-16

This quarterly report documents significant achievements in the Enhanced Practical Photosynthetic CO{sub 2} Mitigation project during the period from 1/03/2001 through 4/02/2001. Many of the activities and accomplishments are continuations of work initiated and reported in last quarter's status report. Major activities and accomplishments for this quarter include: Three sites in Yellowstone National Park have been identified that may contain suitable organisms for use in a bioreactor; Full-scale culturing of one thermophilic organism from Yellowstone has progressed to the point that there is a sufficient quantity to test this organism in the model-scale bioreactor; The effects of the additive monoethanolamine on the growth of one thermophilic organism from Yellowstone has been tested; Testing of growth surface adhesion and properties is continuing; Construction of a larger model-scale bioreactor to improve and expand testing capabilities is completed and the facility is undergoing proof tests; Model-scale bioreactor tests examining the effects of CO{sub 2} concentration levels and lighting levels on organism growth rates are continuing; Alternative fiber optic based deep-penetration light delivery systems for use in the pilot-scale bioreactor have been designed, constructed and tested; An existing slug flow reactor system has been modified for use in this project, and a proof-of-concept test plan has been developed for the slug flow reactor; Research and testing of water-jet harvesting techniques is continuing, and a harvesting system has been designed for use in the model-scale bioreactor; and The investigation of comparative digital image analysis as a means for determining the ''density'' of algae on a growth surface is continuing Plans for next quarter's work and an update on the project's web page are included in the conclusions.

Decomposition of fuzzy continuity and fuzzy ideal continuity via fuzzy idealization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zahran, A.M.; Abbas, S.E.; Abd El-baki, S.A.; Saber, Y.M.

2009-01-01

Recently, El-Naschie has shown that the notion of fuzzy topology may be relevant to quantum paretical physics in connection with string theory and E-infinity space time theory. In this paper, we study the concepts of r-fuzzy semi-I-open, r-fuzzy pre-I-open, r-fuzzy α-I-open and r-fuzzy β-I-open sets, which is properly placed between r-fuzzy openness and r-fuzzy α-I-openness (r-fuzzy pre-I-openness) sets regardless the fuzzy ideal topological space in Sostak sense. Moreover, we give a decomposition of fuzzy continuity, fuzzy ideal continuity and fuzzy ideal α-continuity, and obtain several characterization and some properties of these functions. Also, we investigate their relationship with other types of function.

Strengthen the servant leadership to enhance the nurses’ job satisfaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yun-xia HAO

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Objective: Continue to improve and implement the service concept of "taking patients as the center" through enhancing nurses’ job satisfaction. Methods: Strengthen clinic functions of nursing department, which is guided by the demands of clinical nurses. Results: Clinical nurses’ job satisfaction keeps at a high level. Conclusion: Service-oriented mode of nursing management can make the nurses to keep good work experience and satisfaction.

Enhancement to Non-Contacting Stress Measurement of Blade Vibration Frequency

Science.gov (United States)

Platt, Michael; Jagodnik, John

2011-01-01

A system for turbo machinery blade vibration has been developed that combines time-of-arrival sensors for blade vibration amplitude measurement and radar sensors for vibration frequency and mode identification. The enabling technology for this continuous blade monitoring system is the radar sensor, which provides a continuous time series of blade displacement over a portion of a revolution. This allows the data reduction algorithms to directly calculate the blade vibration frequency and to correctly identify the active modes of vibration. The work in this project represents a significant enhancement in the mode identification and stress calculation accuracy in non-contacting stress measurement system (NSMS) technology when compared to time-of-arrival measurements alone.

Continuous Markovian Logics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mardare, Radu Iulian; Cardelli, Luca; Larsen, Kim Guldstrand

2012-01-01

Continuous Markovian Logic (CML) is a multimodal logic that expresses quantitative and qualitative properties of continuous-time labelled Markov processes with arbitrary (analytic) state-spaces, henceforth called continuous Markov processes (CMPs). The modalities of CML evaluate the rates...... of the exponentially distributed random variables that characterize the duration of the labeled transitions of a CMP. In this paper we present weak and strong complete axiomatizations for CML and prove a series of metaproperties, including the finite model property and the construction of canonical models. CML...... characterizes stochastic bisimilarity and it supports the definition of a quantified extension of the satisfiability relation that measures the "compatibility" between a model and a property. In this context, the metaproperties allows us to prove two robustness theorems for the logic stating that one can...

Enhanced oil recovery program review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-05-01

Canada accounts for 40% of the global resources in heavy oils and oil sands bitumen, however, more than 90% of these resources need new and innovative technologies if they are to be made available at a competitive price. CANMET's Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) program was created in the late 1970s in response to the drive for energy self-sufficiency. Funding of the project is highly leveraged; industry funding towards projects supported under the CANMET Energy Conversion Program averaged over 300% annually since the previous review in 1990. Multi-client EOR technology projects include horizontal well technology, development of the vapour extraction process, and field testing of oil sands extraction technology. Direction and priorities of the program are established in consultation with the Minister's Advisory Council to CANMET (MNACC), industry and other performers and sponsors of enhanced oil recovery R and D. This review, including client feedback from interviews with several industry spokespersons, concluded that the program was well managed, and of high priority. Various options capable of meeting future needs were examined. Continuation of the current program, incorporating a number of significant changes, was recommended

Batch versus continuous feeding strategies for pharmaceutical removal by subsurface flow constructed wetland

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Dongqing; Gersberg, Richard M.; Zhu, Junfei; Hua, Tao; Jinadasa, K.B.S.N.; Tan, Soon Keat

2012-01-01

This study evaluated the effect of continuous and batch feeding on the removal of 8 pharmaceuticals (carbamazepine, naproxen, diclofenac, ibuprofen, caffeine, salicylic acid, ketoprofen and clofibric acid) from synthetic wastewater in mesocosm-scale constructed wetlands (CWs). Both loading modes were operated at hydraulic application rates of 5.6 cm day −1 and 2.8 cm day −1 . Except for carbamazepine, clofibric acid and naproxen, removal in CWs was significantly (p ow ) and removal efficiencies of pharmaceutical compounds in the CWs, showed that pharmaceutical removal efficiency was significantly (p ow value, but not with log K ow value. - Highlights: ► Batch feeding in mesocosm-scale constructed wetlands enhances pharmaceutical removal. ► K values for the 8 pharmaceuticals were in the range of 0.01–0.1 m day −1 . ► The pharmaceutical removal efficiency was inversely correlated with log D ow value. - Batch (drain and fill) feeding in mesocosm-scale constructed wetlands enhances pharmaceutical removal.

A Lightweight Continuous Authentication Protocol for the Internet of Things

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yo-Hsuan Chuang

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Modern societies are moving toward an information-oriented environment. To gather and utilize information around people’s modern life, tiny devices with all kinds of sensing devices and various sizes of gateways need to be deployed and connected with each other through the Internet or proxy-based wireless sensor networks (WSNs. Within this kind of Internet of Things (IoT environment, how to authenticate each other between two communicating devices is a fundamental security issue. As a lot of IoT devices are powered by batteries and they need to transmit sensed data periodically, it is necessary for IoT devices to adopt a lightweight authentication protocol to reduce their energy consumption when a device wants to authenticate and transmit data to its targeted peer. In this paper, a lightweight continuous authentication protocol for sensing devices and gateway devices in general IoT environments is introduced. The concept of valid authentication time period is proposed to enhance robustness of authentication between IoT devices. To construct the proposed lightweight continuous authentication protocol, token technique and dynamic features of IoT devices are adopted in order to reach the design goals: the reduction of time consumption for consecutive authentications and energy saving for authenticating devices through by reducing the computation complexity during session establishment of continuous authentication. Security analysis is conducted to evaluate security strength of the proposed protocol. In addition, performance analysis has shown the proposed protocol is a strong competitor among existing protocols for device-to-device authentication in IoT environments.

A Lightweight Continuous Authentication Protocol for the Internet of Things

Science.gov (United States)

Chuang, Yo-Hsuan; Yang, Cheng-Ying; Tang, Ssu-Wei

2018-01-01

Modern societies are moving toward an information-oriented environment. To gather and utilize information around people’s modern life, tiny devices with all kinds of sensing devices and various sizes of gateways need to be deployed and connected with each other through the Internet or proxy-based wireless sensor networks (WSNs). Within this kind of Internet of Things (IoT) environment, how to authenticate each other between two communicating devices is a fundamental security issue. As a lot of IoT devices are powered by batteries and they need to transmit sensed data periodically, it is necessary for IoT devices to adopt a lightweight authentication protocol to reduce their energy consumption when a device wants to authenticate and transmit data to its targeted peer. In this paper, a lightweight continuous authentication protocol for sensing devices and gateway devices in general IoT environments is introduced. The concept of valid authentication time period is proposed to enhance robustness of authentication between IoT devices. To construct the proposed lightweight continuous authentication protocol, token technique and dynamic features of IoT devices are adopted in order to reach the design goals: the reduction of time consumption for consecutive authentications and energy saving for authenticating devices through by reducing the computation complexity during session establishment of continuous authentication. Security analysis is conducted to evaluate security strength of the proposed protocol. In addition, performance analysis has shown the proposed protocol is a strong competitor among existing protocols for device-to-device authentication in IoT environments. PMID:29621168

A Lightweight Continuous Authentication Protocol for the Internet of Things.

Science.gov (United States)

Chuang, Yo-Hsuan; Lo, Nai-Wei; Yang, Cheng-Ying; Tang, Ssu-Wei

2018-04-05

Modern societies are moving toward an information-oriented environment. To gather and utilize information around people's modern life, tiny devices with all kinds of sensing devices and various sizes of gateways need to be deployed and connected with each other through the Internet or proxy-based wireless sensor networks (WSNs). Within this kind of Internet of Things (IoT) environment, how to authenticate each other between two communicating devices is a fundamental security issue. As a lot of IoT devices are powered by batteries and they need to transmit sensed data periodically, it is necessary for IoT devices to adopt a lightweight authentication protocol to reduce their energy consumption when a device wants to authenticate and transmit data to its targeted peer. In this paper, a lightweight continuous authentication protocol for sensing devices and gateway devices in general IoT environments is introduced. The concept of valid authentication time period is proposed to enhance robustness of authentication between IoT devices. To construct the proposed lightweight continuous authentication protocol, token technique and dynamic features of IoT devices are adopted in order to reach the design goals: the reduction of time consumption for consecutive authentications and energy saving for authenticating devices through by reducing the computation complexity during session establishment of continuous authentication. Security analysis is conducted to evaluate security strength of the proposed protocol. In addition, performance analysis has shown the proposed protocol is a strong competitor among existing protocols for device-to-device authentication in IoT environments.

Coastal structures, waste materials and fishery enhancement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Collins, K.J.; Jensen, A.C.; Lockwood, A.P.M.; Lockwood, S.J. [University of Southampton, Southampton (United Kingdom). Dept. of Oceanography

1994-09-01

Current UK practice relating to the disposal of material at sea is reviewed. The use of stabilization technology relating to bulk waste materials, coal ash, oil ash and incinerator ash is discussed. The extension of this technology to inert minestone waste and tailings, contaminated dredged sediments and phosphogypsum is explored. Uses of stabilized wastes are considered in the areas of habitat restoration, coastal defense and fishery enhancement. It is suggested that rehabilitation of marine dump sites receiving loose waste such as pulverized fuel ash (PFA) could be enhanced by the continued dumping of the material but in a stabilized block form, so creating new habitat diversity. Global warming predictions include sea level rise and increased storm frequency. This is of particular concern along the southern and eastern coasts of the UK. The emphasis of coastal defense is changing from hard seawalls to soft options which include offshore barriers to reduce wave energy reaching the coast. Stabilized waste materials could be included in these and other marine constructions with possible economic benefit. Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF), the regulatory authority in England and Wales for marine disposal/construction, policy regarding marine structures and fishery enhancement is outlined. A case is made for the inclusion of fishery enhancement features in future coastal structures. Examples of the productivity of man-made structures are given. Slight modification of planned structures and inclusion of suitable habitat niches could allow for the cultivation of kelp, molluscs, crustacea and fish.

Process performance and product quality in an integrated continuous antibody production process.

Science.gov (United States)

Karst, Daniel J; Steinebach, Fabian; Soos, Miroslav; Morbidelli, Massimo

2017-02-01

Continuous manufacturing is currently being seriously considered in the biopharmaceutical industry as the possible new paradigm for producing therapeutic proteins, due to production cost and product quality related benefits. In this study, a monoclonal antibody producing CHO cell line was cultured in perfusion mode and connected to a continuous affinity capture step. The reliable and stable integration of the two systems was enabled by suitable control loops, regulating the continuous volumetric flow and adapting the operating conditions of the capture process. For the latter, an at-line HPLC measurement of the harvest concentration subsequent to the bioreactor was combined with a mechanistic model of the capture chromatographic unit. Thereby, optimal buffer consumption and productivity throughout the process was realized while always maintaining a yield above the target value of 99%. Stable operation was achieved at three consecutive viable cell density set points (20, 60, and 40 × 10 6 cells/mL), together with consistent product quality in terms of aggregates, fragments, charge isoforms, and N-linked glycosylation. In addition, different values for these product quality attributes such as N-linked glycosylation, charge variants, and aggregate content were measured at the different steady states. As expected, the amount of released DNA and HCP was significantly reduced by the capture step for all considered upstream operating conditions. This study is exemplary for the potential of enhancing product quality control and modulation by integrated continuous manufacturing. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2017;114: 298-307. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Business Continuity Management Plan

Science.gov (United States)

2014-12-01

NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA MBA PROFESSIONAL REPORT BUSINESS CONTINUITY MANAGEMENT PLAN December 2014......maximum 200 words) Navy Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP) lacks a business process framework for the development of Business Continuity Management

Perspective channel-type reactor with enhanced safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adamov, E.O.; Grozdov, I.I.; Kuznetsov, S.P.; Petrov, A.A.; Rozhdestvensky, M.I.; Cherkashov, Yu.M.

1994-01-01

Following the search for new design solutions to develop within the framework of channel trends the reactor with enhanced safety the Research and Development Institute of Power Engineering has developed the design of the multiloop boiling water reactor (MKER). The MKER enhanced safety is attained when involving the inherent safety features, passive safety systems as well as the accident consequences confinement devices. The design realizes several advantages which are typical of the channel-type reactors, namely: The design desintegration simplifying the manufacture, control, equipment delivery and decreasing, versus the pressure vessel reactors, the accident effect if it proceeds in an explosive manner; small operating reactivity margin and fuel burnup increased due to continuous refuelling; fuel cycle flexibility allowing comparatively easily to adopt the reactor to the conjuncture of the country fuel balance; multiloop circuit of the main coolant which reduces the degree and effect of the accidents connected with the equipment and pipings rupture; monitoring of the channels and fuel assemblies leak-tightness. (orig.)

Increase of methane formation by ethanol addition during continuous fermentation of biogas sludge.

Science.gov (United States)

Refai, Sarah; Wassmann, Kati; van Helmont, Sebastian; Berger, Stefanie; Deppenmeier, Uwe

2014-12-01

Very recently, it was shown that the addition of acetate or ethanol led to enhanced biogas formation rates during an observation period of 24 h. To determine if increased methane production rates due to ethanol addition can be maintained over longer time periods, continuous reactors filled with biogas sludge were developed which were fed with the same substrates as the full-scale reactor from which the sludge was derived. These reactors are well reflected conditions of a full-scale biogas plant during a period of 14 days. When the fermenters were pulsed with 50-100 mM ethanol, biomethanation increased by 50-150 %, depending on the composition of the biogas sludge. It was also possible to increase methane formation significantly when 10-20 mM pure ethanol or ethanolic solutions (e.g. beer) were added daily. In summary, the experiments revealed that "normal" methane production continued to take place, but ethanol led to production of additional methane.

Branchlike nano-electrodes for enhanced terahertz emission in photomixers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, Qing Yang Steve; Tanoto, Hendrix; Ding, Lu; Choy Chum, Chan; Bian Chew, Ah; Teng, Jinghua; Wang, Bing; Banas, Agnieszka; Banas, Krzysztof; Jin Chua, Soo

2015-01-01

Branchlike nano-electrode structures were found to improve the THz emission intensity of a photomixer by approximately one order of magnitude higher than that of a photomixer with one row of nano-electrodes separated by the same 100 nm gap. The enhancement is attributed to a more efficient collection of generated carriers, which is in turn due to a more intense electric field under the branchlike nano-electrodes’ structures. This is coupled with an increased number of effective areas where strong tip-to-tip THz field enhancements were observed. The optical-to-THz conversion efficiency of the photomixers with the new branchlike nano-electrodes was found to be 10 times higher. The more efficient THz photomixer will greatly benefit the development of continuous-wave THz imaging and spectroscopy systems. (paper)

Enhancing SDO/HMI images using deep learning

Science.gov (United States)

Baso, C. J. Díaz; Ramos, A. Asensio

2018-06-01

Context. The Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) provides continuum images and magnetograms with a cadence better than one per minute. It has been continuously observing the Sun 24 h a day for the past 7 yr. The trade-off between full disk observations and spatial resolution means that HMI is not adequate for analyzing the smallest-scale events in the solar atmosphere. Aims: Our aim is to develop a new method to enhance HMI data, simultaneously deconvolving and super-resolving images and magnetograms. The resulting images will mimic observations with a diffraction-limited telescope twice the diameter of HMI. Methods: Our method, which we call Enhance, is based on two deep, fully convolutional neural networks that input patches of HMI observations and output deconvolved and super-resolved data. The neural networks are trained on synthetic data obtained from simulations of the emergence of solar active regions. Results: We have obtained deconvolved and super-resolved HMI images. To solve this ill-defined problem with infinite solutions we have used a neural network approach to add prior information from the simulations. We test Enhance against Hinode data that has been degraded to a 28 cm diameter telescope showing very good consistency. The code is open source.

Enhancing PLiM/LCM through integration strategies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dam, R.F.; Watson, P.; Nickerson, J.H.

2004-01-01

Plant Life Management and Life Cycle Management activities continue to become an increasingly important part of NPP planning and O and M efforts. AECL, as a developer and provider of PLiM/LCM products and services, has been working towards providing effective and efficient tools and processes to support this activity. As these products evolve, it is becoming evident that there are significant benefits from ensuring that AECL and their utility partners engage in an Integrated PLiM approach. The integration of PLiM products and services goes far beyond simply relating the various aspects of the technology. The strategy to enhance the integration of PLiM includes three specific areas; namely the integrated aging knowledge base, the integrated assessment technology, and the integrated implementation within the plant. Through integration at all these levels the PLiM technology is able to be adaptive, providing a means for improved design and assessment capability, enhanced asset management capabilities, as well as providing for a flexible and more efficient delivery of PLiM services according to utility needs. This paper explores each of the three areas of integration, the resulting Enhanced PLiM/LCM capability, and how this capability translates to benefits for the operating stations both new and old. (author)

Enhancing quality using ISO 9001:2008 as a vehicle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hemantha Rao, G.V.S.; Rama Rao, B.S.

2009-01-01

Effectiveness of any function rests on three engines - technology, systems and people. Characterization and Quality Control of nuclear fuel is no an exception. Systems integrate people and technology. Technology without systems is creative chaos while systems without technology is mindless bureaucracy. People who man should bridge and blend these two proportionately. Systems provide both means and platform for continual improvement of quality. ISO 9001:2008, international standard for Quality Management System based on the eight principles of total quality management has been used as a driver for building and enhancing the quality of fuel fabricated at NFC. This paper brings out how this international standard has been used as a platform to continually upgrade the quality of fuel manufactured at NFC and its performance. Results thus far obtained are also discussed

Continuous-wave terahertz light from optical parametric oscillators

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sowade, Rosita

2010-12-15

Continuous-wave (cw) optical parametric oscillators (OPOs) are working horses for spectroscopy in the near and mid infrared. However, in the terahertz frequency range (0.1 to 10 THz), the pump threshold is more than 100 W due to the high absorption in nonlinear crystals and thus exceeds the power of standard cw single-frequency pump sources. In this thesis the first cw OPO capable of generating terahertz radiation is demonstrated. To overcome the high threshold, the signal wave of a primary infrared process is resonantly enhanced to serve as the pump wave for a cascaded parametric process with one wave being at the terahertz frequency level. A terahertz output power of more than two microwatts is measured and tuning is achieved from 1.3 to 1.7 THz. This terahertz source emits a narrow-band, diffraction-limited beam which remains mode-hop free over more than one hour. Such a device inhibits high potential for applications in areas like astronomy, telecommunications or high-resolution spectroscopy. (orig.)

Continuous-wave terahertz light from optical parametric oscillators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sowade, Rosita

2010-12-01

Continuous-wave (cw) optical parametric oscillators (OPOs) are working horses for spectroscopy in the near and mid infrared. However, in the terahertz frequency range (0.1 to 10 THz), the pump threshold is more than 100 W due to the high absorption in nonlinear crystals and thus exceeds the power of standard cw single-frequency pump sources. In this thesis the first cw OPO capable of generating terahertz radiation is demonstrated. To overcome the high threshold, the signal wave of a primary infrared process is resonantly enhanced to serve as the pump wave for a cascaded parametric process with one wave being at the terahertz frequency level. A terahertz output power of more than two microwatts is measured and tuning is achieved from 1.3 to 1.7 THz. This terahertz source emits a narrow-band, diffraction-limited beam which remains mode-hop free over more than one hour. Such a device inhibits high potential for applications in areas like astronomy, telecommunications or high-resolution spectroscopy. (orig.)

The random continued fraction transformation

Science.gov (United States)

Kalle, Charlene; Kempton, Tom; Verbitskiy, Evgeny

2017-03-01

We introduce a random dynamical system related to continued fraction expansions. It uses random combinations of the Gauss map and the Rényi (or backwards) continued fraction map. We explore the continued fraction expansions that this system produces, as well as the dynamical properties of the system.

Sibling bereavement and continuing bonds.

Science.gov (United States)

Packman, Wendy; Horsley, Heidi; Davies, Betty; Kramer, Robin

2006-11-01

Historically, from a Freudian and medical model perspective, emotional disengagement from the deceased was seen as essential to the successful adaptation of bereavement. A major shift in the bereavement literature has occurred and it is now generally accepted that despite the permanence of physical separation, the bereaved remains involved and connected to the deceased and can be emotionally sustained through continuing bonds. The majority of literature has focused on adults and on the nature of continuing bonds following the death of a spouse. In this article, the authors demonstrate how the continuing bonds concept applies to the sibling relationship. We describe the unique continued relationship formed by bereaved children and adolescents following a sibling loss, highlight the factors that influence the siblings continuing bonds expressions, and offer clinical interventions. In our view, mental health professionals can play an important role in helping parents encourage activities that may facilitate the creation and maintenance of continuing bonds in their children.

Umatilla River Basin Anadromous Fish Habitat Enhancement Project : 2001 Annual Report.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shaw, R. Todd; Sexton, Amy D.

2003-02-01

The Umatilla River Basin Anadromous Fish Habitat Enhancement Project continued to identify impacted stream reaches throughout the Umatilla River Basin for habitat improvements during the 2001 project period. Public outreach efforts, biological and physical monitoring, and continued development of a Umatilla Subbasin Watershed Assessment assisted the project in fostering public cooperation, targeting habitat deficiencies and determining habitat recovery measures. Projects continued to be maintained on 49 private properties, one 25-year Non-Exclusive Bureau of Indian Affairs' Easement was secured, six new projects implemented and two existing project areas improved to enhance anadromous fish habitat. New project locations included sites on the mid Umatilla River, upper Umatilla River, Mission Creek, Cottonwood Creek and Buckaroo Creek. New enhancements included: (1) construction of 11,264 feet of fencing between River Mile 43.0 and 46.5 on the Umatilla River, (2) a stream bank stabilization project implemented at approximately River Mile 63.5 Umatilla River to stabilize 330 feet of eroding stream bank and improve instream habitat diversity, included construction of eight root wad revetments and three boulder J-vanes, (3) drilling a 358-foot well for off-stream livestock watering at approximately River Mile 46.0 Umatilla River, (4) installing a 50-foot bottomless arch replacement culvert at approximately River Mile 3.0 Mission Creek, (5) installing a Geoweb stream ford crossing on Mission Creek (6) installing a 22-foot bottomless arch culvert at approximately River Mile 0.5 Cottonwood Creek, and (7) providing fence materials for construction of 21,300 feet of livestock exclusion fencing in the Buckaroo Creek Drainage. An approximate total of 3,800 native willow cuttings and 350 pounds of native grass seed was planted at new upper Umatilla River, Mission Creek and Cottonwood Creek project sites. Habitat improvements implemented at existing project sites included

[Technology is changing: is the continuing professional development also changing?].

Science.gov (United States)

De Fiore, Luca

2012-01-01

This paper considers the impact of the new information environment on the scientific communication. Reading behavior changes: today, we browse, scan, watch, receive an impression of something. The new reading habits are not simply determined by the new tools; they are rather influenced by the need to produce and share data and information, using personalized and mobile devices. Also the content formats change: researchers, clinicians, and nurses produce texts, figures, tables, photos, videos, tweets, blog posts and they share them to readers that have to collect, appraise, recombine and - most importantly - contextualize the information. This "continuous partial production" is consistent with a "continuous partial utilization" of data; this is a risk, but it is also an opportunity. On the one side, we risk a self-referential, individualized learning process; on the other side, we can enjoy the extraordinary chance to build a "shared learning environment", able to give a comprehensive solution to the challenges experienced by the health systems. Medical journals survive as valuable media to organize data and information; the new social web tools should support the traditional publishing patterns, to enhance the sharing of information, to help the appraisal of data, and to move forward new communities of learners.

Continuous engineering of nano-cocrystals for medical and energetic applications

Science.gov (United States)

Spitzer, D.; Risse, B.; Schnell, F.; Pichot, V.; Klaumünzer, M.; Schaefer, M. R.

2014-10-01

Cocrystals, solid mixtures of different molecules on molecular scale, are supposed to be tailor made materials with improved employability compared to their pristine individual components in domains such as medicine and explosives. In medicine, cocrystals are obtained by crystallization of active pharmaceutical ingredients with precisely chosen coformers to design medicaments that demonstrate enhanced stability, high solubility, and therefore high bioavailability and optimized drug up-take. Nanoscaling may further advance these characteristica compared to their micronsized counterparts - because of a larger surface to volume ratio of nanoparticles. In the field of energetic materials, cocrystals offer the opportunity to design smart explosives, combining high reactivity with significantly reduced sensitivity, nowadays essential for a safe manipulation and handling. Furthermore, cocrystals are used in ferroelectrics, non-linear material response and electronic organics. However, state of the art batch processes produce low volume of cocrystals of variable quality and only have produced micronsized cocrystals so far, no nano-cocrystals. Here we demonstrate the continuous preparation of pharmaceutical and energetic micro- and nano-cocrystals using the Spray Flash Evaporation process. Our laboratory scale pilot plant continuously prepared up to 8 grams per hour of Caffeine/Oxalic acid 2:1, Caffeine/Glutaric acid 1:1, TNT/CL-20 1:1 and HMX/Cl-20 1:2 nano- and submicronsized cocrystals.

Adding Value to the University of Oklahoma Libraries History of Science Collections through Digital Enhancement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maura Valentino

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Much of the focus of digital collections has been and continues to be on rare and unique materials, including monographs.   A monograph may be made even rarer and more valuable by virtue of hand written marginalia.   Using technology to enhance scans of unique books and make previously unreadable marginalia readable increases the value of a digital object to researchers.  This article describes a case study of enhancing the marginalia in a rare book by Copernicus.

Continuity, Support, Togetherness and Trust: Findings from an Evaluation of a University-Administered Early Professional Development Programme for Teachers in England

Science.gov (United States)

McIntyre, Joanna; Hobson, Andrew J.; Mitchell, Nick

2009-01-01

This article discusses the evaluation of a unique university-based early professional development (EPD) programme in England that enabled newly and recently qualified teachers to have continued contact with their initial teacher preparation provider. The programme was designed to enhance the induction, EPD and retention of beginning teachers of…

KIC 4552982: outbursts and pulsations in the longest-ever pseudo-continuous light curve of a ZZ Ceti

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bell K. J.

2015-01-01

Full Text Available KIC 4552982 was the first ZZ Ceti (hydrogen-atmosphere pulsating white dwarf identified to lie in the Kepler field, resulting in the longest pseudo-continuous light curve ever obtained for this type of variable star. In addition to the pulsations, this light curve exhibits stochastic episodes of brightness enhancement unlike any previously studied white dwarf phenomenon. We briefly highlight the basic outburst and pulsation properties in these proceedings.

Patients' assessments of the continuity of primary care in Finland: a 15-year follow-up questionnaire survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Raivio, Risto; Holmberg-Marttila, Doris; Mattila, Kari J

2014-10-01

Continuity of care is an essential aspect of quality in general practice. This study is the first systematic follow-up of Finnish primary care patients' assessments with regard to personal continuity of care. To ascertain whether patient-reported longitudinal personal continuity of care is related to patient characteristics and their consultation experiences, and how this had changed over the study period. A 15-year follow-up questionnaire survey that took place at Tampere University Hospital catchment area, Finland. The survey was conducted among patients attending health centres in the Tampere University Hospital catchment area from 1998 until 2013. From a sample of 363 464 patients, a total of 157 549 responded. The responses of patients who had visited a doctor during the survey weeks (n = 97 468) were analysed. Continuity of care was assessed by asking the question: 'When visiting the health centre, do you usually see the same doctor?'; patients could answer 'yes' or 'no'. Approximately half of the responders had met the same doctor when visiting the healthcare centre. Personal continuity of care decreased by 15 percentage points (from 66% to 51%) during the study years. The sense of continuity was linked to several patients' experiences of the consultation. The most prominent factor contributing to the sense of continuity of care was having a doctor who was specifically appointed (odds ratio 7.28, 95% confidence interval = 6.65 to 7.96). Continuity of care was proven to enhance the experienced quality of primary care. Patients felt that continuity of care was best realised when they could consult a doctor who had been specifically appointed to them. Despite efforts of the authorities, over the past 15 years patient-reported continuity of care has declined in Finland. © British Journal of General Practice 2014.

Improving the maximum transmission distance of continuous-variable quantum key distribution with noisy coherent states using a noiseless amplifier

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Tianyi; Yu, Song; Zhang, Yi-Chen; Gu, Wanyi; Guo, Hong

2014-01-01

By employing a nondeterministic noiseless linear amplifier, we propose to increase the maximum transmission distance of continuous-variable quantum key distribution with noisy coherent states. With the covariance matrix transformation, the expression of secret key rate under reverse reconciliation is derived against collective entangling cloner attacks. We show that the noiseless linear amplifier can compensate the detrimental effect of the preparation noise with an enhancement of the maximum transmission distance and the noise resistance. - Highlights: • Noiseless amplifier is applied in noisy coherent state quantum key distribution. • Negative effect of preparation noise is compensated by noiseless amplification. • Maximum transmission distance and noise resistance are both enhanced

Use of Immersive Simulations to Enhance Graduate Student Learning: Implications for Educational Leadership Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Voelkel, Robert H.; Johnson, Christie W.; Gilbert, Kristen A.

2016-01-01

The purpose of this article is to present how one university incorporates immersive simulations through platforms which employ avatars to enhance graduate student understanding and learning in educational leadership programs. While using simulations and immersive virtual environments continues to grow, the literature suggests limited evidence of…

Business continuity after catastrophic medical events: the Joplin medical business continuity report.

Science.gov (United States)

Carlton, Paul K; Bringle, Dottie

2012-01-01

On May 22, 2011, The St Johns Mercy Medical Center in Joplin, MO, was destroyed by an F-5 tornado. There were 183 patients in the building at that time in this 367-bed Medical Center. The preparation and response were superbly done and resulted in many lives saved. This report is focused on the reconstitution phase of this disaster response, which includes how to restore business continuity. As 95 percent of our medical capacity resides in the private sector in the United States, we must have a proper plan for how to restore business continuity or face the reality of the medical business failing and not providing critical medical services to the community. A tornado in 2007 destroyed a medical center in Sumter County, GA, and it took more than 365 days to restore business continuity at a cost of $18M. The plan executed by the Mercy Medical System after the disaster in Joplin restored business continuity in 88 days and cost a total of $6.6M, with all assets being reusable. The recommendation from these lessons learned is that every county, state, and Federal Emergency Management Agency region has a plan on the shelf to restore business continuity and the means to be able to do so. The hard work that the State of Missouri and the Mercy Medical System did after this disaster can serve as a model for the nation in how to quickly recover from any loss of medical capability.

Enhancing Mass Lesion of the Sphenoid: Atypical Presentation of Ongoing Pneumatization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Deepak Vallabhaneni

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Sinus pneumatization is a complex variable process that begins in early life and continues for many years. We present a case of a 6-year-old boy with progressive headaches and neurologic symptoms suggestive of intracranial pathology. The presence of enhancing tissue within the sphenoid sinus created a diagnostic dilemma which leads to a transsphenoidal biopsy. Knowledge of imaging characteristics associated with incomplete pneumatization can help differentiate it from more ominous skull base pathology and prevent unnecessary testing. We describe four-year imaging follow-up in a patient with incomplete pneumatization of the sphenoid sinus presenting as an enhancing mass lesion with subsequent follow-up imaging demonstrating gradual regression and increased aeration of the sphenoid sinus.

Polycrystalline Si nanoparticles and their strong aging enhancement of blue photoluminescence

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Shikuan; Cai, Weiping; Zeng, Haibo; Li, Zhigang

2008-07-01

Nearly spherical polycrystalline Si nanoparticles with 20 nm diameter were fabricated based on laser ablation of silicon wafer immersed in sodium dodecyl sulfate aqueous solution. Such Si nanoparticles consist of disordered areas and ultrafine grains of 3 nm in mean size and exhibit significant photoluminescence in blue region. Importantly, aging at ambient air leads to continuing enhancement of the emission (more than 130 times higher in 16 weeks) showing stable and strong blue emission. This aging enhancement is attributed to progressive passivation of nonradiative Pb centers corresponding to silicon dangling bonds on the particles' surface. This study could be helpful in pushing Si into optoelectronic field and Si-based full color display, biomedical tagging, and flash memories.

Protein design using continuous rotamers.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pablo Gainza

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Optimizing amino acid conformation and identity is a central problem in computational protein design. Protein design algorithms must allow realistic protein flexibility to occur during this optimization, or they may fail to find the best sequence with the lowest energy. Most design algorithms implement side-chain flexibility by allowing the side chains to move between a small set of discrete, low-energy states, which we call rigid rotamers. In this work we show that allowing continuous side-chain flexibility (which we call continuous rotamers greatly improves protein flexibility modeling. We present a large-scale study that compares the sequences and best energy conformations in 69 protein-core redesigns using a rigid-rotamer model versus a continuous-rotamer model. We show that in nearly all of our redesigns the sequence found by the continuous-rotamer model is different and has a lower energy than the one found by the rigid-rotamer model. Moreover, the sequences found by the continuous-rotamer model are more similar to the native sequences. We then show that the seemingly easy solution of sampling more rigid rotamers within the continuous region is not a practical alternative to a continuous-rotamer model: at computationally feasible resolutions, using more rigid rotamers was never better than a continuous-rotamer model and almost always resulted in higher energies. Finally, we present a new protein design algorithm based on the dead-end elimination (DEE algorithm, which we call iMinDEE, that makes the use of continuous rotamers feasible in larger systems. iMinDEE guarantees finding the optimal answer while pruning the search space with close to the same efficiency of DEE.Software is available under the Lesser GNU Public License v3. Contact the authors for source code.

Continuation calculus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bram Geron

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Programs with control are usually modeled using lambda calculus extended with control operators. Instead of modifying lambda calculus, we consider a different model of computation. We introduce continuation calculus, or CC, a deterministic model of computation that is evaluated using only head reduction, and argue that it is suitable for modeling programs with control. It is demonstrated how to define programs, specify them, and prove them correct. This is shown in detail by presenting in CC a list multiplication program that prematurely returns when it encounters a zero. The correctness proof includes termination of the program. In continuation calculus we can model both call-by-name and call-by-value. In addition, call-by-name functions can be applied to call-by-value results, and conversely.

Modelling the Role of Human Resource Management in Continuous Improvement

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Frances; Hyland, Paul; Kofoed, Lise B.

2006-01-01

Although it is widely acknowledged that both Human Resource Management (HRM) and Continuous Improvement have the potential to positively influencing organizational performance, very little attention has been given to how certain HRM practices may support CI, and consequently, a company...... developed by de Leede and Looise (2005) serve as the framework for examining how specific bundles of HRM practices utilized during different phases of the CI implementation process may contribute to sustained organizational performance and enhanced operational performance. The primary contribution...... of the paper is theoretical in nature, as the model developed provides a greater understanding of how HRM can contribute to CI; however, the model also has practical value in that it suggests important relationships between various HRM practices and the behaviors necessary for successful CI. The paper...

SESAME: Exploring small businesses’ behaviour to enhance resilience to flooding

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Coates Graham

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In the United Kingdom, small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs account for approximately 99.9% of businesses, 60% of the working population and 47% annual turnover. However, despite the important contribution that SMEs make to the economy, this size of business remains under-researched with a significant gap in understanding how the disruption caused by flooding impacts on SMEs from the time at which a flood event occurs through to the ‘return’ to normal operations. Business continuity management is a recognised approach for enhancing organisational resilience to major disruptions (ISO 22301, 2012. However, this strategic approach to building such resilience in SMEs is under-explored in the literature with a limited range of empirical data to draw on. This paper presents an overview of an inter-disciplinary research project funded by the UK’s Engineering and Physical Science Research Council, called SESAME, which examines SMEs’ operational response and preparedness to flooding. Furthermore, SESAME consists of four stands of research which bring together a number of disciplines including agent based modelling and simulation, flood modelling, business continuity management, economic modelling and behavioural science. This paper provides an overview of the different research stands within the SESAME project aimed at enhancing SMEs’ resilience to flooding.

40 CFR 1065.150 - Continuous sampling.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Continuous sampling. 1065.150 Section... ENGINE-TESTING PROCEDURES Equipment Specifications § 1065.150 Continuous sampling. You may use continuous sampling techniques for measurements that involve raw or dilute sampling. Make sure continuous sampling...

An Experimental Investigation to Facilitate an Improvement in the Design of an Electromagnetic Continuous Casting Mould

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lintao Zhang

2016-04-01

Full Text Available An electromagnetic continuous casting mould designed is proposed with a non-uniform slit distribution structure. This design has aimed to reduce the number of slits so that the mould’s strength is enhanced, whilst maintaining a similar metallurgy effect. In this paper, the metallurgy effect for the designed mould is investigated through the magnetic field distribution along the casting direction, the uniformity feature in the vicinity of the meniscus region, the temperature variation of the molten alloy pool and the mould wall. The results show that the designed mould achieved a similar effect as compared to the original mould; however, the configuration is simplified. This research highlights the topic of mould structure optimization, which would enable the Electromagnetic continuous casting (EMCC technique to be utilized with greater ease by industry.

Fukushima Ministerial Conference Urges Continued Work to Strengthen Nuclear Safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2012-01-01

Full text: Strengthening nuclear safety is a continuous process that leaves no room for complacency, the Co-Presidents of the Fukushima Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Safety said in a statement today. Koichiro Gemba, Japan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Fadillah bin Haji Yusof, Malaysia's Deputy Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, released the Co-Presidents' Statement at the conclusion of the Conference's Ministerial Plenary, on day one of the three-day event. ''It was stressed that nuclear safety is a prerequisite for the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, that strengthening nuclear safety is a continuous process and that there should be no complacency in safety matters,'' the statement said. The statement recognized progress reported by Japan in the response to the Fukushima Daiichi accident, including the achievement of the present stable status of the nuclear power station and the significant decrease in radioactive releases at the accident site. It stressed the importance of continued transparency in sharing objective information on the progress of decommissioning the plant, remediation and waste management, and encouraged Japan to lead an international effort to obtain data from the damaged reactors. ''The lessons learned from these activities, through their dissemination and related cooperation with the international community, are expected to contribute to enhancing the safety and effectiveness of future decommissioning and remediation activities worldwide,'' it said. The statement emphasized the importance of strengthening the IAEA's central role in international efforts to enhance global nuclear safety, underlining the Agency's Safety Standards and the IAEA Action Plan on Nuclear Safety. It urged IAEA Member States to strengthen efforts to implement the Action Plan fully, including the use of international peer reviews and putting the recommendations of such reviews into practice. It stressed the ''utmost importance of establishing and

Application of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) for cleaning verification in pharmaceutical manufacture.

Science.gov (United States)

Corrigan, Damion K; Cauchi, Michael; Piletsky, Sergey; Mccrossen, Sean

2009-01-01

Cleaning verification is the process by which pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment is determined as sufficiently clean to allow manufacture to continue. Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a very sensitive spectroscopic technique capable of detection at levels appropriate for cleaning verification. In this paper, commercially available Klarite SERS substrates were employed in order to obtain the necessary enhancement of signal for the identification of chemical species at concentrations of 1 to 10 ng/cm2, which are relevant to cleaning verification. The SERS approach was combined with principal component analysis in the identification of drug compounds recovered from a contaminated steel surface.

Continuous acoustic emission from aluminium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fenici, P.; Kiesewetter, N.; Schiller, P.

1976-01-01

Continuous acoustic emission of aluminum single crystals and polycrystals during tensile tests at constant cross-head speed and at room temperature is measured with a Root Mean Square Level recorder. By means of the Kaiser effect it is shown that the continuous emission is related to the plastic deformation. The plot of continuous emission against strain takes different shapes for pure single crystals, pure polycrystals and impure polycrystals. The measured voltages have about the same value for pure single and polycrystals and are considerably greater than that for impure polycrystals. A method is developed to distinguish between continuous emission and burst

Cavitation enhances coagulated size during pulsed high-intensity focussed ultrasound ablation in an isolated liver perfusion system.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Lu-Yan; Liu, Shan; Chen, Zong-Gui; Zou, Jian-Zhong; Wu, Feng

2016-11-24

To investigate whether cavitation enhances the degree of coagulation during pulsed high-intensity focussed ultrasound (HIFU) in an isolated liver perfusion system. Isolated liver was treated by pulsed HIFU or continuous-wave HIFU with different portal vein flow rates. The cavitation emission during exposure was recorded, and real-time ultrasound images were used to observe changes in the grey scale. The coagulation size was measured and calculated. HIFU treatment led to complete coagulation necrosis and total cell destruction in the target regions. Compared to exposure at a duty cycle (DC) of 100%, the mean volumes of lesions induced by 6 s exposure at DCs of 50% and 10% were significantly larger (P cavitation activity for the pulsed-HIFU (P > .05). For continuous-wave HIFU exposure, there was a significant decrease in the necrosis volume and cavitation activity for exposure times of 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 s with increasing portal perfusion rates. Perfusion flow rates negatively influence cavitation activity and coagulation volume. Ablation is significantly enhanced during pulsed HIFU exposure compared with continuous-wave HIFU.

Medial tibial pain: a dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI study.

Science.gov (United States)

Mattila, K T; Komu, M E; Dahlström, S; Koskinen, S K; Heikkilä, J

1999-09-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the sensitivity of different magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) sequences to depict periosteal edema in patients with medial tibial pain. Additionally, we evaluated the ability of dynamic contrast-enhanced imaging (DCES) to depict possible temporal alterations in muscular perfusion within compartments of the leg. Fifteen patients with medial tibial pain were examined with MRI. T1-, T2-weighted, proton density axial images and dynamic and static phase post-contrast images were compared in ability to depict periosteal edema. STIR was used in seven cases to depict bone marrow edema. Images were analyzed to detect signs of compartment edema. Region-of-interest measurements in compartments were performed during DCES and compared with controls. In detecting periosteal edema, post-contrast T1-weighted images were better than spin echo T2-weighted and proton density images or STIR images, but STIR depicted the bone marrow edema best. DCES best demonstrated the gradually enhancing periostitis. Four subjects with severe periosteal edema had visually detectable pathologic enhancement during DCES in the deep posterior compartment of the leg. Percentage enhancement in the deep posterior compartment of the leg was greater in patients than in controls. The fast enhancement phase in the deep posterior compartment began slightly slower in patients than in controls, but it continued longer. We believe that periosteal edema in bone stress reaction can cause impairment of venous flow in the deep posterior compartment. MRI can depict both these conditions. In patients with medial tibial pain, MR imaging protocol should include axial STIR images (to depict bone pathology) with T1-weighted axial pre and post-contrast images, and dynamic contrast enhanced imaging to show periosteal edema and abnormal contrast enhancement within a compartment.

Enhancement of Biofilm Formation on Pyrite by Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qian Li

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Bioleaching is the mobilization of metal cations from insoluble ores by microorganisms. Biofilms can enhance this process. Since Sulfobacillus often appears in leaching heaps or reactors, this genus has aroused attention. In this study, biofilm formation and subsequent pyrite dissolution by the Gram-positive, moderately thermophilic acidophile Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans were investigated. Five strategies, including adjusting initial pH, supplementing an extra energy source or ferric ions, as well as exchanging exhausted medium with fresh medium, were tested for enhancement of its biofilm formation. The results show that regularly exchanging exhausted medium leads to a continuous biofilm development on pyrite. By this way, multiply layered biofilms were observed on pyrite slices, while only monolayer biofilms were visible on pyrite grains. In addition, biofilms were proven to be responsible for pyrite leaching in the early stages.

Selecting Features Of A Web Platform To Enhance Course Delivery

OpenAIRE

Karen A. Berger; Martin T. Topol

2011-01-01

This paper reviews key features of popular Web platforms used for course delivery. Institutions of higher education have rushed to adopt these platforms for several reasons. From the point of view of the educator, the most important reason is to enhance the classroom experience (real or virtual). Classroom experiences can benefit from a continuous stream of discourse made possible by the communications tools available in the web platforms designed for educational application. In addition, web...

42 CFR 441.60 - Continuing care.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 42 Public Health 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Continuing care. 441.60 Section 441.60 Public... Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) of Individuals Under Age 21 § 441.60 Continuing care. (a) Continuing care provider. For purposes of this subpart, a continuing care provider means a...

Room-temperature cold-welding of gold nanoparticles for enhancing the electrooxidation of carbon monoxide.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Cai; Li, Yong-Jun; Sun, Shi-Gang; Yeung, Edward S

2011-04-21

A cold-welding strategy is proposed to rapidly join together Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) into two-dimensional continuous structures for enhancing the electrooxidation of carbon monoxide by injecting a mixture of ethanol and tolulene into the bottom of a AuNP solution. © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2011

Continuous Platform Development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Ole Fiil

low risks and investments but also with relatively fuzzy results. When looking for new platform projects, it is important to make sure that the company and market is ready for the introduction of platforms, and to make sure that people from marketing and sales, product development, and downstream......, but continuous product family evolution challenges this strategy. The concept of continuous platform development is based on the fact that platform development should not be a one-time experience but rather an ongoing process of developing new platforms and updating existing ones, so that product family...

Business continuity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Breunhoelder, Gert

2002-01-01

This presentation deals with the following keypoints: Information Technology (IT) Business Continuity and Recovery essential for any business; lessons learned after Sept. 11 event; Detailed planning, redundancy and testing being the key elements for probability estimation of disasters

Formalizing Implementation Strategies for First-Class Continuations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Danvy, Olivier

1999-01-01

We present the first formalization of implementation strategies for first-class continuations. The formalization hinges on abstract machines for continuation-passing style (CPS) programs with a special treatment for the current continuation, accounting for the essence of first-class continuations......-class continuations and that second-class continuations are stackable. A large body of work exists on implementing continuations, but it is predominantly empirical and implementation-oriented. In contrast, our formalization abstracts the essence of first-class continuations and provides a uniform setting...

Formalizing Implementation Strategies for First-Class Continuations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Danvy, Olivier

2000-01-01

We present the first formalization of implementation strategies for first-class continuations. The formalization hinges on abstract machines for continuation-passing style (CPS) programs with a special treatment for the current continuation, accounting for the essence of first-class continuations......-class continuations and that second-class continuations are stackable. A large body of work exists on implementing continuations, but it is predominantly empirical and implementation-oriented. In contrast, our formalization abstracts the essence of first-class continuations and provides a uniform setting...

No Enhancement of 24-Hour Visuomotor Skill Retention by Post-Practice Caffeine Administration.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sara J Hussain

Full Text Available Caffeine is widely consumed throughout the world and appears to indirectly facilitate learning and memory through effects on attention and motivation. Animal work indicates that post-training caffeine administration augments inhibitory avoidance memory, spatial memory, and object memory. In humans, post-training caffeine administration enhances the ability to discern between familiar images and new, similar images. However, the effect of post-training caffeine administration on motor memory has not been examined. Therefore, we tested two groups of low caffeine consumers (average weekly consumption ≤500 mg in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study involving acquisition of a continuous isometric visuomotor tracking skill. On Day 1, subjects completed 5 blocks (150 repetitions of training on the continuous isometric visuomotor skill and subsequently ingested either 200 mg of caffeine or placebo. On day 2, subjects completed an additional 5 blocks of training. Day 1 mean performance and performance variability were both similar between groups, suggesting that both groups acquired the motor skill similarly. For mean performance on Day 2, patterns of re-learning, mean performance learning magnitudes, mean performance learning rates, and mean performance retention magnitudes were all similar between groups. For performance variability on Day 2, there was a small trend towards increased variability in the caffeine group during re-learning, but performance variability learning magnitudes and performance variability retention magnitudes did not differ between groups. Because motor skill acquisition can also be conceptualized as a reduction in performance variability, these results suggest that there may be a small negative effect of post-practice caffeine administration on memory of a newly-learned visuomotor skill. Overall, we found no evidence to suggest that post-training caffeine administration enhances 24-hour retention of a newly

No Enhancement of 24-Hour Visuomotor Skill Retention by Post-Practice Caffeine Administration.

Science.gov (United States)

Hussain, Sara J; Cole, Kelly J

2015-01-01

Caffeine is widely consumed throughout the world and appears to indirectly facilitate learning and memory through effects on attention and motivation. Animal work indicates that post-training caffeine administration augments inhibitory avoidance memory, spatial memory, and object memory. In humans, post-training caffeine administration enhances the ability to discern between familiar images and new, similar images. However, the effect of post-training caffeine administration on motor memory has not been examined. Therefore, we tested two groups of low caffeine consumers (average weekly consumption ≤500 mg) in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study involving acquisition of a continuous isometric visuomotor tracking skill. On Day 1, subjects completed 5 blocks (150 repetitions) of training on the continuous isometric visuomotor skill and subsequently ingested either 200 mg of caffeine or placebo. On day 2, subjects completed an additional 5 blocks of training. Day 1 mean performance and performance variability were both similar between groups, suggesting that both groups acquired the motor skill similarly. For mean performance on Day 2, patterns of re-learning, mean performance learning magnitudes, mean performance learning rates, and mean performance retention magnitudes were all similar between groups. For performance variability on Day 2, there was a small trend towards increased variability in the caffeine group during re-learning, but performance variability learning magnitudes and performance variability retention magnitudes did not differ between groups. Because motor skill acquisition can also be conceptualized as a reduction in performance variability, these results suggest that there may be a small negative effect of post-practice caffeine administration on memory of a newly-learned visuomotor skill. Overall, we found no evidence to suggest that post-training caffeine administration enhances 24-hour retention of a newly-learned continuous visuomotor

No Enhancement of 24-Hour Visuomotor Skill Retention by Post-Practice Caffeine Administration

Science.gov (United States)

Hussain, Sara J.; Cole, Kelly J.

2015-01-01

Caffeine is widely consumed throughout the world and appears to indirectly facilitate learning and memory through effects on attention and motivation. Animal work indicates that post-training caffeine administration augments inhibitory avoidance memory, spatial memory, and object memory. In humans, post-training caffeine administration enhances the ability to discern between familiar images and new, similar images. However, the effect of post-training caffeine administration on motor memory has not been examined. Therefore, we tested two groups of low caffeine consumers (average weekly consumption ≤500 mg) in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study involving acquisition of a continuous isometric visuomotor tracking skill. On Day 1, subjects completed 5 blocks (150 repetitions) of training on the continuous isometric visuomotor skill and subsequently ingested either 200 mg of caffeine or placebo. On day 2, subjects completed an additional 5 blocks of training. Day 1 mean performance and performance variability were both similar between groups, suggesting that both groups acquired the motor skill similarly. For mean performance on Day 2, patterns of re-learning, mean performance learning magnitudes, mean performance learning rates, and mean performance retention magnitudes were all similar between groups. For performance variability on Day 2, there was a small trend towards increased variability in the caffeine group during re-learning, but performance variability learning magnitudes and performance variability retention magnitudes did not differ between groups. Because motor skill acquisition can also be conceptualized as a reduction in performance variability, these results suggest that there may be a small negative effect of post-practice caffeine administration on memory of a newly-learned visuomotor skill. Overall, we found no evidence to suggest that post-training caffeine administration enhances 24-hour retention of a newly-learned continuous visuomotor

Archives: Continuing Medical Education

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Items 51 - 88 of 88 ... Archives: Continuing Medical Education. Journal Home > Archives: Continuing Medical Education. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives. 51 - 88 of 88 ...

Intention to continue using Facebook fan pages from the perspective of social capital theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Kuan-Yu; Lu, Hsi-Peng

2011-10-01

Social network sites enable users to express themselves, establish ties, and develop and maintain social relationships. Recently, many companies have begun using social media identity (e.g., Facebook fan pages) to enhance brand attractiveness, and social network sites have evolved into social utility networks, thereby creating a number of promising business opportunities. To this end, the operators of fan pages need to be aware of the factors motivating users to continue their patronization of such pages. This study set out to identify these motivating factors from the point of view of social capital. This study employed structural equation modeling to investigate a research model based on a survey of 327 fan pages users. This study discovered that ties related to social interaction (structural dimension), shared values (cognitive dimension), and trust (relational dimension) play important roles in users' continued intention to use Facebook fan pages. Finally, this study discusses the implications of these findings and offers directions for future research.

Discrete and Continuous Optimization Based on Hierarchical Artificial Bee Colony Optimizer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lianbo Ma

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a novel optimization algorithm, namely, hierarchical artificial bee colony optimization (HABC, to tackle complex high-dimensional problems. In the proposed multilevel model, the higher-level species can be aggregated by the subpopulations from lower level. In the bottom level, each subpopulation employing the canonical ABC method searches the part-dimensional optimum in parallel, which can be constructed into a complete solution for the upper level. At the same time, the comprehensive learning method with crossover and mutation operator is applied to enhance the global search ability between species. Experiments are conducted on a set of 20 continuous and discrete benchmark problems. The experimental results demonstrate remarkable performance of the HABC algorithm when compared with other six evolutionary algorithms.

Self-similar continued root approximants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gluzman, S.; Yukalov, V.I.

2012-01-01

A novel method of summing asymptotic series is advanced. Such series repeatedly arise when employing perturbation theory in powers of a small parameter for complicated problems of condensed matter physics, statistical physics, and various applied problems. The method is based on the self-similar approximation theory involving self-similar root approximants. The constructed self-similar continued roots extrapolate asymptotic series to finite values of the expansion parameter. The self-similar continued roots contain, as a particular case, continued fractions and Padé approximants. A theorem on the convergence of the self-similar continued roots is proved. The method is illustrated by several examples from condensed-matter physics.

Self-Reliability and Motivation in a Nuclear Security Culture Enhancement Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rogers, E.; deBoer, G.; Crawford, C.; De Castro, K.; Landers, J.

2009-01-01

The threat of nuclear terrorism has become a global concern. Many countries continue to make efforts to strengthen nuclear security by enhancing systems of nuclear material protection, control, and accounting (MPC and A). Though MPC and A systems can significantly upgrade nuclear security, they do not eliminate the 'human factor.' Gen. Eugene Habiger, a former 'Assistant Secretary for Safeguards and Security' at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) nuclear-weapons complex and a former commander of U.S. strategic nuclear forces, has observed that 'good security is 20% equipment and 80% people.' Although eliminating the 'human factor' is not possible, accounting for and mitigating the risk of the insider threat is an essential element in establishing an effective nuclear security culture. This paper will consider the organizational role in mitigating the risk associated with the malicious insider through monitoring and enhancing human reliability and motivation as well as enhancing the nuclear security culture.

Self-Reliability and Motivation in a Nuclear Security Culture Enhancement Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rogers,E.; deBoer,G.; Crawford, C.; De Castro, K.; Landers, J.

2009-10-19

The threat of nuclear terrorism has become a global concern. Many countries continue to make efforts to strengthen nuclear security by enhancing systems of nuclear material protection, control, and accounting (MPC&A). Though MPC&A systems can significantly upgrade nuclear security, they do not eliminate the "human factor." Gen. Eugene Habiger, a former "Assistant Secretary for Safeguards and Security" at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) nuclear-weapons complex and a former commander of U.S. strategic nuclear forces, has observed that "good security is 20% equipment and 80% people." Although eliminating the "human factor" is not possible, accounting for and mitigating the risk of the insider threat is an essential element in establishing an effective nuclear security culture. This paper will consider the organizational role in mitigating the risk associated with the malicious insider through monitoring and enhancing human reliability and motivation as well as enhancing the nuclear security culture.

The Feasibility of Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound During Uterine Artery Embolization: A Pilot Study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dorenberg, Eric J.; Jakobsen, Jarl A.; Brabrand, Knut; Hafsahl, Geir; Smith, Hans-Jorgen

2007-01-01

Purpose. To evaluate the feasibility of using contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) during uterine artery embolization (UAE) in order to define the correct end-point of embolization with complete devascularization of all fibroids. Methods. In this prospective study of 10 consecutive women undergoing UAE, CEUS was performed in the angiographic suite during embolization. When the angiographic end-point, defined as the 'pruned-tree' appearance of the uterine arteries was reached, CEUS was performed while the angiographic catheters to both uterine arteries were kept in place. The decision whether or not to continue the embolization was based on the findings at CEUS. The results of CEUS were compared with those of contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) 1 day as well as 3 months following UAE. Results. CEUS was successfully performed in all women. In 4 cases injection of particles was continued based on the findings at CEUS despite angiographically complete embolization. CEUS imaging at completion of UAE correlated well with the findings at MRI. Conclusion. The use of CEUS during UAE is feasible and may increase the quality of UAE

First step toward near-infrared continuous glucose monitoring: in vivo evaluation of antibody coupled biomaterials

Science.gov (United States)

Gellynck, Karolien; Kodeck, Valérie; Van De Walle, Elke; Kersemans, Ken; De Vos, Filip; Declercq, Heidi; Dubruel, Peter; Vlaminck, Lieven

2015-01-01

Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) is crucial in diabetic care. Long-term CGM systems however require an accurate sensor as well as a suitable measuring environment. Since large intravenous sensors are not feasible, measuring inside the interstitial fluid is considered the best alternative. This option, unfortunately, has the drawback of a lag time with blood glucose values. A good strategy to circumvent this is to enhance tissue integration and enrich the peri-implant vasculature. Implants of different optically transparent biomaterials (poly(methyl-methacrylate) [PMMA] and poly(dimethylsiloxane) [PDMS]) – enabling glucose monitoring in the near-infrared (NIR) spectrum – were surface-treated and subsequently implanted in goats at various implantation sites for up to 3 months. The overall in vivo biocompatibility, tissue integration, and vascularization at close proximity of the surfaces of these materials were assessed. Histological screening showed similar tissue reactions independent of the implantation site. No significant inflammation reaction was observed. Tissue integration and vascularization correlated, to some extent, with the biomaterial composition. A modification strategy, in which a vascular endothelial-cadherin antibody was coupled to the biomaterials surface through a dopamine layer, showed significantly enhanced vascularization 3 months after subcutaneous implantation. Our results suggest that the developed strategy enables the creation of tissue interactive NIR transparent packaging materials, opening the possibility of continuous glucose monitoring. PMID:25304314

IBM PC enhances the world's future

Science.gov (United States)

Cox, Jozelle

1988-01-01

Although the purpose of this research is to illustrate the importance of computers to the public, particularly the IBM PC, present examinations will include computers developed before the IBM PC was brought into use. IBM, as well as other computing facilities, began serving the public years ago, and is continuing to find ways to enhance the existence of man. With new developments in supercomputers like the Cray-2, and the recent advances in artificial intelligence programming, the human race is gaining knowledge at a rapid pace. All have benefited from the development of computers in the world; not only have they brought new assets to life, but have made life more and more of a challenge everyday.

Robust continuous clustering.

Science.gov (United States)

Shah, Sohil Atul; Koltun, Vladlen

2017-09-12

Clustering is a fundamental procedure in the analysis of scientific data. It is used ubiquitously across the sciences. Despite decades of research, existing clustering algorithms have limited effectiveness in high dimensions and often require tuning parameters for different domains and datasets. We present a clustering algorithm that achieves high accuracy across multiple domains and scales efficiently to high dimensions and large datasets. The presented algorithm optimizes a smooth continuous objective, which is based on robust statistics and allows heavily mixed clusters to be untangled. The continuous nature of the objective also allows clustering to be integrated as a module in end-to-end feature learning pipelines. We demonstrate this by extending the algorithm to perform joint clustering and dimensionality reduction by efficiently optimizing a continuous global objective. The presented approach is evaluated on large datasets of faces, hand-written digits, objects, newswire articles, sensor readings from the Space Shuttle, and protein expression levels. Our method achieves high accuracy across all datasets, outperforming the best prior algorithm by a factor of 3 in average rank.

A 3-armed randomized controlled trial of nurses' continuing education meetings on adverse drug reactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Sarayani, Amir; Naderi-Behdani, Fahimeh; Hadavand, Naser; Javadi, Mohammadreza; Farsad, Fariborz; Hadjibabaie, Molouk; Gholami, Kheirollah

2015-01-01

Nurses' insufficient knowledge of adverse drug reactions is reported as a barrier to spontaneous reporting. Therefore, CE meetings could be utilized to enhance nurses' competencies. In a 3-armed randomized controlled trial, 496 nurses, working in a tertiary medical center, were randomly allocated to a didactic lecture, brainstorming workshop, or the control group (delayed education). Similar instructors (2 clinical pharmacists) prepared and delivered the educational content to all 3 groups. Outcomes were declarative/procedural knowledge (primary outcome), participation rate, and satisfaction. Knowledge was evaluated using a validated researcher-made questionnaire in 3 time points: immediately before, immediately after, and 3 months after each session. Participants' satisfaction was assessed immediately after each meeting via a standard tool. Data were analyzed using appropriate parametric and nonparametric tests. Rate of participation was 37.7% for the lecture group and 47.5% for the workshop group. The workshop participants were significantly more satisfied in comparison with the lecture group (p techniques. © 2015 The Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions, the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education, and the Council on Continuing Medical Education, Association for Hospital Medical Education.

Entanglement-continuous unitary transformations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sahin, Serkan; Orus, Roman [Institute of Physics, Johannes Gutenberg University, 55099 Mainz (Germany)

2016-07-01

In this talk we present a new algorithm for quantum many-body systems using continuous unitary transformations (CUT) and tensor networks (TNs). With TNs we are able to approximate the solution to the flow equations that lie at the heart of continuous unitary transformations. We call this method Entanglement-Continuous Unitary Transformations (eCUT). It allows us to compute expectation values of local observables as well as tensor network representations of ground states and low-energy excited states. An implementation of the method is shown for 1d systems using matrix product operators. We show preliminary results for the 1d transverse-field Ising model to demonstrate the feasibility of the method.

45 CFR 1355.55 - Review and assessment of the system developed with enhanced funds.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Review and assessment of the system developed with... SERVICES GENERAL § 1355.55 Review and assessment of the system developed with enhanced funds. (a) ACF will, on a continuing basis, review, assess and inspect the planning, design, development, installation and...

Continuation calculus

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Geron, B.; Geuvers, J.H.; de'Liguoro, U.; Saurin, A.

2013-01-01

Programs with control are usually modeled using lambda calculus extended with control operators. Instead of modifying lambda calculus, we consider a different model of computation. We introduce continuation calculus, or CC, a deterministic model of computation that is evaluated using only head

Deterministic Quantum Secure Direct Communication with Dense Coding and Continuous Variable Operations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han Lianfang; Chen Yueming; Yuan Hao

2009-01-01

We propose a deterministic quantum secure direct communication protocol by using dense coding. The two check photon sequences are used to check the securities of the channels between the message sender and the receiver. The continuous variable operations instead of the usual discrete unitary operations are performed on the travel photons so that the security of the present protocol can be enhanced. Therefore some specific attacks such as denial-of-service attack, intercept-measure-resend attack and invisible photon attack can be prevented in ideal quantum channel. In addition, the scheme is still secure in noise channel. Furthermore, this protocol has the advantage of high capacity and can be realized in the experiment. (general)

Continuous-variable quantum homomorphic signature

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Ke; Shang, Tao; Liu, Jian-wei

2017-10-01

Quantum cryptography is believed to be unconditionally secure because its security is ensured by physical laws rather than computational complexity. According to spectrum characteristic, quantum information can be classified into two categories, namely discrete variables and continuous variables. Continuous-variable quantum protocols have gained much attention for their ability to transmit more information with lower cost. To verify the identities of different data sources in a quantum network, we propose a continuous-variable quantum homomorphic signature scheme. It is based on continuous-variable entanglement swapping and provides additive and subtractive homomorphism. Security analysis shows the proposed scheme is secure against replay, forgery and repudiation. Even under nonideal conditions, it supports effective verification within a certain verification threshold.

Enhancing the NCSU PULSTAR reactor control room with human factors considerations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glover, B.L.; Pupons, D.E.; Perez, P.B.

1993-01-01

The North Carolina PULSTAR research reactor was constructed to support teaching, training, and research. The training provided is not limited to academic students but encompasses plant operators, managers, engineers, designers, and supporting organizations in the nuclear industry. Our facility is under-going design changes to maximize teaching effectiveness and continued safe operation by providing current technology in the control room. The opportunity for the enhancements is a result of the generosity of neighboring utilities and the US Department of Energy instrumentation upgrade funds. Our objective, to provide a control room environment that conforms to selected industry practices, required human factors input. A human factors course, offered jointly between the industrial engineering and the psychology departments, included the PULSTAR control room enhancement as a case study

Inkjet printable nanosilver suspensions for enhanced sintering quality in rapid manufacturing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bai, John G; Creehan, Kevin D; Kuhn, Howard A

2007-01-01

Inkjet printable nanosilver suspensions were prepared by dispersing 30 nm silver particles into a water-based binder system to enhance the sintering quality in rapid manufacturing. During three-dimensional printing (3DP), the nanosilver suspensions were inkjet printed onto repetitively spread microsilver powder for selective joining. Since the nanosilver particles in the suspensions can be sintered at relatively low temperatures to bond the neighbouring microsilver powder, they were used to provide the continuous bonding strength of the manufacturing parts during the heat-up procedure of the sintering operation. Comparative study shows that the silver parts printed using the nanosilver suspension were significantly enhanced in sintering quality than those printed using the binder system, especially when the silver parts had thin or small features with high aspect ratios

High-precision terahertz frequency modulated continuous wave imaging method using continuous wavelet transform

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Yu; Wang, Tianyi; Dai, Bing; Li, Wenjun; Wang, Wei; You, Chengwu; Wang, Kejia; Liu, Jinsong; Wang, Shenglie; Yang, Zhengang

2018-02-01

Inspired by the extensive application of terahertz (THz) imaging technologies in the field of aerospace, we exploit a THz frequency modulated continuous-wave imaging method with continuous wavelet transform (CWT) algorithm to detect a multilayer heat shield made of special materials. This method uses the frequency modulation continuous-wave system to catch the reflected THz signal and then process the image data by the CWT with different basis functions. By calculating the sizes of the defects area in the final images and then comparing the results with real samples, a practical high-precision THz imaging method is demonstrated. Our method can be an effective tool for the THz nondestructive testing of composites, drugs, and some cultural heritages.

Study of the mechanisms of flux enhancement through hairless mouse skin by pulsed DC iontophoresis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pikal, M.J.; Shah, S.

1991-01-01

Enhanced iontophoretic transport using pulsed DC is usually explained by citing the observed decrease in skin resistance caused by an increase in AC pulse frequency at very small currents. Alternately, it has been suggested that the on-to-off nature of pulsed DC imparts an impact energy to the fluid, thereby increasing transport. This report provides a test of these mechanisms for enhanced delivery via pulsed iontophoresis. The DC resistance of hairless mouse skin during continuous and pulsed DC iontophoresis is measured as a function of time for selected pulse frequencies and duty cycles using current densities ranging from 0.1 to 1.0 mA/cm2. As a test of the impact energy mechanism, the iontophoretic transport of 14C-glucose measured with pulsed DC is compared with similar data obtained previously using continuous DC. It is suggested that pulsed current can yield lower resistance and enhanced drug delivery provided that (a) the steady-state current during the on phase of the pulse is very small and (b) the frequency is low enough to allow depolarization of the skin during the off phase of the pulse. The glucose transport results suggest that the impact energy concept does not apply to iontophoresis

Enhancement of Arterial Pressure Pulsatility by Controlling Continuous-Flow Left Ventricular Assist Device Flow Rate in Mock Circulatory System.

Science.gov (United States)

Bozkurt, Selim; van de Vosse, Frans N; Rutten, Marcel C M

Continuous-flow left ventricular assist devices (CF-LVADs) generally operate at a constant speed, which reduces pulsatility in the arteries and may lead to complications such as functional changes in the vascular system, gastrointestinal bleeding, or both. The purpose of this study is to increase the arterial pulse pressure and pulsatility by controlling the CF-LVAD flow rate. A MicroMed DeBakey pump was used as the CF-LVAD. A model simulating the flow rate through the aortic valve was used as a reference model to drive the pump. A mock circulation containing two synchronized servomotor-operated piston pumps acting as left and right ventricles was used as a circulatory system. Proportional-integral control was used as the control method. First, the CF-LVAD was operated at a constant speed. With pulsatile-speed CF-LVAD assistance, the pump was driven such that the same mean pump output was generated. Continuous and pulsatile-speed CF-LVAD assistance provided the same mean arterial pressure and flow rate, while the index of pulsatility increased significantly for both arterial pressure and pump flow rate signals under pulsatile speed pump support. This study shows the possibility of improving the pulsatility of CF-LVAD support by regulating pump speed over a cardiac cycle without reducing the overall level of support.

Continuous-variable measurement-device-independent quantum key distribution with virtual photon subtraction

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Yijia; Zhang, Yichen; Xu, Bingjie; Yu, Song; Guo, Hong

2018-04-01

The method of improving the performance of continuous-variable quantum key distribution protocols by postselection has been recently proposed and verified. In continuous-variable measurement-device-independent quantum key distribution (CV-MDI QKD) protocols, the measurement results are obtained from untrusted third party Charlie. There is still not an effective method of improving CV-MDI QKD by the postselection with untrusted measurement. We propose a method to improve the performance of coherent-state CV-MDI QKD protocol by virtual photon subtraction via non-Gaussian postselection. The non-Gaussian postselection of transmitted data is equivalent to an ideal photon subtraction on the two-mode squeezed vacuum state, which is favorable to enhance the performance of CV-MDI QKD. In CV-MDI QKD protocol with non-Gaussian postselection, two users select their own data independently. We demonstrate that the optimal performance of the renovated CV-MDI QKD protocol is obtained with the transmitted data only selected by Alice. By setting appropriate parameters of the virtual photon subtraction, the secret key rate and tolerable excess noise are both improved at long transmission distance. The method provides an effective optimization scheme for the application of CV-MDI QKD protocols.

CATS, continuous automated testing of seismological, hydroacoustic, and infrasound (SHI) processing software.

Science.gov (United States)

Brouwer, Albert; Brown, David; Tomuta, Elena

2017-04-01

To detect nuclear explosions, waveform data from over 240 SHI stations world-wide flows into the International Data Centre (IDC) of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), located in Vienna, Austria. A complex pipeline of software applications processes this data in numerous ways to form event hypotheses. The software codebase comprises over 2 million lines of code, reflects decades of development, and is subject to frequent enhancement and revision. Since processing must run continuously and reliably, software changes are subjected to thorough testing before being put into production. To overcome the limitations and cost of manual testing, the Continuous Automated Testing System (CATS) has been created. CATS provides an isolated replica of the IDC processing environment, and is able to build and test different versions of the pipeline software directly from code repositories that are placed under strict configuration control. Test jobs are scheduled automatically when code repository commits are made. Regressions are reported. We present the CATS design choices and test methods. Particular attention is paid to how the system accommodates the individual testing of strongly interacting software components that lack test instrumentation.

Training enhancement of Japanese nuclear international talented staffs hurried by rushing in global age

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oka, Yoshiaki; Saito, Masaki; Ahn, Joonhong

2010-01-01

Nuclear power has attracted international attention with its beneficial roles in realizing a low-carbon society and serving as an energy source. Many countries would expect cooperation with Japanese nuclear industry continuing construction of nuclear power plants. Such global requests would inevitably require training enhancement of Japanese international talented staffs and establishment of human networks in younger generation. This feature article collected related activities of academia and electric utilities, status of Asian trainee acceptance and proposals from persons with experience of studying abroad and staying overseas organization. Issues related with training enhancement and their countermeasures were broadly discussed. (T. Tanaka)

Management of continual improvement for facilities and activities: A structured approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2006-04-01

In recent years there has been an upward trend in the safety and operational performance of nuclear installations. Safe, efficient operation is their goal. Continual improvement of the processes of organizations has led to enhanced safety performance and efficiency benefits such as cost reductions and improved cycle times. Many organizations have experienced significant cost improvement largely by or through better financial management and a common drive to reduce costs brought on by commercial pressures. Without the use of a structured methodology to identify and implement improvements, changes to an organization to reduce costs through cutting staff and activities could eventually fail to produce the desired changes and even have a negative effect on safety and overall performance. The following fundamental principles are considered essential to the effective introduction of structured continual improvement: - Long term commitment from senior management throughout the entire organization; - The implementation in the organization of a process management approach such as that advocated by IAEA Safety Standards, ISO 9001, Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award and European Foundation for Quality Management Business Excellence model; - The alignment of the processes with the objectives of the organization through the organization's business plan; - The utilization by Management of the process information as an input to managing the organization; - The employment of the information derived from the process performance to identify and prioritize the processes that require improvement; - The active participation of all staff of the organization to using its processes in order to contribute to continual process improvement (CPI). This publication defines a structured approach for continual improvement and focuses on the way an organization can improve its processes. It is recognized that there are many different approaches and methods available in the marketplace to

Mediastinal lymphoma: quantitative changes in gadolinium enhancement at MR imaging after treatment.

Science.gov (United States)

Rahmouni, A; Divine, M; Lepage, E; Jazaerli, N; Belhadj, K; Gaulard, P; Golli, M; Reyes, F; Vasile, N

2001-06-01

To compare changes in gadolinium enhancement at magnetic resonance (MR) imaging with outcome in mediastinal lymphoma after treatment. Thirty-one patients with bulky mediastinal lymphoma (17 with Hodgkin disease, 14 with non-Hodgkin lymphoma) underwent serial MR imaging before and up to 50 months after treatment, with routine follow-up (including computed tomography). Signal intensity ratios between masses and muscle were calculated on T1-weighted, T2-weighted, and contrast material-enhanced T1-weighted spin-echo MR images. The percentage enhancement and signal intensity ratios of mediastinal masses on T2-weighted MR images were calculated at diagnosis and during and after treatment. Twenty-one patients with persistent complete remission had a mean percentage enhancement of residual masses (4%; range, -26% to 40%) that was significantly lower than that of initial masses (78%; range, 41%-124%). Although the mean signal intensity ratio of residual masses on T2-weighted images was significantly lower than that of initial masses, an increase in this ratio was observed in four patients after treatment. In seven patients with relapse, the percentage enhancement value of the residual mass was as high as that of the initial mass. Gadolinium enhancement of lymphomatous masses of the mediastinum decreased markedly after treatment in patients in continuous complete remission but not in patients with relapse.

Continuous exponential martingales and BMO

CERN Document Server

Kazamaki, Norihiko

1994-01-01

In three chapters on Exponential Martingales, BMO-martingales, and Exponential of BMO, this book explains in detail the beautiful properties of continuous exponential martingales that play an essential role in various questions concerning the absolute continuity of probability laws of stochastic processes. The second and principal aim is to provide a full report on the exciting results on BMO in the theory of exponential martingales. The reader is assumed to be familiar with the general theory of continuous martingales.

Continuous carbon nanotube reinforced composites.

Science.gov (United States)

Ci, L; Suhr, J; Pushparaj, V; Zhang, X; Ajayan, P M

2008-09-01

Carbon nanotubes are considered short fibers, and polymer composites with nanotube fillers are always analogues of random, short fiber composites. The real structural carbon fiber composites, on the other hand, always contain carbon fiber reinforcements where fibers run continuously through the composite matrix. With the recent optimization in aligned nanotube growth, samples of nanotubes in macroscopic lengths have become available, and this allows the creation of composites that are similar to the continuous fiber composites with individual nanotubes running continuously through the composite body. This allows the proper utilization of the extreme high modulus and strength predicted for nanotubes in structural composites. Here, we fabricate such continuous nanotube polymer composites with continuous nanotube reinforcements and report that under compressive loadings, the nanotube composites can generate more than an order of magnitude improvement in the longitudinal modulus (up to 3,300%) as well as damping capability (up to 2,100%). It is also observed that composites with a random distribution of nanotubes of same length and similar filler fraction provide three times less effective reinforcement in composites.

Evaluation of human-induced vibration of continuous footbridges

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

El-Robaa Ahmed

2015-01-01

Full Text Available With the development of construction materials and the introduction of high strength steel and concrete, the human-induced vibration became a dominant criterion for the design of pedestrian bridges. Currently, longer spans and lightweight bridges have been comprised in most of design trends. This leads to lower the natural frequencies of the system which have a great effect on the dynamic performance of bridges subjected to human activities. Although the design of steel footbridges could reach the optimum level of design in terms of strength criterion, it might not reach the acceptance level for vibration condition. This will enforce the designer to choose section profiles with higher inertia to enhance stiffness of the whole system. This paper presents an overall assessment for floor vibration problem due to pedestrian induced vertical forces on continuous composite footbridges. The footfall method presented by concrete centre “CCIP-016” is adopted in this study to evaluate the response factor and acceleration of pedestrian bridges using a FEA software package “Robot Structural Analysis”.

An Internet of Things based framework to enhance just-in-time manufacturing

OpenAIRE

Xu, Yuchun; Chen, Mu

2017-01-01

Just-in-time manufacturing is a main manufacturing strategy used to enhance manufacturers’ competitiveness through inventory and lead time reduction. Implementing just-in-time manufacturing has a number of challenges, for example, effective, frequent and real-time information sharing and communication between different functional departments, responsive action for adjusting the production plan against the continually changing manufacturing situation. Internet of Things technology has the pote...

Data driven analysis of dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging data in breast cancer diagnosis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Twellmann, T.

2005-01-01

In the European Union, breast cancer is the most common type of cancer affecting women. If diagnosed in an early stage, breast cancer has an encouraging cure rate. Thus, early detection of breast cancer continues to be the key for an effective treatment. Recently, Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced Magnetic

Continuous biohydrogen production using cheese whey: Improving the hydrogen production rate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Davila-Vazquez, Gustavo; Cota-Navarro, Ciria Berenice; Razo-Flores, Elias [Division de Ciencias Ambientales, Instituto Potosino de Investigacion Cientifica y Tecnologica, Camino a la Presa San Jose 2055, Lomas 4a seccion, C.P. 78216, San Luis Potosi, S.L.P (Mexico); Rosales-Colunga, Luis Manuel; de Leon-Rodriguez, Antonio [Division de Biologia Molecular, Instituto Potosino de Investigacion Cientifica y Tecnologica, Camino a la Presa San Jose 2055, Lomas 4a seccion, C.P. 78216, San Luis Potosi, S.L.P (Mexico)

2009-05-15

Due to the renewed interest in finding sustainable fuels or energy carriers, biohydrogen (Bio-H{sub 2}) from biomass is a promising alternative. Fermentative Bio-H{sub 2} production was studied in a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) operated during 65.6 d with cheese whey (CW) as substrate. Three hydraulic retention times (HRTs) were tested (10, 6 and 4 h) and the highest volumetric hydrogen production rate (VHPR) was attained with HRT of 6 h. Therefore, four organic loading rates (OLRs) at a fixed HRT of 6 h were tested thereafter, being: 92.4, 115.5, 138.6 and 184.4 g lactose/L/d. The highest VHPR (46.61 mmol H{sub 2}/L/h) and hydrogen molar yield (HMY) of 2.8 mol H{sub 2}/mol lactose were found at an OLR of 138.6 g lactose/L/d; a sharp fall in VHPR occurred at an OLR of 184.4 g lactose/L/d. Butyric, propionic and acetic acids were the main soluble metabolites found, with butyric-to-acetic ratios ranging from 1.0 to 2.4. Bacterial community was identified by partial sequence analysis of the 16S rRNA and polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE). The results showed that at HRT of 10 h and 6 h were dominated by the Clostridium genus. The VHPR attained in this study is the highest reported value for a CSTR system using CW as substrate with anaerobic sludge as inoculum and represents a 33-fold increase compared to a previous study. Thus, it was demonstrated that continuous fermentative Bio-H{sub 2} production from CW can be significantly enhanced by an appropriate selection of parameters such as HRT and OLR. Enhancements in VHPR are significant because it is a critical parameter to determine the full-scale practical application of fermentation technologies that will be used for sustainable and clean energy generation. (author)

Effects of reviewing routine practices on learning outcomes in continuing education.

Science.gov (United States)

Mamede, Silvia; Loyens, Sofie; Ezequiel, Oscarina; Tibiriçá, Sandra; Penaforte, Júlio; Schmidt, Henk

2013-07-01

Conventional continuing medical education (CME) has been shown to have modest effects on doctor performance. New educational approaches based on the review of routine practices have brought better results. Little is known about factors that affect the outcomes of these approaches, especially in middle-income countries. This study aimed to investigate factors that influence the learning and quality of clinical performance in CME based on reflection upon experiences. A questionnaire and a clinical performance test were administered to 165 general practitioners engaged in a CME programme in Brazil. The questionnaire assessed behaviours related to four input variables (individual reflection on practices, peer review of experiences, self-regulated learning and learning skills) and two mediating variables (identification of learning needs and engagement in learning activities, the latter consisting of self-study of scientific literature, consultations about patient problems, and attendance at courses). Structural equation modelling was used to test a hypothesised model of relationships between these variables and the outcome variable of clinical performance, measured by the clinical performance test. After minor adjustments, the hypothesised model fit the empirical data well. Individual reflection fostered identification of learning needs, but also directly positively influenced the quality of clinical performance. Peer review did not affect identification of learning needs, but directly positively affected clinical performance. Learning skills and self-regulation did not help in identifying learning needs, but self-regulation enhanced study of the scientific literature, the learning activity that most positively influenced clinical performance. Consultation with colleagues, the activity most frequently triggered by the identification of learning needs, did not affect performance, and attendance of courses had only limited effect. This study shed light on the factors

LANL continuity of operations plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Senutovitch, Diane M [Los Alamos National Laboratory

2010-12-22

The Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is a premier national security research institution, delivering scientific and engineering solutions for the nation's most crucial and complex problems. Our primary responsibility is to ensure the safety, security, and reliability of the nation's nuclear stockpile. LANL emphasizes worker safety, effective operational safeguards and security, and environmental stewardship, outstanding science remains the foundation of work at the Laboratory. In addition to supporting the Laboratory's core national security mission, our work advances bioscience, chemistry, computer science, earth and environmental sciences, materials science, and physics disciplines. To accomplish LANL's mission, we must ensure that the Laboratory EFs continue to be performed during a continuity event, including localized acts of nature, accidents, technological or attack-related emergencies, and pandemic or epidemic events. The LANL Continuity of Operations (COOP) Plan documents the overall LANL COOP Program and provides the operational framework to implement continuity policies, requirements, and responsibilities at LANL, as required by DOE 0 150.1, Continuity Programs, May 2008. LANL must maintain its ability to perform the nation's PMEFs, which are: (1) maintain the safety and security of nuclear materials in the DOE Complex at fixed sites and in transit; (2) respond to a nuclear incident, both domestically and internationally, caused by terrorist activity, natural disaster, or accident, including mobilizing the resources to support these efforts; and (3) support the nation's energy infrastructure. This plan supports Continuity of Operations for Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). This plan issues LANL policy as directed by the DOE 0 150.1, Continuity Programs, and provides direction for the orderly continuation of LANL EFs for 30 days of closure or 60 days for a pandemic/epidemic event. Initiation of COOP operations may

Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP)

Science.gov (United States)

... ENT Doctor Near You Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) Patient Health Information ... relations staff at newsroom@entnet.org . What Is CPAP? The most common and effective nonsurgical treatment for ...

21 CFR 868.5895 - Continuous ventilator.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Continuous ventilator. 868.5895 Section 868.5895...) MEDICAL DEVICES ANESTHESIOLOGY DEVICES Therapeutic Devices § 868.5895 Continuous ventilator. (a) Identification. A continuous ventilator (respirator) is a device intended to mechanically control or assist...

Continuous-Energy Data Checks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haeck, Wim [Radioprotection and Nuclear Safety Institute, Fontenay-aux-Roses (France); Conlin, Jeremy Lloyd [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); McCartney, Austin Paul [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Parsons, Donald Kent [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2016-05-25

The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of all Quality Assurance tests that have to be performed on a nuclear data set to be transformed into an ACE formatted nuclear data file. The ACE file is capable of containing different types of data such as continuous energy neutron data, thermal scattering data, etc. Within this report, we will limit ourselves to continuous energy neutron data.

Continuous culture apparatus and methodology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Conway, H.L.

1975-01-01

At present, we are investigating the sorption of potentially toxic trace elements by phytoplankton under controlled laboratory conditions. Continuous culture techniques were used to study the mechanism of the sorption of the trace elements by unialgal diatom populations and the factors influencing this sorption. Continuous culture methodology has been used extensively to study bacterial kinetics. It is an excellent technique for obtaining a known physiological state of phytoplankton populations. An automated method for the synthesis of continuous culture medium for use in these experiments is described

Security Support in Continuous Deployment Pipeline

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ullah, Faheem; Raft, Adam Johannes; Shahin, Mojtaba

2017-01-01

Continuous Deployment (CD) has emerged as a new practice in the software industry to continuously and automatically deploy software changes into production. Continuous Deployment Pipeline (CDP) supports CD practice by transferring the changes from the repository to production. Since most of the CDP...... penetration tools. Our findings indicate that the applied tactics improve the security of the major components (i.e., repository, continuous integration server, main server) of a CDP by controlling access to the components and establishing secure connections....

State of the art of aerobic granulation in continuous flow bioreactors.

Science.gov (United States)

Kent, Timothy R; Bott, Charles B; Wang, Zhi-Wu

In the wake of the success of aerobic granulation in sequential batch reactors (SBRs) for treating wastewater, attention is beginning to turn to continuous flow applications. This is a necessary step given the advantages of continuous flow treatment processes and the fact that the majority of full-scale wastewater treatment plants across the world are operated with aeration tanks and clarifiers in a continuous flow mode. As in SBRs, applying a selection pressure, based on differences in either settling velocity or the size of the biomass, is essential for successful granulation in continuous flow reactors (CFRs). CFRs employed for aerobic granulation come in multiple configurations, each with their own means of achieving such a selection pressure. Other factors, such as bioaugmentation and hydraulic shear force, also contribute to aerobic granulation to some extent. Besides the formation of aerobic granules, long-term stability of aerobic granules is also a critical issue to be addressed. Inorganic precipitation, special inocula, and various operational optimization strategies have been used to improve granule long-term structural integrity. Accumulated studies reviewed in this work demonstrate that aerobic granulation in CFRs is capable of removing a wide spectrum of contaminants and achieving properties generally comparable to those in SBRs. Despite the notable research progress made toward successful aerobic granulation in lab-scale CFRs, to the best of our knowledge, there are only three full-scale tests of the technique, two being seeded with anammox-supported aerobic granules and the other with conventional aerobic granules; two other process alternatives are currently in development. Application of settling- or size-based selection pressures and feast/famine conditions are especially difficult to implement to these and similar mainstream systems. Future research efforts needs to be focused on the optimization of the granule-to-floc ratio, enhancement of

Formalizing Implementation Strategies for First-Class Continuations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Danvy, Olivier

1999-01-01

. These abstract machines are proven equivalent to a standard, substitution-based abstract machine. The proof techniques work uniformly for various representations of continuations. As a byproduct, we also present a formal proof of the two folklore theorems that one continuation identifier is enough for second......-class continuations and that second-class continuations are stackable. A large body of work exists on implementing continuations, but it is predominantly empirical and implementation-oriented. In contrast, our formalization abstracts the essence of first-class continuations and provides a uniform setting...

Study on improvement of continuous hydrogen production by photosynthetic biofilm in interior illuminant reactor.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Wenhui; Yuan, Linjiang; Wei, Bo

2016-09-01

In the present study, a new type of interior optical fiber illuminating reactor was developed for H2 production to solve the problem of luminous intensity attenuation at the center portion of a reactor, and an immobilization technique was used to enhance the stability of a continuous hydrogen production process with attached photosynthetic bacteria, using glucose as a sole carbon substrate for the indigenous photosynthetic bacteria (PSB) Rhodopseudomonas palustris SP-6. Results of the experiments showed that the interior optical fiber illuminating reactor produces H2 more efficiently and productively than the exterior light source reactor, with the cumulative H2 production, the maximum H2 production rate and H2 yield increased by 813ml, 11.3ml l-1 h-1 and 22.3%, respectively. The stability of the product of continuous hydrogen was realized by immobilizing PSB on the surface of powder active carbon(PAC). After adding the dosage of 2.0g l-1 PAC, the continuous steady operation of H2 production gave a high H2 yield of 1.398 mol H2 mol-1 glucose and an average H2 production rate of 35.1ml l-1 h-1 illuminating with a single interior optical fiber light source. Meanwhile, a higher H2 yield of 1.495 mol H2 mol-1 glucose and an average H2 production rate of 38.7ml l-1 h-1 were attained illuminating with a compound lamp in the continuous H2 production for 20 days.

Reinforcement Learning in Continuous Action Spaces

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hasselt, H. van; Wiering, M.A.

2007-01-01

Quite some research has been done on Reinforcement Learning in continuous environments, but the research on problems where the actions can also be chosen from a continuous space is much more limited. We present a new class of algorithms named Continuous Actor Critic Learning Automaton (CACLA)

Business continuity management in international organisations.

Science.gov (United States)

Adamou, Christel

2014-01-01

In the area of business continuity management, a preliminary review of the literature reveals extensive knowledge, expertise and experience concerning organisations in the private and public sectors. It is interesting to note, however, that there is little literature about business continuity management in international organisations, although these entities are complex and particularly prone to threats. This apparent absence of literature suggests that business continuity management has not yet hit the agenda of international organisations. In recent years, member states have encouraged senior management to design and implement business continuity strategies to minimise the mishandling of an internal crisis and build organisational resilience, but very few of them have actually been able to design and implement comprehensive business continuity programmes. Based on actual experience working in international organisations, this paper outlines some of the challenges faced by international organisations in developing and implementing business continuity activities and attempts to make suggestions for further improvement.

Le continu contre l'espace

Science.gov (United States)

Salanskis, Jean-Michel

Disons pour conclure que, en tout état de cause, la façon de concevoir philosophiquement le conflit du continu et de l'espace que nous avons trouvée chez Hegel n'est pas homogène avec le style et les modalités de la pensée mathématique: 1) d'une part, le lien classique, le lien de référence entre continu et espace en mathématiques n'est pas que l'espace serait premier et privé de pensée, et le continu second, venant dissoudre l'espace en apportant la qualité, l'infini et la pensée, mais tout au contraire, il consiste en ce que l'espace est fondé sur l'abîme infinitaire du continu ; 2) d'autre part, l'éventuel divorce entre l'espace et le continu dans l'aire mathématique n'est pas celui d'une réflexivité purement conceptuelle du continu avec un positivisme géométrique, n'équivaut pas à une rupture disciplinaire ; il est plutôt le symptôme de la dérive d'une herméneutique à l'égard d'une autre, au sein d'un continent juridique commun définissant la discipline (la mathématique ensembliste), cette dérive pouvant, à la limite, induire une refonte de ce sol juridique, sans que jamais il soit question pour autant de nier l'unité des mathématiques, à comprendre ici comme l'unité ultime de responsabilité de la communauté mathématique à l'égard des trois questions Qu'est-ce que l'espace?”, “Qu'est-ce que le continu?” et “Qu'est-ce que l'infini?”.

Role of the intraluminal contents and the continuity of intrinsic neurons in intracolonic capsaicin-induced contraction and defecation in dogs.

Science.gov (United States)

Kikuchi, Daisuke; Shibata, Chikashi; Imoto, Hirofumi; Someya, Soutoku; Miyachi, Tomohiro; Miura, Koh; Naitoh, Takeshi; Unno, Michiaki

2014-01-01

We, herein, examined the role of the intraluminal contents and continuity of colonic intrinsic neurons in intracolonic capsaicin-induced enhancement of colonic motility and defecation. Five beagle dogs were equipped with three strain gauge force transducers throughout the colon. The colonic contractile activity in response to intracolonic capsaicin was studied in intact dogs, dogs after colonic cleansing and dogs with transection/re-anastomosis (T/R) between the proximal and middle colon. The effects of intravenous yohimbine, a α2 adrenergic antagonist, on the colonic motility and defecation were also studied in the same models. In intact dogs, capsaicin (10 mg) and yohimbine (2 mg/kg) immediately induced contractions throughout the colon, with defecation occurring in all experiments. In dogs after colonic cleansing and T/R, the capsaicin (10 mg)-induced enhancement of colonic motility was decreased in the middle and distal colon, and capsaicin-induced defecation was observed in 0-20 % of experiments (p continuity of the colonic intrinsic nerves as well as the intraluminal contents appear to play an important role in the colonic motor response to intracolonic capsaicin.

Efficiency of different methods of extra-cavity second harmonic generation of continuous wave single-frequency radiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Khripunov, Sergey; Kobtsev, Sergey; Radnatarov, Daba

2016-01-20

This work presents for the first time to the best of our knowledge a comparative efficiency analysis among various techniques of extra-cavity second harmonic generation (SHG) of continuous-wave single-frequency radiation in nonperiodically poled nonlinear crystals within a broad range of power levels. Efficiency of nonlinear radiation transformation at powers from 1 W to 10 kW was studied in three different configurations: with an external power-enhancement cavity and without the cavity in the case of single and double radiation pass through a nonlinear crystal. It is demonstrated that at power levels exceeding 1 kW, the efficiencies of methods with and without external power-enhancement cavities become comparable, whereas at even higher powers, SHG by a single or double pass through a nonlinear crystal becomes preferable because of the relatively high efficiency of nonlinear transformation and fairly simple implementation.

Application of wavelet scaling function expansion continuous-energy resonance calculation method to MOX fuel problem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, W.; Wu, H.; Cao, L.

2012-01-01

More and more MOX fuels are used in all over the world in the past several decades. Compared with UO 2 fuel, it contains some new features. For example, the neutron spectrum is harder and more resonance interference effects within the resonance energy range are introduced because of more resonant nuclides contained in the MOX fuel. In this paper, the wavelets scaling function expansion method is applied to study the resonance behavior of plutonium isotopes within MOX fuel. Wavelets scaling function expansion continuous-energy self-shielding method is developed recently. It has been validated and verified by comparison to Monte Carlo calculations. In this method, the continuous-energy cross-sections are utilized within resonance energy, which means that it's capable to solve problems with serious resonance interference effects without iteration calculations. Therefore, this method adapts to treat the MOX fuel resonance calculation problem natively. Furthermore, plutonium isotopes have fierce oscillations of total cross-section within thermal energy range, especially for 240 Pu and 242 Pu. To take thermal resonance effect of plutonium isotopes into consideration the wavelet scaling function expansion continuous-energy resonance calculation code WAVERESON is enhanced by applying the free gas scattering kernel to obtain the continuous-energy scattering source within thermal energy range (2.1 eV to 4.0 eV) contrasting against the resonance energy range in which the elastic scattering kernel is utilized. Finally, all of the calculation results of WAVERESON are compared with MCNP calculation. (authors)

Using evidence-integrated e-learning to enhance case management continuing education for psychiatric nurses: a randomised controlled trial with follow-up.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Wen-I; Rong, Jiin-Ru; Liu, Chieh-Yu

2014-11-01

E-learning is a flexible strategy to improve nurses' knowledge of case management, but there are methodological limitations in previous research into the effectiveness of such programs. To describe the development and effectiveness of an evidence-integrated e-learning program in case management continuing education for Taiwanese psychiatric nurses. Multiple methods were adopted to develop the program and a randomised controlled trial with repeated measures was employed to evaluate it. The e-learning program was developed in four stages: (1) systematic review of literature; (2) needs assessment through a national survey and focus group; (3) development of learning materials; and (4) pilot test. Following program development, psychiatric nurses were recruited and randomly allocated into an experimental or comparison group. The experimental group participated in an e-learning continuing education program. The case management knowledge index with sufficient reliability and validity and a satisfaction survey were used to determine the outcomes. A generalised estimating equation was used to assess the difference between the 2 groups before, after, and at 3 months follow-up. The learning material comprised 5 simulated learning modules, self-assessment questions, learning cases, sharing experiences, and learning resources. A total of 200 participants completed the 3 measurements. Knowledge scores in the experimental group significantly exceeded those in the comparison group after the program and at the 3-month follow-up. Participants reported positive learning perceptions. The program provides an evidence-based educational resource for nursing continuing education in case management. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Potential MCNP enhancements for NCT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Estes, G.P.; Taylor, W.M.

1992-01-01

MCNP a Monte Carlo radiation transport code, is currently widely used in the medical community for a variety of purposes including treatment planning, diagnostics, beam design, tomographic studies, and radiation protection. This is particularly true in the Neutron Capture Therapy (NCT) community. The current widespread medical use of MCNP after its general public distribution in about 1980 attests to the code's general versatility and usefulness, particularly since its development to date has not been influenced by medical applications. This paper discusses enhancements to MCNP that could be implemented at Los Alamos for the benefit of the NCT community. These enhancements generally fall into two categories, namely those that have already been developed to some extent but are not yet publicly available, and those that seem both needed based on our current understanding of NCT goals, and achievable based on our working knowledge of the MCNP code. MCNP is a general, coupled neutron/photon/electron Monte Carlo code developed and maintained by the Radiation Transport Group at Los Alamos. It has been used extensively for radiation shielding studies, reactor analysis, detector design, physics experiment interpretation, oil and gas well logging, radiation protection studies, accelerator design, etc. over the years. MCNP is a three-dimensional geometry, continuous energy physics code capable of modeling complex geometries, specifying material regions such as organs by the intersections of analytical surfaces

Acute Sleep Deprivation Enhances Post-Infection Sleep and Promotes Survival during Bacterial Infection in Drosophila

Science.gov (United States)

Kuo, Tzu-Hsing; Williams, Julie A.

2014-01-01

Study Objectives: Sleep is known to increase as an acute response to infection. However, the function of this behavioral response in host defense is not well understood. To address this problem, we evaluated the effect of acute sleep deprivation on post-infection sleep and immune function in Drosophila. Setting: Laboratory. Participants: Drosophila melanogaster. Methods and Results: Flies were subjected to sleep deprivation before (early DEP) or after (late DEP) bacterial infection. Relative to a non-deprived control, flies subjected to early DEP had enhanced sleep after infection as well as increased bacterial clearance and survival outcome. Flies subjected to late DEP experienced enhanced sleep following the deprivation period, and showed a modest improvement in survival outcome. Continuous DEP (early and late DEP) throughout infection also enhanced sleep later during infection and improved survival. However, improved survival in flies subjected to late or continuous DEP did not occur until after flies had experienced sleep. During infection, both early and late DEP enhanced NFκB transcriptional activity as measured by a luciferase reporter (κB-luc) in living flies. Early DEP also increased NFκB activity prior to infection. Flies that were deficient in expression of either the Relish or Dif NFκB transcription factors showed normal responses to early DEP. However, the effect of early DEP on post-infection sleep and survival was abolished in double mutants, which indicates that Relish and Dif have redundant roles in this process. Conclusions: Acute sleep deprivation elevated NFκB-dependent activity, increased post-infection sleep, and improved survival during bacterial infection. Citation: Kuo TH, Williams JA. Acute sleep deprivation enhances post-infection sleep and promotes survival during bacterial infection in Drosophila. SLEEP 2014;37(5):859-869. PMID:24790264

Acute sleep deprivation enhances post-infection sleep and promotes survival during bacterial infection in Drosophila.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuo, Tzu-Hsing; Williams, Julie A

2014-05-01

Sleep is known to increase as an acute response to infection. However, the function of this behavioral response in host defense is not well understood. To address this problem, we evaluated the effect of acute sleep deprivation on post-infection sleep and immune function in Drosophila. Laboratory. Drosophila melanogaster. Flies were subjected to sleep deprivation before (early DEP) or after (late DEP) bacterial infection. Relative to a non-deprived control, flies subjected to early DEP had enhanced sleep after infection as well as increased bacterial clearance and survival outcome. Flies subjected to late DEP experienced enhanced sleep following the deprivation period, and showed a modest improvement in survival outcome. Continuous DEP (early and late DEP) throughout infection also enhanced sleep later during infection and improved survival. However, improved survival in flies subjected to late or continuous DEP did not occur until after flies had experienced sleep. During infection, both early and late DEP enhanced NFκB transcriptional activity as measured by a luciferase reporter (κB-luc) in living flies. Early DEP also increased NFκB activity prior to infection. Flies that were deficient in expression of either the Relish or Dif NFκB transcription factors showed normal responses to early DEP. However, the effect of early DEP on post-infection sleep and survival was abolished in double mutants, which indicates that Relish and Dif have redundant roles in this process. Acute sleep deprivation elevated NFκB-dependent activity, increased post-infection sleep, and improved survival during bacterial infection.

The Benefits of Continuous Leisure Participation in Relocation Adjustment Among Residents of Long-Term Care Facilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Li-Jung; Yen, Hsin-Yen

2018-03-19

The rising population of older adults is transforming Taiwan society. Although many long-term care facilities now operate for older adults, the transition from the home environment to long-term facilities may cause multiple issues, including relocation stress syndrome, for new residents. Autonomy is a critical element of the human experience. Leisure, as an expression of autonomy, has been shown to enhance self-image and promote feelings of competence and mastery. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between participation in leisure activities and adjustment to residential care using the continuity theory. One hundred sixty-three qualified individuals from 11 long-term care institutions were recruited and completed the questionnaire. The sampling criteria for the study were age (55+ years), appropriate cognitive skills, and residency (less than 5 years). Interviews conducted by trained interviewers were used to collect data. Measured outcomes included leisure participation; physical, psychological, and social adjustments; and background information. Cluster analysis, descriptive analysis, multivariate analysis of variance, and least significant difference test were used in analysis. Type of admission (voluntary/mandated) and type of leisure participation significantly affected the level of relocation adjustment success. Four leisure behavior categories were identified, including reduced participation, expanded participation, active participation, and continuing participation. The participants in the active and continuing participation categories had significantly higher psychological adjustment than their peers in the reduced participation category. Moreover, the continuing participation category had a significantly better level of social adjustment than their expanded participation category peers. Continuous and active participation categories had a beneficial outcome in relocation adjustment. The findings support that, in general, residents of

Competency-based continuing professional development

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Campbell, Craig; Silver, Ivan; Sherbino, Jonathan; Ten Cate, Olle; Holmboe, Eric S.

2010-01-01

Competence is traditionally viewed as the attainment of a static set of attributes rather than a dynamic process in which physicians continuously use their practice experiences to "progress in competence'' toward the attainment of expertise. A competency-based continuing professional development

Feasibility of a novel participatory multi-sector continuous improvement approach to enhance food security in remote Indigenous Australian communities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Brimblecombe

2017-12-01

Conclusion: A multi-sector participatory approach seeking continuous improvement engaged committed Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal stakeholders and was shown to have potential to shift community diet. Provision of clear mechanisms to link this approach with higher level policy and decision-making structures, clarity of roles and responsibilities, and processes to prioritise and communicate actions across sectors should further strengthen capacity for food security improvement. Integrating this approach enabling local decision-making into community governance structures with adequate resourcing is an imperative.

15 CFR 923.57 - Continuing consultation.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... § 923.57 Continuing consultation. (a) As required by subsection 306(d)(3)(B) of the Act, a State must establish an effective mechanism for continuing consultation and coordination between the management agency... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Continuing consultation. 923.57...

7 CFR 205.406 - Continuation of certification.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

..., Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE (CONTINUED) ORGANIC FOODS PRODUCTION ACT PROVISIONS NATIONAL ORGANIC PROGRAM Certification § 205.406 Continuation of certification. (a) To continue... 7 Agriculture 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Continuation of certification. 205.406 Section 205.406...

Bilingualism and age are continuous variables that influence executive function.

Science.gov (United States)

Incera, Sara; McLennan, Conor T

2018-05-01

We analyzed the effects of bilingualism and age on executive function. We examined these variables along a continuum, as opposed to dichotomizing them. We investigated the impact that bilingualism and age have on two measures of executive control (Stroop and Flanker). The mouse-tracking paradigm allowed us to examine the continuous dynamics of the responses as participants completed each trial. First, we found that the Stroop effect was reduced with younger age and higher levels of bilingualism; however, no Bilingualism by Age interaction emerged. Second, after controlling for baseline, the Flanker effect was not influenced by bilingualism or age. These results support the notion that bilingualism is one way of enhancing some aspects of executive function - specifically those related to the Stroop task - across the adult life span. In sum, different levels of bilingualism, and different ages, result in varying degrees of executive function as measured by the Stroop task.

Fabrication of continuous electrospun filaments with potential for use as medical fibres.

Science.gov (United States)

Mouthuy, Pierre-Alexis; Zargar, Nasim; Hakimi, Osnat; Lostis, Emilie; Carr, Andrew

2015-05-19

Soft tissue injuries represent a substantial and growing social and economic burden. Medical fibres are commonly used to repair these injuries during surgery. Patient's outcomes are, however, not promising with around 40% of surgical repairs failing within the first few months after surgery due to poor tissue regeneration. The application of nanofibrous filaments and yarns as medical fibres and scaffolds has been suggested to improve soft tissue regeneration and enhance the quality of the repair. However, due to a lack of robustness and reliability of the current fabrication methods, continuous nanofibrous filaments cannot be manufactured and scaled up in industrial settings and are not currently available for clinical use. We have developed a robust and automated method that enables the manufacture of continuous electrospun filaments and which has the potential to be integrated into existing textile production lines. The technology uses a wire guide to form submicrofibres in a dense, narrow mesh which can be detached as a long and continuous thread. The thread can then be stretched and used to create multifilament yarns which can imitate the hierarchical architecture of tissues such as tendons and ligaments. Electrospun polydioxanone yarns produced by this method showed improved cellular proliferation and adhesion when compared to medical monofilament fibres in current clinical use. In vivo, the electrospun yarns showed a good safety profile with mild foreign body reaction and complete degradation within 5 months after implantation. These results suggest that this filament collection method has the potential to become a useful platform for the fabrication of future medical textiles.

EDITORIAL: Nano-enhanced! Nano-enhanced!

Science.gov (United States)

Demming, Anna

2010-08-01

In the early 19th century, a series of engineering and scientific breakthroughs by Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot, James Watt and many others led to the foundations of thermodynamics and a new pedigree of mechanical designs that reset the standards of engineering efficiency. The result was the industrial revolution. In optical- and electronics- based nanotechnology research, a similarly subtle bargain is being made; we cannot alter the fact that systems have a finite response to external excitations, but what we can do is enhance that response. The promising attributes of ZnO have long been recognised; its large band gap and high exciton binding energy lend it to a number of applications from laser diodes, LEDs, optical waveguides and switches, and acousto-optic applications to sun cream. When this material is grown into nanowires and nanorods, the material gains a whole new dimension, as quantum confinement effects come into play. Discovery of the enhanced radiative recombination, which has potential for exploitation in many optical and opto-electronic applications, drove intensive research into investigating these structures and into finding methods to synthesise them with optimised properties. This research revealed further subtleties in the properties of these materials. One example is the work by researchers in the US reporting synthesis procedures that produced a yield—defined as the weight ratio of ZnO nanowires to the original graphite flakes—of 200%, and which also demonstrated, through photoluminescence analysis of nanowires grown on graphite flakes and substrates, that graphite induces oxygen vacancies during annealing, which enhances the deep-level to near-band-edge emission ratio [1]. Other one-dimensional materials that provide field emission enhancements include carbon nanotubes, and work has been performed to find ways of optimising the emission efficiency from these structures, such as through control of the emitter density [2]. One of the

Computed Tomography Assessment of Ablation Zone Enhancement in Patients With Early-Stage Lung Cancer After Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, William; Chaya, Yair; Chaudhry, Ammar; Depasquale, Britney; Glass, Samantha; Lee, Susan; Shin, James; Mikhail, George; Bhattacharji, Priya; Kim, Bong; Bilfinger, Thomas

2015-01-01

Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) offers a curative treatment for lung cancer in patients who are marginal surgical candidates. However, unlike traditional surgery the lung cancer remains in place after treatment. Thus, imaging follow-up for evaluation of recurrence is of paramount importance. In this retrospective designed Institutional Review Board-approved study, follow-up contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) exams were performed on sixty one patients to evaluate enhancement pattern in the ablation zone at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after SABR. Eleven patients had recurrence within the ablation zone after SABR. The postcontrast enhancement in the recurrence group showed a washin and washout phenomenon, whereas the radiation-induced lung injury group showed continuous enhancement suggesting an inflammatory process. The textural feature of the ablation zone of enhancement and perfusion as demonstrated in computed tomography nodule enhancement may allow early differentiation of recurrence from radiation-induced lung injury in patients' status after SABR or primary lung cancer.

How Visual Management for Continuous Improvement Might Guide and Affect Hospital Staff: A Case Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ulhassan, Waqar; von Thiele Schwarz, Ulrica; Westerlund, Hugo; Sandahl, Christer; Thor, Johan

2015-01-01

Visual management (VM) tools such as whiteboards, often employed in Lean thinking applications, are intended to be helpful in improving work processes in different industries including health care. It remains unclear, however, how VM is actually applied in health care Lean interventions and how it might influence the clinical staff. We therefore examined how Lean-inspired VM using whiteboards for continuous improvement efforts related to the hospital staff's work and collaboration. Within a case study design, we combined semistructured interviews, nonparticipant observations, and photography on 2 cardiology wards. The fate of VM differed between the 2 wards; in one, it was well received by the staff and enhanced continuous improvement efforts, whereas in the other ward, it was not perceived to fit in the work flow or to make enough sense in order to be sustained. Visual management may enable the staff and managers to allow communication across time and facilitate teamwork by enabling the inclusion of team members who are not present simultaneously; however, its adoption and value seem contingent on finding a good fit with the local context. A combination of continuous improvement and VM may be helpful in keeping the staff engaged in the change process in the long run.

Replica Exchange Gaussian Accelerated Molecular Dynamics: Improved Enhanced Sampling and Free Energy Calculation.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yu-Ming M; McCammon, J Andrew; Miao, Yinglong

2018-04-10

Through adding a harmonic boost potential to smooth the system potential energy surface, Gaussian accelerated molecular dynamics (GaMD) provides enhanced sampling and free energy calculation of biomolecules without the need of predefined reaction coordinates. This work continues to improve the acceleration power and energy reweighting of the GaMD by combining the GaMD with replica exchange algorithms. Two versions of replica exchange GaMD (rex-GaMD) are presented: force constant rex-GaMD and threshold energy rex-GaMD. During simulations of force constant rex-GaMD, the boost potential can be exchanged between replicas of different harmonic force constants with fixed threshold energy. However, the algorithm of threshold energy rex-GaMD tends to switch the threshold energy between lower and upper bounds for generating different levels of boost potential. Testing simulations on three model systems, including the alanine dipeptide, chignolin, and HIV protease, demonstrate that through continuous exchanges of the boost potential, the rex-GaMD simulations not only enhance the conformational transitions of the systems but also narrow down the distribution width of the applied boost potential for accurate energetic reweighting to recover biomolecular free energy profiles.

Continuous Integration in PHP web applications development

OpenAIRE

Hujer, Martin

2011-01-01

This work deals with continuous integration of web applications, especially those in PHP language. The main objective is the selection of the server for continuous integration, its deployment and configuration for continuous integration of PHP web applications. The first chapter describes the concept of continuous integration and its individual techniques. The second chapter deals with the choice of server for continuous integration and its basic settings. The third chapter contains an overvi...

Raman enhancement by graphene-Ga2O3 2D bilayer film.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Yun; Yu, Qing-Kai; Ding, Gu-Qiao; Xu, Xu-Guang; Wu, Tian-Ru; Gong, Qian; Yuan, Ning-Yi; Ding, Jian-Ning; Wang, Shu-Min; Xie, Xiao-Ming; Jiang, Mian-Heng

2014-01-28

2D β-Ga2O3 flakes on a continuous 2D graphene film were prepared by a one-step chemical vapor deposition on liquid gallium surface. The composite was characterized by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The experimental results indicate that Ga2O3 flakes grew on the surface of graphene film during the cooling process. In particular, tenfold enhancement of graphene Raman scattering signal was detected on Ga2O3 flakes, and XPS indicates the C-O bonding between graphene and Ga2O3. The mechanism of Raman enhancement was discussed. The 2D Ga2O3-2D graphene structure may possess potential applications.

Branching trajectory continual integral

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maslov, V.P.; Chebotarev, A.M.

1980-01-01

Heuristic definition of the Feynman continual integral over branching trajectories is suggested which makes it possible to obtain in the closed form the solution of the Cauchy problem for the model Hartree equation. A number of properties of the solution is derived from an integral representation. In particular, the quasiclassical asymptotics, exact solution in the gaussian case and perturbation theory series are described. The existence theorem for the simpliest continual integral over branching trajectories is proved [ru

Generation of continuous-wave 194 nm laser for mercury ion optical frequency standard

Science.gov (United States)

Zou, Hongxin; Wu, Yue; Chen, Guozhu; Shen, Yong; Liu, Qu; Precision measurement; atomic clock Team

2015-05-01

194 nm continuous-wave (CW) laser is an essential part in mercury ion optical frequency standard. The continuous-wave tunable radiation sources in the deep ultraviolet (DUV) region of the spectrum is also serviceable in high-resolution spectroscopy with many atomic and molecular lines. We introduce a scheme to generate continuous-wave 194 nm radiation with SFM in a Beta Barium Borate (BBO) crystal here. The two source beams are at 718 nm and 266 nm, respectively. Due to the property of BBO, critical phase matching (CPM) is implemented. One bow-tie cavity is used to resonantly enhance the 718 nm beam while the 266 nm makes a single pass, which makes the configuration easy to implement. Considering the walk-off effect in CPM, the cavity mode is designed to be elliptical so that the conversion efficiency can be promoted. Since the 266 nm radiation is generated by a 532 nm laser through SHG in a BBO crystal with a large walk-off angle, the output mode is quite non-Gaussian. To improve mode matching, we shaped the 266 nm beam into Gaussian modes with a cylindrical lens and iris diaphragm. As a result, 2.05 mW 194 nm radiation can be generated. As we know, this is the highest power for 194 nm CW laser using SFM in BBO with just single resonance. The work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 91436103 and No. 11204374).

Continuous recrystallization and mechanical properties of a C45 steel after high pressure torsion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haddad, Mike; Fecht, Hans [Institute of Micro and Nanomaterials, University of Ulm, Ulm, Gemany (Germany); Institute of Nanotechnology, Karlsruhe Institut of Technology, Karlsruhe (Germany); Ning, Jiang Li; Ivanisenko, Yulia [Institute of Nanotechnology, Karlsruhe Institut of Technology, Karlsruhe (Germany); Hoermann, Ute [Central Facility for Electron Microscopy, University of Ulm, Ulm (Germany); Murashkin, Maxim [IPAM, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Ufa (Russian Federation)

2011-07-01

An initial microstructure of C45 steel (Fe, 0.42-0.5% C, 0.5-0.8% Mn, <0.4% Si, <0.045% S, 0.045% P * All in wt%) was modified from ferritic-pearlitic to bainitic through heating at 900 C for 1 hour and quenching in a lead bath at 500 C for 30 min. The steel was processed by High Pressure Torsion (HPT) at room temperature for 3 and 5 rotations, which led to an ultrafine or nano-scale grained structure. Then the material was annealed at 400 C and 450 C for two hours, respectively. TEM observation showed that continuous recrystallization occurred during the annealing. The yield strength and elongation after annealing at 400 C and 450 C were 1277 MPa, 3%, and 1100 MPa, 11%, respectively. Compared with the mechanical properties before annealing, it was revealed that the continuous recrystallization during annealing led to an enhancement of the ductility, but without sacrificing much of the strength. Funding by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft and Russian Foundation for basic research is gratefully aknowledged.

PRELIMINARY DESIGN OF OSCILLATORY FLOW BIODIESEL REACTOR FOR CONTINUOUS BIODIESEL PRODUCTION FROM JATROPHA TRIGLYCERIDES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

AZHARI T. I. MOHD. GHAZI

2008-08-01

Full Text Available The concept of a continuous process in producing biodiesel from jatropha oil by using an Oscillatory Flow Biodiesel Reactor (OFBR is discussed in this paper. It has been recognized that the batch stirred reactor is a primary mode used in the synthesis of biodiesel. However, pulsatile flow has been extensively researcehed and the fundamental principles have been successfully developed upon which its hydrodynamics are based. Oscillatory flow biodiesel reactor offers precise control of mixing by means of the baffle geometry and pulsation which facilitates to continuous operation, giving plug flow residence time distribution with high turbulence and enhanced mass and heat transfer. In conjunction with the concept of reactor design, parameters such as reactor dimensions, the hydrodynamic studies and physical properties of reactants must be considered prior to the design work initiated recently. The OFBR reactor design involves the use of simulation software, ASPEN PLUS and the reactor design fundamentals. Following this, the design parameters shall be applied in fabricating the OFBR for laboratory scale biodiesel production.

Differential evolution optimization combined with chaotic sequences for image contrast enhancement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Santos Coelho, Leandro dos [Industrial and Systems Engineering Graduate Program, LAS/PPGEPS, Pontifical Catholic University of Parana, PUCPR Imaculada Conceicao, 1155, 80215-901 Curitiba, Parana (Brazil)], E-mail: leandro.coelho@pucpr.br; Sauer, Joao Guilherme [Industrial and Systems Engineering Graduate Program, LAS/PPGEPS, Pontifical Catholic University of Parana, PUCPR Imaculada Conceicao, 1155, 80215-901 Curitiba, Parana (Brazil)], E-mail: joao.sauer@gmail.com; Rudek, Marcelo [Industrial and Systems Engineering Graduate Program, LAS/PPGEPS, Pontifical Catholic University of Parana, PUCPR Imaculada Conceicao, 1155, 80215-901 Curitiba, Parana (Brazil)], E-mail: marcelo.rudek@pucpr.br

2009-10-15

Evolutionary Algorithms (EAs) are stochastic and robust meta-heuristics of evolutionary computation field useful to solve optimization problems in image processing applications. Recently, as special mechanism to avoid being trapped in local minimum, the ergodicity property of chaotic sequences has been used in various designs of EAs. Three differential evolution approaches based on chaotic sequences using logistic equation for image enhancement process are proposed in this paper. Differential evolution is a simple yet powerful evolutionary optimization algorithm that has been successfully used in solving continuous problems. The proposed chaotic differential evolution schemes have fast convergence rate but also maintain the diversity of the population so as to escape from local optima. In this paper, the image contrast enhancement is approached as a constrained nonlinear optimization problem. The objective of the proposed chaotic differential evolution schemes is to maximize the fitness criterion in order to enhance the contrast and detail in the image by adapting the parameters using a contrast enhancement technique. The proposed chaotic differential evolution schemes are compared with classical differential evolution to two testing images. Simulation results on three images show that the application of chaotic sequences instead of random sequences is a possible strategy to improve the performance of classical differential evolution optimization algorithm.

Evaluating the online platform of a blended-learning pharmacist continuing education degree program.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilbur, Kerry

2016-01-01

Distance-based continuing education opportunities are increasingly embraced by health professionals worldwide. To evaluate the online component of a blended-learning degree program for pharmacists, we conducted a structured self-assessment and peer review using an instrument systematically devised according to Moore's principles of transactional distance. The web-based platform for 14 courses was reviewed by both local and external faculty, followed by shared reflection of individual and aggregate results. Findings indicated a number of course elements for modification to enhance the structure, dialog, and autonomy of the student learning experience. Our process was an important exercise in quality assurance and is worthwhile for other health disciplines developing and delivering distance-based content to pursue.

Project ECHO: A Telementoring Network Model for Continuing Professional Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Arora, Sanjeev; Kalishman, Summers G; Thornton, Karla A; Komaromy, Miriam S; Katzman, Joanna G; Struminger, Bruce B; Rayburn, William F

2017-01-01

A major challenge with current systems of CME is the inability to translate the explosive growth in health care knowledge into daily practice. Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) is a telementoring network designed for continuing professional development (CPD) and improving patient outcomes. The purpose of this article was to describe how the model has complied with recommendations from several authoritative reports about redesigning and enhancing CPD. This model links primary care clinicians through a knowledge network with an interprofessional team of specialists from an academic medical center who provide telementoring and ongoing education enabling community clinicians to treat patients with a variety of complex conditions. Knowledge and skills are shared during weekly condition-specific videoconferences. The model exemplifies learning as described in the seven levels of CPD by Moore (participation, satisfaction, learning, competence, performance, patient, and community health). The model is also aligned with recommendations from four national reports intended to redesign knowledge transfer in improving health care. Efforts in learning sessions focus on information that is relevant to practice, focus on evidence, education methodology, tailoring of recommendations to individual needs and community resources, and interprofessionalism. Project ECHO serves as a telementoring network model of CPD that aligns with current best practice recommendations for CME. This transformative initiative has the potential to serve as a leading model for larger scale CPD, nationally and globally, to enhance access to care, improve quality, and reduce cost.

Enhancing the Security Cooperation Marine Air Ground Task Force to Satisfy the Needs of the Uncertain Global Security Environment

Science.gov (United States)

2009-06-12

and 2004 National Military Strategy (NMS) continue to germinate . Discussions surrounding the spread of effective democracies and alternate...additional civil-military operation capabilities such as enhanced engineering, additional medical and dental support, and transportation tailored for

Some properties of contra-γ-continuous functions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nasef, Arafa A.

2005-01-01

The notion of contra-continuity was introduced and investigated by Dontchev [Int. J. Math. Math. Sci. 19 (1996) 303]. In this paper, we apply the notion of γ-open sets in topological spaces to present and study a new class of functions called contra-γ-continuous functions which lies between classes of contra-semi-continuous functions and contra-β-continuous functions. We speculate that contra-γ-continuity may be relevant to the physics of fractal and cantorian spacetime

Device and method for luminescence enhancement by resonant energy transfer from an absorptive thin film

Science.gov (United States)

Akselrod, Gleb M.; Bawendi, Moungi G.; Bulovic, Vladimir; Tischler, Jonathan R.; Tisdale, William A.; Walker, Brian J.

2017-12-12

Disclosed are a device and a method for the design and fabrication of the device for enhancing the brightness of luminescent molecules, nanostructures, and thin films. The device includes a mirror, a dielectric medium or spacer, an absorptive layer, and a luminescent layer. The absorptive layer is a continuous thin film of a strongly absorbing organic or inorganic material. The luminescent layer may be a continuous luminescent thin film or an arrangement of isolated luminescent species, e.g., organic or metal-organic dye molecules, semiconductor quantum dots, or other semiconductor nanostructures, supported on top of the absorptive layer.

Molecular biological enhancement of coal biodesulfurization. Seventh quarter report, May--July 1990

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kilbane, J.J.; Bielaga, B.A.

1990-07-01

The overall objective of this project is to sue molecular genetics to develop strains of bacteria with enhanced ability to remove sulfur from coal and to obtain data that will allow the performance and economics of a coal biodesulfurization process to be predicted. The work planned for the current quarter (May 1990 to July 1990) includes the following activities: (1) Construct a cloning vector that can be used in Rhodococcus rhodochrous IGTS8 from the small cryptic plasmid found in Rhodococcus rhodochrous ATCC 190607; (2) Develop techniques for the genetic analysis of IGTS8; (3) Continue biochemical experiments, particularly those that may allow the identification of desulfurization-related enzymes; (4) Continue experiments with coal to determine the kinetics of organic sulfur removal.

40 CFR Table 11 to Subpart Wwww of... - Data Requirements for New and Existing Continuous Lamination and Continuous Casting Lines...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Continuous Lamination and Continuous Casting Lines Complying With a Percent Reduction Limit or a Lbs/Ton...—Data Requirements for New and Existing Continuous Lamination and Continuous Casting Lines Complying... lamination lines and continuous casting lines you must determine the data in the following table: For each...

Hanford year 2000 Business Continuity Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

VORNEY, S.V.

1999-01-01

The goal of Department of Energy Richland Operations (DOE-RL) Year 2000 (Y2K) effort is to ensure that the Hanford site successfully continues its mission as we approach and enter the 21th century. The Y2K Business Continuity Planning process provides a structured approach to identify Y2K risks to the site and to mitigate these risks through Y2K Contingency Planning, ''Zero-Day'' Transition Planning and Emergency Preparedness. This document defines the responsibilities, processes and plans for Hanford's Y2K Business Continuity. It identifies proposed business continuity drills, tentative schedule and milestones

MR imaging of the breast with Gd-DTPA enhancement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hachiya, Junichi; Seki, Tsuneaki; Okada, Minoru; Nitatori, Toshiaki; Korenaga, Tateo; Furuya, Yoshiro

1991-01-01

The accuracy of MR imaging with Gd-DTPA enhancement was compared with mammography and ultrasonography in 52 patients with clinically palpable benign and malignant breast masses (36 carcinomas, 2 malignant phyllodes tumors, 7 fibroadenomas, 7 cysts). On dynamic MR imaging, carcinomas and fibroadenomas were discriminated by their different dynamic enhancement profiles. In carcinomas, signal intensity increased rapidly, reaching a peak or plateau within 2 min after the injection of contrast medium. In fibroadenomas, signal intensity showed a much slower continuous increase without ceasing until about 8 min after injection. Malignant phyllodes tumors showed a dynamic enhancement profile identical to that of benign fibroadenomas. MR imaging correctly identified 84% of malignant tumors, 86% of fibroadenomas, and 100% of cysts, and was substantially more accurate in tissue characterization than mammography. The results of ultrasonography were highly similar to those of MR imaging. However, no single modality was infallible, and the three modalities were complementary rather than competitive. Considering the high cost and long examination time of MR imaging, mammography supplemented by ultrasonography seems to be the method of choice in the diagnosis of breast lesions. Nevertheless, MR imaging can add important information when the results of mammography and ultrasonography are insufficient or contradictory. (author)

Perspectives: The Continuous Improvement Trap

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, David L.

2011-01-01

Accrediting agencies, legislators, pundits, and even higher educational professionals have become enamored with applying the language of continuous improvement to learning outcomes. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges specifically uses the term "continuing improvement" in Core Standard 2.5, one of its…

Second Order Ideal-Ward Continuity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bipan Hazarika

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The main aim of the paper is to introduce a concept of second order ideal-ward continuity in the sense that a function f is second order ideal-ward continuous if I-limn→∞Δ2f(xn=0 whenever I-limn→∞Δ2xn=0 and a concept of second order ideal-ward compactness in the sense that a subset E of R is second order ideal-ward compact if any sequence x=(xn of points in E has a subsequence z=(zk=(xnk of the sequence x such that I-limk→∞Δ2zk=0 where Δ2zk=zk+2-2zk+1+zk. We investigate the impact of changing the definition of convergence of sequences on the structure of ideal-ward continuity in the sense of second order ideal-ward continuity and compactness of sets in the sense of second order ideal-ward compactness and prove related theorems.

Massage therapy services for healthcare: a telephone focus group study of drivers for clients' continued use of services.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Joanna M; Sullivan, S John; Baxter, G David

2009-01-01

To explore opinions of why clients use, value and continue to seek massage therapy as a healthcare option. Telephone focus group methodology was used. Current and repeat users (n = 19) of either relaxation, remedial or sports massage therapy services participated in three telephone focus groups. Audiotaped semi-structured interviews were conducted. Telephone focus group with massage clients from provincial and urban localities in New Zealand. Summary of reported themes of the massage experience and suggested drivers for return to, or continuing with massage therapy. Data were transcribed, categorised (NVivo7) and thematically analysed using the general inductive approach. Key drivers for return to, or continuing with, massage therapy were: positive outcomes, expectations of goals being met, a regular appointment and the massage therapy culture. Massage therapy is perceived and valued as a personalised, holistic and hands-on approach to health management, which focuses on enhancing relaxation in conjunction with effective touch, within a positive client-therapist relationship and a pleasant non-rushed environment. Massage therapy as a health service is result and client driven but is reinforced by the culture of the experience.

Radiofrequency-heated enhanced confinement modes in the Alcator C-Mod tokamak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takase, Y.; Boivin, R.L.; Bombarda, F.; Bonoli, P.T.; Christensen, C.; Fiore, C.; Garnier, D.; Goetz, J.A.; Golovato, S.N.; Granetz, R.; Greenwald, M.; Horne, S.F.; Hubbard, A.; Hutchinson, I.H.; Irby, J.; LaBombard, B.; Lipschultz, B.; Marmar, E.; May, M.; Mazurenko, A.; McCracken, G.; OShea, P.; Porkolab, M.; Reardon, J.; Rice, J.; Rost, C.; Schachter, J.; Snipes, J.A.; Stek, P.; Terry, J.; Watterson, R.; Welch, B.; Wolfe, S.

1997-01-01

Enhanced confinement modes up to a toroidal field of B T =8T have been studied with up to 3.5 MW of radiofrequency (rf) heating power in the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) at 80 MHz. H-mode is observed when the edge temperature exceeds a threshold value. The high confinement mode (H-mode) with higher confinement enhancement factors (H) and longer duration became possible after boronization by reducing the radiated power from the main plasma. A quasi-steady state with high confinement (H=2.0), high normalized beta (β N =1.5), low radiated power fraction (P rad main /P loss =0.3), and low effective charge (Z eff =1.5) has been obtained in Enhanced D α H-mode. This type of H-mode has enhanced levels of continuous D α emission and very little or no edge localized mode (ELM) activity, and reduced core particle confinement time relative to ELM-free H-mode. The pellet enhanced performance (PEP) mode is obtained by combining core fueling with pellet injection and core heating. A highly peaked pressure profile with a central value of 8 atmospheres was observed. The steep pressure gradient drives off-axis bootstrap current, resulting in a shear reversed safety factor (q) profile. Suppression of sawteeth appears to be important in maintaining the highly peaked pressure profile. Lithium pellets were found to be more effective than deuterium pellets in raising q 0 . copyright 1997 American Institute of Physics

40 CFR Table 12 to Subpart Wwww of... - Data Requirements for New and Existing Continuous Lamination Lines and Continuous Casting Lines...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Continuous Lamination Lines and Continuous Casting Lines Complying With a Lbs/Ton Organic HAP Emissions Limit... Requirements for New and Existing Continuous Lamination Lines and Continuous Casting Lines Complying With a Lbs... with a lbs/ton organic HAP emissions limit for continuous lamination lines and continuous casting lines...

Evaluation of lymph node perfusion using continuous mode harmonic ultrasonography with a second-generation contrast agent.

Science.gov (United States)

Rubaltelli, Leopoldo; Khadivi, Yeganeh; Tregnaghi, Alberto; Stramare, Roberto; Ferro, Federica; Borsato, Simonetta; Fiocco, Ugo; Adami, Fausto; Rossi, Carlo Riccardo

2004-06-01

To evaluate the contribution of continuous mode contrast-enhanced harmonic ultrasonography (CE-HUS) with a second-generation contrast agent to the characterization of superficial lymphadenopathies with respect to conventional ultrasonographic techniques (B-mode and power Doppler). Fifty-six lymph nodes from 45 patients were studied both by conventional techniques and by CE-HUS. The dimensions, intranodal architecture, margins, and location of vessels were evaluated. Subsequently, all the lymph nodes were examined by CE-HUS, and enhancement of echogenicity was evaluated. The diagnoses obtained by means of fine-needle aspiration cytologic examination, surgical biopsy, or both were compared with those obtained by ultrasonography. Of the lymph nodes examined, 30 were benign and 26 were malignant (18 metastases and 8 non-Hodgkin lymphomas). The study using CE-HUS showed intense homogeneous enhancement in 28 of 30 reactive lymph nodes; perfusion defects in 17, of which 15 were neoplastic and 2 were inflammatory; intense but inhomogeneous speckled enhancement in the early arterial phase in 5 cases of lymphoma; and, last, scarce or absent intranodal enhancement in 4 metastases. The specificity, sensitivity, and accuracy of conventional techniques in differentiation between benign and malignant lymph nodes were 76%, 80%, and 78% versus 93%, 92%, and 92.8% for CE-HUS. The increase in correct diagnoses was significant (P = .05) when conventional ultrasonography was tested against CE-HUS. Superficial lymph nodes can be characterized as being neoplastic or benign with a high degree of diagnostic accuracy on the basis of the perfusion characteristics evaluated by CE-HUS. This technique has been shown to afford a higher degree of accuracy than currently obtainable by any other ultrasonographic technique.

Condensation Enhancement by Surface Porosity: Three-Stage Mechanism.

Science.gov (United States)

Yarom, Michal; Marmur, Abraham

2015-08-18

Surface defects, such as pores, cracks, and scratches, are naturally occurring and commonly found on solid surfaces. However, the mechanism by which such imperfections promote condensation has not been fully explored. In the current paper we thermodynamically analyze the ability of surface porosity to enhance condensation on a hydrophilic solid. We show that the presence of a surface-embedded pore brings about three distinct stages of condensation. The first is capillary condensation inside the pore until it is full. This provides an ideal hydrophilic surface for continuing the condensation. As a result, spontaneous condensation and wetting can be achieved at lower vapor pressure than on a smooth surface.

Continuous supersonic plasma wind tunnel

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, S.A.; Jensen, Vagn Orla; Nielsen, P.

1968-01-01

The B field configuration of a Q-device has been modified into a magnetic Laval nozzle. Continuous supersonic plasma flow is observed with M≈3......The B field configuration of a Q-device has been modified into a magnetic Laval nozzle. Continuous supersonic plasma flow is observed with M≈3...

Some continual integrals from gaussian forms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazmanishvili, A.S.

1985-01-01

The result summary of continual integration of gaussian functional type is given. The summary contains 124 continual integrals which are the mathematical expectation of the corresponding gaussian form by the continuum of random trajectories of four types: real-valued Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process, Wiener process, complex-valued Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process and the stochastic harmonic one. The summary includes both the known continual integrals and the unpublished before integrals. Mathematical results of the continual integration carried in the work may be applied in the problem of the theory of stochastic process, approaching to the finding of mean from gaussian forms by measures generated by the pointed stochastic processes

Hanford year 2000 Business Continuity Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

ROGGENKAMP, S.L.

1999-11-01

The goal of Department of Energy Richland Operations (DOE-RL) Year 2000 (Y2K) effort is to ensure that the Hanford site successfully continues its mission as we approach and enter the 21th century. The Y2K Business Continuity Planning process provides a structured approach to identify Y2K risks to the site and to mitigate these risks through Y2K Contingency Planning, ''Zero-Day'' Transition Planning and Emergency Preparedness. This document defines the responsibilities, processes and plans for Hanford's Y2K Business Continuity. It identifies proposed business continuity drills, tentative schedule and milestones.

Design and construction of a vertical hydroponic system with semi-continuous and continuous nutrient cycling

Science.gov (United States)

Siswanto, Dian; Widoretno, Wahyu

2017-11-01

Problems due to the increase in agricultural land use change can be solved by hydroponic system applications. Many hydroponic studies have been conducted in several countries while their applications in Indonesia requires modification and adjustment. This research was conducted to design and construct a hydroponic system with semi-continuous and continuous nutrition systems. The hydroponic system which was used adapts the ebb and flow system, and the nutrient film technique (NFT). This hydroponic system was made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes with a length of 197 cm, a diameter of 16 cm, and a slope of 4°. It was constructed from four PVC pipes. In semi-continuous irrigation treatment, nutrients flow four to six times for each of ten minutes depending on plant development and the estimated evapotranspiration occurring, while in a continuous nutrient system the nutrients are streamed for twenty-four hours without stopping at a maximum flow rate of 13.7 L per second.

Continuous venovenous haemodialysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Dorte Møller; Bistrup, C; Pedersen, R S

1996-01-01

A simple three-pump-based system for the performance of continuous venovenous haemodialysis is described. The method employs access to the circulation via a double-lumen catheter, and by means of a standard extracorporeal peristaltic pump the blood is circulated through a haemofiltration filter....... Standard solutions for peritoneal dialysis are administered in a single-pass manner countercurrent to the blood flow. To control the dialysate flow through the filter, two separate pumps designed for intravenous infusion are used. Anticoagulation is achieved by means of continuous heparin infusion....... This three-pump system is effective in controlling the fluid balance and the level of azotemia. Furthermore, this system makes haemodialysis possible in spite of severe haemodynamic instability. The system is easy to use and inexpensive. 3 patients participated in the study....

Voltage stability, bifurcation parameters and continuation methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Alvarado, F L [Wisconsin Univ., Madison, WI (United States)

1994-12-31

This paper considers the importance of the choice of bifurcation parameter in the determination of the voltage stability limit and the maximum power load ability of a system. When the bifurcation parameter is power demand, the two limits are equivalent. However, when other types of load models and bifurcation parameters are considered, the two concepts differ. The continuation method is considered as a method for determination of voltage stability margins. Three variants of the continuation method are described: the continuation parameter is the bifurcation parameter the continuation parameter is initially the bifurcation parameter, but is free to change, and the continuation parameter is a new `arc length` parameter. Implementations of voltage stability software using continuation methods are described. (author) 23 refs., 9 figs.

Continual integral in perturbation theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slavnov, A.A.

1975-01-01

It is shown that all results obtained by means of continual integration within the framework of perturbation theory are completely equivalent to those obtained by the usual diagram technique and are therfore just as rigorous. A rigorous justification is given for the rules for operating with continual integrals in perturbation theory. (author)

Operating considerations of ultrafiltration in enzyme enhanced carbon capture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Deslauriers, Maria Gundersen; Gladis, Arne; Fosbøl, Philip Loldrup

2017-01-01

capture capacity of 1 MTonn CO2/year, and is here operated for one year continuously. This publication compares soluble enzymes dissolved in a capture solvent with and without the use of ultrafiltration membranes. The membranes used here have an enzyme retention of 90%, 99% and 99.9%. Enzyme retention......Today, enzyme enhanced carbon capture and storage (CCS) is gaining interest, since it can enable the use of energy efficient solvents, and thus potentially reduce the carbon footprint of CCS. However, a limitation of this technology is the high temperatures encountered in the stripper column, which...

Implementing Outcome Measures Within an Enhanced Palliative Care Day Care Model.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Kilonzo, Isae

2015-04-23

Specialist palliative care day care (SPDC) units provide an array of services to patients and their families and can increase continuity of care between inpatient and homecare settings. A multidisciplinary teamwork approach is emphasized, and different models of day care exist. Depending on the emphasis of care, the models can be social, medical, therapeutic, or mixed. We describe our experience of introducing an enhanced therapeutic specialist day care model and using both patient- and carer-rated tools to monitor patient outcomes.

Neurosarcoidosis--demonstration of meningeal disease by gadolinium enhanced magnetic resonance imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Khaw, K T; Manji, H; Britton, J; Schon, F

1991-01-01

Arriving at a firm diagnosis of neurosarcoidosis continues to pose serious problems, particularly when evidence of granulomatous disease outside the nervous system is lacking. The commonest mode of presentation of neurosarcoidosis is with cranial nerve palsies. Two cases of presumed neurosarcoidosis with cranial nerve palsies showed clear evidence of focal meningeal disease on gadolinium-DTPA enhanced MRI brain scans. Although not specific for sarcoidosis, this technique may be very useful in aiding the diagnosis in suspected cases. Images PMID:1880510

Introduction to Continuous Optimization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andreasson, Niclas; Evgrafov, Anton; Patriksson, Michael

optimal solutions for continuous optimization models. The main part of the mathematical material therefore concerns the analysis and linear algebra that underlie the workings of convexity and duality, and necessary/sufficient local/global optimality conditions for continuous optimization problems. Natural...... algorithms are then developed from these optimality conditions, and their most important convergence characteristics are analyzed. The book answers many more questions of the form “Why?” and “Why not?” than “How?”. We use only elementary mathematics in the development of the book, yet are rigorous throughout...

Continuing Medical Education

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Continuing Medical Education. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 25, No 9 (2007) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

Trieste will continue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1968-01-01

Trieste will continue to be the home of the International Centre for Theoretical Physics for the foreseeable future. An agreement signed in Vienna during December between the Italian Government and the Agency brought this assurance. (author)

Applying andragogy in nursing continuing education.

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, B B

1989-01-01

Andragogy, a philosophical orientation for adult education, receives little attention in the nursing continuing education literature. Yet, the tenets of andragogy form the organizing framework for programming. This article defines andragogy and provides selected results of a research study designed to test andragogical concepts in long-term oncology nursing continuing education programs. The results of the study suggest a new way of viewing the goals of nursing continuing education activities.

Continuous quality improvement: a shared governance model that maximizes agent-specific knowledge.

Science.gov (United States)

Burkoski, Vanessa; Yoon, Jennifer

2013-01-01

Motivate, Innovate, Celebrate: an innovative shared governance model through the establishment of continuous quality improvement (CQI) councils was implemented across the London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC). The model leverages agent-specific knowledge at the point of care and provides a structure aimed at building human resources capacity and sustaining enhancements to quality and safe care delivery. Interprofessional and cross-functional teams work through the CQI councils to identify, formulate, execute and evaluate CQI initiatives. In addition to a structure that facilitates collaboration, accountability and ownership, a corporate CQI Steering Committee provides the forum for scaling up and spreading this model. Point-of-care staff, clinical management and educators were trained in LEAN methodology and patient experience-based design to ensure sufficient knowledge and resources to support the implementation.

A spinner-integrated wind lidar for enhanced wind turbine control

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkelsen, Torben; Angelou, Nikolas; Hansen, Kasper Hjorth

2013-01-01

A field test with a continuous wave wind lidar (ZephIR) installed in the rotating spinner of a wind turbine for unimpeded preview measurements of the upwind approaching wind conditions is described. The experimental setup with the wind lidar on the tip of the rotating spinner of a large 80 m roto...... of the spinner lidar data, is investigated. Finally, the potential for enhancing turbine control and performance based on wind lidar preview measurements in combination with feed-forward enabled turbine controllers is discussed. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd....

Analytic continuation of dual Feynman amplitudes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bleher, P.M.

1981-01-01

A notion of dual Feynman amplitude is introduced and a theorem on the existence of analytic continuation of this amplitude from the convergence domain to the whole complex is proved. The case under consideration corresponds to massless power propagators and the analytic continuation is constructed on the propagators powers. Analytic continuation poles and singular set of external impulses are found explicitly. The proof of the theorem on the existence of analytic continuation is based on the introduction of α-representation for dual Feynman amplitudes. In proving, the so-called ''trees formula'' and ''trees-with-cycles formula'' are established that are dual by formulation to the trees and 2-trees formulae for usual Feynman amplitudes. (Auth.)

Continuous measurements of mandibular cortical width on dental panoramic radiographs for computer-aided diagnosis of osteoporosis

Science.gov (United States)

Kavitha, M. S.; Asano, Akira; Taguchi, Akira

2011-03-01

The aim of this study is to develop a computer-aided osteoporosis diagnosis system that automatically determines the inferior cortical width of the mandible continuously on dental panoramic radiographs to realize statistically more robust measurements than the conventional one-point measurements. The cortical width was continuously measured on dental panoramic radiographs by enhancing the original image, determining cortical boundaries, and finally evaluating the distance between boundaries continuously throughout the region of interest. The diagnostic performance using the average width calculated from the continuous measurement was compared with BMD at lumbar spine and femoral neck in 100 postmenopausal women of whom 50 to the development of the tool and 50 to its validation with no history of osteoporosis was evaluated. We experimentally showed the superiority of our method with improved sensitivity and specificity of identifying the development subjects were 90.0% and 75.0% in women with low spinal BMD and 81.8% and 69.2% in those with low femoral BMD, respectively. The corresponding values in the validation subjects were 93.3% and 82.9% at the lumbar spine and 92.3% and 75.7% at the femoral neck, respectively in terms of efficacy for diagnosing osteoporosis. We also assessed the diagnosis and classification of women with osteoporosis using support vector machine employing the average and variance of the continuous measurements gave excellent discrimination ability. It yields sensitivity and specificity of 90.9% and 83.8%, respectively with lumbar spine and 90.0% and 69.1%, respectively with femoral neck BMD. Performance comparison and simplicity of this method indicate that our computeraided system is readily applicable to clinical practice.

Signaling on the continuous spectrum of nonlinear optical fiber.

Science.gov (United States)

Tavakkolnia, Iman; Safari, Majid

2017-08-07

This paper studies different signaling techniques on the continuous spectrum (CS) of nonlinear optical fiber defined by nonlinear Fourier transform. Three different signaling techniques are proposed and analyzed based on the statistics of the noise added to CS after propagation along the nonlinear optical fiber. The proposed methods are compared in terms of error performance, distance reach, and complexity. Furthermore, the effect of chromatic dispersion on the data rate and noise in nonlinear spectral domain is investigated. It is demonstrated that, for a given sequence of CS symbols, an optimal bandwidth (or symbol rate) can be determined so that the temporal duration of the propagated signal at the end of the fiber is minimized. In effect, the required guard interval between the subsequently transmitted data packets in time is minimized and the effective data rate is significantly enhanced. Moreover, by selecting the proper signaling method and design criteria a distance reach of 7100 km is reported by only singling on CS at a rate of 9.6 Gbps.

Continuous Faraday measurement of spin precession without light shifts

Science.gov (United States)

Jasperse, M.; Kewming, M. Â. J.; Fischer, S. Â. N.; Pakkiam, P.; Anderson, R. Â. P.; Turner, L. Â. D.

2017-12-01

We describe a dispersive Faraday optical probe of atomic spin which performs a weak measurement of spin projection of a quantum gas continuously for more than one second. To date, focusing bright far-off-resonance probes onto quantum gases has proved invasive due to strong scalar and vector light shifts exerting dipole and Stern-Gerlach forces. We show that tuning the probe near the magic-zero wavelength at 790 nm between the fine-structure doublet of 87Rb cancels the scalar light shift, and careful control of polarization eliminates the vector light shift. Faraday rotations due to each fine-structure line reinforce at this wavelength, enhancing the signal-to-noise ratio for a fixed rate of probe-induced decoherence. Using this minimally invasive spin probe, we perform microscale atomic magnetometry at high temporal resolution. Spectrogram analysis of the Larmor precession signal of a single spinor Bose-Einstein condensate measures a time-varying magnetic field strength with 1 μ G accuracy every 5 ms; or, equivalently, makes more than 200 successive measurements each at 10 pT /√{Hz } sensitivity.

Realistic continuous-variable quantum teleportation with non-Gaussian resources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dell'Anno, F.; De Siena, S.; Illuminati, F.

2010-01-01

We present a comprehensive investigation of nonideal continuous-variable quantum teleportation implemented with entangled non-Gaussian resources. We discuss in a unified framework the main decoherence mechanisms, including imperfect Bell measurements and propagation of optical fields in lossy fibers, applying the formalism of the characteristic function. By exploiting appropriate displacement strategies, we compute analytically the success probability of teleportation for input coherent states and two classes of non-Gaussian entangled resources: two-mode squeezed Bell-like states (that include as particular cases photon-added and photon-subtracted de-Gaussified states), and two-mode squeezed catlike states. We discuss the optimization procedure on the free parameters of the non-Gaussian resources at fixed values of the squeezing and of the experimental quantities determining the inefficiencies of the nonideal protocol. It is found that non-Gaussian resources enhance significantly the efficiency of teleportation and are more robust against decoherence than the corresponding Gaussian ones. Partial information on the alphabet of input states allows further significant improvement in the performance of the nonideal teleportation protocol.

Continuous fractional distillation of petroleum

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1921-11-05

This invention has for its object a process of distillation, fractional, and continuous, of shale oil, tar, etc., characterized by the vapors leaving the evaporation chamber being forced, before condensation, to go over a continuous circuit. The vapors traverse first a preheater then return to the vaporization chamber in which they are passed along large surfaces and by application of the counter-current principle in contact with the liquid to be distilled. They stream through the chamber in a continuous manner (the quantity of vapor emitted in the circuit being determined in a manner to advance the distillation just to completion); the excess of vapor formed being removed from the circuit and sent to a condensing apparatus for fractionation.

Baseline budgeting for continuous improvement.

Science.gov (United States)

Kilty, G L

1999-05-01

This article is designed to introduce the techniques used to convert traditionally maintained department budgets to baseline budgets. This entails identifying key activities, evaluating for value-added, and implementing continuous improvement opportunities. Baseline Budgeting for Continuous Improvement was created as a result of a newly named company president's request to implement zero-based budgeting. The president was frustrated with the mind-set of the organization, namely, "Next year's budget should be 10 to 15 percent more than this year's spending." Zero-based budgeting was not the answer, but combining the principles of activity-based costing and the Just-in-Time philosophy of eliminating waste and continuous improvement did provide a solution to the problem.

Analysis of fatigue resistance of continuous and non-continuous welded rectangular frame intersections by finite element method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McCoy, M. L.; Moradi, R.; Lankarani, H. M.

2011-01-01

Agricultural and construction equipment are commonly implemented with rectangular tubing in their structural frame designs. A typical joining method to fabricate these frames is by welding and the use of ancillary structural plating at the connections. This aids two continuous members to pass through an intersection point of the frame with some degree of connectivity, but the connections are highly unbalanced as the tubing centroids exhibit asymmetry. Due to the practice of welded continuous member frame intersections in current agricultural equipment designs, a conviction may exist that welded continuous member frames are superior in structural strength over that of structural frame intersections implementing welded non-continuous members where the tubing centroids lie within two planes of symmetry, a connection design that would likely fabricating a more fatigue resistant structural frame. Three types of welded continuous tubing frame intersections currently observed in the designs of agricultural equipment were compared to two non-continuous frame intersection designs. Each design was subjected to the same loading condition and then examined for stress levels using the Finite Element Method to predict fatigue life. Results demonstrated that a lighter weight, non-continuous member frame intersection design was two magnitudes superior in fatigue resistance than some current implemented frame designs when using Stress-Life fatigue prediction methods and empirical fatigue strengths for fillet welds. Stress-Life predictions were also made using theoretical fatigue strength calculations for the fatigue strength at the welds for comparison to the empirical derived weld fatigue strength

Marketing Continuing Education: A Study of Price Strategies. Occasional Papers in Continuing Education, No. 11.

Science.gov (United States)

Lamoureux, Marvin E.

The objective of the study conducted at the Centre for Continuing Education (CCE) at the University of British Columbia was to determine that threshold pricing not only existed for continuing education courses, but also was applicable to an administrative decision-making structure. The first part of the three-part investigation analyzed consumer…

Dynamic modeling method for infrared smoke based on enhanced discrete phase model

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Zhendong; Yang, Chunling; Zhang, Yan; Zhu, Hongbo

2018-03-01

The dynamic modeling of infrared (IR) smoke plays an important role in IR scene simulation systems and its accuracy directly influences the system veracity. However, current IR smoke models cannot provide high veracity, because certain physical characteristics are frequently ignored in fluid simulation; simplifying the discrete phase as a continuous phase and ignoring the IR decoy missile-body spinning. To address this defect, this paper proposes a dynamic modeling method for IR smoke, based on an enhanced discrete phase model (DPM). A mathematical simulation model based on an enhanced DPM is built and a dynamic computing fluid mesh is generated. The dynamic model of IR smoke is then established using an extended equivalent-blackbody-molecule model. Experiments demonstrate that this model realizes a dynamic method for modeling IR smoke with higher veracity.

Continuous droplet removal upon dropwise condensation of humid air on a hydrophobic micropatterned surface.

Science.gov (United States)

Zamuruyev, Konstantin O; Bardaweel, Hamzeh K; Carron, Christopher J; Kenyon, Nicholas J; Brand, Oliver; Delplanque, Jean-Pierre; Davis, Cristina E

2014-08-26

Combination of two physical phenomena, capillary pressure gradient and wettability gradient, allows a simple two-step fabrication process that yields a reliable hydrophobic self-cleaning condenser surface. The surface is fabricated with specific microscopic topography and further treatment with a chemically inert low-surface-energy material. This process does not require growth of nanofeatures (nanotubes) or hydrophilic-hydrophobic patterning of the surface. Trapezoidal geometry of the microfeatures facilitates droplet transfer from the Wenzel to the Cassie state and reduces droplet critical diameter. The geometry of the micropatterns enhances local coalescence and directional movement for droplets with diameter much smaller than the radial length of the micropatterns. The hydrophobic self-cleaning micropatterned condenser surface prevents liquid film formation and promotes continuous dropwise condensation cycle. Upon dropwise condensation, droplets follow a designed wettability gradient created with micropatterns from the most hydrophobic to the least hydrophobic end of the surface. The surface has higher condensation efficiency, due to its directional self-cleaning property, than a plain hydrophobic surface. We explain the self-actuated droplet collection mechanism on the condenser surface and demonstrate experimentally the creation of an effective wettability gradient over a 6 mm radial distance. In spite of its fabrication simplicity, the fabricated surface demonstrates self-cleaning property, enhanced condensation performance, and reliability over time. Our work enables creation of a hydrophobic condenser surface with the directional self-cleaning property that can be used for collection of biological (chemical, environmental) aerosol samples or for condensation enhancement.

Continuous reduction of tellurite to recoverable tellurium nanoparticles using an upflow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) reactor.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramos-Ruiz, Adriana; Sesma-Martin, Juan; Sierra-Alvarez, Reyes; Field, Jim A

2017-01-01

According to the U.S. Department of Energy and the European Union, tellurium is a critical element needed for energy and defense technology. Thus methods are needed to recover tellurium from waste streams. The objectives of this study was to determine the feasibility of utilizing upflow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) reactors to convert toxic tellurite (Te IV ) oxyanions to non-toxic insoluble elemental tellurium (Te 0 ) nanoparticles (NP) that are amendable to separation from aqueous effluents. The reactors were supplied with ethanol as the electron donating substrate to promote the biological reduction of Te IV . One reactor was additionally amended with the redox mediating flavonoid compound, riboflavin (RF), with the goal of enhancing the bioreduction of Te IV . Its performance was compared to a control reactor lacking RF. The continuous formation of Te 0 NPs using the UASB reactors was found to be feasible and remarkably improved by the addition of RF. The presence of this flavonoid was previously shown to enhance the conversion rate of Te IV by approximately 11-fold. In this study, we demonstrated that this was associated with the added benefit of reducing the toxic impact of Te IV towards the methanogenic consortium in the UASB and thus enabled a 4.7-fold higher conversion rate of the chemical oxygen demand. Taken as a whole, this work demonstrates the potential of a methanogenic granular sludge to be applied as a bioreactor technology producing recoverable Te 0 NPs in a continuous fashion. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Gd-enhanced MR imaging of the herniated lumbar disc: patterns of enhancement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kwag, Hyon Joo; Choi, Hye Young; Kim, Hyae Young; Kim, Yoo Kyung; Kim, Ah Young; Chung, Eun Chul

1995-01-01

The purpose of this study is to describe the patterns of enhancement of the herniated lumbar disc with Gd-DTPA enhanced MR imaging. Out of 65 patients, 103 lumbar discs diagnosed to be herniated by MR image were retrospectively analyzed. The MR imaging was performed with 1.5 T MR unit, using T1-and T2-weighted sagittal and axial spin echo techniques. Contrast-enhanced T1 weighted sagittal and axial images were performed after intravenous injection of Gadopentetate-dimeglumine(Magnevist, Shering) (0.1 mmol/kg). Contrast enhancement was seen in 66 cases(64%). Thirteen cases of bulging disc were not enhanced. Twenty-eight cases of protruded disc showed intraannular enchantment in 23 cases, peripheral linear and irregular enhancement in each of one case, and nonenhancement in three cases. Fifty-seven cases of extruded disc showed irregular enhancement in 14 cases, peripheral linear enhancement in 12 cases, peripheral ring enhancement in five cases and intraannular enhancement in five cases. All five cases of sequestered disc showed peripheral ring enhancement. Protruded discs show intraannular enhancement frequently and sequestered discs usually show peripheral ring enhancement. Enhanced MR imaging may be helpful to evaluate the type of herniated lumbar disc and relationship among disc material, nerve root and thecal sac

Self-enhancement learning: target-creating learning and its application to self-organizing maps.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamimura, Ryotaro

2011-05-01

In this article, we propose a new learning method called "self-enhancement learning." In this method, targets for learning are not given from the outside, but they can be spontaneously created within a neural network. To realize the method, we consider a neural network with two different states, namely, an enhanced and a relaxed state. The enhanced state is one in which the network responds very selectively to input patterns, while in the relaxed state, the network responds almost equally to input patterns. The gap between the two states can be reduced by minimizing the Kullback-Leibler divergence between the two states with free energy. To demonstrate the effectiveness of this method, we applied self-enhancement learning to the self-organizing maps, or SOM, in which lateral interactions were added to an enhanced state. We applied the method to the well-known Iris, wine, housing and cancer machine learning database problems. In addition, we applied the method to real-life data, a student survey. Experimental results showed that the U-matrices obtained were similar to those produced by the conventional SOM. Class boundaries were made clearer in the housing and cancer data. For all the data, except for the cancer data, better performance could be obtained in terms of quantitative and topological errors. In addition, we could see that the trustworthiness and continuity, referring to the quality of neighborhood preservation, could be improved by the self-enhancement learning. Finally, we used modern dimensionality reduction methods and compared their results with those obtained by the self-enhancement learning. The results obtained by the self-enhancement were not superior to but comparable with those obtained by the modern dimensionality reduction methods.

Evaluating the online platform of a blended-learning pharmacist continuing education degree program

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kerry Wilbur

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Background: Distance-based continuing education opportunities are increasingly embraced by health professionals worldwide. Methods: To evaluate the online component of a blended-learning degree program for pharmacists, we conducted a structured self-assessment and peer review using an instrument systematically devised according to Moore's principles of transactional distance. The web-based platform for 14 courses was reviewed by both local and external faculty, followed by shared reflection of individual and aggregate results. Results: Findings indicated a number of course elements for modification to enhance the structure, dialog, and autonomy of the student learning experience. Conclusion: Our process was an important exercise in quality assurance and is worthwhile for other health disciplines developing and delivering distance-based content to pursue.

Continuity of operations/continuity of government for state-level transportation organizations.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-01

The Homeland Security Presidential Directive 20 (HSPD-20) requires all local, state, tribal and territorial government agencies, : and private sector owners of critical infrastructure and key resources (CI/KR) to create a Continuity of Operations/Con...

Replicating the EnhanceFitness physical activity program in Hawai`i's multicultural population, 2007-2010.

Science.gov (United States)

Tomioka, Michiyo; Sugihara, Naomi; Braun, Kathryn L

2012-01-01

Despite evidence of the benefits of regular physical activity, many older adults are not physically active. Health professionals are challenged to replicate evidence-based programs to address low levels of physical activity among members of their communities. EnhanceFitness is an evidence-based group exercise program developed in Seattle to increase the strength, flexibility, and balance of older adults. Hawai`i's Healthy Aging Partnership supported the rural island of Kaua`i to select, adapt, implement, and evaluate EnhanceFitness to increase physical activity among older adult residents (75% Asian/Pacific Islander [API]). Evaluation measures of the replication of EnhanceFitness included fidelity of EnhanceFitness delivery and participants' attendance, satisfaction with the program, confidence to exercise regularly, and pre-post fitness check measures of physical performance (chair stands, arm curls, and the up-and-go test). Between July 2007 and December 2010, 223 Kaua`i residents enrolled in EnhanceFitness; 178 (80%) participated at least 4 months and completed the 4-month fitness checks. EnhanceFitness classes were offered with a high degree of fidelity, and both API and white participants significantly improved their physical performance (chair stands, t = -11.06, P program and instructors and high confidence to continue to exercise regularly. EnhanceFitness is replicable in Hawai`i and increased physical performance among API and white older adults. This case study outlines a replication process that other communities can follow.

A study on the continuing education of radiologic technologists: Focused on current status and satisfaction of continuing education

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Min, Hye Lim; Choi, In Seok; Nam, So Ra; Kim, Hyun Ji; Yoon, Yong Su; Her, Jae; Han, Seong Gyu; Kim, Jung Min; Ahn, Duck Sun

2014-01-01

In this study, we surveyed the current status, satisfaction and demand of radiologic technologist continuing education for 93 radiologic technologists who participated in the continuing education. To understand the current status and general evaluation and to find out the improvement direction, survey was conducted on 3 categories: participation, satisfaction and demand of continuing education. In addition, we analyzed the continuing education implementation status and the management system by collecting related regulations. As a result, the education completion rates of radiologic technologists from 2010 to 2012 were respectively 42.6%, 43.4% and 34.2%; the rates were similar to other medical technician’s average education completion rates. According to the survey, in case of participation, the most frequent answer was ‘more than five times less than 10 times per year’ with 48.4% and in satisfaction section, the most common answer was ‘Average(3)’ with 34.4%. In demand of continuing education section, 32.8% of the respondents chose ‘Clinical skill training in major field’. In the results of this research, continuing education needs to be managed in the direction of helping radiologists improve their personal ability and self development. Furthermore, to meet the demand of radiologists, the quality of continuing education should be improved to satisfy the educatee